2022 Smoky Mountains Adventure Pre-trip Information Presentation
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2022 Smoky MountainsAdventure Pre-trip Information Presentation
Where are we going?
Great Smoky Mountain Institute at Tremont
11 hour bus ride!
How to Pack: Suitcase
• Large duffle bag or rolling suitcase
• Please label all bags and belongings with your
student’s name and school.
• Students will need to be able to transport their
belongings to the dorm by themselves or with
the help of one friend.
• Pack the sleeping bag in the suitcase (if possible).
• If separate, sleeping bag will be kept with
student’s belongings. (Make sure it is labeled!)
How to Pack: Carry-On/For the Bus
Students will only have access to their carry-on items until they arrive at
Tremont at approximately noon (EST) Friday morning.
They will visit other parts of the park for breakfast & activities before arrival.
What to wear on the bus:
• Comfortable pants that can also be worn for morning activities.
• T-shirt and sweatshirt/fleece
• Hiking boots/shoes
What to pack: Backpack/Carry-On
• Pillow
• FULL Water bottle
• Books/Magazines
• Electronics (with charger and case)
• Snacks (in quart sized Ziploc bag)
• Coat, gloves, hat for morning hike
• Rain gear
• Layers are your friend!
• You can regulate comfort and temperature by slipping layers on & off as your
activity level or the weather changes.
• Each layer has a function.
1. Base layer (underwear/leggings layer): wicks sweat off your skin
2. Middle layer (insulating layer): retains body heat to protect you from the
cold ex. Fleece, down coat
3. Outer layer (shell layer): shields you from wind and rain
Information About Student Medication
If your student will require any prescription or over the counter medication during the trip,
it will be administered by the trip nurse in accordance with Rockwood’s Medication policy.
1. Per district policy, the nurse has permission to administer the following medications
WITHOUT a doctor’s note:
a. acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Advil), antacid (Tums)and Benadryl.
b. The nurse has a supply of these medications which can be administered if needed.
PLEASE DO NOT SEND THESE MEDICATIONS.
2. All other medication will need a doctor’s order (over the counter medication) or a
prescription label attached to the bottle, along with a parent’s signature on the
Request for Medication to be Given at School form.
3. Place all medication in a Ziploc bag marked with your student’s name and give to the
nurse at check-in.
4. Send only enough medication for the days your student will be gone.
5. If your student requires an asthma rescue inhaler or an Epi-Pen, please send two, if
possible. Your student will carry one with them and the nurse will keep the second as
backup. If only one inhaler/Epi-Pen is supplied, it will remain with your student for the
entire trip.
6. If your student has ever gotten motion sickness please consider having your doctor
prescribe medication (ex. Dramamine) for the bus ride.
Return of Student Medication • Empty bottles will be placed in your student’s bag prior to arrival back home. • The nurse will be stationed near the front of the bus line on Monday afternoon during arrival to return other medications. • Any medications not picked up on Monday will be returned to your student’s school nurse and will need to be picked up by a parent.
Electronics Policy
The time at Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont is focused on providing students with
a new and rare experience. They are encouraged to disconnect from the technological world
and interact with each other and the natural world in a direct manner, face to face. This time
also allows them the opportunity to build new friendships, learn about their surroundings
through hands on experience and quietly reflect.
• Students will not have access to electronics while at Tremont Institute. There is
no cell phone service in the National Park and there is no Wi-Fi available for student use.
• They are invited to bring electronics (phones/tablets, game consoles, kindles/e-readers
etc.) on the bus for entertainment during the ride to and from the Tremont Institute.
Students will leave these items on their bus which will be locked during their time at
Tremont. Please send wall charges for charging on the bus. Please provide a Ziploc bag
with their name on it, large enough to store all electronic devices/chargers etc.
• Digital or Disposable Cameras: Students who wish to take pictures during the trip are
encouraged to bring either a digital or disposable camera. They will not be allowed to
keep their phones and use them as a camera.
• Please label your camera!
• Students are encouraged to bring magazines, books and a journal as they will have
quiet time before bed to read and unwind.
Meal/Snack Information
website
• Email Chloe Kersten, Community Ed Inclusion Specialist, at
kerstenchloe@prcommunityed.org if your student has any new dietary needs!
Will my student need money? Gift Shop at Tremont: Each student will have a chance to visit the gift shop at Tremont Institute. We suggest sending a maximum of $70 in cash or on a pre-paid card. Shirts: $10-40, Walking Sticks: $15, Stuffed animals: $20, Stickers: $5, Hats: $15- 30 Disposable Cameras: $7-15 (Your student will finish the first one before they step off the bus!) Rest Stops: At some rest stops, students will be given an opportunity to purchase drinks at their own expense. Sick Policy Students who are unable to attend school the day of the trip due to illness will not be eligible to attend the trip. If this occurs, we will work with you regarding possible options, which could include having your student attend a different trip date or refunding part of the trip fee. Please call our office at 636-891-6644 for more information.
COVID-19 Policies
The health and safety of students and chaperones is our top priority. Great Smoky
Mountains Institute at Tremont, which is located in the Great Smoky Mountain National
Park is a federal facility and subject to federal mask mandates. See your packet for a
link to view their Covid-19 updates and policies.
While on the trips, students will be required to:
• Wear masks while inside except while eating and while sitting on their bunk. When
the weather is nice there is an outdoor eating option. Indoors, table spacing has
been expanded to a second room to allow additional space.
• Wear masks while at campfire due to the close quarters and loud singing/shouting.
• Wear masks on the buses.
• While outdoors, where most classes and activities take place, masks are optional.
Children who become ill during the trip will be checked for symptoms of COVID. Those
who are symptomatic will be given a COVID Antigen test and quarantined. Children
who become ill (regardless of COVID symptoms) will be quarantined and a
parent/guardian will be required to come to Tennessee to pick up the child. Students
who are ill cannot ride back on the bus and must be transported separately by a
parent/guardian. This is a requirement of attending the trip.
All COVID policies are subject to change.Trip Departure Locations Trip 1: March 3 - 7, 2022 (Ballwin, Fairway, Green Pines) Check-in begins 8:15 p.m. at Fairway Elementary Trip 2: March 10 - 14, 2022 (Ellisville, Kehrs Mill, Westridge) Check-in begins 8:15 p.m. at Kehrs Mill Elementary Trip 3: April 7 - 11, 2022 (Bowles, Kellison, Stanton, Uthoff Valley) Check-in begins 8:15 p.m. at Uthoff Elementary Trip 4: April 28 - May 2, 2022 (Babler, Chesterfield, Pond) Check-in begins 8:15 p.m. at Chesterfield Elementary Trip 5: May 12 - 16, 2022 (Blevins, Eureka, Geggie) Check-in begins 8:15 p.m. at Blevins Elementary Trip 6: May 19 - 23, 2022 (Ridge Meadows, Wild Horse, Woerther) Check-in begins 8:15 p.m. at Wild Horse Elementary
Day of Departure - Check in at 8:15 PM
Please leave all luggage in your vehicle during the check in
process!
Med Station T-Shirt
STOP
Check-in
Name Tags
STOP
Entry Door Exit DoorName Tags
Minnie
MouseBus Loading Procedures
Building
ENTER EXIT
Bus 1 Bus 2 Bus 3
1. Pick up luggage from your car.
2. Check in with the chaperone at your assigned bus.
3. Wave goodbye as you load the bus!
ONLY STUDENTS AND CHAPERONES ARE ALLOWED ON THE BUSThe Bus Ride After you check in: grab your luggage, head out to the buses, find your bus captain and load your luggage. Don’t forget to wave goodbye as you load the bus and find a seat! When the bus departs: (MASKS ON) • Students will hear the rules of the road and then watch a movie. • 1.5 hours later: We will stop at a rest stop in Mount Vernon, IL where we will change drivers and use the bathroom. • Snack • After the movie it’s lights out (electronics away) so everyone can sleep! • Rest stops are visited as needed throughout the night. • At 6 AM we stop at the Knoxville airport to pick up our emergency vehicle. • Around 7:30 am we stop at a park for breakfast & games! • At noon we will arrive at Tremont Institute! Students will choose their bunks, unpack and head to lunch! • Twitter will be utilized to update our location until lights out and then again in the morning when possible (due to available time and cell service limitations.)
During the Trip • Learn about what lives in the forest. • Investigate aquatic life and how we’re connected. • Discuss the land and how it is formed. • Hike, play, journal, discover solitude and more.
Communicating with Parents Website: www.prcommunityed.org Twitter: @PRTrekNTravel Instagram: @PRTrekNTravel Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/prtrekntravel Phone (emergencies only): • 636-891-6644 – Friday or Monday 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. • 314-675-0017 – Outside business hours or on weekends • Please do not contact Tremont directly.
Social Media • Twitter is our main form of communication while traveling and during our time at Tremont. • We will Tweet as often as time and phone service reception allow while traveling to keep you up to date on our location. On Monday, we will use Twitter to communicate our estimated time of arrival (ETA). • Tweeting is limited to connectivity and during our time in the Smoky Mountains National Park as there is no cell phone service. At Tremont, we rely solely on a Wi-Fi connection available at the central building. Although this connection is usually quite strong, problems with the connection can cause delays in posting of photos and updates. • There is typically a delay between breakfast and lunch during arrival due to signal access in the park while the Trip Lead manages the arrival process. • The best time for us to Tweet is right after meal times as students head to activities with their groups. • Remember your student’s group name (letter + number, ex. A2 or E1) and because this is how their groups will be identified on the Tweets.
Photo Album
A Facebook Photo Album will be created for every trip! You can visit the album to share and save photos.
Like us at Parkway-Rockwood Trek and Travel on Facebook.
We plan to post at least one picture of all of our students on the trip. However, this may take some
time. Please see the following information regarding our photo process.
A few things to remember when you wait anxiously for photos of your student…
• Chaperones are the ones responsible for taking photographs. We do not have a full time
photographer. We ask chaperones and students to document their experience AFTER the
lesson has been explained.
• It is our goal to provide photos of the experiences your students are having without
interfering in the experience itself.
• The First Priority of teachers and staff is your student's safety.
• We then ask them to co-teach and help your student to experience the lesson first hand.
• We also ask them to take care of themselves (stay safe, hydrated & involved)
• When all students are safe, interested and involved we also ask them to take pictures of
the experiences your student is participating in.
The process for posting pictures:
• Friday, Saturday and Sunday night around 9:30 p.m. (EST) cameras and photos are
collected, downloaded, edited and uploaded to Facebook. (We get a lot of photos and this
can take some time!)Monday Return • We expect the trip to return at approximately 6:00 pm. We will communicate via Twitter to give an ETA throughout the day. Due to weather, traffic and unforeseen circumstances, these times may change and vary between 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm. • Sign out: Parent Pick-up at Trip Return - When you arrive on Monday to pick your student up, we will have a designated parent pick up line for each bus. You will be required to sign your student out before they are released off the bus. • Pick up your meds - the nurse will be stationed at the first bus on Monday afternoon during arrival to return medications.
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