This interactive workshop will discuss providing ‘risk taking’ activities for people with disabilities. Current programs will be highlighted and personal experiences shared. Current literature and research will be discussed. At the completion of the session attendees will: Understand the importance of including risk elements in recreation and leisure. Learn how to shift from being ‘risk adverse’ to ‘risk aware’. Be able to apply the adventure experience paradigm to their current programming. Discuss the therapeutic value of Adventure based programming
2. About me…..
• Recreation Therapist
• Part time faculty at Fleming College
• Worked in many different settings
• Junior Ranger
• Camp Courageous of Iowa
3. Adventure Experience
Paradigm
• Exploration and Experimentation
• Risk low, competence high
• Adventure
• Competence only slightly higher than risk
• Peak Adventure
• Competence = risk
• Misadventure
• Risk slightly higher than competence
• Devastation and disaster
• Competence is low and risk is high
4. Key Concepts
• Adventure engages the whole person
• Adventure happens in novel settings
• Risks Hazards
• Activities that have uncertain outcomes
• Cooperative Environment
• Unique problem solving
• Feelings of accomplishment
• Processing the experience
5. • Self-perception
• We build this from our experiences, what we do
we believe
• Adventures- deemphasizes the need for language
skills, more ‘lived experience’.
• Self-efficacy
• One’s belief they are capable of success, view
themselves in a positive way, increases
motivation
• Important for generalizations- switching the ‘I
can’t do that’ to ‘I can’
Why Adventure and Risk?
13. Influences on risk perception
•Media
•Past experience
•Values
•Locus of control
•Relationship to person
14. Tracy Schmitt
• Tracy was born a 4 way amputee
• Bronze medalist as a Paralympian athlete in alpine
[that's downhill] skiing
• Paralympic Sailing Campaign for the 2016 Paralympic
Games in Rio, Brazil
16. Using Metaphoric Learning
• Spontaneous
Participant will take the experience
and apply on to their life on their own
• Analogous Transference
Facilitator will use debriefing and
questions to help participants apply to
their life
• Structured
Before and after the activities,
Facilitator sets the scene and learning
17. Adventure Experience
Paradigm
• Exploration and Experimentation
• Risk low, competence high
• Adventure
• Competence only slightly higher than risk
• Peak Adventure
• Competence = risk
• Misadventure
• Risk slightly higher than competence
• Devastation and disaster
• Competence is low and risk is high
18. How to provide risk
• Identify hazards (setting, equipment)
• Allow people to try, try and try again
• Adaptions (allow person to find their own)
• Skill development is a continuum
• Start small
• Finish BIG
19. Interesting Reading
• Talking about practice: Adventurous play—
Developing a culture of risky play (NQS PLP e-
Newsletter No.58 2013)
• Universal Adventure Programming: Opening Our
Programs to People With Physical Disabilities
(Journal of Leisurability, Volume 22 Number 2 Spring
1995)
20. What can you do now?
• Take a look at what you are doing?
• Ask! Formally (survey) or informally
(conversations)
• Think universal programming
• Evaluate your equipment or research
what’s available in your area
• Offer or try ONE new thing this month
Eventually in management
Junior Ranger- developed a comfort level with outdoors, challenges
Camp Courageous- timing is everything, I was young, I hadn’t had many experiences to make me think otherwise, I hadn’t had kids yet
1:50 - 5:35
Easter seals
Novel setting
Use adventure as Skill development
How do I know if I don’t try
Mitigate risk- lifejacket, instructors around
Heartbreaking for adults….. Watching failure, she could only help herself
People around who were willing to let her try again and again…..
If someone had intervened, protected her
Revisiting the paradigm, in your current role- think about