The Academy
Programmes we offer at Comeragh Wilderness Academy Waterford | Dublin | Ireland
Behavioural issues are just a symptom of a deeper problem
We believe that a child’s behaviour is influenced by his attitudes and that his attitudes are shaped by his values. In order to realise lasting change with a troubled boy, we must do more than control his negative behaviour.
At Comeragh Wilderness Academy we avoid the "reward and punishment" philosophy used in popular behaviour modification programmes. In addressing behaviour, we focus on the attitudes and values that lie beneath his problems.
Effectively meeting a boy’s needs must involve every part of his life, including the physical, emotional, and spiritual realms. For this reason, spiritual values are intrinsically woven into the fabric of daily wilderness camp living and are reinforced by our staff as they model the teachings of Jesus Christ. They are displayed in the simplest ways – the love and understanding of a tutor, the forgiveness of one boy to another, and the helpfulness of a friend.
The Campsite
Home away from home
At the academy, students live in wooded campsites consisting of ten tent-like structures. Each tent in a campsite serves a specific purpose - one tent is for cooking, another for dining, and others for sleeping. Well-groomed trails connect all campsite structures, giving it the appearance of a small village. The tents are built with a pole frame, a vinyl tarp roof, vinyl walls, a plywood floor, and a wood stove for heating. Students participate in all stages of campsite construction including tent design, construction, and trail maintenance.
Academy Routines
Developing Good Habits
A group’s normal day includes activities such as routine cleaning chores, cutting firewood for cooking and heating, playing group games, and campfire cooking. The group does the work required to provide the basic needs of food, clothing, and shelter in the camp setting. Every student learns to make his bed, fold his clothing, and keep his living space clean and orderly. Campsite cleaning chores are part of the daily camping schedule. Good hygiene is emphasized in daily bathing and regular tooth brushing. Students participate in planning and cooking campfire meals twice a week. The daily camping routines are designed to teach not only camping skills, but also essential life skills such as planning, teamwork and personal responsibility.
Wilderness Trips
Wilderness Adventures in Teamwork and Learning
Several times a year, groups participate in wilderness trips geared toward developing camping skills, building group teamwork, or learning about an academic theme. These trips include canoeing, backpacking, or road tours. The duration of the trip may be from one day to three weeks, depending on the purpose of the trip and the ability of the group to carry out the trip responsibility.
These are exciting adventures that provide rich learning opportunities at every turn. The trips are planned and happen under the 24/7 supervision and guidance of each group’s dedicated tutors.
Group Living
"Train up a child in the way he should go: And when he is old, he will not depart from it." – Proverbs 22:6
Group structure
Group structure
Students live in groups of up to ten boys under the supervision of two tutors in the academy programme. A group consists of boys in the same general age level, but with varying backgrounds and different types of problems.
This diversity adds strength to the group work process and reflects the reality of living in a normal community. We aim to maintain groups of four to five members who have stabilised and are able to provide accountability, cohesion, and a positive influence to the rest of the group.
Group living plays a major role in helping a boy achieve lasting change. Throughout everyday situations, a boy’s behaviour is mirrored in the eyes of his peers. In this way, the group helps a boy to recognise his problems and provides a caring environment in which to address them.
Problem Solving
Problem Solving
One of the primary goals of Comeragh Wilderness Academy is to provide an atmosphere where problems can be solved. The groups will cease whatever activity – working, eating, or playing – to huddle up and address a student’s inappropriate behaviour or negative attitude. The tutors guide the students in identifying the problem and then finding a satisfactory way to resolve it. This method of dealing with a boy’s negative behaviour provides a meaningful lesson to the boy in trouble, as well as the rest of the group.
In addition, he acquires a problem-solving technique, and a set of values that will serve him well for the rest of his life. As a boy sees his peers courageously dealing with their own problems, he begins to feel hope and inspiration for himself.
Mentoring
Mentoring
The tutors, called "Chiefs", are responsible for direct care and provide the key to meeting the emotional needs of a student. Because the chiefs live with the boys twenty-four hours a day and join them in all their daily routines, they become keenly aware of the individual needs of each student.
Their dedication and care provide a secure atmosphere where healing relationships can occur. Building this relationship is not centred around a boy’s negative behaviour. Rather it is achieved through action – helping a boy make his bed, exploring the creek, constructing a new trail, paddling a canoe – which helps him move toward personal accomplishment.
Education
"Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed" – Maria Montessori
Learning By Doing
Learning By Doing
Our wilderness camping programme provides an educational experience that is definitely unique.
Because most troubled boys have difficulty learning in the traditional classroom setting, academy education is approached in an informal, hands-on way. Learning is not confined to a classroom, but is an all-day, everyday experience.
Academics are built into daily routines and activities. Each student is taught to use practical mathematics in the designing and construction of tents. Weekly meal planning and cooking provides opportunity to learn about nutrition, budgeting, and home economics. Each week, students visit the Market, the academy store where they learn accounting and responsible budgeting. When the group plans the weekly schedule, a boy is required to cooperate creatively with others and put his thoughts into words on paper.
Individual Study
Individual Study
Once a student is settled into the academy and has mastered basic academy routines, he is given educational assignments based on his individual level. Tutoring is provided to students who may have difficulty in certain subjects.
In all of academy learning, there is an emphasis placed on writing. All the writing a boy does at the academy – articles, journals, tent designs, daily plans, poetry, drawings - is compiled into a portfolio that becomes his own when he graduates.
Back To School
Back To School
Our academic program aims at preparing a boy to return to a conventional school setting. Upon completing the programme, academy staff help the boy and his family create a smooth transition to the standard educational environment.
Achievement testing is used to determine the academic progress of each student during the enrolment period and aids us in placing the boy in the appropriate academic setting after graduation.
Family Involvement
"Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel." – Socrates
No stone unturned
We believe that financial concerns should never stand in the way of a child’s education and growth, especially considering the unique benefits our boarding school programme offers. If you’re worried about the costs and still want to enrol your child, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We have financial assistance programmes available to ensure that our programme is available to every family that needs it irrespective of financial means.
We’re always happy to discuss the different support options we have, making sure that finances don’t prevent your child from accessing this valuable opportunity for his personal and academic development.
Partnering With Parents
Partnering With Parents
At Comeragh Wilderness Academy, we place a high priority on reintegrating boys back into their homes and communities. For this reason, we make every effort to work closely with each family.
Our family workers keep in contact with the parents and meet with them regularly in their home. These meetings facilitate discussion concerning the boy’s progress in the academy, his specific areas of struggle, and how the family can support their son’s progress.
The boy’s family is also required to participate in periodic evaluation conferences held on campus. These meetings engage the tutors, the boy, and his parents in a candid but caring dialogue regarding the student’s problems and progress.
Home Visits
Home Visits
The students return to their homes and families for a visit every six weeks. This five-day visit is carefully planned and monitored by academy staff and the parents. The home visit gives students an opportunity to apply what they are learning at the academy to their home setting and gives academy staff an effective way to measure the boy’s progress.
In this way, the home visits are an integral part of the therapeutic process.
When a boy completes the academy programme, our family workers take an active role to ensure that the boy has a good transition back into the home and school. They also assist with any problems during this transition and are available for consultation as needed.
"By knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches." – Proverbs 24:4
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