Springboard! Session 7: Survival Game

What is Springboard!? Click here.

Today’s learning outcomes: Participation, Creative Problem Solving, Examining Values, Leadership and Self-Assurance

Today’s Springboard! session is one of my favorites, but unfortunately I had to miss for personal reasons. Having done it before though, I can still explain the activity. Students and coaches are divided into two large groups and asked to assess the following hypothetical situation:

"You are on summer vacation with friends, the sun is shining, it’s hot and sunny and you are about to Tijuana, Mexico. You realize you’re on the wrong highway, so the driver decides to take a back road short cut to make up time and get back on track. After another hour, you’re really lost on a dirt road and the engine begins to smoke, the engine is on fire, but eventually smolders out under the hood. All you can see for miles is sand and sky and the temperature is soaring. You are lost in the desert with the following: a disabled car, a flash light, a pocket knife, a road map of the area, one plastic poncho, a large beach umbrella, 2 bottles of water per person, a small cooler with 2 leftover chicken sandwiches, a large bottle of sunscreen, one bottle of Bacardi 151, one suitcase per person with summer/beach clothes."

Next the group is given a list of actions to deal with the above situation; they must come to a mutual agreement about how to prioritize the actions. In random order they are:

-Use the pocket knife to cut pieces of cactus to chew for moisture.
-Send 2 group members to secure a source of water.
-Climb in the car and discuss long-term strategies.
-Use the plastic poncho and small cooler to make a water collector.
-Use the roadmap to hike out the way you came.
-Divide and eat the chicken sandwich.
-Set up the large umbrella to shade the car.
-Divide and ration the bottles of water.
-Begin signaling for help with the mirrors/ flashlight and headlights.
-Apply sunscreen to everyone.
-Drink the Bacardi.
-Use bright colored clothing to spell out SOS in huge letters.

If you’d really like to know the “correct” order, as dictated by outdoor/emergency experts, leave a comment. However, the real concern of Springboard! is identifying participation roles and assessing group dynamics.