Create Your Own Blake Boles Director, Unschool Adventures LLC Unschool Adventures unschooladventures.com

UA 2008-2011 website UA 2011-current website Argentina 2008 6 weeks Australia 2010 7 weeks Leadership Retreats Spring & Fall 2010 3 weeks + 6 weeks Argentina, Chile, Peru 2011 6 weeks Argentina 2012 4 weeks New Zealand 2013 6 weeks Trailblazer 2013 1 week Writing Retreat 2009, ’11, ’12, ‘13 4 weeks 2014: Buenos Aires Tango, Nepal, Writing Retreat

Create Your Own Unschool Adventures

• Where to go

• Where to stay

• What to do

• How to get around

• Logistics

• Ground rules

• Upcoming programs How to Use This Information

• Inspire new family ideas

• Help your teen or Y.A. plan a trip

• Organize a trip for your homeschool group

• For your own travel Where to Go Where to Go

• Balance of safety, cost, natural beauty, and exoticness

• U.S. Dep’t of State

• LonelyPlanet.com

• BudgetYourTrip.com South America • Recent travel blogs map data courtesy CIA World Fact Book

500 km 0 • Google news + alerts 500 mi

• Trip leader experience 755 mi / 1220 km

1 inch

297 mi / 480 km 1 cm Europe Europa Data Courtesy CIA World Book

0 300 km

0 300 mi $ Canada United States $ 0 300 600 km 0 300 600 miles Africa Data Courtesy CIA World Book, Wikipedia

0 300 km

0 300 mi ? Where to Stay: Youth Hostels

• $5 - $25 / night

• Kitchen access

• Social; full of independent travelers

• Sometimes full of drunk or high people

• Fill an entire room

• Hostelbookers.com, book along the way Where to Stay: Family

• $20 - $40 / night, food included

• Cultural & language immersion

• Host siblings!

• Book through reputable language school Where to Stay: Rental Apartments

• $100 - $300 / night for entire group

• Privacy, quiet, security

• Great home base for longer visits

• Save $$ on food

• Book through HomeAway.com, .com, or reputable local agency Where to Stay: Camping

• Cheap or free!

• Shelters, backyards, or roughing it.

• Bathrooms are nice. What to Do What to Do: Volunteer

• Free, fun, meaningful

• Outdoor work: farms, ranches, vineyards

• “Teaching English”

• Not volun- ($$)

• HelpX.net, WWOOF.org, Idealist.org, Google What to Do: Learn a Language

• Formal: language schools & tutors

• Informal: “let’s go talk to people!” What to Do: Learn a Local Craft

• Dance

• Cooking

• Sport

Explore the Outdoors! What to Do: Work Alone, Together

• Use travel to stimulate creativity: writing, art, business planning

• Writing Retreat students work alone, but they’re together What to Do: Let Go of the Reigns

• Teen-planned travel

• Provide a budget, tools, and clear ground rules

• Choose a decision- making system

• Step out of the way! What to Do: Every-day stuff

• Peruse the grocery store

• Go to a movie

• Browse a bookstore

• Hang out in a park

• Embrace the little differences How to Get Around

Logistics UnschoolAdventures.com/DIY Slides + sample budget Logistics: Group Flights

• Use a travel agent!

• Get a red-eye flight from a major hub

• Students fly individually to the hub, then the group flies together to the destination

• Airfare is volatile. Price separately from the trip. Logistics: Enrollment

• Unschool Adventures interviews every participant, including returning ones. We want to know:

• Do YOU really want to go on this trip (not your parent)?

• Are you prepared? Do you have “stepping stone” experiences?

• Do you play well with others?

• $1000 deposit secures space Logistics: Fundraising

• Travel is expensive by nature

• Crowdfunding: a powerful but often abused tool

• Get the guide on Kindle or read for free via UnschoolAdventures.com Ground Rules Ground Rules: Student Agreements

1. Join because you want to challenge yourself, not escape

2. Basic respect for all

3. Not a place for sex

4. Breaking laws, verbal / physical abuse, theft = bye bye

5. Zero-tolerance for drugs / alcohol

6. Be responsible during unsupervised time

7. Sleep at program location

8. No refunds for breaking rules Ground Rules: Unspervised Time

• Rule of 3

• Rule of 1

• Emergency info cards: address, trip leader cell phone numbers, calling card

• Call if you want to change destination or stay out longer Upcoming Programs Writing Retreat 2014 Crested Butte, Colorado Oct-Nov, $1700, ages 14-19 Southwest Gap Year Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Mexico (not technically U.A.) Sept-May, $6500, ages 17-23 Flickr image credits “Some day” programs. (Please steal!) Camino: juanpol Iceland: Hello, I am Bruce Hogwarts for Unscholers! Best of luck on your own adventures!

Unschool Adventures . com

Slides: UnschoolAdventures.com/DIY