Over Spring Break, two groups of Education Without Walls teens went backpacking through Raven Rock State Park. They carried everything they needed on their backs—food, tents, sleeping bags—but what they carried together went much deeper than gear.

On every trip, before stepping onto the trail, our groups create a group flag.  These flags represent a shared intention-reminding everyone who they aspire to be as a group and how they will treat one another throughout the journey. Students identify feelings such as: calm, happy, peaceful, and connected. They also identify what they want to avoid: judgment, negativity, and rudeness. This simple exercise does something powerful. Rather than focusing on rules or restrictions, students center their group identity around how they want to feel and how they want others to feel around them.

With EWoW “feeling words,” stop being abstract. When feet are sore and packs are heavy, students remind each other of “connected.” When frustration shows up, “calm” and “peaceful” become cues to pause, breathe, and problem solve together. When camp is set up after a long day, the feeling of “happy” isn’t forced—it’s earned and recognized. These are the building blocks of pro-social relationships. When young people can identify what they want to experience emotionally, they become more capable of taking responsibility for how they show up in a group.

Experiences like this don’t just create memories—they shape patterns. Each time our students noticed a “wanted feeling” (calm by the river, connection around the fire, pride after a long hike), their brains linked that feeling with behaviors such as cooperation, problem solving, effort, and mutual care.

Because the experience is repeated over three days, those connections were reinforced. This is how neuroplasticity works: what the brain practices; it strengthens. By intentionally identifying “wanted feelings” and then experiencing them in action, students made those emotional states more accessible in the future—both in and out of the wilderness.

At Raven Rock State Park, the flags flew as a reminder: the journey wasn’t just about miles covered, but about learning how to move toward well-being together.

By the end of the trip, students returned tired, smelly, and proud—carrying home skills and self awareness that weigh far less than a backpack, but last far longer.