Upper School Intensive Learning Spotlight: Iceland

Students Explore Iceland – The Land of Fire and Ice

Upper School students spent a week in the land of fire and ice observing and exploring Iceland – featuring incredible natural wonders that are available nowhere else on Earth. Amazing waterfalls and geysers, volcanoes, glaciers, hot springs, and the confluence of continental plates highlighted a nonstop lineup of jaw-dropping sites with tongue-twisting, polysyllabic names (Students embraced the challenge of learning many correct Icelandic pronunciations.). Students learned how Icelandic culture developed and adapted to living in such a remote and often inhospitable place and saw firsthand how the forces of global climate change are shaping Iceland’s – and by extension, the world’s –  future.

Activities included:

• A bus/walking tour of the capital city of Reykjavík. 
• A boat ride to view the northern lights – commented a student “the weather was clear and not rainy for the aurora boat ride on day two. The northern lights put on a beautiful show, and the group even got to see pink and blue on top of the more common green color!”
• A visit and scenic drive through the Golden Circle, which is comprised of Thingvellir National Park, the Geysir Geothermal Area, and Gullfoss Waterfall.
• A hike and Meeting for Worship near the edge of the Svínafelsjokull glacier.
• Soaks in two different hot springs – the Secret Lagoon and the Blue Lagoon
• At Íshestar Horse Riding Center, the group watched an instructional video that taught the correct horseback riding methods before embarking on a 4-kilometer-long horseback ride across an ancient lava field on unique and historic Icelandic horses. 

And visits to:

• The Lava Centre and Skógar History & Culture Museum which sit in close proximity to many of the island’s volcanoes: Hekla, Eyjafjallajӧkull, Eldfell, and Katla. The Eldfell volcano is located on the island of Vestmannaeyjar, where Eldfell erupted in 1973. After the museums, the group visited the Skógafoss Waterfall and took some amazing photos.
• A visit to the Black Sand Beach. – from a student: “The snow made it more of a grey sand beach, but we had fun nonetheless. We went inside a massive cave lined with basalt columns. The cave and beach were featured in the popular show Game of Thrones.”
• Seljalandsfoss Waterfall which drops 200 feet and is part of the Seljalands River that has its origin in a volcano glacier.

You can read much more about this experience at the 2023 MFS Intensive Learning blog, where you can also read about all other Upper School Intensive Learning trips and experiences. 

This is one in a series of 2023 Intensive Learning Spotlights. For one week each March, regular classes are suspended for “Intensive Learning,” when Middle and Upper School students and teachers engage in an in-depth study of a specific subject, often involving off-campus research. This long-standing MFS tradition — which dates back to the mid 1970s — allows teachers and students to break out of the structure of formal class periods and traditional study for a time of experiential learning. Both students and teachers are encouraged to view themselves as life-long learners and students of the world around them.