The third graders in Mrs. Jasperson's literacy class had quite the surprise when a volunteer for Utah County Search and Rescue popped in to teach them a little bit about outdoor survival techniques. Mrs. Jasperson's literacy class has been reading the classic novel Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. It's about a young boy who ends up in the Canadian wilderness due to some unfortunate circumstances. He is forced to learn how to survive. The students have been so interested in the boys survival that they wanted to hear real life stories of people who have also overcome wilderness hardships. Scott Hammond a volunteer for the Utah County SAR graciously gave his time to come into the class and tell all of his cool survival stories. He also brought all of his gear with him! Students were shown several items they could possibly take into the wilderness and they had the tough job of choosing their top three, it seemed like an impossible task. In the end Scott said the number one item you can carry with you, if you're in the wilderness is a whistle because if you do get lost, the search and rescue team along with the search and rescue dogs will be able to hear your cry for help! This was truly an awesome experience for these lucky third graders. Thank you to SAR and especially Scott for helping connect the outside wilderness to kids inside the classroom.