ABSTRACT
Residential experiences come in many shapes and sizes. Residentials can provide participants of all ages and backgrounds with an enjoyable and pleasurable experience, whilst offering the outdoor and adventure educator with a unique opportunity to enable those partaking a chance to 'explore' and review, with the support of educators and peers, their own life journey – past, present and future. Three key elements are present within an outdoor adventure activity residential that more than any others make this mode of intervention a rich environment for informal educators. These are risk, relationships and power. The chapter explores some key ways in which employing a group work approach in residential settings can maximise the potential for informal learning. It will do so by directing the reader's attention to three key areas of intervention: establishing the group, meaning-making and focusing on process.
