Category: Extracurricular News

As we head into the summer break, here's a look back at the Year 9 Residential which took place at the beginning of the month, as told by a couple of people at the Kilvrough activity centre:

"Kilvrough was lots of fun. Each day, we had to get up at seven o’clock and had to eat breakfast at eight o’clock then started activities at nine-thirty.

"We did a lot of activities each day, such as climbing, abseiling, caving and kayaking. My favourite bit was the caving because I did all of the obstacles and it helped me feel more confident. The activities helped me improve my trust skills and strength.

"We came back at four o’clock and had dinner at six. We did activities in the evening, such as hikes, watching the football, running down sand dunes and teambuilding. I enjoyed it very much."

"Before the residential I didn’t think it would be as fun as it was. When we arrived at Kilvrough Manor, after having lunch, we were split into our activity groups to complete the assault courses on site.

"On Tuesday my group went out climbing, which I was not looking forward to as I have a fear of heights. Before my group (Group B) climbed up the cliff, we had to abseil down it first. Out of the two, I enjoyed climbing the cliff rather than abseiling down it.

"The next day, we went caving which was very stressful because of what we had to wear. Once inside the cave, we had to go through the letterbox which was one of the most nerve-racking challenges for me.

"Thursday was kayaking. I was in a boat with Gemma. We didn’t capsize, thankfully, however it was difficult at the start leaving the beach. After being in the boats for about an hour and a half we stopped off in a little cove where we were allowed to swim around and jump off the rocks into the sea.

"Lastly, on Friday, everyone went on a coastal scramble to the beach where we could go for a swim in the sea once. Moreover, every evening we did an activity, such as orienteering, watching the football, tackling assault courses, problem solving, beach walking (including running down sand dunes) and mini challenges thought of by the teachers."

Category: Extracurricular News

This week, many Year 9 students are spending the week at Kilvrough, Yenworthy and Woodlands activity centres. During their stay, they get a chance to abseil, surf, go caving, canoeing and take part in many other activities, learning to work as a team and overcome certain fears.

We heard from a few girls at the Kilvrough site:

"Overall the first few days have been very eventful and challenging. For me, I think abseiling was the most daunting activity because I am terrified of heights. However, I was able to overcome this and complete the task. Afterwards, I was so proud of myself and continued to complete the climbing task too." - Jessie

"On the first night we completed an orienteering task which was really good fun and allowed us to explore the grounds independently. The tasks have allowed us to work as a team - I already feel like we have bonded as a group. During the abseiling today, everyone was really encouraging and helped me do it even though I was scared. I was very proud of myself and felt I could look forward to the rest of the week now." - Gemma

"Today we went climbing and abseiling on the coast. On my way there I told myself I wouldn't abseil but once we arrived the encouragement from my team convinced me to do it and I am extremely happy I did because it has made me more confident and comfortable around my team mates." - Abi

Category: Extracurricular News

C’était fantastique!! In fact, those words don’t even sum up how amazing our trip to Dieppe was. It was an early start to drive to Dover, but the sea views were all worth it as I caught a brilliant glimpse of France and England before we arrived at the port of Calais. Off to the bakery in Wierre-Effroy, where I bought some delicious honey croissants and pain au chocolat and got to practise speaking French in a different environment. Plus tard, we arrived at our hostel, ate dinner and went down to the beach. The sunset was so picturesque, meaning lots of photo opportunities and we skimmed stones (or I at least tried to) as the tide drifted in. What a perfect beginning to our trip!!

I woke up excited for the first full day to come and, full of our petit-déjeuner, we walked down the beach where Operation Jubilee museum was. Before we entered most of us were unaware of the attack on Dieppe, but the museum explained it all clearly. My favourite part came later, when we arrived at the swimming pool; it was like no pool I had ever seen before and I didn’t know what to do first. There were slides, whirlpools, lazy rivers and diving boards galore. The time went so fast I just did not want it to end.

For our second day, we travelled to Pavilly, a picturesque little market town one hour away from Dieppe. I had been saving my money for this. As we walked past stalls full of olives, sausages and more, my bag was getting heavier by the minute. On our way back, we visited the Canadian cemetery, where we stopped and looked at all the soldiers and heroes who gave their lives for us. I was heartbroken to see that some of the graves of soldiers weren’t even named. L’après-midi, we went shopping in the streets of Dieppe. We went around les rues, our shopping bags brimming over with goodies, my purse getting emptier.

Packing my suitcase was sad and now a lot heavier, as we tidied our room for inspections and spent the rest of the evening playing table tennis and other games. One last visit to the beach or watching the football game before going to bed for the final time. Although excited to get home and tell my family all about my trip, I did not want to go home as I had had such fun. So I have made up my mind to come and live in Dieppe when I am older. But we packed up and travelled to the hypermarket, Auchan in Boulogne, leaving Dieppe behind us. Au revoir Dieppe, nous nous sommes trés bien amusés.

The hypermarket brought back some fond memories from last year and this time I knew exactly where to find the sweets and chocolate. So we made our way home after such an amazing trip. Thank you to everyone who made this trip so fun and enjoyable. Thank you to all the teachers who took us on this great trip; we hope you have all recovered!!!!

- Ella, Year 8

Category: Extracurricular News