Bags of enthusiasm for Year 4 residential

Year 4 had a very exciting two-day residential at The Pioneer Centre in Cleobury Mortimer. They arrived full of enthusiasm, but their first task was to put their duvet covers on their duvets, a life skill at which most succeeded once they had received a bit of tuition. After lunch it was time for inflatable adventure. There were two inflatables, one an assault course and one a target. The pupils really enjoyed traversing the assault course and then trying to throw the balls past the goalies; great chuckling ensued when Miss Jordan fell down the back of the inflatable while trying to save a goal!

After a short break, the pupils were raring to go to try their hands at either archery or caving. Archery was excellent, aiming for targets that people had chosen in order to get them out. But many children picked caving as their favourite activity; there were special tunnels underground where you had to wear a hat with a torch and then play games like Hide-and-Seek or Zombie.

After a superb supper of spaghetti bolognaise and ice-cream, the pupils really wanted to spend some time in their rooms with their friends, going in and out of each other’s rooms. They were also prepped that there would be a room inspection in the morning, with a prize for the tidiest room. Once there was a bit of calm, it was lights out and most children were asleep by about 11pm.

In the morning, there were murmurings from about 6am: not too bad! After the most delicious breakfast, where seconds were offered, it was time to pack up and sort out their rooms. Well done to Phoebe, Yifei, Rosie and Zara for winning the tidiest room award; they were presented with Pioneer Centre mugs.

High ropes, abseiling and the zip-wire were next on the agenda. Many children overcame their fear of heights, even if that meant climbing the tower but not going off it. It really was all about stepping out of their comfort zones. Not surprisingly, these activities were voted top on most pupils’ lists. After lunch and token time (tokens were given to the pupils who demonstrated a growth mindset; they then exchanged these tokens for treats) it was time to head back to school. The pupils were great company, and all tried their absolute best. Thank you to Miss Cartwright, Mrs Ricketts and Miss Jordan for accompanying them on, for some, their first residential.

For more photographs from the Year 4 residential trip please see our Twitter feed