Going away on a week-long residential is a real character-building opportunity.  Our staff and children are excited about the  new skills, challenges and outdoor learning they can take part in. 

Each day we will publish a diary and photos here so that you can keep up with what they have been up to.  (Please note this may be very late in the evening each day)

Thursday

Our final day of activities has been yet another day filled with challenge, laughter and excitement. Our second group went to explore the beach to learn about the Jurassic coastline and have an opportunity to explore the rockpools.

This was followed by a new Hillside favourite - the beck scramble. All the children loved clambering over rocks, sliding down rocks and crawling through rocks whilst getting completely soaked. They also showed great teamwork whilst encouraging and supporting one another.

Another group ventured onto the Moors for a day of climbing. What a treat! The views were breathtaking and the children absolutely loved clambering over the rocks and working in teams to climb as high as they could. This was a real test of resilience and determination for some to overcome nerves and what a fantastic job they did.

After tea - fish and chips - it was time to pack. This was an interesting challenge for some of our children but we got there!

We marked our last night, with a campfire, marshmallows and the obligatory singalong!

We plan to leave the site around 9:00 am. The children will hopefully sleep and chat about their wonderful week in North Yorkshire. We will aim to return to school around 4:30 pm with plenty of dirty washing but lots of happy memories.

It has been an amazing week with lots of exciting challenges and laughter! The children have been a pleasure to have and have really embraced every opportunity. We have been told many times, ‘What a lovely bunch of children!’ They certainly are - thank you Year 6 for a wonderful week!

Wednesday

What an exhilarating day it has been and we have certainly enjoyed our activities in the beautiful moors. The second canoe trip were able to enjoy a scenic paddle without the headwind but there was a close encounter with some mud! It was lovely to hear the children sharing their experiences with those who had canoed yesterday.

We had our first trip to the seaside on the 'Jurassic Coast'. The excitement was tangible and after learning about the history of the village, we were able to explore the rock pools and find a variety of creatures; some were extremely unusual - a sea hare which squirted purple ink and a Butter Fish. The highlight was searching for fossils. This proved to be surprisingly easy and in a matter of minutes, the children were clasping ammonites, bellemnites, oystershell fossils and pieces of jet - a local speciality. A few metal nails and a cartridge case added to our haul. No trip to the beach is complete without getting wet and today was no exception even in full waterproofs and wellies! Who can resist jumping over waves?

The first beck scramble was amazing. We drove to the village of Goathland - Harry Potter for the young and Heartbeat for the more mature amongst us! The beck scramble was a real test of nerve - crawling through small tunnels in the rocks and sliding down rocks. Everyone got wet and rather cold but many children declared it their best day so far.

After the evening meal, there was an orienteering competition won by three girls in a record time and then some kwikcricket and then a brief tuckshop session. They should be tired after all that (fingers crossed) and we are all looking forward to our final activities tomorrow.

Tuesday

What an incredible day we have had!

After a good night’s sleep, we had a hearty breakfast and then got ready for our activities.
Three groups went for an invigorating hike up a ‘mountain’ to the climbing sites. It was a great opportunity to see first hand the contrasting landscape. We had our lunch and were able to take in the breathtaking views.
The instructors got the climbing equipment organised and then the children started climbing the rock faces. They had a great time and learnt a lot. 
Canoeing started in a civilised manner- roping two together with rafting boards to make them more stable and  learning to steer and co-ordinate the paddles. We set off towards Whitby in the sunshine- seeing llamas and highland cattle. We stopped briefly to learn some technical river terms- source, mouth, tributary and meander. Then we came to a weir…check the video! The children in the rafted boats had it easy. The staff in single canoes went down a chute and got soaked- very exciting.
After passing under a railway bridge and seeing a steam train, we disembarked at Sandwich Island and got the food out. It rained briefly. After eating  we noticed  that the island was shrinking because of the tide turning so we quickly re-embarked and carried on to Whitby. On the last stretch, we had a headwind and it was quite tiring but eventually we arrived at the slipway in Whitby harbour - what an amazing sight. After such a long paddle, we then got the boats out and on to the trailers. It was a fantastic demonstration of teamwork to get everything put away.
We were glad to get dry clothes on and then have our tea. We ran the tuck shop today so our energy stocks have been replenished!

Monday

What an incredibly exciting day our Year 6 children have had.
We met at school at 6:30 am and after lots of hugs and goodbyes, we boarded the coaches for our greatest school adventure so far!
The journey consisted of two comfortable stops and before we knew it, we crossed some beautiful moorland, passed countless sheep and lambs and our destination was waiting for us.
We had a tour of the site and were allocated our waterproofs and wellies. Then, we knew the week was really about to start.
Rooms were assigned and beds were made - eventually! After a hearty tea, we began our first activity which was sledging on the ski slope. In the words of one young lady, "What an amazing start to the week!"

We warmed up with hot chocolate and a biscuit, spent some time in the games room and then returned to the dorms for a good night’s sleep so that we are ready for day 2 of our adventure tomorrow.