Prep had a wonderful residential experience this week, spending the night at The Wilderness Centre - a real ‘home-from-home’ for the students.
Day 1 - Walking from The British Camp, Malvern Hills.
Today we enjoyed 2 long walks from the carpark where we parked the school minibus. We explored the Giant’s Cave and enjoyed far-reaching views from the ridge at the top. Our in-house guides Simon and Jamie explained some of the history and geology of the area and the students enjoyed looking for signs of spring - and even found and identified a bloody-nosed beetle, Timarcha tenebricosa.
We enjoyed lunch out at the Malvern Hills Hotel and were even able to sit outside - the students took menus home for the weekend before the trip and were very excited to be able to choose anything they wanted from the menu, and finish off with a delicious pudding. Whilst we waited for the food, the students counted classic cars and had a great time, they behaved impeccably and impressed everyone with their lovely manners.
After we returned from our hard day of hill walking, the students decided to have a bedroom each at The Wilderness Centre! They set themselves up and had some time to enjoy the various sweets and treats they had brought along from home. After that it was dinner, burgers and chips with a wonderful salad! Followed by a rich chocolate cake.
After dinner we had a campfire in the woods and roasted marshmallows. We were joined by Dr. Sturdy, who also stayed at the centre with the Prep group. Samhith gave us a wonderful descriptive and dramatic retelling of some of his favourite myths and we all enjoyed the comforting glow of the fire as it got dark.
Day 2 - Activities at The Wilderness Centre
Today we got up and were treated to a delicious cooked breakfast. There was a selection of cereals as well as toast with a range of toppings. The children all ate very well! They then had a game of chess and played table tennis in the common room before the activities began.
Activity 1 - Geocaching
For our first activity of the day, Nathan, one of the instructors at The Wilderness, took us geocaching. The students were endlessly enthusiastic and competitive about finding the tubs. We had to use our map-reading skills as they were all hidden off site in the dense woodland around the centre - we had a great time.
Activity 2 - Egg Drop
The students came back to the centre and enjoyed home-made flapjacks and hot chocolate. They were then given the task of working as a team to protect an egg. They were awarded points for every tub and clue they found - these could then be exchanged for resources to clad and protect their egg before it was dropped by an instructor from the roof of the centre. There were some great ideas and collaboration, but sadly nothing could prevent the inevitable fate of the egg on the day!
Afternoon Activities
The students made their own packed lunches which they enjoyed with their friends in MYP1 before a playtime outside. After lunch the activities resumed and Prep enjoyed the crate stack and tree climb activities before returning to school in the minibus. A wonderful trip with amazing food and memories to last a lifetime!