St.Stephen's School

Year 5's Fairplay experience

Monday 17th May, 2021

 

Dear diary,

We are finally here and we have 1 word - incredible! Or, as Amani says, ‘out of this world!’ We were all so very excited when this day finally came that we could hardly keep ourselves calm on the bus. Nevertheless, we all behaved ourselves and no one was travel sick! Once we arrived, we were shown our dorms and were given a useful introduction. Dom layed out the rules for us and we all understood the expectations clearly. Our next task - making the beds. It is fair to say that some (mainly the boys) found this slightly challenging! After unpacking, bed making and a delicious buffet, we were set for our first adventures. Our group were going to the high ropes! We couldn’t wait for this experience but we were also beginning to feel slightly nervous. We looked up and thought we’d never make it to the top, but, as Scott said ‘You have to believe!’ 

With the much needed encouragement of our friends, Esther and Scott, we built up our confidence, believed in ourselves and faced our fears. We ALL made it to the top. Everyone agreed that the feeling we had once we had finished was a once in a lifetime feeling. We also felt courageous for facing all types of weather (sunshine/ hailstones/ sunshine / hailstones). We are now waiting for our much needed dinner, which has been prepared by the boys from the room Pyefleet. After this, we are going on yet another adventure. We will be dropped into the forest in our groups and the aim is to find our way home! We hope we will make it back in time for bed!

Speak to you tomorrow,

Amani, Safa, Shohid and Ayaan M and the Year 5 team

 

Tuesday 18th May, 2021

Dear diary,

What an incredible day! We are so exhausted but feel completely proud of what we have achieved. Some of us set about making pancakes, roasting marshmallows and making toast on a self built fire! We used cotton wool, newspaper, logs, flint and steel to create our own stoves. We definitely feel like we are ready to live in the wilderness. It did get quite smokey and it was important to take breaks from the fire so that our eyes were protected.

Meanwhile, other children practiced their precision during archery lessons where they competed against the teachers…. and won! This was really cool, especially when they managed to beat our instructor (Pete). Another activity that required a lot of thinking was Orienteering. We had to work as a team to find the clips and solve the chart. The teams that rushed ahead didn’t win; it was really important to wait for each other and cooperate. We have had such a fantastic day and a wonderful experience here. We are now about to compete in a talent competition!

Tomorrow, we will need to change our bedding and clean our rooms before leaving Fairplay house. However, we will have a chance for 1 more activity!

Bye for now,

Hafsah, Affan, Hanzalah, Laiba, Aeesha and the Year 5 team 

2020 2021 / FAIRPLAYHOUSE18TH GALLERY