One group canoeing, two groups walking.  Two groups climbing.  Vegetable pasta bake and Viennetta.

Viennetta?

Yes Viennetta.  Rarely seen since the 1970s, but still just as good as ever!  Sold to the children as ‘ice-cream lasagne,’ which is a fair description actually.

So Thursday is done, and we’re nearly there.

The vibes today have been fantastic – much more confidence all round, and the stories over dinner were more nuanced as everyone has now done almost everything.  The comparisons of who has climbed what, or squeezed through which hole, or seen which wildlife feature were more informed.  The language and discussion has even been a little more mature perhaps.

Your young people have been so great.

They are a group that put their all into everything.  Every day has seen them challenged in new and unexpected ways, and no-one has refused.  Yes, there have been moments of stress, moments of panic even, and different levels of success, but no-one will leave here having achieved less than they expected to, or wanted to.

At the beginning of the week the instructors asked us to outline our aims for the week.  This is always a little difficult to do – there are the obvious things like teamwork and leadership, but with this group we wanted them to focus on supporting each other and working together, as well as making decisions for themselves.

There are myriad examples of these.

For example, a double canoe without communication and support is a canoe that is going nowhere.  Initially that is just where it does go, but to hear ten year-olds work out what to do without too much prompting is an absolute joy, and to see them develop through the day into competent paddlers is just fantastic.  Your youngsters have been asked to lead their group on different occasions – crawling army-style through a narrow passageway or following the instructor’s light through to a massive cavern, gently encouraging their mates along the way.  When they have asked questions, staff have listened patiently, but if the question was one that they could have answered themselves, they have been politely asked to answer it.  ‘Do I put this rubbish in the bin?’  ‘I’m going outside, do I need my outside shoes?’  ‘It’s cold out there, shall I put a jumper on?’  ‘These size 4 boots are too small, what shall I do?’

But there are more subtleties too.

Living in a big house with sixty others is a challenge in itself.  Keeping track of possessions.  Eating unfamiliar food (they have eaten brilliantly by the way).  Being places (more or less) on time. Serving food in the dining hall (everyone takes a turn).  Waiting to eat until the whole table has been served.  Enjoying a certain amount of freedom and navigating a huge and unfamiliar environment (often in the dark).  Loading and unloading heavy canoes.  Wearing a range of very unfamiliar kit – different each day – and keeping track of it all.

This evening has seen each of the five work groups rotating around four key activities.  The first was a visit to the Woodlands shop, where your hard-earned cash was joyfully spent on a variety of Woodlands memorabilia.  Secondly, Mrs Pepper organised a couple of very popular outdoor games.  The third activity was Mrs Robins helping each group fill in an evaluation form.  The responses were overwhelmingly positive but also give Woodlands food for thought in a couple of areas. 

Finally, there were two sessions (a total of 40 minutes) laughingly called ‘packing’.  To be fair this is a tricky process – we have to vacate the rooms very early in the morning so all the bags have to be packed this evening ready to be put on the coach.  The snag is that there is a three-quarter day of activities tomorrow morning, so some clothes have to be kept out ready for the trips.  It’s a long story, but the result is a house that is far from the serene, neat, clothes-free environment it needs to be by 3.00pm tomorrow afternoon.  We are working on it! 

Hmmmm…so rooms have been given a dedicated half hour to get packed…

‘Are you all packed?’

‘Yep all done!’

‘So if I come in, everything will be in your bags?’

‘Yes, sure!  Come in!’

‘So what’s all that on the floor?’

‘Oh that’s not ours!’

‘But no-one else has been in your room…’

At this juncture the pointlessness of the conversation becomes clear to everyone and the staff member departs, trying desperately to think up some other tactic to persuade the collective that everything in there belongs to one of them, despite the fervent denials.

It’s a game we play, and eventually (almost) everything gets reunited with everyone!

Tomorrow concludes with a morning of walking (most probably in the Black Mountains near the centre), returning equipment (boots and waterproofs) and a light pre-departure lunch.  We will aim to be on the road by 3.00pm. 

Important – Arrival arrangements 

We hope to arrive back at school between 6.00pm and 7.00pm.  We will try to keep you updated via Mrs Honor, the website, and the MCAS text service. 

When we arrive we will be letting the children off the coach carefully – one by one – and handing them their purchases from the shop.  This helps with keeping everything safe and making sure that the children have their correct belongings with them. 

Please do not wait right by the coaches – we will not let children off if there are parents right by the coach.  We will call you forward when your own child is ready to disembark.  Children will only be allowed off the coach if we can clearly see their parent(s) come forward. 

You should be able to pick up any medications from Mr Coates – either tomorrow evening or on Monday. 

There will also inevitably some property (possibly damp) to reunite with you.  This is probably best left until Monday.