Yesterday I returned from a week in France with our Year Sixes.
This is the third year that we have enjoyed a visit to France, and I'm delighted to say that it has once again been a very successful week!
We set off from school at 6.30am on Monday and arrived at our chateau 11 hours later! Our accomodation is fantastic and the grounds in which we stayed were beautiful.
On Tuesday we toured the local town of Rue. In the afternoon we visited a nearby goat farm where the children had chance to hold some of the goats, rabbits and chicks. We also visited a delicious chocolate factory.
On Wednesday we travelled to Amiens, the nearest city, with one of the most incredible buildings I've ever seen. The cathedral takes my breath away every time I see it! We then set off for an underground city which was used by local villagers to hide during WW2.
On Thursday we travelled to Abbeville to explore the local shops and sample a French cafe. In the afternoon we learned to play petanque and braved the muddiest blind trail!
On Friday we visited Nausicaa, a fantastic aqarium before setting off home again.
It is wonderful to see how much the children gained in confidence and independence during the week. Their French skills developed well.
This year, for the first time, we created a blog which we used to communicate to parents. This was experimental, as we weren't really sure what internet facilities we could use. We used Posterous, and linked to it from our school website. We then simply used Googlemail to send an email with news about the events of the day. The feedback from parents was really positive and lots of them added comments.
Next year we plan to add photos whilst we are away by taking a laptop with us. We will use a wireless connection to upload lots of exciting news. We will also experiment with Twitter so that we can add updates via mobile phone so that little snippets can be added. Before then I want to learn to feed Twitter directly into Posterous.
Saturday, 28 February 2009
Residential in France
Friday, 22 February 2008
Le Chateau du Broutel
I have just returned from a brilliant residential visit at Le Chateau du Broutel in Rue, France. What a brilliant week! This is the second time we have held this residential and on both occasions it has been truly worth it.
We toured the local village, tasted chocolate at a Chocolatier, held baby goats at a goat farm, explored Amiens cathedral, visited the underground caves, used our French at Abbeville market, tested our nerves in the blind trail and looked at sea life at Nausicaa.
If anyone is looking for a safe location for a trip abroad then I would wholeheartedly recommend this.
Friday, 23 November 2007
Fox Howl, Delamere
Today I returned from a Year Three residential visit to Fox Howl Outdoor Education Centre, Delamere. Fox Howl is the perfect place to take the Year Threes - it's not too far from school and it allows the children to try lots of activities that they don't normally try in school.
On Thursday they went on a nature walk, looking for signs of wildlife in the forest. We then tried some orienteering challenges, firstly within the centre, and then one on a larger scale in a safe part of the forest. In the evening we took the children on a night walk and when we returned toasted marshmallows on the bonfire!
On Friday we built dens and then took part in a trekking and trailling activity in the forest.
A brilliant time was had by all!
Friday, 23 February 2007
Here we are at chateau du broutel!
Just found out I found out I can send to my blog by phone! This shows our school at the end of our week in France! We have had an awesome time!
Sunday, 18 February 2007
We are taking our Year Sixes to France!
There won't be anymore posts to the site until the weekend as tomorrow morning, bright and early... actually, just make that early, we are taking our Year Sixes on a residential in France!! There will be lots of write about when I get back so stay tuned!
