Thursday 24th October 7:00pm
Wow! Standup paddle boarding was so much fun, the lake was so cold and the children got so wet! Everyone ended up in the lake and they LOVED it! Brody captained his paddle board showing fantastic leadership and navigation skills. We’re going to save the photos from today to share later (we have too much packing up to do this evening to battle with the wifi!) but there are some awesome pictures from the paddle board sessions for you to look forward to.
Aeroball was another favourite for many – it is like a combination of trampolining and basketball. Evie showed impressive skill and scored lots of points.
After burgers and chips for lunch, we enjoyed an afternoon of zip wire and orienteering. We absolutely loved the zip wire – the children got three goes each! We were so impressed with Gabriella as she wasn’t at all sure at first but, after a little time to think, she found enough inner strength to give it a go – then she went back for more…twice!
There was no better way to spend our final evening than a game of ambush. This is a group game of hide and seek in the very dark woods. You would never believe that a group of ten children could lie on the forest floor, in complete silence without moving for up to ten minutes at a time. Our children were, once again, incredible.
Everyone is now settling down for the night. We have to be packed up and out of our rooms by 8am tomorrow so this will be our final post. After breakfast, we have trapeze and sensory trail followed by lunch. We will leave promptly after lunch will keep our fingers crossed that the M25 is kind to us!
Thursday 24th October 6:40am
Once again, the children have had a good sleep – everyone settled quickly and all is still quiet. As we begin our final full day at PGL, it would honestly be hard to imagine a more delightful group of children to bring away as this group have been. Everyone’s behaviour has been exceptional and everyone has been supportive, kind and respectful 100% of the time. Above all, it has just been wonderful to see a group of children so very happy all day long!
Mealtimes have been a pleasure too – plates have been filled and then emptied with no one complaining that they don’t like what is on offer. In fact, quite the opposite – they are absolutely loving meal times. We have enjoyed chicken katsu curry, jacket potatoes, pasta bolognese and so much more. Thank you to everyone for the snack donations – the children really do appreciate these before, during and after their activities.
I have uploaded a few more photos now because wifi has been incredibly variable during the evenings. Yesterday evening, I must have spent an hour or two walking round the PGL site with my computer trying to find somewhere where wifi was strong enough for more to upload – very frustrating! Just now, a few photos have uploaded with ease (but then a few more simply won’t) – so enjoy those that have been successful! We look forward to sharing more with you back at school sometime soon.
Wednesday 23rd October 9:50pm
Having just returned from campfire, we thought we would post about another fantastic day. Archery was so much fun and we appear to have some talented archers! Primrose had a consistent aim and was the top scorer in Group 1 with an impressive 210 points. Daniel was rightly proud of his bullseye.
We have tackled two demanding high challenges today – Jacobs Ladder and Climbing. Nikita has shown incredible skill and agility on both. She made it to the very top on both occasions and her unfaltering bravery was inspirational to others in her group. Jack and Brody also show incredible strength, determination and boundless enthusiasm for both activities. Seth, who was hesitant at first on the climbing wall, kept pushing himself higher on each go and was rightly immensely proud when he finally reached the very top. Ethan R. made us particularly proud too – his confidence has grown over the last two days and this was evident when he took on the challenge of the climbing wall.
Willow worked so hard to support her team up Jacobs Ladder and applied all the strategies suggested by the instructor. She really does show determination and enthusiasm towards every challenge. Ethan H. and Daniel were a fantastic duo on the ladder – they worked together with Ethan offering a PGL proposal (knee up) to allow Daniel to lead the way.
Tunnel trail was really fun – Brody said this was one of his highlights as the games were so much fun and he liked being in ‘Teletubby land’ and crawling through the smallest tunnels.
Wednesday 23rd October 6:30am
Lots of fun was had yesterday evening playing ‘balloon splash’ outside on the playground. The children returned to our accommodation block tired, happy and ready for bed. Many enjoyed a shower before settling down for the night but all were very happy to get into bed after such a busy and action-packed day. Some even turned lights out before we asked them too!
Everyone is sleeping well – no one is awake yet and today it will probably be harder to get everyone out of bed. We will be waking the children at 7am in time for breakfast at 8am. Today, we have Jacobs Ladder, Archery, Climbing and Tunnel Trail to look forward to. This evening, we will enjoy a campfire – always a highlight of any PGL trip!
Tuesday 22nd October 8:30pm
Wow, what a busy and fantastic day we have had! These children really are amazing. Our day got off to an exciting start as we all got together in our lounge to celebrate Harry and Finn’s birthdays. They were so chuffed with their gifts and have been treated like royalty all day. They were presented with large PGL birthday badges which have allowed them to skip queues all day and they have received many birthday greetings from PGL staff.
After a hearty breakfast including, bacon, beans, hashbrowns, toast, porridge and more, our activities began. Giant swing really did push many out of their comfort zone – but everyone gave it a go and many were brave enough to go to the very top. Anyone experiencing the swing with Teddy was in for an abrupt descent – he had absolutely no hesitation in pulling the cord before his fellow riders had even had chance to catch their breath!
Rifle shooting was a favourite of many with Connor proving to have a particularly good aim. The challenge course was lots of fun, birthday boy Harry attacked the course like a ninja warrior showing impressive agility.
The toughest challenge yet was most certainly abseiling. For many, climbing to the very top of the tower was an achievement in itself. So many children pushed themselves to their limits – a special shout out here to Jayden and Ali who encouraged each other to face their fears. They both made it down the wall and had the biggest smiles when their feet touched the ground. The support that the children offer to each other – especially when others are finding things tough – really is very special to witness. Gabriella shone in the support that she offered her entire group both in encouragement and in unhooking her friends after their descent and returning the carabiners to the top of the tower.
A final shout out to Finn, his impeccable manners and enthusiasm for every activity have been commented on by many of the PGL staff.
Tuesday 22nd October 5:30am
Having just walked up and down the Aston corridor, all is still quiet. It is great that the children have slept well as they have a busy day ahead. We have breakfast at 8am and activities start at 9am – giant swing and rifle shooting this morning. Today will, of course, be extra special as both Finn and Harry celebrate their 11th birthdays.
Monday 21st October 10:15pm
There was a buzz of excitement as we drove through the PGL gates. The children were thrilled with their rooms and were very quick to settle. To quote Nikita ‘it is like a hotel!’
After spending a while in our rooms, we were getting hungry so set off for dinner. Dinner went down a treat – it’s wonderful to be with a group of children who enjoy their food and eat lots of it!
Ethan R has well and truly entertained the adults; he is wonderful company! Evie, Lily and Ella were triumphant in ‘Passport to the World’ where they had to answer questions relating to the country of the flag they found. We returned to our accommodation block at 8:30pm where we enjoyed a snack from our incredible collection before bed – thanks parents!
All is quiet down the Aston corridor now.
Saturday 19th October
We hope that you are all as excited as we are about our week away. Just in case it is helpful, here is the kit list and information sheet which you received in your pack earlier in the term.
Two more sleeps…
Monday 14th October
Only seven more sleeps…
Next Monday, Year Six will be heading off for a week of fun and adventure at the Marchants Hill PGL centre in Surrey. Whilst we are there, this post will be updated with a diary and photos to let everyone know how we are getting on. At the moment, the weather is looking pretty good – so we will keep our fingers crossed that we don’t get too wet!
Below is our timetable for the week – activities and sessions could change.
