Day Two at Rock UK

The day began with glorious sunshine and very excited children looking forward to more activities. After room inspections (generally very good but with odd exception), the children enjoyed some playtime on the field before heading down to Whittaker Lodge for breakfast. They certainly made the most of it, filling up ahead of a busy day.

The class are divided into two groups for activities with Mr Roddy’s group starting the day with archery. All of the children enjoyed the experience and were able to share how they had improved over the course of the session. We even had a few pupils hitting the gold target! After that the group went on to take on King Swing. This involves two children being placed in the harnesses while another group wound the crank to raise them higher into the air. Every child had a go at the activity with the pairs selecting how high to go. It was particularly pleasing to hear that by the end each of them had exceeded the target they had set before the beginning of the task.

The group led by Mrs House started the day out on the river as they were divided into double canoes. After learning a few of the basics, the groups moved up and down the river, taking part in various games as they developed both their paddling and their communication skills. There were a few who ended the session getting rather wet so a return to our lodge for a change of clothes was certainly in order.

The lunch of pizza, pasta, potato wedges and the salad bar were very popular with all the children showing how hungry they were. They particularly relished sharing their stories from the morning activities.

After lunch the other group had a go in the canoes, enjoying the opportunity to work with a different group of instructors and try out a new experience for many of the children. They had a super view from the river and were able to wave at the other group who were at the top of the abseiling tower. This is always a much anticipated activity and it is terrific to see so many of the children overcome their initial hesitancy and get involved. After that challenge they went straight on to King Swing so they really had an afternoon of high challenges.

Following the canoeing Mr Roddy’s group were rewarded for their excellent teamwork on the water by having the treat of visiting the assault course and adventure pits. The children had to support in other in overcoming various obstacles and came up with all sorts of ways of completing the course. The session did end with some rather soggy feet but more importantly plenty of very happy children.

The evening meal was devoured swiftly before the children tidied rooms for inspection before movie night. We had managed to squeeze a visit to the tuck shop into our busy day so the children enjoyed a few well deserved treats before heading off to bed.