2024-2025 Outdoors @ Riversides

 Another academic year has flown by. Below are a collection of pictures highlighting the experiences our pupils have enjoyed throughout the season.

They have been pushed further and faster. Climbed higher and jumped farther than they could have ever believed. They've been cold and wet, excitable and inquisitive, muddy and moody. There has been some amazing progress made by our pupils this year as they learn to open themselves up to new things and move forward in activities that they are already comfortable with. 

A huge emphasis is placed on them managing their levels of risk and reward. Looking at what they are about to attempt; what could go wrong if it does go wrong but conversely how good they would feel when they achieve something that they thought was beyond them.

I am so proud of all of our pupils whenever I have the chance to show them what their time outside can reveal.

Go Riversides.

Controlled risk-taking by an adventurous P2 pupil.

Open water safety lessons turns into a fun, cooling off splash-about.

P3 utilising some windblown trees on Abberley Hill for Parkour.

P2 pupil showing that you can get totally soaked in 2 feet of water.

P2's very own Ninja Warrior.

A Year 11 pupil testing the strength of a lazy hazel tree.

Year 9 doing what they do best...pushing the boundaries.

One of the school's most fearless pupils.

Impromptu long jump competition at Hartlebury Common.

Year 11 seeing what a gale really does to a parachute on top of Worcestershire Beacon.

One of P3 seeing life from a different viewpoint.

Year 11 scurrying around in the winter mud at Hillfield Coppice.

P2 on a freezing day testing ice in the woods at Hawksbatch. (NB. Shorts!!)

Fun in the snow for Year 10 at Fort Royal Park in Spring.

Year 11 pushing the limit with the rope swing at Knapp and Papermill.

On top of Titterstone Clee, windy and cold. Why not stand in a puddle?

P2 pupils monkeying around at Hawksbatch Wood.

One of P3 pupils displaying his tree-climbing prowess.

Year 7 at Hartlebury Park.

The ever excitable, over exuberant wild boy of Year 8.

Year 9 trying to make the apparatus at Hartlebury even more exciting.

Stuck in this position for ages...two feet off the ground.

P3 showing some controlled risk taking and dealing positively with peer pressure.

Year 7 enjoying the fabulous playground at Priory Park.

A muddy Year 11 pupil drags himself out of a bomb-hole at the Bromyard Downs.

P2...too cool for school.

Even Forest school can be exciting at times for P1.

Some of the pupils need a reminder to remember to be scared!

Year 8 exploring the amazing limestone tufa at Southstone.

When you realise the swing should've been set a little higher!!

Visit to Redpoint

 Redpoint, the AMAZING Climbing Centre, which is up next to the Lea & Perrins factory on Midland Road offered schools in the area some complimentary climbing sessions.

After a phone call, a few emails and a catch up with a couple of my old University buddies who help run the centre, Primary 3 were booked on for an hour on the 15th of July.

Now, a number of the class had climbed before but what was most impressive was all of the pupils stepping up to have a go during the session. They started off with their instructor Sam in a group session, familiarising themselves with the technical and safety aspects of the session on a top rope exercise.

After the pupils acquitted themselves with a surprising amount of focus and concentration, they moved onto to some of the self-belay posts, where the safety of their climb is regulated by a mechanical device. This, in itself, is another major psychological hurdle, as they are operating alone without the direct support or reference of the instructor. Again, all pupils were really impressive with their application to the activity.

Some of the pupils found the activity tricky at first, but with a little encouragement were able to show substantial progress in both their accomplishments and confidence.

For the final 20 minutes, the pupils unclipped, took off their harnesses and made their way to the Bouldering area. After a brief outline by Sam, they were left to explore and climb independently.

This was another learning curve for the pupils as they set the level of challenge for themselves and monitored their own risk.

Overall, the morning was a huge success. The pupils got to experience a new and inspiring activity, all the while acting in a positive and respectful manner to the instructor and staff.

I would like to end by offering a big thank you to Sam, Abby and Craig for making the whole experience so enjoyable for Primary 3.

Sand and Swings

 Sometimes, if circumstances allow, a suggestion for the Outdoor Ed location can be made by the pupils. Hartlebury Common this week was one of those occasions.

Affectionately known by some of the Primary 2 pupils as "The Sandy Place", it is a great place for some really influential experiences. They enjoy creative play on the steep sandy banks and heathland.

Sand-Angel anyone?

After a while they have all spent time shaking sand from their clothes and tipping it out of their shoes.

They move on to challenge each other to climb a tree.

And when they have scampered up and down a number of the fantastic trees that the common has to offer, they helped put up the rope swing (taking time to double check everything is safe and secure).

The swing is a really great activity. It teaches the pupils a plethora of meaningful actions and subjects.

The science behind it (the interplay between kinetic and potential energy), gravity and friction (ropework and knots). It is a really good example of risk and reward ,showing them how to calculate the benefits of an exciting but potentially precarious activity.

What has been really worthwhile when the class are engaged in this activity is the reaction from members of the public. Hartlebury Common is a popular place for recreation and dog-walking and there is usually a steady stream of people passing by when our pupils are enjoying the excitement of the rope swing. Comments are always positive...

along the lines of "This is what they should be doing, enjoying themselves outside".

"They will remember this when they're older".

"Much more exciting than a computer game".

and my favourite... "I wish I could have done this at my school".

Battenhall Bike Track

 Worcester Council are pushing hard to establish more of these facilities across the county.

The pupils of Year 10 enjoyed a blast around the pump track in the sunshine, but the wind did make it tricky when their wheels left the ground.

Some of the pupils are content with a slow and steady meander around the track, whilst their are others that look to push the boundaries and test themselves to go further and faster each time around.

This eventually culminated in a challenge from the Tutor to one of the pupils. He was watched as he consistently cleared a considerable distance on one of the jumps. To show  how much trust staff placed in his ability on a bike, the Tutor lay in front of the lip and challenged him to jump over as he lay on the track. After a few run ups to gather his courage he sailed over and past flawlessly.