Last week Crew Earhart embarked on the qualifying expedition for their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh award. In crew this morning we focused on debriefing our DofE experience, which included a discussion about our strengths and weaknesses as crew, giving appreciation and apologising when necessary and also discussing the importance of de-gunge.

This experience has helped Crew Earhart to realise the importance of working together and the power of being crew not passengers.

Continue reading

X22 Silver Expedition Important Information:

 

Hi, The Silver Qualifying Expedition is next week from Tuesday 9th July to Thursday 11th July.

Students need to arrive at school at the normal time of 8.30am for registration. (Registration will be in Xp East in the community area with crew leaders).

Students will be available to collect from XP East on the 11th July at 5pm. Students will NOT be allowed to leave earlier as de-gunging equipment is part of the expedition process.

Please check the DofE@XP website for a reminder of the kit list. You can find it under EXPEDITION / EXPEDITION KIT & EQUIPMENT and scroll down. It is really important that they have the appropriate kit. If they do need to borrow anything whilst on expedition this must be returned or a charge may be incurred.

Rucksack packing will take place on Monday 8th July from after school to 5pm so remind them to bring in their kit & food that morning.

I’m unsure of what the weather will be like next week and is often different to what has been forecast so please make sure they have all the kit listed from suncream to wolly hat & gloves.

If there are any changes to the original expedition consent / medical form, such as emergency contact, medication etc then please inform us as soon as possible.

Please remember that students must NOT carry medication on themselves unless previously arranged with their expedition supervisor.

All mediation must be sent in to expedition supervisors in its original packaging with the students name on it, the name of the medication, dose and frequency and when they last took it (if necessary) and put in a plastic zip lock bag. Permission to administer this must be recorded on the consent / medical form or  given in writing.

Thanks

Kate

X23 medical needs on expediton:

If there are any changes to the original Bronze Expediton consent / medical form please inform us as soon as possible, such as contact details & medication needs.

Please remember that students must NOT carry medication on themselves unless previously arranged with the expedition supervisor.

All mediation should be sent in its original packaging with the students name on it, the name of the medication, dose and frequency and when they last took it (if necessary). It must also be recorded on the medical form.

Thanks

Kate

 

X23 DofE Bronze Qualifying Expedition:

So the qualifying expedition is just around the corner now and as i’m away on expedition with our new staff next week I want to make sure you have the information you need now.

Expedition is on the 25th June to the 26th June. Students need to arrive at school at their normal time of 8.30am for registration. (Registration will be in Xp East in the community area with crew leaders).

Students will be available to collect from XP East on the 26th June at 5pm. Students will NOT be allowed to leave earlier as de-gunging equipment is part of the expedition process.

Please check the DofE@XP website for a reminder of the kit list. You can find it under EXPEDITION / EXPEDITION KIT & EQUIPMENT and scroll down. It is really important that they have appropriate kit. If they do need to borrow anything this must be returned or a charge may be incurred.

Rucksack packing will take place on Monday 24th June from after school to 5pm so remind them to bring their kit to school on the Monday morning. There won’t be any time to do this on the Tuesday morning!

Hopefully the weather will have improved by the time we go!

Thanks

Kate

 

Weather on DofE expeditions:

Having gone out today to check some parts of the upcoming Bronze route can I remind parents, staff & students how important it is it to e prepared for all weather, even in the SUMMER months as it was cold & wet out there. Wooly hats, gloves and waterproofs are part of the Mandatory kit list for all expeditions.

When students borrow equipment or kit supplied by the school they are expected to return it. Items might be borrowed as an individual or as a group and the participants are responsible for returning them in the same condition they were given out.

Students are expected to check the condition of the equipment before going out on expedition and inform their supervisor of any damage or missing parts.

Therefore groups and / or individuals who return from expedition with damaged or missing items may be charged for them. If students need to borrow clothing or boots or other personal items they will need to sign in order to borrow them and will be given a copy of this.

 

Any costs incurred need to be paid within the agreed time otherwise this will be passed over to our finance department.

Information about this has been added to all future kit lists and on expedition consent/ medical forms.

Thank you for your support.

Kate

Please note that students dumping clothing outside of the PE store or other areas of the school does not constitute returning it!

X22 DofE Hiking groups:

Students of X22 that are in the 4 hiking groups will spend the next 3 Friday afternoon sessions planning & preparing for their qualifying expedition on the 9th July.

I expect all the groups to have completed the necessary work by the end of the session on the 21st June having had it already approved by their expedition supervisor and submitting it to the assessor before 3.15pm on the 21st June.

If after the 21st any groups deemed not ready will need to come into school on Friday 28th June (staff day) to complete it. Groups will not be allowed to go on expedition without completing all their routes, route plans and planning docs.

Many thanks for your support on this.

 

Kate

 

X22 DofE practice expeditions

A massive well done to all the students that took part in the practice DofE expeditions last week. For the hikers it was a rather challenging couple of days but it ended very positively.

The practice expedition is a time for students to be able to make mistakes and then learn from them so that they are able to complete a successful qualifying expedition.

Students are expected to work in teams making choices for their expeditions. This isn’t easy and mistakes will inevitably happen. However each group is supported by an expedition supervisor who will guide, support and challenge them throughout their preparations. This includes allowing them to make mistakes!

‘It’s not the mistake that matters, it’s how you deal with it, what you learn from it, and how you apply that lesson to your life’.

After the practice expedition students debrief their experience with their expedition supervisor and discuss what they did well and what they could have done better in all aspects of the expedition process. These points are then actioned before the qualifying expedition so hopefully when it counts mistakes are avoided.

I am really looking forward to the qualifying expedition in July.

As always if you have any concerns or worries please email me.

Kate

[email protected]