XP Outdoors – a (number) minefield!

Y7 had their first XP Outdoors session this week and what a cracking start the term it was!

We used the session to continue to build on the crew fundamentals introduced during the first week back. We did this by introducing Y7 to Number Minefield – a crew building activity which relies on communication and collaboration, with the aim to complete the task in the quickest time and not incur any penalty points.

Of course there were some frustrations along the way, Crews didn’t always work together (especially during the first attempt of the activity), but it was great to see how all the students reflected on how they could improve before their next try and they did all see an improvement in times! We also appreciated how some of the natural leaders in crew stepped back and allowed others to express their thoughts and ideas.

Looking ahead, we have some fantastic sessions planned for the rest of this term. We have included the weekly session details below (we are on Week 3 next week so will be out walking):

Week 1Week 2Week 3Week 4Week 5Week 6Week 7
28/08/2306/09/2313/09/2320/09/2327/09/234/10/2311/10/23
FWB 
Outward Bound
Getting to know you session with crew building activitiesLocal WalkFire Pit
Gardening
Fire Pit
Gardening 
Orienteering 
Route planning and map reading 
Local Walk using map reading skills

It is important that students come appropriately dressed for these sessions. In the winter months the outdoor area can be wet, cold and sludgy and in the summer months hot so please make sure the following items are provided.

Autumn/Winter kit:

  • Long sleeved jumper
  • Long trousers – waterproof if possible
  • Warm hat and gloves
  • Waterproof coat

Spring/Summer kit:

  • Sunscreen
  • Sun hat
  • Water bottle
  • Waterproof coat

We are really looking forward to the year ahead with Y7. The XP Outdoors curriculum is absolutely essential to helping our students to continue to focus on the importance of Crew, to help them learn outside of the classroom, to help them learn new skills, to build resilience and help them become the best versions of themselves.

If you have any questions or concerns please contact our XP Outdoors lead, Miss Watson: [email protected] or your child’s Crew Leader.

Thank you from the XP Outdoors Team: Mrs Watson, Mrs Parker and Miss Dickinson