Trips & Residentials
Residential Opportunities
Iceland Expedition - Easter 2013
We are delighted to have offered all students the opportunity of a lifetime in joining our first expedition to Iceland.
For six days from 27th March to 1st April 2013 students will take part in a wide range of activities including a visit the Blue Lagoon, climbing an active volcano and going whale-watching, as well as enjoying all that there is to offer from this unique culture.
It is not too late to go but places are filling fast ! Any interested students should see Mrs Beadnall or Miss Lodge for further information and a first deposit of £100.
France - Summer 2012
Once again, over forty year 7 students will enjoy a Summer trip to Boulogne, visiting many places of interest and making the most of every opportunity to practice their language skills. For those already signed up to the trip there is a reminder that 2 passports and E111 cards should be sent to Mrs Plouchard as soon as possible.
World War I Battlefields - October 2012
Our Languages and Humanities staff are working together on a 5 day visit to the battlefields of World War I in Belgium and France this Autumn. Aimed at our older students, this will be an opportunity to visit many significant battle sites and remember the fallen, as well as practising their French. Interested students should see Mrs Roe or Mr Arthur.
French/History Trip - 24th - 27th October 2012
See power point for information about this trip. Click here
Skiing Easter - 2012
Our ever popular skiing trip will once again take place during the Easter break. Plans for this annual event are now being finalised, and we look forward to a similar event next year.
China - 30th March 2012
After months of planning and preparation our first trip to China is finally underway ! A bright and early start from school on Thursday 29th March saw us head off to Manchester airport for our flight to Frankurt, from where we had a nine hour flight, arriving safe and well in Beijing. Our students took the travelling in their stride, and having been met by our guides, Jason and Sunny, we went for our first Chinese banquet. Everyone did exceptionally well with their chopsticks ! After lunch we went on to visit the famous Temple of Heaven, place of worship of the emperors of China. Here is a picture of us all on the steps of the iconic Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests:
We caused quite a stir with many other Chinese visitors greeting us and taking our pictures !
Our first day ended with a buffet meal and preparations for the day ahead at No 25 School.
31st March 2012
What an amazing day! Although it was another early start we were all recovering from our jetlag and raring to go. We drove though the busy morning streets of Beijing and headed south to Shijiazhuang, home of our partners No25 Middle School. Arriving at lunchtime we were warmly welcomed by Principal Yang, staff and students, exchanged gifts and posed for photographs before heading off to the canteen.
Afterwards we drove the short distance to the celebrated Zhaozhou Bridge and then went on to the famous Bailin Buddhist temple were we were very privileged to have a personal group viewing and the opportunity to watch a rare ceremony of worship.
Coming back to school we were taught how to cook some local dishes including Kung Po Chicken, Egg Fried Rice and Eggs and Tomatoes. Some of our Year 11 boys had a go at cooking Kung Po Chicken and then we all enjoyed eating it ! After dinner we watched Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon to help us to understand elements of Chinese culture, before heading off to bed early, ready for another busy day in school ahead.
1st April 2012
We spent the whole day at No25 Middle School, taking part in lots of different activities and experiencing a day in the life of a Chinese student. We ate breakfast at 7.00am, starting our programme at 7.45am with a tour of school and then heading up to the Psychology Room for a series of classes. Firstly we learned about Chinese heritage and famous places such as the Imperial Palace, Great Wall and Yellow River and then we had a Chinese language class. After a short rest it was time to try our hand at some artwork. We designed Beijing opera masks and learned some calligraphy strokes, then it was off to the canteen for lunch.
We were impressed with the long lunch break and almost all of the students joined forces in impromptu football and basketball games, playing with our new friends ! After lunch we enjoyed a tai chi lesson (even Mr Litchfield and Principal Yang joined in !) and then we joined our friends in their timetabled classes. We were in small groups and so between us experienced lots of different subjects !
From there we went into the After School Club of our choice, with activities including street dance, musical instruments, animation, art, tai chi and so on. We all enjoyed these very much ! Next, we joined a large group of students to watch a fabulous singing and dancing performance, and we took part too. Together we sang ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ and Sasha, Stephen, Lauren, Ben and Sarah read some poetry. We were very impressed and proud of our students too.
Finally we joined with our e-pals to make dumplings and then ate them for our dinner. This was great fun ! Afterwards we spent some time writing about our experience at No25 School. You can read what our students had to say about this amazing experience by visiting the International Studies pages at www.sjz25.cn . It is clear from the comments made that our students have thoroughly enjoyed their time here and have benefitted enormously from the experience.
The evening ended with a last game of football and an early night, making our preparations for our return to Beijing tomorrow !
2nd April 2012
We were very sad to leave our new friends this morning, but after an exchange of email addresses, more gifts and a few tears we were on our way back to Beijing. We arrived back just in time for our banquet lunch and then moved on to check back into our hotel. We all very much appreciated the home comforts that we had missed during our time at school !
After checking into the hotel we took the very busy subway to the Silk Market where we spent a couple of hours shopping for souvenirs. We all enjoyed haggling with the staholders prices and discovered that some of us have excellent bartering skills !
Pleased with our many purchases we went on to McDonalds for tea, before visiting the night market in the Wanfujing district in the heart of the city. Here we marvelled at the curious street food, such as scorpions, seahorses and snake, before doing a little more shopping and then heading back to the hotel for another exciting day ahead. We caused quite a stir once again, with even the youngest Chinese children taking our pictures !!
3rd April 2012
We woke to a lovely sunny day and spent our time today exploring Beijing. After a tour of Tian'enemen Square we entered the Forbidden City, former imperial palace of the Chinese emperors. We were all amazed by the size of the palace and grounds, and all for one person and his family ! Here we are in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony where the emperor would receive visiting dignitaries:
Lunchtime found us on a breathtaking rickshaw ride through the back streets of Beijing to a home cooked lunch in a traditional house. We really enjoyed our meal ! We then went by rickshaw to visit another courtyard house to see the traditional way of life. We learned about how generations used to live together according to traditional Chinese beliefs.
From here we went to watch a magnificent acrobatic show. We marvelled at the strength and agility of the performers, and the daring escapades of the seven motorcyclists riding their bikes in a small globe-shaped cage ! The day ended with dinner in a local restaurant, our most authentic meal yet.
5th April 2012
An early start today for our trip to the Great Wall! Under a clear blue sky we arrived at the Juyongguan Pass where we faced the many steps up to the watchtowers. Several students climbed to the very top of the pass where there were spectacular views of the whole valley. We gathered again at the entrance, every student now a “Hero of the Great Wall”.
After a well deserved and delicious lunch, we travelled back to the Summer Palace in Beijing. We were joined for the afternoon by Miss Yuan who was our visiting Chinese teacher last year. With the crowds who are still enjoying a national holiday in China, we walked through the park and through its painted corridors.
This evening we stopped briefly to learn about the tea ceremony and visit the Olympic park before our last banquet in China. The time has flown by and tomorrow we shall be on our way home, leaving our friends and taking our memories of a fantastic trip to the Far East.
June 2011
We are delighted to offer students the opportunity to visit China at Easter 2012. this once-in-a-lifetime trip will include the world-famous Beijing UNESCO heritage sites such as the Forbidden City, Summer Palace and Great Wall, as well the national Olympic stadium and time in our partner school, No25 School in Shijiazhuang, plus much more.
Please click here for the invitation letter and consent form.
Please follow the links for the consent form, visa application form and medical information form.
Images of the accommodation block at No25 School, Shijiazhuang and Principal Yang in the school library:
Summer Days Out 2011
This Summer we are offering a number of day visits to local places. Our trips to Keswick, the North Yorkshire Moors Railway and Killhope Lead Mining museum in Weardale offer excellent value for money.
A leaflet with further information about each trip can be found here and the consent form found here.