Written byYear 5 Students and Teachers
Year 5 students recently returned from their first school camp: a two-night, three day excursion to Nanbeihu, in Zhejiang province. They took part in exciting activities including climbing, archery, rafting and the dreaded “leap-of-faith”. Camp is a key component in YCIS’ commitment to holistic education, encouraging students to go outside their comfort zone, working as teams, and developing their independence in a safe, fun setting. This is what the students had to say about the Year 5 camp:
“Year 5 camp was fun, exciting and challenging because of all the activities the leaders had prepared. One of my favourite things was being with my friends who encouraged me at the leap of faith or the climbing wall…it felt like a three-day sleepover with people you always wanted to have it with, but were never allowed!”Lucia, 5A
“I liked to do high ropes and low ropes because it was all about working together on low ropes and high ropes was all about encouraging and pushing yourself to higher achievements.” Paul 5A
“My favourite part of the camp was raft building because we learned how to tie knots and learned new skills. I particularly enjoyed the part where we raced each other!” William, 5A
“I liked the cargo net climbing because it is was hard and wobbly, I was one of the first girls to climb all the way.” Dongying 5D
“My favourite thing was the leap of faith because I think it is a good time to challenge yourself to try something new and face your fears.” Renin 5D
“I really enjoyed the archery part (even though I missed every time!) because it was really fun, and we played games.” Rosanna 5D
“I usually feel better working independently rather than in a group but at camp… No! I was in a mixed gender group and many activities needed us to work in a team. At first, I chose to hide in the shadows of others but my team encouraged me and pushed me to get involved and do it too. For the first time, I felt I was in a team.” Sakaya 5B
“I think camp really helped me become more confident in myself and more independent.” Ayaan 5B
“I like how at camp they pushed you to do amazing things and encouraged you to see things through in the excellent activities.” – Gregson 5B
“At camp we had a very good environment – if it was just a normal time at home, I’d just be playing iPad but we got to spend time outside instead! My favourite activity was archery because I hit the middle yellow section and hit Mr. Kitts’GoPro!” Ryan 5C
“I liked the raft building, hiking and the cake I was given for my birthday!” Andrew 5C
“I like that we had an environment that was different to staying at home where we are comfortable. We got to enjoy the outdoors!” Abbie 5C
“Camp lets kids experience ups and downs you don’t normally experience at home. We had an activity where we were blindfolded so that we had to use our other senses to keep ourselves safe moving through the environment.” Riley 5C
Year 5 will, of course, become Year 6 next year, and they now have the Year 6 camp to Moganshan to look forward to, and a chance for more memorable learning experiences.