Outdoor Education & Residentials

BUILDING CHARACTER THROUGH PRIMARY SCHOOL TRIPS/Residentials

Primary school trips for character

Here at St. Paul’s we place a high focus on the whole person learning journey, and ‘education for character’ and how we can help children to foster these skills and attributes through to secondary school and into adulthood. Our aim is to help to prepare them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life.

As part of the education curriculum schools, according to the new framework, have “an important role in the fostering of good mental wellbeing among young people so that they can fulfil their potential at school and are well prepared for adult life.”

All classes from Nursery to Year6 are encouraged to enhance their curriculum learning with trips out or well-planned visitors into school in every term across the academic year. This enhancement of learning not only provides valuable experiences for our pupils but serves to build character, reinforce our core school values in a wide range of different environments. Throughout each term classes will invite parents into school for ‘Learning Assemblies’ in which they showcase their half terms learning to their parents. This is followed straight after the learning assembly by parents going into the classes sharing their books, discussing displays and learning walls and being part of their child’s learning journey.

St. Paul’s school, values and vision

Primary trips/residentials offer that first all-important opportunity for pupils to understand how the values promoted through their day-to-day school learning shape their character and behaviour outside of the classroom. An opportunity for students to consider who they are as a collective representing their school, and to take pride in conveying that sense of identity to those they meet while on their trip – the activity provider’s team running the activities, and potentially staff and students from other schools.

For schools the residential trip offers an opportunity to plan activities that encapsulate and demonstrate the values you have only, until now, been able to teach within the school environment. Values like trust, honesty, pride and a commitment to achievement take on a whole new meaning when they’re used as a basis for attempting activities and challenges in a new, perhaps daunting environment.

Relationship Policy: What are our expectations of behaviour towards each other?

One of the key benefits of a primary school trip/residential is the opportunity for pupils to forge new friendships and start to identify their own character as they navigate new environments and activities. It provides the ideal opportunity for teachers to show pupils how their school behaviour policy promoting consideration, good manners and respect for others translates to making positive first impressions, being a good team member and building new friendships outside of the school environment.

Primary school trips/residentials are most popular for the plethora of teambuilding opportunities they offer, so school leaders can tailor programmes to encourage the development of character traits that are more difficult to teach within the school confines – like overcoming obstacles, learning to adapt to new environments, independence building and leadership.

St. Paul’s curriculum and teaching develop resilience and confidence?

This benchmark, promoting the teaching of ‘knowledge and cultural capital’ giving pupils  ‘confidence in wider society’ is where primary school trips really come into their own, because these are the elements that simply cannot be taught effectively purely within the classroom, no matter how creative your curriculum planning.

The only way to build confidence in pupils   engaging with wider society is to get them engaging with that society in a safe, positive and structured way. The confidence that comes from getting to the end of the finish line that seemed a million miles away at the start, the resilience built from reaching the top of the abseiling tower despite a fear of heights – these are unparalleled character-building moments made all the more powerful and distinctive because they occurred in an environment outside of their comfort zone.

At St. Paul’s we ensure that all our pupils benefit equally from what we offer

Inclusivity and accessibility is key to offering a high impact, high quality school trip and residential by ensuring every pupil can participate, and every pupil can get something positive from the experience. At St. Paul’s we do this by his is easily achieved by:

• Planning your trip well in advance. Schedule it into the school calendar early to ensure buy-in and support from within your school community, and to give parents time to spread out the cost over manageable payments, making this an affordable option for families.
• Doing your research. Choose an activity provider that understands your school ethos and the objectives of your residential trip and can work with you to plan an activity programme that meets them. Look at testimonials from other schools and students, and where possible choose a location that is within easy reach to avoid high travel costs and wasting time on a coach, and to allow you to visit the centre before your trip, to help you prepare your team and your students for maximum impact and enjoyment.

We recognise the significance of this experience not only as a way of enhancing the classroom curriculum but as an integral, formative exercise that shapes children’s personal and social development. At St. Paul’s we endeavour to make the most of the diverse range of locations, terrains, activities and activity providers in the North West in delivering high-quality, affordable primary residential trips, and offer our pupils the benefit of a character-building adventure of a lifetime.