Wednesday 21st May 2025
Gibside Health and Wellbeing Day
On Wednesday, we went on our Year 3 class trip to Gibside for a day all about Health and Wellbeing. When we arrived at 9.45, we set all of our things down and had an introductory talk about what would be happening throughout the day.
Our first activity was in the woods and it was all about meeting a tree! We got a blindfold each and one of us had to put one on while our partner would lead us around the woods, using their communication skills to tell us what was in front of us. They would lead us to a tree, which we would then feel for any unique markings, before our partner lead us away again to try and confuse us! Once our blindfold was removed, we had to go and try to find the tree that we had been brought.
Our next activity was a team building. There was a circle marked out in the grass with a bucket and a basket inside it. We could not step into the circle because the bucket was leaking toxic waste everywhere! Our job was to move the bucket into the basket using only two ropes and a coat hanger, so we had to work together in our groups to find the best way to move it without it tipping over.
As it was a lovely sunny day, we were able to have our lunch on the grass before starting our next activity. This was sitting around a campfire and doing some meditation. We learned how meditation can help us to relax and be present in the moment, noticing everything we were thinking and feeling and noticing everything around us. At the end of this session, we mindfully got to toast some marshmallows over the campfire, noticing how they turned brown and what happened to them as they roasted. We even got to eat them afterwards!
Finally, we enjoyed Sound it Out. This was all about making lots of noise, so we really enjoyed it! We got to sing and play some instruments, learning about how making noise can help us to feel better and allow us to express some emotions, as well as making us feel happier.
A lovely day was had by all!
I liked the Rainbow Fun Run because everyone was cheering me on and being really kind to the people who were running. Ava
I liked it because everyone was being kind and nice and we also got a lolly and got our face painted! Brody
We ran two laps around the entire school! Bradley
I liked it at the end when we were all dancing together. Esme
It was very tiring, but we didn’t give up and we stuck together. K
Everybody was kind when we were running around. Charlie
I liked it at the end because we were dancing in a circle around our friends. Maria
Friday 9th May
VE Day 80th Anniversary
Yesterday we celebrated the 80th anniversary of VE Day. We learnt that VE stands for Victory in Europe.
In the morning, we took part in a virtual assembly with Picture News. We talked about the British Values of Individual Liberty, Rule of Law, Democracy and Mutual Respect and Tolerance and why they are so important. We learnt a phrase to help us remember them: I Really Do Matter. We identified British Values in action and learnt how we can make an impact in our school and the wider world.
In the afternoon, we iced and decorated biscuits with a VE Day flag and learnt a VE day song. We also learnt more about World War II, why it started and what life was like for people then. We looked at some images of wartime in the UK and discussed what we noticed. The questions and discussions that followed were incredible! The children really began to understand how difficult it must have been for people then. Afterwards, we looked at images of VE day celebrations in different areas of the UK. The children discussed how they thought people in the UK would be feeling when they heard that war was over.
We then reflected back to British Values and how they can promote peace and understanding of others.
I was very proud of everyone for their interest, enthusiasm and understanding of the topic.