Day 2 in the schools is now complete in the Gryphons Abroad camp and we’ve had our latest update from the team about how it went

Rachel Weaver

On the second day we worked at Gratton School again. During the first session we did leadership and worked mainly on communication, we led games such as blindfolded obstacle courses to encourage the importance of communication. Our second session was our curriculum lesson, Sian led this lesson and it was about Business. We did a dragon den styled lesson where the children invented “the best gift ever” for a family member or friend; they designed things such as a safe house for their family or a box of things they enjoy. Our final session was on netball; most of the girls had previously played before and so were really excited! We did a few drills and games that prepared the school for the netball tournament we led after lunch. During the tournament our school got split into 4 teams, my team did really well just missing out on the finals! Overall I really enjoyed today, the children always had a smile on their faces and even after 2 days of working with them I could see how much they had  developed in confidence and leadership.

 

 

Eamonn Laird

Starting the second day at Gratton the group were all feeling confident and enthused after their successful first day. Our group worked on netball first, a sport which a lot more of the children seemed to have played before and picked up the drills very quickly. The second session of the day we worked on leadership, a highlight was having one of the children stand up and lead part of the session, running a game they had learnt on the first day. The personal highlight of the day, and although we have several days left, it will probably be the highlight of the trip, was having a whole class room of students sing the “Flower of Scotland”. Sofia was delivering an art class and asked the class to draw a symbol which represents them. I myself drew a Scottish flag. I showed it to the class and asked them to guess what it was, they were able to answer very quickly as they had recently had a Scottish teacher at their school. They had been taught the Scottish national anthem for the teacher leaving so were more than happy to break into song which I of course joined in with.

“I always knew I would have some special moments in South Africa but never thought I would have one that special and that personal.”

 

 

Sian Jones

Another day at The Gratton School brought huge smiles and even more fun for us and the children! The three sessions went superbly well and the children loved all the things we taught them. The second lesson of the day tested my knowledge and put my teaching abilities to the test as I ran a “Dragon Dens” style exercise. It was a real pleasure to see the children, who originally did not want to present to the class, thrive and receive the highest points. It highlighted how the leadership section of our teaching was paying off and how we’ve helped them over the past few days. A personal highlight for me was seeing those students, who during the sports session were unmotivated and uninterested, wanting to play more and more netball during the sports competition at the end. It’s been a fantastic experience at Gratton, and the final day is looking to be even better!