In the early hours of SUNDAY 30 June 2019, 38 of our (new) Year 9 pupils boarded their coach, along with 5 members of staff from across the school, for the journey to Normandy, France as part of Enrichment Week 2019.

After a quick coach trip to Portsmouth, we were ready to board the ferry for the 6 hour crossing. The friendly ferry staff showed us to our comfortable designated area, and the group either settled down to catch up on sleep, eat breakfast, chat or play games. There were also table tennis matches outside on the deck where pupils were challenged to beat Mr Cumming.

After disembarking the ferry at Caen, we had a coach journey to our accommodation, La Grand Ferme. We were welcomed by Solène, our French activity leader who would be looking after us for the week. We settled into our rooms, had dinner and played some games before getting an early night, exhausted after the 12 hour journey!

Following a delicious breakfast of fresh croissant on MONDAY morning, we set off for our first full day of fun, taking part in the 10km Bay Adventure with our guide Woody. First, we walked along the beach making our way to the beautiful Mont St Michel (St Michael’s Mount) and encountered quicksand along the way!

TUESDAY morning started with another delicious breakfast- pain au chocolat! We had the opportunity to practice our French speaking skills and enter a market mission competition for the best sandwich! The pupils had to work in teams of 3, with a budget of just 3€ each to come up with the most original and delicious baguette fillings. There was a little bit of confusion amongst one of the groups when instead of asking for “four slices of chicken” they asked for “a chicken sliced into four” and ended up with a whole cooked chicken!

During the afternoon we visited an activity centre which had a high ropes course and a very popular toboggan run!  After another fantastic day we returned back to the centre and enjoyed some activities and games, some involving water balloons and water pistols to help us cool off!

WEDNESDAY was another busy day with the group dividing into two teams to take on the river canoeing and the sports tournament. After a refuel back at the campsite, the groups swapped over and so everyone got to experience both activities. Wednesday evening was an opportunity to try some typical French cuisine: snails!

On THURSDAY morning we visited an organic goat farm. The goat farm gave pupils the opportunity to find out more about farming in the local area and the whole process of making cheese. In addition to being able to pet the goats, some pupils took the opportunity to try milking a goat and even try fresh goat’s milk!

On our last afternoon we went back to doing activities at the beach. Again, the group divided into two and we had the chance to try sand yachting and also learn circus skills such as juggling and diablo – sadly it was too windy for plate spinning, but it was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.

Before we could enjoy our BBQ on the last night, we had to make sure that all the rooms were clean and tidy – this took some groups longer than others – but we got there eventually.

After a 04:30 wakeup call on FRIDAY, we were ready to get back on the road for our long journey back to Cirencester. Once again, the time spent on the ferry was relaxing and we even had the chance to have an awards ceremony for the Best Canoeist, Best French Speaker and Tidiest Room, to mention just a few!

This fantastic Enrichment Week 2019 activity trip was action-packed and pupils had the opportunity to practice their French, make new friends, take part in a range of activities, and learn important life skills.