Kingfield Primary School

Avon Tyrrell 2026

Thursday 19th March

Good evening!

A rare opportunity for me to update earlier in the evening as the children are currently watching Zootropolis 2 as their chosen film for tonight's film night. They've been looking forward to this evening all week as they finally get to tuck into some of the sweets and treats that they bought at the tuck shop!

Today has been exhausting and thrilling in equal measure. We've been up high on the zipwire, down low in kayaks and mixing it up with a bit of both on a very bumpy mountain bike trail. Noah is officially a "swamp donkey" as he was the only one who fell into the swamp when he biked around a corner maybe a little too fast! Lots of us were quite nervous about mountain biking and unsure on a bike. Despite a few of us deciding to walk the bumpier sections or sliding off their bikes a couple of times, many children have said that it was their favourite activity so far! The zipwire was much higher than it seemed from the ground and felt quite fast. Some children conquered their fear of heights and ended up having multiple trips zooming across the lake. And the two groups that kayaked all managed to stay in their boat and no one capsized! It could also be argued that Mr Payne's group's raft was the most successful - both Junior and Noah managed to stand at the same time and no one got wet! 

Whilst we are all very much ready to come home and probably sleep the weekend away, the children still have one more activity tomorrow morning: Mr Payne's group finally have their turn on the zip wire whilst the other two groups are off on an adventure trail. 

We'll be setting off after lunch tomorrow and hope to be back at school normal time. As a reminder, all children need to be picked up in order to be dismissed - they cannot walk home alone. Looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow! 

Good morning!

It is an absolutely beautiful morning here at Avon Tyrrell, with the sun shining between the trees and promising another day of warm sunshine. This is definitely what we need for our most adventurous day yet. 

This morning, much to the sadness of their two teachers, Mrs Fox's and Miss Humphreys's lodge full of girls has once again woken up without any need for water guns or banging on saucepans. Mr Payne's and Mr Francis's lodge have been more challenging to wake up... for now...

Breakfast is another fry up this morning which we are very excited for - although the bowls of rice crispies and unlimited teaspoons have sugar have also gone down a treat the last few days - less so with the teachers! 

Wednesday 18th March 

Good evening!

We have had another hugely successful day today. Our Year Sixes have once again impressed us with some brilliant determination, resilience and optimism. A good night's sleep had by all (children) last night was definitely appreciated as we came with fighting spirits ready to conquer some fears and challenges today.

Mr Francis's group had a gorgeous morning on the lake - we were really lucky to be the only group out on the water in our pedalos which was wonderfully peaceful and tranquil and allowed us to have some great team games. Also on the water, Mrs Fox's group were tasked on building a raft - rather miraculously, they all managed to stay afloat and Hassan even managed to stand up! Mr Payne's group then went onto the paddleboards. Everyone (except me as I was far too chicken) was able to stand up and paddle around but everyone also at some point also fell into the lake (except me - I was bone dry!) although as the sun was gloriously warm we are pretty sure that some may have fallen off their paddleboards accidentally on purpose...

It's been brilliant to see team-building, communication and leadership skills shine through in so many of our children. The low ropes have proven the need to listen and trust in each other; pioneering showed great patience and leadership and geocaching proved a useful way of encouraging children to work with others they don't often work with. 

Everyone (and definitely the adults) was extremely tired tonight and all children were asleep by 10.15pm. Tomorrow is our busiest and most daring day of all with everyone back on the water (keep your fingers and toes crossed for more delightful weather please), everyone racing round on the mountain bikes, two groups on the zipline and one group making fire. We will definitely be exhausted by the end of the week!

Sending lots of love to everyone back home!

Good morning!

We have some wonderful chipper spirits this morning - a good night's sleep has definitely been achieved and a breakfast of fresh fruit, juice and pancakes has gone down deliciously. We are all back on the water today - Mr Payne's group are undoubtedly going to get wet on the paddleboards (hooray for sunshine), Mrs Fox's group are probably going to get wet when building a raft (unless they're super successful?!) and Mr Francis's group have their turn taking the adults on a leisurely pedalo ride. 

We have lots of other activities on dry land too: geocaching, bushcraft, pioneering and the low ropes. 

Mr Payne and myself have been getting arty with our photography skills - check out the beautiful skies we've seen over the last 24 hours!

Tuesday 17th March

Good evening!

Today has been exhausting! Miraculously, every child was asleep before 10pm - it's just the adults who are awake. I think we drank too much caffeine in anticipation of a late night and now we regret our actions. We will undoubtedly face the consequences in the morning!

We are so incredibly proud of our Year 6s today. Some of us have had bursts of homesickness and have shown true resilience to keep on giving every activity their best and getting involved. It definitely makes the time go faster! 

This morning, we learned that we have some amazing Robin Hoods in the class with some fantastic archery skills - so many children managed to get a bullseye during their session! After lunch, we were graced with some gorgeous sunshine which made Mr Payne's group have great fun during their kayaking session - even if Daniel and Noah did manage to capsize (three times!). Mrs Fox and myself were true passenger princesses as we had a wonderful late afternoon ride on the pedalos, steered and pedaled by pairs at a time. Mr Francis's group braved the paddleboards earlier in the day in the slightly chillier weather - we were so impressed with how fast some of them were able to go! A huge well done to Jamie who showed such resilience after falling in right at the start; despite it being cold, his infectious enthusiasm never disappeared. 

The instructors have been amazing and many have commented on how much resilience and determination our Kingfielders have shown. We can't wait to get back on the lakes tomorrow - hopefully with some slightly warmer sunshine.

Good morning! It was a successful first night in the lodges, everyone has had a good night's sleep (even the teachers!)

Miss Humphreys's lodge was the best at getting to bed, with everyone safely tucked into bed and lights out by 10.20pm. Mr Payne's took much longer, with most children asleep by 11pm. 

We're back on the lake today and have a full day of activities. But first - breakfast!

Monday 16th March

Good evening!

It has been a successful first day on our residential. The drive was super short and we saw some beautiful ponies in the middle of the road on our journey. 

Upon arrival, we had an interesting experience watching all of the children make their beds. We certainly learned quickly who helps out at home!

Children are in different groups at night and during the day. Mr Payne's group went on the pedalos first with Miss Humphreys; children showed true stamina at having to pedal a boat for 90 minutes! Mr Francis's group made a fantastic raft using wooden planks and barrels that only got their feet wet. Mrs Fox's group were the wettest of us all though - only a few children managed to stand upright on their paddleboards without falling off. Unfortunately, even Mrs Fox fell in right at the end! It was a very cold experience for those children. 

Most children are now safely tucked up in bed, freshly showered and definitely excited but tired. We're all on the lake again tomorrow - although most children are more excited about a fry up for breakfast.