and halfway up a mountain?.... or at least that's what they said it felt like. The children went for a long walk today as part of their fieldwork and I think it must have been quite hilly...I'm told they really are going mountain walking tomorrow so watch this space....

Today they've been concentrating on river work, getting in and doing lots of experiments; sorry but there might be some soggy clothing coming home. They also had great fun floating dog biscuits downstream... when I asked if there were lots of dogs on site the answer was no (!) apparently dog biscuits float really well and are biodegradable so good for doing experiments with. Hot showers and hot drinks when they got back restored them all though, ready for this evening activities.

Everyone has now settled well ready for today's busy program. A few had a late night but were up early this morning even so and spent the morning in the woodland learning crafts which was greatly enjoyed. They were due to be making a camp fire this afternoon and enjoying some hot chocolate as well!!! Just back in time for those tea and cakes, not to mention the three course evening meal. The only down side to today's actvities was that they got a bit wet...but then didn't we all! The rain cleared later but in any case a bit of water didn't stop them having a great time. More updates tomorrow.

Blencathra News.......

All arrived safely and thrilled with the site which is in a beautiful location. Lets hope the weather stays kind. General opinion seems to be that everyone is also thrilled by the prospect of cake every day at 4pm.....can't be bad!!. The afternoon has been spent exploring the site and unpacking, and making up their beds; some children spotted actually inside their duvet cases trying to put them on, but all figured it out in the end (there will be no excuse when they get home for not doing it!). As I write they are playing games with the prospect of tea at 5.30 which I'm told is Spaghetti Bolognese and apple crumble. All in all then a brilliant start to the week....

After yesterday's busy day the children were treated to roast chicken and pavlova last night, which sounds Ok to me....

This morning the children were down on the beach doing a bit of spring cleaning in readyness for tonight's barbeque tea. I'm told a midnight feast is also planned.... They have also been down to Dale Village and out on the pontoon to catch crabs straight out the sea. After that groups of six or so at a time were taken out on a boat trip, and apparently all sea legs remained steady!

Just a final note of caution for tomorrow's return... apparently there is a lot of dirty, smelly and wet clothing coming home... you might want to have the washing machine on standby!

It sounds as if they've all had an amazing time; I don't think any of us can believe how fast its gone....

A much quieter night was had by all apparently; all tired out after a very busy day, and there were quite a few groans getting up this morning (from staff or children I'm not sure!)... but up they got, and this morning went to visit the local weather station, where yesterday's temperatures were recorded as the highest of the year for that area!

Mammal hunting followed where the children caught a mouse and a vole (not for lunch...I think they were let go!) and then some more activities on the beach, followed by a cool lunch in the shade.

This afternoon's activity is called seinne netting which involves trawling a huge net across the estuary, and then having a look to see what has been caught. Tomorrow they are taking a boat trip, so more about that on Thursday...

Years 5 & 6 settled down to fish, chips and peas for tea last night, followed by trifle; can't be bad! Apparently sleep was a bit hit and miss, but came eventually.... ready to be up this morning at 7am. (I think the staff hope that they will wear themselves out today, and after yesterday's excitement at being there may sleep better tonight!)

They spent the morning crabbing on the beach and looking for treasure in rock pools, which they were then able to take back to a lab and look at under the microscope. After a picnic lunch under the trees they were pond dipping this afternoon. The sun is still shining, and everyone has been behaving beautifully, a credit to the school in fact.

More to follow soon....

Latest news from Pembrokeshire.....

All arrived safely, and yes the sun is shining over there too!  The children have spent a little while getting their rooms sorted and finding their way about, and will soon be having their evening meal ready for the evening's activity.

Further updates will follow soon, and meanwhile if you want to see where the children are type Dale Fort into Google. Follow the links to the Field Studies Council and have a look at the amazing aerial photo!

Welcome to St Mary's Bluecoat Blog Page as our new website goes live!

When putting together this site we spent a great deal of time looking at other sites to see what did and didn't work; what proved unnecessary, akward to access, or involved huge amounts of scrolling to find the information that was required. As a result we have designed our site to be of the 'It Does Exactly What It Says On The Tin' variety, not that many frills, but we hope a site that will be easily useable, but vastly more importantly a site that is up to date and relevant.

Over the next few weeks we will be able to add more posts to the site, to keep you up to date will all our latest news. see you soon..