Photograph shows: Dauntsey’s Third Formers during their Moonrakers Camp
Dauntsey’s Third Formers have completed a week of adventure and personal development at the Aberdovey Centre in Wales, in the culmination of their annual Moonrakers programme. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the school working with the Outward Bound Trust centre.
Moonrakers – now in its 51st year – is the largest initiative run by the school’s Adventure Education department, with all Third Formers taking part in 21 different activities each Friday afternoon during the academic year. Challenges include outdoor cooking, kayaking, cycling, first aid, expedition skills, navigation, orienteering, survival, river crossing, scuba diving and archery.
The Moonrakers Camp in Wales was packed full of adventures designed to develop confidence, trust, teamwork and resilience. Activities included an estuary swim in the River Dovey, rock climbing, abseiling, canoeing, jetty jumping, climbing a challenge wall and swinging on a high trapeze. Students were also asked to plan and carry out a two-day overnight expedition.
Sam Moore, Head of Adventure Education at Dauntsey’s, said;
“Many of the challenges through the week required courage, communication and trust in team mates and it has been so rewarding to see the pupils working together and pushing themselves out of their comfort zone.
“Jumping six metres from a jetty into a spring tide, and then swimming back to the ladder, takes bravery and commitment. The sense of achievement on completing the task is enormous.
“It’s a core belief at Dauntsey’s that the behaviours that make you successful in adventure are the same as those that make you successful in life. It’s all about being willing to have a go, a mindset which is part of the Dauntsey’s DNA.”
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