Year 3 Residential in Khao Yai

On Friday 2nd February, Year 3 returned to school a little taller, older and wiser after an exciting, if exhausting, trip to Khao Yai. Memories had been made and the bonds between the children had strengthened.

Year 3 were waved off on Thursday morning by a crowd of parents displaying a mixture of pride, excitement and anxiousness! A very smooth journey out of the city saw the convoy of buses arriving at the Seven Sisters waterfall during the mid-morning. The children listened intently to the park keepers talk about the waterfalls and natural beauty of the area, before setting off with cameras in hand to complete a photographic treasure hunt. Nature surrounded us by the waterfall, but it was the cave that piqued the interest of the children as they became convinced it might house a dragon, perhaps even Gewaine from the Year 3 production.

After leaving the waterfall we stopped for a well-deserved lunch and the children stepped up and behaved very well in the restaurant, taking turns to serve up food and making sure they all had lots of ice in their water.

In the afternoon, we headed to Chokchai Farm. The excitement was palpable as we approached the ice-cream making room. Children and teachers donned aprons and hair nets, looking both safe and ridiculous in equal measure. The children selected their favourite flavours and set about working in teams to create some sumptuous ice-cream. The thought of having to wait 24 hours to pick it up was too much for some children and they gave in to their impatience and had a spoon or two of the leftovers.

Next up, we checked into the hotel. The children could not believe that they were actually staying in a proper hotel, making every effort to make full use of the facilities in the rooms. Year 3 have never looked as clean as they did when they headed out to a nearby restaurant for dinner.

The evening saw us return to the hotel to watch a film and rest. There were many weary eyes well before the end of the film and before long all children were back in their rooms and fast asleep.

All the teachers had wide smiles on Friday morning, the children had been so well behaved and mature over the night that some of the teachers may even have felt refreshed. Breakfast was a big hit, with fellow guests out of luck after a big raid on the toast by the children of Year 3. The drink of choice was most definitely chocolate milk, which caused quite a queue!

After breakfast, it was time to head to the Elephant Sanctuary, where the children were told about the evolutionary history of the modern day elephant and closely compared the human and elephant skeletons. We

got to see the world’s first Elephant ambulance before we first fed and then washed two of the beautiful elephants that reside at the sanctuary.

Stomachs rumbled as we left the sanctuary, so before picking up our ice-cream we devoured lunch at yet another restaurant. Traffic was kind to us as we headed back to the school. The children were excited to see their families and to tell them about the exciting experiences that will live with
them forever.

The teachers and staff that accompanied the children on the trip were very impressed with the behaviour and attitude of the children who were a credit to the school.

Martyn Chadderton
Year 3 Teacher