Surf’s up!
It’s a longstanding tradition on the St Ives residential to have a big beach day. The famous St Ives Surf School always puts on an absolutely brilliant experience – it is run by highly experienced surfers who are excellent with the kids and are all trained lifeguards. You really know you are in safe hands.
After breakfast we got ourselves ready and headed down to Porthmeor Beach where the surf school is based. This beach is famed for having some of the best surfing conditions in the country, so we’re super lucky to be able to use it to learn to ride the waves! We were given our own section of the beach, with safe spaces to change and keep our bags and our own volleyball court. After a good play, the kids got into wetsuits ready to warm up (albeit in very cold water) with a fun bodyboarding session. They all had so much fun with this – they were also free to splash about and have a swim.
After a solid hour in the water, we had lunch on the beach (Look out! St Ives Seagulls ahoy! They really are another level of menacing here) and warmed back up before the main event: the surfing lesson. As usual, the team at the Surf School put on a fun, inclusive and accessible lesson for all, with the aim of all pupils trying their best and being able to at least catch a wave and hopefully stand up while they do so. It started off on the beach, learning how to lie properly on the boards, paddle, catch a wave and jump up. Then they took to the water (where the conditions were perfect) to give it a go. Accepting that surfing is a proper skill to be mastered, year 6 took on the challenge with good spirits and fantastic resilience. What a result, though! Everyone went out there and kept on trying until they were riding the waves like Brian Wilson once did.
Once the surf session was over, we chilled out on the beach for a bit, getting changed, eating ice creams and playing games. We walked back through the busy and winding streets of St Ives to the hostel, where everyone got showered and ready for dinner. Some pupils wanted to go souvenir shopping, so we went out in a small group on a lovely excursion – the pupils bought nothing but high-quality merchandise of course, no tat to be found whatsoever, honestly… dinner was pizzas and was really delicious. The pupils have got so great this week at eating nicely together in the hostel and being polite. On that note, in general, we have reflected at this halfway point on how amazing the class has been this week. They’re a pleasure to go away with, truly.
As if we didn’t have enough beach, we decided to tire them out even more by going to Porthminster Beach for some games and paddling. They will surely sleep well tonight!
Dan
