Activities Week

“Learning by doing theory is nice, but nothing replaces actual experience.”

Tony Hsieh

The school offers a wide variety of trips, visits and opportunities throughout the year. During the last week  of the academic year, the school holds an activity week where we arrange a variety of activities for all students in Key Stage 3 including: overnight trips to outdoor activity centres and trips abroad such as France and Spain, day trips to places of interest such as museums and theatres; work shadowing; visiting speakers and theatre companies; STEM days; workshops on dance, first aid, drawing and drama; and a multitude of other opportunities dreamt up by the teaching staff.

The aim of activities week at Kings Langley School is about improving students’ understanding, skills, values, personal and social development and can act as a vehicle to develop our students’ capacity which motivates them to learn more. This is not only about what they learn, but most importantly, how and where they learn. It also broadens the student experience by expanding their cultural capital, whilst learning more about themselves and one another. It is an opportunity for students to develop new and existing bonds with teachers and other students; to increase their self-esteem and sense of adventure by trying something new; and having the prospect of testing out their own character traits and virtues.

Every September, a plan of possible overnight and day trips are sent out to Key Stage 3 students and parents/carers who are encouraged to sign up for as many as they wish. These trips require payment, however our aim is to involve all students, so costs are kept to a minimum and support is found for those students where cost could be a limiting factor. In the summer, when students are not out of school on a trip or on their one day work shadowing, a programme of activities is in place which either build or broaden on curriculum content, or give students the opportunity to be creative or try/see something new and different. These are planned as non-chargeable activities and in general are run by the staff based around different expertise such as orienteering, origami, circus skills etc. At the end of each activities week, students are asked to complete an evaluation form about their experiences and to nominate a student and a teacher that impressed them. These nominations, with explanations, are then returned to the named student or teacher as an act of recognition and kindness which feeds into our rewards and recognition system. 

Activities week letter for 2024 - October 2023

If you require further information about activities week, please contact Mrs Jennings, Deputy Headteacher at jenningsr@kls.herts.sch.uk or Mr Higgins, School Experience Co-ordinator at higginsj@kls.herts.sch.uk.