River Festival: The Stoke Approach to Learning

The end of May saw the return of Stoke’s infamous River Festival. A whole day devoted to learning in the wild. Character and resilience shone through as students tried new activities, learning new skills while having fun.

We had a wonderful time messing about on the river on Friday 26th May, finishing the half term with a bang, or should that be a splash?

In the morning, students competed in Lions vs Unicorns teams to create the best picnic spread, win the Great Paper Boat Race and then win the stand-up paddleboard races along our stretch of the River Stour. Special mention to the Osborne brothers for capsizing a member of staff each during their sessions!

In the afternoon, students chose from a range of workshops loosely tied to curriculum areas, enabling them to step beyond the classroom and delve deeper into wider knowledge and skills. From Photography and Watercolours, to Bridge-Building, Water Music and Rivers through Civilisation, there were plentiful choices to engage our students and spark a love of learning for its own sake. Special thanks to all the teachers who led these sessions and inspired our students.

The River Festival is made up of different events each year, all tied to the theme of our beautiful campus and the great outdoors more generally. We are already planning next year’s event which promises to offer even more for our school community to enjoy.

Mr Reeves and Mr Misso invited students to deepen their photographic skills in a walking Photography Workshop. Students were taught about micro and macro photographic skills capturing river plant life and views of the Stoke College Campus. View of Stoke-by-Clare church by Alexis, Year 8.

Mr Swain and Mr Burridge led a Bridge Design Workshop challenge, asking students to create the strongest bridge. Teams, formed of different year groups, used Physics skills to consider a design that would safely bear the heaviest load.