Athletics' Day

On Friday the 16th we all went to Athletics' Day. At first we thought it was off because it was raining. We rang and asked the principal and he said it was on, just that Seddon had pulled out. We drove to Ward School, where we received a very warm welcome. Kerry, the principal, showed us round the school and we were given a chocolate biscuit each. We waited till the other kids finished their classes and then we played with them on the playground. It was very flash with lots of things to do. I liked sliding down the parallel bars. When the sports started we got into our year groups. We did sprints first.

I got a two in discus, shotput, high jump and long jump, a three and first place in the 200 and 400 metre run, and threes in the sprints.

For lunch we had a sausage sizzle. It was free for us!!!

At the end we had relay races. I am glad my dad ran in it. He started early; it was probably just as well he did because otherwise his team would have got smoked by the year eights. This is my dad running!

On Saturday morning I was as stiff as a week old dead rabbit and as sore as a cow with a broken leg. I had lots of fun at sports day and I think I did well because I wasn't feeling well. Still I think I can improve in shotput and discus.

I like the Sports day because we were welcomed very well and was hosted very well compared than being at Seddon. By Alice

Dad went in the relay and got first. He pulled his hamstring. He's 55, so he did pretty well. I had lots of fun. I came first in all the sprints. We had a sausage and bread for lunch. I had lots of fun at the athletics. Ben

This is me doing long jump (before I got a mouthful of sand!). I only got a 1 in this event and a1 is the worst score. I got a 3 in my high jump though so am real happy about that - 3 is the best score. I got a 3 in the shotput and a couple of 2s. Simon

We went to athletics' day at Ward on Friday. It was going to include Woodbank School, our school, Seddon School and of course Ward students. But it was raining in the morning so Seddon pulled out, and Woodbank didn’t come. I found that the Ward children, teachers and parents were so welcoming. When we arrived and met the principal he took us into the staff room and gave us each a chocolate biscuit and then showed us the whole school. The day was really different to Seddon; the teachers gave us lots of chances apart from just one, and all the kids cheered and cheered. Annah

We went to Ward School for athletics day. Because it was raining we thought it would be called off, but it wasn’t. When we arrived it had stopped raining and by the end of morning tea the grass had dried out. We had a very nice welcome from the whole school. The children were friendly and they wanted to play with us. After morning tea we started the events. I started with sprints and enjoyed doing all the other events. I really enjoyed being at Ward School and playing with everybody. Lucy

On Friday we went to Ward School to do athletics. I was in Year 4 with some other girls. The year 4 and 3 were together, so I was with Ben, my friend. I had so, so, so much fun. I liked high jump best, and sprints. I met new people to talk to. For lunch we had a sausage sizzle. Skye

Woodbank trip

On Wednesday we headed down to Woodbank school in Kaikoura. We arrived there at lunch time and played on the playground. Then we did a mural of sea animals. I did mine with Zoe. Ours was of a dolphin in the sea with crabs and shellfish and sand. Then we went for a swim. It was a bit cold but not as cold as the Middlehurst pool. Then I helped set up the tents. We had tea, were read a storyand and went to bed. I slept in a compartment with Lucy, Annah and Skye.

On Thursday we made our way down to South Bay where we went kayaking. We went all the way out to Sharks Tooth Point where we saw seals on the rocks. Where the seals were there were lots of rocks that the swell was pushing us into that I did not like. After we went kayaking we went for a ride on the Coast Guard boat. It was really fun going fast against the wake of another boat. At one stage we went airborne and the whole boat was out of the water. It was really fun and bumpy. We left after taking some photos on the boat and thanking the people who took us. Then we had lunch (I was really hungry). The parents went home and we went to a limestone cave with lots of stalactites ad stalagmites. It was really interesting. There was the tooth fairy's hole where the tooth fairy lived. When they found the cave they found some fossilised penguins and sea urchins. One of the urchins was 20 million years old!!! The cave was made by the sea many years ago. Alice.......

We went visiting to a little school called Woodbank. We did athletics practice and some swimming. It was really interesting going to the caves and learning about stalactites and stalagmites, but my favourite thing while we were on the trip was the kayaking. I really liked going into the cave, but if we had the choice of caving or kayaking, I would have chosen kayaking. Although I must say that it was a lot of strain on my neck and a bit of pain in my arms, but I lived. Annah


This is us on the Coast Guard boat at Kaikoura. Just before this photo was taken we went for a ride on their boat. We saw a seal eating an octopus. We also went kayaking. Just when we were about to get in I got a bee sting. It really hurt, but I still got to go kayaking. I enjoyed it because there was a swell and we went up and down. By Lucy


This is Ben and I talking to one of the Coast Guard drivers (I'm in the orange Tui hat). They were very nice because they went out of their way to take us for a ride. It was the highlight of my trip. They were on the water when we went kayacking just in case something happened. I didn't have much fun kayaking because my partner was scared, so I didn't see any seals. I was pretty disappointed because we got towed almost all the way out, so didn't do much actual Kayacking. But I loved the Goast Guard boat ride. It went REALLY fast and got airborne on big swells. When it went tightly round turns it was best. Skye, Ben and I sat on the left side, so if it turned right we could nearly see under the boat. When it turned left the sea came right up to you. We turned left side on to a big swell and it came over the side and I got wet. We also went caving and saw a lot of stalagmites and stalactites.

On the way back home along the coast we stopped off and saw a seal colony. There were three baby seals swimming around in a rock pool, and when a swell came it picked them up and washed them out. So at the end of the day I did get to see some seals. Simon.


We went to look at a sea cave. The man who took us into the cave told us that a fairy lived there. The cave was big and it had stalagmites and stalactites. Stalactites hag from the roof and stalamites are on the floor. In the photo, you can also see some straws hanging from the roof. They are hollow in the middle and they are very weak. The man said that if you blow on them they would break. There were also some fossils in there. By Ben.


On Thursday we went to the Leap Cave at Kaikoura. The guide said that there was a tooth fairy there because there were some boots that Santa gave her. But I didn't believe that. Skye.