School residentials: why they matter and how to prepare your child

Overview:

School residential trips help children build confidence, resilience, independence and create stronger friendships with their classmates. But sometimes children can feel anxious beforehand. Parents can reduce their worries by talking positively about the trip, listening to their worries, arranging practice sleepovers, letting their child lead on the packing and discussing the trip itinerary together.

Main Article

A school residential trip can be one of the highlights of the year for many children and something they look forward to for a long time. The promise of adventures with their classmates, campfires and the chance to explore the outdoors can feel incredibly exciting.

But for others, worries about spending a night or more away from home in unfamiliar surroundings can overshadow their excitement for the trip. They may feel anxious about homesickness or how they’ll adapt to a new environment – particularly if they haven’t slept away from home before.

This is all completely normal, and something we’ve seen a lot during our time of running Rootd school residentials. And the good news is, if your child is feeling anxious about their school trip, this doesn’t mean they need to miss out. There’s a lot you can do to support your child and prepare them for their time away.

In this blog we’ll look at:
• Why residentials are so good for children
• Why they might feel anxious
• What parents can do to prepare them and ease their worries

Why school residentials are good for children

School residentials give children a rare opportunity to switch off from the distractions of daily life and truly live in the moment – allowing them to immerse themselves in new activities with their friends.
And they also bring a wide range of benefits for their own personal development:

1. They build confidence and independence
Being away from home encourages children to try things for themselves, solve problems and discover what they can achieve without the help of their parents or carers. And when they succeed, however small the task, it’s a great boost to their self-esteem.

2. They encourage resilience
On an outdoor residential, children are often encouraged to step out of their comfort zone and take on new challenges. This could mean making it to the top of the climbing wall, or just simply putting on a harness and climbing a metre or two. Whatever their goal, when they achieve it, they feel proud, more confident and ready to take on more challenges in the future.

3. They strengthen friendships and mutual understanding
When children share the excitement of an outdoor residential with their classmates, it’s amazing how quickly bonds are strengthened and new friendships formed. Outside the classroom, children see a different side to each other that they may not have noticed before – a flair for survival skills for example, or simply a talent for teamwork and collaboration.
The outdoors is also a real leveller. It’s a place where everyone is equal and there’s an activity to bring out the best in everyone.

4. They introduce a different way of learning
On an outdoor school residential, children experience a new way of learning outside the classroom. From deepening their understanding of nature to developing their problem-solving skills, many children thrive in such a different learning environment, and they discover that fun and education can be combined to create amazing experiences.
This can be a great eye opener for many children and something that can shape their future learning.

5. They boost mental health
Research shows that being outdoors can have huge benefits for our mental health. For children, experiencing the freedom of the outdoors in a manageable, controlled environment can teach them a new way of relaxing and winding down. They learn that screens aren’t the only way to take a break and recharge, and that spending time outdoors with friends can give them an even bigger boost to their mood.

6. They create life-long memories
Sharing such a special time with their classmates can have a lasting impact on children. These moments can stay with them for years or decades to come, becoming some of their most treasured childhood memories.

How we bring the benefits to life on camp

When Greenwich-based Millennium Primary joined us for their school residential, developing their pupils’ resilience and independence was a key objective. To help them achieve this, we made bushcraft activities, such as shelter building and knife skills, central to the activity programme. We then combined these with some more adventurous activities, including underground tunnelling, where children could test themselves, build resilience and develop their independent thinking.
Read more about their trip here.

Why children might be anxious about a school residential

Despite all the benefits of a school residential, and however exciting it sounds, some children can feel hesitant about spending time away from home.

At Rootd, some of the most common worries we see include:

• It’s their first time sleeping away from home.
If a child hasn’t stayed away from home before, they might feel daunted about sleeping in a different environment.

• They’re worried about homesickness.
Some children worry they’ll miss home too much and that they won’t know how to settle or stay calm if they do.

• They’re unsure of what to expect.
For some, not knowing their exact itinerary or what to expect at mealtimes or at night-time can fuel their worries.

• They’re anxious about friendships.
Worries about who they’ll sit next to on the coach or who they’ll be sharing a room with could reduce their excitement for the trip.

• They’re nervous about the activities.
The prospect of trying new activities with their classmates could bring on concerns about how they’ll cope or if they’ll embarrass themselves in front of their friends.

These worries are all understandable, and we know that they can create anxiety for parents.

But, as Rootd Co-Founder Joe Regan finds, once they’re on camp, most children settle much faster than parents expect. He says: “We make sure that children are kept busy from the moment they arrive, so they’re immediately immersed in their activities and don’t have much time to think about home. Once they’re having fun and they’re more familiar with their surroundings, you’d be amazed at how quickly they adapt and get into the swing of things.”

How children settle quickly on a Rootd adventure

When St Martin’s School brought their Year 3 on a one-night residential in our pod village, some boys were nervous about staying away from home. But after a day of exciting activities and feeling reassured by the proximity of the teacher pods, they quickly felt more confident in their surroundings and settled well in the pods at night-time.

Their Head of Juniors, Susan Williams, told us: “Some boys were nervous, especially at night… The same boys were up bright and sparky today and you can see a positive change in them.”