Climbing
Climbing is a great sport for you to use your muscles and bodies in ways that you would not be able to in other activities. You need to take your time, look carefully at the route, try new approaches and be really determined to succeed. Climbing is also a new event at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics and one school is offering pupils the chance to learn and enjoy this great sport every day!
Did you know that climbing has been available at Berrymede Junior School since 2013? This school amazingly offers all children the chance to experience Outdoor Adventurous Activities whilst they are at school! This is great because most of you only get the opportunity to take part in climbing on residential trips and not all of you can go on those trips.
The school first built two walls and the climbing holds can be changed through the year to let the children challenge themselves on more difficult, different routes.
The school then also built a bouldering/indoor climbing wall. These are also used as part of maths, science and geography lessons- which helps make the learning really interesting!! Every child also has access to the traverse walls at lunch and break times which is fantastic for those pupils who might not want to play the usual games. Since opening the indoor wall in 2015, they have hosted competitions and run clubs and the school now has two teachers who hold the National Indoor Climbing Instructors Award.
As the school has allowed pupils to try climbing for some time, they can see who has a talent in climbing and enter them into competitions. Berrymede Junior have had children narrowly miss out on making the Youth Climbing Series finals in previous years and medals in local bouldering competitions.
The highlight for their climbing squad is going on the annual mountain climbing trip to North Wales. Children have had the opportunity to climb Snowdon, Tryfan and Glyder Fach. They have also tried trad climbing, bouldering on real rock, seen how climbing gear is tested at DMM, explored local landmarks and met Ogwen Mountain rescue. This has raised the profile of climbing across the school and the school was recognised in the Olympic Legacy report 2015 for its use of the School Sport Premium to engage and run a sustainable project.
With the Olympics now hosting climbing as an event, the interest in it has risen across the country. The school was lucky enough in 2014 to have Molly Thompson-Smith come and demonstrate her skills and give an assembly to inspire the next generation of climbers. Since then, we have seen a greater up take in our girls taking part in climbing and wanting to succeed at it.
Seven years in, they have now climbed to the summit of three mountains - seven times! They have had over 1000 children access the climbing facilities, engaging and benefitting from climbing activities.
Berrymede Junior School hopes that they will inspire others to go out and give climbing a go.
Why not tell your teachers about this great sport? Maybe we will see Berrymede pupils climbing at the Olympics in the future?
