Tafaria Castle

On Tuesday, 20th June, the Year 6 children arrived at school, having heeded the advice of their teachers, with a small(ish) bag packed ready to go on an adventure of a lifetime. The destination? Tafaria Castle.

The children piled onto the bus and their journey began. Tafaria castle is located in rural Kenya on a hill, next to the scenic Aberdare ranges overlooking the Laikipia plains and Mt Kenya. The journey took just under two hours, arriving safely ready for a tour of the site and then lunch.

Their guide, Phillip, welcomed them and let the children get settled in their rooms before they regrouped at the main entrance ready to be shown around. After a brief history about how the site had developed, they were shown the different activities on offer, some art installations created by artists who had completed residencies at Tafaria and finally a tour of their fantastic museum, which is dedicated to the theory of human evolution - this linked brilliantly with recent work the children had carried out at school.

The children were then rewarded with some free time where they swam, played mini-golf or basketball and burnt off some of their energy. Lunch, which was fantastic, followed and all tastes were catered for - the white chocolate krispie cakes were a huge hit!

In the afternoon, the children took part in an archery session before visiting a local ceramicist who demonstrated how to craft a bowl using a foot powered potter's wheel. Again, this linked superbly with our recent work on pottery and African prints and was followed by an opportunity to create a canvas using acrylic paints which the children got to keep.

Afternoon tea was served a little after 4pm - hot chocolate, sausage rolls, doughnuts and scones were consumed in great quantities. Both teachers were slightly concerned that these would all make another appearance as the children headed out immediately after for another swim or trampoline session before having a brief bit of quiet time in their rooms.

After a delicious supper, the children put on a short talent show in the amphitheatre before settling down to watch a film with some popcorn. We had managed to pack so much into just one day and everyone was tired and itching to get into bed for some well-deserved rest.

But the trip wasn’t over! Early the next morning, everyone headed off to fill up on breakfast before being treated to a horse and carriage ride, followed by a last opportunity to have a swim before returning to school. Exhausted didn’t quite cover it!

The trip was a complete success and enjoyed thoroughly by all. If you haven’t yet been to Tafaria Castle, ask one of the year 6 children who went - you will be bound to receive a glowing recommendation. It truly was the adventure of a lifetime.