Boldon School Visit

Back to School !!

Well, it was with some trepidation that a number of our club members agreed to go back to school  ..Not in the twentieth century, but the twenty first !!

So on a bright sunny morning we arrived at Boldon Colliery School, North Tyneside, which is a mixed co-educational community school which specialised in sports.

The head teacher is fellow Rotarian Liz Hayes, who took on the onerous task of keeping us ‘in check’ and occupied for the day.

For all of us this was our first trip back to the future and what a future we found since we had last been in a classroom or eaten a school dinner.

Gone was the old style entrances, wooden desks with the foldy-up seats, long narrow corridors, dark dull classrooms, grubby windows, the eerie library, the smelly labs’, the bike shed  ( found memories for many !! ), and the headmasters study ( trembling memories )..Well, none of that at this newly purpose built school.

We entered the school complex through a bright sunny auditorium with acres of open space, bright cheerful corridors adorned with artwork and pictures, sunny classrooms stuffed with new technology, restful comfortable quite rooms, a fully equipped gymnasium, fitness rooms for weight training, hairdressing salons, a library brimming with things to explore, an open free smelling canteen with a meal choice, and to top it off, a purpose built swimming pool !!

So, for all of us this was a fascinating insight into what goes on in a modern school, visiting classrooms, sitting in on lessons, and generally getting the feel of what happens.

Throughout the day the students did themselves credit, as did the staff, but perhaps what we will especially be reminded of, is that so many of today’s young people are not all of what we read in the newspapers, but the kind we met on out travels through the day, at this school.

It was in short a day to remember, especially the exquisite lunch cooked and served by the students themselves  .. Fantastic !!

Our special thanks must go to our host, fellow Rotarian Liz, and to Brian who made all the arrangements  ..  Many thanks from all of us.