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Olympic Swimmer Visits Ridgeway
On Tuesday 25th May, Year 8 girls from Ridgeway High School took part in an ‘Olympic’ event! Chris Cook, the 100/200m Olympic swimmer for Great Britain, who was a double gold winner at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, came to the school to work with the students in a series of workshops as part of the ‘Living for Sport’ initiative. The aim of the workshops is to develop leadership skills through leading other students in sporting activities.
The day consisted of Chris delivering a presentation on his career including the types of training he uses, his aspirations and dreams, how he got to where he is now, the 6 keys of success and his experiences in both the Commonwealth and Olympic games.
The sixteen Year 8 students who were chosen to take part in this ‘Olympic’ event were then asked to organise and lead a coaching session and Rounders tournament for girls in Year 7 lasting the entire morning, thus supporting the raising of standards across girls PE.
At lunchtime, Chris joined other pupils and staff in the canteen to experience a healthy school lunch and to answer questions and sign autographs. Pupils thought the day was ‘really good as it was something new’ and commented that Chris Cook ‘inspired and motivated me to work hard’. Alex Williams and Amy Davies commented ‘it was nice to be put into the teacher’s position and experience something new – it was a great opportunity to take part in’. Sharne McGuire and Ashleigh Boden commented ‘it was a different and exciting experience that we were lucky enough to be able to take part in. We are lucky as we sometimes get opportunities like this because we are a Business and Enterprise specialist school and it promotes communication and co-operation as two of its skills.’ Overall it was a valuable learning experience that has greatly benefited the students that took part, not only promoting vertical learning within an educational context but also one that was great fun!
Last Modified: 25/06/2010
