At the very beginning of term the Grade 11 and 12 students went on a 3 day ‘retreat’ to prepare them for the rigours of the year ahead. This provided opportunities for building a sense of collaborative team, for the Grade 12’s to start to develop mentoring relationships with the new IB1 students, and to prepare for some of the challenging academic tasks that all IBDP students are required to tackle. 

Om and Phukao Mae wrote this report of their experiences:

The grade 11 and 12 retreat started as soon as assembly finished on the first Wednesday. We then  departed for Mae Ai where our camp and activities awaited us. The first of which was “Team Building”. We were divided into four groups where we had to solve a variety of challenges. Our personal favorite was ‘the spiderweb’.

For the next two days we were split into three different groups and attended workshops related to university application processes in the US and UK, Self-awareness, Extended Essay, and the Reflective Project. After having 2-3 workshops a day we would finish off with a refreshing activity of our choice, such as hiking, archery, rock wall climbing, high ropes / low beams, and kayaking. We also had to prepare a short performance for the last night of our retreat. 

Overall, we think that the camp was a useful and enjoyable experience. Thanks to all the staff at Mae Kok River who made us feel comfortable, and all the teachers who made this possible!