…this was the comment from the head teacher this afternoon as our week in Glenrothes concluded with an amazing final mini concert with the whole of these S1s! The students have obviously had a really enjoyable week and seemed to have gained a lot from their experience. We are certainly going to miss the kids, having spent so much time with them and although looking forward to getting home to our own beds, we will definitely remember this week and the team we have been working with.
It’s been a tiring and challenging week in many ways and Dave suddenly pointed out today, that we haven’t seen daylight since Sunday afternoon on our drive up here! Leaving the house at 7.25 every morning, performing all day in a darkened venue with artificial lighting and then heading over to the church for dinner each evening at 5 means that we miss the sunlight and the beauty of the Glenrothes scenery. But what has helped each day is the sight of these bizarre massive IRIS’s reaching high into the sky, bright and colourful but slightly strange sculptures it has to be said! Certainly creative and original; they offer a hint of the type of minds that we will encounter today as we challenge the kids to come up with some exciting ideas to present at the end of the day as a conclusion to ….The Apprentice!
The excitement was tangible this morning as the pupils arrived and the enthusiasm from last night’s gig, lingered on…I’m not just talking about the kids!! Everyone was in good spirits and looking forward to this the climax of the week. The morning started once again with a 50 minute assembly, setting the scene with Taste and Foolproof, songs and sketches linking in with the theme of Playing Your Part, a conclusion of all that we had presented throughout the week.
A short Q&A session headed up by Bruce and Gwyneth meant that the students had an opportunity to put the band and theatre company under the spotlight, asking any questions that crossed their mind. A couple that stood out were questions about the inspiration for the songs, the reason each member of the team had decided to ‘go on the road’ and the explanation for each of the names – Taste and Foolproof. It gave the opportunity for the band to share something of their own thoughts and their relationship with God. It was a good session and laid a foundation for the rest of the day, encouraging the students to get involved in the challenges.
And so the next 3 periods would be given over to the Apprentice and challenged each team of 5/6 to come up with a presentation to bring to a panel of judges at the end of the day. But there were various stages to go through. First a list of questions offered them the opportunity to win prizes / props / laptops / expertise from a member of Taste or Foolproof. This would aid them in producing a quality product in the final showdown!
The idea was that they would deliver a song / sketch / powerpoint / news report or something along those lines, that illustrated one thing they had learnt this week. After a few minutes each group had come up with an idea and were working hard to produce something that would catch the judges eye. Joe and Sarah were each allocated classrooms where they would be on hand to encourage and assist any group that needed help. Naomi and Dave were our ‘star prizes’ and were allocated to specific groups to offer expert help. It was a fun day with lots of ideas and many teams picking up on the Christian element to the week. The theme of Prejudice seemed to be the predominant thread and there were some thought provoking ideas coming through.
Sarah was just sharing how good it was to spend time with these smaller groups today and even had the opportunity to share her testimony with one team who just wanted to get to know her better. Naomi was particularly excited about one of the groups she was helping who had decided that they would not only write a sketch about prejudice, performing it once with the bullying element in it and then delivering it again with the characters behaving without prejudice. They then each went along the line sharing their own true story of the hurtful comments that they had received in their young lives, how it had effected them and how they had then dealt with it! It was a powerful delivery and one that went on to win a top prize of a day at Lendrick Muir Outdoor Activity Centre!!
Finally the last session was given over to Taste for a mini-concert and a final plug for Exchange the lunchtime club running at the school by Scripture Union along with local workers and churches. It was a brilliant end to a great week, and now we are driving home having packed up in pretty good time. Leaving the school at 5pm, a brief stop and an opportunity to meet Sarah’s lovely family for a wonderful curry in a flying visit to their holiday home in Whitbourne and then the long 8 hour stretch home. We’ll be doing the first drop off at 3.30 am, finally arriving home at around 4.30 and I’ll put this blog up when we come to in the morning:-)
Thanks so much for sticking with us, praying for us and supporting us and encouraging us with your comments. We’ll be in touch soon with more stories on the road…
Just read the above; all out of order. What a wonderful last day. It must have been a lovely finish to the week. May God bless all those young people who spent the day with you, and may He bless you for all for the work you did. John and Meg