Junior School pupils at Redmaids’ High School finished the first week of term on a real high with a visit from real-life adventurer and ‘Special Forces: Ultimate Hell Week’ participant Katy Parrott.
Katy’s visit was part of the pupils’ first ‘Wow day’ of the year, where they spent the day learning all about explorers through a series of fun challenges including orienteering, taking blindfolded directions, learning about French and English compass points, and planning their own expeditions.
A former Redmaid herself, Katy kicked off the day delivering a truly inspiring talk about her stories of survival and brave adventures from her travels around the world. From high altitude mountaineering to Ironman triathlons, Katy had a captive audience as she shared some of her incredible achievements. She encouraged the girls to explore not only different places, by taking the opportunity to travel and experience different countries, but also to explore themselves – testing their limits, trying new things, and pursuing the things that excite them.
The girls were bursting with enthusiasm and asked lots of questions, ranging from What’s the most poisonous animal you’ve come across? and How did you manage to lose all your toe nails?, to the very pragmatic question of How do you make a living from being an explorer? She encouraged the girls to get out of their comfort zone and take advantage of extraordinary and often unexpected opportunities, that might come their way.
The final challenge of the day ended with pupils taking part in a fun-filled ‘Staff adventures’ quiz where they were asked to try and match the type of real-life adventure with the member of staff. To the surprise and delight of the pupils, adventures ranged from completing a two-day mountain marathon in the Lake District, sea kayaking and camping in Sweden, to taking a helicopter to the top of a glacier and snowboarding down it! It was a hugely successful and enjoyable day for pupils and staff alike, made even more special by Katy’s visit.
