Extra Curricular
St Benedict's prides itself of the vast array of trips, visits, clubs and extracurricular opportunities that students are able to participate in during each half term. These experiences, along with their taught curriculum in lessons, help develop each student's unique potential and provide great opportunities to discover new hobbies, skills and have fun with friends.
Extracurricular Clubs
Students are expected to participate in at least one extracurricular activity or club over the course of each half-term with many taking advantage of the selection on offer and enroling in multiple opportunities. Clubs cover a wide range of activities in school with opportunities to develop your musical talents in School Band, your athletic skills with the range of sports teams, your language skills or cultural knowledge and much more.
Form Tutors will take students through the extracurricular timetable at the beginning of each half-term and students, and their parents on their behalf, can sign up to clubs through their parent/guardian Arbor account. Instructions on how to do so can be found using the following link.
Extracurricular participation is not only fantastic in its own right but will help you achieve the bronze, silver or gold St Benedict Awards in school.
Students can also work towards both the Bronze and Silver Duke of Edinburgh awards in Year 10 and 12 respectively. Achieving an Award will give you skills, confidence and an edge over others when you apply for college, university or a job. Beyond the academic achievements you will have at St Benedict's, universities want to see evidence of so called ‘soft skills’ that you have developed through extracurricular activities, such as communication, commitment, leadership and teamwork. Taking part in the school's Duke of Edinburgh programme is a fantastic way to demonstrate and evidence these skills in practise.
Trips and Visits
Students at St Benedict's benefit from a wide range of trips and visits to compliment their learning in school. There are trips across the different year groups and subject groups. Students can take part in visits such as the trip to the Battlefields to see history in action, a pilgrimage to Rome as part of their religious education, visit the Botanical gardens in Cambridge for further their art skills or take part in the ski trip to develop their fitness.
We believe that educational visits are an integral part of the entitlement of every pupil to an effective and balanced curriculum. Visits are known to enhance learning and improve attainment, and so form a key part of what makes St. Benedict’s Catholic School a supportive and effective learning environment. The benefits to pupils of taking part in visits and learning outside the classroom include, but are not limited to:
Improved achievement and attainment across a range of curricular subjects. Pupils are active participant’s not passive consumers, and a wide range of learning styles can flourish.
Enhanced opportunities for ‘real world’ ‘learning in context’ and the development of the social and emotional aspects of intelligence.
Possibilities for genuine team working including enhanced communication skills.
Improvements in their ability to cope with change.
Increased critical curiosity and resilience.
Opportunities for meaning making, creativity, developing learning relationships and practising strategic awareness.
Increased levels of trust and opportunities to examine the concept of trust (us in them, them in us, them in themselves, them in each other).
Increased risk management skills through opportunities for involvement in practical risk-benefit decisions in a range of contexts. i.e. encouraging pupils to become more risk aware as opposed to risk averse.
Greater sense of personal responsibility.
Improved environmental appreciation, knowledge, awareness and understanding of a variety of environments.
Improved awareness and knowledge of the importance and practices of sustainability.
Physical skill acquisition and the development of a fit and healthy lifestyle.