The Village 2024
25th June 24
As a persistent date in the calendar, The Village was back for another year at KAS.
This year’s cohort had a brilliant week on site, living in the huts they had built in groups of 4-6 and choosing from a huge range of activities or just spending time as a community. They learnt fire safety, bushcraft and cooking skills, while also having the opportunity to try new things such as learning about tea ceremonies with one of our Old Alfredians, Cyanotype photography and Raku pottery glazing to name but a few.
We got the opportunity to catch up with some of our students about their Village experience:
Elvis
The Village was super fun; bushcraft and forge was my favourite part. I got to learn how to make an axe for the first time; I never knew you had to use a flattener, but it’s so important because you have to make sure it’s all even – I’ll be taking that skill into the forge going forward! It was also really good to to make our own food was really good. We got to make spaghetti Bolognese and burgers – but we messed the burgers up! It was a funny learning experience.
Kitty
I enjoyed the Village a lot. The best bits for me was cooking – or struggling to cook! – and the slide and slide. We were allowed to just get on with cooking and choose our own activities. I went on a lot of guided walks around the Heath with Clara from Photography and participated in two tea ceremonies held by Sam [an OA]. He taught us how the Chinese and Japanese make and serve their tea which was really interesting.
I really liked the independence of the Village – you got to forget what was going on outside of it and just focus on what was going on around you. You spend so much time with your friends and teachers and get to know everyone on a much deeper level. I think it’s really helped me appreciate the small things. You’re learning every day in the Village; it’s really an all-round experience.
Keiran
For me, the best part of the Village was being with my friends. You might be in different huts, but you can spend as much time with them as you do with those in your hut. The Village has taught me some important skills – I would know how to start a fire if I needed to! I got to make an axe with my friends and I tried whittling, which is where I made the handle for my axe.
Eve
The atmosphere in the Village was awesome. It was really nice to see everyone together and experience all the different activities; they weren’t the sort of things we would do day to day and they were so engaging and amazing because we got to experience new things. I made a flower bag by pressing flowers from the Heath into material and I also made windchimes in the forge – they’re now in my garden and I hear them when I wake up. I even got to make elderflower donuts! I’ve made them before, but never over a fire and that was something new for me – I love baking, and so it helped me show my personality while learning something new.
I learned a lot while in the Village, like how to be resilient and to look after myself. In general, I think it was good for teaching us to be fair amongst each other – like if someone cooks, then someone else cleans up. It’s all about making sure everyone plays their part.
The Village is amazing and I would recommend it for anyone!
Thank you to Claire, Clara and Isabella for organising another fantastic village and to all those who made it such a special week for Year 8.
