On Monday 8th September 2008, Year 12 students visited a very muddy Blacklands Farm Activity Centre for the day. Students were put through their paces over a number of different challenges, which aimed to build connections and a sense of teamwork amongst the students. The year group was split into a number of different teams that each contained around ten participants. These teams set out to gain points, which could be achieved by performing well in activities, and protecting their all important eggs! The groups had one egg each and were told to prevent the egg from breaking by any means possible. This proved tricky, as the eggs also had to be cared for during activities (including a height activity!). At the end of the day, the teams were set their final task. This was to create a device out of paper and selotape, which would allow their egg to survive a 40 foot drop from one of the abseiling towers. Once the creations had been made, the teams handed their works of art over to the Blacklands staff. One by one the eggs were dropped, with some breakages, but also with some very impressive successes. After the exercise, the points were totalled up, revealing the winning team, and massive congratulations goes to them!Not only were the various activities set up to challenge an individual’s physical abilities, but they also required a degree of problem solving and communication skills. All of the teams involved demonstrated a high standard of such qualities, which allowed them to work through difficult situations and encourage one another to perform to the best of their abilities. By R. Bellisio, Year 12