Rūma Mangō - Room 2

What all the wonderful colours mean!

Red is the colour of many wonderful things, things such as a love heart or a ripe rose. Some not so great things as well, such as blood or over seasoned food. Red is the colour of bravery and confidence, and perhaps even, well.. Love.

Orange is the smell of mac and cheese on a warm Summer evening. Orange is a bubbly personality clashing with a simple mind. Orange is crabs, a sweet yet sour tone, and a sign that Autumn has arrived.

Yellow is a sunflower and sometimes even a sweet, distant melody. Yellow is a bunny hopping gracefully through an open field of dandelions. Yellow is a newborn baby, unaware of the dangers that lurk.

Green is nature, a beautiful forest scene or a mossy rock. It may be vines swaying with the trees, a secluded leaf flowing down from above, or possibly a colour never meant to be.

Blue can be lovely but quickly turn ugly. From a clear blue sky to a distant rumble, the colour blue is never to crumple. Blue is a soft denim jacket with perhaps something else thrown in.

Purple is sweet, like lavender in the distance or a long-gone loved one. Purple is mysterious, like a stranger on the street or a cold night filled with secrets.

Pink can be anything, a sweet, quiet soul or a bold, outgoing one. Pink is a favourite of many, an enemy of others.

Isabella age 12 :]

The pupils in Rūma Mangō were split into small groups to plan and organise an activity that could be adapted to play by the variety of age groups that moved through the rotations. It was important that they considered how to explain, demonstrate, and run their activity so all pupils could participate and have fun. The groups did quite well for their first foray into ‘teaching’ and it was interesting for staff to stand back and watch how the senior pupils are developing skills in this important area of leadership.
I talked to the pupils afterwards and they were mostly happy with how their stations went although there were a few ‘gems’ that I thought I would share with you.
“It was fun, but they didn’t listen to what I was saying”.
“I think we should have played it more simply with the little kids”.
“Next time I think we should try an easier game ‘cause it was hard to explain”.
“We should have played in a smaller space”.
“It was hard trying to play the game in the wind’.
I had to chuckle at the first statement and provide a suitable retort!
One important thing that the pupils gained from running the first PALS session was that leading an activity requires a fair bit of thought and teaching is not as easy as it may seem. They will carry these thoughts and reflections into the organisation of our next games afternoon.