Everest Mountaineer to Take St Mary’s to New Heights
St. Mary’s Preparatory School in Henley are partnering with local resident Garth Miller, a high-altitude mountaineer and former British Army Gurkha officer, to deliver a series of unique experiential learning workshops for their pupils.
Garth Miller, a local Henley resident, will be setting off in May to attempt to set a world record for the fastest known time to summit Everest, from London to London.
In advance of his expedition, Garth will be running a number of highly interactive sessions for the children, introducing them to every aspect of the planning of his trip – from the rigorous physical training regime, to nutrition, geography and the opportunity to try on his specialist equipment.
Garth Miller, High-Altitude Mountaineer said, “I am really looking forward to meeting the children at St. Mary’s School. I know that making learning fun is a really effective way to engage with young people. I will be challenging the children to think about what their dreams are, and how they can ‘be their own hero’. By offering Skye sessions from Everest itself, I will – in effect – be bringing the St. Mary’s children along on the climb to the top of the world!”
Mr Miller’s expedition aims to inspire children to set goals, to overcome challenges, appreciate the importance of teamwork, and to be the best that they can be.
In addition to the sessions with pupils, Mr Miller will also be giving a talk to parents, introducing his current challenge, talking about his future plans, the ‘growth mindset’ work that he is doing with the children, and focusing on teamwork, perseverance, resilience and determination.
Rob Harmer, Headmaster said, “I know that our children really enjoy this type of immersive learning opportunity, and we are very grateful to Garth for coming into school to share his incredible experiences with our pupils. Garth’s beliefs in the importance of setting goals and overcoming obstacles along the way, are very closely aligned to our own school values and our focus on the importance of instilling a growth mindset. These valuable messages really resonate with our pupils, and they are very excited at the prospect of joining Garth on the top of the world!”
