The Apprentice Themed Day: Fired or hired Workshop
WiseUp Team Building
WiseUp’s Apprentice Challenge – Who Will Be Hired… and Who Will Be Fired?Step into the competitive, cut throat world of business with WiseUp’s Apprentice Themed Day – the ultimate team building experience designed specifically for older students.
In this high energy, hands on challenge, teams must design, build, brand, and market a working catapult. However, it’s not just about construction—it’s about leadership, strategy, and playing to your strengths. From the creative visionaries and marketing minds to the engineers and number crunchers, everyone has a crucial role to play.
Success depends on how well teams can:
Delegate tasks effectively
Manage time and budgets wisely
Play to individual strengths
Work under pressure with a clear strategy
Students must take a "Divide and Conquer" approach to complete their mission on time, on budget, and with maximum impact. Will they impress the WiseUp Boss with their creativity, communication, and coordination—or will they hear those dreaded words… “You’re fired!”
Perfect for developing real world business skills, confidence, and collaboration, this immersive day challenges students to think big, act fast, and work smart.
Ready to find out who’s got what it takes?
Book your Apprentice Challenge today.
Where we travel to
We can visit your school in:
What activities are available during this school workshop?
Teamwork. Communication. Collaboration. Resilience. Leadership.
Which curriculum topics do we cater for?
Engineering Workshop
Click to read full text WiseUp’s Apprentice Themed Day is a dynamic, project-based experience that brings key aspects of the KS4 and KS5 Engineering curriculum to life. By tasking students with the design, construction, and testing of a functional catapult, the event offers an exciting opportunity to apply theoretical engineering knowledge in a collaborative, hands-on setting.
Key curriculum links include:
Engineering design process – Students follow a structured design cycle: identifying a problem, creating solutions, selecting materials, and constructing a working prototype. This mirrors the curriculum’s focus on iterative development and practical application.
Mechanical and structural principles – Building a catapult introduces core engineering concepts such as force, tension, compression, levers, pivot points, and energy transfer—essential knowledge in mechanical systems and design.
Materials and tolerances – Students must consider the suitability, strength, and limitations of different materials during construction, aligning with curriculum content around material properties and engineering tolerances.
Problem-solving and critical thinking – Teams are challenged to think creatively and analytically as they troubleshoot design flaws, optimise performance, and work within time and resource constraints—developing real-world engineering thinking.
Teamwork and communication – The challenge promotes collaborative working, effective planning, and clear communication—key employability skills within the engineering sector.
WiseUp’s Apprentice Day gives engineering students a chance to move beyond the classroom and apply their knowledge in a fast-paced, real-world context. It encourages innovation, practical skill development, and confidence in tackling engineering challenges as part of a team.
Business Workshop
Enterprise and Leadership Finance and Accounts Marketing Supply and Demand Operations Management
Click to read full text WiseUp’s Apprentice Themed Day is a dynamic, real-world simulation that brings key elements of the KS4 and KS5 Business curriculum to life through hands-on, team-based learning. It provides students with a practical opportunity to apply theoretical business knowledge in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment.
Throughout the day, students take on roles within a team to design, build, brand, and market a working product—developing critical business skills such as:
Entrepreneurship and enterprise – Students explore innovation, risk-taking, and value creation as they develop their own product idea and take it to ‘market’.
Finance and budgeting – Teams must manage a limited budget, prioritise spending, and make strategic financial decisions—reinforcing core curriculum areas like cost control and profit margins.
Marketing and branding – Learners create brand identities, packaging, and promotional strategies, mirroring key topics such as market research, target audiences, and product positioning.
Teamwork and leadership – Students develop soft skills essential for business, including delegation, negotiation, time management, and leadership—aligned with curriculum outcomes around communication and working collaboratively.
Business decision-making – Under time constraints, students must plan, evaluate, and adapt their strategies—reflecting real-world scenarios and supporting critical thinking, evaluation, and justification of choices.
By integrating these core business concepts into a fun, competitive and engaging challenge, the Apprentice Themed Day offers a curriculum-aligned enrichment experience that enhances understanding, builds confidence, and prepares students for future study or careers in business.
Design Technology Workshop
Mechanics and engineering
Click to read full text WiseUp’s Apprentice Themed Day is a hands-on, cross-curricular experience that strongly supports the aims of the KS4 and KS5 Design & Technology curriculum. Through the exciting challenge of designing, building, branding, and launching a working catapult, students apply their D&T knowledge in a practical, creative and team-based setting.
Key curriculum links include:
Design and making – Students work through the iterative design process: generating ideas, developing prototypes, and refining their final product to meet functional and aesthetic criteria. This reflects the D&T curriculum’s focus on problem-solving and purposeful design.
Technical knowledge and construction – Building a working catapult introduces students to key engineering principles such as tension, leverage, load-bearing structures, and mechanical advantage—putting theory into real-world practice.
Product design and aesthetics – Students consider materials, form, and presentation as they brand and market their final product, linking to areas like packaging design, visual appeal, and user experience.
Evaluation and analysis – Teams must evaluate their designs based on performance, time, cost, and user needs—mirroring the curriculum's emphasis on critical thinking, testing, and justifying design decisions.
Collaboration and communication – The challenge promotes teamwork, delegation, and real-world communication skills, reflecting D&T's aim to prepare students for working in creative and technical fields.
WiseUp’s Apprentice Day brings D&T to life in a competitive, high-energy format that encourages innovation, practical thinking, and design confidence. It’s an ideal enrichment opportunity for students to apply classroom learning in a dynamic, real-world scenario.
Bushcraft Workshop
Click to read full text WiseUp’s Apprentice Challenge may be rooted in business and branding, but at its core, it shares deep links with Bushcraft principles, particularly through the hands-on construction of catapults.
In both disciplines, students are challenged to design, build, and problem-solve using limited resources—mirroring the creative, resourceful thinking found in survival situations. Constructing a working catapult draws on practical engineering, tool-free construction methods, and a strong understanding of structures and tension—all skills commonly developed in outdoor, Bushcraft-style environments.
Key connections include:
Construction using simple materials – Just like building a shelter, students must think creatively with what’s available to construct a functioning frame that withstands pressure and delivers results.
Team coordination and task delegation – Success depends on efficient teamwork, similar to Bushcraft group tasks, where communication and role allocation are vital.
Problem-solving through trial and error – Students must prototype, test, and adapt their designs—just like refining firelighting techniques or shelter shapes outdoors.
Understanding of force, tension and load – The practical science behind building and launching a catapult naturally ties into the physical knowledge students develop during outdoor, hands-on learning.
By blending construction and strategy, the Apprentice Challenge not only develops enterprise and leadership skills, but also strengthens real-world, practical abilities rooted in Bushcraft-style learning—giving students a unique, cross-disciplinary experience that’s both challenging and unforgettable.
Art Workshop
Design
Click to read full text WiseUp’s Apprentice Challenge is a creative, hands-on team building event that aligns closely with the aims of the KS4 and KS5 Art & Design curriculum. By blending design thinking, visual communication, and brand development, students apply key artistic skills in a real-world business context.
Through the process of designing, building, and marketing a product, students explore essential Art & Design curriculum areas including:
Creative problem-solving and concept development – Students generate original ideas and bring them to life through practical exploration, meeting key GCSE and A-Level requirements for creativity and design intent.
Branding and visual identity – Learners apply skills in graphic design, typography, and presentation to communicate their product’s purpose and appeal, reflecting the curriculum’s focus on visual literacy and communication.
Critical evaluation and analysis – Students reflect on their creative decisions and assess visual outcomes, developing their ability to evaluate work against intended goals—core to both coursework and final assessments.
Career links to the creative industries – This immersive activity introduces students to real-world applications of art and design, including marketing, product design, and entrepreneurship, helping them explore future pathways in creative careers.
WiseUp’s Apprentice Challenge gives Art & Design students an exciting opportunity to connect classroom learning to real-world creative practice, while developing teamwork, leadership, and commercial awareness.
What size groups do we cater for?
WiseUp are specialists in catering for large group numbers, and frequently work with groups of over 300.
We also cater for smaller groups of 10+.
We also cater for smaller groups of 10+.
Access for visitors with disabilities
All of our challenges are adaptable to incorporate those with disabilities. We pride ourselves on being the most inclusive provider in the UK. Please contact us to discuss your requirements and we will be happy to put together a bespoke programme to suit your student's needs.
Visitors with Special Educational Needs (SEN)
Yes, we frequently take our activities into specialist SEN schools, and tailor the programme of the day accordingly to allow students additional time on certain sessions. By having a bespoke planning conversation with the lead teacher, our days are fully adaptable to suit all needs.
Who are WiseUp Team Building?
WiseUp Team Building is the multi award winning company that has established itself as the UK’s leading provider of school outreach activities. Our teams travel the length and breadth of the UK from our base in Kent. We provide fun, educational activities by bringing our equipment and our friendly team in our unique vehicles, directly to your school. We work with students of all ages from reception to sixth form and also run teacher inset days.
WiseUp Team Building recognises that every school and year group is different and as such have developed a diverse range of activities to meet these needs. Our ethos is to make outdoor learning accessible to all, providing a fully mobile service which significantly reduces the cost of running these events. From running Team Building days for over 700 students at an inner city secondary school to teaching Bushcraft to a class of 30 at a rural countryside primary, we can the the fun to you!
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