Welcome to the Second Year Blog!
Another action-packed week; culminating with the excitement of Pens Down Day!
MERITS
Well done to the following boys for reaching their first merit milestone!
Ben Bates – 10
Joshua Ripon – 10
Arie Biju – 10
TUTOR INTERVIEWS
Our weekly interviews are a great opportunity for you to find found out a little bit more about your Tutors! So, thank you to Finley (2L) who interviewed Miss Winstock; one half of 2L’s tutor team! Next week – Mr Sims!
Why did you choose to become a teacher? 
I got so excited about Latin and Greek grammar that I realised I wanted to be around it every day! Also, Hampton boys are great and it’s lovely to spend my days interacting with them.
What do you think are the best qualities for a Hampton pupil to have?
A love of learning. Kindness. A drive to improve and an open mind.
What would your dream job be?
Of course, being a teacher would be my favourite job however I did enjoy playing the recorder when I was younger, so maybe a professional recorder player; touring the world to show my skills.
What are your hobbies?
HIT Workouts, calkudoku (like sudoku, but slightly easier) and language puzzles.
What do you think makes a perfect teacher?
A passion for your subject and passion for getting to know the people you’re teaching.
If you had one billion pounds, what would you do with it?
- Donate most to charity
- Travel around the world, spend extra doing it environmentally friendly (electric planes, electric cars to take me places)
Lastly, pineapple on pizza?
I would never order it but I don’t hate the notion.
PENS DOWN DAY
This Thursday was Pens Down Day. As in previous years, the idea of the day is that you learn a little differently, by not using pens. Your teachers planned lots of creative and interactive lessons for you to take part in, and I am, sure you are all already looking forward to the next Pens Down Day in February!
Pens Down in Latin
The terms “ancient history” and “the Latin language” often go hand in hand. Sometimes, we do indeed wonder what life was like 2,000 years ago, in Roman society. Yesterday, in Latin, we were looking at artefacts. Artefacts, like a painting or a poem, can be interpreted by different people very differently. We were presented with several photos of old Roman artefacts and we had a class discussion about those artefacts and their origins. Is it Zeus or is it Poseidon? Is it a statue of an Olympian or a God? Some of these questions are yet to be answered. See if you can create some theories about the sculpture beneath! What could you infer from this sculpture? By Joshua (2J)
PSHE
Use of Language
In our PSHE Lessons we have been learning about different types of prejudice. We all had an assembly where we talked about racism and our choices of language. It really explained to us that we could be hurting someone’s feelings without realising it. One fact that really shook me is that using the word Eskimo is considered offensive because of its meaning. I had no idea. The preferred name is Inuit. These lessons were really helpful and I’m glad Hampton is giving us these opportunities to make us a better person. By Aarush (2J)
Cyber Presentations
It is time for online safety! Recently, the Hamptonians have been learning about how to keep safe online and how we are doing it is a great way to learn about it. During our form time period, we are put into groups and made a presentation on things that can potentially put yourself at risk online. We added tips on how to keep safe from these things that can threaten your personal info. Then we showed it to the rest of our class. Now, we know really well how to keep safe online and enjoy it! By Lucas (2P)
HAMPTON HISTORY
Next up is Nicholas and Edmund pigeon, this blog will be shorter than usual as there is little info on their livelihoods and their actions. However, they play an important part in this story that is still shown in the Hampton crest today. The date was the 27 March 1612 and after several disputes between the new vicar and Pigeon family, the land upon which Hampton once stood was set before a Commissioner for what would be the last time the land was reliant on the Hammonds. Despite having a firmly established legal entitlement to the land, he surrendered his title in respect of Hammond’s original wishes. He instead rented the land, to carry so that the money could support the school. His generosity was bequest by his grandson Edmund Pigeon. In acknowledgment for their generosity, Hampton school added the lions shield in 1900, and while parts of the crest have changed, this single feature has stood the test of time and still shines on the badges emblazoned on our blazers to this day. Despite their gifts, the school nonetheless remained an elementary one, probably conducted by the parish clerk. It was not until the 1690’s that it became incontrovertibly a grammar school, following the further bequest of our next person Captain John Jones. By Kanishk (2W)
FOOTBALL
On Saturday, the Hampton U13As, Cs and Ds travelled down to Walthamstow to play against Forest School. With no B team present, our C team and D team had the challenge of playing a team up from their usual level, a tough challenge which they rose to brilliantly. The Ds were unlucky to lose 2-0 in a close, hard-fought match, while the Cs picked up an impressive 3-2 win thanks to a hat-trick from Yuvraj Sohota. The As were in a tough situation, as due to injury, there were only 11 players in their match day squad, and the significance and difficulty of their task grew even more as it was the first round of the annual ESFA cup. However, the team rose to the challenge brilliantly, winning 6-0 in a dominant display with Alessandro Cardinale scoring a brace. Another great effort from all of the U13 sides, with the A and the C team making it two wins out of two for the season. By Alex (2F)
On Monday, the Hampton A, B, C, D and E teams were supposed to have home football matches against the Royal Russell School. I’m sure many of you are aware of the current HGV driver crisis and people panic buying petrol, exhausting the station’s supplies faster than you can say panic buy petrol. Well, the coach company that were meant to be driving RRS here said they didn’t have enough petrol to get here. Who said crisis averted, House of Commons? So, instead of inter-school, we played inter-squad matches. A mixture of A and B players faced off, and same with C and D. The Es played in with themselves, and so did the recreational players. It was lots of fun, and we honed our footie skills as well as getting to know our squad! By Ben (2J)
BOOK CLUB
Another fantastic opportunity to use your creative minds is Second Year Book Club. Every week, we meet to discuss a book, of all genres, that we had previously selected. Or we read a short novel from our wide array of books at The Library. We delve into the ins and outs of literature, and dissect the text to find hidden meanings, and most importantly, we have a good laugh! If you are interested in joining, book club is held with Mrs Rigby and Mr Helmsley in the library on Thursdays, from 1:10 to 1:45. And if you can’t make that because you have a club in the first half of lunch, don’t worry, because sandwiches are ordered in for you. And as a great bonus you get to take home free books, that you don’t have to return! By Joshua (2J)
ACHIEVEMENTS
Well done to Leander (2W) who raced in The Hever Castle Triathlon on Sunday 26 September, completing a 2200m lake swim, 8km bike ride and 1800m run in 43.06 minutes!!
Clubs Galore
With two more weeks until half term, there is still plenty of time for Second Years to try out some new and exciting lunchtime clubs that are such a part of what makes Hampton so brilliant – have a look below and pick a club to try out before the break!
Why not have a go and try something new!
WEEKLY QUESTIONS
Welcome to the Weekly Questions! Every week, we’ll post ten general knowledge questions, and, if you have a go, you can be awarded a merit if you send your answers to Miss Kugele (r.kugele@hamptonschool.org.uk)! This week’s Sport themed questions have been set by Akshat and Amaya (2J)
- Who is the most successful Olympian of all time (in terms of medals)?
- Who won the recent Ryder Cup that took place last month?
- Who has won the most IPL matches in its history?
- Who has participated in the most F1 races without getting a podium?
- Which footballer has won the most major trophies?
- Who won the 2015 Super Bowl?
- Who won gold in hockey at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics?
- As of July 2020, what is the most popular game on PlayStation in terms of hours played?
- What NBA franchise is the most successful of all time?
- What sport is Charlotte Dujardin famous for and where is she from?
Here are the answers to last week’s questions:
- Who did Emma Raducanu beat to win the 2021 US Open? Leylah Fernandez
- Who was the only US president to serve 3 terms in the position? Franklin D. Roosevelt
- What was the name of the Weasley’s house in Harry Potter? The Burrow
- Who created the first emoji? Shigetaka Kurita
- Who, in the Royal Family, is fifth in line to the throne? Prince Louis
- What is the total amount of chambers and valves in the heart? 8
- What is the capital of Malaysia? Kuala Lumpur
- What is the collective noun for a group of crows? Murder
- Who starred as Woody in Toy Story? Tom Hanks
- Who was the original owner of The Ring in the Hobbit/Lord of the Rings? Gollum
