Welcome to the First Year Blog!
This week, the First Years enjoyed their first Homework Holiday, which has hopefully given them a little break in the middle of a long half term; we hope the boys enjoyed having some more time to relax and unwind. For the past two weeks in PSHE, the boys have focused on resilience, with half of the year attending a talk given by Iain Dawson, one of our School Counsellors, and the other half trying out a variety of challenges to develop their resilience, including trying to lick their elbow, count times tables backwards, and a fiendish numbers challenge! We hope that the boys found this valuable and interesting; this is a topic that we will be revisiting over the course of the year.
Bentley Copse Adventure
Last weekend, 20 intrepid First Years set off to Bentley Copse Activity Centre in Surrey for a weekend of board games and mountain biking. Daniel and Ollie from 1B tell us more about it:
We had a really exciting afternoon when we first got there. Four hours of board games! We got to meet boys from other forms, who we hadn’t had chance to talk to before, which was great! We also helped Ethan celebrate his birthday – some tasty cake was enjoyed by us all. Once it was dark, we went night orienteering, which was brilliant. It was a really clear night with a full moon, so everything looked cool. The next day it was time to try mountain biking. It was very bumpy and lots of the track was up hill, so it was tiring but we all perservered and had a really fun adventure!
Tristan (1J) also tells us about his experience at Bentley Copse:
On Saturday the 20 November, we went on a thrilling journey to Bentley Copse, Guildford, where we took part in a convivial two-day camp which included mountain biking, night orienteering and a whole afternoon of board games. Although the mountain biking was very tiring, I was excited for the course and was looking forward to the challenge of cycling up Pitch Hill, though I don’t think anyone but Mr Clarke made it up. At night, we soon found that anyone who brought pillows on the trip had packed wisely, as some of us found it very hard to get to sleep. There was plenty to go around for supper, as the teachers took a lot of pizzas on the trip and we also had hot dogs. Led by a group of teachers, we took part in an adventure that we all thoroughly enjoyed.
Take a look at the video below to get a flavour of the trip:
INTERVIEW WITH MISS MIMNAGH!
This week, Alex L and Josh M-J (1J) interviewed their Form Tutor, Miss Mimnagh!
What subject(s) do you teach and why did you choose to teach them?
I teach Biology at Hampton but I have taught Chemistry and Physics in the past too. Biology is my favourite though, I’ve always had a fascination with the natural world and I love animals.
Why did you decide to become a teacher?
I loved the idea of working with young people and sharing my passion for my favourite subject.
What do you like about Hampton School?
I really love how friendly and kind the boys are here – and they’ve got a great sense of humour.
Do you have any pets?
Yes, I have two naughty and loud Budgies. Their names are Chip and Disco.
Where do you wish to live in the future?
Definitely somewhere hot and sunny.
What is your favourite food?
I have a big sweet tooth, so I love biscuits and cake. I like sushi when I’m trying to be a bit more healthy!
CLUB OF THE WEEK
Darshan S (1H) also gives an insight into what goes on in Book Club:
Book Club is a very fun and interesting club. It consists of reading a book over two weeks. In the club, we discuss various sections of the book as a group. I find going through the book with the group helpful as it allows us to review hidden messages in the story. The book will then be yours to keep!
We recently read a novel called Lampie by Annet Schaap. It is about a girl named Lampie, who works as a maid in the admiral’s house where a monster prowls in the dark and mysterious tower. But instead, she finds something better and more wonderful than any monster. We discussed in great depth about the ‘monster’ and the meaning the author put into that word. It is a great book and I highly recommend you read it.
Book Club is a nice club for people who love reading and anyone is welcome to join. It takes place in the library on Wednesdays during 13:10 to 13:35. You will also get a free lunch if you attend. I hope to see you there.
Take a look at the video below to get a flavour of the club and find out what some of our First Years are reading:
Tutee of the week
Each week, Tutors in the First Year team nominate a boy who they have been particularly impressed with and Mr Hill and Mrs Halford will provide the boy with a football to use on the 3G for the week!
This week’s Tutee of the Week is Harry S (1F). Harry’s kindness, consideration for others and support of his peers has really impressed his teacher. Well done, Harry!
SMOOTHIE BIKE
The Smoothie Bike is back at Hampton again! Have a go on the Smoothie Bike and enjoy some tasty creations. The wheels start turning at 7:45am on Wednesday 1 and 8 December in the Dining Hall!
SPECIAL SHOUTOUTS
We love to hear about what you have been getting up to outside of school. Please do send any information about any of your achievements through to Mrs Ziegler (h.ziegler@hamptonschool.org.uk).
FIRST YEAR FIVE QUESTIONS
We had an impressive 30 entries for this week’s First Year 5 Questions. 1L are this week’s champions with eight entries! Well done to everyone who entered!
1F: Ivan S, Ishaan A, Tom S
1J: Lucas Z, Nihal B, Josh M-J, Alexander M
1B: Kiran G, Alex M, Rory M, Salah S
1W: Abhideep S, Oliver S, Etan M, James P, Leonardo F
1L: Olly P, Haadi H, Danny P, Max P, Umair M, Zaki C, Zen N, William O’S
1H: Huw O, Alex S, Elliot J
1P: Ozan B, Rufus L, Jamie R
Take a look at this week’s questions – have a go yourself or challenge people at home and see if they know the answer. Merits are awarded for everyone who has a go! Just click on the link below and enter your answers; points for the Inter-Form Competition will be awarded to the form with the most entries every week.
- What is Collins Dictionary ‘s Word of the Year 2021?
- In what part of the body would you find the fibula?
- Rafael Nadal has won all four majors at least once in his career – true or false?
- Who authored The Hunger Games book series?
- Who discovered penicillin?
Why don’t you have a go and enter your answers here.
Remember to write your name in the form so you can be credited with merits!
Take a look at next week’s blog to find out the answers and which Form is crowned our weekly champion.
And here are the answers to last week’s 5 questions:
- What is Abibliophobia? Fear of running out of reading materials to read
- Who scored the fastest goal in Premier League history after just 7.69 seconds? Shane Long (for Southampton against Watford in 2018/19)
- How many keys are there on a piano? 88
- How many hearts does an octopus have? 3
- What is the capital of Canada? Ottawa
