Welcome to the Third Year Blog!
It’s the last blog of the term and my last blog too. But do not sob: there is much to be excited about for the last few days before we disappear for Christmas. We have the fiercely competitive Interform Tug of War on Tuesday and the buzz of the Codebreaking Challenge today. There will be tinsel and turkey on Tuesday at the Christmas lunch and the Carol Concert in St Mary’s Church on Tuesday evening with all the choirs singing their hearts out.
Winter bugs have meant lots of boys have been off School and I am hoping that we are through the worst and Third Years will be in School to enjoy the festivities as well as catching up on missed lessons. Well done to the boys who performed in the very successful The 39 Steps production (backstage report included) and to the victorious U13B team for getting through to the next round of the ESFA cup (full match report below).
All that’s left to say is Happy Christmas from the Third Year team!
Heads of Year Message
Well done to the U14B Football team for their ESFA Cup victory at Steyning Grammar School on Thursday afternoon, and good luck in the next round in the New Year!
We’re delighted that several Third Year pupils enjoyed the Interform Codebreaking event at lunchtime today and we’re looking forward to the hotly anticipated Interform Tug-of-War tournament on Tuesday next week. Our thanks go to Mr Green and the Third Year Mentors for organising and running these events.
There is still plenty to look forward to between now and the end of term, including Christmas lunch on Tuesday 13 December (after the tug-of-war) and the Carol Service at St Mary’s Church in Hampton that evening. Good luck to Cyril B (3C) who will be doing the Third Year reading during that service. A reminder that term ends at midday on Wednesday 14 December, with the coach service running as normal at the earlier time of 12.15pm. Wednesday will be a mufti day (Christmas jumpers encouraged but not compulsory!) with proceeds going to our three nominated Form Charity partners.
Whilst we are looking forward to enjoying the opportunities for festive merriment over the coming days, we hope that the boys will recognise the need to maintain their usual levels of good behaviour and mutual respect for teachers and peers throughout, whilst upholding our responsibilities to one another.
Reports
Parents will have access to their son’s end of term report from Wednesday 14 December via the Parent Portal. In general terms, we are very pleased with the academic endeavour and subsequent progress that Third Year boys are making. Where necessary, follow up conversations with individual pupils to set targets for 2023 will take place on our return in January.
Absence
Absence rates were quite high again this week as several pupils are struggling with winter viruses. To reiterate to all parents that pupils should remain at home if they are feeling unwell, and we ask that parents contact the school to notify us of absence on each day of illness – either via email (absence@hamptonschool.org.uk) or via the Parent Portal. We will support pupils with any essential catch up work once they are recovered from illness, but we do not expect pupils to work remotely whilst they are ill. There is an opportunity for pupils to catch up with missed work over the Christmas holidays, and we would encourage all boys with high absence rates over the past few weeks to speak to (or email if still absent next week) their subject teachers ahead of the holidays to request any essential catch up work, along with the relevant guidance.
According to current government guidelines, it is not recommended that children are tested for COVID-19 unless directed to by a health professional.
Boys – Please let us, your Form Tutors or the relevant subject teachers know if you have any difficulties between now and the end of term. Have a lovely weekend and a good final week.
Merry Christmas
Mr T Rigby & Mr H Moore
Stephen Spender AWARD WINNER
Well done to Agalyan S (3B) who has received a highly commended award in the 14 and under age group category of the prestigious Stephen Spender Prize for poetry in translation. The competition celebrates poetry in all its forms and genres and requires entrants to translate a poem from any language, ancient or modern, into English. The 2022 competition saw a record number of entries and submitted languages.
Agalyan chose to translate Call to Man by Subramania Bharati from Tamil into English. Agalyan explained why he chose this particular poem:
I CHOSE TO TRANSLATE THIS POEM, AS IT IS ONE THAT TALKS ABOUT SUBJECTS THAT ARE NOT EXCLUSIVE TO EITHER A SINGLE PERSON OR A SINGLE COMMUNITY. THE POET, SUBRAMANIA BHARATI, WAS SOMEONE WHO CAMPAIGNED FOR EQUALITY FOR ALL PEOPLE OF DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS UNTIL HIS UNTIMELY DEATH IN 1921 AT THE AGE OF 38.
To read Agalyan’s translation, please click here.
Congratulations Agalyan!
Russian Toy Workshop
Third Year Russianists took part in a traditional toy clay workshop this week. Vibhush P (3G) tells us more:
On Thursday, several keen Russianists missed their period 6 and Games lessons to take part in a highly anticipated workshop on clay toys. These toys were once made for the entertainment of young children, taking many shapes and forms, but now they are an integral part of Russian culture, and it was a privilege to have a leading expert on these clay toys talk to us. The workshop was very interactive – after an overview of each of the five major types of clay toys, we had an opportunity to make our own, as well as paint a ready-made whistle (many of the clay toys also have a hole to whistle through, making them even more entertaining for young children). We took inspiration from the vast collection of clay toys shown to us – all done while listening to authentic Russian music with a classic Christmas film showing village life in Russia playing in the background. We all enjoyed it and were glad for a therapeutic afternoon.
Interform Codebreaking
The Third Year Interform Codebreaking Competition took place on Friday lunchtime. It was a fierce battle, with a combination of speed, accuracy and deduction skills needed to triumph. Some forms were quick, but let their accuracy slip. Some forms were more methodical, but successfully cracked the codes. The form with the perfect balance were 3E, represented by Joshua R, Matthew C, Ben B and Tanmay B, who were the fastest form of all, but also got everything right. Well done to all the boys involved!
U14B ESFA CUP Run
Joe P (3H) and Dario P (3H) tell us all about the U14B footballers pulsating ESFA Cup tie against Steyning Grammar School this week:
The Hampton U14B team made the long journey down to Steyning Grammar School for our ESFA Round 3 Cup tie. Hampton dominated possession and created several chances, hitting the woodwork three times and coming close several more times. Steyning went 1-0 up early on in the game. The team just had to remain patient, confident in the knowledge that their goal would come. Hampton couldn’t find an equaliser before half-time.
Dominic S moved into the holding midfield position, and ran the game in the second half, forcing the ball into the back of the net to make the score 1-1. Constant pressure came after, and a clinical finish from Benjamin W gave Hampton the lead. Unfortunately, a ball in behind for Steyning posed a challenge for the defence and a penalty was the result – taken emphatically by our opposition. At 2-2, the game was headed for extra time. The game opened up and both sides had chances, but couldn’t break the deadlock. The dreaded penalties…
Steyning: score (1-0)
Hampton: Miss (1-1)
Steyning: saved by Joe P
Hampton: Scored by Dom (with back spin off the keeper’s save!) (2-1 Hampton)
Steyning: scored (2-2)
Hampton: scored by Benjamin W (3-2)
Steyning: scored (3-3)
Hampton: Scored by Dario P (4-3)
Steyning: scored (4-4)
Hampton: Scored by Thomas M (5-4 Hampton)
Steyning: saved by Joe P!
Hampton: Scored by Freddie T to win the cup tie and send Hampton into the round of 16, 5-4 on penalties.
A final word from the U14B coach Mr Leafe:
I am delighted for the team, who worked very hard in a tough game. They are a credit to the School in the way they support and lead each other and proactively seek opportunities to develop their game. I am very proud of them all! Thank you to Mr Burke for his insightful coaching on the day. Enjoy the rest over the Christmas break, boys and I’ll see you in January to continue our excellent season!
Chess Success
Congratulations to Anirudh S (3F) who won the Under 18 trophy at the Twickenham Junior Chess Congress, 2022.
Cash for Philosophy!
Calling all Third Year philosophers! There are two philosophy competitions available; both with cash prizes to be won!
- The Perse Aristotelian Award – an essay competition with £70 up for grabs
- The Cambridge University Review Film Competition – with a 1st prize of up to £500
Both of these competitions will be tremendous fun and a great way to explore Religious Studies and Philosophy off the syllabus. If you are interested, please speak to Mr Vann-Alexander in S2 or send him an email.
A glimpse backstage of ‘The 39 Steps’
Namish J (3A) takes us behind the scenes of the 2022 joint Christmas production with Hampton High:
On Monday and Tuesday Hampton School and Hampton High performed ‘The 39 Steps’. We had rehearsed for three months and we were excited to perform. The atmosphere was buzzing and the cast was in a happy mood because the teachers had ordered us piles of pizza. From the wings, we heard the audience enter the Hammond Theatre and got ready and then the play started. All of us performed to our best with lots of energy and the audience seemed to enjoy the show. Every joke was laughed at and at the end we are were all pleased with our performances.
Lunchtime Concert
I managed to catch Brandon C (3D) who performed on the piano in last week’s lunchtime concert. This was his reflection:
The concert was a really good place to try playing my piece and get ready for the upcoming exams and get more confident performing in front of an audience. I was playing ‘Elf Bagatelle’ by Beethoven and it was really nice to hear other people playing songs, especially since some people were playing my exam pieces and I could listen to their different styles and interpretation of ideas.
STEM Fair
Grab the opportunity to get involved in the STEM Fair at LEH in February. Your aim is to work in a team to create an artefact and a poster explaining your project. You have freedom to choose from any area of Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics.
The advice is to come up with a title phrased as a question that you are capable of answering. The ‘artefact’ is a loose term and can range from:
- A model/prototype
- Computer program
- Experiment
- Artwork inspired by your research
If you missed the meeting last week and would like to find out more, click here.
If you would like to take part in the 2023 STEM Fair then complete the form by following the link here.
Important dates to remember are:
Monday 12 December – Initial Ideas
Friday 13 January – Project Proposal
Monday 20 February – Poster Submission
Friday 24 February – STEM Fair at LEH
If you have any questions, email Mr Wilson in the Physics Department.
Connection Corner
Well done to everyone who had a go at last week’s Connection Corner. It was a tricky one and only eight of you guessed that adding a prefix of San made all the answers into a place name. Big shout out to Fraser K, Albert S, Adam M, Ben B, Advait B, Thomas G, Maurice R and Ollie W.
Which footballer scored the ‘Hand of God’ goal against England at the 1986 World Cup? Diego Maradona
Which famous Spanish actor is the voice of Puss in Boots in the Shrek film series? Antonio Banderas
Which football manager is known by the media as ‘The Special One’? Jose Mourinho
Which German F1 driver won four consecutive World Championships between 2010-2013? Sebastian Vettel
Connection answer: Adding a prefix of San makes them a place name (San Diego, San Antonio, San Jose, San Sebastian)
We’ll be back in 2023 with more confusing conundrums!
