Welcome to the Third Year Blog!
This morning you will all have had your screen time data taken by your Form Tutors as part of the Screen Time competition. As you all know, the Form with the biggest overall reduction in screen time for the week will receive an edible prize that will be delivered to them the following week. As Mr Fuldner articulated very clearly in assembly, the aim of this week is not to say ‘screens are bad’. Screens can be wonderful and offer a window into an incredible amount of knowledge, entertainment and fun. But for that very reason, being very aware of the way in which you are using those screens and what you might be missing out on because of the relentlessly interesting nature of what you can access via those screens, is important.
But I don’t want to focus on that. I want to focus on the email Mr Fuldner sent to staff about the competition in order to pass on the information to you all. Specifically, the sentence ‘The forms with the largest reduction and the form with the overall lowest screen time next week will win edible prizes that will be delivered to them the week after next’ is of interest to the Third Year Blog. The Third Year Blog thinks it should be of interest to you. There are two particular pieces of language here that we can focus on.
Firstly, this sentence reflects a general approach amongst staff looking to incentivise pupils at Hampton via food in this way by using the phrase ‘edible prizes’. There is a coyness to this which seeks to both underplay the fact that food is being used as a motivating tool, while also leaving the nature of this ‘prize’ to your imagination. An edible prize could be a banana. Or it could be a year’s supply of sausage casserole. It could be a Thanksgiving turkey for your whole family (Happy Thanksgiving for yesterday to everybody who celebrates it!). Or it could be some ‘mild slices’ (the things that your local supermarket sells, which are meant to be like burger cheese, but don’t actually contain enough dairy to be legally labelled as ‘cheese’).
So what is Mr Fuldner promising? Essentially nothing, apart from the concept of food that is a ‘prize’. But Mr Fuldner is a smart man. This is an edible prize for a whole Form. What could feasibly work for a whole Form? Whatever it is, there has to be quite a lot of it in order to provide for over twenty hungry Hamptonians.
It’s a big competition as well. Surely, therefore, the prize is going to be something quite big? This is where the other key piece of language in his sentence comes in. This edible prize will be ‘delivered’ to you.
Now, of course, people ‘deliver’ small things all the time, but there is something about this verb in the context of the School environment that suggests that something special will need to be done to ensure that this indistinct, intriguing ‘edible prize’ will successfully make it to the winning Form. If Mr Fuldner needed you to have the catch-up work you’d missed from his lesson, he wouldn’t say he was going to ‘deliver’ it to you. No! He’d ‘bring’ it to you. So why use ’deliver’? Maybe he needs special equipment to bring this ‘edible prize’ because of the sheer scale? Maybe it requires special equipment, like a chocolate fountain, for instance. THAT would need delivering.
Clearly, the Third Year Blog knows many things. One thing it doesn’t know is what this ‘edible prize’ actually is. As suggested earlier, it could be a banana for the Form to share. Or, it could be unlimited chocolate fountain access for the 10 minutes of a morning registration, with just a brief pause to gurgle ‘yes sir’ in response to your name being called. No one knows (except Mr Fuldner).
The key thing is to be in the hunt for whatever it is. So, take the competition seriously. Take the opportunity to get a sense of what your screen use really means to you. Take the time to understand how being a little more aware of when you are using your phone could give you the chance to actually make a little bit more of your spare time in the week. And, if you do take these chances, you might be the ones to find out what an ‘edible prize’ that needs to be ‘delivered’ is.
Anyway, enough of this. On to the blog for reports on an upcoming play, a musical event that some of the Third Years have been involved in, as well as Two Truths and a Lie and Connection Corner! Dive in!
Heads of Year Message
GCSE Options & HELP
Further to Dr Flanagan’s presentation in Third Year Assembly on Thursday, we hope that many Third Year pupils will seriously consider undertaking a HELP Level 2 project this year. A reminder that there is an expectation that Academic Scholars undertake either an Arts Award or a HELP project in the Third Year. Dr Hendry has requested that all GCSE Option forms are submitted by Tuesday 9 January. Please refer to her letter, which will be sent to parents next week along with the GCSE Options booklet.
Merits
We have enjoyed handing out some Bronze (20 merits) HoY Merit certificates already this term, along with several HoY Merit certificates (10 merits). We look forward to seeing the first Silver (30) and Gold (40) Merit certificates achieved later this term and next. We encourage all Third Year pupils to keep up the good work and good deeds to earn these academic and LION Merits, and then come to sign them off and collect an edible reward during Friday morning break at the Third Year office.
Behaviour
We have noticed a slight increase in the number of conduct and work detentions being issued to Third Year pupils over the past fortnight. Whilst this is a familiar feature as fatigue sets in over the second half of term, please continue to encourage good standards of behaviour and the accurate recording, completion and submission of homework tasks.
All pupils heard an important message on Thursday about “standing up against bullying” and the role they should play as an “upstander” in school to achieve this. We were pleased to see that the boys listened carefully during this talk and they should be in no doubt about the importance of adhering to this fundamental aspect of the School’s code and ethos.
Uniform
In the colder weather, boys are allowed to wear sensible hats, coats and gloves to keep warm on their journeys to and from school, but they must revert to full school uniform throughout the school day whilst on site. This means they must wear a school tie (properly tied) and school blazer, with a white shirt (tucked in and buttoned up), smart black trousers, dark socks and smart black shoes (non-trainers). If they are cold, it is permissible to wear a vest under the shirt and/or a black V-neck jumper. Coats should not be worn in school. Persistent failure to meet these uniform requirements is a conduct issue and can lead to sanctions and/or contacting parents.
Boys – Please remember to let us, your Form Tutors or the relevant subject teachers know if you are having any difficulties. We hope you all have a lovely weekend.
Best wishes
Mr T Rigby & Mrs M Bedford
Woodwind Concert
Fantastic to see some of our Third Year musicians take to the Hammond Theatre stage this week in the annual Woodwind Concert. Take a listen below to some of the fantastic music at the concert and see if you can spot any Third Year Hamptonians:
Bleak Expectations
Wednesday was the first official rehearsal of Bleak Expectations, the Middle School Play. I (Filip L) am playing the main character, sharing my part with Arthur K. We play Pip Bin, a lively young, courageous, cheeky character. Nileeth G is part of the ensemble, which is a group of actors who perform the smaller roles and enact the special effects.
This play is a parody of two novels by Charles Dickens (Bleak House and Great Expectations), and is one of a plethora of productions organised by the Drama Department which collaborate with LEH Drama Department. Other schools we have collaborated with in the past are Waldegrave School and Hampton High.
The most notable productions are the musicals, which always include a live band. One example was the Little Shop of Horrors, our senior musical, which performed in mid-October. Finally, all productions are performed in the fully-equipped Hammond Theatre, opened in 2015.
Report by Filip L and Nileeth G
Two truths and a lie
Last week, Mrs Pickford-Scienti was the Third Year Form Tutor whose intention it was to baffle us with a dark untruth.
She offered these ridiculous claims:
- Mrs Pickford-Scienti’s first language is Italian
- If Mrs Pickford-Scienti drinks tea, an allergic reaction causes her tongue to swell to approximately three times its normal size
- Mrs Pickford-Scienti is a yellow sash in Hunh Leng Kung Fu
As it turns out, Mrs Pickford-Scienti’s first language IS Italian, so, if you have any Italian, feel free to talk to her about how much you play football at the weekend, or what you did on your holidays. However, if you do approach her to try out your Italian, proceed with caution as she is also a yellow sash in Hunh Leng Kung Fu, which is a deeply intimidating skill. What this means is that Mrs Pickford-Scienti is perfectly able to drink tea without her tongue becoming an issue, which is excellent news.
This week, Miss Towler is our lying Form Tutor, What does she have for us?
- Miss Towler is an avid bird watcher (or ‘twitcher’, as they are known)
- Miss Towler is a qualified Scuba diver
- Miss Towler has never broken a single bone
Which is the lie?
CONNECTION CORNER
Well done to everyone who correctly guessed the connection as Playing Cards! Big shout out to Bailey H C, AJ C, Krishang T, Edmond L, Kiran G, Francis S, Sam C, Daniel M, Dean F, Kian IB, Olly P, Manraj G, Sanjit B, Ambrose B, Rufus L, Rory M, George W, Kai W, Christopher K, Daniel H and Jasper M. Don’t forget to collect your merits!
Another tricky one this week, have a go over the weekend and see if you can spot the connection:
Which supervillain is Batman’s nemesis? Joker
Which band sung the song ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’? Queen
What does the Tinman wish for in the Wizard of Oz? A Heart
The ‘Golden Bear’ is the nickname of which golf legend? Jack Nicklaus
Connection answer: Playing cards
