Welcome to the First Year Blog!
A week without homework and with lots of cooking – what a treat for pupils, families, and the First Year team too! The pupils clearly had a great time during yesterday’s tea party and tried each other’s amazing treats – some highlights included dumplings, Victoria Sponges, a Black Forest gateau and so much more! Well done to everyone for baking and cooking so many delicious treats and meals this week, and remember to send photos and recipes to Mrs Ziegler for this year’s edition of the First Year Cookbook!
TEA PARTY
3,2,1. Ring! Excited and ecstatic, we rushed out of our period 2 classrooms, hoping to get to the Tea Party as quickly as possible. Once we entered the Dining Hall, a sweet aroma floated through the air as every First Year began to take their treats out. After our teachers led us to our form’s assigned table, the sugar rushes were about to begin. On the menu, there were: cakes, biscuits, cookies, brownies and even a few dumplings. Yummm! Within no time, we started trying each other’s baking delights. There were comments for everyone: delicious! Since all our food looked absolutely scrumptious, some teachers even had a bite of them. On the negative side, by 20-30 minutes, the sickly sweetness started to kick in. Some had too much chocolate and some had too much cream! Thankfully, there was water which helped neutralise the sweet tastes. Eventually, our 40 minutes concluded and just leading into break, we were all stuffed! Apart from when we felt sick and were overfilled, what a marvellous morning! By Riyaan G (1B)
Take a look at the fabulous photos:
RAMBUNCTIOUS RUGBY
It was last Friday, and the U12B team had a strong feeling that they could break their losing streak. We were playing Radnor and as we started our warm-up, we eyed our opposition doing their warm-up, to try to judge them and see how good they actually were. Numerous times, we’d under estimated our opposition and had finished the first half with our tails between our legs.
Not this time, because almost immediately after Jamie kicked off the match, we regained possession near their try line and Toby sliced straight through them like they were butter, shrugging off the attempts to tackle him, to score our first try. Not long after, I passed to William B from the ruck and he turned on the gas, ploughing straight through the wall of Radnor defenders to score our second.
Radnor reacted though, and got the ball out wide to their winger who made a daring run on the touchline and used all his skill and strength to get past some of our best defenders. Their celebration was short-lived though, because the Hampton demolition truck came back in the form of Toby twice to make it 4-1, and then in the form of Freddie twice to round off the first half, after Radnor scored a second.
After the team huddle, pep talk from Mr Fakatou, subs and drinks, the second half started off with a bang as Jamie caught the ball and scored the try of the day, side-stepping multiple defenders and running like a rocket to make it 7-2. Radnor had also received a pep talk from their coach though, and it was clear it had made an impact as Radnor started coming back, first a run through a slightly dazzled Hampton defence, then a long pass out wide, and the tide started to turn as an exhausted Hampton side conceded 4 tries without response.
Then came the subs, and the much-needed reinforcements started to make a difference, as we scored another to make it 8-6. Then the tactics started to kick in, and the pressure, and suddenly both sides were making errors in the build up to tries. it turned into a stalemate for the next few minutes, with neither side making much ground before losing the ball, and Radnor prevailed, luring our defence in with attempts before getting the ball out wide twice, both rewarded with tries to make it equal.
So I will tell you, standing there on the opposition dead-ball line after being subbed off in the last ten minutes, watching the action play out, it was the best feeling in the world when William B scored a try in the last seconds and everyone started screaming and ran to congratulate him. The best feeling. By Eliott Parker (1J)
PSYCHOLOGY CLUB
I love Psychology Club. We learn about all sorts of things such as murder mysteries and why people become murderers or sorts of diseases such as schizophrenia and how it could affect someone’s mind. Schizophrenia is where people hear strange voices in their mind. This week we learnt about conspiracy theories such as the illuminati form a fantastic movie named Angels and Demons. Or related to that is another spectacular movie: Da Vinci Code. Did you know that 1 in 3 American people believe in conspiracy theories…?
Conspiracy theories may seem a bit ridiculous though they might be true. One conspiracy theory has been 90% proved that extremely rich people spend tens of millions of pounds on pictures just to stop them from paying taxes and when they don’t need to pay any more taxes, they sell it to other rich people. If you are interested then join us in Psychology Club S41 on a Thursday.
BLEAK EXPECTATIONS
Last Wednesday, I went to the Hampton and LEH Middle School play Bleak Expectations. It was jaw-dropping, nail-biting and super fun. The story was so appealing that it kept me on my toes the whole time, and I felt like I was amidst the action and the actors in the City of London. All the cliff hangers, intense fights and happy moments kept me on the edge of my seat, and I couldn’t miss a moment. One of my favourite characters was the headmaster (and his cane, Michael) and although he was evil, he was one of my favourite character because of his clever and ludicrous way with words and his canny wickedness. I quite enjoyed the twists and turns in the whole play like the time Pip (the lead character) and Harry (Pip’s best friend) were sentenced to execution but were saved by a prisoner they had rescued once a long time ago. I found Pip’s mum to be an intriguing character as well, when Pip’s dad sadly died, his mum became deranged and started to think that she was a mouse, cat, piece of cloth and many more different things. Overall, the moral of the story was that in whatever position you are in, good or bad, (or bleak) you can overcome it, but you must be ready to face through hardships in life as well, however with time and patience things get better.
By Ridhaan G (1F)
P.S. the cherry on top was a delicious salt and caramel ice cream I had during the interval.
STAG BEETLE LARVAE
On Friday the 1 March, my dad re-potted some plants however, while emptying the soil, he came across a larvae, roughly 6.5 cm long. Knowing my passion for insects and beetles in particular, he decided to take the larvae, and took that small pot it was inhabiting with it, and brought it to the house. When he first showed it to me, to let me handle it, I was surprised at how dense and heavy it was. It had small hairs, with crooked brown legs, and had small undeveloped mandibles (pincers) and it was leathery in texture, almost like a peeled lychee. It was rolling around in my hands, rather helplessly, as it was still a larvae. My dad later traced back where the plant he inhabited came from, and discovered it came from North West France. With research I found out they like living in shady damp areas, and eat rotting wood and leaves. I thought he was a very interesting creature, and I am calling him Pip. I will take care of him well, and I would like to see him on to become a robust stag beetle. By Alex B (1L)
DISCOVER HAMPTON – STEppING BACK IN TIME WITH HISTORY
Mary, Mary, quite contrary! Step back in time to the Tudor period with Hamptonians investigating the five-year reign of Mary I – aka Bloody Mary – with Head of History Mr Roberts. Discussion and debate are warmly encouraged in the Hampton history classroom and, as you’ll hear, evaluating sources ranging from nursery rhymes to historical extracts, Second Year and Lower Sixth pupils question whether England’s first female monarch deserved all her bad press.
Click on the link below to listen.
TUTEE OF THE WEEK
Every week, the First Year Tutor team nominate a boy who they have been particularly impressed with, and Mr Hill and Mrs Peattie provide him with a football to use on the fields for the week!
This week’s tutee of the week is Magnus O (1B) for his kindness to everyone around him, positivity, enthusiasm and throwing himself into Hampton life – well done Magnus!
SPECIAL SHOUT OUTS!
We love to hear about what you have been getting up to outside of school and to celebrate your successes in the First Year Blog! Please do send any information about any of your achievements through to Mr Fuldner (d.fuldner@hamptonschool.org.uk).
THE HAMPTON HUNT
Each week I will set you a challenge where you need to find out a random fact, number or indeed anything else around the School – you won’t be able to do this from home! Points for the interform competition will be awarded to the Form with the most correct entries over the course of the term! You have until the end of Wednesday to complete the challenge; you will find out in next week’s blog if you’re correct, and you will be given a merit by your Form Tutor the following Monday. And who knows – you might get to know the School better in the process!
Last week’s challenge: on which house number at Lebanon Park did the children rescued by the Kindertransport live?
You could find the answer in the mural on the first floor of the History department – number 52. Have a read of this one if you haven’t already, it’s a fascinating read.
Well done to the following First Years for getting the correct answer: Charles B, Liangxu Z, Julian M, Reuben M, James A, Ilakian D, Luoke W, Francisco C I, Alex D V, Ian L, Harry C. Xander L, Emile S, Ahaan S, Joseph G, Magnus F, Ruaan V, Yousuf H, Matthew T, Arjan A, Elliot P, Jack M, Avyay S, Arjan C, Vairaj M, Bruno E, Shaurya D and Rishi K. Make sure you collect a merit from your Form Tutor next week!
If you did know the answer but didn’t enter it into the blog last week, make sure you do so this week as it won’t count otherwise!
This week’s challenge:
The coefficient of restitution is important in cricket; which symbol is used for this coefficient?
You’ll find the answer on a mural about cricket, and it’s nowhere near the Sports department!
