WELCOME TO THE SECOND YEAR BLOG!
Very soon the Upper Sixth will be heading off on study leave and our mentors will no longer be dropping into form rooms regularly for chats. It’s been great to read the Meet the Mentor interviews which we are publishing over the next few weeks; they are testimony to the good work our mentors do in building positive relationships across the year groups. Thank you, chaps; we will miss you.
Meanwhile, this week’s bloggers report on the steel pans music workshop; climbing lessons; the brain-taxing Junior Maths Challenge and their charity fundraising efforts. Enjoy the three-day weekend and come back with pockets jangling with coins for the Charity Book and Toy Sale on Tuesday run by 2W.
MERIT MILESTONES
Another bumper week for merits! Well done to the following Second Years:
Tom Hunt – 20
Lewis Hendrey – 20
Ollie Syers – 20
Aatheshan Ramanakanthan – 20
Thomas Net – 20
Neal Hemnani – 30
Tom Hunt – 30
Gabriel Knowles-Szuniewicz – 30
Jiashan Li – 30
Ian Burguillos – 40
Alex Gancz – 40
Danyal Pasha – 40
James Nunn – 50 (off to see Mr Knibbs!)
David Wu – 50 (well done!)
Danyal Pasha – 50 (congratulations!)
Jonty Gwynne – 80 (fabulous!)
Shishir Vaddadi – 100 (tremendous!)
Manav Krishna – 110 (wow!)
Lion Merits
Armaan Virdee – 20
Joshua An – 20
Talk!
This week’s Talk! on Working in Aid in Disaster Zones by two Alumni was informative and inspiring. Boys learned about this challenging, important and rewarding career.
On Tuesday the next Talk! is from the football commentator, Guy Havord, who has been with Sky for over 20 years, working on both Super Sunday and Soccer Saturday. Guy has covered some of the most exciting stories from the beautiful game over the past two decades. A veteran UEFA Champions League reporter and commentator, Guy is equally at home reporting live from the pitch side, or in the studio broadcasting to millions.
Who better to give us an insight into all things football as the season draws to a close.
From one who survived…The Junior Maths Challenge
On the 25 May, we sat the external challenge created for pupils in Years 7 and 8 to push themselves with difficult questions. It was a non-calculator test which made it even more arduous to do. There are three levels: Gold, Silver and Bronze. If you do extremely well then you will get into the Kangaroo or the Olympiad (which is extremely hard to get into). It was a great experience for me especially with the last handful of fearsome questions.
By Danyal P (2J)
Rowing
We’ve had two rowing sessions now and we’ve had a taste of what we’re going to be doing this summer and I’m very excited! We have worked on Ergos and our warm-up routine which is not to be underestimated: first we run 1.4 miles to the boathouse and then we do ten minutes of stretches. Hopefully, we will have our first session at the boathouse soon!
By Ekam R (2B)
Marvellous Music
This week we had a music workshop in the Hammond Theatre. We were all delighted to see big booming drums on the stage and soon we were chattering excitedly about the instruments we saw. We each were given an instrument and were ready to learn!
The instructor told us that these instruments originated from Trinidad in the Caribbean and were called steel pans and were made of oil cans! We began to learn our first tune which was called ‘Play-Calypso’, and the style of music is called Calypso. We then began to layer the pieces together and it soon sounded like a proper carnival. It was an amazing experience, and I cannot wait for another workshop!
By Siddhant S (2J)
MeET THE MENTORS
Joshua A and Finn R (2J) catch up with their Sixth Form Mentors Will C and Leo S.
How is life at Hampton as of right now?
Leo: Right now, in Hampton, life is very enjoyable.
Will: Since we’re so close to exams, it is mostly winding down, so we can spend more time with friends and enjoy our last few weeks at school.
What’s your favourite memory of Second Year?
Leo: It was the ski trip when I unfortunately dropped my phone into the toilet, which made it unable to work for the duration of the trip.
Will: I enjoyed the Kew Gardens trip; we made videos in groups of three about the plants we saw, and it was really fun to watch other people’s after we got back to school.
Who are your favourite teachers?
Miss Yoxon, Mrs Knibbs, Mr Griller and Mr Worrall.
What’s your favourite Hampton memory?
Leo: I started a club in Lower Sixth called Model Rocket club.
Will: I enjoyed the Italy Choir Trip. I enjoyed spending time with my friends, there was some very nice architecture, and it was very warm most of the time.
What are your favourite crisps?
Leo: Chinese Lays
Will: Walkers Salt and Vinegar
What is more enjoyable, Second Year or Sixth Form?
We both enjoy Sixth Form more as we can choose what subjects we can take and the smaller class sizes are a lot more fun, as we can be a bit more conversational with the teachers.
What university are you hoping to go to?
Leo: Imperial
Will: I’m thinking about taking a gap year.
What subjects are you doing?
Will: Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Economics.
Leo: Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Chemistry.
Book, Games and Toy Sale
Join us next week for another Form Charity Sale in the Cloisters! You can buy books and toys for a heavily discounted price. This is the perfect chance to save money while also giving to a good cause. This is a non-profit event and all the money collected will be given the three charities: Children At Risk in Asia, Jamal Edward Self Belief Trust, and The Woodland Trust. The sale is run by 2W and will be held in the cloisters on Tuesday and Wednesday (7 and 8 May) from 1-1:40pm. Remember to bring in 50 pence and pound coins and come and browse.
Appeal for Recipes
To raise money for charity, 2H are making a charity cookbook comprised entirely of recipes from pupils. This will be a tough endeavour, but the cookbook should be ready by the start of the final half term. If anyone has any recipes, please feel free to come and find someone in 2H. It would be great to have as many recipes as possible from different cultures!
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 Second Year Blog! Please do send any information about any of your achievements through to Mrs Whitwam (v.whitwam@hamptonschool.org.uk).
QUIZ OF THE WEEK
Well done to everyone who had a go at last week’s quiz. Merits go to:
2J: David W, Siddhant S
2W: Laurie L-T, Vayun J, Anthony S
2B: Joe B, Sebastian W, Alex G
2H: James G, Louis S, Lucas T
2P: Sion K, Vihaan K, Thomas P, Bevan P
Take a look at this week’s questions – have a go yourself or challenge people at home and see if they know the answer. Points for the Interform Competition will be awarded to the form with the most entries over the term.
This week’s brain-busting quiz questions have a May theme and come to us from Oliver Y (2P)! Why don’t you have a go and enter your answers here.
Here are the answers to last week’s questions:
- How old is the oldest tree ever? 4,853
- How tall is the tallest sunflower ever(metres)? 9.17
- What plant eats bat poo? Nepenthes hemsleyana
- What is the biggest flower in the world? Rafflesia arnoldii
- What is the most common stinging nettle? Urtica dioica
HAVE A GREAT BANK HOliday WEEKEND!
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