Welcome to the Third Year Blog!
Pinch, punch, third of the month… The year is well underway, there is warmth in the sun and the green shoots are starting to poke through the soil. Half term is only a week away and spirits are high in the corridors. What a time to be alive!
Hampton staggered into the week with its ears ringing following the Rock Concert in the Hammond Theatre on Friday, with the only complaints being that the speakers could only be turned up to 10. The same venue saw a more cerebral, but equally powerful performance on Monday when Professor Parosha Chandran, the world’s leading anti-slavery barrister spoke on the topic of Modern Slavery. Following that, the set deliveries started being made for ‘Joseph’, the musical which is being performed next week. We are lucky to have a venue such as the Hammond in the School, but the Hammond is lucky to be able to feature such a wide array of outstanding events.
The weekend saw LEH host the Model United Nations with delegates representing different countries discussing real life issues and theoretical scenarios. Over the fence, back at Hampton, the Third Year rugby teams were taking on a school from the Croydon area called Whitgift, while the footballers took an emotional and physical rest after the end of their cup run the week before.
Finally, and most importantly, last Friday saw Holocaust Memorial Day. The Hampton Genocide80Twenty group, led by Mr Lawrence, are a powerful voice both within the School and the broader community, ensuring that the horrors of the Holocaust and other genocides are never forgotten. As a School community, we should be very proud of what this group achieves and thankful that we are lucky enough to live free of the persecution that so many others have suffered. It is easy to live the life we do and enjoy the activities this blog celebrates while taking it all for granted. Mr Lawrence and his team do a powerful job of helping us to remember that these freedoms should never be taken lightly and that remembering the horrific realities of the past is an essential part of ensuring a more inclusive, safer future for us all.
It makes it all the more important to be able to celebrate what these freedoms allow us all to participate in, which brings us on to the rest of the blog…
Heads of Year message
We hope that all Third Year pupils can recognise the importance of keeping going until the half term holiday, both in terms of their own efforts in lessons and with their commitment to striving for personal best whilst supporting each other with kindness.
End of Year Exams
Third Year exam week will take place from 22 – 26 May 2022. This is the week before the summer half term holiday. We do not expect pupils to begin their revision this far in advance, but hope this information is useful for planning purposes. Study skills guidance will be given to all Third Years during the first half of the summer term.
Absences
For medical absences, please notify your son’s Form Tutors via email (cc’ing absence@hamptonschool.org.uk) on the morning of each day of absence by 8:45am, or complete the absence form via the parent portal. For planned absences and appointments, please contact Heads of Year requesting the absence with as much notice as possible.
Boys – Please let us, your Form Tutors or the relevant subject teachers know if you have any difficulties. Have a lovely weekend.
Best wishes
Mr T Rigby & Miss M Bedford
Rock Concert
Will M and Dan T (3J) took to the stage last Friday in this year’s Rock Concert. Let’s hear more about it:
In last week’s Rock Concert, there was a magnificent display of talent across all the year groups. There was an array of performances from bands to solos, in which there were three brilliant soloists. There was also a very diverse range of artists being played from Motörhead to The Police.
Alex T started the concert off with a great performance, leading the intermediate rock band playing the iconic song ‘The Bends’ by Radiohead. We also saw Sixth Former Felix showcase a completely original song. Amazing! The hosts provided great comedy for the excited crowd, and kept them on their toes through the transitions, and while the performers were setting up on stage.
We would also like to thank the backstage staff, who, without them, none of this would have been possible. We are already excited for the next Rock Concert later this year, and we hope you can join us in the Hammond Theatre and experience the great atmosphere that comes with the great musicians!
Rock on! Take a look at some of the photos from the evening here.
Rugby report
As we hurtle toward the final rugby fixtures of the academic year, Harry D (3A) tells us about a recent match:
The Hampton U14A team came up against a tough Whitgift opponent who they had both beaten and lost to before. We started quickly and a try came from a well worked line-out move from five metres out, resulting in Seb diving over the line.
Whitgift had a very clear game plan of picking off rucks through the middle which left gaps out wide. Hampton used this opportunity well, scoring a try soon after. We spread the ball wide to Seb who scored in the corner, making the score 14-0. The half ended in desperate defence from Hampton but a switch off in the final play resulted in Whitgift scoring, making the score 14-7.
Hampton started the second half quickly, scoring a try from a line break inside their own half and scoring under the posts, making it an easy conversion. Will scored next from a good chip over the defence by Jack, making the score 28-7. An unfortunate interception resulted in a try for Whitgift, letting them back in the game, with the score at 28-14. Another strong carry from the five-metre line resulted in another try from Seb (making it a hat-trick) pushing the score up to 35-12. Whitgift scored their final try from a charge down from a clearance kick, making the final score 35-19. A well fought win from Hampton!
Holocaust Memorial Day 2023
Friday was global Holocaust Memorial Day. This year’s theme was ordinary people. To mark this important event, over the past few months several boys have been undertaking research into the horrific events affecting the Jews at the hands of the Nazis during World War II and have prepared a video to remind everyone of the atrocities and to create a path to stamp out genocide.
On Wednesday evening we were privileged and honoured to be accompanied by a lady called Rosetta who told of her mother’s story – a story where some members of the family survived and others sadly didn’t.
Rosetta was truly inspirational, sharing experiences of a mother in her words and at times using real video footage of her mother speaking about the events of ghettos; starvation; torture; and the gas chamber. It was a stark reminder of what other ordinary, innocent people went through. What was even starker it was ordinary people causing the pain and suffering under the Nazis regime.
The Third Year boys involved in the project and presentation were Fynn, Teddy, Josh, Archer, Matthew, Robbie and Ali.
Model United Nations
Leander K-B (3J) had a busy weekend of debating, find out more:
The LEH MUN was the longest MUN conference of the academic year so far, with the conference spanning across three days! Hampton represented the delegations of the USA, Iran, Japan (my delegation), Colombia, Spain and Lebanon.
The weekend started on Friday evening with a talk from Seema Malhorta – the MP for Feltham – about her career and the importance of politics and the UN. We then proceeded to our committee rooms for policy statements. I was in the economic and social committee and the topics at hand were the transition to AI Labour forces, Inflation and its effect on the agricultural industry and the gender pay gap.
Saturday saw committees begin debate with some interesting resolutions. Turkey’s resolution was aimed at keeping the regulations and laws around AI in line with the advancements that took place. Zimbabwe’s resolution on inflation focused on reducing the rate of monetary expansion by central banks, however the delegate of India was adamant that military enforcement should be considered, causing a heated period between myself and the delegate of India.
Sunday saw us turn away from committees and focus on the general assembly. We discussed climate change, the global recession, and the ICC (International Criminal Court). Many delegates wanted the ICC abolished, but it ended up that delegates were swayed to keep it running. Another resolution on climate change focused on using waste land for solar and wind energy and putting more electric cars on the road.
Then came the crisis. The crisis was that global warming was causing sea levels to rise so dramatically that countries were now sinking. The most prominent clause was incited by the strong words of one of the chairs who reminded us that there are cats in danger too. This led to a very passionate speech from Sam T, the delegate of Spain, whose clause was centred on sending the world’s Navy and Air Force to save the cats. The clause passed with an overwhelming majority. The conference finished with the closing ceremony with myself winning a highly commended delegate award, along with multiple other Hamptonians.
National Storytelling Week
This week, Hampton School teachers and pupils have been helping celebrate National Storytelling Week 2023 by reading extracts from their favourite stories. From Douglas Adams to Agatha Christie and John Grisham to Isaac Asimov, why not give one of their recommendations a read?
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat
Only four more sleeps until opening night! There are a still a few tickets available for this year’s Junior School Musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat! The joint cast of Hamptonians and Waldegrave pupils will bring this magical musical to life. Performances take place on Tuesday 7, Wednesday 8 and Thursday 9 February and tickets can be booked here.
Two truths and a lie
Last week, Mrs Whitwam offered three facts about herself:
- Mrs Whitwam sung on the stage of the Royal Opera House
- Dr Who once gave Mrs Whitwam a birthday present
- Mrs Whitwam’s favourite food is Marmite and she always travels with it.
As it turns out, while Mrs Whitwam has the voice of an angel, she has never sung on the stage of the Royal Opera house!
This week, Miss Embiricos, 3J Form Tutor, is our subject. Three ‘facts’ about her are below.
- Miss Embiricos’ favourite food is sea urchin salad
- Miss Embiricos has represented Greece in the Ultimate Frisbee World Cup
- Miss Embiricos’ cousin is in the movie Fantastic Beasts
Which one is the lie? Answers in the blog next week…
CONNECTION CORNER
Well done to the everyone who had a go at last week’s Connection Corner. Merits go to all those who correctly guessed that the answers were all to do with Christmas. Big shout out to Jasper E, Alex W, Neel M, Leander K-B, Gregory M, Prabodha A, Adam M, Shivang S, Akshat N, Ameya M, Stanley A, Albert S, Thomas G, Oliver A, Matthew J, Dawood A, Oliver S, Maurice R, Harry N, Ben B, Jude L S, Tanmay B, Gabriel S, Avraj M, Eugene K, Chris C, Joshua R, Agalyan S, Ollie W, Samuel H and Eric M.
Another tricky one to have a go at over the weekend:
In case, you’re still perplexed here are the answers from the last week’s conundrum:
What is the capital city of Belgium? Brussels
Who presents This Morning alongside Phillip Schofield? Holly Willoughby
In which country was the Ottoman Empire centered? Turkey
Which Northern Line station lies between King’s Cross and Old Street? Angel
Connection answer: All things to do with Christmas (brussel sprouts, holly, turkey, angel)