Welcome to the First Year Blog!
Our trip to Avon Tyrrell in the New Forest has been the highlight of this week. Rain or shine, our Avon Tyrrell adventure hit the mark! From scaling high ropes to building rafts, as well as scoring bullseyes in archery, the First Years showed true grit and great aim! The mentors kept everyone motivated and it was uplifting to see all of the First Year strengthening friendships, working as a team, and getting quite soggy…and there’s nothing like bonding over a fried breakfast! We’ll hear more from our First Years later in the blog.
In other news, this Saturday we have our Open Morning the First Year boys will be guiding prospective pupils and their families around the School, answering dozens of questions, and showing off how seriously excellent and seriously fun Hampton is! Many of our First Years will have their first fixtures in both Football against Wilson’s School today, and Rugby against RGS, High Wycombe tomorrow – best of luck and don’t forget to show great sportsmanship.
Do enter the Hampton Hunt to win Academic Merits and please send any articles to me (v.jimenez@hamptonschool.org.uk) or attend Blog Club on Wednesdays at 10.55am in lab F10, and I will award you a Lion Merit (and sometimes treats) for your contribution to the life of the School.
Have a good weekend!
NEW FOREST, NEW FRIENDS, NEW FEATS! OUR FIRST YEARS AT AVON TYRRELL!
The low but steady hum of excited chatter. The coach bouncing up and down on speed bumps. The dappled sunlight speckling the forest floor. That was what it felt like to be zooming off to Avon Tyrrell, a beautiful outdoor learning centre in the heart of the wildlife-rich New Forest.
When we were just about to arrive, I looked out of the window to see a rugged plane of green extending towards the horizon in all directions, peppered with clusters of trees and the occasional wild horse. From the moment I landed at Avon Tyrrell, there was a sense of building anticipation. As I strained to lug my bags up into the historic drawing room, I started to wonder at the ornate designs of this mansion. It was once home to Lord and Lady Manners, who built the current manor house on Lady Manners’ sister’s land. In fact, Lord Manners won the money for it by betting that his horse could win a race! But I digress.
I had an absolutely delicious lunch in the dining room previously used by the Manners. However, the trip wasn’t just about the food. The itinerary was packed with activities, from which we could earn points. Many activities were on offer over the entire trip, such as low ropes and high ropes, orienteering, team building challenges, archery and catapulting. My personal favourite was the high ropes. I had to climb up a tall wooden pole and then heave myself onto a platform on top. Finally, I did what is dubbed the ‘Leap of Faith,’ a leap from the platform to reach a bar hanging from a chain. It was terrifying because it seemed like an impossibly tall height if you looked down, but otherwise immensely enjoyable.
Once we had finished dinner, we set out on a relaxing night walk. On the way, the instructor shared with us various facts about the staggeringly historic manor. We also sampled some edible pine needles – turns out they are high in Vitamin C! Don’t go picking bare every pine tree though, some species are toxic. Just before we came back for bed, we had some time to gaze up at the night sky which glittered like a diamond with its infinitude of stars.
On the second day, we reached the most challenging part of the trip. As a team, we built a raft and learnt the knots needed to tie it up, then spent our points on things like equipment or a check for any faults by the instructors. Once ready, there was a rafting competition to see who could paddle the fastest, which could again earn us points. Then the penultimate moment came: all the points were added up to form each team’s accumulated total. My team came second – only a handful of points separated us and the team that came first!
After the results were announced, I went back to the main house to retrieve my bags. The walk back onto the coach was, to employ a well-known cliché, full of mixed emotions – I wanted to be back home to take a breather, but at the same time longed to continue this spectacular adventure further with my friends. I would absolutely love to go back, to relive the sense of limitless exploration once more.
By Hiu Yeung K (1P)
I am sure that many of you have watched the Hampton School film, and at the end of this video, a quote by Philanthropist Andrew Carnegie says ‘there is little success where there is little laughter,’ and keeping up with this saying, Hampton took us on a trip to Avon Tyrrell where we all had fun together and enjoyed ourselves and created memories, weather good or bad to remember forever.
The Avon Tyrrell residential trip was a spectacular experience because it was wonderful to connect with my fellow peers and make bonds that will last a lifetime. This trip was a great opportunity for me to socialise with others, get the confidence to talk to my classmates and even enhance my climbing skills!
For me, the day started off as I looked out of the coach window, because I enjoyed seeing the wild horses and cows while we passed them by. After that, when we arrived, many seemed excited and ready to use their knowledge at orienteering and push themselves to their limits at the climbing activities. One of the main highlights of my day was the night walk, where we got to play entertaining games and make pine needle tea (which I honestly did not like!) I must mention how kind and helpful the instructors were and how they put in the effort to make us have an enjoyable stay.
On the next day, we had a very nice (or should I say delicious) start to our day, since we had eggs and bacon with toast which, in my opinion was the best meal of the trip. After this, we were split up into activity groups – where we earned points for each completed task or challenge. Afterwards, following a lot of hard work, it was finally time for the raft building. We were asked to go around a certain place in the water and come back in the shortest time possible. In the end, we got the second shortest time, resulting in us getting second place in the added-up points of the overall day.
Over these two days we had much fun, laughter and joy and over the years I’m sure this will amount to a lot of success.
By Owen S-W (1L)
It was our second Monday at Hampton, and we were already heading off on our first school trip to Avon Tyrrell in the beautiful New Forest! The coach was alive with chatter and song, everyone buzzing for the two days ahead.
Accompanied by our Sixth Form mentors, we were straight off the coach, and into the first activity: the Mohawk Walk. This activity involved us walking along a thin wooden beam with only four stepping stones, the objective being to get your whole team from one side to the other. If someone touched the ground, the whole team started again.
The next two days were a hubbub of excitement, doing many activities, my favourites being climbing (which makes me excited to get on the School wall), low ropes and rafting. We had an amazing team (within which I made lots of new friends) and managed to come out on top in rafting!
In conclusion, our experience of Avon Tyrrell was an amazing combination of teamwork, challenge and lots and lots of soggy shoes!
By Alex B (1L)
Our overnight trip to Avon Tyrrell was a fantastic way to begin our year at Hampton. Even though it was only one night, the First Year Form Tutors, Heads of Year, and Mr John (who should have a huge thank you for planning this trip) managed to fit in a full schedule of outdoor activities to help us bond, build confidence and have a lot of fun. It was the kind of trip that brought everyone together with the proper taste of adventure.
The high ropes was of course one of the most memorable parts. The leap of faith stood out –climbing onto a narrow platform and jumping forward to grab the hanging metal bar took real courage. It was nerve wracking, but once I had jumped, the adrenaline rush was incredible. Everyone was cheering each other on, which made the activity so much more fun and rewarding
We also did the low ropes course, which focused more on teamwork. Helping each other balance the giant seesaw and problem solving ‘The Lava scenario’ showed how quickly we could work together. Archery was another highlight – it was fun learning a new skill and once we got the hang of it the friendly competition started. Orienteering was chaotic but entertaining, with maps in hand and lots of running around trying not to get lost (thankfully nobody did).
Raft building was the final activity; it was messy, creative and hilarious. We built our raft with wood barrels and rope and somehow it stayed afloat. Paddling across the lake with everyone laughing and trying not to fall in was the perfect way to end the fantastic trip. Overall, Avon Tyrrell gave me a brilliant start to the year – full of challenges, teamwork and memories we won’t forget!
By Ranvi P (1P)
This week we went on a jam packed residential to Avon Tyrell. It all began with us arriving and going on a rock-climbing wall. It was certainly a very breath-taking experience and although I knew that I was being supported by a very sturdy rope it was still painful to look at the ground. After that we did a very bumpy racecourse around chess pieces. Orienteering was a very time-consuming activity, but I am happy to say that my group found all of the signs. However, the night walk was my favourite. Learning inspiring facts to playing ‘Marco Polo’ in the dark is an experience I will never forget. I am immensely grateful for the opportunity and for all the teachers.
By George U (1P)
Avon Tyrrell has been a prominent trip for First Years, Form Tutors and mentors. This has been an exhilarating event for every year who has done it. It’s been a highlight of the year for First Year. There’s been so much going on in the first week, but this has been a standout (I’m sure the First Year will agree!). As we sat down in the bus, getting ready to go, there was a lot of clash and clamour, it was clear that we were exhilarated to go to the best trip of the year!
Upon arriving we were directed to the drawing room which had so much information about how old Avon Tyrrell was, and Avon Tyrrell through the ages. We did many activities throughout the two days we stayed there. Personally, I enjoyed the night walk, learning about the house and which horses roamed the grounds and which Lord and Lady owned the house, and the most compelling fact was that the house, was, in fact a calendar house! It had 365 windows! We also played a collection of games like ‘Lighthouse’ and ‘Bat and Moth’.
The main aim for the trip to Avon Tyrrell was for teamwork and for bonding friends. I think a favourite activity for the pupils was the raft building, racing, and earning points as a team. Overall, Avon Tyrrell was an exceptional experience, and The First Year will definitely have enjoyed it.
By Mahad H (1B)
Avon Tyrrell has been a key moment of my life, from the beginning of the trip to the very end. It was full of exciting and challenging activities that forced your brain to maximise its full potential. As we got off the bus, I felt a spark of excitement burst with light inside me; this was a new chance for new challenges and fun activities as a Hamptonian. This meant a lot for me, as I was able to have fun with people from my year that I didn’t know.
My favourite activities were the raft building, the problem solving, and the climbing, as I managed to defeat my extreme fear of heights! Raft building was also a chance to get creative and problem solving was a way to use our logic and try out different methods and ways to manage and reach our final goal. It was very fun and hard; there was a puzzle we didn’t manage to solve!
My time at Avon Tyrrell was a key, a light, a true inspiration, which guided me to a great time, and lots of things I will use later on, in my Hampton life, and even after that.
By Andreas C (1B)
INTERFORM PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION
We wanted to remind you again about the Interform Photography Competition. Taking part means points for your Form, so get snapping!
The theme for the competition is the colour yellow, to celebrate the Hampton colours! The judges are looking for the following:
- Composition
- Use of colour
- Originality
- Number of entries per form and teamwork
There is no limit to the number of entries per form, but only one photo is allowed to be submitted by each person within the form. Top entries will be posted in the First Year blog. No photos of other pupils are allowed, and no AI-generated images will be accepted.
The competition closes on Tuesday 14 October. Please send all submissions by email to Mrs Whitwam (v.whitwam@hamptonschool.org.uk) ideally below 5MB in file size. Come and see me in the English Office if you’re having issues.
TUTEE OF THE WEEK
Every week, the First Year Tutor team nominate a Hamptonian who they have been particularly impressed with and Mr Hill and Mr Fuldner present him with a certificate and a tasty treat to eat!
Congratulations to Aiden G (1J) on being named this week’s Tutee of the Week!
Aiden G (1J) has been really thoughtful, polite and helpful during his first few weeks at Hampton – well done Aiden!
SPECIAL SHOUT OUTS!
Vahin A (1F) has written a poem that has been selected to be published in a book, ‘Wonderverse – The Dreamy Delights’ by The Young Writers Team, which will remain in the archives of the British Library! Well done! Let’s hear a few words from Vahin himself:
23,000 people entered and only 600 or so would win, so I was scared that my poem wouldn’t get in. When I came back home from school, my parents told me they had received a letter saying that my poem had been selected to be published in a book. I was thrilled! When I read the letter myself, I discovered that a copy of a book would be kept in the British Library archives. I was both surprised and very proud of myself.
In the corner of the forbidden room,
A place with a dusty old broom.
There is a monster, by the name of THE TRAP!
That is ravenous and kills with a snap!
This was the story Sam was told,
But now, as he was old,
He went to his dad,
The dad said that he wasn’t an old enough lad.
But, as the boy walked back,
He started to pack,
A sword, a bow
That would pack a blow.
But could it hurt the terrifying trap,
Who would probably have a painful attack.
Facing a monster with such tremendous power,
It would be difficult with no place to cower.
He carefully walked to the room,
Under the silhouette of the ghostly moon.
The door behind him closed on its own,
He started to stop feeling the comfort of his home.
Tip tap…Tip tap…
Tip tap…Tip tap…
He heard a snap
Was it the trap?
And suddenly IT came out,
A monster with a long snout.
With sharp claws that sting
And huge bony wings.
The boy struck it hard with his bow
The monster cowered after the blow.
The boy, with one more strike the beast.
And now, he was going to have a big feast.
But was the beast really dead?
By Vahin A (1F)
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 Jimenez (v.jimenez@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! 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: whose office can you find Harris, the Hampton School dog? It is of course, Dr Hendry. If you’d like to get to know Harris better, then why not try Dog Club, one of the many Co-curricular Clubs that you can have a go at.
Well done to William F, Andreas C, Alex B, George U, Jack M, Ruben V, Sam W, Thomas N, Thomas D, Al M and Miguel B.
This week’s challenge:
How many windows does the Avon Tyrrell house have?
HINT: you didn’t need to count them, you just needed to listen very carefully – and if you’ve read the blog from start to finish, you’ll find out exactly!
Enter your answer here:
