While on our Nature Walk, Year 2 found a heron in Hobson’s Conduit. We had a plan for something else on our walk, but the children were so entranced, we stayed to watch it for a good 15 minutes! We observed it standing very still and decided it was looking for fish and didn’t want them to know it was there. Then, it caught a mouse! We saw the mouse’s tail and back legs hanging out of its mouth for only a few seconds before it tossed it up and swallowed it whole! We watched the lump in its throat go down, down, down… This led the children to a discussion about the cycle of life and how it was probably a quick and painless death since the heron doesn’t have teeth. They then begged to come back in to do a water colour of the heron. We couldn’t have planned a more interesting or lasting experience than this.
https://heritageschool.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/heritage-school-logo1-1.png00adminhttps://heritageschool.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/heritage-school-logo1-1.pngadmin2016-11-09 15:14:312016-11-09 15:20:41Heron Watching on a Year 2 Nature Walk
Congratulations to our Year 10 pupils who completed their Bronze Qualifying Expedition on Friday 30th September to Saturday 1st October.
They walked approximately 32 km from Graffam Water north towards Oundle, staying at Little Gidding.
Each group had an ‘aim’, in addition to the physical challenge of carrying a pack weighing about 12kgs and the challenge of navigation. The aims included taking and then analysing water samples from the River Nene and finding out more about the history of Little Gidding.
A famous visitor to Little Gidding was T.S. Elliot, who named the forth of his Four Quartets after it. Here is a (somewhat) appropriate section from it!
“We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”
The D of E Award Scheme encourages many of the values and qualities Heritage School is seeking to nurture in its pupils. We think its brilliant and our pupils really enjoy it.
https://heritageschool.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/heritage-school-logo1-1.png00adminhttps://heritageschool.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/heritage-school-logo1-1.pngadmin2016-10-09 19:02:002016-10-09 19:05:27Year 10 pupils complete their Bronze DofE Qualifying Expedition walking from Graffam Water to Oundle
We were very encouraged by our first full set of IGCSE results this Summer. Our Year 11 leavers have done exceptionally well, with 70% of all exams taken being awarded A* or A. We want to congratulate our pupils and our dedicated staff for all of their hard work.
19 pupils sat IGCSEs in 17 subjects. (Pupils ordinarily take 10 subjects.) Only 2 subjects – Latin and RS, follow GCSE syllabuses; all other subjects follow IGCSE syllabuses. 197 exams were taken overall.
100% of pupils obtained at least five A*-C grades including English, Maths, a Science and a Language.
70% of all exams taken were awarded A* or A
90% of all exams taken were awarded A*, A or B
6 of 19 pupils were awarded 10 or more A* or A grades.
3 of 19 pupils were awarded 10 A* grades.
All pupils enjoyed significant personal achievements and achieved at least 2 A* or A grades.
Jason Fletcher, the Headmaster said of the pupil’s performance:
“We are very encouraged by today’s results. Our first leavers have done exceptionally well. We have sought to create a learning culture that takes the long view, where we do not focus upon results as our primary objective, but where we focus, rather, upon robust intellectual development for its own sake and upon other facets of personal development. We are not surprised that a healthy school culture nurtures strong academic performance. Today’s results are further evidence that our priorities are in the right place.”
Of our 19 Leavers, 11 are going to Hills Road, 2 to Comberton Sixth Form, 2 to the Stephen Perse Sixth Form, 2 to the Netherhall School Sixth Form, and 1 to the Perse School Sixth Form. One is not attending a sixth form in Cambridge and will pursue further education in the USA next year.
An announcement by Chris Evans at 6.30am on Radio 2’s ‘Good Morning Chris Club’ officially launched Heritage’s 2016 Senior Camp to Cornwall.
After a smooth journey we arrived at 3pm and the newly acquired tents went up a treat (thanks to those who attended the camp fire last October) and the children set about identifying the whereabouts of the stinging nettles, brambles, mud pits and mosquito infested areas of the campsite while Mr Hulett cooked one of his trade-mark delicious feasts.
On Tuesday the camp programme really kicked off. The Year 7’s and 8’s and the ever intrepid Mrs Laube and Mr Appleyard went e-Coasteering (relocated to the north coast due to unseasonably high waves on the south) and the remainder of us set about depositing the DofE groups across The Lizard. Blessed with blue skies, albeit with a cold easterly wind, it was easy to see why Cornwall is so popular. The scenery enjoyed by all was stunning, if a little chilly.
Wednesday for the Year 7 & 8’s required a gentle bike ride by the side of the Camel Estuary on the Camel Trail. A two hour educational visit had been organised to the National Lobster Hatchery on the outskirts of Padstow, followed by lunch (sans Lobster, sadly) and then a return trip, stopping to play on a beach. For the DofE groups, Wednesday was much more challenging. It would seem that the Cornwall tourist board has not quite trained some of the farmers on The Lizard very well. Many of them have chosen to disregard their responsibility to maintain footpaths and signage. In fact several of the children encountered farmers who were adamant that no footpath existed, when one was clearly marked on the (new) OS maps. This created challenges, but the children as ever, rose to them. Quiet children became strong leaders, helping their friends when spirits dropped a little. When we picked them up they were in a great mood, with new stories to tell about being charged by bulls (actually cows) and smiles on their faces. Mr Seetharaman kindly provided the amazing healing power of ice cream from the village shop as a reward.
Thursday was the busiest day of the trip. The Silver DofE group had to complete their expedition by late morning, at which time they were transported to the North of Cornwall (high waves again) to do their E-Coasteering and Sea Kaayaking. E-Coasteering was fantastic and again we saw the ‘quiet’ children coming out of their shells and doing quite spectacular jumps into the sea accompanied by Mr Hulett. We also learned about much of the fauna that lives in the rock pools and explored some tidal caves. The Year 7 & 8’s spent the day circumnavigating the Roseland on foot.
In the evening the whole group congregated in Falmouth, where we had chartered the 1921 Pleasure boat M.V. Princessa for an evening cruise up the River Fal. Cornish pasties provided the food for the evening. The children, in spite of our best efforts to tire them out spent the evening line dancing under expert tuition from Santiago.
Friday was the only day that anything went wrong. Sadly a fatal accident occurred on the A30 ahead of us on our way back from Cornwall. This delayed us and meant that the planned trip to Wookey Hole could not happen. It is a testament to the children that in spite of the long (11 hour) return trip to Cambridge, spirits never dipped.
The camps are a source of incredible enjoyment to us adults. Thanks for lending us your children for the week. If anyone likes the sound of all this and wants to volunteer next year please let us know – you will be very welcome!
With 2 full day of activities, 32 pupils from Year 5&6 enjoyed caving and rock climbing on a 55-acre site in Bakewell followed by a day’s hike in the Peaks and a visit to Treak Cliff Cavern.
The camp enjoyed amazing weather, freshly cooked food from Mr Hulett and plenty of time for wide games, survival skills, camp fires and marshmallows
https://heritageschool.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/heritage-school-logo1-1.png00adminhttps://heritageschool.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/heritage-school-logo1-1.pngadmin2016-05-03 16:35:102016-09-28 10:13:42Year 5 & 6 head to the Peak District for a 3-night camp
