Nothampton High School
Junior News

Junior News 01 April 2022

My favourite break in the school year is the Easter break. Not (only) because of chocolate eggs, but because it always feels like a turning point in so many ways. Already we can hear and feel spring in the air; daffodils and bluebells, gamboling lambs, birds tweeting as dawn breaks earlier than any other time of year.

The Easter break brings the promise of that final, shortest term of the academic year and beyond that the summer holidays. For students in exam year groups, and their families, the Easter break can also bring with it the reality of the impending GCSE and A Level examinations. I think we can all entirely empathise with the irony of having exams at time when others are out enjoying the spring and summer weather. After two years without these exams, their return feels like the last piece of normality returning to our post-pandemic lives though and I am confident the students are well prepared. I encourage them to take advantage of the Easter revision courses to cover any final areas of concern.

In the meantime, we turn our thoughts to transitions and particularly the moves from Pre School to Reception, Year 6 to Senior School and Year 11 to Sixth Form. Pivotal moments in the students’ lives and as with any major change they need careful preparation. The summer term will provide many opportunities for students in those year groups to learn more about the next steps and what to expect, along with those pupils who will be joining the Northampton High School community for the first time.

Before we get there though, I would like to wish you a very good break whatever you are doing over the Easter period and however you are celebrating the official start of summer. I leave you with Philip Larkin’s take on the changing of seasons:

The Trees, Philip Larkin, 1967

The trees are coming into leaf
Like something almost being said;
The recent buds relax and spread,
Their greenness is a kind of grief.

Is it that they are born again
And we grow old? No, they die too,
Their yearly trick of looking new
Is written down in rings of grain.

Yet still the unresting castles thresh
In fullgrown thickness every May.
Last year is dead, they seem to say,
Begin afresh, afresh, afresh.

Mrs O’Doherty
Head

This week's student achievements

Nellie – awarded a Level 6 in gymnastics.

Amelia – awarded a Rainbows Helper badge and Express Myself badge.

Grace B – was chosen to represent Northamptonshire County at the U8 tennis tournament and played very well.

Isabella – awarded a Level 5 in gymnastics.

Avani – awarded a Level 3 and Level 4 in gymnastics.

Hester – awarded a Grade 3 in ice skating.

Luisa – awarded a Grade 3 in ice skating.

Harriet – awarded a certificate for the completion of the 10 x Challenge DIY

Maya – awarded a certificate for the completion of the 10 x Challenge DIY

Aliza – awarded a certificate for the completion of the 10 x Challenge DIY

Avleen – awarded a certificate for the completion of the 10 x Challenge DIY

Maya – sang at the Music Recital performance

Emily  – sang at the Music Recital performance

Lottie – achieved Grade 3 Distinction – flute

Ellie – achieved Grade 3 Distinction – piano

To view more photos please click here

Playground Stars

We have had another active week on the playground with lots of old and new games despite the weather.

Eloise C and Eliza – well done for putting out cones for safe play.

Amari, Evie and Rosie – what an amazing new game; the choo-choo horse game looked lots of fun.

Eloise A and Miya – thank you for showing Mrs Long the split on the playground. Well done for remembering to tell an adult if you are not sure about something.

Eloise R, Evette, Cristina and Annabel –  had to focus really hard on their throwing and catching game so they did not drop the ball. Well done, girls.

The girls from Years 3, 4 & 5 played a very competitive game of football.

Junior Sports

Year 4 Netball vs Boughton Manor: The Year 4 Netball team travelled to Broughton Manor for their final game of the season on Friday 26 March. The match took place in the ‘bee netball’ format meaning players rotated through positions, each spending time in both attack and defence.

The team fell behind early in the match, but Annabelle scored to level the game with plenty of time to go. We had many chances to score again but somehow did not manage to get the ball in the hoop. The game looked certain to end as a draw, but Broughton capitalised on a late chance making it 2-1 to take the win.

Congratulations to Year 4 Netball players who have made excellent progress this year, and particularly to Hester who was selected as Player of the Match.

Year 3 and 4 House Netball: What a difference one day makes! From the baking sunshine of playing tag rugby on Monday afternoon to the wintery depths Tuesday morning for House Netball. This did not deter the girls’ spirits, however, and thanks go to the Year 6 Sports Captains for managing the teams, and to the Year 10’s for umpiring and organising positions. A great morning’s netball, and congratulations to our winners, Selene!

Sports Awards Evening: What a fantastic evening of celebration for the Junior School on Wednesday. The Year 6 Sports Captains made such eloquent speeches and really rose to the occasion. We were delighted to welcome school alumna Ellie Robinson back to Northampton High to give an inspirational speech and present the commendations and awards. Congratulations to all our winners!

Mrs Littlewood

 

Year 4 complete their clay lizard project

We have now concluded our clay lizard project with Year 4 and we have very much enjoyed working as a team in Senior School Art. Many thanks to the girls, and Mrs Smith, Mrs Fordham and Mrs Bull for helping the students to finish their decorations and textures. We are looking forward to applying glazes, after the lizards have had their first outing in the kiln!

We would like to wish Year 4 a relaxing and fun Easter – well done, girls! Hope the Easter bunny is generous.

Mrs Beacroft and Mrs Bull

World Maths Day

Congratulations to the following students who achieved the highest scores in each year group during World Maths Day: Year 1 – Rosie, Year 2 – Eve, Year 3 – Eloise C, Year 4 – Yilin, Year 5 – Risara, Year 6 – Rithika.

Well done, everyone!

Rotary Young Writer Competition

Congratulations to Florianne F for winning The Rotary Young Writer Competition 2021/22 for the Junior age group at Northampton High, and to Artemisia U for receiving the Runner-up prize.

Florianne has been presented with the inspirational book, ‘Women in Science’, written and illustrated by Rachel Ignotofsky, and Artemisia a copy of the beautifully illustrated Usborne English Dictionary.

Keep on writing!

Mrs Fordham

Barn Dance

After another busy and exciting week in the Junior School, we ended on a high with our Junior School Barn Dance.

Getting changed into costumes is always a highlight of any Junior School event and we were delighted to see cowboy hats aplenty.  Classes rotated around three activity rooms – dancing with balloons and glowsticks in the hall, crazy games such as splat the rat and skittles in the community room and pizza, crisps and crudités, followed by very sticky cupcake decorating in the dining room. 

Enormous fun was had by girls from all the age groups! This would not have been possible without the effort and generosity of time shown by the team of parent and grandparents who helped both on the day and behind the scenes. You only needed to be at the event to see how much this was appreciated.

Mrs Purvey-Tyrer

Dates for your Diary

27 April  All Day – Whole School Photograph 
27 April  14.45-15.30 – Coffee with Emily Hair – New Head of Junior School 
05 May  09:30 –  Football Sevens Fixtures – Girls U11A vs The Independent Association of Prep Schools
05 May 18:00 – 19:30Art Exhibition Open Night 
06 May 09:30 – 13:00Whole School Open Morning 
06 May TBC – Cricket Fixtures – Girls-U8A&B, U9A vs Thornton College
07 May 09:00 – 11:30Early Years Fun Morning
07 May 09:30 – 12:30Junior School Taster Morning (Arts)
09 – 13 May Year 6 Osmington Bay Residential
09 May 18:00 – 20:00Parent Talk Series: Teens and Screens
11 May 14:45 Cricket Fixtures – Girls-U10A vs Thornton College Girls
16 – 20 May Year 6 GDST Poetry Extravaganza 
17 May 18:00 – 19:00Senior School Welcome Evening
18 May 14:30 Cricket Fixtures – Girls-U11A & B vs Milton Keynes Prep School
25 May 08:30 – 12:00Year 5 Hobbies Morning
25 May 14:30 Cricket Fixtures – Girls-U10A & U11A & U11B vs Broughton Manor Preparatory School
27 May  All Day –  HRH The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebrations
27 May  12:00 – 14:00  – HRH The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Street Party
   

Just as a reminder, the GAP Club phone number is 07816 751456; please do keep this number handy so that you have direct access to the GAP team should you need it.

Class Assemblies

We are pleased to welcome parents and grandparents/family members to our Wednesday Class Assemblies at 8.35am until 8.55am. Refreshments will be served in the Community Room from 8.15am. We do hope you will be able to join us.

4 May: 4H, 11 May: 4N, 18 May: 2N, 24 May: 5N, 15 June: 1N, 22 June: 3N, 29 June: R, 13 July: 6H & 6N

Nursery - Kipper Room and Elmer Room

This week in Nursery we have started to think about spring and Easter with some potato printing in the messy area, making the shape of Easter eggs. We have also started to read some spring stories.

During ballet we practised our listening skills and using our imagination to pretend we were at a party, thinking about what items we would take, and acting out collecting these items around the hall to bring them to the party. “Sprinkles!”  Aurora said.

We have watched the changes in the weather from the warm sunshine last week where we did not need our coats, to this week being wet and colder again. We have encouraged the girls to use their senses to feel the temperature changes and think about why they need coats on again when going outside.

We also joined the big girls’ assembly which was all about superheroes, talking about how superheroes can be all around us, not just those with superpowers, such as in cartoons. We showed how grown up we are, sitting alongside the school girls listening carefully.

To view more photos please click here.

Nursery - Pre School

A big thank you to all the parents that attended our parents consultations this week.  It was really nice to see so many of you and have the opportunity to catch up with your wonderful daughters’ progress.

Our letter this week has been H and the girls have thought of some good words: Isabella – Hive, Pearl – Happy, Iris – Hugo, Natalie – Heart, Ula – House.

Sadly we have had to say goodbye to Miss Lauren and wish her luck in her venture, but look forward to meeting the new gymnastics teacher in the new term.

As you can imagine Forest School in the cold and snow this week was a very different experience from last week’s glorious sunshine, but that’s the British weather for you! I wonder what types of weather we will experience over the Easter break? Hope you all have a nice break and we look forward to starting our theme on minibeasts next term, so keep your eyes peeled whilst you are out and about.

Just a reminder that on Wednesday 27 April the whole school will be joining together for a photo, and it has been requested that the girls wear their winter uniform please.

To view more photos please click here.

Reception

This week we have risen to the challenge of presenting a school assembly. After a few nerves and great excitement, the class performed very well on the day and were rightly proud of themselves.

We had a visiting speaker on Wednesday, Ms Sira, a dentist who talked to us about how to look after our teeth. She had a huge model of a set of teeth to demonstrate how to brush them correctly. Everyone could have a go and she also gave out a mirror, toothbrush and toothpaste to take home. At the end she gave out stickers and the girls decided that they might like to be a dentist when they are older. Many thanks to Ms Sira for giving up her time and coming into school.

It was lovely to see everyone at Parents’ Evening and a chance for you to see some of the learning that has been taking place. We are proud of what all the class have achieved and hope that you all have a well deserved break.

To view more photos please click here.

Year 1

It’s hard to believe that we are already at the end of the spring term, and that after the Easter break we will begin preparing the class for their transition to Year 2 in September. We ended last week with the Barn Dance where we had enormous fun together as a class dancing, playing games and eating.

The girls have worked and played so hard this term and I know that they are ready for a holiday, and a break from their usual school routine. I will send home extra reading books though, and ask that you do try and keep some form of reading going over the break.

What the girls said:

Amari said, “I liked reading ‘Ruby’s Worry’ with Mrs Dadge”.

Dulcie said, “I loved knocking over the bottles at the Barn Dance”.

A reminder that winter uniform must be worn for our whole school photograph on Wednesday 27 April.

To view more photos please click here.

Year 2

In Humanities this week, Year 2 learned the story of Holi. They retold the story using pictures, thinking carefully about the order of events. After, they used all the information they have learned about Holi to write a detailed acrostic poem. The girls then had some fun creating their own Holi word searches for each other to solve.

In Art, the girls have enjoyed completing some Easter-related craft activities, including making an Easter card. They also played some board games to help them practise their times tables. It was lovely to see how they supported each other in understanding the rules of the game as well as working out the correct answers to multiplication questions.

What the girls have said:

“We enjoyed making our origami chicks!” Eve and Caoimhe.

This has been a challenging week and end of term for Year 2, and I would like to pass on my thanks to Mrs Cartlidge and the rest of the staff for keeping things going so well in my absence. I hope all the girls make a quick recovery and enjoy their Easter holiday. I look forward to seeing you all again after the break.

The curriculum information for our last exciting term together has been added to our Firefly page and hopefully you have received the link.

Happy Easter!

To view more photos please click here.

Year 3

This week in Maths, we have been revising everything we have learned so far, trying to think carefully about the methods we need to use to solve different problems.

In English, we reminded ourselves of our residential trip to Burwell House. We talked about the things we enjoyed and loved the most; it was great to reminisce. We then wrote a letter to the staff of Burwell House to thank them for having us and for helping to create such a memorable experience.

In Science, we completed our study of plants. We made our final observations on the plants within our experiment noting any further changes. Our findings showed that plants really do need water, light and heat to grow well.

On Tuesday, we enjoyed closing our India topic with a Fabulous Finale! First, we shared everything we had learned and enjoyed about our topic. Later, we spent some time learning about Rangoli patterns and had a go at drawing our own. We were also treated to a cookery session with Mrs Shah where we learned to cook Roti and a simple banana curry, both of which were thoroughly enjoyed by all the girls. To finish the day, Mrs Shah used henna to create Mendhi art on our hands and we all tried Bollywood dancing too!

What the girls have said: 

“I enjoyed getting the henna art on my hand.” Annabel.

“We loved making and eating the Indian food.” Evette.

“I enjoyed going through the photos of our Burwell trip.” Eloise R.

Wishing you all a wonderful spring break.

To view more photos please click here.

Year 4

In Maths, we have continued with developing our understanding of decimals, focusing on hundredths, and we have divided both 1 and 2 digit numbers by 100.

In English, we have been using relative clauses and have included them in our recount of Odd’s adventures.

In our third ceramics workshop, we completed decorating our lizards and they are now ready for the kiln.

What the girls have said: 

“I have really enjoyed Maths as I like doing assessments. Humanities was also fun as I liked turning the story to a song and performing to the class.”  Yilin.

“I loved writing Odd’s story in English, writing stories is my favourite thing to do.” Artemisa.

“I liked Forest School. I liked making the rafts for the animals. It was a stable but the animal got a bit wet.” Asmi.

“I enjoyed finishing off our lizards in ceramics. We finished off the decoration and smoothed the edges with water.” Cordelia.

Looking ahead to next term:

English – we will be starting our new book ‘The Story of Tutankhamun’.

Maths – we will continue developing our knowledge of decimals and will use inequalities to compare.

Science – living things/habitats – grouping living things.

Dates for your diary:

4H class assembly – Wednesday 4 May

4N class assembly – Wednesday 11 May

Forest School – Wednesday 18 May

To view more photos please click here.

Year 5

We have had an absolutely amazing end to the spring term, off timetable and doing lessons on comparative religion. We started the week looking at different creation stories before moving on to forgiveness, worship, commitment and ending with role models. It has been very special sharing this learning with the girls and finding out more about their own ideas and beliefs.

On Thursday afternoon, we were extremely lucky to have a group of young solicitors from the BPP Education Group leading a mock trial – the girls, both in the classroom and online, were gripped. Would Goldilocks be found innocent or guilty?

What the girls have said:

“We have really enjoyed RE Week, especially the baking we did to celebrate the end of Yom Kippur, the Jewish festival all about forgiveness. We even enjoyed our prep this week, which was drawing about the drama scenes we acted in class about forgiving each other. We tried to make them realistic and we succeeded because most of the things do happen. We also loved doing music and art about worship, and during our Art lesson we also did some marbling. We got to draw or paint whatever we wanted to show what worship or God means to us, so all of our work was really different.” Maya and Shreya.

“Yesterday we had an online lesson with some trainee lawyers who taught us what to do and not do, and the punishment for different crimes. We did a trial of Goldilocks who was accused of burglary and criminal damage. We all had to play different parts, like Mummy Bear who was a witness, Goldilocks the defendant and the prosecution and defence lawyers. The girls at home were the jury and had to decide if she was guilty or not guilty based on the facts we gave them. We loved it!”

Dates for your diary:

Tuesday 26 April (first day back) – Forest School (come in FS clothes and bring uniform to change into).

Wednesday 27 April – whole school photo (winter uniform).

To view more photos please click here.

Year 6

Our visit to Hardingstone Church last week was a resounding success and the girls have really impressed us with their collaborative pieces entitled ‘Precious Places’.

This work will be shared with our new friends at the church and we hope that this is the start of a long-term link with the local community.

What the girls have said: 

“I have really enjoyed learning about algebra this week because you have to think logically and systematically to find values of missing numbers. Some of the questions have been quite challenging but we got there in the end!” Flo.

“This week I have been doing Guided Home Learning and my highlight of the week was planning a Year 6 party using a spreadsheet to calculate the costs. My group’s party included a bouncy castle and a foam pit!” Vivienne.

“I enjoyed helping Years 3 and 4 with the inter-house netball. We helped them with the warm-up and encouraged them from the side of the court. They tried their best and they improved their passing and shooting a lot.” Mollie.

“I really enjoyed our online visit from Streetlaw where we learned about the suffragettes. We filled in a workbook and my favourite activity was designing a placard. My slogan was: ‘Give us Equality!’ and I wrote it in the suffragette colours of purple, green and white.” Lottie.

After Easter, we will be preparing for our long-awaited trip to Osmington Bay. Happy packing!

To view more photos please click here.

GAP Club

We have been thinking about Easter in Gap Club this week. The girls have used watercolours to paint rabbits and decorate an Easter egg. They have made rabbit bookmarks and ears. We finished the week by making chocolate Rice Krispie cakes.

What the girls have said: 

“Painting Easter pictures and mixing the paints to make purple.” Aurelia, Year 1.

“Making bunny ears.” Miya, Year 1.

“I’ve enjoyed everything.” Varnika, Year 4.

To view more photos please click here.

Job vacancies available - Join our Team!

We currently have a number of exciting job vacancies able at Northampton High School.

If you are interested in joining our team and finding out more information, please follow this link. If you have any questions, please do get in touch.

Mr Nash
Marketing & Communications Manager

High Sports - Spring Edition available to read now!

The latest instalment of our High Sports newsletter is available to view now! The termly publication takes a retrospective look back on all the goings on in the Sports department at Northampton High over the previous term, and we are delighted to share the spring edition with you now.

In this issue, we look back at the Condover Hall Festival of Netball, look ahead to the Summer term, shine the spotlight on external sporting successes, and review each of our spring term sports.

To take a read, please click here. Hard copies are available from Reception if you would like one to keep.

Mr Nash
Marketing & Communications Manager

Backchat - new edition out now

We are delighted to share with you the latest edition of the school magazine, Backchat!

This edition is titled ‘Nostalgia’ and we hope you enjoy this latest instalment. Whether it be creative writing, current affairs or even the arts, we hope this magazine provides something to suit your interests.

To view Backchat – Nostalgia, please click here.

The Backchat Team

Parent Talks: Teens and Screens

The May event in our Parent Talks programme will take place on Monday 9 May at 6pm.

This event will have relevance for all parents and will feature Tanya Goodin on the subject of ‘Teens and Screens’.

Tanya is a trailblazing author, pioneering thinker and campaigner on digital wellbeing and tech ethics and founder of the digital detox movement Time to Log Off.

To book a place for the ‘Teens and Screens’ event, please click here.

Mrs WilmotDirector of Marketing & Admissions

Inclusivity Bulletin: April

We are delighted to share with you the latest Northampton High School Inclusivity Bulletin.

The above graphic outlines what will be happening throughout this month, but to read more and to view the bulletin in full, please click here.

Saturday Track Club

Term Dates 21/22

Term Dates 22/23

Northampton High School
Newport Pagnell Road, Hardingstone Northampton NN4 6UU
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