|
|
Friday 12 November 2021 |
|
Why does my daughter…? “Adolescence represents an inner emotional upheaval, a struggle between the eternal human wish to cling to the past and the equally powerful wish to get on with the future.” Louise J. Kaplan I am often asked, ‘Why does my daughter…… act irrationally, speak to me this way, make poor choices, drive me up the wall, etc?’ by fraught parents who are experiencing the teenage years with their daughter. Often this is their first encounter of the teenage years since their own teenage experience. More often than not, they have conveniently forgotten the antics that they themselves got up to, or the behaviours that they presented at that stage of their life. Or they remember only the good times, looking back at them as ‘The Glory Days!’. I am not a parent myself, but from what I have seen, it looks terrifying! I have every respect for parents at any stage, but the teenage years particularly. So, whilst I cannot share my own parenting tips, I can perhaps offer a few possible reasons for some behaviours and draw on the last 10 years of my career to offer some insight and reassurance to any of you battling sullen moods, slamming doors, or a general refusal to communicate. First and foremost, you are not the only parent to experience this. Almost all teenagers experience a change in personality to some degree during their development. It is also important to mention here that this change is not limited to just teenagers. It can start in children as young as 9 years old, and some psychologists now believe that brain development in young adults is not fully complete until the late 20s or even early 30s. Please click here to read more Miss Kneen |
The week ahead |
|
Monday 15 November Tuesday 16 November Wednesday 17 November |
Thursday 18 November Friday 19 November |
Pam Tomalin visits as part of Dyslexia Awareness Week |
|
For Dyslexia Awareness Week, the emphasis at Northampton High School was to celebrate and promote a greater understanding of dyslexia and literacy difficulties across the whole school community. We were extremely fortunate and grateful to welcome Pam Tomalin, Volunteer Chair of Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire’s Dyslexia Association (NBDA), to talk so openly and passionately about her own dyslexic journey, highlighting her vast array of achievements and accomplishments along the way; whilst emphasising that ‘Dyslexics have many talents and gifts that others do not have’. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of notable admiration of her self-achievements, primarily due to her unprecedented accomplishments in overcoming her own difficulties, to running her own international interior design & manufacturing company for over 40 years, being one of the founder members of the Federation of Small Businesses to that of helping and supporting local dyslexics and their families through her charity work. Here Lillybella and Lydia wanted to share their thoughts about the assembly: “Pam has dyslexia like Lydia and I so we enjoyed her sharing what she knew about dyslexics in her assembly. She told us that a lot of dyslexics did well in life because they used their ability to think in different ways to non–dyslexics, to think outside the box. We really liked that Pam shared her story with us about how Pam left college with no qualifications, but discovered that she had a skill for upholstery and that led on to her career as a interior designer. Pam showed us two of the houses she got to renovate and they looked truly lovely! When Pam was sharing her knowledge about dyslexics with us, I remember Lydia and I having our mouths open for the whole assembly. One thing that we were particularly astonished by is that dyslexics take in 2000x more information than non dyslexics! The reason why dyslexics can take in 2000x more information is because dyslexics use all of their senses to absorb all the information. This ability can lead to brain meltdowns; a brain melt down is when you have been doing well, but then your brain has a meltdown on simple questions that you have been doing and no matter how much the teacher explains it is still really confusing and frustrating.” Mrs Beezley |
'Dine with your Daughter' |
|
|
|
We are pleased to share with you more delicious offerings from our School Kitchen, this time in the form of our Breakfast Bar! This week’s mouth-watering menu is below, with plenty to choose from to suit all tastes and diets. These breakfasts aren’t just for our students, and we are delighted to offer our wonderful parents the chance to ‘dine with their daughters’ too! Feel free to join us any morning with your daughter for a delicious breakfast and start the day in the right way! Mr Nash |
2040 Climate Change Film Screening |
|
We are delighted to announce that Northampton High School will be hosting a screening of the inspirational new film ‘2040’ on Monday 22 November from 4-5:30pm in the Senior School Hall, which will be available to all Senior School students and all staff. The film is by the director Damon Gameau, who also directed ‘That Sugar Film’ and is based on his research into more sustainable ways of living to improve the health of the planet and maintain robust societies; his motivation for making the film came from his concerns of the future world his 4-year-old daughter might inherit. The film portrays a very positive vision of a potential future that offers a good standard of living as well as a sustainable environmental impact and we feel given the eco-anxiety experienced by some young people that watching 2040 will be a valuable experience. If you would like to know more this is a link to the official film trailer and this is a link to the 2040 website. Mr Earp |
Creative Arts Spotlight |
|
This week, the Creative Arts Spotlight shines onto Year 9, with students having developed their understanding of composition within a still life. They have assembled their own still life, photographed it and developed a collage. The students have referenced the artist Matisse by incorporating his use of patterns, shapes and flat colours. Well done everyone! Mr Laubscher |
High Sports |
|
Saturday 6 November vs Kings High School Warwick U18: On Saturday 6 of November, the 1XI Hockey team travelled to Kings High school to play a match. We were fortunate enough to have Shruti as Goalie and a near full squad. The team’s morale was very high after watching Year 10s win their game. A thorough warm-up led to a strong start for the 1XI team, with a goal scored by Millie T, which led us to 1 goal up. Everyone was working extremely well together, which led to no goals being conceded from us in the 1st half. After a good team talk and sweets at half time, we were ready to face Kings High in the 2nd half. Unfortunately, we conceded a goal at the start of the 2nd half, yet this didn’t drop our heads and Lili came back to score another goal, which enabled us to win 2-1. Well done to all the girls that played; we hope to carry on the win over to our other games. Special mention goes to Milly T, who was voted Player of the Match by the team. U15: A fantastic warm-up match against a highly competitive team was played on Saturday and in preparation for Thursday’s GDST Autumn 2 Rally, the team travelled to Warwick. Despite a late arrival and reduced warm-up prep, the High School got to business straight away with pressure applied to the opposition. A fantastic goal by Anna A was rewarded for the excellent play by the whole team. Kings High responded strongly and tested the team. Grace M had some millimeter near misses and others were unlucky to convert opportunities. Anna was again rewarded with what can only be described as an “awesome” goal…..Tomahawk to the top right corner. A brilliant match in preparation for Thursday. U14: On Saturday, our U14s team played Kings High School. Despite the unfortunate loss, our defence was brilliant. We fought and hassled, and saved many of their chances. Jannat, our first time goalie, deservedly won Player of the Match after many amazing saves. Nobody gave up and everyone kept persevering. We had some very close chances that unfortunately we couldn’t convert, but I’m very proud of everyone that played. We’ll come back stronger next time and well played to everyone that participated! Hattie |
|
|
|
U13A: On 6 November, U13A team played against Kings High School. In the end the score was 2-2. Anna and Kushi scored our goals. In the first half of the match, we were leading 2-0 and in the second half of the match Kings High School scored 2 goals by short corners. We played very strongly and worked well as a team. The Player of the Match was Kushi. Isla U13B: On Saturday we played against Kings High School. It was a challenging match but we gave it our all as a team. We had great play and had great fun. We had an advantage on the ball in the first half but we lost it due to the excellent play of Kings High. We definitely have developed as a team and learned to play using our strengths. Tobi got Player of the Match due to her great defending and her well-practiced skills – she was able to give us a good hand on the ball and was able to tackle from the attacking opponents. Savanah U12A: The game started with good play from both teams. There was some very good, solid defensive play from Lyra S. We had great teamwork across the midfield and were well supported by marvellous forward play by Lily G. The triangle drill we practiced just before the match came in useful as Lucy H on the right wing made some great push pass crosses which made their way through to Lily G up front. We had a few good chances with Lily G and Eleanor J both going close but unfortunately for us their goalie was always there and ready. Final score 2-0 to Kings High but still great play from both sides. Ava Monday 8 & Tuesday 9 November vs Quinton U12B: On 8 November we played a home match against Quinton House. Our team consisted of a mixture of players from the A team and B team and, even though we hadn’t played with each other a lot, we worked productively as a team. We played really well and managed to bring home the first win of this year in Year 7! Our Player of the Match was Lyra (chosen by the opposition) for her great work in defence but we all played fantastically. We used a lot of space around the pitch, allowing us to make long crosses into the box, and we had lots of shots at goal. Luckily, Faith managed to finish one of the amazing passes made by Ava in the middle of the second half, securing our win. The whole team played really well and were very spatially aware – we definitely deserved the victory! Lyra U15B: A great evening in terms of performance, opposition and weather. The High school took a little time to settle into the match due to a number of the team not having played in a competitive game for a number of years. Emma opened up the scoring and Connie helped by taking the score to 2 by half time. Naisha made some amazing saves…still saving the ball whilst celebrating! (Mrs Littlewood’s fault for getting over excited). Jessica opened the “goal flood gates” after the half time talk and scored a hat trick. Lily scored on her debut and Issy very nearly did the same. We may yet convert her from Netball to Hockey!? Well done to all who played! Mrs Littlewood |
External Sports News: Issy H |
|
Over the past 2 months, I have been through the process of trialling for the Wasps U17 squad after being in the Uu15s for last season. At the first trial, there were around 150 girls, and then at the second trial, it was cut down to 40. I was selected at that trial for the squad of 20, and this means I will train every two weeks on a Sunday for 5 hours, along with still training for the U15s and Hub. To prepare for this trial I focused a lot on my basic landing skills and vision down the court. Being in this squad gives me the opportunity to be selected for matches against other franchises, and I am so excited to see what this season brings! Issy H |
Northampton High School Book Shop |
|
We are delighted to share with you the Northampton High School online Book Shop! To take a look at the wonderful novels that are on offer, please click here. Miss Buxton |
Book of the Week - Entry 1 |
|
Five Children on the Western Front by Kate Saunders Cyril is off to fight, Anthea is at art college, Robert is a Cambridge scholar and Jane is at high school. The Lamb is the grown up age of 11, and he has a little sister, Edith, in tow. The sand fairy has become a creature of stories … until he suddenly reappears. The siblings are pleased to have something to take their minds off the war, but this time the Psammead is here for a reason, and his magic might have a more serious purpose. Before this last adventure ends, all will be changed, and the two younger children will have seen the Great War from every possible viewpoint – factory-workers, soldiers and sailors, nurses and the people left at home, and the war’s impact will be felt right at the heart of their family. Miss Buxton |
Book of the Week - Entry 2 |
|
Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World By Cal Newport As bandwagons go, the theme of overreliance on digital technology has been a go-to for anyone looking to fill column inches for many years. Even before the smartphone, we were increasingly conscious of the impact of online technology on our lives. Cal Newport’s Digital Minimalism (Portfolio) is no flash in the pan opinion piece, however, and is the result of detailed research carried out over the past few years since the publication of his 2016 bestseller, Deep Work (Hachette). |
|
This book aimed to empower people to avoid distractions in order to achieve better results in less time. Newport’s attention has now moved on to another level with this year’s A World Without Email (Portfolio), and all three works attempt to expose the ‘tyranny’ of information overload and its negative impact on productivity. For Newport, digital minimalism is not a trite turn of phrase imploring us to turn our phones off, although the concept of switching off both electronically and metaphysically is certainly a key theme in the book. Rather, digital minimalism is proposed as a philosophy which has more than a passing resemblance to stoicism. In Digital Minimalism, the concept that consciously disentangling ourselves from emotional and physical chaos will allow us to reach a state of calm, clear-headed thinking, is replicated by the idea of reducing our use of technology to the extent that only the truly useful parts of it are baked into our day-to-day lives. Newport has lived without a smartphone for many years and reflects that the calm that this brings means he, and other digital minimalists, are able to enjoy their interactions and experiences to the full. The temptation to sneak a glance at one’s phone while talking to other people can be overpowering, as can the need to document every detail of one’s life on Twitter or Instagram. Both can impact negatively on the sense of being in the moment and the ability to develop meaningful memories of events. To break these unhelpful digital habits, he recommends readers undertake a ‘digital declutter’ for a month, with evidence of how this has helped people to develop healthier and more productive relationships with technology. Whether or not you choose to try out Newport’s digital declutter, Digital Minimalism is a good read and a compelling call to use technology selectively to achieve our personal ambitions, rather than allowing it to subvert our values. Mr Rickman |
Chocolate Tiffin - Make the delicious treat yourself! |
|
There are always plenty of delicious meals and treats for our students to enjoy each lunchtime in the Dining Hall, and one of our most anticipated desserts is, of course, Chocolate Tiffin. If you want to try making this snack at home, please find the recipe below. We hope you enjoy, and please do send us pictures of your creations! 225g – Butter Method: Melt the butter, syrup, and chocolate, before adding the coco powder, cherries, biscuits. Pour the mix into a tin and put it into the fridge to cool for as long as you can wait! Enjoy! Mrs Jones |
Junior School Taster Events - Saturday 13 November 2021 |
|
|
Term Dates 21/22 |
|
|
Term Dates 22/23 |
|
|
|
Northampton High School |
|
