I hope everyone is looking forward to a little break this weekend, although sadly the bright sunshine seems to be leaving us for a bit. I would like to commend the overwhelming majority of the pupils for dealing well with the heat and remaining focused on their studies despite some warm rooms. One or two pupils have tried wearing shorts to school this week, shorts are not part of school uniform in the Senior School (although they can be worn as part of the PE kit) so please do remind pupils of this and check bags for a sneaky pair of shorts stowed away.
The Year ten Geographers have certainly been incredibly lucky to have scheduled their Field Work during this week; you can see some of what they got up to on our Facebook page. Mr Dean reports:
“Leaving school early on Wednesday morning the intrepid Y10 Geography pupils had a long and warm trek over to Overstrand Hall in Norfolk. Some team building games and classroom preparation for the ‘beach day’ completed the evening.
A good night’s sleep was had and a hearty breakfast started the day on Thursday. Visits to Salthouse, Weybourne and Sheringham beaches saw the pupils collect various data. Each group completed field sketches, longshore drift analysis, sediment size analysis, beach profiles and wave counts. A further classroom ‘write up’ session and climbing session completed day two.
Friday started with packing up and breakfast. Morning activities of bouldering and archery followed, we then made our way back to Nottingham.
Thank you to all the geographers for working hard and being great company. You have been a credit to yourselves and Hollygirt School.
Never forget, Geography Rocks!”
I was also really pleased to hear about the success of the Year nine Bronze DofE practice expedition with Miss Mester reporting:
“Some outstanding navigation skills, leadership, and teamwork from all. It was lovely to see the group being so tolerant and inclusive of each other in their smaller walking groups but also as a group of 21 overall. It was a pleasure to spend the two days with them”. It is wonderful to hear of our pupils displaying such behaviour, especially out in public.
And Year Five had a trip to Nottingham Castle this week; I was very excited for them as I loved visiting the castle as a youngster and I enjoyed hearing about their adventures, especially the virtual archery!
Hollygirt pupils continue to excel in areas outside of school, Griffin in Year seven will soon be travelling to Rome to compete in the European IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu championship; we wish him the best of luck and hope his experience inspires other pupils to embrace the practice and dedication it takes to become proficient in a skill.
Looking ahead to next week, Mrs Wright and I are holding a short meeting for anyone interested in becoming involved in the Friends of Hollygirt. This could be as a member of the committee, to express your interest in helping out at some events or just to find out a bit more. Please arrive at Stevenson House (Sixth Form building) at 4pm. Also, a reminder of our School Open Morning on Saturday 10th May.
Finally, a request on behalf of Nottinghamshire Police. As you know, we work closely with our local policing team and their support is invaluable in keeping children safe in and around school. They have launched ‘Walk in My Shoes’, a campaign designed to empower all women and girls to report where they feel unsafe and for us to understand how they’re feeling in our city and county. If you have a few moments, please do have your say by completing the survey, and/or by passing it on to those who might also like to contribute.
Ever Onwards and Upwards,
Ms Purdy
Head