12 May 2012
Silver D of E Walk
The three Easter trips were amazing: the Berlin Trip opened girls’ eyes to that fashionable city’s chequered past and growing prosperity. It’s a packed, fast-moving visit which the girls enjoy; we are fortunate that we have staff who are also fast-moving and willing to give up their holidays to enhance the girls’ experiences. Similarly, the ski trip to Maine provided many opportunities for the girls to develop and have fun (including Moose hunting?) and we continue to admire the huge number of girls who undertake Duke of Edinburgh’s Award expeditions. The Golds had a happy but wet time in Wales. This term, the Bronzes enjoyed their practice walk in Stoke Bruerne, despite it being very wet, and the Silvers had a great time in the rain in Shropshire.
This week we had good weather for two important events outdoors. On Tuesday we dedicated our lovely new tree in the Cripps Courtyard to the memory of Xing Ding, former Deputy Head Girl, whom we lost last year. Petals from the cherry blossom tree were gently swirling round us as we gathered for a few words, including a moving address from last year’s Head Girl, Stephany Armstrong, and some helpful thoughts from Mr. Glover, who shared with us again the beautiful verse he wrote for Xing last year:
Poem of Farewell
Along the Great River, fishermen set sail and depart.
Perfect peace on an ancient terrace
All dissolves into brilliance beyond.
High overhead,
A single bird soars upward:
Solitary and free in a cloudless sky.
On Wednesday not only did the rain hold off but so did the wind so the whole school photograph was taken very smoothly, thanks to Mrs. Davies’ immaculate organisation. The photographers commented particularly on how well behaved the girls were; it was great to see how very composed our Nursery and Reception girls were, given the challenges of sitting still with “your head on straight”, as the photographer put it.
In this week, our thoughts are inevitably with the girls whose public examinations are fast approaching. We say Farewell to the Upper Fifth on Friday with a celebration of their story so far – and quite a lot of ice cream! It won’t be many weeks before they are embarking on their 6th Form induction course and contemplating the sunny uplands of life in the Common Room, with more time and freedom to pursue their own enthusiasms and to broaden their friendship circle.
Later this month, we look forward to our party for 6 – 2; a very different event, when we bring together parents, teachers and girls to reminisce about all of the happy times at NHS and look forward to the future: for some, their experiences in the past two years; for others, over seven years and, for many, over a magnificent 14 years, with all the photos to prove it!
Mr. Gove has suggested that the 6th Form experience may be set to change quite dramatically in the years to come; if AS Level as the halfway stage to A Level disappears, the structure will have come full circle for those of us who were in the Sixth Form more than 20 years ago. Parents need have no fear of how this will impact on their daughters: increasing opportunities for the girls to break away from teacher-led learning and follow their own academic enthusiasms – in the Upper Third reading scheme, the Sixth Form Extended Project Qualification and many other independent learning strategies (watch out for the “Golden Lessons” day in senior school next month) – mean that they have the confidence to cope with questions bowled from left field in terminal examinations; this comes from being very well grounded in essential curriculum knowledge and skills and regularly challenged to apply those strengths in new situations. Really, it’s all to do with excellent teaching – in the classroom and also in the great outdoors, however wet it may be.