First Year pupils enjoyed a variety of workshops during an off-timetable day focusing on the School value of courage along with our virtues of aspiration, resilience, integrity and collaboration.

Staff from the PE, Modern Languages, Classics, Physics, Music and Library departments collaborated to produce a circuit of three workshops which students joined by rotation and a fourth workshop in the afternoon:

• The Greek Olympics
• Recording themselves singing a Christmas carol in a foreign language
• Producing a poster to promote the opening of a zoo in ancient Rome (researching animals that might be in the zoo in that period and using language appropriate for the time.)
• Making their own working speakers to play the Christmas carols

Academic Extension Co-ordinator Adam Copley said the day was aimed at illustrating the links between subjects after pupils’ transition from primary school and on building cross-curricular and transferrable skills.

He added: “The departmental collaboration reinforces the significance of transferable learning between lessons and helps pupils understand each department as part of a collective whole.

“It’s also a reminder that there are an infinite number of ways to learn and they all feed into each other in some way, even if the connection isn't immediately obvious.

“Hopefully, the day also reinforced the power of collaboration, our values and the enjoyment of learning something new and different.”

After taking part in the workshops, the whole year group came together in the Physics lab and each group played their recorded Christmas carol through their speakers. They then moved to the Chapel, where prizes were given.

Every pupil said they “enjoyed at least one part of the day” and “saw the value of working together with others”. Almost all said they “learned something new, whether it was a skill or information” and that they “wanted another one”.

Student feedback also included:

“I learnt that all subjects have something in common, like PE and Latin did with the Latin-style Olympics. I also learnt a bit about Greek culture.”

“I learnt that Collaboration means working together as a team.”

“I learnt how to build a speaker from very little materials. The Greeks invented the Olympics.”

“I learnt that anything and anyone can go together if they work well together.”

“I learnt that it doesn’t matter who you work with - you can make it work.”

“I learnt that lessons are fun and that two totally different subjects can mix and make a great match.”

“I learnt that all subjects can be connected.”

“I learnt more about music, singing with all the people and French, Spanish and German. It was really fun! I also learnt what the French, Spanish, German do at Christmas”

“I learnt that teamwork is extremely useful but it doesn’t work if you don’t cooperate. I also learnt that the Olympics was much more dangerous than it is today”

"It was really good and we got to work with people we wouldn't normally. My favourite bit was either the Olympics or poster-making."

To view a Flickr album from the day, please click here.