Above & Beyond Month: Love Learning Day
On Thursday 11th July, 2024, our school buzzed with excitement as students across all years participated in our annual 'Love Learning Day' - the finale to Above & Beyond Month. This special event aimed to ignite a passion for learning through a series of engaging and enriching activities tailored for each year group, fostering a love for learning beyond the curriculum.
Year 7 students took part in a Science Day, with a focus on sustainability and conservation. The day kicked off with an inspiring talk by one of our alumni, now a marine conservationist. Students enjoyed listening to his stories about ocean preservation and the importance of protecting marine life. The excitement continued in the EcoHub, where students had hands-on experiences in an animal handling workshop, learning about various species and their habitats. They also spent time exploring and contributing to our EcoHub garden and exploring our local mini beasts.
For Years 8 and 9, the day was filled with creativity and exploration through seven different workshops: Drama, English, Music, Art, PE, Social Sciences, and Modern Foreign Languages (MFL). Each workshop offered an in depth look into the subject, giving students the chance to improve their understanding and skills in the subject. Each subject put on an exciting day; for example, English had a day of exploring the fantasy genre, crafting their own Dungeons and Dragons-style stories, while Drama students engaged in improvisation and scriptwriting exercises. Music workshops had students composing their own ‘Musical Theatre’ style pieces, and Art students explored various techniques and mediums, working towards creating a new school display. In MFL, students enjoyed a day of ‘World Travel’, which included a cooking workshop, making pesto pasta and breadsticks from scratch. Delicious!
Year 10 took on the challenge of a Computing Day, where they employed a range of IT skills, from coding to Excel spreadsheets. Their mission: to save the planet from an impending asteroid collision. This simulation allowed students to showcase their problem-solving abilities, teamwork and computing skills, as they worked together to devise innovative solutions.
Finally, Year 12 students participated in 'Talk the Talk Day,' dedicated to enhancing their public speaking skills. Throughout the day, students engaged in dynamic workshops that focused on speech writing, presentation techniques and effective communication strategies. They practised delivering speeches, received constructive feedback from the ‘Talk the Talk’ team and their peers, and built confidence in their speaking abilities. This experience not only helped to improve their speaking skills, but also prepared them for the future, as they prepare for either university or the world of work.
Love Learning Day was a wonderful day, which truly fostered the students creativity and curiosity in a range of different subjects. Thank you to all of the staff who organised the different workshops and to our students for fully engaging in the day.
