Inspiring GCSE Science Live

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An inspirational day of Science for GCSE pupils with three renowned scientists

On Friday we went to the Apollo Theatre in London to attend GCSE Science Live. We heard from three world renowned scientists, including physicist Prof Jim Al Khalili. They spoke about climate change and how physics is trying to overcome some of our energy issues as well as the reality (or lack of it) of time travel!. Professor Lord Robert Winston talked about reproduction and we saw how an egg travels through the fallopian tubes to get to the uterus; so interesting! Finally we listened to Professor Andreas Sella who demonstrated how amazing water is and how its chemical properties make it so unique. We also gained top tips from a chief examiner and were given a programme of events that had past questions on it with these examiners tips. It was a very inspirational day!

Beth Robinson, 10Fr

Whitehall Trip for Politics Students

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Year 12 and 13 Politics visit the UK’s Cabinet Office and No 10 Downing Street

At the start of 2020, Year 12 and 13 Government and Politics students went on a trip to the Whitehall’s Admiralty House to take part in the UK Cabinet Office’s “Minister for a Day – Spending Challenge”.

Over the course of the afternoon students negotiated with one another, as Ministers do, to agree a budget for their department. Having weighed up different spending pressures and opportunities to reform public spending, they then pitched their budget needs to the “Chancellors” (Marta Fernandez-Pino and Kirsty Hawkes) who had to agree or not agree, and in some instances even imposing further cuts! You will be pleased to know that by the end of the afternoon, they had agreed on a budget with education as it’s main priority!

After the fun afternoon at Authority House, the students also got to visit the famous black door on Number 10 Downing Street for the ultimate photo opportunity. It was a wonderful trip and the students were excellent.

England Indoor Athletics Championships Results for BHGS

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Ena Olivier and Serena Thomas excel in their Athletics endeavours again!

On 24th Feb Ena Olivier (9Pa) & Serena Thomas (11Pa) competed at the England Indoor Championships in the U15 girls HJ & U17 60m respectively.

Serena ran an impressive time of 8.12 seconds to finish 4th in her heat and narrowly miss out on the final by two hundredths of a second. A great result especially considering Serena is a year younger than most of the competitors in that age group as she is only in Year 11.

Ena finished 4th in the U15 HJ equalling her recent PB performance of 1.55m – the same height that saw her win 2nd place in the East of England Indoor Championships earlier on in the month.

A fantastic opportunity for both girls and a testament to their hard work and dedication to training and competitions outside school.

Well done girls!

A Level History Trip to Berlin, Germany

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A Level students enriching their study of Weimar and Nazi Germany

The History department took 31 A Level students to Berlin for 3 days to support their study of the history of Weimar and Nazi Germany. The students were able to visit many sites of historical significance, including Sachsenhausen concentration camp, the Olympic Stadium and the Reichstag. As one student Leah said, ‘seeing the actual places and learning about the individual stories of the people living under the Nazi regime has really helped me consolidate my understanding’. After all the academic study and walking around Berlin, the students and teachers thoroughly enjoyed a game of bowling to relax! It was certainly a thought provoking and enriching trip.

Valentine’s Fun in the Library

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The Library ran Blind Date with a Book and Literary Pairs

The Library ran their now annual Blind Date with a Book and Literary Pairs quiz during the week before half term to coincide with Valentine’s Day.

Blind Date with a Book encourages students to choose a book based solely on keywords/themes, with no judging of the book by its cover beforehand! This was a huge success last year and was repeated this year with the girls eagerly awaiting the display and dipping straight into it – the stock had to be replenished part way through the week!

Literary Pairs saw staff members wearing a sticker with a literary character on it, with the girls having a sheet to complete during the day as they tried to find as many ‘other halves’ as they could. This is always good fun with the girls really getting stuck in to tracking down teachers during break and lunch!

Youth Speaks Success

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Both Intermediate and Senior BHGS teams through to the District Final of Youth Speaks public speaking competition

On Tuesday 11th February, Bishop’s Hatfield Girls’ School entered the Mid-Herts Rotary Youth Speaks District Semi Final competition. This competition aims to offer young people experience in speaking on a public platform as a member of a team. In a team of three, Katie H, Nelly C and Gwen C wrote speeches on single sex education. The girls performed brilliantly and were praised by audience members and the Rotarians for their excellent oratorical skills and the thought-provoking topic they chose to discuss. “I was very nervous to start with’, said Nelly, ‘but doing this together made me feel more confident”.

They not only are through to the next round, but also won the whole semi-final! Katie H conceded that “It was a tough competition as the other schools had very talented speakers who ranged from year 10 to year 12”. The competition was altogether a very good experience for our pupils. Gwen noted: “It was also inspiring to hear all about the charity work the Rotary Club gets involved in”.

Only last week our Intermediate Rotary Youth Speaks team qualified through to the District Final. Aliyeen, Daniella and Jessica chose the topic of Animal Testing to demonstrate their outstanding public speaking abilities.

This means that both our Intermediate and Senior teams are now through to the District Final in Leighton Buzzard after Half Term. Well done girls – brilliant effort!

Hertfordshire County Rugby Squads

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3 Bishop’s girls make the Hertfordshire County Rugby Squads

A huge congratulations to the following girls – Georgia-Leigh Childs -Cartwright (11Se), Cayla Du Plessis (10Pa) and Livi – Grace Hunt on their selection for the Hertfordshire County Rugby Squads.

Georgia has been playing rugby for a number of years at Welwyn RFC and Hertfordshire age groups (previously U15 and below) and was part of the Welwyn team that made the National Cup Final played at Sixways, Worcester last April. Georgia has been selected as part of the Development squad that will play alongside the Hertfordshire U18 County squad, a fantastic achievement considering she is only in Year 11 and has recently returned from a dislocated shoulder!

Both Cayla and Livi Grace play for Welwyn RFC and have also been selected for the U15 Hertfordshire rugby squad. again Livi Grace a year younger as a Year 9 and Cayla who only started playing rugby in September 2019.

A fantastic achievement from all girls and good luck for your training and games!