As always it has been a very busy term in Careers, with various events taking place around the school. Years 10 and 11 had assemblies delivered by North Herts College, which highlighted Levels 2 and 3 options available to students post-16.

We had a fantastic number of companies and sectors represented in school for our Futures Fair, enabling students to speak to a wide range of people from industry, universities and colleges. They also had the opportunity to sign up to lunchtime workshops about applying to university and apprenticeships. We had more than 50 students attending these, which was fantastic. We would like to say thank you to everyone who gave up a day of their time for this event and also to Mrs Townsend, our careers lead, who spent months organising it. Sixth Form students helped out throughout the day and we really appreciated their support in making sure everything ran smoothly. 

This term we have also started Apprenticeship Club, which is held in Sixth Form every Thursday. This is to support students looking at apprenticeships as a post-18 option. It has been well attended weekly, and we have had a number of guests to share their knowledge of sectors and application processes, and also from the University of Hertfordshire, who work with a number of local employers. The sessions have been really informative and tailored to the students' individual needs. 

The Careers team have been meeting with all Year 11s to discuss their pathways post-16, and will begin interviews with all Year 12 students after Christmas. 

In November, the school took part in Green Careers Week. During form time, students looked at a number of green career sectors and wrote pledge cards that were stuck on their form doors. These were on display all round the school. 

We have more events to look forward to in the first part of the Spring term. Years 9, 10 and 11 will all take part in off-timetable days, working with employers on a range of activities. We will also be launching Take Your Child to Work Day with Year 8 students and parents/carers. 

Once again, a huge thank you to everyone who has supported our events this term or has volunteered to help in the Spring and Summer terms. 

Ms Stojko, Head of Careers Guidance & Education

In KS3 Latin, we have spent this term learning about Caecilius, his family and their life in and ex horto. Year 7 Latin students immersed themselves in beginners’ Latin, while also discovering the origins of our own language and learning all about the Roman people of Pompeii. They have even planned their own Roman dinner party and sampled some ‘ancient Roman’ desserts. Year 8 Latin students have got to know Caecilius and his household again this term, and are now enjoying learning about the ancient Roman forum and law courts. Year 9 Latin students have focused on the final days of Pompeii, and will soon experience a change of scene as our story moves to Roman Britain. We have been impressed by all our students’ engagement and progress this term.

In Year 7 Ancient Civilisations students have enjoyed the War with Troy story, and have made some lovely character diary entries, illustrations of new shields for Achilles and cartoon strips of the action. Year 8 Ancient Civilisations has looked at where civilisation began, and students have really enjoyed a focused study of Ancient Egypt. They have engaged in some wonderful discussion, demonstrating that they have understood why civilisation began in the Fertile Crescent and how the Egyptian civilisation was able to flourish as one of the earliest in history. Year 9 Ancient Civilisations students are continuing their study of the Romans and produced some very engaging and informative presentations on the Seven Kings of Rome.

In KS4, Year 10 Latin students have continued to make great progress in their GCSE course in Latin literature, and produced excellent results in their Stage 20 assessments. Year 10 Classical Civilisations students have made a great start to their GCSE course: they have shown enthusiasm for the topics and have developed discussions about the themes of upbringing, education and marriage in the Greek and Roman worlds. Year 11 Latin students have opted to study either the Perseus literature or Family Life Background module, and will soon finish the prescribed language element of the course. Year 11 Ancient History students have studied the Kings of Rome this term and are starting to explore the origins of the Roman Republic. They have all coped well with the mock exams - we wish them all the best with their results!

In Year 12, our Latin and Ancient Civilisation students have established effective working relationships and are engaging wholeheartedly in all the activities, including involvement in wider department life through the annual Classics play. Well done to the Year 13 Latin and Classical Civilisations students for their ongoing hard work. We continue to be impressed by their professional and mature approaches to learning.

Classical extracurricular activities continue this year, with Beginners’ and Advanced Ancient Greek. The Advanced students are studying for their GCSE in Classical Greek, reading Homer’s Iliad Book 6. In Beginners’ Greek we have mastered the alphabet and are having a lot of fun with the language. Ms Romain and Mrs Rowe continue to offer extracurricular Latin GCSE for students from Hitchin Boys’ School, this year joined in Year 10 by a small group from The Priory School; both groups are proving popular and are well attended.

The HGS Senior Classics Society are working hard on their production of this year's play Cleopatra, which has been written by our Year 13 students Ribhya and Leyla; we have been really impressed with what they have created and look forward to the production in March 2025.

Following on from our successful trip to Italy in March 2024, we are looking forward to our trip to Greece in April 2025. Also, Year 8 are excited about their Romans in Britain residential tour booked for June 2025; we will be visiting Chedworth Villa, Caerleon Amphitheatre and the Roman Baths at Bath. Additionally A Level Classical Civilisations students will have theatre trips in the new year to see two of their set plays, including The Old Vic’s production of Oedipus.

We welcomed two Classics trainee teachers from Cambridge University into the department this term, Mr Brealy and Miss Pavey. The students appreciated their enthusiasm and interesting activities. We look forward to meeting our new trainee teacher, Mr Jarvis, who will be joining us in the new year.

We wish you all “io Saturnalia!”

Mrs Rowe, Head of Classics

Another busy term in Drama was made busier still by the audition process for The Addams Family musical. It was very difficult to choose the 20 principals for the show as there were so many strong auditions.

The new A Level group (Y12) went on their first theatre trip, to attend a conference on, and a production of, The Other Place at The National Theatre in London. This was an excellent introduction to studying drama and theatre at a high level.

Meanwhile the Junior Drama Club, run by Year 11s, continues on Fridays, and we are looking forward to rounding off the term with the annual Year 12 panto!

Mr Balfe, Head of Drama

The Autumn term is always such a creative one in English and Media.  Year 7 students have been busy writing, including their own poetry, as part of their Pictures with Words scheme of work; Year 8s have been studying ballads and Shakespeare (either The Tempest or A Midsummer Night’s Dream); and Year 9 wrote their own spooky Gothic tales before studying Shakespeare’s comedy Much Ado About Nothing. 

Year 10s have also impressed us with their creative writing this half-term, following their hard work with their first set text, An Inspector Calls. Year 11, as always, have been incredibly busy, and we would like to send them all a huge well done for their efforts during the mock exam period. They will have their assessment on A Christmas Carol after the break: we’re currently enjoying this famous tale in the run-up to the holiday! We are looking forward to a visiting theatre company coming in next term, in March, to perform and provide a workshop for Year 11 students as they revise their Shakespeare set text.

Years 12 and 13 have been excellent ambassadors for the department in both English and Media, working with younger students to help them prepare for mocks, and supporting the Media Club and the Year 7 Library lessons. We wish the Year 13 students well for their mocks in January. 

Media Club

KS3 Media Club has had lots of fun during Tuesday lunchtimes this term. Firstly, we used Canva to make our own posters to promote the new film Wicked. We thought carefully about following the layout conventions of film posters as well as how to represent the characters and narrative of the film.

Then we used Adobe Express to create our own song lyrics videos. Students learned how to edit sound and images together to bring the lyrics of their favourite songs to life. Can you guess which songs they chose to animate?

Creative Writing Club

We started this academic year by exploring the question "Why am I a writer?" The session was truly inspiring, made even more so by the contributions from our new club members, many of whom are Year 7 students new to HGS. They seemed to wholeheartedly embrace our club’s motto: "We are writers because we are."

We have had many excellent sessions across the term with themed workshops around Black History Month and Remembrance Day amongst others. Our sessions in December have seen the launch of our Original Novel Writing Project through an exciting Writers’ Workshop.

We wish everyone a restful break and look forward to lots more English and Media creations in the New Year!

Mrs Batchelor, Head of English

This term, Year 7 have been busy learning about citizenship, equity, diversity and inclusion, as well as study skills to help them adjust to secondary school life. They have also had a brilliant workshop delivered by the Phase team on e-safety and how to look after your personal wellbeing online - thank you Phase!

Year 8 have been focusing on politics and law and order in their lessons on the justice system, the role of the police, British values and criminal courts. They have also attended an informative workshop run by Herts Young Homeless on how to manage anger and develop healthy coping mechanisms for dealing with emotions. Our thanks go to HYH.

Year 9 have had several sessions in recent weeks developed by our Careers team to help them consider their next steps and GCSE options - we wish them all the best as they make their GCSE choices in the new year. They have also had an excellent workshop on the dangers of alcohol and vaping, delivered by Mary Deller from the Talk About Trust, where they got to see the real-life size of alcohol units and learn about the risks associated with overconsumption. Thank you Mary for this enlightening opportunity!

Year 10 looked at budgeting and bank statements at the start of the year, before reflecting on what would count as 'healthy screen time' given our increasingly digitalised society. They have also been studying important issues such as the dangers of gang crime, workplace professionalism, e-safety and how to look after their menstrual and reproductive health in the long term. They were also lucky enough to have a workshop delivered by Paul Chambers from PoetsIN to help them manage their anxiety prior to their mocks. Paul is continuing to work with HGS and taught us some excellent strategies that students can use as they embark on their exams.

Finally, the new fortnightly Careers and Finance lessons in Year 11 have given students the chance to learn more about credit and debt, value for money, and the cost of mortgages and rent. They have also explored the science of learning in the Steps to Success programme, and have had their first Careers session focused on what their post-16 options may be.

Thank you to all of the teaching team for their hard work and to our wonderful external speakers who enhance our studies! 

Mrs Foster

At the end of a long term, the Learning Support team would like to congratulate all the students we work with for the effort and energy they have put into their learning.

Take a Break Club has continued to be busier than ever, with new Year 7 students enjoying the activities alongside students for whom the club has become a weekly fixture.

We were delighted that a parent of one of last year's Sixth Form leavers donated huge amounts of Lego to the department, which is used daily to help students regulate and build social interactions. We are always very grateful for donations of games and crafts, so if your family has a clear-out post-Christmas, please think of our team and send your child in with things that could be used in the Hub.

We have expanded our stock of resources further this term with a range of sensory resources students can use if they need time to calm during the school day. There have also been lots of interventions taking place this term, including speech and language groups, social skills groups, dance intervention, art therapy and counselling to name a few.

We are delighted that the Year 11 students were able to embrace the Read and Write technology effectively during their exams and their efforts were reflected in some extremely impressive mock results. They will continue to work hard over the coming months and the Learning Support team are here to support them as required.

We hope that everyone has a lovely rest over the holidays, and we look forward to continuing to work with a wide range of students in 2025. 

Mrs Cole, SENCO

The start of this term saw all the students in Year 7 choosing a free book. Every year the school teams up with the charity Book Trust to give each Year 7 student a book of their own to keep as part of the Book Buzz scheme. We hope they have all enjoyed reading them and that it will encourage them to visit the Library and borrow more.

In their Library lessons Year 7 have been finding their way around the shelves and embarking on the reading award scheme. We are pleased to say that some of them have already achieved their Bronze certificates and many more are well on their way to completing the tasks. 

Students in Year 8 have been busy creating book review bags. As well as writing about their chosen books they have decorated the bags with some beautifully drawn illustrations. We look forward to seeing the bags brightening up the Library when they are hung up in the new year.

We continue to be busy at lunchtimes with many students taking the time to relax and read a book or play games with friends. The new games acquired earlier this year are proving popular.

The Library Goblins Reading Group has decorated the Library for Christmas with handmade paper chains, snowflakes and stockings. The pop-up fireplace is in place and the advent calendars are well underway. The group have been playing Christmas games and puzzles, as well as teaming up to compete in our annual Christmas Book Quiz.

The term culminates with the annual Reading Group Christmas party, with games, snacks and music. It's a fantastic way to finish the year!

Finally, our Librarian Mrs Goose has recently celebrated an amazing 20 years at Hitchin Girls' School. We are grateful for all the hard work and care she puts into keeping the Library a calm, happy and inspiring place to be.

Mrs Woods 

Language Leaders

The start of the year saw the launch of our exciting new Language Leaders programme. Passionate linguists from Years 7 to 10 will spend the year working on special projects to promote their own language learning and awareness, and that of others around school. This term they have worked on a language quiz that they will run with their French or Spanish classes. They have also been tasked with learning the basics of a new language, and will present their work by teaching other Language Leaders at a celebration lunch. The languages include Icelandic, Turkish and British Sign Language, to name a few!

Project Polyglot

Project Polyglot has got off to a good start with more than 35 Year 10 students attending weekly sessions since October. They have been developing their presentation skills and are now preparing exciting lessons to teach at local primary schools in January.

Year 7 French Poetry & Life at School

7C have been writing poetry in French inspired by Les couleurs en français and 7A have been presenting projects describing life at school.

Year 8 Spanish

Here are some examples of lovely work by Year 8 Spanish students about towns, describing life there and different places to visit.

Year 12 French Trip to the Institut Français, London

Our Year 12 French students enjoyed an engaging visit to the Institut Français in London, benefitting from a day of full immersion in the French language and a chance to study contemporary social issues in more depth. Their work centred around the 2020 film Tout simplement noir by Jean-Pascal Zadi, the director also playing the film’s protagonist as he tries to launch France’s answer to the Black Lives Matter movement.

"Joyeux Noёl" / "Feliz Navidad" from everyone in the MFL team!

Mr Dellar, Head of Modern Foreign Languages

The Autumn Concert was a huge success in October. The programme featured a variety of pieces, ranging from the Backstreet Boys to Ella Fitzgerald! Shortly after, the Addams Family cast list was released and following extensive auditions, the show was successfully double-cast. Rehearsals are due to begin at the start of next term - it's set to be a fantastic show. Well done and thank you to all who auditioned. 

On 10 December, we held our annual services of Nine Lessons and Carols at St Mary's Church. The Senior Orchestra welcomed in the congregation to music, and then the solo of Once in Royal David's City was sung beautifully by Abigail Hughes and Daisy Molyneux. In addition to the well-known carols, the Senior and Junior Choirs took it in turns to sing a variety of anthems, featuring some Rutter and Stopford. I would like to thank Derek Harrison, Louise Atkins, Jonathan Ingham, Allan Robinson and Hilary Ingram for their support towards the music provision of the service.

The GCSE Music mock exam was held at the start of November. There were some incredibly strong marks amongst the results. Well done for your hard work, Year 11!

As I write this report, we have just returned from a fun-filled trip to sing carols for residents at Elmside Walk Residential Home and members of the Hitchin community in the market square. The students sang wonderfully and are a credit to themselves and to HGS.

Finally, congratulations to all students who have passed a music exam as part of their instrumental tuition this term, and thank you to all the peripatetic staff who have supported music-making at HGS. 

We wish you a merry Christmas!

Miss Atkins, Head of Music

 

Thank you to everyone who has attended clubs this term and worked really hard to learn new skills and tactics, which has resulted in great performances in matches, competitions and tournaments. Below is a snippet of some of your successes.

Miss Shaw, Acting Head of PE

 

In Physics, Year 7 students are wrapping up their study of Forces and Motion. Year 8 students have finished learning about Heat and Thermal Energy, whilst Year 9 students have concluded their topic on Sound and are beginning to look at Light. 

In Year 10, students are now looking at motion calculations, including undertaking the famous Egg Drop Challenge, whilst Year 11s will shortly receive their mock papers back. And Year 12 students successfully completed the Nerf Gun experiment in the main school hall!

We have run some primary school outreach sessions at Mary Exton, Wilshere-Dacre and Samuel Lucas schools, and we look forward to continuing these after the Christmas break. 

  

 

In Chemistry, Year 7 are just finishing their first topic of Acids and Bases, while Year 8 have completed their topic of Chemical Reactions, and have moved on to Types of Chemical Reactions. Year 9 have successfully completed their topic Atomic Structure and are now looking at Separation Techniques. Year 10 are all working on calculations or energy changes and electrolysis. Meanwhile Year 11 have just been going through their mock papers and are moving on to topics on rates and equilibria. In A-level Chemistry, Year 12 are busy completing PAGS and content on moles and organic chemistry. Year 13 are now building up to their mocks in January - we wish them all the best with these exams.

It's been another busy term in Biology over and above our usual teaching and weekly drop-in sessions. The Year 12s have done a fantastic job assisting Mr Buckridge and Mrs Pearce in Biology Club for the new Year 7s on a Monday lunchtime. Their organised sessions included taking plant cuttings, an eye dissection, explaining evolution with the help of biscuits and using chromatography to identify who had kidnapped Mr Crowther. Mr Buckridge is still protesting his innocence.

The Year 12s have also been hugely successful with their first-round entries into the Cambridge University Biology Competition. Shana, Varsha and Azra were awarded Distinctions, Freya B Commended and Alice G Highly Commended. Alice, Varsha and Azra got a special mention and a badge of merit for an aspect of their entry that the judges thought deserved special recognition!

In Eco Club, off the back of being awarded our Green Flag (with Distinction), the year kicked off in collaboration with local community group Hitchin Nature Network and North Herts Council, to sow some Yellow Rattle seeds on the verge outside the school grounds on Windmill Hill. Yellow Rattle suppresses the growth of grasses and gives other wildflowers room to grow. We have also been visited by the Hitchin Swift Action group, who delivered a fascinating talk on how to increase the numbers of this declining bird species in the area, before touring our school grounds to look for suitable nesting sites. Watch this space.

We launched the Biology expedition to Madagascar in 2026, with an evening presentation to prospective students by Operation Wallacea.

There are 15 students working with representatives from GSK in the GSK Leaders in STEM programme. They have already done some interesting practicals on blood groups and paracetamol. The MEDROC group (students in Year 12 wishing to take a medical course post-18) have been visited by Year 13 who told them all about the UCAT exams. 

Ofsted visited the Science Department in early October and we were delighted with the positive feedback given. It really is a testament to all the hard work from both the students and staff.  

Mr Horner, Head of Chemistry and the Science department
Mr Buckridge, Head of Biology
Mr Derrett, Head of Physics

As always it has been a productive term in the Sixth Form. We have had a series of guest speakers, offering insights into the Civil Service, Hertfordshire Zoo, the Army, Oaklands College and alternatives to university. Former student Francesa Naylor gave a very informative talk about BBC apprenticeships and was able to support some of our students who have applied for this route. We were also offered the opportunity to take part in a trial rollout of an extended Learn to Live (driver safety) programme and this has been extremely useful. The programme will continue after the Christmas break. The students and staff team would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has volunteered their time to speak to the students and share their career journeys and advice.

In October Year 13s took part in one of our regular Talk the Talk workshops, which develop students’ oracy skills and help them prepare for future interviews. This built nicely on the mock interviews we ran in the Summer term prior to the students taking part in a week's work experience. Work experience week went extremely well and the teaching staff made contact with the employers throughout the week. Feedback was incredibly positive, so a huge thank you to everyone who hosted students over this period.

Year 13 are well into the process of deciding their post-18 options. The majority of university applications have now been submitted and a number of students are attending the weekly apprenticeship breakfasts to support them with alternative routes. Mock interviews took place in the second part of this term to help Oxbridge, Medicine and Veterinary applicants. Again thank you to the volunteers that come in and assisted the students with this process. 

Year 13 have their mock exams after Christmas and to support them with their wellbeing, they have been taking part in weekly meditation. Thank you to Mrs Pottage for organising this.

I know many of our students give up their time to support the school and specific departments, mentor younger students and undertake voluntary roles within the community. On behalf of the organisations and individuals you help out, we would like to say a big thank you for your time and commitment.

From myself and the Sixth Form team I would like to wish you all a restful Christmas and we look forward to seeing you all in January.

Ms Stojko, Director of Sixth Form

We have been thriving in Social Sciences this term! We had a Scenes of Crime Officer visit us to give a fantastic careers talk on crime scene analysis, organised specifically for Biology and Criminology students.

Year 13 Psychology students enjoyed a second visit from Dr Guy Sutton, this time for a Forensic Psychology Brain Day, and learnt about the psychology of PTSD and the effects of trauma on the developing brain. They also heard about the different careers within Forensic Psychology, and some really interesting though disturbing case studies which span criminal psychology and psychopathology.

Students in KS5 Criminology and Health and Social Care have been working hard in preparation for exams taking place either this week or in January, which form a large percentage of their final grade. Year 11 Health & Social Care students have enjoyed learning about a range of therapies for children and adults as part of their new coursework unit.

We are thrilled to have Miss Paul join Mrs Garthwaite to teach Sociology within the department and hope she has really enjoyed her first term here at HGS.

The whole Social Sciences team would like to wish all our fantastic students and their parents/carers a very Happy Christmas.

Mrs Edwards, Head of Social Sciences