Posted on: 26/04/2023Sicily 2023Amery Hill School Year 10 students returned to Sicily this year for an action packed five days of tectonics, rivers, food and culture. Setting off in darkness, 48 students and five staff flew direct to Catania Airport passing over one of the main attractions of the trip – Mount Etna, the most active volcano in Europe. It was clear from the steam clouds being generated by “Mamma Etna” (as Sicilians call her) that she was ready to greet us! The next day, after a coach ride up the mountain, cable car and four-wheel drive vehicle we were close to the summit of Mount Etna with a special guide to inform us. Conditions were perfect as we listened to information about past eruptions and took pictures off the huge caldera. Friday was a highlight for many students. The morning was a thrilling River Trekking activity session. Students got suited and booted in wetsuits, buoyancy aids, helmets and waterproof boots and entered the chilly waters of the Alcantara River, created from snowmelt on Mount Etna itself. Scrambling over rocks, students were presented with an increasingly challenging series of waterfalls to jump off in this two-hour activity. The final water fall was estimated at seven metres high! The afternoon was more sedate with an opportunity for some retail therapy and the chance to visit an Italian pizza restaurant. The twist here was that all the students were shown how to make their own pizza, from kneading the dough through to choosing toppings, all under the watchful eye of the restaurant staff. After a late night, the final full day involved a short ferry ride to the island of Vulcano, after which all volcanoes are named. There were a few green faces, after the slightly choppy crossing, as the challenge of climbing to the volcano summit was contemplated. No cable cars here! Fortunately, due to the volcano currently being seismically too active and consequently too dangerous, a smaller summit was scaled instead with a local guide. This was challenge enough for some students and still provided some spectacular views. On our final day, we revisited the beautiful town of Taormina. Students had a last chance to enjoy some Italian food and buy souvenirs before we headed to the airport for the flight home and the chilly reception from the UK, not from the parents waiting to greet the students, but from the weather, after we had been spoiled by 20 0 C temperatures! We are hoping to return again in 2024 with next year’s Year 10 students.View Article
Posted on: 18/07/2023Hartfield House - House Champions 2023Congratulations go to Hartfield House who, after taking the lead in the Championship in October, continued to steadily accumulate house points over the spring and summer terms and emerged House Champions after the thrilling final Championship event - Sports Day. This is an incredible achievement to have held on to the lead for so long! The Championship ended incredibly close with just over 600 points separating the winners and runners-up. Well done to Pemberley, who finished last year in fourth place, who are runners up this year. Commiserations to Northanger, who were defending champions, whose late spurt took them off fourth place at the expense of Mansfield, who I am sure will bounce back next year. Well done to everyone who sent in a picture of their pet, sang their heart out to Backstreet Boys, took part in the army days, in extra-curricular clubs, Science Week competitions, Maths Pi Day, built an island in RS, guessed the correct flag in geography and every other competition we had - every point counted and it went right down to the wire. The House Championship has been fun and rewarding to organise and I would like to thank our student leaders - House Captains, Vice House Captains and House Representatives - who have been instrumental in helping to organise events and encourage students to embrace the competitions with enthusiasm. I hope that you have enjoyed it as well. So, looking ahead to next year, can Pemberley go one step further and win the championship, can Northanger reclaim the crown or could Mansfield go all the way from fourth place one year to champions the next? Will Hartfield become the first House to win the competition back to back? We go again in September!View Article
Posted on: 8/04/2022Stubbs Farm 40th YearThe traditional annual Year 7 Geography visit to Stubbs Farm returned this March with the latest group of students doing a half-day tour of the farm. The last time Amery had visited was March 2020 and only days before the first national Covid lockdown was announced. Returning this time Mr. Stephens was reminiscing about how long Amery Hill had been visiting his family farm and let it slip that this was our 40th year! A long tradition that we hope to keep going. As usual Mr. Stephens was very generous with his time, meeting every group in the winter cattle sheds where he patiently explained to the children about the beef cattle kept on the farm, their feeding, conditions, age, weight, breeds and even how much they can sell for. With our school being in such a rural setting the students were very keen to listen to how our food is produced even if a few admitted that they were not meat eaters. The walk around the rest of the farm really showed of its size and organisation plus stunning views of the beautiful Hampshire countryside. The wooded area was made more interesting this year with a few extra trees down after Storm Eunice and a few startled pheasants! The students will be using the notes that they made on the day to write this up as their next assessed piece of Year 7 work.View Article
Posted on: 8/04/2022Stubbs Farm 40th YearThe traditional annual Year 7 Geography visit to Stubbs Farm returned this March with the latest group of students doing a half-day tour of the farm. The last time Amery had visited was March 2020 and only days before the first national Covid lockdown was announced. Returning this time Mr. Stephens was reminiscing about how long Amery Hill had been visiting his family farm and let it slip that this was our 40th year! A long tradition that we hope to keep going. As usual Mr. Stephens was very generous with his time, meeting every group in the winter cattle sheds where he patiently explained to the children about the beef cattle kept on the farm, their feeding, conditions, age, weight, breeds and even how much they can sell for. With our school being in such a rural setting the students were very keen to listen to how our food is produced even if a few admitted that they were not meat eaters. The walk around the rest of the farm really showed of its size and organisation plus stunning views of the beautiful Hampshire countryside. The wooded area was made more interesting this year with a few extra trees down after Storm Eunice and a few startled pheasants! The students will be using the notes that they made on the day to write this up as their next assessed piece of Year 7 work.View Article
Posted on: 7/04/2022Bar Mock TrialsMembers of the Jury, I stand before you to deliver the closing statement for the prosecution, my name is Mrs Pretsell and I represent the Crown in the case against Amery Hill. The charge is that the students of Amery Hill performed brilliantly at the Southern Region Mock Trials Competition, and brought prestige and honour to both themselves and the school. Members of the Jury, this is an occasion when the only credible verdict you will be able to return is guilty: they were brilliant. Let me remind you of the facts of the case; our barristers: Lucy D, Albie P, Isabel P and Chloe S were dedicated and clever lawyers who prepared their cases meticulously and questioned with an unerring dedication to clarity and precision. They were brutal - woe betide anyone who ever wants to take them on in an argument. Supporting the barristers were the four witnesses who were questioned in these cases. The Amery witnesses: Max J, Griff P, Aleya S and Orla T were guilty of knowing all the facts of their stories, conveying their testimony with great confidence and standing stalwart against fierce questioning. Running the court were another two students guilty of brilliance and coolness in the demanding courtroom drama. Anya F, our court clerk, was peerless and Sophie J (usher) was as cool as a very cool cucumber. Finally, other schools were kept on their toes by the brilliant and incisive services of jury members Sian L and Hazel R - nothing was going to get past them as they exercised their civic duty with true professionalism. Admittedly, the Amery Hill Team did not win the competition but in mitigation it must be noted that they were Year 10 students and they were challenging teams from 6th Form Colleges. They are David facing very many Goliaths. They might not have defeated Goliath but they gave him bruised shins, broken fingers and a nasty suspected concussion. So finally, members of the Jury, as you decide if this team from Amery is indeed guilty of being brilliant, I charge you to remember that these students worked so hard for five months preparing this case, they conducted themselves perfectly and they made Mrs Smith and me feel so incredibly proud to be their teachers. You must return a unanimous verdict of guilty.View Article
Posted on: 24/11/2021Train to Teach Opportunities - i2i PartnershipTrain to Teach Information The i2i Partnership is an alliance of highly successful secondary schools in Surrey and Hampshire. To find out more about the Train to Teach Scheme, please click the button below. i2i Partnership - find out more click here Teacher Training Bursaries for 2022-23 announced The Department of Education have announced the following bursary provision for teacher training programmes starting in September 2022 as follows: £24,000 for those training in Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Computing £15,000 for Languages, Geography, Design and Technology £10,000 for Biology To find out more please visit the i2i Fees & Funding Pages Fees & Funding pages - find out more click here View Article