As part of GoGo Safari, which is coming to Norwich this summer, Gerry the Giraffe has been welcomed to the Lower School. This is a fantastic opportunity for our pupils to showcase their artistic talents, whilst supporting Break. All pupils let their imaginations run wild whilst creating interesting designs for our giraffe. Our final design was inspired by the introduction of our Little Roots allotment, which has given Junior pupils the chance to step into the wonderful world of gardening. Therefore, we chose to cover Gerry in a multitude of fruit and vegetables, some that can be grown in our allotment and others that are a lot more exotic. All pupils have had the opportunity to add their artistic touches to our very special giraffe.  Gerry is ready to take root in our new allotment.

Following her success as an Associate Musician in 2024, Melissa Hawkings (L6) has been chosen as a Guest Musician for the National Youth Orchestra 2025! To celebrate this achievement we asked her few questions about what this entails, her experience as a musician and what she is looking forward to. Can you tell me a little bit about what being a Guest for the National Youth Orchestra means? It involves taking part in two NYO residencies, where I’ll work on orchestral pieces as part of the horn section and give concerts around the UK at the end of each residency. My next involvement with the orchestra is in April, where we will perform Bernstein’s West Side Story and Stravinsky’s Ballet Petrushka, which I can’t wait to play! The highlight is the Summer Residency, which will culminate in a performance at the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall. Bringing music to local communities is also a part of being an NYO Guest. For example, I’m going to Blackpool this half term, where I will perform to hundreds of young people in the Blackpool Tower and then lead creative workshops in local secondary schools. And how long is a residency? Each residency is around 13 days, in which the first 8 or 9 days are spent rehearsing and getting to know other musicians, and the rest is spent doing a concert tour. Will this take place in the holidays? Yes it will. Do you have to do any additional things in term-time as well? It depends on which events you get allocated to - one of my events will overlap by 2 or 3 days. And has the school been supportive of your musical journey? Yes, they have been really supportive! All the teachers are really helpful, both from an academic and performance perspective. They have given me loads of performance opportunities throughout the years such as recitals and masterclasses, and have also supported me in going to the Royal College of Music on Saturday, where I receive my instrumental lessons and play in the symphony orchestra and chamber groups. And what was the process of applying like? There are two rounds. For the first round, I filmed myself performing a piece and a few orchestral excerpts, which are famous horn moments from orchestral pieces. Following this, I was selected for a second round audition, where I performed a piece and orchestral excerpts to a live panel of NYO tutors. I also took part in ensemble workshops throughout the day. It was quite nerve racking at first, especially playing to 3 completely new people, but I got a lot out of it. And what happened after that? The first year I auditioned, I was offered the position of an Associate Musician, which involved taking part in the Winter and Summer Residencies. For me, the highlight of this was playing in Strauss’ Alpine Symphony and the world premiere of Dani Howard’s piece Ascent. This year, I was offered a place as a Guest Musician, which will involve playing a lot more in the orchestra. What is the difference between a Guest and Associate Musician? Being an associate involved performing in selected parts of the concert tours, whereas as a Guest, I will fully take part in 2 of the residencies, and perform in all of the pieces during the concert tours. How long have you been playing? Since I was 11. I started at the local Music Hub at CNS and I really enjoyed it, but I can’t remember why I picked the horn! What A Levels do you study at Norwich School? Music, English and Spanish. What does being a musical scholar at Norwich School entail? It’s a really exciting part of school life. I play in lots of ensembles such as Gateway Orchestra and Cathedral trumpets, and also in masterclasses that come up through the Making Musicians Programme. For example, In March I played in a masterclass with Amos Miller, who is the Head of Brass at the Royal College of Music. You can also get involved in recitals through the Making Musicians programmes, or performing in services such as Remembrance, where I played the Last Post on trumpet. It was unlike any other concert, I could only hear myself as everyone was silent, I enjoyed playing a lot. How do you find balancing your music with your studies? Sometimes it is challenging to keep everything going, especially last year whilst taking my GCSEs, but the school have been incredibly supportive. Music is always something I can go to relax, like when you think about it all I’m doing is blowing down a piece of tubing so it’s quite low stakes from that perspective. What are you most excited for in your upcoming residency? I’m really excited to get to know the horn section, which may sound a bit geeky, but its rare to come across so many horn players in one place! Most of all, I’m excited to perform the music from West Side Story in Bridgewater Hall, because one of the pieces involves shouting Mambo in the middle of it! Are you nervous about anything in particular? The first few days of the residency are always a bit nerve wracking because of all the new people, but you get used to it after a while. Have you ever composed yourself? Yes I have, although I wouldn’t really consider myself a composer (I had to do it at GCSE). I’d like to get better at it. What are your future goals in music? I’d really like to give more recitals, take part in some competitions, and get a place at a conservatoire. What would you say to any young people who are thinking they might want to play the French Horn? Do it! I think one of the best things about music is playing with other people, and the horn is suited for so many different ensembles where you can explore a variety of genres. It’s a really unique and special instrument.

On 8 February, 10 U4 boys and girls accompanied by Will Croston and Abbie Dean flew to Hamburg to experience Germany often for the very first time. We were also joined by Ana the German Assistentin. We stayed in the Deutsche Seemannsmission right in the City Centre which provided an ideal base to explore the city and its world-famous port. Our U4 German pupils gained a positive first-hand experience of Germany and were given many opportunities to try out their language skills including writing the traditional postcard to the Head. The pupils coped well with buying food, souvenirs, stamps and gifts as well as being willing to try a variety of new foods including Currywurst. We had almost three full days in the city and were able to include all the major sights, and the traffic-free city centre provided a safe area to let small groups go shopping for short periods and the pupils enjoyed finding some bargains notably in the Karstadt department store. On the first night we went swimming and on the second night, we took the group to the Miniaturwelt in the warehouse district of Hamburg which they all found absolutely fascinating. We also descended deep under river Elbe to see the 19th century tunnel with lifts for horse and carriage, still operating today. We also found out more about Hamburg's trading past and present and toured the port for a closer look at the dry docks, container terminals and loading bays. Another highlight was Mr Croston’s Hamburg Treasure Hunt with some good selfies in front of various tourist attractions! We also enjoyed visiting a local Gymnasium where we spent some time with some local pupils and did some joint activities. All of those on the trip were very open to new experiences and took a keen interest in their surroundings and got a great deal out of the trip. The trip to Hamburg could be summarised as a great deal of fun as well as a valuable educational experience.

U6 Physics pupils recently participated in the British Physics Olympiad hosted by the University of Oxford. The challenge involved answering a series of highly demanding abstract physics problems from beyond the scope of the A Level curriculum. Over 3700 pupils from 550 schools took part, and we are pleased to announce that our pupils achieved the following outstanding results: Joschka Molenaar - Gold Oliver Howard - Silver Daniel Neville - Bronze Ezra Collis - Bronze Beatrice Adamson - Bronze Matthew Coelho Bartram - Bronze Antoine Leggett - Bronze

Orienteering reappeared as a games option this year for the first time in a decade, available to L5 and M5 pupils in Michaelmas and Lent terms. I soon found that my dwindling set of old compasses was not sufficient to cater for the group of 20+ pupils doing the sport each week. So I was very grateful when FONS agreed to fund some new ones. I took advantage of a sale to purchase 20 new compasses for £55.85, and have been using them during training sessions and at competitions throughout this term. They are perfect for teaching a range of skills to beginners; not only taking bearings and finding direction, but they also have an array of distance measuring tools along the side. They should serve the orienteering club well for many years to come. This term I’ve had a group of 10 pupils using them weekly in games sessions, and as many as 20 pupils using them at competitions at the weekend. The pupils currently involved range from Lower 3 through to Middle 5.  A highlight we have to look forward to in 2025 is that the British Championships is coming to Norwich for the first time ever. It will be held at UEA on 31st August, and hopefully lots of our pupils will take part, some armed with these new compasses!

On Friday 7 February, the Lower School was a buzz of excitement for the annual House Challenge Day! Pupils took on a number of different challenges, designed to encourage problem-solving, creativity and teamwork. Activities took place both inside the classroom and outdoors on the playing field, with a biting cold wind adding to the challenge. Tasks included anagram solving, ping pong ball mazes, guess the drawing and even two blindfolded obstacle courses, with the participants diligently guided through by their classmates. It proved to be a fun and exciting morning for pupils who thoroughly enjoyed the spirit of competition and camaraderie. Congratulations to Heigham house for coming away with the day's top points tally.

This week, Lower 1 had a great time learning about instructions in English. First, pupils wrote their own step-by-step guides on how to make gingerbread people. Then, they put their instructions to the test! Everyone worked carefully to mix the ingredients, roll out the dough, and cut out their gingerbread shapes. After baking, pupils decorated them with icing, chocolate buttons, and sprinkles. It was a fun and delicious way to practise writing and following instructions. Well done, Lower 1!

Barney Broom is at the Little Theatre in Sheringham over the next few months, hosting a series of fascinating talks on the movie business.

Following on from his talk at the National Army Museum, Chelsea, Tony Rushmer will be at the Book Hive in Aylsham to discuss the true story of SAS original, Reg Seekings.