Year 8 students took part in Take Your Child to Work Day in April - it was great to see all the photos they sent in! Those who were unable to spend the day in a place of work enjoyed a full day of activities organised by the school.

Final one-to-one Careers interviews were completed this term for our Year 12s. On returning from study leave, they were invited to attend the first few sessions of our Apprenticeships Club, which will run throughout Year 13 to support students looking at alternatives to university or indeed applying for multiple pathways.

A small group of Year 9s took part in a trip to ComputaCenter in Hatfield for their Women in Engineering Day, where they took part in some insightful workshops and networking sessions.

Year 10 students had the chance to attend the Generation Stevenage careers fair at Knebworth Barns, which was focused on local employment opportunities. A small group also visited to Shuttleworth College to look at agriculture and environment-related pathways post-15.

We are now busy preparing for next year's events, including the annual Careers Fair which introduces businesses, colleges and universities from across the country to our students. If you think your company might be able to run a stand or if you would be able to support one of our Careers events such as our mock interview days, please contact the school and let us know.

To everyone who has assisted our many events this year, we thank you for your generosity in helping students prepare for the workplace and explore a wide range of careers.

Ms Stojko, Head of Careers

This year saw another successful trip to Italy at Easter - many thanks to all the students for their exemplary behaviour and endless enthusiasm, and for making our 33rd annual Classics trip great fun. Hot on the heels of this trip, Mrs Coe has been busy planning Greece 2027, and we look forward to that with great anticipation.

In June, we took 65 of our Year 9 students to visit the site of Roman Verulamium in St Albans. This allowed them to gain a deeper understanding of what life would have been like in Roman Britain, as well as firsthand experience of the archaeological evidence available to us. It was a lovely sunny day, the students were enthusiastic, highly engaged and well-mannered throughout, and did a fantastic job of representing HGS.

Also in June, our Year 8 Ancient Civilisations and Latin students enjoyed a wonderful and informative three-day trip focused on the Roman occupation of Britain and how Celtic life changed under Roman rule. Details will come out in September for the new Year 8 Ancient Civilisations and Latin students who may be interested in the same trip next summer. 

Congratulations to Esme and Lauren, who have been dedicated students of Classics throughout their time at HGS, studying Ancient History at GCSE and Classical Civilisation at A Level.  We are grateful to both students for all their hard work in co-writing, co-producing and directing Orpheus, our Senior Classics Play this year - our first (and highly successful) musical. Esme also composed all the music and performed in the play. We wish both of them all the best for university.

We said farewell to Miss George, our trainee teacher from the University of Cambridge, who will be teaching Classics at King's House School in Richmond from September. We wish her well in his future career and thank her for her contributions to the department.

As term draws to a close, I hosted our annual Classics Society BBQ for our senior students and the cast of the play. This is a lovely tradition that brings our Classical family together to celebrate the end of another busy academic year.

Mrs Rowe, Head of Classics

This term our GCSE students had their final practical exam and finished the course with a written paper. The A Level candidates also completed their two years. Both groups worked exceptionally hard and I am hopeful for very good results in August.

We went on a final Year 13 theatre trip to The Almeida in London, to see a modern version of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, which was both enjoyable and thought-provoking.

The last theatre trip of the year saw a mixture of Years 9, 10, 11 and 12 go to the refurbished Cambridge Arts Theatre, to see Emma Rice’s adaptation of Enid Blyton’s Malory Towers. On a very hot evening we were grateful that the theatre had installed air-conditioning! The play was all you might expect and an excellent example of what live theatre can do that TV and film cannot match.

This is my last term at Hitchin Girls’ School. I came here as Head of Drama in September 1999 and the last 27 years have been a roller-coaster ride! Now, after 40 years of teaching, I am retiring, but I expect the department will go from strength to strength. I would like to thank parents and students for all their support over the years.

Goodbye and good luck.

Mr Balfe, Head of Drama 

We have had a busy and hot end of term in English and Media. We would like to say a huge well done to all our students for their hard work and participation.

Well done to Year 11, many of whom, after a busy exam season, came back to take part in our three A Level subject taster days. The students were excellent in these sessions and are definitely ready to take their next steps! We look forward to seeing them in September and wish them all the best for their exam results. Year 12 Literature will start with The Great Gatsby and Othello, and Year 12 Language and Literature will start with Frankenstein (the 1818 edition).

Year 12 have had a successful first mock exam period and are now embarking on their NEA in all subjects. Well done for a great first year of A Levels, Year 12!  Year 13 Literature will start back with The Handmaid’s Tale and A Streetcar Named Desire, while Language and Literature will also start with A Streetcar… and Media students will continue to work on their NEA cross-media production.

Our Year 10 students have been amazing!  Not only have they had their first set of mock exams, they also impressed us with their Spoken Language NEA assessments. What a fabulous group of articulate young people! We are looking forward to seeing them in Year 11 where we will start by studying J.B. Priestley’s An Inspector Calls.

Years 7, 8 and 9 have also had a busy term of reading, enjoying novels including Kiran Millwood Hargrave’s The Island at the End of Everything, Zana Fraillon’s The Bone Sparrow and George Orwell’s Animal Farm. We have seen stunning analytical, creative and persuasive work. Year 9, we look forward to seeing you all in Year 10 to start your first GCSE set text, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. 

Creative Writing Club has continued to run this term with many outstanding independent writers. A special thank you to Dee in Year 12 who has helped lead the club this year, inspiring and supporting our younger writers. We would love to see you all back next year, hopefully with even more new members joining us.

Lastly, well done and good luck to all of our Year 13 students of English and Media as they go on to pastures new. We wish you every success in your future endeavours.

Mrs Batchelor, Head of English

Our primary school outreach programme has been a tremendous success this term, helping to inspire a passion for Geography in the next generation as our students brilliantly led interactive lessons for pupils at St Andrew's Primary School.

To keep that Geographical momentum going over the break, we encourage students across all year groups to channel their creativity into three fantastic summer competitions. In addition to the prestigious Royal Geographical Society 'Young Geographer of the Year' competition, students should look out for the Geographical Association Physical Geography Photo Competition and the Geographical Model Making Competition, both of which offer perfect opportunities to capture any spectacular physical or human landscapes you encounter over the summer.

For our Key Stage 5 students, the summer represents a pivotal moment in their academic journey. Our Year 12 A-Level Geographers have reached a crucial milestone as they transition to independent fieldwork for their Non-Examined Assessment. Over the holidays, these students must independently collect their primary and secondary data, ensuring they return in September with a robust foundation of research, ready to analyse and complete their NEAs during the upcoming Autumn Term.

Looking ahead, the autumn term is already shaping up to be an action-packed one. We are thrilled to announce the return of our popular Inter-School Geography Quiz, which will be proudly hosted by Icknield School this year as we compete for the top spot. Behind the scenes, we are busy finalising details of some incredible upcoming field trips, including the essential Year 11 trip to Sheringham and the official launch of our highly anticipated expedition to Iceland.

We want to say a massive thank you to all of our students for their hard work and curiosity this year, and we wish you all a wonderful, safe and restful summer break!

Mr Sutton, Head of Geography

As we reach the end of a busy term, it's wonderful to reflect on the brilliant engagement and growth our students have shown across our LFL curriculum. Here is a snapshot of what each year group has been exploring:

• Year 7: Our youngest students took a deep dive into the human brain, exploring metacognition (understanding how they learn); compared the power of a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset; and participated in inspiring careers sessions. They also tackled vital life skills by learning how to build and manage their own practical budgets.

• Year 8: Focus shifted toward social dynamics. Students spent time breaking down and challenging cultural stereotypes, while equipping themselves with practical strategies to resolve interpersonal conflict.

• Year 9: As part of their Citizenship curriculum, Year 9 turned their eyes to the global stage, studying the complex and fascinating world of international relations.

• Year 10: Students took a closer look at the UK's electoral system. Alongside this, their sessions covered highly relevant modern issues, including the risks surrounding online gaming and gambling, as well as the legalities and safety guidelines associated with tattoos and piercings.

We have been incredibly fortunate to welcome several fantastic external partners this term, whose expertise has truly enriched our curriculum.

Phase: Our wonderful colleagues at Phase deliver impactful sessions, from building resilience with Years 7 and 8, to the excellent Fuel Sessions for Year 9. This series explored self-esteem, managing emotions and overall wellbeing, and was very well-received by the students.

Herts Young Homeless: Year 10 explored the realities of homelessness with speakers from the charity, who also visited Year 8 to run informative sessions on online safety and digital image sharing.

We extend our thanks to all of our external partners who help make the LFL curriculum at HGS so vibrant and meaningful.

Have a wonderful, safe, and restful summer break!

Mrs Pearce, Head of Learning for Life

This year has been very busy in the Learning Support and Pastoral departments, as we have been delivering provision for students whilst also planning for some very exciting developments that will be in place for September.

We have been delighted to celebrate the many achievements students have made this year with support - we have seen Year 7 grow in confidence and settle into school life, and older students engage effectively in the classroom and in interventions. Helping students with additional needs to attend school trips, complete exams, join in clubs and fully embrace school life has been a privilege.

We continue to have a comprehensive support package for wellbeing, and we are grateful to Phase, Grit, the Mental Health Support Team and our counselling services who have worked tirelessly to deliver interventions. 

Next academic year will see the Learning Support team moving into the Cottage on the school grounds, which will be a more bespoke space to provide the wide range of interventions that students need. This will mean that they will have a gentle space to regulate, onboard into school and learn in a smaller environment when required.

The Pastoral team is shifting to become the Student Support Services team, which will include wellbeing, attendance and behaviour support for students. This holistic approach means that the variety of needs students present with in school can be supported more cohesively. There are exciting times ahead and we look forward to welcoming the students into these spaces to help meet their needs over the next academic year and beyond. 

Mrs Cole, SENCO

It has been another exciting term for MFL, which began with our Years 11 and 13 students sitting their final speaking exams way back in May. It wasn't long before they had sat their final written exams in the hall, and now all we can do is wait and wish them all the best of luck for their results in August.

Teaching continued with our Cultural Projects in Year 9, where students chose either a French or Spanish-speaking country to represent at a mock Model United Nations conference. We have been so impressed by the care, enthusiasm and detail students have put into these projects.

We can't wait for next year, which promises to be even more exciting with our Normandy trip in May. Further opportunities will also be available to join new clubs, Project Polyglot and competitions, so make sure you stay tuned.

Lastly, whether you are heading abroad this summer or not, take every opportunity to keep up your languages and have a happy and healthy summer break!

Mr Clifford, Head of Modern Foreign Languages      

The Summer Term has been an exciting time in Music, with interesting projects coming to completion both within the curriculum and in extracurricular events.

Founders' Day: A strong choir of students from HGS joined with the HBS choir to perform a full programme of exciting repertoire to celebrate Founders' Day on Friday 26th June at St Mary’s Church. Highlights were the Chamber Choir’s perfect rendition of Locus Iste by Bruckner, and a magnificent and full-voiced rendition of Sing! which is a vocal arrangement of Widor’s Toccatta. The choir were accompanied by the brass groups from the two schools, who also performed the Fanfare that signals the start of the service; this was expertly written by Ash Wraith in Year 13. 

Many thanks to the performers in this event, which took place on the day when the school was closed due to the heatwave. Their dedication in carrying on despite the weather was much appreciated.

Orchestra Concert at St Mary’s: Following an outstanding year of music-making, the HGS Orchestra were welcomed back to St Mary’s to give a lunchtime concert on 30th June. They performed eight pieces, including The Great Gate of Kiev by Mussorgsky, March Slave by Tchaikovsky and YMCA.  We were delighted to be joined by guest artists Take Four Sax Quartet, a group of excellent young players led by Eva Hodson in Year 11.  The audience were also wowed by Ash Wraith singing a virtuosic rendition of A Night in Tunisia. 

New members of the Orchestra are most welcome next year; if your child can play an orchestral instrument we would love to hear from them! 

Junior Choir to Whitehill: Our Junior Choir had a successful visit to Whitehill Junior School on 2nd June. They performed two songs by Blink 182 during their morning assembly, which was followed by a vocal workshop for all led by Mr Ingham. Next year the Junior Choir will become two separate choirs, one for Year 7 and one for Year 8. This will allow us to support the songs chosen in class time and enable more students to sing with their friends. 

Curriculum Highlights: 

Year 7 Pictures at an Exhibition: As part of a drive towards helping students with their notation skills, Year 7 have been learning about techniques of melodic composition, and they studied Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky. After playing two movements of the work, they drew a picture themselves and then composed a piece of music based on them, using a drone and a melodic sequence.

Year 8 Film Music: This year group delved into the world of cinematic scores, learning how music drives narrative, emotion and atmosphere on screen. Students then composed music for a film scene of their choice, which consisted of an ostinato, pedal notes, leitmotifs and sound effects. Most of these were recorded by the students into Soundtrap, and are well worth a listen during the summer!

Year 9 Covers and Song-writing: In their final term of KS3 Music, Year 9 students developed cover songs in groups, followed by a song-writing project that encouraged them to use the full range of contemporary musical skills they have developed this year: ukulele, piano, singing, drums, guitar and bass. It has been very pleasing to see lots of them rehearsing and crafting their songs and covers at lunchtimes, and I hope we will hear lots more from them in the next few years.

Year 10 musicians have been composing their first piece of GCSE coursework, which will form part of their portfolio of performances and compositions to submit next year. Well done to them for their hard-working attitude and determination. They have also supported events in the school, such as the Year 6 Transition Day, when three groups entertained new parents with bands and vocal duets. Finally they have become experts on the song Africa by Toto, which is one of the GCSE set works. They can also perform the whole song, and no doubt we will share that with you early next year!

Looking Ahead:

There are lots of opportunities for students to improve their musical skills outside the classroom: Hertfordshire Music Service deliver instrumental and vocal lessons at HGS during school time, and after school and on weekends as part of North Herts Music School. You can sign up for these on their website. 

There are also lots of online lessons that can help students get started on most instruments, and we have many instruments available if students want to try something out. For potential brass players (and we do need some more…) Hitchin Town Band have a youth band that meets on Monday evenings. They would be delighted to see new members, from beginners to more experienced players. Do get in touch if you want to chat through any aspect of music education with us.

Best wishes,

Ms Stott, Head of Music

 

Thank you to all students who took part in sports clubs and fixtures this term, for your enthusiasm, commitment and hard work. Here's a round-up of what we have accomplished together across the different sports this term, as well as lots of individual successes outside school. Well done everyone. 

See the PE department Summer Term round-up

In Biology this term, Years 9 and 10 have once again had huge success in the UK Biology Challenge. It's an extremely prestigious competition, and across both year groups our students achieved 9 Gold,19 Silver, 29 Bronze, and 90 Highly Commended and Commended, with a total of 377 students receiving a certificate overall. This is a tremendous achievement and all those involved should be incredibly proud of their efforts. 

Furthermore, 25 of our Year 12 students took part in the Intermediate Biology Challenge, which resulted in 2 Gold, 3 Silver, 3 Bronze, 5 Highly Commended and 4 Commended awards.

We have also had 6 of our Year 12 students attending a week-long Biomedical Summer School hosted by the UCL Institute for Women's Health. Our students fully embraced the opportunity,  one saying “It has been such an incredible week and we have all had such a great time. We all learnt so much, and it was very insightful.”

Numerous Year 12 students spent work experience week in Biology-related placements, such as dental surgeries, GP practices, hospitals, landscape gardeners and pharmaceutical companies.

In Biology Club, we have had a small but exceptionally proactive group of Year 7s who have, among other things, enjoyed learning how to sequence orangutan DNA, press flowers, use camera traps and identify more than 40 species of moth caught overnight in a moth trap.

Our first TEDx video competition for Years 9 and 10 was a great success, with some fantastic entries received. The video from the winning team of Clemie, Lottie, Isla, Lauren and Carly centred around a video mission from none other than Andy, from Andy's Dinosaur Adventures, resulting in a trip to the Natural History Museum. Together with the Years 6, 7 & 8 Science Fair winners, they all enjoyed their prize of a trip to Snozone.

Cambridge Chemistry Challenge Result: Out of 18 participants 14 received certificates (Copper and Silver), which is amazing - and one student was only one mark off a Gold Award. They should be incredibly proud of themselves as this is a very tricky test to take.  

Schools' Analyst Competition: All Year 12 students took part in the Schools’ Analyst Challenge, which ran over several sessions. The organisers complimented our students, saying they had done very well, but unfortunately had not reached the finals.

We booked 25 tickets for students to attend a live Q&A at St Mary’s Church with Dr Nicky Fox, Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate (SMD) at NASA. This was a very exciting opportunity to meet such a senior member of NASA.

This term the Science department was able to arrange 3 careers talks to support students as they consider future subjects at HGS and beyond. Our first speaker, Krupesh Patel from Purly's Dental Practice in Letchworth, gave Year 12 students interested in dentistry an in-depth talk on both the career and the educational pathway. 

This was followed by a visit from one of our alumnae Mili Ostojic, who came to speak with students from across the year groups on the use of drone technology to facilitate a non-invasive means of ecological sampling. 

And lastly, we welcomed Dr Jenny Denkins, who gave an inspirational talk to Years 10, 11 and 12 on the pathways in Medicine.

Look out for more talks next year as we welcome further inspirational scientists to HGS.

This term, 60 Year 10 students took part in the UK National Scientific Thinking Challenge, a national competition that develops critical thinking and problem-solving skills through engaging STEM-based questions. The challenge encourages students to apply their scientific knowledge in unfamiliar contexts and think analytically beyond the classroom.

We are incredibly proud of everyone who took part and would like to take this opportunity to celebrate the students who between them achieved 8 Gold, 9 Silver and 14 Bronze awards. Congratulations to all our participants for embracing the challenge, and a special well done to those who received recognition for their outstanding performances!

16,174 students from 255 schools across the UK entered the competition, making our students' accomplishments even more impressive.

Overall, the term has been filled with achievement, enrichment, and impressive student progress across all year groups. From Year 7 through to Year 13, students have answered in excess of 1.1 million questions this academic year on our online science quiz platform Educake - just one indicator of how hard our students work to achieve. We would like to wish them a relaxing Summer, and we look forward to seeing them back in September.

Mr Horner, Head of Science

As always it has been a busy term in the Sixth Form. In May, Year 13 went on study leave and they marked their last day in school by dressing up as their favourite characters. They also enjoyed breakfast and a final assembly with their tutors. Due to the weather this year, Leavers' Supper had to be postponed to a later date. But we did get to enjoy our last meal together, and share formal speeches; the Prefects who could make it were able to pass on their badges in person as well. 

Year 12 attended UCAS Day earlier in the year, and just before their mocks, they took part in the University of Hertfordshire's taster days. Their personal development this term has focused on preparations for post-18 options. Parents were invited into school for a joint talk we ran with the University of Sheffield about the UCAS process.

The term has culminated in Year 12s going on a week's work experience. They had some amazing placements lined up, and we look forward to hearing about them on their return in September. 

The new Prefect team undertook their first duties by supporting the new Year 6s on their transition day this month - thank you for being a friendly and helpful presence for them.

We wish you all a restful summer and thank you for your hard work throughout the year.

Ms Stojko, Head of Sixth Form

It has been a really hectic but exhilarating term in Social Sciences. We began by wrapping up all the coursework which students in Health and Social Care had been doing across both KS4 and KS5, including moderation visits from the exam board. Students worked tirelessly on this critical aspect of their curriculum across all classes and have done their teachers proud. 

In Psychology, we enjoyed a return visit from Dr Guy Sutton for our Year 12 Brain Day. It's always such a joy and a privilege to have him talk to our students. They come away so inspired and so motivated to engage in next steps on their pathway after A Levels. As well as taking part in a captivating brain dissection, students learned about the impact of Covid on the developing brain, with particular focus on Reception age children during the first lockdown and the ongoing impact on their development even years later.

Students also learned about research which highlights the differences in the male and female brains following lockdown, and how women have been more affected by the periods of isolation than men. Guy also discussed the impact of vaping and junk food on the brain, body and behaviour, and even the impact of pregnancy, peri-menopause and menopause on the brain. Students were full of questions and have been given wider reading, to help them not only in their UCAS applications but also in their own personal development and understanding of how to nurture their brains most proactively. 

Our A Level Sociology students attended a revision and coaching workshop with Keith Trobe, Principal Examiner for AQA Sociology and author of their A Level textbook. Keith gave advice on how to structure the various long-answer questions as well as hints and tips on decoding questions and pushing answers into higher grade bands. The students and our staff team learned so much from the session.

Finally, our A Level Criminology students thoroughly enjoyed attending The Priory School’s annual Criminology Conference last week. They had the privilege of listening to a range of speakers including magistrates, a forensic psychologist, a detective, probation officers, a defence lawyer and an expert on potential miscarriages of justice. The students have come away armed with a wealth of information to prepare them for their second year of study, and many ideas for case studies.

Wishing all our Social Scientists and their families a happy and restful summer holiday!

Mrs Edwards, Head of Social Science