Enrichment Day 2023

The UKSA trip was a brilliant opportunity to get to know my classmates whilst simultaneously having fun in the water. Whether I was kayaking or raft-building, I found I always had a smile on my face. One of my favourite activities was keel boating, where we took a beautiful boat on the calm rivers and practised sailing. The amazing views were another highlight of a fantastic couple of days, and I'm sure the future Year 7s will enjoy this wonderful school trip as much as I have. I can't wait to see what else Challoner’s has to offer.

Jonty Colquhoun, Year 7

Our first trip of the year was to RAF Hendon. Everyone was thrilled to have a day of seeing the fantastic planes and war equipment on display there, especially as the drawings we were creating there would be used for an art project later on.

The coach trip flew by, and soon we had been given permission to roam freely around some of the hangars, learning about the WW1 and WW2 planes and sketching some of them as well in our booklets. Hendon had some gigantic planes, especially the Lancaster bomber in Hanger 5. The sheer scale of these machines awed us all: From the WW1 planes in Hanger 2, to the modern planes in Hangar 6.

We got plenty of time to visit each hanger, with a quick lunch break in the middle of the trip and a gift shop visit at the end. All in all, it was a fantastic experience and everyone in Year 8 really enjoyed it!

Benjamin Porter, Year 8

On Enrichment Day, while the Year 7s were sailing at UKSA and year 10’s were at Silverstone, the Year 9’s had a variety of activities to do in school. Everyone got separated into separate groups and there was a wide range of activities to do throughout the day.

Paul Hannaford, an ex-drug addict came into school to talk about the risks of drugs. His speech was very serious and made everyone much more aware of drugs and their risks.

We had a yoga instructor come in and teach us about Gods and their way of yoga. Everyone had a separate yoga mat and while some found it a great activity, others found it a bit challenging!

"Urban Strides", a street-dance company, came in to save the day with the street-dancing activity. I have to say this was one of the most enjoyable activities for everyone in the year.

Finally, we talked to one of the teachers, Mr Keen, who spoke to us about E-SAFETY and what to do and not to do on the internet. This was one of the more serious talks, like the Paul Hannaford talk, but it taught us a lot about online useage and was engaging.

In conclusion, while everyone else was having fun out of school, I would say that the Year 9 Enrichment Day wasn't so bad after all. We had a nice variety of serious talks and enjoyable activities like Yoga and Street Dancing.

Vanislav Yordanov, Year 9

Silverstone Circuit, the sacred ground of motorsport, has seen countless races and heroic victories over its time. With this undoubtful fame came the Silverstone Museum, treasuring racing history through the ages waiting to be explored. Recently, Year 10s had the opportunity to experience this ourselves and delve into the wonders of motorsport history. Upon entry, we were greeted by our tour guide as well as the vast but expensive gift store, shortly leaving to go to the iconic racetrack. It was a massive 3.6-mile-long track dotted with vibrant stands and sponsorship buildings. However much to our surprise, an F1 car circled the track rattling our eardrums with the roar of its engine as we sat down to eat lunch.

We left the best till last; the museum. Upon entering, we looked in awe at the collection of cars adorning the building. The sleek vibrant liveries displayed the evolution of racing technology. Not only did it display these cars, but it also held interactive lessons to grasp a better idea of the equipment F1 drivers needed during races. But the best of all was the 4D cinema - a VR-like experience simulating a race with both old and new cars and motorbikes racing across the track. As the race eventually ended, students reluctantly arose from their seats and exited the building. Overall the journey through the Silverstone Museum was a thrilling ride through motorsports history and a must-visit destination.

Adarsh Palla, Year 10

The Year 11 Enrichment Day was a day of not only a myriad of material and advice but a day of realisation: every second of our time counts and is valuable for us to pursue a prosperous future. The day was split into five subsections (excluding an hour of P.E.), covering areas that were quintessential for our next steps in our academic and professional careers. These included an hour’s session on employability skills & work experience, finance, options at sixth-form & personal qualities and career research. I found the day to be an incredibly enriching experience as I had been informed of things I had never even heard of, such as the Challoner’s Baccalaureate, which sixth-form students take part in to help broaden their skills and experiences in addition to their three or four A-Level subjects. Thank you to the staff for organising such an informative day.

Thanujen Niranchan, Year 11

As per tradition, the Year 12 Enrichment Day consisted of the ‘London Challenge’ - a day out in London - specifically the area bounded by the Circle Line. Groups of students explored the city to find various monuments, structures and references in this treasure hunt-type activity. Groups would receive points for finding different places of worship, literary and musical references to places and universities, to name but a few. There were also quite a few fun bonus challenges, such as taking a photo with a celebrity look-alike, a person in uniform and a busker. Overall, the enrichment day was lots of fun and a great way for both new and old students of Year 12 to get to know each other.

Divit Kelmani, Year 12