“Love is the answer”
John Lennon,Mind Games
Whatever you may think of Valentine's Day, be it a chance to demonstrate your love for someone, or to remind you of what it is that you are grateful for, or even if you think it is an over commercialised day that has been made up by companies trying to sell cards, it was used by us this week as the basis for our second enrichment day. The theme of love rang through the day in which all staff hosted workshop sessions to try and develop the lifelong learning skills of enquiry, reflection, perseverance, integrity, caring and respect.
It was a brilliant day, started by Le Minh Hieu Y9 singing “Things I know” and rounded off with a disco to allow the students to let their hair down.
We had computer science looking at how to simulate virtual love by developing chatbots. We had students debating and researching the philosophy of different kinds of love through the ages. In Maths there was the chance to look at the numbers involved with love, the cost of profits and the algorithms behind dating sites. We had workshops on the importance of loving yourself, through yoga and positive body image.
In Science, through dissecting a heart they considered the importance of exercise to make the heart stronger and in other labs students were creating their own ester compounds to produce their own perfumes. Love food? A group of students went to the Marriott hotel to learn how to cook Korean food with a master chef. Through economics students studied how the diamond industry limits supply to keep prices high, the rise in cost of weddings in rural Asia and how Hallmark cards re-energised Valentine’s day and turned it in to the mutli billion dollar industry it is today. In other workshops they worked on the love of laughter and we had a careers focus with love your life, career and life aspiration.
We looked at a love of pets, a love of humanity, a global look at love and marriage around the world. There was a workshop on the love of football, studying it through the lens of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and seeing how football can contribute to a better more loving world. There was an ongoing media video project to record people's reflections on love.
On top of all that 27 students spent the day looking at love in a musical theatre workshop and we had a group who spent the day photographing aspects of love around Royal City, to try and show that love could be found in the everyday and least expected places.
We finished the day with a celebration assembly which enabled all groups to share what they had done and for all our staff and students to reflect on the attributes that they had developed as a result of the activities.
In addition to the activities, Minh in Year 12 took the opportunity to sell roses in aid of the Cactus charity. This charity raises money to help terminally ill children in Hanoi. Minh’s amazing efforts led to her selling 130 roses, and with the help of her peers, all of the roses were delivered to unknowing but lucky recipients.
My thanks to all the staff and students for a wonderful day, but particularly to James Shaw, Sef Waldron, Jordan Anderson and Debbie Murray-Smith for organising the day.
“And in the end...the love you take is equal to the love you make”
The Beatles,The End.
I hope you all have a great week ahead.
Mr. Nick Lee - Head of Secondary