Friday Bulletin

Dear Parents and Carers, 

I am continually blown away by the incredible students in our school and this week was no exception.  

Monday was our Year 6 Open Evening where we had the opportunity to showcase not only our broad curriculum, pastoral support, and extra-curricular opportunities, but also our fabulous students. We had student volunteers from across the year groups and they were, as ever, a real credit to our school. It was lovely to hear so many comments from prospective parents on how helpful, polite, and approachable students were, and their willingness to answer questions. Thank you to those who took the time to write in to tell us that; one parent wrote, 

“I attended the school’s open evening yesterday and wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude. My tour guide…was an absolute credit to the school. She was professional, knowledgeable, and spoke with genuine enthusiasm about the opportunities available. What really stood out was the way she connected with my family—she took the time to learn my children’s names, showed great patience with my toddler, and ensured we never felt rushed as we explored the classrooms. Her maturity and thoughtfulness left a very positive impression.”

We are very proud of our students and every year they continue to impress us, as well as our guests, with their conduct at events like Open Evening, and throughout the school year with their embodiment of the school’s ethos and values. 

This leads me to another example of the incredible and diverse talents of Durham Johnston students. As promised in last week’s bulletin, I asked Sophia (one of our new Year 7 cohort) to write a feature sharing some of her experiences of Durham Johnston so far. She humbly obliged and, as predicted, it is far better than anything I could write! Over to you, Sophia: 

Starting secondary school is pretty much like stepping into the middle of a very busy train station at rush hour. People sweep past in every direction, everyone else seems to know exactly where they're going, and you're left clutching your timetable like a ticket you can't read properly... The platforms (AKA corridors) are jam packed with older, scarier “children” who look like they should be applying for mortgages rather than revising for a maths test. 

 

I recently just joined Cross Country Club, partly just to see what it's like, and partly to keep fit. It sounded harmless... right? So, Cross Country Club began with a billion laps of all the fields. A BILLION. Why? Why? WHY? But by lap ten, I sort of realised that running next to other exhausted people is strangely encouraging. By lap twenty, I had legs made of jelly (I still have legs made of jelly). But I think that the law for running is that if it hurts, you're doing it right. So I feel I still won in some way. 

 

Last week in Drama Club, I found out that eyebrows can tell entire stories. My task was to mime protecting my friend who'd been pushed over by a mean girl in the lunch line. Miming is much harder than it looks. And I also discovered my face has more muscles than I knew existed, and all of them, like my legs, where aching by the end. Apparently, my face managed to express loyalty, bravery, and possibly hay fever?! 

 

RE lessons have been the biggest surprise. It wasn't colouring sheets or “Be Kind” posters. Within the first fortnight we had a full-on debate about the existence of God and the philosophy of St Thomas Aquinas. Who it turns out, had more theories than I have pens in my pencil case... Does everything really need a cause? Who caused the first cause? If God exists, does he also have to do cross country? I left with about zero answers and about a million other questions, which I am beginning to think, is far more interesting. 

I’ve found that the teachers don't just hand you the answers like sweets. They give you a question, tilt their heads and wait. And suddenly, they then say, “Yes but why?”. I've also found that my teachers can explain really complicated things really simply. Like in maths, I stared at confusing algebra on the board for ages but then my teacher made it look so simple to solve. 

 

Making new friends hasn’t been instant, as no one gave me a ready-made gang with my timetable. At first it felt like swimming through a sea of brand-new faces. But then I realised that everyone is in the same boat, just trying to find their place and a smiling face!! Some days it feels slow, but then someone waves, or says hello, or comes and sits next to me at lunch, or just starts a conversation with me, and that makes the whole sea feel slightly less huge (and slightly less terrifying!). 

 

Two weeks in, I've run until my legs wobbled, acted with my eyebrows, debated the existence of God, and only got lost three times! I don't think secondary school is just bigger, it's really just more confusing, more exhausting, and just more exciting.  

And if I survive the next twenty laps, I might even say I like it. 

I really hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. It has been, without a doubt, the highlight of my week. 

Have a lovely weekend. 

Mrs McFadden