On June 11, at 7 am, 40 pupils of Year 8 left Greenhill School for a week in France. They were all looking forward to the long week ahead. They flew with Easyjet, from Bristol International Airport. It took about an hour and 20 minutes to fly to the City of Geneva in Switzerland. After collecting their bags, the party headed for the bus that would take the to their hotel, Centre International de Séjour de Lyon in Lyon. On Tuesday, they visited Greenhill's partner school in Miribel, Institut St. Joseph, where everyone met their pen-pals and their hosts for the weekend. The school is smaller than Greenhill and the average class size is smaller too. In the afternoon, the group saw the largest religious statue in Europe. From the hill, there was a spectacular view over Miribel. Wednesday heralded a visit to Les Grottes de La Balme, a huge cave system found in the side of a mountain. It was really fun to run through all the small labyrinths! After, the group visited the nearby medieval village of Peyroughes. The leaders thought the party could walk all the way round the village, but on that day there was a French TV channel filming a period drama! Lots of French people were running around the village dressed in revolutionary clothes. The group also met a donkey called Prince, who was the star of the show. Later, they went shopping in a nearby hypermarket. On Thursday, the party travelled three-and-a-half hours to Chamonix, a town in the Alps, to see the largest glacier in Europe. It was massive, but unfortunately it was melting so the group could not visit the ice grotto or crystal gallery. They went down quite close to it on a cable car. This was followed by a trip to a local shopping centre, to buy some souvenirs for family. Friday saw a visit to Lyon to visit the Roman Amphitheatre and a huge church that was very beautiful, followed by more shopping and the chance to sample the crêpes from a crêperie. Having previously been split into pairs, the group were hosted by French families at their homes over the weekend. Everyone did a number of activities, such as going to Lyon Zoo and shopping (again!). Sunday was the group's last day and the host families dropped pupils back at the Institut St. Joseph for them to board the coach for Geneva and onward for the flight home. It was a great trip, everyone got the flavour of French life and will always remember their time in Lyon. Thank you to Mr. Davies who worked so hard to organise the visit and also to Mr. Noble, Mrs. Swale and Madame Rees who accompanied the group.
YEAR 7 HOUSE RESULTS Pictured are members of the winning school house, Llewellyn, for the academic year 2006 - 2007 receiving the shield from Mrs. Henry. Results were: 1. Llewellyn (22,524 points); 2. Dewi (17,989); 3. Caradog (16,161); 4. Glyndwr (14,668). The shield was presented by Mr. Robert Mayhew in recognition for the benefits and education that Greenhill gave to his children, Steven and Rosalyn - both recently graduated from Herriot Watt University, Edinburgh. The shield will be presented each year to the best house at Greenhill School. EXAMINATIONS Miss Rochford would like to thank the students who have just finished taking their examinations for their impeccable behaviour in the examination rooms. She would also like to remind students that the results can be picked up form the drama studio after 9 am on August 16 for A and AS exams and August 23 for the GCSE exams. Entry to the the sixth form block via Marsh Road entrance only. Miss Rotchford will be available on the Thursdays and the following Fridays between 9 and 11.30 am for any students who wish to query their results. There are still a number of certificates from last year to be collected. Please 'phone and make an appointment to collect these in September.
SUMMER TRIPS
On Tuesday, July 10, approximately 150 Year 7 pupils experienced a fun, but educational day out. A total of 50 students visited the Dan yr Ogof Caves in the Neath Valley where they extended their knowledge of South Wales geology, especially the study of the underground caves rich in stalactites and stalagmites, but most pupils seemed more interested in the dinosaur park! Fifty students visited Techniquest and the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff. The remaining students also visited Techniquest and the National Assembly. Students had an escorted tour of the impressive building, known as The Senedd. The building cost £67 million and was really impressive. Pupils were shown into the visitor gallery or Oriel where they had an excellent aerial view of the Siambr (debating chamber). They were lucky to be addressed by Mrs. Joyce Watson who is the regional assembly minister for Pembrokeshire. Pupils asked her many interesting questions and she was very impressed by their enthusiasm. It was an interesting experience and what made it really personal was that Mrs. Watson introduced herself by saying she was a local and both her sons had attended Greenhill. Techniquest was extremely popular as usual, giving the students a hands-on experience and interactive exhibits to stimulate their interest. The National Museum was thoroughly fascinating with exhibits on a wide range of subjects to engage and hold the students attention. Mrs. Henry would like to praise all the students on the trips for their good behaviour, they represented the school brilliantly and she wishes them well in their years ahead at Greenhill.