Harton Away

This fantastic trip is now available for all students studying, or intending to study, German. Travelling by coach, sleeping in cabins on the overnight ferry and staying in a hotel in the Black Forest region of Germany, this trip promises to be its usual annual success!

We will be visiting an animal theme park with toboggan rides, visiting Freiburg, a pretty little market town, spending a day in the Europa Theme Park in Rust, visiting the Triberg waterfalls, going to a cuckoo clock shop, a museum….. swimming in a fabulous open air swimming complex….

Letters available from Mrs. McConville, room 10.

Class 8Efr5 have established a very successful link with pupils from College Jean Jaurès in Castres (near Carcassonne), Toulouse, France. This link has included sharing information on our school websites as well as penpal letters.

Pupils from College Jean Jaurès are coming to visit us in April, and twelve lucky pupils from this class are going to visit these friends in May, 2010! They will spend time in their penpal’s school, visit their homes, explore the region and gain an understanding of French children’s day-to-day life. Above all, they will develop an appreciation of a different culture and its traditions.

More information about this trip can be obtained from Miss Mallaby.

The History Department are arranging a school trip to the World War 1 and World War 2 battlefields in 2010. This will be a fantastic and unique opportunity to visit both the WWI and WW2 battlefields.

In previous years we have visited either the World War One or D-Day beaches. This is the first year we have offered the chance to visit both key historical sites. Students will first travel to the Flanders area of Belgium, visiting the graves and battlefields of the First World War. They will also take part in the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate. They will also travel down to the Somme area of France to visit the scene of the Battle of the Somme and the memorials to the missing. After two nights full board in Belgium they will then travel to the Calvados area of Normandy where they will stay for two nights, full board, they will visit the key sites of the Normandy Landings including the American Cemetery at Omaha and the British Cemetery in Bayeaux.

Travel will be by executive coach and a ferry crossing from Dover to Calais. This is a fantastic opportunity to visit two of the most moving sites in Europe. The trip should cost no more than £380 and we will be arranging a fund raising event and community project to help with the cost of the trip. Those children who take part in this event will have the money they raise divided up between them and the cost of their trip will be reduced by this amount. The dates, times and price of the trip are available on request from the History Department.

The Languages and Art departments are extremely excited to offer this exchange trip to Madrid. We were linked last year with Colegio Lourdes school, near the centre of Madrid. Harton students toured the city of Madrid and visited the beautiful, ornate royal palace and cathedral. They enjoyed a trip to the Bernabeu—Real Madrid’s Stadium and a day was spent in Toledo (the city of three beliefs, famous for Don Quijote). There was a football tournament between Spanish and English students after a morning spent at school and a day was spent at Madrid’s theme park! If that wasn’t enough, we even made time for a visit to Retiro Park! We were very lucky to also have the opportunity to partake in the San Isidro (the Patron Saint of Madrid) celebrations. 

There will be even more visits in May 2010! As well as the popular visits already mentioned, students will go to the famous Prado museum to see well-known works of art from around the world, including beautiful pieces from Botticelli (Italian), Bosch (Flemish), Poussin (French) and El Greco, Velázquez and Goya (Spanish). The Reina Sofía National Museum of Art even holds one of the most famous paintings in the world - Picasso’s "Guernica“. Many great friendships begin on our trips and pupils look forward to their penpals coming to stay in their homes when the Spaniards enjoy equally fun trips here in north-eastern England.