We were greeted by smiley staff in bright red T-shirts. We knew this was going to be a great day. We went in through barns of horses, chicks, pigs and a herd of alpacas to name a few and then saw the huge selection of activities in the grounds.
There were set show times that we didn’t want to miss and lots of supervised activities for the very adventurous or those requiring a more gentle experience.
Tovi and Thomas went on the stage to feed the sheep and Daisy the cow ate lots of oranges… and wouldn’t leave the stage without being given yet another orange!
Bug ride zoomed around the park and you really had to hold on to your hats, well actually the steering wheel, we were soaked by pirates shooting water at us!
Crazy golf was a challenge with the hidden bumps and curves and a variety of styles were observed to get a hole in one, from gentle swings of the club to a little helping hand or foot to secure success!
Bumper boats caused a splash and an excuse to bump in to a friend.
‘Land ahoy’ as Reception climbed aboard the big ship which was standing room only!
Lunch in our very own covered picnic area was a real treat and lots of birds followed us.
Spider towers, tractor rides and a great wooden adventure area left the children just wanting more.
We ended the afternoon with ice-lollies and we thanked the staff at the farm for their kind attention. They told us it had been a pleasure to have Alton Convent School visit for the day as all the children were very polite and well behaved. What a great day!

On Thursday 17th April the lower sixth geographers visited Guildford with Salesian College in order to define the boundary of the Central Business District and to determine whether Guildford fitted the standard model of core and frame areas.

The five girls and the boys from Salesian formed groups of twos and threes and each group took a different route. We investigated building height and age of building as well as the cleanliness and appearance of different sites along our route. We counted the numbers of pedestrians and cars in order to establish whether particular spots were busy or quiet. In addition each group were given particular areas to investigate the land use, some were primarily shops and others offices. It was then up to each individual group to describe where they felt the Central Business District of Guildford ended. At the end of the day, back at Salesian we each presented our findings and discussed what we had all found.

Day One

After solving the problem of fitting 11 bags into the minibus, we traveled for 3½ hours to Wales. Our first stop was Rhondda Valley Heritage Park. The old colliery, which first opened in 1870, has now been converted into an industrial museum. We started, after meeting our very Welsh guide, Howard, by tracking two families lives and how the coalmine had effected them. This gave an insight to life in the coalmines and a glimpse at their history. We were then taken down, or so we thought, into the coal mining tunnels. We learnt how the coal seams were blown apart, in order to be mined out, with a life like re-enactment, and the system they used to extract coal from each seam. We then simulated a ride back up to the surface, only to find ourselves at the surface the whole time; we hadn't been below ground at all!

Prep School Environment Prefect, Tilly, started the term by launching an initiative to encourage prep school pupils to recycle their Christmas cards. After explaining the scheme in assembly, a number of posters have appeared around the prep school as reminders of this excellent scheme, and Tilly has already passed on a number of prep school cards to be recycled.

The day was launched by our guest speaker, who outlined some measures necessary to reduce climate change and their likely impact on the lifestyles of future generations, He also stressed that we should see the change as a positive opportunity to benefit society by strengthening local communities.

In science, Years 7, 8, 9 calculated their own carbon footprints and were able to assess their personal impact on the well being of the planet. This was followed by a game in which they evaluated the environmental effects of various actions and decisions, increasing awareness of opportunities to reduce their own carbon. Other subjects also tailored activities to include environmental issues, creating a day of real focus and enthusiasm among the girls.

In order to raise awareness about the Environment and the effects we as a country are having on it, Alton Convent school gave one day to show the students what we could do to help. The whole school participated in a number of activities designed to highlight the large amounts of carbon used each day.

On Friday 9th November children of the prep school chose to come into school in a form of transport that reduced the planet’s “Carbon Footprint”. Year 6 pupils had conducted a survey asking how people came to school on a “normal” day. They conducted the same survey on Friday and compared the results. A staggering 25% of pupils managed to come to school another way including by train and bike.

On 19th September 20 fifth form Geographers spent a whole day in Central Winchester mapping land use and building heights, doing pedestrian and traffic counts to determine the extent of the Central Business District. They investigated how city centres are changing and becoming more residential.

On October 2nd Lower VIth Geographers joined the Geographers from Salesian College for an exciting day studying coastal processes and managment along the Hampshire coast. We were able to study the formation of the sandspit at Hurst Castle and plant succession in the salt marsh behind the spit.

At Barton on Sea and Naish farm we saw how the sea defences at Bournemouth have starved this area of sedimanet and caused accelerated erosion and cliff slumping.

Mrs Jenny Brennan