For this reason, I decided to put together a list of things that I will miss about school:
The Structure
I'd like to think I'm quite an organised person, however even I am finding myself at a loose end without the safety net of my weekly timetable. Things were incredibly simple: you turned up at 8:30, registered in form, spent six 50 minute periods working *chatting* in your designated classes then wandered home with your mates at 3. Despite my constant moaning about having to wake up at 6:45am every morning, it stopped me from wasting half the day in bed which I've been finding myself doing far more than I should recently. How will I motivate myself now without the help of Mr Amos' deep assemblies?
Useless Lessons
As soon as you got to years 10/11, the majority of this privilege was taken away from you. However, in the lower years of school you were forced to cooperate with the most 'imaginative' of lessons to say the least. Due to the fact 'serious' lessons only took up about 2/3rds of the regular timetable, Calthorpe created multiple lessons that they claimed would 'extend your learning' (an excuse to let both students and teachers do nothing). These lessons ranged from sex ed. with Mrs Lonsdale to research studies with Mrs Nichols- we all know who envied who. Most days consisted of building spaghetti towers or creating your own version of 'the apprentice', ruining friendships when someone 'fired' you. 360 on a Friday afternoon? Get in.
Uniform
Don't get me wrong, the uniform was pretty disgusting. Those maroon jumpers had the power to make it look like you'd gained half a stone overnight, getting even worse when you started to develop boobs. When you tried to equal it out by wearing a tight skirt you were instantly sent to pastoral - the place of every teenage girls nightmares. Despite the annoyance it caused at the time, the uniform really wasn't THAT bad. When you realize that trying to find something decent to wear every day is more of a challenge than you first thought, you weirdly start to miss it.
The Canteen
You spent the majority of your break time queuing up behind year 11 students, moaning that they got 'priority' in the queue (until you got to year 11, in which you abused your power to the max). Once you got to the counter, you were met my grumpy ladies that shouted 'THUMB PLEASE' (yes, we used thumbprints instead of cards, but that was about as far as 'high tech' went). It's safe to say healthy eating wasn't exactly a priority for Calthorpe, as your biggest daily challenge was the choice between the greasy pizza or bacon rolls. Bacon always won.
School Trips
The trips at Calthorpe were where I made the best memories. From getting lost around York town to having water fights at 2am in Belgium, the trips never failed to provide cringey memories for us all. Being given the opportunity to go to Sri Lanka with Ocean Stars charity through Calthorpe was by far the best experience of my life and I'm so thankful for that.
The people
The thing I'll miss most about school is the people. Throughout the 5 years, I've met many people that I know will remain lifelong friends. Despite all of the drama, fall outs and breakups of the past I'd still say our year group was pretty close. Not only will I miss the students, but also the teachers who've pushed me to succeed and helped so much throughout the years.
Finishing school has its benefits, but at the same time it's pretty emotional. I'm glad I can say that, although it's had its ups and downs, I've truly enjoyed my time at Calthorpe and made some great memories.
