Settling In
Induction at 11+
Before allocating boys to a Form, we ask them to choose which modern foreign language they would like to study and to name any other boys they would particularly like to be with. We try as far as possible to accommodate the boys’ wishes. Forms normally include 24 boys who stay in the same Form group for their first two years at Hampton. They will have different Form Tutors and Subject Tutors each academic year.
All 11+ entrants and their parents are invited to attend a New Boys’ Morning towards the end of the Summer Term prior to their entry. This enables them to meet the Head of Lower School, the Form Tutor and other members of the form, and to learn more about the day-to-day running of the School.
In September all First Year new entrants come into School for the morning before the start of the Autumn Term. The boys spend the morning with their Form Tutor and the Sixth Form Mentors before having lunch in the Dining Hall. They have an opportunity to familiarise themselves with the School before the rest of the boys come into School.
Activity Day
Three or four weeks into term, all the boys go to Avon Tyrrell Activity Centre in the New Forest for an overnight stay. During their time away the boys tackle a variety of problem-solving tasks such as high and low ropes courses, orienteering, raft-building and constructing an obstacle course. The emphasis in all their activities is on working together as part of a group, and they have the opportunity to get to know boys from other classes as well as their own.
Teacher and Parent Meetings
During the second half of the Autumn Term all Subject Tutors of each First and Second Year Form meet with the Headmaster, the Head of Lower School and the Form Tutor to review the progress of each boy. This is followed by a Parents’ Evening when the parents meet the Form Tutor to discuss their son’s academic progress. In the Summer Term there are Parents’ Evenings for First and Second Year parents when parents can meet all their son’s Subject Tutors.
Induction at 13+
All new entrants at 13+ are invited to a New Boys afternoon at the end of the Summer Term prior to entrance and they come into School to meet their Form Tutor the morning before the start of the Autumn Term.
On arrival the new boys are put into new Third Year Forms not set by ability, together with boys from the Lower School . Mixing in with those coming up from the Lower School is as much a priority as familiarising the newcomers to their new surroundings and life at Hampton School . Both the 13+ new entrants and the boys coming up from the Lower School have the opportunity to choose a few friends with whom they would like to be. We ensure that boys from the same school and/or a similar geographical location are placed in the same Form. With the help of the Heads of Year and several Sixth Form Mentors, the Form Tutor ensures that each of his/her new boys settles in as quickly as possible.
Activity Day
In the second week, a day is set aside for all Third Years to participate in a Team Building Programme run by an outside organisation. After about three weeks, the Head of Year will write to the parents of each new boy to check that all is well. There is a Parents’ Evening for all Third Year parents in January.
Induction at 16+ into the Sixth Form
We take a limited number of entrants at 16+. These students are integrated into the Sixth Form, joining Tutor groups of around ten pupils. In general the other students in the Tutor group study a similar range of AS levels and the Tutor will also be one of their subject teachers.
In September all Lower Sixth come into School for the morning before the start of the Autumn Term. This induction morning involves meetings with the Head of Sixth Form, Form Tutors and Heads of Department of each chosen AS level.
There is an early Parents’ Evening in September for all Lower Sixth parents to meet their son’s new tutor and in October the Head of Year will write to the parents of new Lower Sixth Formers, reporting on progress.