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Our first Renaissance Day of the year was on Tuesday 22nd November. All students were off timetable in order to delve into subjects and experiences they would not normally have an opportunity to engage in fully.

Year 7 – Community responsibility and the law

The Metropolitan Police led a whole day of sessions:

• “E-Safety & Gangs”
• “CSE & Sexual Offences”
• “Personal Safety, Hate Crime & Radicalisation”
• “Anti-Social Behaviour”
• “Illegal Substances” - Presented by Southwark Insight
• “Stop & Search - You can’t touch me” Presented by Southwark Young Advisors

Year 8 – Citizenship and entrepreneurship

The History department took Year 8 to the Houses of Parliament to see democracy in action. We had a tour of the Palace of Westminster with lots of fascinating facts about how the building was bombed and traditions such as the MPs refusing the Queen entry to the Commons when she visits.

The day was rounded off with the opportunity to grill an MP about life as a politician and her views. Our students gave her some very difficult questions – we definitely have some budding journalists and interviewers in the making. Finally, we heard from a journalist at the Telegraph about what her job involves and all the interesting people she meets. The day reminded us of the incredibly history of our democracy and how important it is to use our right to vote.

Other Year 8 students visited the Horniman Museum to look at the ‘evidence for evolution’ and science within the UK, followed by a visit to the museum’s aquarium

The final group worked on an entrepreneurial project (Launch Pad) with teams from global investment bank Goldman Sachs. Students worked on team building, key employability skills, product design, branding and marketing. The workshop aimed to help them further develop the skills which will enable them to be successful entrepreneurs.

Below: Up close and personal with animal skeletons at Horniman Museum, to see what they can teach us about evolution.

Year 9 – Sex and relationship education

Year 9 students were involved in a sexual health day, where different topics sparked the interest and led to debate amongst the boys. The sessions involved the boys understanding about, for example, contraception, STIs, gender equality, anatomy and domestic violence and sexting. The science department delivered fascinating sessions that the student’s will remember in years to come.

Year 10 – Careers

Year 10 students took part in a full day of careers development activities. The students were split into five groups and performed a carousel of interactive, thought-provoking sessions in order to develop their understanding and enthusiasm for the ever-changing professional world in which we live. 

Mr Miller led a mythbusting session drawing on experiences from the world of professional football. This included some facts and figures about life as a professional footballer as well as giving students an insight into the realistic probability of success in this field. He also talked about the importance of dreams and back-up plans before a question and answer session. 

An online session enabled students to create their own careers account using the KUDOS package. Students were able to learn about a variety of professions, qualifications, and entry requirements. They also carried out an online questionnaire that matched attributes and personality to possible careers. 

A third session included group discussion activities regarding the importance of qualifications and how they directly relate to future pathways and pay.  The session also explored jobs of the future as well as the growing apprenticeship opportunities in the UK. 

These three HBAED-led careers sessions were interspersed by hour long talks from external speakers from the business world.  The first speaker was Junior Ogunyemi; a highly acclaimed entrepreneur, author and former student entrepreneur award winner.  He gave an incredibly inspiring talk about goal setting and paths to future opportunities. The second speaker, Action Jackson, enthralled our students with a motivational speech about how focus is the key to success as well as some very practical ideas about how to harness and develop key transferrable skills that employers are looking for.  Many students and staff commented that these were the best external speakers to have visited the academy ever!  A huge thank you to all the students and staff for their hard work and application on the day.

Year 11 – Post 16 taster day

Students received:

• Taster lessons on all the courses we offer and advice on becoming a Sixth Form student
• Presentation by the Sixth Form team and Year 13 students on why students should study at Harris Boys’ Academy Sixth Form

“Year 11 will be enjoying a Sixth Form Taster Day where they will have the opportunity to engage and experience our exciting Sixth Form lessons” – Mr O’Leary