Bootham Boarding Blog

Shopping Trip to Leeds & The German Christkindelmarkt

2011-12-11T19:17:00.002Z

Resident Graduates, Maren & Nick took the Boarder’s to Leeds for some Christmas shopping on our last trip of the autumn term. Whilst they were there, the students were also taken to visit the German Christkindelmarkt, where there was plenty of hot food to enjoy such as; goulash, soups, gingerbread & bratwurst.

Meeting for worship in York Minster Crypt

2011-12-11T11:01:00.005Z

It is a Bootham School tradition that the last Sunday meeting for the boarders is held in the crypt of York Minster.

Whilst the Anglican service was taking place and a few yards away the center of York was busy with the hustle and bustle of daily life, boarders and staff, were in the crypt in silent contemplation.

Tai Chi

2011-11-27T14:15:00.004Z

Tom Preece has shown huge commitment to tai chi this term and his helped in coaching younger pupils in the Activity. For his efforts he has been awarded a shirt from Nigel Sutton a Master of the Zhong Ding International School of Martial Arts who gave a master class to the pupils in the tai chi Activity.

Well done Tom!

Autumn Term Boarders' Trips 2011

2011-11-16T22:54:00.032Z

Bootham boarders get up to all sorts at the weekends with our team of Resident graduates. Bowling, Ceramic painting, Water world, Falconry, Mountain biking and a visit to Castle Howard are all of the trips we have done with them already this term and it’s not even Christmas yet! With Go Karting, Ice skating and a Shopping still to come it has not been a bad term to take them out and have fun in and around Yorkshire.

These pictures are our opportunity to give you a glimpse of what the Boarders & the Resident Graduates do with our weekends...

Rainbow Ceramics – 13th NovemberOn our most recent outing Daniel Gustafson and Maren Blume ran a trip to Rainbow Ceramics, for the arty type a little closer to home. Where the boarders got to paint plates, bowls, cups and even baubles! With Christmas not too far away, it is not difficult to imagine what the theme was! Fun was had by all and everyone had their decorated souvenir to take home.

Mountain biking – 6th NovemberMark Chambers and Victoria Forster enjoyed an exciting day at Dalby forest where the boarders were taken mountain biking by one of Dalby Forest’s Purple Mountain biking leaders. They wanted a challenge and this is exactly what they got, returning back to the centre tired, muddy and with a great big smile on their face after a three hour trail through Dalby Forest’s National park.

Castle Howard – 16th OctoberVerena Kümmel & Mark Chambers inspired a large group of boarders with a trip to Castle Howard, one of England’s grandest Baroque mansions, a magnificent 18th century residence set within 1,000 acres of incredible landscape and home to the Howard family for over 300 years. The boarders visit the house first and then took a stroll around the grounds which included the lake, the fountains, the adventure park and of course a ride on the grounds railway.

Falconry - 25th SeptemberDaniel Gustafsson and Luke Highstead took a group to the Minster Falconry where the pupils got to watch a bird show, which was both educational and fun. The Falconer who ran the show was sharing interesting facts about the birds, while he let everyone look at them; he brought out several different ones, some Hawks and some Owls, both a small white barn-owl and a much bigger Canadian one with tufted ears. He made all the kids lie down on the grass for the big owl to sweep over them (from a rooftop, across the grass, to a bit of food the man was holding). They included five or so different birds in the show, some of which the pupils were allowed to hold (with the gauntlet) and touch; and then afterwards everyone took a walk around to look at all the other birds - there were over 30 birds in total.

First Fox House outing of the Year

2011-10-20T21:22:00.000+01:00

This evening the house went en masse to see spy spoof "Johnny English" at York city screen. Robert Hudson, Robert Tribe, Luke Highstead and I all wanted to find it unamusing, but just like many of the boys we found it impossible not to snigger. Afterwards, we made our way through twenty large Dominoes pizzas in less than twenty minutes! A fine time was had by all, and it was very nice to spend the evening in such happy, easy-going company.

Private Enterprise at Fox House

2011-06-22T19:07:00.001+01:00

Some of our boys had an idea. "Why not", they pondered, "buy a deep fat fryer and sell doughnuts?" Well, the house staff could have told them that they would have to sell a lot of doughnuts to break even, and we could even have pointed out that messing about with a half gallon of boiling oil is not everyone's idea of a safe, fun activity for unsupervised young people. Instead, we said "neat idea! Can we help?"

Here, we see Tom Clarke preparing what appears to be a human brain for deep frying, but is in fact his own version of doughnut mix, carefully copied from an internet site and followed with all due attention to hygiene and animal welfare.

The fryer is now safely packed away in the house office, awaiting the next round of enthusiasm some time in the spring of 2017.

Scarborough is so bracing!

2011-05-23T21:20:00.003+01:00

Yesterday saw the boarding community on their summer term outing to Scarborough. The weather was fairly kind, and we only got soaking wet once during the day. Activities included a trip to the art gallery, a climb up to the castle and an excellent lunch in our own little dining room at the "Princess", overlooking the harbour. In the afternoon, we played cricket on the beach, flew kites, and generally let the cares of the world drift away for a glorious late spring afternoon.

Alex contemplates a view from behind bars. We hope this won't be a useful preparation for later life, but you never know....

Fran, pulling strings as usual...

Really, can it get more perfect than this?

Yes it can! Rob Hudson takes his familiar stance for one more glorious innings.

Curious specimen discovered at low tide. Thrown back to sea in sympathy...

Three New Boarders for Fox

2011-05-09T17:42:00.000+01:00

In addition to the recent arrival of Robert Hall, who joined our boarding community last term, Fox receives two new boarders this week in the form of Tom Thornton, new to Bootham completely, and Nathaneal Warwick - already a member of the upper schoolroom.

To all three we extend warm wishes and an even warmer welcome!

Evelyn House Easter Meal

2011-03-30T14:21:00.005+01:00

All College I boarders went out to The Viceroy in York for an evening meal before the school breaks for Easter at the end of the week. A good night was had by all. Upon their return each received an Chocolate Easter egg. This was a night of relaxation before revision over the holidays and mock exams upon their return.

Quaker Pass the Parcel

2011-03-27T15:47:00.006+01:00

This morning all boarders on site met for worship. This was the last meeting of the Spring Term and was held in the hall of Bootham School. Tracy Morley and Sarah Allen had arranged for a game of pass the parcel which had chocolate in each layer. The parcel was passed around without music and if the holder felt like opening a layer then they could.

The Year of the Rabbit Hops into Bootham

2011-03-05T22:13:00.018Z

The boarders of Bootham and the Mount met last night to celebrate the end of the two week festival of Chinese New Year. Observers of Chinese culture will doubtless note the lateness of our Lantern Festival, but the real date fell just before half term, and coincided with a parents' evening at Bootham. Traditionally, lantern festival falls on the first full moon of the new year, and recalls the fooling of the Jade Emperor, who had decided to punish a city. His plans to rain down fire from Heaven leaked however, and the citizens were able to use lanterns, fireworks and bonfires to fool him into thinking that he had already done the deed. As a housemaster of some years' experience, I know how he must have felt.

For our version of the festival, we were treated to an excellent feast, prepared with great expertise by our head chef and his highly talented team. The res grads decorated the dining room in record time, prompting admiring remarks from many passers-by. Once again, Fran Piddlesden's craft activities provided wonder table decorations, and the pastel-coloured rabbits added a curiously Easterish feel to the evening. Everybody had a lovely time, and I hope very much that some new friendships between students of both schools might spring up as a result. A mixed team of Bootham and Mount college girls gave mellifluous voice to some readings on the topic of the lantern festival during the silence at the end of the meal.

Kirit Gordhandas and Phillip Price braved not only personal injury, but also eternal infamy as the destroyers of the J B library by launching a small fleet of lanterns at the conclusion of the evening. Fortunately neither happened, and the little bamboo craft soared up into the night sky to light the way home for our guests.

BBQ & Fireworks at Bootham School

2010-11-05T22:01:00.005Z

The annual Bootham Boarding BBQ and firework display stated off with the usual burgers and soup on the grass outside of Fox House. Russell Newlands was the burger flipper this year and with the assistance of Mike Shaw made sure that everyone was fed and watered.

Then it was off to the football pitch to watch the well organised and firework display which was choreographed by Mike Shaw and his able assistant Robert Hudson.

The assembled crowd went wild as the light and sound show progressed. A huge round of applause followed the end of the display.

Below are a selection of the pictures of the "awesome display" to quote Will McDonald of Upper Schoolroom.

Evelyn Birthday Party

2010-11-05T21:36:00.003Z

As not everyone has their birthday in term time it was decided to hold a birthday party for everyone in Evelyn House on Thursday 4th November 2010.

The boarders wanted a jelly and ice-cream themed party with party bags; which they got.

Below are a few pictures from the night

October birthdays

2010-11-02T13:51:00.002Z

We welcomed Annabel as a boarder on her birthday last month. As there are lots of October birthdays, the Schoolrooms went out for tea to celebrate them all. Happy birthday to Skye, Nicole, Holly and also to Fiona Dunlop!

Welcome to Boarding!

2010-11-01T10:35:00.000Z

As the new half term opens, we are very pleased to say hello to a new Fox boarder. Current day student Angus Illingworth joins us from today, and we hope his time in the house will be a happy and productive one. Welcome aboard!

Welome back and Halloween

2010-10-31T19:44:00.006Z

After a week away from Evelyn House the students were welcomed back to a Halloween decorated house where an ordinary pumpkin

was transformed into a scary Halloween pumpkin.

Even the oldest resident of the house, W. A. Evelyn joined in the fun by dressing up.

Schoolroom Boaders visit to New Earswick Quaker Meeting

2010-10-10T21:32:00.008+01:00

To mark the end of Quaker Week at Bootham the boarders went to one of two Quaker Meetings for worship.

The Seniors and College went to the Friargate Meeting whist the Schoolrooms went to the New Earswick Meeting.

The camera followed the Schoolrooms students and a record of their spiritual journey is below.

As we were early the park next to the meeting house was the only place to be.

"I love the swings and were we live there aren't any" was the comment as she swung herself higher

The meeting room where everyone met for worship.

After the meeting it was a biscuit and a glass of squash and a final opportunity to look at the displays and discuss the wonderful building

A good time was had by all and the the students were thanked for attending and everyone looked forward to another visit next year.

Evelyn House PS3 Guitar Hero & Pizza Night

2010-09-28T21:50:00.008+01:00

Guitar Hero 3 on the PS3 was the order of the night at Evelyn on their projected screen.

College I and II boarders had gathered for the ultimate challenge, who was going to be declared Evelyn Guitar hero champion.

The first face off of the night was between Alfie and JJ.

At the request of the audience there was the face off between Phil and Kirit; Kirit turned out to be the one who should only listen to the music!

At half time their was pizza for all!

The winner was the evening, with several of the College girl boarders asking for a boys v girls challenge at Guitar Hero and Singstar.

That outcome of the battle of the sexes is a tale to be told on another night after the history has been written.

Happy Birthday Jamie

2010-09-26T08:08:00.004+01:00

This week Jamie Charlton celebrated his 18th birthday in Evelyn House. He celebrated it in style by going to the Red Chilli restaurant for a meal.

As always Riley tried to get in on the act.

Fox House go to the Cinema

2010-09-14T21:02:00.000+01:00

Dude - Scott Pilgrim saves the World is just like, awesome. I totally get why the boys were like, so into this movie. It was way cooler than I ever imagined, with all like, games and stuff? The whole thing just rocked. It was the best ever.

Crikey - that sort of language takes a lot of effort. Still, it's nice to be in tune with the younger generation, and to be able to speak their dialect. And at least the director was British, even if he was working on appears to have been a foreign language film. Pizzas all round on our return seemed to add a certain cheer too.

Here, few adventurous souls reenact their favourite bit

First boarders meeting for worship

2010-09-12T17:16:00.005+01:00

At 10am today Sunday September 12 2010 all boarders on site met in the main hall for worship. At the end of the meeting everyone made their way to the dining hall for the traditional Bootham Brunch.

Welcome to the New Res. Grad. Team

2010-09-12T17:08:00.005+01:00

There is a new Res. Grad. team in Bootham and they are......

(From the left)

Dom Green
Vicky Forster
Meike Pentrel
Mark Burghagen
John Monks
Daniel Gustafsson
Fran Piddlesden (Super Grad!)

They have quickly settled into Bootham and have already got the boarders involved in various activities.

More to follow.......

Life at Bootham goes on during England v Germany

2010-06-27T21:20:00.008+01:00

Not everyone at Bootham School was engrossed in the what 22 men did on South African Soil!

The sun was shining and some chose to sit in the beautiful grounds of Bootham School and lose themselves in music, paining or books.

Music

Skye Stockings and Res Grad, Lynn Finnegan sharing a set of ear phones to listen to music.

Painting

Holly Campbell painting a canvas in acrylic paint.

FIFA World Cup comes to Bootham School

2010-06-27T20:57:00.006+01:00

The England v Germany football game came to the dining hall of Bootham School.

A projector was set up in the dining room and the game was streamed live from the BBC website.

The boarding community was joined by day pupils who had returned from their DofE weekend.

Christoph Asselmeyen, Res Grad, joined the audience to support and cheer on his team - Germany.

The below pictures were taken at key moments during the game (untouched by Photoshop).

Germany Scores

England Scores

At the end of the game everyone congratulates Christoph for his country's performance on the pitch.

Evelyn Open House BBQ

2010-06-18T11:36:00.004+01:00

The boarders at Evelyn House wanted to show Bootham staff what happens in boarding at Evelyn House. A BBQ was planned for the evening of Thursday 17th June 2010.

The format was that food would be provided and whist the food was being cooked the boarders would show the visiting staff around the house.

A member of teaching and non-teaching staff attended the event and a good time was had by all.

Phil Price acted as the flipper for the evening and he certainly cooks excellent burgers and sausages!

Happy Birthday Alan HO!

2010-06-17T10:48:00.004+01:00

On Wednesday 16th June 2010 Alan Ho celebrated his 18th Birthday. He went out for a meal at an Italian Restaurant with a close group of his school friends.

The day before Sandy Gordhandas (Evelyn House Memsaab) baked him his favourite cake, a coffee cake, which was presented to him in his Pure Mathematics lesson by his teacher James Ratcliffe.

Fox House World Cup Barbecue

2010-06-13T17:20:00.000+01:00

What was the world thinking? Warm dry weather, with a garden event planned? Surely some mistake? No matter. The new barbecue was bought and towed back from H***base on a skateboard with a bit of string and twenty kilos of charcoal. Quite a tricky journey, with several amusing opportunities to create traffic chaos on the way. A child-labour gang was quickly conscripted and force-marched to the excellent "Shambles Butchers". Here, delicious lamb and beef-burgers were piled up onto the trays of the helpless students, along with several yards of magnificent Boerworst - a South African delicacy made in the shop by the owner (who is South African). This proved to be amazingly good and was very well received by everyone later on.

Once back at Fox, a team of experts got onto matters, and quickly turned assorted metal components into a sturdy cooking device. Note the studied concentration, the calm confidence. These boys waste no time in DT... Nearly finished - a masterpiece of cooperation!

Meanwhile, those who know when to take a back seat wisely tackled the challenge of Gilbert's slack-band torture device. I wonder if you can guess what happened 0.001 seconds after this picture was taken?

Clue: two of the large organisms in this picture remained standing - i.e. Gilbert and the tree.

It took only three members of staff, four members of College two and a handful of junior boys to get the thing lit, and all in much less than one and a half hours! Then we were off - cheery flames sizzling into the summer sky as the first gasps of England vs USA came echoing from the common-room.

If you look carefully at the next picture, you can clearly make out Gilbert realising that his Mum will probably see that he's been drinking Dr Pepper's. Only if she looks at the blog Gilbert...

Great fun was had by all - and nothing makes the Fox garden seem more complete than the happy sounds of boys from all the year groups playing football together after the big match.

The life of Riley....

2010-06-06T16:44:00.017+01:00

A week in the life of Riley captured in pictures.......

Taking delivery of Riley.

Bathing Riley.

Riley the action dog.

Riley the lazy dog.

That was a week in Riley's life......

New addition to Evelyn House

2010-06-06T16:09:00.010+01:00

On Saturday 22nd May 2010 Sandy and Kirit took delivery of the latest addition to the Evelyn House family. He is a Jack-a-doodle pup.

After some deliberation and input from the boarding community of Bootham School he has been named Riley; in Gaelic it means Valiant.

Riley posing for his first photograph.

Everyone in the boarding community took to Riley and he took to them.

(Riley with Fran)

(Riley with Katie Trott)

More to follow.......

Boarding BBQ at The Mount School

2010-06-06T15:37:00.012+01:00

Boarders from Bootham School were invited to our sister school The Mount for a BBQ. The weather was perfect as we walked from Bootham to The Mount.

Once there, everyone went onto the field for a game of rounders.

The Mount also provided water pistols and bubble making equipment.

After the game it was back for the BBQ that had been prepared by the staff at The Mount.

Once the plates were filled it was time to enjoy the food in the company of friends old and new.

Mike and Fran enjoying the food.

Enjoying the early evening sun in Museum Gardens as we make our way back to Bootham.

Many thanks to Mike Shaw and boarding staff at The Mount for organising the event.

If you wish to have any of the phots please see Kirit

Alan Ho and Cakes for Quakes Success!

2010-05-21T19:05:00.003+01:00

Last Saturday was officially the day to have one's cake and eat it, as
students and staff literally swarmed around the 'Cakes For Quakes'
cake sale stall. And boy, can you guys bake! We must have had about
1,000 cakes donated from all parts of the school community. Check out
the cake-a-licious pictures from the day. What a a brilliant effort!
With all your hard work and generous donations, the cake sale raised a
staggering £550 that can now be sent to the Disasters Emergency
Committee (DEC) to aid disaster relief in countries affected by
earthquakes.
From heart-shaped cupcakes, victoria sponges and multi-coloured sugar
buns to glorious chocolate brownies, beautifully iced cakes and luxury
cookies, the creative cooking prowress of Bootham students, parents
and staff was absolutely incredible, and we'd like to thank every
single person who whipped up a delicious bite or munched on one!

Psychogeography, or just walking the dog?

2010-04-20T21:27:00.000+01:00

With so few boarders around at present, this evening's mild weather was a perfect excuse for a bit of a stroll with Maggie, the Fox house dog and a few volunteer expedition members. Here we see them testing a borrowed umbrella that later served as a parachute for getting off the city walls. It never actually rained...

We made our way around the city, using the moats and little-known sections of the inner ramparts to keep away from roads. At Fishergate bar, the team got to interrogate a friendly member of the police, who had been drawn to us because of the unusual jackets! He soon realised his error, and was last seen taking cover behind Dick Turpin's tomb-stone, rather than take any more penetrating questions on powers of arrest, police salaries or what he had enjoyed for lunch that day...

Astronomy Camp

2010-04-20T21:15:00.000+01:00

On the first night of the Easter holidays, a select group of lower schoolroom day students became temporary boarders for a night in Fox, so that they could make the most of the observatory.

The evening started with a very fine fish and chip supper, eaten with clandestine glee in the staffroom.

After this, we moved to a teaching lab, where the group asked some excellent questions and learned a fair bit about practical stargazing. By 9pm, the sky was clear enough to move up to the observatory, where we warmed up on lunar craters and Mars. Just before bedtime, Saturn sailed up into a clear part of the eastern sky and we were able to zoom in on that never-to-be-forgotten first sight of the rings.

After that, everyone retired to the Fox house kitchen for cocoa, teeth cleaning and a long night of telling each other scary stories by torchlight...

The Spring Term...

2010-03-12T11:11:00.003Z

Just a quick update from the Res Grad team about the other events that have been going on in boarding this term...

Lynn Finnegan and I kicked started the term with a boarders trip to the E.I.S in Sheffield to watch a Sheffield Sharks British Basketball League game (see picture). After arriving bang on tip off and finding our seats behind the team bench, the Sharks got off to a hairy start. A few hot dogs and half time free throws later however, the crowd really got behind the team and they came back to beat Leicester Riders 100-81. A thrilling game that was thoroughly enjoyed by all!

Following that, came the Valentines pampering session led by Fran Piddleston and I. There were mud masks galore and the odd marshmallow was sneakily consumed. The girls of Rowntree house felt very relaxed and beautified in preparation for the following nights' DISCO. This will become a regular feature before disco nights due to popular demand!

Suzi Tibbetts has also started a college film night, which will show case the top 10 films that one must see before going to college and judging by the turn out in its first week this will be a great success.

Last night Suzi, Lynn and I took a boarders trip to see the X-factor at Sheffield arena and after enduring many traffic jams, it was a fantastic night... watch this space for a full report and pictures of this event!

In the final 2 weeks of this term the fun just does not stop!!! Lynn and I are taking a trip to the see the Hull Stingrays Elite Men's Ice Hockey team both on and off the rink, Suzi is leading a college and seniors trip to see Alice in Wonderland 3D, the ever popular climbing club run by Robert Sandercock is moving to a new centre in Harrogate and last but by no means least, the whole graduate team will be running an Easter Egg hunt for all boarders the weekend before we break up.

That's all for now...

Sarah Mallinson

Sky Fire Lantern Launch

2010-02-28T23:02:00.004Z

This is the video of the first sky lantern to be launched at Bootham School in celebration of the Year of the TIGER.

Below is a photo of the chefs relieved that the cooking, serving and evening had gone without a hitch.

The Lantern Festival

2010-02-28T22:45:00.001Z

some of the excellent food provided by the Bootham kitchen team.

On the 15th day of the new Chinese lunar year (which will be the night of the first full Moon), the two weeks of Chinese New Year come to an end with the lantern festival. There are several competing stories to explain the origins of the festival - the one I like best involves fooling the Jade Emperor, who intended to destroy a village because they ate his favourite goose. A kind fairy gave the villagers advanced warning that the fire-god was going to bring fire down from heaven onto their little settlement, so they lit lanterns, fire-crackers and bonfires to persuade the god that the village was already on fire anyway.

We invited the boarders of the Mount School to join us on our first ever celebration of this event, and had an excellent supper together, followed by a short meeting in the school hall. At the meeting Jacky Lam schooled us in how to wish each other happiness, prosperity and longevity in Cantonese, so that we could all shake hands with a traditional Cantonese wish for each other. After this, we set off a few flying lanterns (eco-friendly, with mostly bamboo hard parts), and watched them float dreamily past a rising full Moon.

photos provided by Kevin Lo

Many thanks to everyone who gave so freely of their time to make this event successful, but particularly Graham Atkin, Suzi, Fran, Lynne, Sarah and Kirit for their unflagging support and creative elan. Watch this blog for video and more photos tomorrow!!

I'm not eating that!!!

2010-02-23T21:27:00.000Z

Tonight, a small band of boarders braved the winter chill to catch a one-night-only showing of "Food Inc", an American documentary film about the horrible facts behind the food production industry. It was stern stuff, and I for one will never be able to look a hamburger in the face again... Of course, we needed to catch a late supper afterwards, so it was transfat/corn syrup/mechanically reclaimed, but frankly rather yummy pizza for all! Maybe our last - who knows?

Seriously though, the film prompted some really good discussion afterwards, and it really got us all thinking as we enter fair-trade fortnight. There are other events taking place around school to support this initiative, so perhaps other students will get involved too.

E-booking goes live at Bootham.

2010-02-09T15:16:00.000Z

If you would like to book in a couple of nights boarding for your child, you can now do it on-line at the link on the right-hand side of this page. You can also find the same form on our main website at

http://www.boothamschool.com/boarding_form.html

see you soon!

Alan Ho's mathematics baking

2010-02-07T01:32:00.003Z

On a Saturday morning James Ratcliffe's A-level Mathematics students bring in baking for their fellow class members. On Saturday 6th February 2010 it was Alan Ho's turn and so Fran, the resgrad and Sandy, Evelyn Memsaab had a baking masterclass to help Alan bake his first ever cakes. Charlie Cheng also joined in as well as Laurance Potter and Edward Gray.

The cakes were enjoyed by the Maths class!

Pizza Night

2010-02-04T16:47:00.003Z

On a Wednesday evening the boys of Evelyn House have started to make their own Pizzas.

The pictures and video speak for themselves.

Have a puzzle!

2010-02-02T21:30:00.000Z

Here's a crossword all about Bootham School. The first person to submit a correct version to Mike Shaw will be the winner of a small prize!

An evening with the stars...

2010-01-30T21:18:00.001Z

Take a look east at about eight in the evening and try to find a bright red untwinkling "star" a few hands-widths to the left of Orion. This is Mars, perfectly positioned directly opposite the sun in the sky, so that it appears as bright now as it can be. Mars is sometimes a little closer at "opposition", such as back in 2003, but this year's opposition is well placed for our winter skies. In the same general part of the sky, you'll see glorious Sirius, and its little brother Procyon, the ruby-red eye of Betelguese and bluish Rigel. A keen eye will pick out the Pleiades, and the Hyades star clusters, or the great nebula of Orion. If you're not too sure about where exactly to find these things, why not ask one of the boarders? They'll even tell you what the proper name for Alpha Tauri is.

There will be plenty more observing nights ahead, so why not pack a thermos, stick on a warm coat and join us some time?

A peaceful boarding activity

2010-01-26T20:34:00.000Z

Sometimes, it's nice just to spend a bit of time being quietly productive. This evening Lynn Finnegan ran a very simple craft activity, much enjoyed by the students who joined in with it. The atmosphere in the room when I visited was warm, friendly and happy - what a nice way to spend a dark wintry evening...

Golfing comes to Bootham

2010-01-21T11:07:00.000Z

Many thanks to Robert Hudson, who bravely took a band of college pupils to the driving range this weekend, despite the appalling weather. He was a bit miffed that several of the students turned out to be better golfers than him, but at least Tom Stephenson did not disappoint; driving a high-speed ball straight into the saftey bars, and sending it ricocheting like a bullet around the bemused onlookers....

Winter at Bootham

2010-01-10T12:06:00.000Z

Here is the first in a series (hopefully) of pictures from around school during the current cold spell. Today, things seem warmer and there has been a slight thaw, but the news says that there is more snow on the way...

This was taken by Edmund Fisher, and shows a small tree by the Fox House front door, completely covered in ice!

Let's go bowling dude

2010-01-09T21:28:00.000Z

Thick snow and arctic weather may have been blasting the world outside, but the bowling lanes were still open, and the boarders were keen to try out their skills. Many thanks to Rob Sandercock for volunteering so freely of his time. Everyone had a wonderful time, and some of the scores weren't too bad either!

Scene from Bootham climbing Club

2010-01-09T21:24:00.000Z

Every Friday night, Rob Sandercock leads the fearless climbers of Bootham on an indoor wall at Oaklands Centre for a few hours. Here we can see them ready for action...

The last weekend of term

2009-12-05T22:55:00.000Z

Fox house split into two parties today, with some of our seniors going on a shopping expedition to Leeds, followed by a meal in Maxi's. Many thanks to Robert Sandercock and Sarah Mallinson for leading that. The balance of twenty three other members of the house chose not to go on the Leeds trip, but instead went out for a meal together at a local curry house. Well done to everyone who managed to finish their vindaloos! There were some pretty red faces by the end, but not a scrap of food was wasted.

Tomorrow, we have the meeting in York Minster Crypt to look forward to, mince pies and hot chocolate in the committee room, and Carols by Candlelight in the school hall. It's a busy life at Bootham at the best of times, but this week will be a lot busier than most!

Christmas @ Evelyn House

2009-12-02T20:00:00.001Z

The Christmas tree and associated decorations came out of storage and were decorated by the boys at Evelyn, to the sound of the usual Christmas songs from that CD that has to be played, by order of the memsaab (Sandy Gordhandas), when the tree is decorated. After a little guidance the decorations were taken off Jamie and put on the tree!

We had no star for the tree so Suzie came to the rescue with a tebby bear with was christmas-fied.

Once the decorations were finished then there was the usual family photograph of everyone in front of the x-mas tree. The evening was finished off with mice pies and hot chocolate.

Here are two short videos of the evening in glorious technicolour!

Happy Blogging until next time!

Christmas comes to Rowntree

2009-11-28T09:01:00.000Z

It is that time of year again. It may only be November but with only 2 weeks of term to go, the Rowntree Christmas tree has been brought down from the attic. A Cd player was found ( not an easy feat amongst the Ipod generation) and the Christmas tunes played as the girls decorated the tree.

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QUAKERS believe that we should "walk cheerfully over the world, answering that of God in everyone"

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It's the end of the world as we know it.

2009-11-24T19:40:00.000Z

So, who'd have thought it? The Mayans had it right all along. This Sunday, the whole of Fox went along to see the latest blockbuster 2012, in which the end of the world happens because the Sun manages to microwave the Earth's crust or something. Tremendous special effects, a witty and lively performance from John Cusak, and a not half-bad ending. Here, two boys can be seen making preparations on their return from a hair-raising evening...

Leave Weekend (Evelyn House)

2009-11-20T16:26:00.000Z

Wishing all Evelyn boarders a safe journey to home or host families. Enjoy the weekend after exam week.

We look forward to receiving you back on Sunday night with your batteries recharged!

2009-11-20T08:45:00.000Z

In addition to last term's successful Ghost Walk, Halloween antics, strat of the climbing club with Robert and Bowling (see pic) we res grads have been busy again taking trips here and there this half term. Firstly we started with a bang, quite literally, with the fireworks party; which I personally hope will become an annual Bootham boarding event as it was so much fun for the children and grown-ups alike! Since then Lynn and I have taken an enthusastic group of Rowntree College girls late night shopping in town. We saw some lovely light displays, an ice angel, bought some interesting bits and bobs and most importantly had a dance in St Helen's square to the sounds of a brass band playing Christmas Carols (to the embarrassment of one or two!) Next up there will be a trip to see Twlight: New Moon, which has already proved to be a crowd pleaser :) and Robert Hudson is kindly taking some of the boys to see York City play!

That is all for now but we will keep you posted....

Sarah

Talent, The Musical

2009-11-18T09:27:00.000Z

Congratulations to Beth Brown, Charlotte Noon, Charlotte Levesley and of course to everyone involved in the musical last night. Those from Rowntree who went to support their fellow boarders were very complimentary about the excellent performance on the opening night. The Campbell family ( minus Murphy) and the Schoolroom girls will be there to offer our support this evening. Well done!

New addition to the Evelyn Family

2009-11-11T16:53:00.000Z

Dominic McGregor is spending the week with us in Evelyn House. He has already been welcomed into the the house meetings. We wish him a lovely week!

Benedict Tang - pizza king!!

2009-11-07T22:25:00.000Z

Saturday in Fox again! This evening we made up a huge batch of pizza dough, and let people put on any toppings they could invent from a bag of goodies. End result? masses of hot, delicious freshly baked pizza, and all for considerably less than just one large pizza from a certain well-known delivery chain. I hope that the boys will remember than economy and quality can often go hand-in-hand when you cook for yourself...

Bonfire Night!

2009-11-07T21:54:00.000Z

This Thursday we celebrated Bonfire night in true Bootham style. Events kicked off at 7.00pm in the school dining room with party games for the junior boarders, hosted by our ever-enthusiastic res-grad team. By the time I got to have a look in at 7.30, the rubble of cakes, glo-sticks and party detritus told its own story. Somewhere in the haze, the bedraggled shapes of shell-shocked res grads could be dimly seen, pale faced and ashen in the new dining room lights. By some miracle, the team rallied with astonishing elan and had the room absolutely ship-shape half an hour later. The res grads have my sincerest thanks for what must have been a truly herculean effort.

After this, the boarders trooped off to the new Fox house kitchen, where Kirit Gordhandas, Andy Bell and Elaine Phillips had a seasonal mix of barbequed sausages, toffee apples and hot chocolate ready for all. The French doors of the kitchen made it easy to cater for the entire boarding community, and once the landscaping for the Fox garden is finished, I hope to see many boarders' events here during the year. Kirit and his mobile barbeque system is an asset to the school that can only be appreciated when seen in action, and he already has repeat bookings in his diary.

Once refuelled, everyone moved down to the school pitch, where a crack team of fire-work specialists (Phillip Price, Robert Hudson and I) had been labouring all evening with barely concealed glee at the thought of letting off some promisingly enormous fireworks. There was a brief moment when it looked as if the portfires wouldn't light up, but we soon got past that and quickly had the sky over Bootham filled, if only briefly, with light, noise and excitement.

A fine evening that I hope will linger in the memories of the entire community. Please keep an eye on this post, as I will add 'photos as they are given to me. (MS)

Welcome Back to Evelyn

2009-11-01T21:00:00.001Z

A work welcome back to all Evelyn Boarders.

Halloween comes early to Bootham

2009-10-22T09:17:00.000+01:00

Last night the schoolroom boarders enjoyed an evening of early Halloween entertainment as guests of Rowntree House. There were eyeballs to hunt, apples to bob and a strange game imported from Northern Ireland by Lynne Finnegan in which people have to try and trip themselves up with a broom. Students from Fox and Rowntree both sported some interesting and imaginative costumes, and the Fat Rascal recipe from an earlier post was tried out by the Fox middle schoolroom boys as a present for the girls. A comment on these from Edmund Fisher, our Fox house food critic? - "dodgy". You'll be on dough mixing next time Ed.

Towards the end of the evening, Mrs Campbell produced her winning ace, and brought a huge bucket of water into the room for the apple bobbing contest. A surprising number of Bootham students were able to get themselves an apple in the allotted ten seconds. Maybe it's all that talking they do after lights-out. Everyone ended up pretty soaking by the end of this contest - staff included, but we all stayed friends.

Next party - a Bonfire Night celebration in the Fox House garden, (so long as it doesn't rain!!)

One night in Evelyn

2009-10-13T19:27:00.000+01:00

Ashley Mcvicar (College 1) is staying the night in Evelyn House. He is roommates with Kevin Wang and Lawrence Potter. He attended the evening Evelyn family gathering where he was welcomed into the family and is now busy doing his prep.

A night of study and a good hearty breakfast; what more could a college pupil want?

It's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses

2009-10-11T21:53:00.000+01:00

What a strange sight met the eye of anyone out on Bootham half an hour ago... A bunch of Fox boys, walking home from City Screen cinema at 9.30 in the evening, wearing identical sunglasses. No ordinary sunglasses either, but special 3-D ones, needed to watch the excellent "Up", the latest offering from Pixar. Everyone had a smashing time, and the film is both funny and moving. I'd recommend it to anyone, even if the boys think that Mr Frederickson looks like me (Mike Shaw).

You decide; Mr Frederickson on the right, and Mike Shaw on the left...

Where there are twins...

2009-10-10T10:00:00.000+01:00

And of course it must be Liam Langedijk's birthday too! Liam arrived at this morning's house meeting just in time to get his traditional birthday Fat Rascal while the sparkler was still running. We wish both Liam and his sister many happy returns...

Having found this recipe for Fat Rascals, I think we ought to have a go at making some...

Rowntree birthdays

2009-10-09T15:09:00.000+01:00

Finally we have some birthdays in the house. We all wish Nicole (and twin brother Liam in Fox) and Skye very happy 12th birthdays. Nicole will be celebrating with a party at Quasar and Skye is going to the cinema. Enjoy your special days.

New Earswick Meeting welcomes our junior boarders

2009-10-05T20:26:00.000+01:00

While the senior end of the school joined Friargate for an excellent meeting full of thought-provoking and heartfelt ministry, our junior boarders went over to the smaller meeting at New Earswick in the north of York. Here, they received a very warm welcome and joined in with a workshop on relationships and communities. Tom Clarke (MSch) volunteered to be the group spokesman, and did a very good job of it. In this picture you can see the group enjoying the autumn Sunday sunshine on a rather nice climbing frame.

Host Family

2009-10-03T09:08:00.000+01:00

Edward Gray's family is hosting WIlliam Griffiths for the weekend. Many thanks to Ed's mum and we hope they enjoy their weekend leave. See you on Sunday.

Happy Birthday Ben!

2009-09-28T17:58:00.000+01:00

Ben Wong turned 18 today, and celebrated last night by taking his friends out for an Italian meal. We wish him many happy returns.

Collge1 (Evelyn & Rowntree) BBQ

2009-09-27T20:04:00.000+01:00

Evelyn House played host to a College 1 boarders BBQ on Thursday 24Th September 2009. The event was well attended.

A big thank you goes to the Bootham kitchen staff who provided the chicken, burgers, sausages & salad.

There was music provided by Dan Wright with his I-phone acting a remote control!

As a result there have been new friendships made!!!!

The evening was finished off with toasted marshmallows.

The photographs speak for themselves.

At the end of the evening Collge 2 boarders from Fox finished off the remaining food ensuring that there was no waste!!!!!

Good Bye to Dominic Harker

2009-09-27T19:13:00.010+01:00

Dominic has enjoyed his week stay with us and like all good things it must come to an end.
He could have signed out for leave BUT on his last night he preferred to do his Physics whilst catching up on Facebook!

Happy Birthday!

2009-09-24T18:16:00.000+01:00

Another two Fox boys celebrate birthdays this week, so congratulations to James Paul and Arthur Mytum!

Welcome back Louise!

2009-09-22T14:07:00.000+01:00

Rowntree is pleased to welcome back Louise Eimermann into Rowntree. Louise left us when her family moved to Switzerland but has returned for College. She joins her sister Laura who is in Lower Senior.

Birthday Boy!! - Jamie Charlton

2009-09-22T07:31:00.000+01:00

Jamie is 17 today and everyone in the extended Evelyn family wishes him many happy returns for the day.

Jamie's day was started with cake to mark the occasion.

On his special day Jamie was asked how he wanted to make the day special. What do you think was his request? (See photograph below)

100% in Core 1 Mathematics assessment

2009-09-21T22:31:00.001+01:00

Charlie Cheng achieved 100% in his Core 1 AS mathematics assessment that he sat on Saturday BUT he also showed that he was equally talented at out-running a digital camera.

His achievement called for a Kodak moment but as the shutter was pressed he managed to escape as the empty photograph shows.

Anyway, well done Charlie!!!

Homemade Apple Crumble!!!!!!!

2009-09-21T22:17:00.000+01:00

Sandy Gordhandas made the boys of Evelyn a homemade apple crumble with apples from Sarah Allan's apple trees. On a technical note the crumble was made from rice flour and was topped with desiccated coconut (Gluten free)

The last of it was polished off by the MOD, Phillip Price and the evidence is here!

New boarder at Evelyn House (For a week)

2009-09-20T23:13:00.001+01:00

A warm welcome will await Dominic Harker when he arrives at Evelyn House to board until the leave weekend. He has already got to know the housemates by visiting Evelyn and having a good look around.

A temporary addition to the Evelyn family!!!

Welcome back William Griffiths

2009-09-20T23:11:00.000+01:00

William had weekend leave to stay with a new found friend and his family. He enjoyed a overnight stay where he was made welcome.

Back to the routine of Evelyn House until the next time!!!!

2009-09-19T14:50:00.001+01:00

Hello,

For anyone who has not yet met me I am this year's 'Super Grad'; Sarah. As such, I co-ordinate the evening and weekend boarding activities. Please check the notice boards and doors in your boarding houses for upcoming trips, events and activities. Myself and the Res Grad team look forward to meeting you all during these times and are always open to activity suggestions.

Hopefully see you all soon,
Sarah

Saturday night

2009-09-19T11:39:00.000+01:00

Saturday night is X Factor night in Rowntree. This evening the girls will be welcome to join the duty staff in the downstairs common room to watch Simon and friends judge the nation's latest batch of singers hoping for a chance of fame. Chocolate and snacks will be provided with a girlie movie to finish the evening.

Happy Birthday to JJ Tam!

2009-09-19T11:16:00.000+01:00

Today is JJ's birthday - we hope he has a terrific weekend!

Here are this week's birthday boys - I'm not sure that JJ quite knows what to do with his "fat rascal" cake...

A new Boarder joins Fox

2009-09-17T15:35:00.000+01:00

Welcome to Tom Stabler-Langan (Fox MSch), who has joined the boarding community as a flexiboarder this week!

Happy Birthday Benjamin!

2009-09-17T15:33:00.000+01:00

Today is Benjamin Lam's (Fox, USnr) birthday. We wish him the happiest of days and many more to come!

First Week in Evelyn House

2009-09-15T20:07:00.001+01:00

It is a week to the day when the new housemates moved into Evelyn House and were being shown to their room. In this week the students have settled in quickly and without fuss to live in Evelyn.

The Evelyn family meet twice daily, 8.20am and 6.30pm. The first meeting was quiet but as the days have gone by the boys are now finding their voice.

The first social event has already been planned for the evening of Thursday 24th. of September when the boys will be hosting a BBQ with College 1 boarders from Rowntree House.

The boys have successfully passed their first training course, How to use the Washing Machine. They have the certificate to prove it!

(Above) Yang Nui on his final assessment for the How to use the Washing Machine course!

A new 108Mb ADSL2+ router has been installed in Evelyn and the network has been extended into the coach-house. The wireless range has also been extended. This is a short term measure until the new fibre optic cable is laid linking Evelyn House to the Bootham computer network. The work is imminent.

The below picture was taken today outside of Evelyn House. Is the road being dug up to lay the new cable?

This evening the house filled with the sound of the fire alarm as the practice fire drill took place. All went well and everyone soon returned to what they were doing and some form of peace and tranquility was restored.

Until next time........

First Leave Weekend coming soon!

2009-09-12T21:35:00.000+01:00

For all you new parents, don't forget that there is a leave weekend in just a few weeks! It will start at 4.00pm on Friday evening and goes right through until 5.00pm on Sunday.

The dates of the next few are;

Friday 25th September until Sunday 27th September

and later in the term

Friday 20th November until sunday 22nd November.

During the leave weekends, there is no accommodation available for students in any of the houses, so this is a good opportunity for new students to get to know their guardians, perhaps for the first time. Another alternative is for new students to stay with a recently acquired friend in the wider student body...

Happy New Year!

2009-09-12T21:14:00.000+01:00

Yes, it's the start of the academic year, with a brand-new Fox house, new staff in Evelyn and some new resident graduates for Rowntree. As I write, Rowntree are all out on their first house outing of the year - a visit to a Chinese restaurant. Some of the students from Fox have been learning to make bread - with some excellent results! Others have been playing basket ball, or else just settling into their new rooms.

Welcome to Boarding at Bootham

2009-06-23T17:27:00.000+01:00

This blog is specifically for parents, old scholars, teachers and current students connected in any way with boarding at Bootham School.

The school website is very formal, and contains most of what you'd need as a normal parent. You should check in there from time to time, to keep up with what's going on in the wider school. This blogsite is much more focused on day-to-day news in the three houses, and isn't meant to be formal at all.

Here, you should be able to find news about what's been happening in the houses, photographs, contact details and anything else we can think of to help you keep in touch.