Pupil perspective

The second I walked into Emanuel, I was blown away. The stained-glass windows and immaculate fields catch the eye. The gold painted gates are truly stunning. Everything, from the eco garden and its fish-filled pond to the polished glass cabinets stacked with gleaming trophies, is just fantastic.

Like every other person in the world starting a new school, I was nervous. I was the only person in my old school coming to Emanuel. Soon, when I started making friends, I found out that I wasn’t the only one feeling a bit different. They were really kind and feeling similar to me. We got to know one another and made friends fast.

One fantastic thing about Emanuel School is the clubs and societies. There is a club for almost everything. Feeling different? There’s a club for that. Like art? There’s a club for that. Enjoy sport? There are many clubs for that!

Emanuel is more than just a school.

It’s a happy place. Its facilities are just endless. The food is just impeccable. The staff are lovely and caring. All in all, my time at Emanuel has been great and I am really looking forward for the exciting years to come.

When I first started Emanuel, I knew no one, and no one knew me. However, after less than a week, I already felt that I had been here for years. Everyone was friendly, welcoming and supportive, and I settled in very quickly. The various clubs and societies at Emanuel helped me discover lots of different skills and interests in me that I never knew I had. I also created my own “cricket fans” club at school with the help of a few friends. All the teachers are kind and will help you if you need anything, whether inside or outside the classroom, and you can stop anyone in the corridors, and they will give you a helping hand, whatever the task is.

All the lessons are fun, and the homework isn’t too hard. The sport opportunities and guidance at Emanuel are incredible, from cricket to table tennis to water polo. Even if you are completely new to a sport, the coaches will help you and guide you until you become the best you can be.

I have enjoyed my start to life at Emanuel and I can’t wait to spend the next six years of my life here.

 The thing I love most about Emanuel is how all the teachers are kind and supporting, and they don’t mind if you don’t understand something first time round.

My favourite teacher is Miss Dittmer (Modern Foreign Languages) as she encourages us to ask questions and shows us some fun and educational videos, and sometimes a German movie.

The food at Emanuel is the best! It’s really tasty and I get to eat new foods that I would probably never have tried before. So far, my favourite meal is the Christmas dinner although everyone always looks forward to the pasta. Everyone loves the food and barely any food is thrown away.

    If I had a problem, I know there would be lots of people to turn to for help.

My favourite school trip was a team-building day where we got to play football in massive zorb balls, do an obstacle course and even try some orienteering.

The clubs at Emanuel are amazing! The selection is enormous. You can choose from climbing walls to robotics, films to swimming and chess to costume design. The clubs are free and optional. It’s great to try out new things.

I do feel very supported and looked after at Emanuel as I have so many good friends already and I know lots of nice teachers. If I had a problem, I know there would be lots of people to turn to for help.

The funniest thing that has happened at school is when someone accidentally smashes a plate, everyone claps and cheers for some odd reason.

I have one hour and twenty minutes a day of break, including lunch. We can play outside, go to the library and complete homework or read calmly.

Overall, I love my school!

On the first day, I was quite nervous because I didn’t know anyone, apart from a few girls from my old school, and all my friends were at different schools.

When I started to talk to everyone, they all seemed really kind and they were all feeling the same as me. I managed to easily become friends with my classmates, and, after a few days, I had made a few friends out of my class as well. I found sport a really simple way to get to know one another, and soon I was settling into my house.

The teachers helped a lot by letting us ease in, by not giving any homework for the first two weeks and by making the lessons fun with Kahoots and other enjoyable games.

As the term carried on, some friends became very good friends, and I found it easier and easier to talk to anyone. The Emanuel commendation and concern system were reasonably easy to understand, and the homework system was extremely simple for me as well.

Overall, the students, teachers, rules, and lessons were very easy to settle into and it’s been a great term already.

Coming to Emanuel, even during the nightmare that is Covid-19, has been amazing. I am constantly taking part in interesting and diverse activities, from debating to netball and hockey or football and rugby, from art to studying our economy in geography.

Personally, I love to throw myself into anything I can, so Emanuel is definitely the right place for me!

My sister has been going to Emanuel for three years now and the great things she had said about this school made me want to go even more. It is quite nerve-racking with the thought of new people, teachers and things to learn but from my time at Emanuel my friends have helped me settle in to the new way of things.

I love sport and the opportunities here are vast which is great. Even if we have things closed in school due to Covid-19, I’m so glad Emanuel has made my time here fun and enjoyable. (Lexie)

My life at Emanuel has so far been amazing, well beyond my expectations.

I was a bit nervous joining secondary school after having spent a term in lockdown, especially because none of my friends from primary school were going to join me at Emanuel. However, all my teachers have been extremely supportive and have made the transition from primary school very easy. I felt at home from day one thanks to the teachers and thanks to the many friends I have been able to make.

I particularly love the sports facilities. I literally walk out of my classroom and find myself on vast sports grounds. The facilities are amazingly well maintained. The first time I played football on the ground I thought I was playing at the Emirates because the grass was impeccable, beyond anything I had seen before.

I enjoy my days at Emanuel so much that I often ask my mother to drop me off early so that I can spend time playing football with my friends before class.

I also enjoy the new subjects at school – for example I started having German lessons which is fun and I am super excited to be able to learn a new language. All-in-all, my time at Emanuel so far has been great and I am looking forward to many fun and exciting years to come.

Emanuel is awesome. Everyone is so friendly and even the teachers are really nice. There is never a dull day and there is something new and exciting in every lesson.

My favourite part of Emanuel is definitely the sport as there is so much variety in what you can do; whether it’s netball, hockey, rugby or even fives, the sport at Emanuel is great.

I would really recommend that anyone starting at Emanuel should try out a few of the great clubs on offer because they are so much fun and a really good way to make new friends. You can also create clubs of your own, for example my friend and I created a girls’ football club to give girls the opportunity to try new things.

Lessons are great as well and my favourite lesson by far is Maths. All of the teachers are so friendly and help you if you don’t understand something.

    I’m always excited to start a new day as I know that it will be an amazing day.

Throughout the six weeks that I have been at Emanuel I have made so many great friends and learnt so much – it’s been the best six weeks of my life!

Looking at an imposing school from a bridge that you know you will cross thousands of times in the future is one of the most daunting things you will do.

Your initial reaction is one of fear. All around you, crowds of strangers are milling around, greeting each other, causing you to feel insignificant and overwhelmed, but this is natural whenever one is dealing with the unknown, and compared to other occasions similar to starting at a new school, I managed to adjust to Emanuel without much effort, like a missing jigsaw piece slotting neatly into a gap.

    I feel more than just a pupil going to a school – it is more like being a member of a community.

The main building at Emanuel has been affected by the years, however it has not lost a particle of its splendour, and the ivy climbing up the wall is suitable due to its definition which means loyalty and support. I have thought time and time again that starting at Emanuel is like being a new bulb or seed being planted in a pot complete with goodness, nourishment and everything that is needed to blossom and grow. As pupils of Emanuel, we are given the chance to find ourselves and the choices we make during school will begin to define our future. I have experienced so much of the assistance always available and I feel more than just a pupil going to a school – it is more like being a member of a community. That is why so many people profit from education at Emanuel; the school and staff offer each pupil the foundations to a flourishing future (and more). Of course it will come with some trials, however if you really want to achieve a good goal, you must simply keep trying, and remember why you wanted it in the first place, and this is one of the life lessons that I have learnt through my school life so far.

Different people have different views on what makes a good school, from academic achievements to co-curricular activities to facilities, but Emanuel has exceeded the expectations that most parents have for their children’s schools in all aspects. I can only say that I, along with so many other pupils and OEs, will try my best to deserve the opportunities I have been given to blossom and to grow at Emanuel.

Every living thing should have the right to live and grow, just like how every child should have the right to an education. I have been given this and more, and can say without a shadow of doubt, that I am proud to be able to call myself a pupil at Emanuel School.

I joined Emanuel School in Year 9 after passing my 13+ and I am really enjoying my time here.

Not only did I make friends very quickly, I also was fascinated by the variety of clubs and subjects the school had to offer. The school was very welcoming with its lovely pond and fields and the teachers were also very nice and helped me out with where to go in my first few days at Emanuel. Now, after a month and a half I really feel at home at Emanuel. I believe Emanuel is a great school and I am honoured to be a student here.

I felt that as soon as I entered Emanuel School’s gates I was welcomed into the school, as I quickly made new friends and learned my way around the school. The teachers are all wonderful and they make each subject even more interesting, and my form tutor and other pupils make it even better.

I feel lucky to have been able to participate in the pre-season rugby training and to have been in the rugby matches. Emanuel also has a brilliant sense of community.

Emanuel School is not a normal school – it is much, much better and will always stay that way. I was happy that it was not hard to learn my way around the school as I was assigned a buddy to help me find all my classrooms!

Year 9 is the beginning of Middle School and a new chapter in our lives – one of the highlights of which is choosing our GCSEs and starting the syllabus for some of them.

    It’s daunting, but exciting too – these choices will allow us to explore our favourite subjects for the next two or three years.

With the Middle School comes the opportunity to do the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award, with the vast majority of pupils choosing to do it each year. We learn new skills from photography to cookery, or karate to jewellery making, and the award offers a wide range of activities to get involved in beyond the classroom. Pupils who were once Cubs and Brownies are now helping to run them!

In the years to follow, I’m especially looking forward to learning about the ancient, mad world of the Romans in Classical Civilisation, graduating to the senior houses, and tackling the exams head on. GCSEs, we’re coming for you!