When I first went into Year 8, I felt a lot more confident than I was when I entered Year 7! Even though there aren't any major tests, there are some little ones! At the end of Year 8 there is a big maths test which will decide the group you're going to be in, in Year 9, (then you need to study!).

English is good fun, especially if you like what you do. You do loads of drama work and even get to make your own quiz show! You read fantastic books and most of what you do is really interesting.

Maths is great! You get to do some problem-solving investigations and there are regular maths puzzles to answer. Take your entry to the 0.L.C. where all correct entries are put in a hat, a winner is picked at random and you can win a prize.

Science is definitely a great subject for all you young scientists out there! There is a topic to interest everyone, from atoms and elements, to ecological relationships (the posh way of saying habitats!). You may get to go and work out on the field, setting up pitfall traps, pootering up bugs and even counting blades of grass!

Music may not be everyone's cup of tea, but you do get to play some interesting instruments. I had the privilege of playing 'Junior', the biggest, heaviest tuba in the school (and maybe the world!). There are a lot of lessons from visiting instrumental teachers. You can learn to play guitar, drums, clarinet, violin, flute and many, many more. There is also an outside teacher who comes to give singing lessons.

Drama gets better in Year 8. You are ready to move on to more exciting drama work after Year 7. You do freeze-frames, you have to look at a picture of a scene and do a piece of drama work to explain what might have happened, you have to make your own judgements, then see how they match up with other people's. In Drama you must respect each others' views, ideas and opinions.

In Geography there are two major pieces of project work. For one piece of work you will go down to Green Flag and look at why it is situated in that spot, and how it is a good for advertisement as so many people pass by using the Ring Road every day. The other piece of work you may do is on flooding in Bangladesh.

History is exciting. You get to make a model, do a presentation, watch gory videos and much more! You will cover several topics throughout the year, ranging from Plains Indians to Henry Vlll and his six wives!

I.C.T becomes harder. You progress to using spread sheets and working out sums on the spread sheet. You will have a chance to make a descriptive story for a six-year old and use hyperlinks to move you from one part of the story to another. At the end of the year you will design and make a C.D. cover for the band of your choice.

In R.E. you will study Sikhism, Buddhism, Christianity and loads more religions. You will do a presentation about a religion of your choice, and design and make a leaflet about whichever religion that you have chosen!

You will do three different types of C.D.T: Woodwork, Textiles and Cookery. In Woodwork you will design and make a mirror frame and a music box. In Textiles you will design and make a tie. In Cooking you make a layered dessert and a pasta dish.

In P.E. you will do different sports depending on the time of year. In the Autumn Term you will do netball, gym and hockey. In the Spring Term you will do dance, badminton and gym and in the Summer Term you will do rounders, tennis and athletics. Cross Country will be thrown in now and again! There is also a wide range of lunchtime and after school clubs, ranging from football to dance.

In M.F.L. you will carry on with the language you started in Year 7 (although this year is harder!). If you are good at languages you will be invited to do German in Year 9. Languages are good to do because you can use them when you go on holiday.

In Art you will study Japanese Art. You may have to draw people dressed in Japanese clothing and watch some videos about Japan. You may even get to visit an art gallery, either Cartwright Hall in Bradford or the Leeds Art Gallery.

In P.S.H.C.E. you will look at different jobs, electricity and power station hazards, hazards about water and what to do if someone collapses, has a fit or faints. In Spring you will also have the opportunity to go on a 'Take Your Child To Work' day! After spending a day with one of your parents, or maybe a kind family friend, finding out what they do every day while you're at school, you will have to do a report explaining what you did on your day out!

Over all Year 8 is a very good year as you also have the chance to go on RESIDENTIAL! You go in a minibus with your form, form teacher and other staff, to somewhere in the wilds, and spend a week having a good time. Some groups are self-catering, which can make mealtimes interesting. There are always lots of trips and activities and the sun always shines (well, maybe not always!). It is ace fun and a great way to end the year before coming back for more hard work in Year 9.

Enjoy Year 8!

Jenny Lee, on behalf of Year 8
(Year 9, 2002 ~ 2003)