Why a Taster Day is Crucial for Her Secondary School Choice

You’ve done your homework – online research, spoken with other parents, come along to an Open Afternoon and maybe enjoyed a tour as well, but now is the time to give your daughter a chance to get stuck into what life at your shortlisted school is really like and here’s why: 

Is This School Her True North?   

Every school feels different – you will know from your visits that some schools feel calm, others more energetic, some are bustling while some are quiet. You may have even discounted a school based on how you felt when you visited. By spending a day at a school, your daughter will have the chance to immerse herself in the atmosphere and see how she responds to it – if a school are presenting an inauthentic atmosphere specially for an Open Afternoon, your daughter will get a much truer sense of the environment after spending the day there. She might not realise that she picks up on the atmosphere, but what she tells you after her visit will be telling… and that leads us nicely to point two. 

The Teacher Test Drive

We all know how much of an impact a great teacher can have, and that often stays with you for life. Love of a subject can be made (or broken!) by a teacher. During a Taster Day, your daughter can meet some of the staff who will be teaching her daily and who will see her through her all-important GCSE and A level exams. Fostering positive relationships, early, will be hugely beneficial.

Discovering New Passions (and Old Favourites!)

Some taster days have a pre-prescribed list of activities, while others have much more of a free choice (like here at Farnborough Hill). If you have the option, pick a few of your daughter’s favourite subjects and perhaps also throw something new, or previously unloved, into the mix. Senior school will be full of new opportunities and trying new things on as Taster Day is a great place to start!  

The "Gut Feeling" Check

Does your daughter come home excited, engaged and generally happy? Or does she feel a bit ‘meh’? Her reaction to her experience will be a great indicator as to whether a school is a good fit for her. There are lots of different types of school for a reason – there are lots of different types of children! Taster Days at single-sex schools are especially valuable if your daughter comes from a co-ed environment as they not only allow her to try subjects and meet staff and peers, but they are also often her first chance of experiencing the value of an all girls’ learning environment. 

Paving the Way for a Confident Transition

Spending time in the school in a relaxed, low-pressure way can make the move to senior school less daunting. It will help build familiarity with the school, her confidence around peers, and excitement about the next step. At Farnborough Hill, our Taster Day is the first of several events for the cohort and we see the girls grow in confidence and genuinely make friends as they journey along the admissions timeline toward their start with us. On their first day they are more confident and less anxious thanks to all the familiarity: new friends, teachers and even knowing their way around a little!

So, rather than basing a decision on league tables or reputation alone, grab the opportunity to get some feedback from your daughter too about what she liked—and what felt right. Both you and she will be empowered and confident in your decision and you are giving her the best chance of being happy and content with her school for the next seven (teenage!) years.