As part of our ongoing blog series, our new Head Girl Team will be sharing a typical day in the life for them during the current circumstances. You may seem similarities to your own day or even pick up some hints and tips for alternative ways to educate and entertain yourself and your family. Our first post if provided by Deputy Head Girl, Hanna Vine. 

Over to Hanna … 

Like most of you, I have been finding life in quarantine to be a teensy bit weird. Whether it’s the increased time I have spent browsing the world of online shopping or adapting to doing period one without the aid of a brisk, cold walk beforehand. For all the struggles you may be encountering, it is important to stay positive and truly find joy in the little things. It turns out, a face mask at the end of the day can really make all the difference. Remember, stay at home, protect the NHS, save lives! 

Morning: 

I almost always have a lesson in the morning, so I still wake up at 7am. To keep to my routine, I jump up, put some music on and get dressed (although my leggings and hoodie combo isn’t exactly in keeping with the uniform policy!). I’ve also been trying to wear my lanyard, so I feel in the school spirit. Buttered toast is always my go-to breakfast, accompanied by a rather sizeable cup of coffee. Next up, I hop onto teams and hit the (metaphorical) books. I study Politics, Religious Studies and Drama, so there is always plenty to be getting on with. 

I’ve found that music has helped me get through working at home; my playlist has certainly grown over the past couple of weeks. As fond as I am of a bit of Jonas Brothers, I tend to opt for more mellow and instrumental tracks whilst I’m studying - if you’re stuck for ideas, I’d highly recommend a lo-fi radio station, there are plenty on YouTube.

Afternoon: 

Before I know it, it’s lunch! Just as if I was at school, I tuck into a jacket potato and beans. To break up the day, I watch an episode of Friends and take some time to relax. As both of my parents are working from home too, we try to have a little family catchup around this time. Unfortunately, like all good things, lunch must come to an end. 

Before period five, I get a bit of admin done, whether this is replying to some emails, or submitting work from earlier in the day. I find doing this regularly helps to keep me on top of everything. If I don’t have a lesson, I try to condense everything I’ve been learning recently either onto flashcards or a mind map. If you’re struggling with revision for essay subjects, I can’t recommend essay plans enough! Start with finding some titles and make bullet points on how you would go about writing a response. By the time of the exam, you’ll have such a bank of plans, that you’ll feel super confident an will probably have already planned for the question.

Evening: 

At 4pm, it’s time to put on my running shoes and find a good podcast. I try to walk for an hour a day, maintaining social distancing rules as always. Some of my favourite podcasts are Off Menu by comedians James Acaster and Ed Gamble as well as the Coronavirus Newscast from the BBC (in typical politics student fashion.) Afterwards, I come home and make myself an iced almond latte, before cracking on with my homework or a bit of extra reading. 

Around 6:30pm, it’s time to make dinner. A personal favourite so far has been Dad’s vegan chilli. A real highlight of quarantine for me is cooking more with my family … and the eating bit of course! We’ve been catching up on Criminal Minds recently; it’s been really nice to spend more time together, especially as Dad tends to work away a lot. 

After dinner, I grab some fruit and a pudding, head upstairs and call my friends. Most evenings, we’ve been playing Psych and catching up on our days; we’ve even ventured into teaching our parents TikTok dances (quality content!). 

At the end of every day, I read my book; at the moment, I’m reading Find Me by Andre Aciman (the sequel to Call Me by Your Name.) This downtime has given me some time to unwind and relax. As important as staying physically healthy is, never overlook the importance of your mental health - reading was always my favourite pastime and quarantine has allowed me to do this more often.