It must be summer…

Punting on the Isis, after-class karaoke, and the sound of croquet mallets on the lawn – ORA summer 2016 has arrived!
We can’t quite believe it’s almost been a whole week since we welcomed our first intake of students to the Oxford Royale Summer Schools Summer School 2016. Since arriving on Sunday afternoon, the 16-18 year olds at our picturesque Yarnton Manor campus have already become firm friends. As well as getting into the swing of their academic programmes, they have also enjoyed a guided tour of Oxford, punting in the sunshine, and a choice of exciting Insight MasterClasses – new for 2016.

Taking place after lunch, the MasterClasses seek to introduce students to new subjects and skills in an interactive way – above all, the emphasis is on having a good time! This week, students chose between discussing creative writing with a professional poet, a hands-on architecture workshop, and an insight into the Hollywood film business. Needless to say, all were a roaring success.
On the extra-curricular side of things, the students tried their hand at punting – a quintessential Oxford pastime, where a flat-bottomed boat is propelled along the river with a single (often unwieldy) pole. As well as ice-breaker games on the lawn and enthusiastic on-campus karaoke, they also found time to attend a falconry demonstration, where they got the chance to handle a variety of beautiful birds of prey.

The first week fun doesn’t stop here, either: tonight students will be donning their finest outfits to attend a Classically-themed party at the exclusive Cherwell Boathouse in North Oxford.
We’d like to thank all our Session 1 staff and students for being such a hard-working and enthusiastic bunch! If you’d like to find out more about what they’ve been getting up to, our Yarnton Manor campus has its own dedicated Instagram and Tumblr pages.

Places still remain for this summer if you haven’t booked already – browse our full range of courses now!