Parents, teachers and students find the study and the night immensely rewarding. Some invited guests have even written back too with appreciative comments. The following is a selection:
2001: "The evening went off without a hitch and was a huge success for both students and teachers. The parents were dazzled by their children's knowledge and enthusiasm. The school community were raving all week about it (many siblings and additional staff members were impressed). Thank you for your great program and I will keep in contact for next year." Meagan K.
"I am writing to congratulate you and your students for a truly inspirational and entertaining evening. . . The students really rose to the occasion and demonstrated a sound and well rehearsed understanding of the characters they 'became' for the night. That they had spent a great deal of time researching the lives of their chosen person was obvious, as was their pleasure in relating the details and anecdotes about the lives of their famous people. The sources of their information were varied and well chosen and the presentation of this information in such diverse projects as interest centre posters and games was very well done." letter from a parent of a notable
One of the most impressive aspects of the Night from my perspective was the fact that the students remained in character (accents and all in some cases!) for the whole night, in a most mature and often spontaneous manner. I learned facts about such people as Walt Disney, Sir Edmund Hillary and others that I could not have found in standard references. Attempting to find out about life through the eyes of Mao Tse Tung was fascinating, as this student related his feelings about the revolution as though he were truly Mao himself, and other characters, too numerous to mention, also taught me a lot about the various aspects of the lives of their notables. . . ." Guest Book entry
To me it was obvious that [they] had invested a great deal of time, effort and patience in this venture which paid off handsomely for your students." Katrina Reynen
"I have organised five Nights of the Notables in the (United) States and I can say truthfully this is equal to my best. I congratulate you Greg and all the boys and their parents for an excellent and stimulating evening." Janet Aker Smith, Texas USA
"It was a wonderfully successful night for you and for all others involved. It shows clearly what our boys can achieve and that we are on the right course in 'lifting the ceiling'. Congratulations, Greg!" G.K.H., Head of School
"Most boys dressed up in appropriate costumes which added to the excitement the night. I really enjoyed Charles Kingsford Smith's display and liked having a chat about his life and achievements. Vincent Van Gogh had the patched ear and the real irises to show his famous painting. Overall the night was a great success and congratulations must go to ... the famous notables themselves!" Xanthe Ranger
The boys did a superb job, not only of researching their character but in communicating the information so ably to a very mixed audience. I was impressed with their spontaneity and confidence which was evident in the obvious enjoyment and keenness with which they presented their special "notable".
Comments from students participating include: "I loved learning about Einstein; he fascinated me greatly. I learn t a lot from this study. . . . It answered many of my questions about the universe that previously no one could explain [to me]. I enjoyed what I learnt and think it will benefit me in the future."
by 'Agatha Christie': "It provided a challenge to become another person to the smallest detail. I learnt everything about my notable: brothers, sisters, religion, childhood, education , romances, just to name a few areas. I learnt so many things it is hard to remember them all! I began to understand the person who invented the great stories and plots. I have learnt why her mind works the way it does."
Students are challenged: "I was also pleased that people asked many questions . . . people asked me a lot of questions . . . I was able to answer all the guests' questions. . . . I enjoyed answering the questions. . . a great learning experience. I answered many questions . . . Many people asked me questions and I usually managed to answer everything."
Journals after doing Night of the Notables 1995
I liked Night of the Notables and it was very interesting. I enjoyed it and I was talking for the whole Night. (Jason )
For me, Night of the Notables was an exciting night to see people dressed in funny hats, three piece suits, tuxedos, gold buckles and wigs. Some were good, others looked comical and others looked downright ridiculous. Lots of people came round and asked questions. The parade was exciting. (Thomas )
The Night of the Notables has helped me in many ways, for example, I had never ever written a biography, or never acted as someone else. I have learnt a lot about Michael Jordan and I never knew that it could be so much fun. I think it should spread to other schools. (Drew )
"Ladies and Gentlemen, the Night of the Notables has started." My books on Gaudi littered the table with my black box with questions, the food: quince pasta, bread, three different types of olives and spicy salami, and my biography on Gaudi. I didn't have long to wait. I was swamped with visitors, always I had visitors! Sometimes six at once asking questions, looking at or absorbing pictures and information, and afterwards brooding on the futility of life, after they heard how my notable ended. At the end of it, I [realised I'd] sat down only once and [I was] thinking about how I'd been hoping for guests and remembering when I'd heard that when you are punished, your prayers are answered. (Nicholas )
At first I was quite nervous, but as the night wore on, I found it amusing. Luckily, I was able to answer all the questions. It was great, and I learned a lot from it. I also liked writing an auto-biography. To sum it all up, it was hard work preparing for it but fun on the actual night. (Stephen )
On Wednesday 7th June, the day all the top set English boys were waiting for, we had the Night of the Notables. We had been preparing for weeks, researching our notable, getting our 50 word gems in and getting our costumes ready. When the night started, we all got our displays ready and walked in the parade. At the end of the night, I would have had about 20 people asking me questions. Overall it is extreme fun; and it is a night to remember. I highly recommend anyone to be in it. (Ben )
I found Night of the Notables enjoyable and interesting. I have never studied a Notable in detail before and then written a biography and also dressed up as my Notable and answered people's questions. I found out many interesting things about my notable when studying him. I had many interesting conversations with people on the night and was able to answer most questions from memory. Overall I found both the night and the study interesting and enjoyable and would recommend it to all students who can to take up this opportunity.(Richard)
I loved participating in the Night of the Notables because of the challenge involved with the actual performance. I enjoyed acting, writing the biography, doing the tracing, learning the Chinese sayings and writing the book of sayings. Out of this I got experience from acting and learning how to be a "wiser" man. I would recommend this project to anyone. Overall, I really think this program is an excellent study to learn about the world. (Ming)
The Night of the Notables is a study of a famous person. There a four main parts: the 50 word gem, the presentation to the class, the night itself and the 1500 word biography. You have several weeks. During this time you learn a lot about your character. It is very interesting and you come out after feeling much more knowledgeable. (James )
Night of the Notables is a great experience which I would recommend to anyone. The actual night would have to the highlight of the whole thing although other boys' class talks and biographies have all been interesting. (David )
I didn't mind researching and I didn't mind reading. The biography was not fun, but the night was a lot of fun. It was a good experience telling people things they don't know, no matter what age they were, from children to adults. It was also fun being tested by people and showing up people who thought they knew a lot about my notable. The night was great and it was the best part by far for me. People also kept asking me now I dyed my hair. (Yen )
I was very apprehensive about people asking me about an area of my knowledge. This apprehension disappeared as the night wore on. I think this is a good program and this is the first in-depth biography I have written. (Andrew )
I found Night of the Notables to be fun and enjoyable. I have never written a biography or project with so much work before. All the costumes and displays I saw were fabulous. I think Night of the Notables is a fantastic program and was a lot of fun. Researching the person I did, it was fairly easy to find information. Overall I think it was fabulous and a lot of fun and would recommend it to anyone. (Rory)
I found Night of the Notables an interesting night. Many of my guests asked questions just from the curiosity box. I felt that they could have thought of some of their own. This was only the second major biography I have written and I gained an enormous insight into cricketers' minds. (Howard )
I think the Night of the Notables is a very good project to be doing. I found it much more enjoyable than any other big project I have done, and the Night itself is very enjoyable and you learn a lot about the person you are studying. I have never done a biography before and thought it was a good way to conduct a project. (Alex )
My experience doing Night of the Notables was fantastic. I loved doing the whole thing and it was very interesting. I wasn't really caught out at all, but some of the questions were quite difficult. Next time the night should go for longer. (Michael)
I found I have never worked harder than what I did during the Night of the Notables. The thing I found most appealing was how the project didn't stop at handing in a paper. For the first time, I was able to take the next step and get into the shoes of my notable and give the information I had acquired to the general public. I enjoyed the project a lot and am sorry that it is now all over. (Paul)
This is the most interesting and exciting project I have ever done. Although it took up a lot of time, I am ever so glad that I did it. I really wish I had done it in Year Seven. I thought the night was an extremely interesting thing. Everything seemed to flow perfectly and many people do agree. (James )
I feel, now that the Night and Biography writing is over, I can sit back and reflect on the last couple of months, working on the biography and chipping away at the rock that was eventually going to become my final copy, and watching NONE of my favourite TV shows for months, getting a costume together, getting up in front of everyone and being my notable, and eventually, after all of this, handing in my final copy. Now, it all feels great. (Rob)
The Notables is a great opportunity for the students to study an eminent person and have fun as well. Although, the fun comes after a lot of hard work! I would strongly recommend that the Night of the Notables program be carried on throughout the years so that the next series of students can enjoy it as much as I did. (Clint )
Just before the Night of the Notables started I was very nervous. I expected that many people would come and I would not be able to answer them. How wrong was I! The night went smoothly for me and I found that I could answer all the questions about my notable and other questions that were not related. I enjoyed this night very much; I thought that the night should have been at least two hours long. (Matthew )
Tonight we had the 1995 Night of the Notables. I dressed and acted as Gregory John Norman. As I was preparing my learning centre, the nerves finally hit me. As the night commenced and people began to ask me questions, I became relaxed as I felt I could confidently answer my questions. At the end of the night, I felt great as I knew that I had succeeded in the 1995 Night of the Notables. Better news came two days later when I was given a 100% for the overall night. (Nicholas )
I was a bit nervous at the start of the night, but I got quite used to people asking me questions. Overall it was very exciting and it was a great experience. People who asked me liked my uniform and our talks were quite long. Even though my friends said that people wouldn't eat lime, everyone ate it! (Shingo )
The Night of the Notables, in my opinion, was a great opportunity for boys to express what they know. In my stand, people were amazed that my notable at such a young age was so smart. The key to the night was organisation; if we were completely organised, it would be a lot easier. The whole program was a great learning experience. (Willy )
I played George Lucas on the Night of the Notables. I was feeling unsure of myself before the night but I actually enjoyed myself. It was very interesting to see who asked you what. Some shy people walked past and gave a quick glance while others went as far as even asking their own questions. It was also great fun playing another person, dressing up, & putting on an accent. Although I spent days working on it, it was well worth the efforts. (Chris)
I enjoyed the night quite a lot. I had experience from doing it last year which proved to be a great advantage. I had many long discussions with people and they looked as though they were interested. One of my best things was my display and my chocolate beetles. For me, the Night of the Notables was a great success. I also enjoyed reading Charles Darwin's biography.(David P)
I thought that the Night of the Notables was very interesting and educational because I learnt a lot about my notable and it was the first time I have ever written a 1500 word biography. Many people asked me a lot of questions; most of them very pretty hard. I have never been to such an event when people ask you such questions. I especially liked the costumes people wore. I really enjoyed this night. I would rate this night a 10 out of 10. (DeSheng)
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