Boarding School

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Hello, and welcome to Student Chat. Today, we’re talking to Luke Walker-Jones, who’s 14, about his school life at St Paul’s, in London. Welcome, Luke. Thank you.

Tell us a bit about your school, Luke. Well, St Paul’s is a boarding school. I live there during the term. My dad works in the Army, and my parents live abroad. In the school holidays, I fly to the country where they are. I’d like to live with my grandparents during the term, but their home is far away from London. There isn’t a good school in the town where they live.

What’s it like to live at school? It can be good fun. I’m always with my friends. But it can be difficult sometimes. If I have a problem, I want to speak to my parents about it, and I miss them. I speak to them on the phone at weekends, and the teachers are very nice and helpful. But it isn’t the same as living at home, of course.

How many subjects do you study at school? Ten subjects for the GCSE exams. We take those exams when we’re 16. Everybody studies English, maths, biology, chemistry and physics. Then you can choose your own subjects. I also study technology, history, French, music and art.

And what are your favourite subjects? History and art, definitely. Do you want to go to university when you’re 18? Yes, and I want to study fine art and art history, but my dad wants me to study politics and economics.

Do you work hard at St Paul’s? Oh yes, everybody does. We do two or three hours of homework every evening after classes. But we also do a lot of sport, like tennis and swimming too. And I love cricket. Good luck with your studies, Luke. Thank you.