Lordswood News - Lordswood Boys School

December 2014
www.lordswoodboys.co.uk
Lordswood News
A Letter From The
Headteacher
Dear Parents,
I am pleased to report that progress is being made in
tackling a number of the issues identified by the school
and, more recently Ofsted. You will find information in
this newsletter about the new timetable from Christmas
which will remove the need for cover teachers and
improve continuity of teaching. We are also submitting
a bid to the Condition Improvement Fund to replace all
the windows and facades to bring the appearance of the
school in line with that of Lordswood Girls’ School and
also to upgrade the heating system. Over the Christmas
holidays, the PE corridor will be refurbished and the art
corridor was repainted during the October half term. In
addition, the ICT infrastructure was upgraded. We are
also continuing to implement strategies to improve the
quality of teaching and learning and to tackle the poor
behaviour of a minority of students. It has come to light
that a number of students are using the recent Ofsted
inspection as an excuse to justify abusive or disruptive
behaviour. This is not acceptable and will not be
tolerated and the school will take robust action against
any student engaging in this type of behaviour.
Earlier this term, you will have received information
about the proposed expansion of Harborne Primary
School on the Lordswood site. I would like to clarify
that the proposed school will be entirely separate from
both Lordswood Schools. The primary school will have
its own entrance and discussions have taken place with
Calthorpe Estates, our landlord, and Sport England to
identify the best location to ensure that sports pitches
are not impacted. The location is likely to be a significant
distance from both schools, thereby minimising any
disruption to learning if the development goes ahead.
This term we say goodbye to Mr Stewart (Science)
and wish him well in his new post. Ms Slee (German)
and Mrs Thacker-Vuts, Assistant Headteacher, are also
leaving at the end of this term after a number of years
at Lordswood. They have both made a significant
contribution to the school and we thank them for all
that they have done and wish them both well in their
future beyond Lordswood.
The Spring term starts for all students at the normal
time on Monday 5th January. The pantomime, which
had to be postponed due to illness, takes
place on 12th and 13th January; I hope
that many of you will be able to join us at
one of the performances.
I should like to wish you all a very joyful
Christmas and a happy and prosperous 2015.
With all good wishes
Mrs Jane Götschel
Executive Headteacher
A Message From The
Governing Body
A message from our Chair of Governors,
Paul Brownsword
This term has been an eventful if not entirely
unexpected time for Lordswood Boys’ School.
The result of the Ofsted inspection in September was
the culmination of many legacy issues the School has
been dealing with for some time, but Ofsted felt the
pace of change was not fast enough.
The School now has a mandate to implement positive
changes more rapidly and I am pleased to say we have
an agreed action plan in place which is starting to have
impact. New staff started at the beginning of term and
resources from Lordswood Girls’ School are now being
used across both schools. The Governing Body and the
Executive Headteacher are closely monitoring how the
plan is working.
In addition to this there are efforts being made to
find ways to improve the offer made by Lordswood
Academies Trust which Lordswood Boys’ School is part
of and from which our school will benefit. Specific to the
Boys’ School, funding has been secured for repair work
to the roof and further applications have been made to
improve teaching facilities. You will have heard about
plans to expand Harborne Primary School via the School
and in the press. New sports facilities are to be provided
following the sale of the Martineau Centre by the City
Council and we are hopeful for progress on a new joint
entrance to the Lordswood campus.
So, whilst this term has been a difficult time for all,
there are many good things to look forward to and the
Governing Body and Trust are determined to turn the
School around as soon as possible.
I thank you for your continued support and wish you a
good break over the festive season.
Curriculum and
Timetable Update
Revisions to your child’s timetable
Over the past term Lordswood Boys’ School has
undertaken a comprehensive review of the current
timetable and curriculum.
During the school’s recent Ofsted inspection, the
curriculum was praised for being broad and balanced
across both Key Stages. However, we have identified
that issues with the current timetable such as split
groups, three hour lessons amongst others, are
impacting negatively on student learning.
In order to address these issues, the timetable has
been revised. With effect from January 5th, there will
be no split teaching groups and only a limited number
of double and triple lessons. We are also introducing a
programme of Citizenship into the curriculum for Years 7
and 8 and some students in Years 10 and 11. On the last
day of the autumn term, your son will receive his new
timetable and we would appreciate your support by
making sure he has familiarised himself with it before he
returns in January for the new term.
We are confident that these changes will benefit the
learning of all students and accelerate their progress
during the remainder of this academic year.
If you have any questions relating to this matter please
feel free to contact Mr Williams, Assistant Headteacher.
We wish you all a peaceful Christmas holiday and look
forward to working with you and your son in 2015!
Questions you may be asking yourself: What is safe?
When is the right age to go online and play with others?
Which video games should I allow them to play? How
can I make sure they are not taking big risks that could
harm them?
It’s important to consider the availability of parental
controls on any games console. Setting parental controls
can help such as:
• Limiting the amount of time spent online
• Managing the content your son can see including
disturbing graphics like bloodshed etc
• Limiting the age rating of the games they can play
• Managing who they can play with online
Some, like the Xbox 360, can set up profiles for
different gamers in the family. Many of these setups
are password or pin protected. However, get some
form of agreement or dialogue that helps you monitor
and manage your son’s online time. Visit ‘Get Games
Smart PACT’ online as it will help guide you through
that negotiation so that both you and your son have an
agreed plan.
All video games sold in the UK are age and content
rated. The system in the UK and EU is the PEGI rating
system: this uses reliable age ranking and content
symbols that are easy to understand.
Symbols used in the PEGI rating system:
Before you agree to buy that game, make sure you
understand the environment your son is going to playing
in for the next few weeks… visit http://www.pegi.info
to get more information about the PEGI rating system
and search for the rating of a video game to check its
suitable before you buy.
An example of the PEGI rating for a video game:
A Few Helpful ICT Tips
Mrs Finucane with a few useful insights
for the Christmas period
Technology and the online world are becoming an
intrinsic part of many young people’s lives and, just
like the physical world, is another place where they
can spend a lot of their time. So with Christmas
looming ever closer, you may be faced with the task of
unravelling the complexities of your son’s request for
the latest console or video game.
You can download the PEGI app for both Apple or
Android and have the latest information at your
fingertips whilst online or in the store.
Gaming is a great activity that is fun for all the family,
especially at Christmas. But be aware that extended
periods of individual gaming online is not healthy for
young developing bodies and brains. Research shows
that boys are twice as likely as girls to game online and
for longer periods.
Be prepared as part of your ground rules to check and
intervene if you think it is excessive; try to ensure the
parents of your son’s friends are also informed and what
your expectations are. As your son demonstrates better
online behaviours then you can empower them to the
point where they won’t need your intervention.
Happy Christmas and Happy Gaming!
Marvellous Maths!
Mr Slack provides tips on keeping yourself
warm this holiday
Why isn’t every man in a red suit with a beard Father
Christmas?
Because correlation doesn’t imply Claus-ality... oh dear!
Happy Christmas from the mathematics department!
This term has been a busy one, particularly for Year 11
who have been working hard toward their GCSE mock
examinations. Year 10 have shown a good approach to
the start of their GCSE courses and, along with Years
7-9, have enjoyed exploring areas of mathematics and
making connections. It is looking like there will be some
excellent end of term grades this year!
Most recently Year 7 have been exploring an intriguing
area of mathematics called Pentominoes, Year 8 have
been looking to break world records, Year 9 have
explored accuracy and how big things could possibly
be, whilst Year 10 have been deciding whether this is a
perfect world.
a good opportunity for you to see how you can support
them at home.
Coming up in the New Year, the Mathematics
Department will have a new website which will help
support students in their mathematical journey at
the Lordswood Schools. This will also allow you to see
advice, additional support, what’s coming up, work from
the students and to see more about what the teachers
are working on.
Whilst away from school for the Christmas holidays,
it is of course important to make sure that students
do not forget all of the excellent work they have been
doing this term. Particularly important for Year 11 who
will be sitting another mock examination just before
February half term (five weeks after they get back!) So
here are my top tips to make sure you keep yourself
(mathematically) warm this December:
• Spend between 20 and 30 minutes each day doing
little bits of maths.
• Do not work on problems you find easy – if it’s easy,
you’re not making mistakes and so not learning
anything.
• The only way to learn maths is to do maths. Do not
sit and “read” a revision guide or your workbook;
actually apply it to new problems. These can be
found:
- KS3: www.mathsworkout.co.uk (Username: Lordswoodgs; Password: odd57)
- Year 10: Your subscription to the Nimbl Application
- Year 11: Your CGP workbook (answers can be found on the VLE)
• If you have been provided with the structured
‘Keeping yourself warm’ booklet, make sure that it is
ready to hand back at the start of next term.
Some Christmas cracker jokes to keep you entertained:
Four Year 12 students have been working hard to start
their Engineering in Education scheme, with the school
again working with Network Rail. This time students are
exploring alternative ballast to go underneath railway
lines to extend the lifetime of the stones and avoid
spending time and money replacing them so regularly.
As part of their work, students are about to undertake
a three-day residential at the University of Birmingham
to use their facilities and work closely with engineers
in order to work towards a solution to the problem.
The four sixth-formers will also experience what it is
like to live away from home for two nights, in student
accommodation, as a way to experience a little part of
university life. We look forward to hearing how they get
on in the next Newsletter!
A gang of decimal figures are on the run. The police are
trying to round them up.
Teachers have been working on exploring how marking
can be used to help students improve their performance
further. Many students have described how they have
found the new marking slips useful and they have
helped them make progress. Please encourage your
son to make use of the teacher’s feedback and identify
where and how they need to improve. This also provides
Year 7s have been exploring the power of religious
symbolism and Year 8s have been exploring holy books
and forms of worship. Special thanks go to Awais Majid,
Ibrahim Dib, Tahseen Islam, Hammad Khan, Usman
Rashid, Mohammed Tahir and Hamza Sharif for showing
their class how and why Muslims care for the Holy
Qur’an. As students recited from the Qur’an, others
listened so respectfully. For a moment, you could hear
“3 ish” – Humble Pi
Why did I divide sin by tan? Just ‘cos.
3 out of 2 people have trouble with fractions.
There are 10 types of people in this world. Those that
understand binary...
What’s On In RE?
A review of the Autumn Term in RE
a pin drop! Congratulations to Ms Field’s Year 8 class for
their wonderful presentations and display on religious
stories.
Year 9s have been grappling with the controversial issue
of the sanctity of life. Heated debates have taken place
on the topic of animal rights. Congratulations to the
following boys who have developed their debating skills.
Star performers include Kamal Carter, Dakota Daley,
Abdullahi Farrah, Brandon Haycock, Afaq Hussain, Daniel
Lal, Ali Mallah, Mohammed Mirza, Ajene Pinnock,
Faisal Rashid, Joshua Raymond, Jaquarn Roberts, Sherif
Sobeih, Shaan Wasim and Omar White.
Year 10s have wrestled with the issues of conscience,
situation ethics and genetic engineering – serious
stuff! Ms Walters and Ms Field have had to shout,
‘Order, order!’ on more than one occasion to restore
peace to their classrooms. Star performers are Ahmed
Amjad, Michael Babajide, Jordan Dawkins, Dona-Hue
Dixon, Hasan Ilyas, Ibrahim Mansoor, Vivek Parekh,
Muhammad Raza and Demari Roberts.
Congratulations to all Year 11s who have persevered
in revising for their mock exams. Star performers
include Amman Alvi, Usman Abdulwahid, Jayden Bryan
Walker, Nathan Gregory, Vijay Kapila , Cameron Kooner,
Deuvante Nkomo, Noelito Parina and Dejarn White.
Philosopher of the term is Prabjhot Panesar who always
makes us think more deeply.
Applied Learning
Launches At LBS!
Mrs Machin brings news of enrichment
activities for all students
This term we have launched Applied Learning afternoon
for students at the school. Students have been able to
take part in football training, archery and self defence
after school on Wednesday afternoons. The sessions are
free to attend and aim to give students some fantastic
opportunities for enrichment. The boys have been
enthusiastic about learning new skills, improving their
fitness and socialising with each other.
“We are really enjoying running these football sessions
and it is evident that for these boys to have positive
extra-curricular activities is really important.”
Steve Hirst, Coach with RISE Multi Sports.
During the Spring Term we will be offering first aid
training, boxing and DJ skills. You can find more
information about the programme on the Lordswood
One of our students tries his hand at a spot of archery
Acceptable Drinks
To Be Consumed In
School
Mr Carty with guidance on drinks
permitted in school
Please remind your son that only bottles of unflavoured
still water of a certain size are allowed to be brought to
school. Bottles of the size marked with the “X” are not
permitted.
1 litre
or more
X
500ml
or less
√
500ml
√
An increasing number of students are bringing large
bottles of fizzy pop which are both unhealthy and
inappropriate. In some cases, the large bottles appear to
take priority in school bags over books, pencil cases and
other equipment which is essential for learning!
Please support us in helping your son to adopt a healthy
lifestyle!
German Christmas
Traditions
Stories to explain our long held Christmas
beliefs
6th December is Saint Nikolaus’ Day!
In Germany, 6th December is an important day for
children. On the evening of 5th December, children
place a boot or shoe outside their bedroom doors,
hoping that Nikolaus will fill it with presents.
Who was Saint Nikolaus?
Saint Nikolaus was a bishop who lived in the fourth
Century and became famous for his good deeds.
One story tells of how he secretly helped three poor
sisters. He didn’t want the sisters to find out that he
was helping them, so he climbed onto the roof of their
house and dropped three lumps of gold down the
chimney. In Germany, the story goes that the three
pieces of gold fell into three shoes. This is the reason
why children in Germany get their presents from Saint
Nikolaus in shoes. In the UK, the story goes that the
three pieces of gold fell into three stockings. That’s why
UK children hang out stockings for Santa Claus!
German fact - Did you know?
When Europeans became Christians they still kept the
evergreen traditions as part of the Christmas festival.
The custom of having a Christmas tree in the home
came from Germany. In medieval times German people
had a ‘Paradise tree’. This was a fir tree hung with
apples to remember Adam and Eve in the Garden of
Eden. These trees were set up on December 24th and
candles were often added to represent Jesus Christ.
In 1800 Queen Charlotte, the German born wife of
George III, as far as we know had the first Christmas tree
in Britain at a Christmas Day party at Windsor. Members
of the Royal family had Christmas trees long before
ordinary people. Princess Victoria had one in Kensington
Palace in 1832.
for the opening goal. Keeping our shape, Andre ripped
their defence apart to make it 2-0. Following on from
that, Sahel set Kaheem through on goal and tapped it in
3-0. Straight away from kick off we snatched the ball,
and laid it to Sahel. He put Abade through on goal and
he scored. They quickly had an attack going but our
defence was too strong. Out of nowhere, Andre Fyfe
was one on one and scored to make it 5-0.
When we came into the second half we were more
settled. Bournville were holding well until Abade got
the ball and put Meky through, who then scored. As
they were on an attack, Andre grabbed the ball, ran
down the line and got us a corner. As the ball came in,
Andre McLeish headed it in to make it 7-0.
Bournville burst into life and got a corner. As the ball
came in, an unmarked man made it 7-1. Our heads
were still high and straight away Mikha set Andre Fyfe
up who scored a great goal. As they took their kick
off, we snatched the ball and Credo ran through their
midfield and laid Kaheem through on goal. He scored a
good goal which made it 9-1.
We finished the match defensively and concluded the
match. Lordswood were victorious!
Matthew Champken
Villa Cup debut...
The person responsible for Christmas trees becoming
popular in Britain was the German Prince Albert who
was Queen Victoria’s husband. In 1848 he allowed ‘The
Illustrated London News’ to print a picture of the Royal
Family gathered round their Christmas tree. After that
everyone wanted one. Victorian trees were decorated
with candles, fancy cakes and sweets.
Lordswood 5 Bartley Green 1
Lordswood annihilated Bartley Green with some lovely
football that put them 4 nil up before half time. Some
slick football played by us showed that we want to build
from last year’s cup and league victory. Gevick Lusmaba
scored 2 lovely goals that showed his strength and skill.
Mansoor Ahmed scored the goal of the game where he
played a lovely one two with Ellis Moore and he tucked
the ball under the keeper. The final goal of the half
came from a corner where Akheem Rose towered above
the Bartley defence to make it four. Bartley did get a
goal back when a long clearance from their centre half
bounced over Kasum and went in. The second half was
played in more of a training session mode. Lordswood
were keeping the ball well and Bartley had given up.
The final goal of the game came from Gevick when he
placed his shot beyond the Bartley keeper to make it
5-1. Through to the next round!
Football News
MOM: Gevick Lusmaba
Goal scorers: Gevick Lusamba 3, Mansoor Ahmed,
Akheem Rose
Match reports from our unstoppable
football teams
Year 10 Football
Back to the First Match of the Season...
Lordswood vs Bournville
Feeling confident starting our first match of the season,
we pressed the opposition. Rushing down the wing,
Andre Fyfe crossed the ball in and Abade tapped it in
The Cup run continues........
Lordswood 5 Alderbrook 1
Lordswood cruised past an Alderbrook side that had
2 academy players (one from Aston Villa and the
other from Walsall). The game started at a brisk pace
and Lordswood started the game without their own
academy star Kamol Campbell and centre back Demari
Roberts. Therefore, star striker Akheem Rose stepped in
at centre back whilst in came Dante Morgan to partner
Omar McKenzie up front.
The first chance of the game fell to Dante Morgan who
turned on smartly in the box to only see his shot easily
held by the visiting keeper. Most of the action was
played in the middle of the park where captain and
West Bromwich academy player Gevick Lusmaba was
pulling the strings whilst winning his one to one battle
with Alderbrook’s and Walsall’s player. A shot from Leo
Robinson after a neat one-two with Ellis Moore hit the
cross bar and then all of the sudden, a clearance up
field opened the Lordswood back line and Alderbrook’s
strong pacy striker tucked the ball under the on rushing
Kasum Hussain. This goal spurred on Alderbrook and
for the next 10 minutes we were facing a battle that we
had not experienced. After weathering the storm a snap
shot from Gevick whisked past the post and a good shot
from Fabakary Drammeh was well saved.
Half time: Lordswood 0 Alderbrook 1
After a tactical change from Mr Arshad at half time we
approached this game with a new back line. Panashe
Nyakzino came into the back line to partner Fabakary
whilst Akheem went back up front to partner Omar and
Tarique Hunter came on for Dante.
This seemed to have provided the fast flowing football
that we are used to. Gevick and Akheem linked up well
with Gevick hitting the post. The next set of action led
to Lordswood dominating the game. Akheem received
a good pass from Mansoor on the left, he left the
defender stuck and smashed the ball in the bottom
corner of the net to make it 1 nil. 1-1 back in the
game!!!
Straight away from the kick off, Mansoor dispossessed
the Alderbrook winger and played a through ball that
seemed to pass all of the Lordswood attack. However,
Akheem chased down the ball and beat the Alderbrook
keeper to the ball and was fouled in the box. Penalty!!!
Up steps Gevick but the shot is saved, however the
rebound was tucked in by Gevick to ensure Lordswood
took the lead. This made us press for a third as we felt
that Alderbrook were left shell shocked with the pace
of the game and especially the problem Akheem was
causing with his pace and trickery. This is exactly what
happened; three more goals in the space of 10 minutes
booked our seat into the next round against Park Hall
Academy. First Akheem turned two defenders on the
byline and squeezed the ball under the keeper to make
it 3 and then Gevick’s long range drive snuck into the
bottom corner to make it 4. The icing on the cake and
the goal of the game belonged to the hat trick hero
Akheem when he ran at the heart of the Alderbrook
defence played a one two and curled the ball into the
roof of the net. 5-1 job done!
MOM- Akheem Rose
Goal scorers: Akheem Rose 3, Gevick Lusmaba 2
Team line up. Kasum Hussain (GK), Mansoor Ahmed,
Akheem Rose, Raheel Mushtaq (Panashe Nyakzino HT) ,
Tyrese Esty Marshall, Ellis Moore, Leo Robinson, Gevick
Lusmaba, Dante Morgan (Tarique Hunter HT), Omar
McKenzie, Fabakary Drammeh
Our victorious football team
News From The
Library
Mrs Petersen gives us an update
The Year 8 English group 8xy/En1 have been reading
‘Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ by John Boyne. Upon
completion of the novel all the students took the
Reading Practice quiz on the book and I am pleased to
say that all of the boys successfully passed the quiz.
I read the story ‘Respect!’ by Michaela Morgan to 7xy/
En1 and the boys all took the Reading Practice quiz,
again all boys successfully passed this quiz.
Congratulations to Bilal Ali 9W and Shaan Wasim 9Y –
these boys have achieved Word Millionaire status this
term.
The Tuesday Lego Club is again very popular. Chess is
proving very popular this term with boys from Year 8
through to Year 11 coming to play on Wednesdays and
Fridays.
One of the many Lego creations to come from Lego Club
Debate Mate
Idrees Ahmed with details of the debating
programme
Debate Mate is a programme run by students from The
University of Birmingham. Postgraduate international
student, Satish studying his second Masters now
in Politics supports Year 9 and 10 students from
Lordswood Girls’ as well as students from Year 8, 9 and
10 at Lordswood Boys’ School every Tuesday. Both
teams are growing in confidence each week and are
being effectively trained to enter formal debates against
other schools.
Debate Mate has many learning outcomes, from
listening and responding to each other to understanding
and empathising with arguments that can deal
with some controversial issues! Each session is very
different from another. So far, we have looked at
motions surrounding the ‘Battle of the Genders’ to
different topics like ‘how vegetables should be the
only part of our diets’. Many prizes are up for grab at
the competitions and this year, tournaments begin in
January/February.
Please do pop in to Room 208 (at LBS) on Tuesday after
school if you are interested.
front of them. Year 9s are currently studying Figures,
Faces and Movement as their topic in art so the group
of students were asked to produce a series of quick
sketches of each other in different poses in short time
limits set by the artist. After Christmas, students will be
extending their understanding of how the body moves
and how to record these movements using different
techniques.
Year 11 Art Clubs
Year 11 do you need to improve your artistic skills or
would you like to learn new skills? If so, then help is at
hand. Art clubs will be taking place on a weekly basis
after Christmas at the following times:
Monday lunchtime in room 100 at LBS
Tuesday and Thursday afternoons 3pm-4.15pm in S12 at
the Girls’ School.
Happenings In History I-Witness
Mrs Hall fills us in on what’s been going
on this term
The new GCSE revision club has been a success with
some students already seeing the positive effects in the
results of their mock exams. With only one more paper
to study, the Year 11s are now on the countdown to
their first exam in June. We now have a record number
of students taking GCSE History in Year 10 who are
studying the Cold war and will start their controlled
assessment later in the year.
Year 9 are currently focusing on source work and
analysis skills through people and events in history. We
are hoping to have a guest speaker in school during the
spring term to talk to the students about World War II
which will assist them with the 20th century conflict
unit. This is an important term for all historians as they
will be choosing their GCSE option subjects soon!
Years 7 and 8 have been looking at Ancient Britain and
Civil rights respectively, concentrating on the structure
of language and other historical skills that feature in the
curriculum. Year 7 will be moving onto the Medieval
period focusing on the impact of monarchy and the
challenges that faced the people of Britain. Year 8 will
move onto looking in depth at significant British events.
We can’t wait to start the new term and all the exciting
topics we are going to study!
Art Update
An update from the art department
The Big Draw
In October, 14 Year 9 students took part in a workshop
with artist Tom Jones as part of The Big Draw. Tom Jones
showed students how to look at objects differently and
encouraged them to study the lines and shapes that
they could see rather than what they assumed was in
Mr Butler with a club update
‘God Club’, as students call it, continues every Monday
after school. This term we’ve been reading through the
last part of John’s gospel, looking at the eye-witness
accounts of the last week of Jesus’ life, and what John
says about his death and resurrection. Students’
questions range from: “Did Jesus die?” and “Did he rise
again?” to “Who is God?” and “Where is my grandad
now he’s dead?”
Next term in the best-selling, most read, most coveredup, highly controversial sequel to John’s gospel:
Revelation - What does Jesus looks like now? All
welcome!
Expansion In D&T
News of developments in the design and
technology department
This year has seen different schemes of work
implemented at KS3, bringing a more ‘hands on’
approach to the students’ learning. The new projects
mirror the requirements called for at GCSE level,
meaning students are stretched more during lessons
and are working towards the examination format from
Year 7 onwards.
Textiles has been brought back into the curriculum
giving students different manufacturing skills, as well
as an outlet for more creative flair within design and
technology. All projects now follow the same format of
designing in depth, then making the designed product,
through to an extensive evaluation showing what has
been learnt and what the students could improve on.
At KS4, the department is running product design,
engineering and resistant materials, where students
are moving on to their final designs through to
manufacturing their overall GCSE product.
Next year students in KS4 will be taught two GCSE
subjects, allowing more in-depth product analysis and
an increased emphasis on manufacturing a final product
with greater skill and accuracy, allowing each student
more time on the making section of the overall project.
At KS5, the department delivers Level 3 Engineering to
an ever growing cohort of sixth formers. The numbers
of students opting for the course has grown massively
this year and, due to the popularity of the course, it is
expected that the numbers will rise again next year.
It is nice to see that more girls are opting for the
subject and are looking forward to pursuing a career in
engineering at a later date, as they have a huge desire
to become the next engineers the country is crying out
for. Results in the department are on the up and each
year the teachers are striving to help students fulfil their
true potential.
A Christmas Party For
Our EAL Students
Miss Grove with a report on a festive
celebration
ON Tuesday 16th December, the EAL department hosted
a Christmas Party for all EAL students.
The hope was to make those students who have not
been in the UK for a long time understand our love for
cheesy Christmas songs, mince pies and tinsel.
Everyone involved in the party really enjoyed
themselves and there was not a mince pie left over at
the end!
Year 8 Question The
Police!
What happened when a groups of Year 8
students visited police HQ
We were invited to attend a Young Persons Question
Time, at the Tally Ho Centre, on November 4th. This
visit gave us the opportunity to express ourselves and
pose questions to a panel of Police Officers, from West
Midlands Police Force.
There were approximately ten schools from across
Birmingham, invited to this prestigious event. On
arrival, we were shown to various activities, where we
learnt about different subjects and discovered how the
Police Force deal with different incidents, which the
boys thought a great idea, as it allowed them to meet
a large number of the students and officers, who also
attended the event. These activities provided Shing with
the opportunity to participate in community focused
activities, James participated with alcohol awareness
and Shad with robbery and knife crime. During this time
Shing learnt some of the many ways of how we can
communicate our concerns to Police, along with how
Police Officers communicated with each other. James
felt the full impact of alcohol as he wore beer goggles,
which allowed him to better understand how it feels
to be drunk (without drinking any alcohol). Meanwhile
Shad learnt about the differences between theft and
robbery, and how it could potentially be prevented.
Overall the boys felt the day was very informative and
allowed them to gain a new wealth of information,
that they can apply to their individual lives. This is
particularly evident with Shing as we saw him enjoy
learning about a Police Officer’s job, stating that he’s
even considering become a Police Officer himself. Shad
enjoyed his visit to The Tally Ho, as it made him feel
more confident around the Police and James thoroughly
enjoyed learning all the scientific facts surrounding
alcoholism. Plus we all had a lovely lunch!
Year 12 Visit The Skills
Show At The NEC
Mrs Baker with a careers update
The Skills Show, the nation’s largest skills and
careers event, provided inspiration and advice about
future careers to almost 74,000 people at the NEC,
Birmingham last month, with over 150 of these from
Lordswood Sixth Form. The Skills Show featured a wide
range of hands-on experiences and skills competitions
designed to help shape the futures and transform the
lives of those who attended.
The enormous NEC Skills Show
At the heart of The Skills Show, is the ‘Have a Go’
concept, which provides the opportunity to try
“bite sized” skills experiences, with the 49 official
stations offering the chance to try careers as varied as
bricklaying, floristry, web design and media make up. A
comprehensive programme of Spotlight talks across the
event provided real-life insights into careers from “real
people doing real jobs”, as well as famous names from
the world of business and industry. So how does this
experience fit into Birmingham? Read on.
The Birmingham Labour Market
Since August 2014 there have been 2456 live vacancies
available in Birmingham from a variety of employers in
and around the City. The apprenticeship vacancies are
made up from • Business, Administration and Law (1157)
• Retail and Commercial Enterprise (423)
• Health, Public Services and Care (279)
• Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies (224)
• Information and Communication Technology (120)
• Arts, Media and Publishing (45)
• Construction, planning and the Built Environment
(26)
• Agriculture, Horticulture and Animal Care (12)
• Leisure, Travel and Tourism (11)
• Education and Training (7)
There were 10,888 jobs advertised in Birmingham
in August 2014. The occupations with the highest
number of vacancies were for Programmers & Software
Developers (372) and Nurses (353).
Amongst the skills required for the jobs advertised were
sales, contract management, business development
along with a demand for specific computer
programming skills.
New Street Gateway and High Speed 2 College are two
major developments in Birmingham which will shape
employment demands for the future. Six other key
sectors are likely to experience growth or to face skills
demands –
• Health and Social Care
• Food and Drink
• Construction
• Transport and Logistics
• Retail and Financial
• Professional Services
Five Priority growth sectors have been identified in and
around the City:
1. Advanced Manufacturing (using a high level of
design or scientific skills to produce innovative and
technologically complex products and processes;
eg composites manufacture / development, plastic
electronics and nanotechnology, advanced processes
in automotive, aerospace, metals etc)
2. ICT (particularly ICT security, informatics, mobile
& wireless, digital content for entertainment /
training, high level leadership, relationship & project
management, information analytics)
3. Life Sciences (pharmaceutical, medical
biotechnology and medical technology)
4. Environmental Technologies (technologies related
to sustainability, including renewable energy
technologies, recycling, waste management, water
management, specialist IT.)
5. Cultural Buzz (creative activity e.g. film, television,
fashion, plus theatres, cinemas, retail, bars,
restaurants, tourism and visitor attractions.
Successful planning for the future means getting as
much information as you can and using it to help you
make decisions. The key is research!
Our Geographers Visit
Bewdley
Jazon Ryner
Zeeshan Mahmood
Mohammed Saahil
Di Wu
Muhammed Tayyib Hussain
Ajay Kashyap
Liam Sayers
James Smith
Sing Wong
Yaaseen Baksh
Hushameldian Idris
Earlier this term Year 11s undertook their GCSE field trip
in order to gather data for their Controlled Assessment.
Due to the large number of students opting for
geography we had to organise two trips to Bewdley on
consecutive Fridays. A range of techniques were tested,
from traffic counts to car tax disc surveys. The first trip
went off without any problems and a great day was had
by all, but unfortunately bad weather curtailed activities
on the second trip. Fortunately enough data was
gathered and we hope that students will be able to use
this effectively in their Controlled Assessments.
Mr Mansfield, Year 9:
Omar White
Abdullahi Farrah
Shaan Wasim
Mustafa Haravi
Kaleem Riaz
Damian Lau
Tavonga Chikandwa
Ajene Pinnock
Muheen Sharif
Mr Arshad, Year 10:
Manish Sohal
Jawed Khan Zaden
Tyrese Esty Marshall
Vishal Nar
Mohammed Adnan
Andreos Powell
Panashe Nyazika
Aaron Edoghogho
Adam Iqbal
Akheem Rose
A report on a recent field trip
Ms Field, Year 11:
Cameron Kooner
Usman Abdulwahid
Vijay Kapila
Shane Kennedy
Amaan Alvi
Ishmam Ul-Islam
Paavan Chohan
Noelito Parina
Rajeet Bansel
Ravinder Chahal
Well done on a good Autumn term and as a team we
would like to wish you all a restful break and a merry
Christmas!
LBS Gets Festive!
Beautiful Bewdley
A Computing Update
Details of extra sessions for students
Students decorating the LBS Christmas
tree
The start of December saw a group of students
decorating the Lordswood Boys’ School Christmas tree.
The tree is up next to the main entrance and has helped
all students get into the festive spirit!
Extra sessions are being run to support KS3 and KS4
students every Monday evening in room 103. Sessions
for KS4 and KS5 take place on Monday lunchtimes and
after school on a Monday and Tuesday.
Autumn Awards
Congratulations from Mrs O’Shaughnessy
It has been a busy Autumn Term and there has been
a lot of praise awarded by staff. Overall, there have
been 5100 merit points awarded. Of those, Year 7
have received 964, Year 8 1331, Year 9 1327, Year 10
931 and Year 11 547. The Heads of Year have chosen
to recognise a number of students in their year groups
for their hard work and effort in lessons as well as the
progress they have made.
Mr Wells, Year 7:
Habeeb Ali
Akif Aksa
Yousuf Nour
Tayib Malik
Mr Day, Year 8:
Shad Abdul Karim
Reuban Clarke
Ibrahim Dib
Amin Jassey
Students soon got into the swing of decorating the tree!
Lordswood Gallery
Christmas 2014
Artworks produced by our talented students
Diary Dates
Weds 17th -
Dec
Fri 19th
-
Dec Year 11 Forward Thinking
Celebration 3.00 - 7.30pm
Mon 5th
-
Jan 2015
School open for term,
normal school day
W/C 5th
-
Jan
Year 12 mock exams
School breaks up for
Christmas 12noon
Thurs 15th -
Year 11 Parents’ Evening
Jan
4.00 - 6.30pm
-
Post 16 IAG Meetings
4.00 - 6.30pm
Fri 23rd - -
Fri 30th Jan
Ski trip Years 7 - 10
Fri 29th & -
Fri 30th Jan
Year 10 - 13 drama trip
to London
Mon 2nd -
Feb
Whole school PSHEE day
W/C 2nd
Feb
Year 13 mock exams
-
Fri 13th - -
INSET - school closed
Febto students
Mon 16th - -
Fri 20th Feb
Spring half term
Mon 23rd -
Feb
School open,
normal school day
Mon 23rd - -
French trip Years 8 and 9
Fri 27th Feb
Thurs 26th -
Feb
Year 9 Taster day
Thurs 26th -
Feb
Year 9 Parents’ Evening
4.00 - 6.30pm
Weds 4th -
Year 8 Forward Thinking
MarEvent
Mon 9th -
Mar
-
Year 9 options deadline
Thurs 19th &-
School production
Fri 20th Mar
Thurs 26th -
Mar
Year 8 Parents’ Evening 4.00 - 6.30pm
Fri 27th - -
School breaks up for
Mar
Easter at 3.00pm,
normal school day
30th Mar - -
Easter holidays
Fri 10th Apr
Mon 13th -
INSET - school closed
Aprto students
Tues 14th -
School open for term,
Apr
normal school day
Lordswood News