EXECUTIVE hEADTEACHER'S BLOG - 15th march 2024

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comic relief 2024

Welcome to my weekly blog - I hope you and your families are well and have had a good week!

Today, our school has been buzzing with activities to support Comic Relief. We kicked off with a samosa sale, tantalising taste buds while raising funds. Students and staff joined in a non-uniform event, adding splashes of colour and fun to the day. The excitement peaked with a teacher vs. student plank and push-up challenge, showcasing our community spirit and determination. At lunchtime, laughter filled the air as students took aim in the sponge the teacher event, all in good humour for a great cause. Additionally, our meal deals featured red-nosed themes, further highlighting our commitment to Comic Relief. I look forward to updating you with the total we have raised in my blog next week. For now, please enjoy the photos from today below.

I would like to kindly request parents and carers to cooperate with us in ensuring the safety of Lordswood Road at the end of the day. Please park your cars thoughtfully, avoiding obstruction of the pelican crossing and neighbouring driveways. While we understand many students are picked up from school, it's imperative we collaborate to maintain a safe and unobstructed highway. The end of the school day is particularly busy; your assistance in ensuring optimal safety for our students, including your own, is greatly appreciated.

Additionally, as we approach the final week of term, please note that Friday, March 22nd, will be a half-day, with school ending at 12:10pm. Furthermore, students eligible for Free School Meals will have the opportunity to purchase food during breaktime. We resume classes after the Easter holiday on Monday, April 8th, expecting all students to attend as usual, ready to commence learning promptly at 8:30am. We encourage students to arrive by 8:15am to ensure they start the first day back on time.

Weekly Highlight from the Head of School!

Dear Parents & Carers,

Jacqueline Kennedy once said, "There are many little ways to enlarge your world. Love of books is the best of all." During Literacy Time at our school, I witness this sentiment come to life every day. It's truly heartening to see students engrossed in reading, collectively fostering a vibrant culture of literacy for pleasure and passion. This collective effort is remarkable and achievable only when we all share the goal of encouraging and supporting our students to immerse themselves in reading. I'm particularly impressed by the support students offer each other, such as during spelling practice for the Spelling Bee, expertly organized by Ms. Savani. Practice indeed makes perfect! As we witness Year 11 students thriving under the compassionate care of our staff, it's essential to consider how we can better understand their needs and make a positive impact on their futures.

For parents looking to support their child's reading journey, creating a quiet, accessible reading space at home and setting an example by reading regularly are crucial. Additionally, limiting screen time and rewarding reading efforts can further encourage a love for books that extends far beyond academic success.

Please take a moment to appreciate the images below, encapsulating the essence of our school's dedication to fostering a love for reading. Wishing you a delightful weekend ahead.

Mrs Kang,

Head of School.

An amazing week in the LBS Science department - From Mr Jackson

That's right! This week in the LBS Science department we have been celebrating British Science Week 2024 and inspiring the brilliant young minds of our students. This year's theme is ‘Time’ and the department has created several exciting experiments to examine this concept.

The first experiment was ‘The Iodine Clock’. Students needed to carefully measure volumes of Hydrogen Peroxide, Sodium Thiosulfate and Sulfuric acid amongst other chemicals to create a two-stage chemical reaction. First the Sodium Thiosulfate reduces the Iodide back into Iodine before it can react with the starch to turn a startling blue-black colour in the blink of an eye. By varying a few ingredients carefully, the time of the reaction can be varied and the power of Chemistry clearly seen!

Next, we went on to aerodynamics and speed calculations. Here the students built either parachutes or paper helicopters and then using speed equals distance divided by time calculated the speed of their falling object. Different weights could then be applied to measure the effect of different masses on speed. Discussions about the importance and links of Mathematics and Engineering in Science are everywhere in this practical.

Students also looked at ‘Timelines in Science’ and created timelines of great discoveries in Science such as the telescope, vaccinations and the railroad locomotive. They discussed the importance of Science and hopefully were inspired to become the Scientists of the future.

Finally, our thanks must go to our fantastic technician Mr Atallah. He has worked tirelessly this week to support all of the activities across all the year groups. He has prepared hundreds of bottles of acids and alkalis, iodides and peroxides! We could not run the Science department without him.

Literacy Mentors

Year 8 Students had their first Reading Mentoring session in the library through our volunteering programme. We were joined by 7 volunteers from Irwin Mitchell and their corporate volunteer scheme and from the University of Birmingham. This is all through our ongoing partnership with the Literacy Trust Charity. We played some literacy games and read some exciting new books as the students receive mentoring as well as literacy support. The volunteers were blown away by how our students approached developing their literacy and how their confidence grew throughout the session. They even wrote lovely messages and praise cards for the students to take home to congratulate them. We are so proud of our partnership and our committed volunteers, we love bringing our community to Lordswood Boys on our literacy journey.

Pastoral Updates

Thank you for reading our pastoral update below and for your dedication to guiding your son's behaviour both in and around the school. Your support helps foster a positive environment for learning and personal development. We appreciate your partnership in promoting responsibility and excellence.

HT4 WEEK 4 15.03.24.pdf

College Updates

Drumroll, please! It's time for our second big college event, and this one's a real game-changer – DODGEBALL! Get ready to dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge again! Mark your calendars for Thursday 21st March, because we're bringing the heat to the Sports Hall.

NOS Updates - 15 March 2024

The National Online Safety programme publishes a weekly #WakeUpWednesday update for parents/carers. This weeks update relates to 'DEVELOPING HEALTHY SLEEP PATTERNS'.

For children and young people, low-quality sleep can become a serious issue. It has been theorised that poor sleep can have a significant impact on children’s brain development, affecting them for the rest of their lives. A healthy – and consistent – sleeping pattern, therefore, is incredibly important for children and young people’s wellbeing.

With the stresses and distractions that can present themselves to youngsters, it can be tricky to ensure they’re in the best mindset to wind down in the evenings for the rejuvenating rest that they need. The right approach, however, can give them a better chance of cultivating a healthy sleeping pattern. Our guide has some practical tips on helping them to achieve exactly that.

I hope your find this information useful.

healthy-sleeping-habits.pdf

Dance, Performing Arts and Extra-curricular updates

From Mrs McKeon, Director of Learning of Foundations Studies and Extra-curricular learning

Performing Arts

Well done to our Year 10 students on completing their first Drama exam. We are very proud of them and they have made exceptional progress since starting the course in September. Year 8 were lucky enough to be a part of the audience and their feedback was very positive. The students will be working on the evaluation of their performance next week which will require them to analyse their performance skills and techniques, and how they contributed towards their character.

KS3 are currently exploring and learning different dances from a variety of cultures. There will be a chance to perform these on a cultural day after Easter. If any students are interested, then please inform Mrs McKeon.

Extra-Curricular

There have been lots of enquiries from parents this week regarding our Extra-Curricular provision. Please find the timetable below of the clubs that we offer.

EC Poster.pdf

Forward thinking visit to Birmingham University, From Ms Savani

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of taking 5 year 9 students to the University of Birmingham, as part of the Forward-thinking project.

The day gave them an insight into university life, encouraging them to think about life after LBS. The boys watched a drama performance, tried a society and played some squash!

The students were an absolute credit to the school and were a pleasure to take. Below you will see some pictures of what they got up to.

Sport fixtures and training schedules for week beginning 18 March 2024

Weekly sports round-up from Mr Janes, Director of Sport

Primary Provision

Last night we hosted eight of our local Primary Schools for their Regional Football Tournament. With the current weather we have been having, it was great to see so many young players being able to compete against one another. We look forward to hosting the next event in a few weeks time.

Year 10 Basketball

On Monday night, Mr Noble took his Year 10 Basketball over to Kings Norton Boys' School for a League Fixture. The boys have been on a winning streak this year and were undefeated going into the game. Kings Norton proved a strong opposition and with LBS missing one of their key players, the game swung in the favour of the home side. A 46-33 loss meant it was the first defeat of the season for the team, they will be looking to bounce back over the next couple of weeks.

Year 7 Football

Mr Janes' Year 7 team are set to host Harborne Academy next Thursday in a League Fixture. The students trained last night and it was great to see so many students dedicating their time and working hard to impress. Thank you to the Year 8 students who came down to support their peers with the session.

ESA Cricket

We hosted King Edwards Handsworth in an Indoor Cricket League fixture, we batted first and posted a highly competitive 97, Sachin Banda (17*), Eron Nimseth (28*) and Yusuf Habib-Khan (8). Handsworth made a good start, seeing off our first 4 overs for 35 runs. However, quick wickets fell thanks to Sachin (2), Wasi Abbas (2) & Navjot Singh (1). Lordswood won by 29 runs.

Player of the match, Wasi Abbas, who stepped up to play at the very last minute and excelled on debut.

Cricket continues on Monday 18th April, where our U12's & U13's host Bishop Challoner. If the U13's are successful, we will finish the season as League winners.

New PE Kit Reminder

As announced in the blog on 15th December, click here, the new LBS PE can now be purchased from Clive Mark using the link below:

http://www.clivemark.co.uk/collections/lordswood-boys-school

From September 2024 it will be compulsory for all students to be wearing the new kit.

If you have any questions relating to the details above, please use the contact details below:

Mr Deeks, Director of Learning - SCP Faculty, j.deeks@lordswoodboys.co.uk
Mr Janes, Director of Sport, d.janes@lordswoodboys.co.uk

Weekly music news & schedules from Mrs Lowndes-Ford, Director of Music

MUSIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

I hope you have a good weekend and I look forward to updating you with more news next week. Until then you can always contact me directly at: l.williams@centralacademiestrust.co.uk.

Mr. L. Williams,

CEO, Executive Headteacher

Central Academies Trust

Lordswood Boys' School • Hagley Road • Harborne • Birmingham • B17 8BJ

Tel:0121 464 2837

Email: enquiry@lordswoodboys.co.uk

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