Sainsbury’s Active Kids

Once again we are collecting vouchers to

buy sports equipment. These vouchers

really do make a difference and we would

be grateful if you would send any

vouchers to school. Thank You. Mrs

Jakszta

February

2013

An early win for Debate Team

On 29th January, members of the school Debate Club

attended Hodge Hill School for the first round of 'Debate

Mate' National Competition. Two debates took place; a

prepared motion and a surprise motion.

The first debate was 'This house believes that the media

should give no coverage to extremist political parties'. Our

first team unfortunately lost the debate but our second team

sparked the first win for Kingsbury.

The surprise debate was ‘This house would ban boxing'. After

only 20 minutes preparation the debate began and both

teams won.

With three wins out of four we had proved to ourselves that

we can be The Winners this year. BRING IT ON!

Abdurrahman Mulla, 10S.

If you are interested Kingsbury's Debate Club runs every

Thursday from 3-4pm in the Library. Please speak to Miss

Chmielewska (room 77) or Miss Luscombe. (Room 8)

Kingsbury School and Sports College, Kingsbury Road, Erdington,

Birmingham, B24 8RE

Phone: 0121 373 1080 Fax: 0121 306 4878

Web: www.kingsbury.bham.sch.uk E-mail: enquiry@kingsbury.bham.sch.uk

Dates for your diary

4th-8th March National Careers Week Thurs 14th March

Enrichment Day all students Thurs 21st March 5pm

Parents’ Forum , all welcome Thurs 28th March

Easter Holidays begin

Ms C O’Driscoll, Head Teacher

KINGSBURY SCHOOL AND SPORTS COLLEGE

Message from the Head Teacher

We are very proud of the many achievements of our students academically and as

young citizens, as this newsletter exemplifies. Students have the opportunity for a

wide range of learning both in lessons and outside that help them to develop as

young adults. You will see that this month students have been debating, skiing

internationally, attending a CBSO concert and leading sports activities for others.

In addition our Year 11 students have been banking results in preparation for the

final exams in the Summer. This half term our PACER focus is ENDEAVOUR,

which emphasises resilience and commitment.

Fun with Food On 28th January, Chartwells delivered their ‘On Your Marks’ cookery demonstration to year 7 students, in the style of a well-known TV cookery show. Timothy Elks, the aptly titled ‘Putting the fun back into food' Manager from Chartwells, engaged the audience in a discussion about the ingredients, with more than one student admitting that they had never tasted some of them! Then battle commenced with the Red and Green teams competing against the clock to create a healthy well balanced meal, using ‘mystery’ ingredients. The aim of the competition was to get pupils excited about choosing and preparing ingredients, understanding different food groups and eating well. The competition provided students with hands-on cooking experience and the chance to work as a team to produce a well-balanced meal in just 15 minutes. The winning teams were selected by students waving green and red pepper cards in support of their chosen meal, not to mention the loud cheering, and some persuasion from the participating teams! A group of selected students then carried out a tasting of the winning meals- in one case, a delicious stir fry. The event was a huge success and students really enjoyed the experience. It was summed up by student Bethany Carter: “I liked being able to watch how they cooked the food with the mirrors above to show what was happening. It is good to be able to try something new. I enjoyed the whole experience because I learned how to cook healthy delicious food.” Well done to all the students who took part, and thank you to the staff who gave their support. We hope the event can be repeated next year! Mrs McTernan

Music Trip On 11th January, 15 students attended a ‘Going Global’ themed concert at Birmingham Symphony Hall as part of its ‘Stay Tuned’ educational programme. We were treated to a musical journey around the planet’s troubled landscapes, with composers from all over the world including Debussy, Sculthorpe and Ginastera. But it wasn’t all doom and gloom! With some global cooperation, inspired by lively music and a bit of help from Austin Powers, there was plenty of fun and inspiration too, as these comments from students demonstrate: “I found this trip amazing and inspiring. The music was powerful. It has taught me to look deeper into music to find a story and think about what the composer was trying to do.” Dayle Demaret Smith 10S “The sound was incredible. It inspired me to carry on with music.” Abigail Prichard 9K “I found Symphony Hall breathtaking. It was a really good experience and it made me want to continue with clarinet and not give up. If I continue I could play there one day!” Kirsty Minchin 8B Miss Millward

Torgon, Switzerland 2013 When letters came out about a skiing trip, to be honest I jumped at the idea. I told my parents straight away and asked them desperately if I could go, surprisingly they said yes! Finally when January came I counted down the weeks and then the days but when the departure day arrived I was ecstatic. On the coach we began the 20 hour journey to Switzerland with students from Shenley Academy and Ninestiles. The next morning, me and the girls I was staying with were amazed at the scenery. We got into our ski gear and headed for the slopes! The overall experience was amazing, I met new people (who I’ve actually stayed in contact with) but I will never forget skiing down the full length of the slope for the first time, I enjoyed it very much and would definitely go again! Katie Webber 8K

STEM @ KSSC Students have been busy designing solar-powered cars for the Toyota STEM Challenge which is a national competition aimed at secondary students studying Design and Technology, ICT, Science and Maths. The challenge invites students to design and build an environmentally friendly model vehicle and apply knowledge and understanding from a wide range of curriculum subjects including Maths and English. There are three teams competing for the Kingsbury Trophy, and during February they have been building and testing their cars. The winning entry will be entered in the Toyota competition after half-term. If they get through to the next stage they will get the opportunity to represent Kingsbury in the Regional Finals. After half-term, the STEM Club will be carrying out experiments in Science.

We welcome new members from all year groups to join the club on a Wednesdays 3.10 - 4.15pm. See Mrs

Jennings for more information

Business News Some Year 11 students are embarking on a Higher Project where they carry out projects on an area of interest or topic which helps prepare them for their chosen path after GCSE’s. Rajae Adams is researching our students’ hopes and ambitions in a project entitled ‘Life after Kingsbury’, whilst Renai Thomas and Kieran Gamble will be investigating the views of students on prominent current issues in society. Anisa Afsar and Fyziah Bhatool are creating a ‘Kingsbury Scrapbook’ of photos representing our school during 2013. Good luck to all the students carrying out this additional qualification. Our current Year 10 students will be working on case studies from two of our industry partners for their GCSE course. Salts Healthcare in Aston is one of the oldest family-owned companies in the UK. It was started in the 1700's by John and William Salt, and is still run by same family today. www.salts.co.uk Interserve Plc is one of the world’s largest support services and construction companies, operating in the public and private sectors in the UK and internationally. It has a workforce of nearly 50,000 people worldwide. The company was formed in 1884 as family business, transferring goods between ships and quays in London and Tilbury docks. www.interserve.com Both these companies have a fascinating history, and show what can be achieved from small beginnings. Why not take a look at their websites to find out more? Mrs Jennings

Postage Stamps Please continue to collect used stamps to benefit the military patients at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, on behalf of Sainsbury’s Castle Vale. A big Well Done to Cameron Harris 7U who has brought in an enormous amount of stamps! Cameron also has a vote of thanks from Mrs Hyland from Sainsbury’s. Mrs Rose

Exam Alert. Exam Alert Would parents of Year 11 students kindly not book medical or other appointments

for them from 28th February to 4th March inclusive and for Years 10 and 11 from

Monday 13th May to Friday, 28th June inclusive due to GCSE examinations.

Thank You. Mrs Perry

Kingsbury has many talented

students who enjoy success both in

and out of school. Cameron

Thompson 9S is proving to be an

excellent gymnast and has been very

successful at trampolining with his

club, Airborne Gymnastics. Cameron

joined the club at the Alexander

Stadium and after just a few months

was asked to join the squad. He won

his very first competition and

continues to win trophies, including

the Jeavon Porter-Fraser memorial

trophy, given in memory of the 18

year old club member who tragically

lost his life to an asthma attack in

2012.

Cameron says that the sport has

given him confidence and helped his

team skills, which will also help his

future career aspirations. “Learning a

new move is very difficult; you need

confidence, concentration and a

belief that you can do it. When I

succeed it feels really good and the

team and coaches are really

supportive. It’s a great team

atmosphere; I’ve learned how to

cooperate and get on with different

sorts of people.” Cameron got his

first taste of trampolining through an

after school club at Kingsbury.

Cameron has the following advice for

students who aren’t sure about

joining a club or activity: “Just try it,

you might like it. You could become

good at it and you never know, there

might be talent scouts watching!”

Mrs Rose

Paralympian – Claire Cashmore Paralympian Claire Cashmore returned to support young sports enthusiasts at the Step into Sport event at Birmingham Futsal Arena, to continue the legacy from the most successful Paralympic Games ever. 40 young people from secondary and special schools came together with the aim of improving inclusive sports activities. Students worked in mixed groups, learning about each other’s abilities and how to adapt everyday tasks and sports activities. Students had disabilities including visual and hearing impairment, cerebral palsy and learning disabilities. Silver and Bronze medallist Claire worked with students throughout the day, demonstrating how it is possible to participate in sport and achieve your dream even if you have a disability. The event certainly helped towards the legacy of inspiring a generation. Seeing young people breaking down barriers and demonstrating how to include everyone was very rewarding. Our young leaders, who helped plan the event, were full of ideas, and proved yet again how inspirational young people can be. We would like to thank the schools who participated: Braidwood, Golden Hillock, Hodge Hill, Kingsbury, Priestly Smith, Queensbury and St Edmund Campion. Claire said: “The day was a real success and the students really enjoyed it. The main thing now is to ensure the students are supported back in their schools to help promote and deliver disability and inclusive sport.” Schools, clubs and leisure providers still need to do more to encourage young disabled people to get involved with sport, as a participant or volunteer. Step into Sport was one of the ways in which we are working to ensure that the legacy of London 2012 is available to all. Miss Mapp

Maths Through Sport Following the success of our Olympic themed literacy project last year, the Head Teacher of Osborne Primary School asked the Kingsbury Sports Partnership to deliver ‘Maths through Sport’ to Year 6 pupils, with the aim of improving confidence and numeracy skills. The possibilities with PE and maths are endless. Just some of the things we are working on include: measuring distances in long jump, looking at angles in throwing, creating tally charts, rounding, working with averages and much more. The pupils have really enjoyed their learning and the school are very pleased with the enthusiasm and increase in confidence shown by the children. Sport really is full of maths! Miss Cotter

Sports Partnership News Talent @

Kingsbury Sports Leaders

with Paralympian Claire

Cashmore and students from

St Edmund Campion and

Golden Hillock schools

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please contact: enquiry@kingsbury.bham.sch.uk

with ‘Newsletter’ in the subject header.

Learning about angles: Miss Cotter

with Naj and Oskar from Osborne

Primary Year 6.

@KingsburySSC