When we arrived at Whitemoor Lakes, we got shown around the centre. It was huge so it took us up to lunch when we had amazing fish and chips that everybody loved despite having to wait ages for it. We had spent a few minutes making our beds before lunch so we wouldn’t have to do it later. Everyone went back to their dorms to get ready for the next activities. We had canoeing so we had to put on clothes we didn’t mind getting wet. We practised on the canoes and then played a game. The instructors would throw a ball and we would have to row to it and pick it up to get the points but, there was a catch… we had to do a forfeit for the points. The points went up by five each time and the forfeits were harder the higher the points. The forfeits ended up being so intense that the only option was to run into the water as a forfeit. My lodge were rewarded with cake after the long day we’d had (plus it was Veer and Dominik’s birthday).

The next day we had 5 activities instead of just 1. We started with abseiling and the zip wire which everyone said was fun. I discovered my fear of heights… Problem solving was simple enough. We had to try and get our whole group to balance on a massive see-saw for 8 seconds. The solution was to lean to the side that was going up. We also had to get everyone onto a small platform, through a spiders web (don’t ask) and to get across a wall with poles and ropes. Next we had fencing and it took us a long time to get all the kit on. We had to wear helmets, padding, special jackets and a glove on your strong hand. Every time George (our instructor) shouted ‘engarde’ we would get into the engarde position and shout it back. It was really fun. Mr. Mohsin organised a small five-a-side football tournament for us.  It was really tiring… all we had left was the campfire. The campfire was one of the best parts of the trip. We sang funny songs, played silly games and drew our moon for the moon club (yet again, don’t ask).

The final day was sad. We started with raft building which ended up with our whole raft falling apart and us all falling off. We had archery which was great fun. The last activity was the hardest, most treacherous one of them all… team games. We played the craziest games and had lots of fun. Overall Whitemoor Lakes is the best trip I’ve had in yr7 so far…

 

Samuel Grego, 7A

The word of the week commencing 29th June 2015 is: Impeccable.

This means in accordance with the highest standards; faultless.

“he had impeccable manners”

The display is produced by the student librarians.

This display can be found in our Library.

Aadam Varsani	Grade 1	Merit	Piano
Camara Talburt	Grade 1	Distinction	Piano
Jeevan Singh Gill	Grade 1	Pass	Tabla
Dhiren Gaddu	Grade 1	Merit	Tabla
Syed Rizvi	Grade 1	Merit	Piano
Amar Bhullar	Grade 2	Merit	Tabla
Amarpal Narotra	Grade 2	Merit	Tabla
Jeevun Plaha	Grade 2	Merit	Tabla
Brandon Masih	Grade 2	Merit	Piano
Naail Khan	Grade 2	Distinction	Dhol
Pavanjot Dhillon	Grade 2	Distinction	Dhol
Navdeep Bhooi	Grade 2	Merit	Dhol
Phil Mortera	Grade 2	Pass	C. Guitar
Aslan Chaudary	Grade 2	Merit	C. Guitar
Kishan Gill	Grade 2	Pass	C. Guitar
Ikhlas Sayed	Grade 2	Pass	C. Guitar
Bobby Randhawa	Grade 3	Pass	C. Guitar
Sankavan Suanthan	Grade 3	Pass	C. Guitar
Amaan Khaliq	Grade 3	Pass	C. Guitar
Balkaar Bhopal	Grade 3	Distinction	Piano
Raj Lawrence	Grade 5	Pass	S. Sax
Karl Frater	Grade 5	Merit	C. Guitar
Robert Frater	Grade 5	Merit	C. Guitar
Brandon Masih	Grade 5	Merit	C. Guitar
Rajeev Badhan	Grade 5	Pass	C. Guitar
Krishan Lawrence	Grade 8	Pass	C. Guitar

11+ coaching does not help children make progress.

An increasing number of parents are choosing to give their children coaching for the 11+ exam.

As a result 11+ coaching is probably one of the few major growth industries in Birmingham post-recession. It certainly looks like lucrative business: a year-long course of two hours a week has been advertised at under £7,000 massively discounted from £10,000.

Research shows that nearly 75% of students across Birmingham have such coaching: the average boy has been coached for just under two hours a week for 14 months. A parent whose son attended a local primary school said that such coaching was the only way in which children from such schools could expect to succeed in the 11+ exam. A parent whose son had gone to one of the best junior schools said that all parents paid for coaching because every other parent was paying for coaching and they didn’t want to let their own child down.

At every open morning I stand up and say that parents should not tutor their children. The parents all nod supportively at my wisdom and then, it seems, proceed to ignore me! There is a simple reason why there should be such frenetic activity. All parents want to do the best for their children and a good education is the best gift that they can give.

However, all parents also see that the pressure for places at the selective schools is remarkably terrifying – at some grammar schools there are more than 1,000 candidates for approximately 100 places. So parents seem to have no choice but to pay. So, it’s easy to see why this coaching takes place, but it’s not easy to believe that it’s a good thing.

Such coaching limits and narrows the lives of boys and girls at the age of 8, 9, 10 and 11. They must have better things to do than practise Verbal Reasoning and Maths tests, like playing football, singing, dancing, or reading a book.

Coaching is flawed because it cannot do what it says it does: and it does not prepare children for a grammar school education. And coaching is unfair because parents are so desperate to help their children that they will pay any price for success, even, perhaps, a price they can’t afford.

However, coaching does harm above all for the reasons presented by the Sutton Trust. It can work against the forces of social mobility. This is why we at Handsworth Grammar School have established a unique Outreach and Widening Accessibility programme where we run master classes and familiarization sessions for local primary schools. We offer all of this for free and to provide gifted and talented children the opportunity to succeed in the 11+ exam. We do not charge a single penny. It is also carried out in a relaxed, friendly and fun atmosphere. The aim here is to encourage as many young people as possible from the local area to apply for a grammar school place. As a result the fantastic opportunities available at Handsworth Grammar School can be accessed by the majority of children in the local community and not just the few that currently apply. Whilst this Outreach programme cannot guarantee success for everyone we do believe it will improve all children’s abilities ensuring that they will be better prepared for their transition into whatever secondary school they attend.

Handsworth Grammar School is rooted in the community it serves and has been so for over 150 years. We serve and are responsive to the nature of our community. In particular Handsworth Grammar School is committed to making itself as accessible as possible to all students, whatever their background or circumstances. We would take this opportunity to inform parents that we do not endorse any person or organization that charges fees to coach your child. The 11+ exam seeks to identify children who are naturally gifted and talented. Our website features sample questions which your child could attempt to determine if they are potential candidates for the test. We would encourage parents to ask their child’s teacher for their predicted SATs results. As a rule of thumb children need to be working at SATs Level 5 or above in both English and Maths in their primary schools to have a realistic chance of success.

Sir Peter Lampl, the head of the Sutton Trust, is a massive supporter of selective education as the great engine of social mobility. We at Handsworth Grammar School concur with Sir Peter.

Gavindeep Samra and Maugam Purewal who are both in year 12 were on work experience last week working with “Coca Cola ParkLives”. This is an organisation sponsored by Coca Cola who promote activities in local parks for young people and indeed older people. These activities can include tennis, football or simply walking and jogging around the parks of Birmingham. This is an initiative to get more local people using the free sports facilities in our city parks.

Maugam and Gavindeep were both offered summer employment as a result of their work experience, and the picture shows them both at the Alexander stadium holding the London 2012 Olympic torch.   Gavindeep is particularly keen to take a Sports Development and Coaching degree when he leaves HGS, and this experience will be invaluable to him when he applies to universities.