Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 5216 TRIPS AND VISITS World Scout Jamboree Last summer I was fortunate enough to attend the 23rd World Scout Jamboree in Japan. After a rigorous selection process I was proud to be chosen from a group of 36 to go on this three week international camp. First I had to raise £3,500 through endless bag packing sessions at supermarkets and creative ideas like carrying out Gold D of E in fancy dress but was helped by £250 kindly donated to me by the school. We departed on the 25th of July on a twelve hour flight then travelled by coach to Okazaki where we stayed with a Japanese family for two days. In that short time we packed a lot in: we visited a traditional communal bath house, visited Okazaki castle which is the birthplace of the first Shogun and we also made a visit to a local Japanese Scout group. We travelled to the Jamboree camp site on the Bullet train; the sheer speed was astonishing. The next day all 40,000 Scouts flocked to the arena stage where the opening ceremony would take place, some of the entertainment included traditional Japanese drumming as well as J-pop. At the centre of the campsite was a massive air conditioned dome where there were always activities taking place including a Japanese version of Sister Act. Every day we had to wake up at 4 am – two hours before sunrise - for food collection and it wasn’t long until the temperature had risen to 35 degrees. Each day had its own theme like Science where we learned about recent scientific innovations and discoveries. I was privileged to take part in an interfaith ceremony on the main stage representing the Sikh faith in front of thousands of people. An unforgettable part of the Jamboree was when we had the opportunity to visit Hiroshima, which is where the first atomic bomb was dropped, the day before the 70th Anniversary of this event. Visiting the museum made you realise the destructive potential of just one of these bombs. We packed up our tents and once again boarded the Bullet train but this time bound for Tokyo, one of the world’s megacities. Every time we looked out of the hotel window at the Tokyo skyline we realised how vast it was. We visited the main tourist attractions in Tokyo like the “Tokyo Sky Tree” as well as “Electric City” which is the equivalent to Times Square. Then our journey was over. We had made friends from all over the world and learned about different cultures and traditions. It was an unforgettable experience. Taran Bedi GCSE ‘SCIENCE LIVE’ On the 29th February 2016, some of my Year 10 peers and I attended a GCSE ‘Science Live’ event that took place in Symphony Hall, Birmingham, the event lasting from 10am-3pm. Various schools from across the country came to have the opportunity to listen to some of the world’s leading scientists, and also to listen to a senior examiner who talked about what examiners tend to look for in examinations. We listened to five scientists in total. Professor Jim Al-Khalili spoke about Time travel, Professor Lord Robert Winston about Fertility and Genetics, Professor Alice Roberts about Evolution, Professor Andrea Sella about Chemical Reactions and Dr Simon Singh about The Big Bang. I think that everyone who attended found the event very enjoyable and it was interesting to learn about things that are not part of the school curriculum. Joshua Nagra Lord Mayor’s Mega Quiz Two quiz teams representing year 12 and year 13 took part in the Lord Mayor’s Mega Quiz which took place at the University of Birmingham on November 17th. The quiz, which is in its fourth year consisted of ten rounds of ten questions on subjects which included Literature, Science, Technology, Geography, sport and current affairs. The quiz master this year was Mr Pete Morgan from BBC WM and although neither of our teams came in the top three they both gave very creditable performances and enjoyed the experience. Mr Conway Year 12 Team Year 13 Team Khizar Hussain Qasim Mushtaq Abu Wariah Rafayath Ahmed Sara Ahmed Josepf Fieven Danyal Abedin Imad Ali Abdi Ige Khubaib Hasan Pavandeep Marva Muhibur Rahman