After around a year of careful planning and Teams announcements, and a buildup of excitement and anticipation, the day finally came on the 24^th of October for the Y10, Y11 and Y13 trip to Berlin, accompanied by Mr Jones, Mrs Yates and Mr Bennett.

We gathered at the Dawson Road gate at 1:30am. Mrs Yates voiced her intention of grasping as much sleep as she could get on the coming coach journey to Luton Airport and was perhaps later pleased by the fact that traffic on the M1 had us stagnate for about 45 minutes. Nonetheless, we made it to the airport with no major issues and boarded our 7am flight to Berlin Brandenburg Airport.

Another coach journey followed this, taking us to our (A and O Berlin Mitte) hostel where we would be staying for 3 nights. Certain Y11s (which may have included myself…) couldn’t help but look at – and share – the very mixed reviews of said hostel during the buildup to the trip. This may have created some exchanges of looks and smirks on the way to, and at, the hostel. Anyway, we dropped off our luggage and walked to Alexanderplatz, where we bought our lunches from the wide choice of fast-food shops there. We walked onwards to the Spree River, on which we enjoyed a 45-minute boat trip learning about the surrounding buildings along the way. Afterwards, we walked back to the hostel to eat our first evening meal there, with some students relating the food choice (which was primarily made up of types of bread) to Biblical times. However, all jokes aside, there was still a good choice of salad, rice and pasta. The teachers encouraged us to have an early night after this, but perhaps they should know better when there are 4 rooms of excited Y10 and Y11 students!

The following day saw us meet at around 7am for breakfast. With no time to waste, we left to take public transport to the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp. We were guided around by Mikhail, who gave us an excellent and knowledgeable insight to the history of the camp; the visit was a moving experience. He then accompanied us on our train journey to Hakescher Markt, where we were given time to eat some lunch and shop around. From 2pm onwards, Mikhail guided us around Berlin, and he continued to teach us about the history of the city. We saw the Brandenburg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie and the Holocaust Memorial, to name just a few. Mikhail was an outstanding tour guide, and many of us left him a very positive review after we finished the tour.

We returned to the hostel to eat our evening meal. After 30,000 steps already, the stairs up to the 8^th floor didn’t look too appealing to some of our students, so around 12 of them crammed into the only elevator in the building.  After dinner, we went on to enjoy some bowling near Alexanderplatz. A certain Y11 student asked the bartender for a bottle of coke by simply saying to him, “coke please”. The bartender asked him to say it in a full sentence, with his reasoning being that “in Berlin, asking for ‘coke’ might get you something different”. We returned to the hostel afterwards to end our night.

The 3^rd day again began with breakfast at the hostel. Before we left, a strange woman (probably having been deprived of sleep as a result of staying in a hostel with seemingly thousands of teenagers) gave me a mouthful, and my arm a little slap, simply because I accidently grazed her arm on my way past her chair. I had no problem with reciprocating her attitude (and nor did Mr Jones or Mrs Yates) but Mr Bennett encouraged me to bite my tongue and move on. She also called me a “privileged colonial”… Anyway, we travelled on foot to the DDR museum for a short guided tour. It was an immersive experience nonetheless, and we learnt more about life as an ‘East German’ in the past. We travelled onwards to the Deutsches Technik Museum where we saw some great exhibits and some “physics in action”, which Mr Jones explained well using the benefits of his degree in Physics. We then took the train to the Berlin Wall Memorial, where Mrs Yates turned back the clock and brought out some highlighted notes to explain the story behind the Berlin Wall. We took the train to the Hard Rock Café for our evening meal and were presented with a choice of tenders, burgers or mac and cheese, followed by a brownie for dessert. After a great meal, we returned to the hostel for the final night there, with some Y11s occupying their train journey (in an otherwise empty carriage) with a game that involved slapping someone whilst their eyes were closed, with them trying to guess who it was that slapped them. I was already used to being randomly slapped in Berlin, but it still took me a minute or two until I guessed correctly during my round of slaps.

The last day began with breakfast and some final packing up. We left the hostel at around 9am and headed towards the Olympic Stadium for another guided tour. We learnt about the history of the stadium and how it is used today, with it being Hertha BSC’s home stadium. We returned to the hostel to pick up our luggage and then travelled to Brandenburg Airport by coach. One last journey from Luton Airport to school involved Mr Jones urging everyone to inform their parents of our anticipated arrival time, so that he and the other staff could avoid spending their night waiting for that last student to be picked up. This final coach journey ended with a round of applause for Mr Jones and his brilliant planning of this wonderful trip.

Much like the Y10 and Y11s, Berlin never sleeps, and it was a fantastic city to experience. Learning about the history of the city was interesting and fun. And, in between all of the guides and tours, there were great, funny and memorable moments throughout. The kerfuffle in the elevator, late night pizzas, the long and tiring walks which Mr Jones was unphased by, learning about the staff room’s list of ex-HGS offenders (and the early signs that they showed), hearing Mrs Yates’ scepticism about most of her group “coincidentally” needing epi-pens and inhalers, which only made her bag heavier, and absolutely all of the in-betweens made for an unforgettable trip. It was a pleasure to learn about Berlin from Mikhail and the other guides, and it was an exceptional experience to share with the other students and staff.

Rahul Beghal, Year 11

Click here to view more photos in the gallery.

The London Breed
by Benjamin Zephaniah

I love this great polluted place
Where pop stars come to live their dreams
Here ravers come for drum and bass
And politicians plan their schemes,
The music of the world is here
This city can play any song
They came to here from everywhere
It’s they that made this city strong.

A world of food displayed on streets
Where all the world can come and dine
On meals that end with bitter sweets
And cultures melt and intertwine,
Two hundred languages give voice
To fifteen thousand changing years
And all religions can rejoice
With exiled souls and pioneers.

In June 1948, the Empire Windrush sailed from the Caribbean to Tilbury Docks near London and its arrival marked the start of mass migration to the UK. Post war Britain was in desperate need of workers but despite their commitment to what they regarded as the mother country, many of those who had left their homes in the West Indies to work here were very poorly treated. However, black history in the UK began centuries before the arrival of Windrush and indeed those with a whole variety of ethnic backgrounds, have been part of the history of this country for a very long time.

In 250AD, Rome sent a contingent of black legionnaires, drawn from the African part of the empire, to stand guard on Hadrian’s Wall. Several centuries later, the Vikings had influence over northern and eastern Britain. The Normans, descended from Vikings who had settled in France, brought with them their early-French language and during the two world wars, hundreds of thousands of troops who fought alongside the British, came from countries across the world which were part of the British Empire, as it was then.

But in the centuries before that – and indeed before Windrush – the British economy had been transformed by the Atlantic slave trade. Whilst in 1700, most British trade had been with Europe by 1800, 60% of British trade went to Africa and America. Ports such as London, Bristol and Liverpool prospered as a direct result of involvement in the slave trade and other ports, profited from the tobacco trade or cotton – the production of which often used slave labour. The UK’s relationship with people from across the world has not always been one with which we can look back with pride – indeed, most of us would agree our treatment of slaves, directly or indirectly, was abhorrent.

Some of you will have read about the research that the Guardian newspaper has commissioned recently following the discovery that the paper’s founders had links to the slave trade. You can read about the connections for yourself, the apology that the paper has issued and the programme of restorative justice to which the Guardian has committed, through an organisation called the Scott Trust.

However, what lessons might there be for us – as we think about history and indeed the future society in which we will play a part?

We might reflect that the history of a country like the UK cannot be considered in isolation – British history is not just British. When we learn about periods such as the industrial revolution, the wealth that was generated as a result of newly invented machines turning raw materials into valuable products, we should also ask where those materials came from, who produced them and how those people were treated.

Or we might reflect on the ethnic makeup of people who live in the UK today, ¾ of whom would describe themselves as white British, but that figure is dropping as the population becomes ever more multicultural.
But perhaps the most important question to ask is how we can make our society fair, kind and one in which all feel that we belong? How can we learn from those whose family background is different to our own; how can we better appreciate those who may have a different faith to us and how can we be more inclusive so that all are able to contribute and feel valued.

In the poem by Benjamin Zephaniah (who is from Handsworth and whose poetry is on our stained glass window in Big School), we were told about a city in which all the world can come and dine, cultures intertwining, religions (plural) rejoicing and hundreds of languages having a voice. What a fantastic place that would be – where all, regardless of background, could feel welcome and included.

In the UK, October was Black History Month, and it is an opportunity to celebrate the stories of black people from around the world who may well link to our own history. This year’s theme was Saluting our Sisters, and the black women who have been at the heart of social justice movements throughout history, fighting oppression and advocating for change. Some have made incredible contributions to the arts, industry, sport, politics, academia, social and health care, and far more. This work must continue.

Stay well and safe.

Be kind to yourself and others.

Best wishes,

Dr Bird

On Friday 13^th October, ten year eight students visited year six students in Cherry Orchard Primary School in Birmingham. We taught them about light and did a colour practical with them too.

First, we asked the students about what they already knew about light, we got a lot of answers such as light travels in a straight line and an explanation of how shadows are formed. The students made predictions as to what colour they thought they would see when different filters were put in front of a ray box. We then used the ray boxes to see how the colour of different light filters appeared on white paper to see if the student’s predictions were right. After that, we used convex and concave lenses to alter the direction of the light. We saw how the convex lens made the light go inwards while the concave lens spread the light out. We also gave the students a tip on how to identify the difference between concave and convex lenses by saying that the concave lens caves inwards while the convex lens doesn’t.

We had to explain lots of concepts to the students such as why convex lenses make the light go inwards and this thus increased and strengthened our own knowledge about the topic. We also had lots of fun when doing the practical itself and showing the students how the light changes when each different colour or lens was put in front of the light. This trip was very enjoyable, and it was fun teaching others.

Aiden Thottungal (8N)