Congratulations to our Year 12 students on their successful appointments for the various lead roles. We are looking forward to working with them over the next 12 months as they bring new and exciting ideas to their roles, building on the success and legacy left behind by their predecessors. They will all be working towards making Barr Beacon the best it can be so that all pupils and students feel accomplished and ‘proud to succeed’.
This week Barr Beacon students will be participating in the Diana Award national campaign "#Don't face it alone". This is to remind our students of the importance of speaking up about bullying behaviours and to show our students that they are not alone and how to access help.
Yesterday Year 8 Pupils arrived in Fulda. They had a morning learning about the history of the town. Follow us on Social Media for further updates.
The Turing Scheme is the UK government’s programme to provide funding for international opportunities in education and training across the world. It supports Global Britain by providing an opportunity for UK organisations from the higher education, further education, vocational education and training and schools sectors to offer their students, learners and pupils life-changing experiences to study or work abroad.
On Sunday 19th June and Monday 20th June, a group of Year 8 and Year 9 pupils will be boarding planes to Spain and Germany as part of the Turing Scheme international exchanges.
Across Matrix Academy Trust, 100 pupils will have the chance to take part in two projects: one to Fulda, Germany and one to Barcelona, Spain. This opportunity is fully funded by the Turing Scheme, the UK’s scheme to encourage young people to travel overseas as part of their education.
The pupils are very excited about their travels – follow our school social channels to keep up-to-date with what they’re up to.
The itineraries for both projects are below – as you can see, both trips will be an action-packed week with the chance for pupils to fully immerse themselves in everything Germany and Spain have to offer.
On Wednesday 1st December 10 pupils from Year 8 and a further 10 pupils from Year 9 will learn that they have been successful candidates for the Turing Scheme.Across the Matrix Academy Trust 100 pupils will have the chance to take part in two projects: one to Fulda, Germany and one to Ronda, Spain. For these lucky pupils it will be a life changing opportunity with so much to discover, learn and explore.All schools in the trust have reported exceptional uptake of this opportunity, showing just how keen Matrix pupils are to learn about the world around them!
Will you be one of 10 Year 8s selected to travel to Germany? Or 10 Year 9s selected to travel to Spain?
Click these links to take you to the letter and application forms!
Matrix Turing Scheme letter: https://bit.ly/3mZEE7J
Pupil Application Form: https://bit.ly/3ojiMn4
Send your application to eonions@barrbeaconschool.co.uk (GERMAN) or mlarvan@barrbeaconschool.co.uk (SPAIN) in person or electronically by 19th November 2021.
The Year 7 University Tour continued on Tuesday with a visit to Birmingham City University. Pupils met current students and professors and enjoyed a tour of the City Centre and Arts Campuses. We visited modern and airy learning spaces, 360 degree lecture halls, the library, cafes and we got a sneak peek at an art exhibition. As well as getting a feel for the university, pupils learnt about the benefits of higher education and created their own university society. Ideas included an Industrial Building Society, Games Club, a Food Society and a Nerf Gun Society. Some of these ideas were very similar to real university societies; for example we learnt that many universities have their own Quidditch teams which compete against each other.
Induction Evening is taking place on Tuesday 5th July 2022 starting at 6.00pm. In advance of the Parent Induction Evening please complete the 3 Essential Information Forms available here. Please note that the meeting is for parents only.
Induction Day will be held on Wednesday 6th July 2022. Pupils must arrive by 8.30am and will depart at 2.30pm. Parents will receive a letter with further information.
In April, 14 students successfully auditioned to be a part of our Dance Performance Team.
On Wednesday 8th June, our performance team attended the Black Country Dance Festival. The event was held at Walsall Arena and focused on bringing a range of students from across the West Midlands together through Dance.
This was the first opportunity our students had to perform together in front of a live audience and many shared their nerves before taking to the stage.
The students put on an excellent performance of ‘You Will Be Found’ from the musical ‘Dear Evan Hansen’. At the end of their performance, members of the audience approached our dance teacher to commend the high level of technique our dancers portrayed.
We are incredibly proud of their achievement and can not wait to watch them perform again in our Dance Spectacular! on Thursday 16th June. This event will take place at Barr Beacon School and students/parents are now able to purchase their tickets through WisePay.
Well Done to our dancers:
H.Venner 7B1
E. Smith 8M1
E. Gabbitas 8M1
I. Stokes 8M1
A. Griffiths 8M1
K.Mallon 8W1
K. Ord 9C1
K. O’Connor 9C1
A. Selby 9C1
A.Mahon 10W3
K.Bromwich 10M1
M.Riley 10M1
R.Woodhall 10M1
E.Sammons 10W2
Nearly 200 pupils, staff, family and friends filled the Main School Hall to watch Beacon’s Got Talent on Wednesday 25th May. The evening was a huge success with 10 different acts singing, acting and dancing to entertain the audience. The evening was also special for two of our wonderful Year 13 students who hosted the event, bringing their 7 years of media support to Barr Beacon to an end – we wish Will and Jack the best as they continue with their studies. The evening finished with the announcement of our winner Raaj S 8W3 who performed again for the audience, entertaining them with his energetic Bhangra dancing.
Year 7 pupils visited Staffordshire University for a taster day to learn more about the benefits of higher education. The day started with pupils meeting university students studying a range of interesting courses, from psychology and photography to E-sports and gaming.
Pupils then had a tour of the whole university. We visited libraries, learning hubs, accommodation, sports centres and lecture theatres. In the afternoon, pupils were tasked with designing their own Superhero Student. Ideas included supersonic ears to hear lectures clearly, cloaks to help them fly across the vast campus and even an LGBTQ+ hero, spreading happiness and awareness of Pride Month with rainbow lasers.
Two of our keen Key Stage 3 linguists entered Oxford University’s Anthea Bell Translation competition, which this year focusses on translation of poetry. Translators are encouraged to be creative with their English to maintain the rhyme and rhythm of the original piece. Congratulations to Alexandra (Year 7 German) and Lillith (Year 8 French) who sent off as our school entries to the regional competition.
Congratulations to Alexandra of 7C1 who was the Midlands runner up in a German translation competition run by Oxford University!
Alexandra’s prize winning translation can be seen below.
Wind and weather - Rhymed
It rains, it showered,
A fish, I encountered,
It writhes, it is dodging,
Who can’t find his way back to its lodging
It snows, it snows,
The Christmas tree stands ready to go,
It is glaciating,
Someone should be busy decorating.
It gets dark, it is dimmed,
A small aeroplane glistened,
It flies, it flies,
And knows where Oslo lies.
It thaws, it is proud,
The weather today is loud,
It roars, it roars,
I too am perplexed.
It airs, it airs,
The meadow humms and smells,
It sprouts, it sprouts,
Who has a cold, sneezes.
There is lightning, it flashes,
A sparrow reflects and sits,
It drips, it trickles,
Its heart and mine beats.
Year 13 marked the start of their Study Leave with a farewell assembly that took place on Friday 20th May.
A montage of photographs took the students on a trip down Memory Lane, reminding them of the journey they have been on with us.
We wish them all the very best of luck for their examinations and we are looking forward to celebrating with them on Results Day.
Barr Beacon School
Old Hall Lane
Aldridge, Walsall
West Midlands
WS9 0RF
T: 0121 366 6600
postbox@barrbeaconschool.co.uk
Monday - Thursday: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Friday: 8:00 am - 3:30 pm
