Students head to final of national robotics competition

Young engineers from Highfields have made it through to the finals of a prestigious national competition after being challenged to build and program robots to take part in a series of ‘space missions’.

The seven-strong team of students are being recognised for their skills and innovation as part of the Tomorrow’s Engineers EEP Robotics Challenge.

The challenge is a curriculum-linked national programme that gives 11-14 year-olds the chance to learn how to build, program and control autonomous LEGO robots to complete a series of ‘space missions’ using LEGO MINDSTORMS® Education EV3 sets.  

It is supported by the Helsington Foundation, the Royal Air Force and Rolls-Royce. 

The team from Highfields competed against other schools in the region to earn a place at the UK finals in Birmingham.

As a winner in the West Midlands heat, which was held at the RAF Museum, Cosford, they will now go head-to-head with teams from across the country at The Big Bang Fair on Friday, March 17th.

The team built, programmed and controlled LEGO robots for a series of missions, including launching rockets, deploying solar panels and assembling crew. They also researched, designed, planned and presented their own solution to a contemporary scientific problem developed by LEGO Education with NASA – How can humans live in space? This presentation was delivered to two military engineers, one from the Navy and one from the RAF.

During the heats, the team was praised for confidence and teamwork, with special mention given to Year 7 student Dylon Jeer for his considered responses to the experts’ questions.

Science teacher, Miss L.Prosser, said: “The team have done a fantastic job to make it through the heats and are now looking forward to the challenge of competing against schools from across the country in the final.”

New community choir launched with Penn Fields School

Highfields is hoping to raise the roof with the launch of a new community choir in conjunction with neighbouring Penn Fields School.

The Highfields and Penn Fields Community Choir will meet for the first time on Thursday, March 16th from 3.40pm-4.40pm at Penn Fields School.

The choir, which is open for all students, staff and parents, will then meet after school every Thursday during term time. It will be led by ‘choir master’ Andy Womble, from Wolverhampton Music Service.

The project is the latest link-up between the two schools. Students from Penn Fields appeared in our recent spectacular stage production of High School Musical and work is ongoing on an exciting arts project celebrating the life and works of William Shakespeare. The schools secured 'Spirit of 2012' Olympic legacy funding to support the 'Emerge' project, which will culminate in a Festival on Sunday, April 23rd.

Highfields’ Head of Performance, Ms S Bishop, said: “We are delighted to be launching our new community choir.

“It is open to all students, parents and staff from both Highfields and Penn Fields. It doesn’t matter what level you consider yourself as a singer, it’s not X Factor - just a fun, friendly gathering to enjoy a sing song!"

Scientists celebrate graduation success in The Brilliant Club

Gifted scientists are celebrating success after 'graduating' from a prestigious academic course as members of The Brilliant Club.

The Brilliant Club is a national award-winning non-profit organisation that aims to widen access to top universities for outstanding pupils.

Twelve talented scientists from Year 8 were selected to take part in the programme following a tough selection process and given the opportunity to work with PhD university tutor, Olusola Olayufi, on an assignment called “Understanding Viral Infections: is the Ebola Virus the next pandemic?”.

As part of the programme the students visited Aston University and attended six tutorials before being set a 1,500-word assignment which was graded using university terminology.

All 12 students passed the assignment with a 1st or 2:1 grade and were then invited to celebrate their success at a graduation ceremony at the University of Nottingham.

Teacher Ms Buckley, who has led the school’s Brilliant Club project, said: “The Brilliant Club works in collaboration with a number of universities to give pupils in none selective state schools a taste of university life and encourage aspiration to apply to the exclusive Russell Group universities.

"This is the third group of pupils who have been chosen to be part of The Brilliant Club from Highfields and they had a great experience. We are very proud that all 12 of them passed the assignment and 'graduated'.

"One student commented that attending the graduation ceremony at the University of Nottingham with his new friends had been the highlight of the whole process for him."

It's showtime! Curtain-up on High School Musical

The curtain has been raised on this year’s feel-good school production, High School Musical, with tickets completely sold out for its four-night run - and a mention in the Express & Star.

Around 100 students are involved in the musical, which features a host of uplifting songs, including Start of Something New, Breaking Free, What I've Been Looking For and We’re All In This Together.

Students from Highfields and neighbouring Penn Fields School have been rehearsing every Thursday evening and Saturday morning for months in preparation for the show, which runs until Saturday. (4)

The musical follows the story of two high school juniors from different cliques - basketball team captain, Troy Bolton, and shy straight-A student, Gabriella Montez - who dream of showcasing their singing talents.

It became a global phenomenon thanks to the original film version featuring Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens.

Sharon Bishop, Head of Performance, said: “We are so excited that it’s showtime after months of rehearsals.

“The students have worked incredibly hard and their effort, commitment and dedication has paid off because the opening night was fantastic. We are very proud of what they have achieved and can’t wait for the upcoming shows."

A preview of our show featured in the Express & Star.  To read the article click the image (courtesy of the E&S) below:

 

Take a look at our gallery of pictures from opening night:

Budding lawyer takes steps towards a legal career

A budding lawyer is being giving a helping hand to succeed in the legal profession after securing a place on an acclaimed national programme.

Year 12 student, Shifani Passap, has secured a place with the Social Mobility Foundation and will now receive invaluable training, support and work experience to help her achieve her career ambitions.

As part of the programme Shifani will be matched with a mentor in the legal profession who will give her careers advice, support with her university application and access to other industry professionals at networking events.

She recently spent the half-term holiday on work experience with leading law firm Pinsent Masons, in Birmingham.

Reading celebrated in style on World Book Day

The world of make believe was brought to life when students and staff dressed as their favourite fictional characters to celebrate World Book Day.

Harry Potter, Alice in Wonderland, Dennis The Menace and Cruella De Vil were among the colourful characters who turned up to school as part of the festivities, alongside the entire cast of The Wizard of Oz and Peter Pan.

The annual World Book Day is a celebration of books, authors, illustrators and reading and aims to ignite imaginations and help students gain a lifelong passion for reading.

A number of events were held in school to celebrate the event, including poetry and creative writing workshops, bookmark making sessions, a book quiz, book fair and cake sale. Donations were also made to the Book Bus charity, which aims to improve child literacy rates in Africa, Asia and South America by providing children with books and the inspiration to read them.

School Librarian, Mrs N. Ward, said: “World Book Day arrived with a flurry of very imaginative costumes! Staff and Year 7 and 8 students were invited to dress up as characters from their favourite books and character-spotting was the order of the day.

“There was lots going on around school to inspire our students and ignite a lifelong love of books and reading. It was a very enjoyable day.”

WATCH: Our High School Musical trailer

It's almost time for curtain-up on Highfields' 2017 musical showcase, High School Musical, so here's a sneak preview of what's in store!

Click on the image to watch our trailer for the show.

Students have spent months rehearsing for the show, which will be staged from Wednesday March 1st to Saturday March 4th.

Around 100 students are involved in the musical, which features a host of uplifting songs, including Start of Something New, What I've Been Looking For and We’re All In This Together.

Tickets, costing £3 unwaged/£5 waged, are now available from the Humanities LRC.

WATCH: Students enjoy Duke of Edinburgh challenges

Students are actively encouraged to take part in the Duke of Edinburgh's scheme and hundreds of our students have been involved in the programme since the school started running it around 10 years ago.

Those taking part have enjoyed a number of experiences, including volunteering in the community and completing challenging residential trips and expeditions which have see them navigate their own route over tough mountain terrain and fend for themselves in remote rural locations.

WATCH: our video of students taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh's experience here:

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme was launched in 1956. It aims to recognise the achievements of young people and to inspire, guide and support them in their self-development. Students engaging with the DofE follow their own exciting and challenging programme of activities to help them reach their full potential.

Employers, colleges and universities value Duke of Edinburgh Awards and recognise that an Award holder has something more than just academic qualifications to offer.

Other outdoor activities run by Highfields, including trips to the school's Llandrinio Outdoor Education Centre, in Wales, provide a great starter point for the challenging, yet exciting, DofE programme. The centre gives our students new experiences and skills throughout their school life from Year 6 Induction, through to the Duke of Edinburgh programme, which is open for Year 10 students and upwards.

Virtual reality brings new dimension to teaching

Students explored the South American rainforest, delved inside the human circulatory system and got a glimpse at WW1 battlefields - without leaving the classroom - thanks to a pioneering virtual reality programme.

Google Expeditions visited Highfields School to bring history, biology and geography to life with its state-of-the-art virtual reality technology.

The team brought along 60 pairs of virtual reality goggles to take students on 45-minute journeys of exploration. Panoramic images were beamed from teachers' tablets to the Google Cardboard virtual reality glasses to guide students through collections of 360° and 3D images, allowing them to experience far-flung parts of the world, as well as important moments from the past and even the human heart, lungs and blood vessels.

Mr A.Cheetham, Deputy Headteacher, said: “We are delighted that Google Expeditions chose to visit Highfields to help bring lessons to life and take our students to places they would never otherwise be able to go.

“It is a fantastic teaching tool that brought a real sense of excitement and allowed our students to embrace subjects like never before.

“The visit brought a whole new dimension to teaching!”

HSM tickets on sale now!

Tickets are on sale now for Highfields' 2017 musical showcase, High School Musical.

Students have spent months rehearsing for the show, which will be staged from Wednesday March 1st to Saturday March 4th.

Around 100 students are involved in the musical, which features a host of uplifting songs, including Start of Something New, What I've Been Looking For and We’re All In This Together.

Tickets cost £3 unwaged/£5 waged and are available from the Humanities LRC.