Students wow audiences in magical musical

Talented young performers brought magical fairytale, Beauty & The Beast, to life on stage with three enthusiastic performances that wowed audiences.

More than 60 students from Years 7-9 took to the stage in the Disney classic, performing to more than 300 people.

They rehearsed for months to stage the musical production, including after-school, weekend and half-term sessions - and Ms S Bishop, Highfields’ Head of Extra-Curricular Performance, said their efforts and commitment had resulted in a fantastic production.

Ms S Bishop, added: “For some of our students, this was their first experience of performing in front of a live audience, and they put on a fantastic show.

“Beauty & The Beast is a family favourite, filled with lots of singing and dancing, and bright costumes, and audiences were really impressed by our students’ enthusiastic performances to bring the musical to life.

“It takes a lot of hard work over a number of weeks to put on our shows, but the effort was all worth it, and students thoroughly enjoyed showcasing their stage talent over three nights.”

Make believe brought to life 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, Snow White and The Gruffalo were among the colourful characters who turned up to school as part of the festivities, alongside the entire cast of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

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

The theme of this year’s event is ‘reading is power’, and Lower School students will continue to explore this idea in their English lessons throughout next week.

A number of events were held in school to celebrate World Book Day, including poetry and creative writing workshops, whilst students and members of staff donated 50p to dress up. The money will go 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.

Lower School students have also each received a World Book Day token, which can be used towards the purchase of books from a number of High Street stores until March 29th. 

School Librarian, Mrs N. Ward, said: “Staff and students in Years 7 and 8 were invited to dress up as characters from their favourite books. 

“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.”

For more information about the list of books on offer with World Book Day tokens, as well as the participating bookshops and supermarkets, click here.

Students mix study and adventure on revision residential

Year 11 students preparing for their upcoming GCSEs enjoyed some freedom from the classroom for study sessions with an adventurous twist.

Around 100 students travelled to Borreaton Park, in Shrewsbury, for the two-night revision residential from February 13th-15th.

The aim of the trip was to support students in English and Maths, to ensure they achieve their full potential in exams.

Despite battling Storm Dennis, students supplemented study time with a range of outdoor activities, including the trapeze, kayaking and archery.

Mr C Rhodes, Year 11 Raising Achievement Manager, said: “The aim of this two-day residential was to support students specifically with their English and Maths studies, so they were taught in small groups of no more than 15.

“They also got the chance to relax and have fun by taking part in a number of outdoor activities, with a highlight of the weekend being a campfire on the Friday evening, when students listened to music and danced the evening away.”

Highfields to mark National Careers Week 2020

Highfields is marking National Careers Week 2020 with a packed programme of activities, workshops and trips, encouraging students to look forward to life after school.

Each day will begin with a CEIAG-themed assembly, delivered by special guest visitors from various industries and higher education providers, before form time quizzes and research sessions.

Careers-based lessons will be taking place throughout the week, whilst there will also be talks about apprenticeships, interview skills and CV writing workshops.

The event runs from March 2nd-6th, with activities taking place every day to give students from all year groups a greater insight into a range of professions and pathways available to them to fulfil their career dreams.

The school has teamed up with a number of universities and businesses, as well as apprenticeship and training providers, to support the national event.

The programme of activities includes a trip to Molineux organised by the Wolves Foundation, whilst Sixth Form students will get an insight into career opportunities in the Armed Forces.

Mr P Rose, Highfields’ Head of Middle School and Careers Leader, said: “We’ve got lots going on around school every day throughout the week to mark National Careers Week.

“It is all about encouraging students from all year groups to look forward to the future and learn more about the opportunities available to them to fulfil their career dreams after school.”

The week-long event comes after Highfields hosted its biggest ever Careers Fair, which featured dozens of exhibitors and was attended by hundreds of students and their families.

Click here for our full National Careers Week programme.

It's showtime! Stage set for magical Disney musical

Talented students will bring magical fairytale, Beauty & The Beast, to life on stage following months of rehearsals - with a handful of tickets still available for the feel-good family favourite.

It’s time for curtain up on our production of the Disney classic, which will run from tonight (Wed 26th February) until Friday 28th February, featuring students from Years 7-9.

More than 60 performers have been rehearsing for months to stage the musical production, including after-school and weekend sessions. The dedicated students also gave up some of their half term holiday to put the finishing touches to the show.

Ms S Bishop, Highfields’ Head of Extra-Curricular Performance, said: “The entire cast is looking forward to showtime and the chance to showcase their performances to live audiences.

“We have such a wealth of talent at Highfields and so have triple cast the principal characters to give more students the opportunity to per. 

“It takes a lot of hard work over a number of weeks to put on our shows, but the process is always such great fun and a wonderful experience for our students. We are looking forward to welcoming in audiences to join with us in celebrating our students’ hard work and talent.

"Audiences can expect lots of singing and dancing, bright costumes, enthusiastic performances and lots of fun."

Shows start at 7.30pm every night. Tickets, which cost £6 for adults/£4 concessions, are available through our Box Office or Humanities LRC.

We made the news! Our production has featured in the Express & Star:

-All photographs courtesy of the Express & Star

Students reach for the stars at RAF Cosford STEM event

Students hoping to pursue a career in STEM subjects were encouraged to reach for the stars during an educational visit to RAF Cosford.

Year 10 students attended Ad Astra lectures led by leading manufacturers, as well as aerospace and engineering companies, to inspire them for the future.

During the day, 25 students from Highfields learnt more about a new electric plane created by Rolls Royce, whilst representatives from Airbus delivered a session about how planes are made and the challenges of constantly improving technology to ensure aircraft remain environmentally friendly. Students also heard from Dr Liam Naughton, Senior Lecturer in Mathematics at Wolverhampton University, who spoke about Maths in nature and how STEM is all around us.  

Miss L Green, Highfields’ Lead Practitioner in Mathematics, said: “Ad Astra means ‘to the stars’, and all of the lectures were based around STEM careers. 

“It was a really insightful event as students were shown the importance of STEM in the military and how the military works with organisations such as Rolls Royce and Airbus to keep everything as advanced as it can be.”

Be Our Guest! Tickets on sale for magical Disney musical

Rehearsals are well under way for Highfields’ upcoming musical production, Beauty & The Beast - with tickets for the stage spectacular now on sale through our dedicated online Box Office.

The magical Disney classic will be brought to life on stage from February 26th-28th, featuring students from Years 7-9.

More than 50 talented performers have been rehearsing for months to stage the feel-good family favourite, and will be back in school throughout the half-term holiday to put the finishing touches to the production.

Ms S Bishop, Highfields’ Head of Extra-Curricular Performance, said the entire cast was now looking forward to curtain up, and the chance to showcase their performances to live audiences.

She added: “For some of the students involved, this will be their first taste of performing to a live audience.

“We are so excited for show time. The entire cast has thoroughly enjoyed being part of the production, rehearsals have been going very well, and we are looking forward to putting on a fantastic show.

“It takes a lot of hard work over a number of weeks to put on our shows, but the process is always such great fun and a wonderful experience for our students. As well as the performers, a number of students have also given their time to help with costume and set making.

“They have all worked incredibly hard to ensure Beauty & The Beast is a success, and we can’t wait to welcome audiences to ‘be our guest’, and celebrate their hard work and talent over three nights.”

Shows start at 7.30pm every night. Tickets, which cost £6 for adults/£4 concessions, are available through our Box Office or Humanities LRC.

Hundreds attend school's biggest ever Careers Fair

More than 300 visitors attended Highfields’ biggest ever Careers Fair, which was staged to inspire students to make the right choices for their future.

There were more than 50 exhibitors at the event representing colleges, universities, training and apprenticeship providers, and employers from a range of industries.

Among those showcasing their services were Irwin Mitchell Solicitors, Boningale Nurseries, The British Army, The Royal Navy, Nova Training, Juniper Training, Dudley College, City of Wolverhampton College, Birmingham City University, NHS and West Midlands Ambulance Service and West Midlands Police.

The event also featured the school’s annual Course Choice Evening, to support Year 9 students in the process of choosing subjects to study in Years 10 and 11. As well as presentations from Headteacher, Mr G Tate, and Head of Middle School and Careers Leader, Mr P Rose, visitors got an insight into the the range of subjects on offer and what they involve.

Mr Rose said:

“It was a fantastic event. It was really well attended and we have had great feedback.

“We had more than 50 exhibitors ranging from universities, apprenticeship providers and employers including finance, armed forces, paramedics and police.

“The evening was principally for Year 9 students who are embarking on option choices for their GCSEs.

“We want to make sure the students look into it and make all the right choices.

“Myself and the headteacher addressed parents and students about the importance of making the right choices. I want to say a big thank you to all of our visitors and all of the exhibitors that attended.”

We made the news! Our Careers Fair featured in the Express & Star and Wolverhampton Chronicle:

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Budding science scholars selected for academic course

Scientists of the future travelled to Oxford University’s New College after being selected to enrol on a prestigious academic course.

Twelve talented Year 9 students attended the launch of the Scholars Programme, 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 students in non selective schools.

As part of its Scholars Programme, students will attend six tutorials before being set a 2,000-word assignment, graded using university terminology, to ‘graduate’ the course.

During their first visit to New College, students were introduced to their tutor, PhD student, Emilia Moisio, and given this year’s assignment: ‘Picturing the Invisible: How Scientific Images Influence Our Perceptions of Reality’.

Emilia explained: “During the tutorials, we will be looking at scientific images and how they influence our perceptions of the world, but we will also spend time talking about pupils' own relationships to media.

“I hope the programme will inspire the pupils to think more critically and analytically about both science and media.”

If students pass the course, a graduation ceremony is pencilled in for April at another Russell Group University, to celebrate their success.  

Ms E Buckley, Lead Practitioner with responsibility for More Able students who leads the school’s Brilliant Club project, said: “This is the fifth cohort of students chosen from Highfields to take part in The Brilliant Club and its Scholars Programme.

“They all thoroughly enjoyed the launch event at New College, being given the chance to tour the the university and attending lunch in the impressive dining hall, as well as meeting their tutor.

“They are all excited to get working on their assignment, and looking forward to their upcoming tutorials, with the motivation of a graduation ceremony to celebrate their achievements in April, which is always a wonderful event.”

Students develop innovative engineering designs

Budding engineers travelled to Loughborough University to work on their own innovative designs as part of a national project.

Two teams of Year 12 students are working with industry experts to bring their designs to life as part of the Engineering Education Scheme.

One team is looking into radiation shielding methods, under the supervision of Wolverhampton-based ANSALDO Nuclear, whilst the other group is developing a reservoir overflow alongside professionals from Mott Macdonald Bentley.

Students were able to start work on their projects using the facilities in Loughborough University’s engineering workshops and will now continue with their prototype builds after school and in weekly meetings with their supervising companies.

The national scheme is run by the Engineering Development Trust and allows small teams from different schools to take part in designing, building and presenting an engineering project that could be of significant use to a local engineering company.

Later this year, the teams will take part in a National Celebration and Assessment Day where they will get the chance to display their projects and present their work to a panel of judges.

Physics teacher, Mr A Britton, said: “The students found their trip to Loughborough University, and the chance to use its impressive facilities, very useful.

“Both teams will now continue to work on their prototypes with their companies during weekly meetings in the school’s workshops, before presenting their innovative designs to judges later this year.”