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As the new term begins, we have lots of information to share with you so please take a look at the various articles in this week's edition. We are pleased to report that students have started with great enthusiasm and a positive attitude. Each week, we will share some of the high-quality work and learning across the range of subjects we offer; this week's focus is English and Visual Arts. We also encourage all our students to look at the many extra curricular activities we offer and come along! In addition, please ensure you read the article about the upcoming digital transformation. We will continue to keep you informed of any important updates on this matter. Finally, a belated but big congratulations from everyone at Q3 Academy Great Barr to our staff who took part in the charity bike ride over the summer, raising funds for a fantastic cause. Pre-Ordering Meals and SnacksAs you know, we are undergoing exciting IT upgrade works in the week beginning 2nd October. We will not have access to our checkout tills during this period, so next week Personal Tutors will be asking all students to pre-order their meals and snacks. They will do this in Tutor Time. This way we can continue to provide catering throughout the digital migration week. Please discuss this with your child – it's important to understand that they will not be able to purchase any items in the migration week unless they have ordered in advance. Of course, as always students have the option of bringing in a packed lunch from home. Extracurricular Clubs and ActivitiesAs we have done in previous years, we are delighted to announce a range of clubs and activities across the Academy week. All students need to do is come along on the right day, at the right time and to the right location and they can enjoy the various opportunities we offer! All relevant information about our extracurricular opportunities can be be found on the Academy website. We look forward to as many of our students attending as possible. The ZAFTA Awards!In order to celebrate the fantastic teaching at Q3 Academy Great Barr, we have employed a new mascot! In the well-known children's story, Zog perfectly captures the attitude we love to see in our students and staff: his teacher shows him what to do and he practises as hard as he can! Zog will spend the week with a teacher that has shown their commitment to quality teaching. Here he is practising his singing with Mr Sassons last week: 
We're calling this the ZAFTA Awards (Zog Award For Teaching Awesomely). This week, he's with Miss Perkins in Geography because of the amazing atmosphere she creates for students to learn in. – Mr Mills 
Staff Bike-ride to Weston-Super-MareOn the 26th and 27th July, a large number of our staff cycled 135 miles over two days from the Academy to Weston-Super-Mare. This was done to raise money and awareness to support the Birmingham Mind charity and in order to remember Mr Richardson's dad who he tragically lost last year. 
The journey had its challenges, including a few punctures, but the staff persevered and experienced many high points along the way. However, all staff made it to the end and in one piece. A special thanks to Mr Webster and Mr Price for being such amazing support drivers by rescuing lost souls and supplying the team with food and beverages. 
The support we have received from everyone has been unreal and overall, with a massive help from this challenge we have been able to raise almost £10,000. Thank you again to everyone involved and we look forward to the next one. – Mr Richardson 
Welcome new Year 7s!Welcome to our new Year 7 families! Mrs Ward, Miss Tromans, and the Year 7 team have been elated with the positive start to their Academy life. Students are slowly finding their feet and showing a thirst for the wonderful opportunities that we offer at the Academy. A full Extracurricular Curricular timetable is available on the website for students to attend. On Tuesday we had Year 7 boys football trials with Mr Richardson! 
Students also got introduced to Breakfast Club which starts from 8am each morning and you can have a free bagel and juice. Please sign up on the website if you wish to attend. It is a great way to start the day! In addition, all students and parents have been provided with logins for Class Charts which shows positive and negative points used at the Academy. To log into other Academy programs to support learning please use your child's Academy email address. 
Some reminders: Friday 22nd September is the deadline for letters of application for Student Leadership roles. These need to be handed in to your Personal Tutor to give to Mrs Ward. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe theatre trip deadline is Friday 29th September. – Mrs Ward Year 11 Artists ShineYear 11 have commenced the academic year with a great deal of enthusiasm and are producing some excellent development work for their GCSE coursework. This week, the students explored the exciting world of monoprinting, creating high-quality and truly unique pieces of art 
It was a pleasure to see the students' creativity and hard work on display, and I am confident that they will continue to produce outstanding work throughout the year. 
It was also fantastic to see so many Year 11s attend their intervention session this week. This is a clear indication of their positive mindset towards the year and their dedication to achieving the best possible GCSE grades. It is always inspiring to see our students take ownership of their learning and work hard to achieve their goals. I would like to take this opportunity to commend our Year 11 students for their commitment to their studies. It is clear that they are determined to do well. – Miss Jeanneret 
New Beginnings in EnglishYear 7 have started the academic year exploring a persuasive writing unit. Students were given the task of writing a persuasive paragraph about a phone including the rhetorical devices they have learned about so far. 
The students were excited to showcase their knowledge and form engaging responses. 
Our Year 10 students have entered Key Stage 4 and are exploring GCSE content. Our first unit looks at the 'Power and Conflict' cluster of the GCSE poetry anthology. 
Our students have been working extremely hard and already grasping key concepts and themes from the first few poems. – Miss Russell 
Jumpstart Your Day at Breakfast ClubIt has been great to see so many students attending breakfast club again this year. Lots of new faces have taken up the offer of attending the club before the Academy day begins to enjoy a relaxing time with friends and staff and the chance to indulge in a free bagel and juice. 
Breakfast club is free to all students within the Academy and doors open at 8am. It is a chance for students to arrive at the Academy earlier than normal and spend time preparing for the day ahead. More details about breakfast club can be found on the Academy website or by speaking to Mr Webster. – Mr Webster 
Exploring Flood Risks: GCSE Fieldwork in BewdleyOur Year 11 Geographers embarked on their first GCSE fieldwork adventure, exploring the picturesque town of Bewdley, nestled along the banks of the meandering River Severn. 
With the town's history of flooding, Bewdley served as the perfect backdrop for our Geographers to delve into the impacts and responses to flood events in the UK. Our Geographers were excited to see new flood defences being constructed, highlighting efforts to protect Bewdley's properties and businesses from future flooding. 
We completed detailed field sketches and environmental quality surveys. This gave us evidence to confirm that the quality of Bewdley's environment plays a large factor in explaining why people choose to live here despite the flood risk. 
Our Geographers spoke with locals on the high street and in Jubilee Gardens to gain insights into the effects of flood events, their opinions on the current flood management scheme, and their reasons for choosing to live in Bewdley despite the risks. 
Our Geographers exemplified Q3 Academy Great Barr's values through their polite and respectful conduct during fieldwork, as they gathered valuable data to understand why people continue to live in a location with significant flood risks – Miss Perkins 
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