Year 7 have been busy preparing themselves for the annual spelling bee, hosted by the Matrix Academy! 15 boys were able to show their hard work, determination and talent in the Spelling Bee auditions, all boys bared their teeth at the competition and gave it their all! Here at Turves Green, we are incredibly proud of all the pupils who took part. Every contestant demonstrated courage and commitment, making the Spelling Bee auditions a memorable experience for everyone involved.

The auditions created an exciting and supportive atmosphere, with participants encouraging one another and showing great sportsmanship throughout. It was inspiring to see so many pupils willing to challenge themselves and step forward with confidence. Their hard work and commitment were clearly reflected in their performances.

The auditions were not only about selecting contestants for the next stage of the competition, but also about celebrating pupils dedication to improving their vocabulary, pronunciation, and communication skills. Every participant should feel proud of their effort and achievement. Here at Turves Green, we want to celebrate all students who have taken part!

Unfortunately, there can only be 2 students who can represent the school at Villa Park in July. A big shout out to Hussain Year 7 and Hazael Year 8 for being our finalists, for trying their hardest and not getting stumped at abolish!

The Year 8 football team travelled to Etone College for the Matrix Football Tournament this week.
The boys were brilliant throughout the competition and were unlucky to come up just short in the semi-final, narrowly losing 1-0 after fatigue in the heat began to take its toll. Their attitude, teamwork and determination were outstanding all day, and they were a real credit to the school.

Turves Green Boys' School are proud to announce that we have received an FFT National School Attendance Award for the Spring Term for being in the Top 25% of similar secondary schools in the country for attendance. We are incredibly proud of this achievement and believe that strong attendance is crucial for the academic success and personal development of all our pupils. We are grateful to all members of our school community for their support in achieving this award, as strong attendance cannot be achieved without the support of parents, carers, pupils and staff.

The recent Turing trip to Canada was a fantastic success, providing pupils with a rich and memorable educational experience across multiple locations.

The trip began in Niagara, where pupils had the opportunity to explore the breathtaking Niagara Falls. This included an insightful visit to the power stations to understand the engineering and energy production behind the falls, as well as the unforgettable “Journey Behind the Falls” experience. A particular highlight was Niagara Takes Flight, which gave pupils a unique aerial perspective and deeper appreciation of the geography and natural beauty of the area.

Following this, the group travelled to Montreal, where the focus shifted towards science, culture, and university life. Pupils visited the Planetarium, where they engaged with interactive exhibits and shows exploring space and astronomy. This was complemented by a trip to the Biodome, allowing pupils to experience a range of ecosystems from across the Americas, and a visit to the Science Museum, where hands-on learning further enriched their understanding.

A particular highlight during the Montreal leg of the trip was a visit to Parc Omega, where pupils experienced Canadian wildlife up close. This provided a unique opportunity to observe animals in a naturalistic environment and added an exciting outdoor dimension to the trip.

Another memorable experience was the visit to a traditional maple syrup farm, where pupils learned how maple syrup is produced. Pupils fully embraced the experience, sampling a wide range of traditional dishes featuring maple syrup. This was thoroughly enjoyed by all and, unsurprisingly, resulted in a definite sugar high across the group!

Cultural experiences were also a key part of the trip. Pupils embraced local cuisine by trying traditional poutine, which proved to be a popular highlight. In addition, a visit to McGill University provided valuable insight into higher education opportunities abroad, giving pupils a glimpse into university life in an international context.

Throughout the trip, the boys were exceptional and represented TGBS amazingly. Their behaviour, engagement, and curiosity were consistently praised, and they approached each activity with enthusiasm and maturity. 

Overall, the Turing trip was a highly worthwhile experience, broadening pupils’ horizons both academically and culturally.

At TGBS we are committed to improving and celebrating reading success for all. Recently, Mr Green escorted a bespoke group of pupils to Peter’s bookshop in Birmingham to select new non fiction books for the library. 

The were selected based on their successful reading age improvements based on recent assessments and interventions. Other pupils were those who have read the most of our 16 by 16 initiative. The boys were also gifted a book of their choice as a reward for the improvement in reading. 

As part of the DFE’s national Year of Reading, we will be conducting more reading based rewards trips in order to foster a love of reading and desire to improve a repertoire of reading material.

Our Year 11 pupils are focusing on our 4 week countdown plan to the final GCSE exams in English. Our English team are busy revising with pupils and marking timed responses ahead of the crucial exams in a few school weeks' time. Pupils are, as you can see, working hard on refining those last-minute techniques and making every minute matter. We are incredibly proud of how our Year 11 boys are approaching their revision with rigour and determination. 

This week Year 8 pupils have experienced ‘Reteach’ lessons in English, where they have had the opportunity to improve their assessment. After receiving their assessment back, they read through teacher comments and identified parts of the writing they could improve. After writing a thesis statement together as a class with the teacher they were then able to highlight parts of the success criteria they had achieved. They then applied this method in their own independent practice and considerably improved their original thesis statement. Pupils commented that they now feel confident to produce a much higher quality thesis statement and with more practice they know they will eventually be able to do this more independently. The English department are extremely proud of the way in which pupils have approached this new concept, the effort and pride they have taken in their work is wonderful to see.

The Year 9 boys took part in their first netball competition today, facing six other teams from across the Matrix Academy, and delivered an outstanding performance. Despite it being their first experience of competitive netball, they rose to the challenge brilliantly, showing confidence, teamwork, and determination against much more experienced sides. Their ability to adapt so quickly and perform so strongly throughout the tournament was impressive, and reaching the final was a remarkable achievement. Although they were narrowly defeated by Etone, finishing as runners-up against such experienced opposition is something they should be incredibly proud of.

This half term, Year 8 have begun learning about energy and the transfers that take place within particles via conduction, convection and radiation. Miss Mansell made “Gem’s cosy cottage” a while ago and it’s been passed around the department and got a bit battered. 8S5 decided they wanted to improve on it. So, using only rescued or recycled materials, they produced a cardboard house, which can be used in a rather captivating experiment to show how heat loss by conduction, convection and radiation can be reduced by using things such as curtains, carpet and double glazing. The box that Luke, Tom and Rei Mei made was so impressive, Mrs Shaw from the University of Birmingham gladly received it. It can be used as a teaching tool for pupils and future teachers! To say thanks, she sent back a packet of lovely biscuits and some University of Birmingham badges that the pupils can wear with pride. An excellent example of Telling School and Valuable Contribution.

Well done!

To recognise the commitment and positive engagement of pupils involved in the peer mentoring programme this Spring term, we were delighted to reward mentors and mentees with a bowling trip. It was fantastic to see pupils enjoying the experience together, strengthening relationships and celebrating their shared achievements.

Throughout the visit, pupils demonstrated the values that underpin our school community, showing kindness, encouragement and respect for one another. The interactions between mentors and mentees reflected the caring culture we continue to build, where pupils feel supported and connected.

This trip was a well-deserved opportunity to recognise the effort, resilience and leadership shown by all involved. We are incredibly proud of how our pupils have embraced the peer mentoring programme and contributed to a positive, inclusive and supportive school environment. Well done to all of our mentors and mentees!