Queen Margaret Academy: 12 February 2009

Feb 13 2009

THIS week is Catholic Education Week. This is a week during which Catholic schools across Scotland focus on the Catholicity of the school. The particular theme of 2009 is Bringing Values to Life.

During this week, pupils will focus on how they live their faith as Christians both inside and outside the school. They will examine how they turn words into actions by bearing witness to God in what they say and what they do.

Members of the senior management teams, both secondary and primary; the guidance team and the department of Religious Education from QMA, will attend Mass at each of the parish churches across South Ayrshire in order to give the community a flavour of how they live their values in Queen Margaret Academy Cluster.

JUST before Christmas, pupils sent messages to Sudan as part of the Shine a Light on Sudan initiative. These messages will be read out on Sudan radio over the next couple of months, letting the people of Sudan know that the people of Scotland are thinking of them.

Father John Sharp, who is SCIAF’s Schools Education Officer, has written to the school thanking them for their messages. As a result of their links with SCIAF they are one of a limited number of schools that has been asked to host a visit from a representative of one of SCIAF’s partners in El Salvador.

Dr Ricardo Navarro is chairman and founder of a group called CESTA. We are thrilled to accept this offer.

Dr Navarro is a leading light on climate change and the effect it is having on the world’s poorest people. Plans are being put in place for him to meet groups of youngsters from across the school. This is a great cross curricular initiative as Dr Navarro will meet students from a variety of subjects including social subjects, religious education and modern languages.

THE S2 Options Programme is well under way. Pupils from second year will soon be making decisions regarding the subjects which they will study in third and fourth year.

An extended programme of support for pupils is arranged by the guidance team, in order that pupils have the correct support to make the best decision possible for their future. It is important that parents feel part of this process and Mr Yule (depute head teacher) will be in contact with parents very soon to ensure that they are kept informed of what is happening.

As part of the programme, pupils will meet visiting speakers from local businesses. This is an exciting opportunity for the youngsters to find out about career opportunities from a wide variety of professionals.

MISS Theresa Seery, principal teacher of guidance with a special remit for work experience, has been working closely with a variety of employers and with South Ayrshire Council to ensure that work experience for our third year pupils goes without a hitch.

A parents evening is planned to give parents information on both the philosophy behind work experience and the process which our young people go through to prepare them for work experience.

Already S3 pupils have begun the process of choosing placements with a view to preparing a CV. This part of the course is delivered by the English department, which has also organised a day on Saturday, February 28, during which local business people will come in to talk to all of our S3 pupils as they prepare for the world of work.

Some pupils have already undertaken work experience. Two pupils enjoyed a week with the Fire Service at Dreghorn Fire Station and three others went to Ayr College where they tried out construction courses in painting and decorating, joinery, electrical engineering, plumbing and bricklaying. When asked which was their favourite workshop people found it hard to choose.

Some of the pupils have been given the opportunity to have work experience during the Easter holiday with the Army. Despite the timing there has been a great deal of interest in this course. Miss Seery and Mr Devlin will organise a selection process for the pupils.

We wish all pupils well as they prepare to sample the delights of the workplace.

LAST Thursday, first year pupils were entertained by the Crag Rats Theatre Company. A team of three highly skilled young actors performed a play for pupils which tackled the theme of alcohol abuse in young people.

This was a superb performance.

Afterwards the youngsters discussed with the actors the dangers of alcohol and the importance of enjoying alcohol in a mature and safe manner.

The show was excellent and the play really drove home the message. It was particularly effective because the actors were young and highly skilled and they clearly spoke the same language as the pupils.

This performance fits in well with our personal, social and health education programme with its focus on encouraging the young people to be responsible citizens and effective contributors.

A SMALL group of S2 pupils who are carrying out food safety training to gain their REHIS elementary food hygiene certificates will be selling homemade soup to staff at lunchtime on Fridays for the next few weeks.

The money raised from this venture will go to the Badagry Fund.

There will be a choice of two soups each week and two pupils, Amy Rose McGahon and Kate Haining, will take advance orders from staff.

Soup will be delivered to the staff room in reusable containers which will have the name of each member of staff who has placed the order printed on it. This will contribute to our ECO schools programme as well as to the healthy eating programme.

Mrs Douglas is an expert in inducting pupils into the rigours of food hygiene. Everything will be conducted to the highest standards and this will be a real culinary treat for staff.

Thanks are due to this enterprising group of young people.

ANNE Logan, principal teacher of physical education, has organised yet another treat for those pupils who are attracted to the delights of skiing.

Mrs Logan and three other members of staff will accompany forty pupils, consisting of thirteen first year students, thirteen second year students and fourteen third and fourth year students, on a trip to Newmilns dry ski centre.

Pupils are very excited about this outing and they have promised to give us an update on performance following the trip.

FIFTH and sixth year prelims began on Friday. English was the first examination. Pupils have been working hard in preparation for these examinations.

Members of the whole school management team, will be looking very carefully at the results of these examinations to determine how each pupil can be best supported to ensure success in the national examinations which take place in the summer term.

This is a tense time for pupils and for parents but it is important that students have a good balance of work, rest and play throughout the year, particularly at this time.

THE S4/5 options choice evening for parents and pupils will be held on Thursday, March 12. Parents are requested to put this date in their diaries

TICKETS for the Burns Ceilidh on Friday, February 20, are on sale. Parents have be sent letters regarding details of this event. Mrs Gray has asked that parents look for the letters at the bottom of school bags and she has also asked that parents make a return to the school with the utmost speed as tickets will be limited. Alternatively please telephone the school on 01292 268379.

Tickets will cost £12 per adult, £6 per pupil and £30 per family of two adults and two children.

THIS week we have been visited by members of the Pupil Councils of associate primary schools.

These articulate and highly motivated pupils from P6 and P7 from each school made a presentation to representatives of the QMA Pupil Council to explain how they intend to spend the Pupil Council budget to the benefit of their schools.

Each representative team made a detailed presentation to the QMA group and discussion followed before a decision was made to approve or decline the request.

Suffice to say that QMA judges were so impressed by the plans presented by primary pupils that the answer was positive in each case.

The pupils who represented their primary schools impressed not only the pupils of QMA but every member of staff who met them, in particular Mrs Gray. The school was delighted at the mature and confident way in which they conducted themselves and are really looking forward to the time when these pupils join Queen Margaret Academy.

Representatives of QMA Pupil Council will make a presentation to indicate how they would like to spend their money. Following consultation with classmates they have expressed an interest in purchasing two more fresh water fountains for pupils and also some more benches for the crush hall area and the playground.

THE RENOVATION of the modern languages, RE and behaviour support departments begin this week. Cupboards have been cleaned out, rubbish binned, furniture stored and the builders have moved in.

Mrs Gray will be keeping a photographic diary of the transformation.

THE CRUSH Hall has now been painted and the fresh white walls have made a significant change for the better to the appearance of this area. This week the floor is being relayed, so there will be some inconvenience to pupils and staff, but it will be worth it. The PE block has had the changing rooms, showers and toilets renovated and the corridor has been painted and new floors have been laid. What an improvement!

ALREADY planning has begun for the timetable for session 2009-2010. Mrs Gray, Mr Yule and other members of the Senior Management Team are meeting with principal teachers to discuss their requirements for next year.

These are very interesting meetings during which the group examine the negatives and positives of our current timetable and discuss possible improvements and developments for next year, particularly in the light of Curriculum for Excellence.

In May the school are planning to use imaginative timetabling to facilitate cross curricular working. This should be an interesting experiment.

So far principal teachers have made very interesting suggestions regarding what should be taught and how it should be managed.