Jul 1, 2016 - two projects, one on internet safety and the other on the negatives of peer pressure. Posters, videos and
Peterhead Academy Newsletter 1st July 2016 Dear Parent/Carer We have reached the end of an extremely busy session. You will have seen the final report from Education Scotland where there is recognition that the school is improving but it is very clear that we still have a number of improvements to make. We will continue to work hard over the coming sessions to ensure that those improvements will be evident for when the inspectors return. Exam results are due out this year on August 9th and our senior pupils will be waiting eagerly for that date to come to see if their hard work has paid off. We have now introduced S3 exams in most subjects so that pupils become familiar with the format so they are better prepared for the senior phase. Over the next year, faculties will be looking carefully at their courses in the Broad General Education and they will look at how the pace and challenge can be increased to better prepare them for their National qualifications in S4. With continual review of practices, we will steadily make a positive difference to the learning of our young people here in Peterhead. We have over 80 prefects that are being led by our new Head Boy (Cameron Findlay), Head Girl (Chloe Stephen) and their Deputies (Ethan Morgan, Michael Kozera, Maisie Morrison and Chara Strachan). Already, they have been proactive in setting up working groups and assisting at functions and I am confident that they will play a key part this coming session in making significant progress to their school. I will keep you updated of their successes throughout the year. As usual, I want to share some of the successes and achievements from this term. I think you will be impressed at the efforts the young people of Peterhead have made:
Achievements/Events: Young Enterprise: On Tuesday 26th April, our Young Enterprise team attended the finals at RGU campus. They gave an informative and entertaining presentation and won the Best Managing Director of the Year award from Jimmy Milne, MD of the Balmoral Group. This is the first year this award has been issued and it is a huge accolade for the school to have been the very first to receive it. A special well done to Cameron and Maisie who jointly led the team. I am also very grateful to Young Enterprise as I more than doubled my investment due to their sound business acumen.
Maritime Academy: A class of eight S4 boys from Peterhead Academy recently celebrated
completing
the
Seafish
Introduction
to
Commercial Seafishing course. This course is a mandatory requirement for new entrants entering the industry and covers the basic skills and essential safety knowledge required to go to sea. The Scottish Maritime Academy ran the course over 15 weeks for the pupils on a day release basis. The boys were commended by the college for their commitment and work ethic. They also received a clutch of certificates that were worth hundreds of pounds so a big thank you goes to the Maritime Academy from the school.
Rotary Young Photographers’ Competition: Camryn Forman was the local senior winner and Iona Rennie was the junior winner and received certificates and vouchers from Peterhead Rotary. The candidates were then submitted for the regional heats where Camryn came second receiving a certificate and £35 from the Regional Rotary. It was highlighted that the standard of entries was extremely high this year and so a huge well done to all of those who entered.
Baking Club in Chocolate Heaven: The after school baking club enjoyed an end of year trip to Cocoa Ooze in Aberdeen. Under the watchful guidance of chocolate lover Mrs Hood, the team spent a busy morning at the chocolate workshop in Aberdeen. As well as making two bars of chocolate with an array of mouthwatering toppings they also learnt the techniques of tempering chocolate. Following this the youngsters sampled various flavours in order to create their own individual range of assorted truffles. Baking Club will resume after the summer on Friday after school and is open to all S1-3 pupils.
Duke of Edinburgh – Visit to the Palace:
Hannah Stephen, a former pupil of the Academy was invited to collect her Gold Duke of Edinburgh award at the Diamond Anniversary Gold Award Presentations at Buckingham Palace. The Duke of Edinburgh and the Count and Countess of Wessex were present. Hannah invited her Mum and her sister, Olivia, who is still here at school. Olivia is currently undertaking the Diamond Challenge and her project is to gain building skills through renovating a farm shed into a Games Room. The family had a wonderful day with brass bands playing and had the opportunity to spend some time on the Palace grounds. They also spoke with Prince Edward. Hannah is very grateful to the Academy staff who gave up their time in order for her to achieve this award and thanks them for their input.
Choices for Life: Education Scotland have funded a project that we are working with our primary cluster schools to deliver. A team of S3 pupils have been mentoring primary pupils to undertake projects that the pupils themselves feel impacts on their daily lives. So far, there have been two projects, one on internet safety and the other on the negatives of peer pressure. Posters, videos and presentations have been created to provide information to help young people understand the consequences of making the wrong choice. Skills in teamwork, presenting, creativity and leadership have been developed through these projects and we look forward to many more. Pupils attended a celebration evening at the Academy on June 28th to collect their certificates. Thanks especially to Mr Clunie from the Academy and Mrs Smith and Miss Anderson from Boddam primary for all their hard work in making this event such a success.
Inspiring Aberdeenshire: Aberdeenshire Council holds an annual event at Haddo every year in June where they celebrate the success of groups and individuals in the county. One of our S6 pupils, Bethany Smith was nominated for the huge contribution she has made to raising funds for charities, with her main focus being Relay for Life. Bethany was runner up in her category (Best of Buchan), missing out to Theatre Modo. Well done for her efforts and we wish her the very best in her future career of nursing as well as her continued charity work.
Young Engineers: The Young Engineers had great success at Alford this year. Their tireless work and effort to improve the car paid off and with the help of their volunteer, Sandy, and a number of parents, they improved the efficiency of the car as well as increasing the distance that it could run. They achieved good speeds and, after being questioned by representatives from Greenpower and Taqa on their technical knowledge, the team won the IET award for engineering resulting in another handsome trophy for the cabinet! Congratulations to the team.
Career Ready:
Career ready aims to prepare young people for the world of work. Among those to graduate this year was Fiona Middleton who did a placement with the Evening Express so no surprise that she gained some newspaper coverage. This is an excellent scheme where contacts can be made increasing chances of securing employment in years to come. Pupils who have been involved in the scheme have found the experience to be invaluable.
OPITO Industry Awareness Day: . Industry Awareness Days for the Oil and Gas Technical Apprenticeship Programme (OPTAP ) took place from the 21st23rd June in Aberdeen. During the three day programme, pupils visited a range of companies from operators to contractors to those within the supply chain, allowing pupils to gain knowledge of the industry as a whole. Industry Awareness events provide 16 and overs with a unique opportunity to learn, interact and experience some of the most innovative, successful companies in the industry. With experience being so highly regarded in the world of work, Industry Awareness offers pupils the chance to speak directly with industry professionals, and learn first-hand about the skills and knowledge required for different career paths.
Sports Day: On June 24th, the PE department held our annual sports day. With the sun shining and over 200 plus competing the stage was set for records to be broken. The final standings were: Slains (627 pts), Buchan (540 pts), Marischal (531 pts), Craigewan (460 pts), Arbuthnot (363 pts) and Grange (348 pts). A special mention to Joshua Haggath (1G1), Elvis Sinuks (4M1), Senior Buchan Relay team and S1 Craigewan Relay team. Joshua not only won ‘Junior Athletics Champion’ for contributing the most points to his house, but also broke the S1 boys 400m time with a new record of 63.91 seconds. Elvis Sinuks won the ‘Senior Athletics Champion’ for contributing the most points to his house and the Senior Buchan Relay team won the ‘Peter Scott Endeavour’ award for their dominance of the event over the last 6 years along with their individual contribution across a range of different events on the day. The S1 Craigewan Relay team broke the mixed relay record with a time of 60.35 seconds. Congratulations to everyone that took part, you were a credit to the school. The event was a huge success and it was great to see so many of our pupils representing their house and enjoying themselves in the sun shine. A special thanks to our senior helpers, who were amazing, and to the parent council for running a BBQ over lunchtime.
Top Saltire Award: A huge well done to Chelsea Duncan for receiving a top Saltire Award for achieving an amazing 500 hours of voluntary service. This is on top of all her other activities that she is involved with including Rock Challenge, School Show, young media team and much, much more. Congratulations and we hope it is the first of many Saltire Award for our youngsters here at the school
School Show: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was the school show this year and pupils put on a very impressive performance with some having to learn a staggering number of lines. Advanced Higher pupils also gave their version of Arturo Ui which was an intense piece of drama and they performed it faultlessly. It takes commitment, hard work, teamwork and a lot of confidence to be able to stand up and perform and I am very proud of our drama group.
Information: Uniform: Uniform expectations are on the school website. S1-3 pupils can opt for shirt and tie or they can wear a sweatshirt and polo top. If the sweatshirt has a hood, then this is considered outerwear and must be removed in class. For S4-6, shirt/blouse and tie is required. Please check what is acceptable before buying any new attire. Shirts and blouses must be worn with a tie, leggings are not part of uniform and plain black footwear is required. The vast majority of pupils come to school looking so smart and we want to keep the positive comments we receive from the public about their appearance. It also provides our youngsters with a sense of identity as well as having a pride in themselves and the school which leads them to be more positive about their classwork.
SQA Results: Results will be out on August 9th. The senior team will be in school that day for a meeting and any queries about results should be made to the school after 11am. Remember, there are no appeals, we can only make a request for a remark of the exam paper. If their results require a change to their timetable, then Mr Morrison will be in school on Friday (12th August) so pupils can attend to see if it is possible to make changes. Attendance: Pupils cannot attain if they do not attend school or are regularly late for class. Pupils are expected to be in school for 8.25 am. Please ensure that they are out of bed in good time to make it to school for the first bell. We still have the 85% rule where pupils who dip below this will not be taking part in wider school events. We do, however, expect all pupils to have much better attendance than this.
Dates for your Diary: Monday 15th August: Inset day – school open to staff only Tuesday 16th August: School term begins for pupils Friday 26th August: Deadline for course changes Tuesday 30th August : Aberdeen University Open Day Monday 19th and Tuesday 20th September: School Photos Tuesday 27th September: Interim reports issued (S1-6) Wednesday 5th October: S1 Parents’ Evening 4.30-7pm Friday 7th October: end of term Further information can be accessed: www.peterheadacademy.aberdeenshire.sch.uk On behalf of all Peterhead Academy staff, we wish you a relaxing summer and look forward to working with you next session to ensure that our youngsters achieve their very best.
Yours faithfully
Shona Sellers Head Teacher
