Dear Parent/Carer
As you can imagine it
is a very busy time at Gracemount High School. As you read on you will get a
flavour of what is currently happening or planned at Gracemount High School.
Preparation for SQA Courses and Examinations
All our senior pupils
(S4-6) are preparing for the forthcoming SQA exam diet. Information about
progress has been shared via our most recent Tracking & Monitoring reports
which were sent home on Thursday 12 February as well as the most recent
parent consultation which took place on Thursday
26 February. You should be doing as much as you can to encourage your youngsters
to attend school as regularly as possible and study at home in preparation for the
forthcoming examinations and finalisation of course work. You will find a very
useful link below which will provide information on revision tips and links to
past papers. We would encourage you to look at this with your youngster to help
them prepare and you should not hesitate to contact the school should you wish any
further advice on exam preparation.
This is a crucial time
for all pupils in the senior phase and the work they do now in school and at
home will be central to their success. Our study support programme (GASS)
remains in full flow and all students in the senior phase should be utilising
this resource to enhance their skills and knowledge in preparation for
completing course work and external examinations.
Easter Revision Programme
This will take place during
the school holidays and will be on offer to all pupils in the senior phase from
Tuesday 7 April. More details will
follow about this programme.
Meaningful May – 4 to 29 May
Students who are being
presented for less than three National 5 qualifications will be granted two
days exam leave for each examination. These students will also participate in a
“Meaningful May” programme which is being devised by staff in conjunction with
Liberton High School. This programme is designed to ensure all students
continue to receive a high quality educational programme during the month of
May and is linked to developing skills for life, learning and work. More details
will follow and you will be advised if your youngster is expected to
participate in this programme.
Pupils in this programme
should attend school from Tuesday 28 April to Friday 1 May. They will attend
timetabled classes as normal before they begin the Meaningful May programme.
Exam Leave
Pupils sitting three or
more National 5 or higher qualifications will start exam leave on Tuesday 28 April. Students will return
to school on the Monday 1 June when
the new timetable begins.
Vision of Excellence
We have been working
very hard behind the scenes to look at our vision and values for the school as
well as considering our core improvement priorities. Work is well underway in
all areas.
Vision and Values
I believe that a clear vision
and a clear set of defined values is crucial for the success of all students at
Gracemount High School. Our vision statement will set out our ambition for all
members of the Gracemount High School community and it is designed to be a
force in our hearts; something we will go to the wall for. Our core values are
what we stand for and what we want to encourage in our young people every day.
It will lead us into conversations about what character traits we feel are
important to develop in our young people and will be a key part of our Journey
to Excellence as a school.
We would encourage you to
engage in this process. You can do so by
casting your vote on our Vision and Values for Gracemount High School. Your views
on this are integral and
will go a long way to shaping the future of the school.
Parent voting link - https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/99DLWXS
Pupil voting link - https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/9N5HQK9
Better Relationships,
Better Learning and Better Behaviour -
After considerable
feedback from staff and pupils there was a need to reconsider our behaviour
policy within the school. We are well underway with this process and hope to
launch a new policy from the start of the new session in August. Our plan is to
use the month of June to engage students and parents in the detail of the
policy and where necessary make refinements to it. It is imperative that
students, parent and staff have a say in what they feel would be a consistent,
fair and appropriate policy for the school. Our focus will be very much on
recognising and rewarding positive behaviour and a number of staff have been
visiting other schools across the city to look at good practice. Further
information on developments will follow in due course.
Staffing Update
We are delighted to
welcome Mrs Paula Hamilton and Mrs Jacquelyn McDonald to our Pupil Support
team. Mrs Hamilton has been in the school for some time and we are delighted to
welcome her on a permanent basis. Mrs McDonald will begin on Monday 9 March and
I am in no doubt
will be a fantastic addition to the team.
Regrettably Mr
MacDonald in the English Department is continuing absent. Contingency plans
have been put in place to support Mr MacDonald’s classes. However, I would urge
any parent/carer who is concerned about their child's education due to his
absence to contact their youngster’s Guidance Teacher in the first instance.
Both Mrs Semple and
Miss Muir have left their posts in Support for Learning to assume posts in
other local authorities. We have however made two temporary appointments. Mrs
Shona Valentine, a current member of staff in the Technologies faculty, has
been appointed together with Mr Alistair McLeod, a newly appointed member of
staff. Until both start in post, internal arrangements are in place to continue
to support our young people who require access to our Support for Learning
Team. Again, please do not hesitate to contact us at school if you wish to
discuss this further.
School Trips
Ogwini
The 2015 Ogwini trip was a great success. 12 pupils and two
members of staff travelled to Durban during the February break to experience
the education and culture of South Africa. As a school we are very proud of our
young people and staff who embarked on this trip. A number of them have
returned to school describing the trip as a life changing event. It is
obvious that they have been very moved by the experiences they encountered and
work is ongoing in the school to ensure they share their experiences with as
many pupils as possible. More details
and pictures will be included in the Easter Newsletter.
Watersports
With only 12 weeks to go,
excitement is rising among pupils going to Spain for the Watersports Trip in
the summer term. On Wednesday pupils will be taking part in a sponsored
swim at Gracemount Leisure Centre and they have 2 fundraising bag packing
sessions on Saturday 2 and Saturday 9 May at Morrisons Supermarket.
Final payments were due
on the Friday 27 February. If you have any outstanding payments, please
hand them into the school for the attention of Mr Gregor as soon as
possible. Passports and European Health Insurance cards should be submitted
for photocopying by Friday 27 March.
Please let us know if you are applying for a new passport. European
Health Insurance Cards are free and applications can be made at the following address
http://www.nhs.uk/ehic/
Ryan Ferguson, Head Boy – The Big Bang National Science and Engineering
Competition – 10-12 March NEC Birmingham
Congratulations to Ryan who has successfully made
it through to the final of this event. This has been a culmination of over a
year’s hard work and we wish Ryan all the very best with regards to this. We
will keep you informed of his progress.
School Immunisation Programme
Immunisation helps protect our communities from a
wide range of illnesses.
The teenage booster ensures protection
from tetanus,
diphtheria and polio and will be offered to students in S3 by the NHS
Lothian School Nursing team on Tuesday 24 March 2015. Students will also be offered the MenC booster at the same time to
protect against meningitis and septicaemia (blood poisoning) caused by meningococcal
group C bacteria.
Pupils in S4-S6 who missed the opportunity in previous years will be
invited again.
Please ensure that completed consent forms are
returned promptly to school.
Increase for School Meals Prices (From August 2015)
As part of the council
budget earlier this month an increase to the school meal price was agreed at
the following rates:
|
|
Current fee 2014/15
|
From
1 August 2015
|
|
Secondary Schools
|
£2.30
|
£2.35
|
And finally……………I have
now been Head Teacher at Gracemount for approximately 100 days. It has been a
pleasure to work in the school community and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time
getting to know the young people, staff and many of the parents and carers. I
very much look forward to continuing the work I have started and working
alongside all members of the community. It remains an exciting time for the
school as we embark on our Vision 2020 and I have no doubt that we will improve
the life chances and outcomes for all our young people – something all staff at
Gracemount High School are passionate about.
Should you wish to meet
with me at any point, please do not hesitate to contact Yvonne Jardine in the
School Office to make a suitable appointment.
Kind regards,
Ross Hunter
Headteacher
