MONTROSE ACADEMY

We will endeavour to ensure:

every young person reaches the highest levels of attainment and achievement of which they are capable;

every young person will be a success and that success will be celebrated;

all our young people move on to positive and aspirational destinations;

we improve the lives and life chances of all our young people.

Summer NewsletterJune 2017

Head Teacher’s Remarks

It is with great pleasure that I send you my first newsletter as Head Teacher of Montrose Academy.  During my first months in post I have very much enjoyed getting to know the pupils, staff and meeting some of the parents.  As you will see in this newsletter, pupils and staff of Montrose Academy give us much to be proud of both in and out of the classroom.  I thank you all for the time and effort you have invested in these.

I would like to thank those parents who completed the parental engagement survey and those who have attended focus group.  Towards the end of this term I met with a group of parents to discuss ways in which we can move the school forward.  All parents believe that positive relationships amongst staff, pupils and parents are hugely important, that effective communication will enhance our working relationships and ensure that young people feel supported, and that having information about how to help young people study and develop the skills they will need in later life would be useful.  We have started working on planning to make sure that improvements in these areas happen.

As I said in my address at Prizegiving, we are surrounded by a large number of impressive young people who want to get the most out of their time here.  We aspire for all young people to do their best and we will restart this journey once more in August. Before then I hope that all pupils and their parents and carers have a safe and enjoyable summer break.

Malcolm Smart

Staff Changes

Mrs Holland retires after many years’ dedicated service to the school.  We thank Mrs Holland for all the work she has done for the school and wish her all the best for a very long and happy retirement.  Mr Cunningham, Depute Head Teacher, will take up a Depute Head Teacher’s position in Perth High School at some point during the autumn term.  Mr Cunningham has worked tirelessly for Montrose Academy over the past three years and will be a huge loss to the school.  Mrs Fyfe has now started maternity leave and Mrs Hepburn will start her maternity leave in August – we wish both the very best.  On an acting basis, Mrs Will will take up a position as Depute Head Teacher, Mrs Graham will move to Pupil Care and Support and Miss Kelt will be the school’s first Principal Teacher of Achievement and Equity.  Ms Blake and Ms Milne will join us as School and Pupil Support Assistants and we look forward to welcoming them to the school.  We wish all members of staff all the very best in their new posts and next steps. 

In preparation for August

SQA results will be come out a short time before pupils return to school on 16th August.  Should your son/daughter's results mean that a change of subjects may be necessary, please visit the school between 11am and 1pm on Tuesday 15th August when Pupil Care and Support teachers will be available to meet you.  Parents and pupils are welcome to attend.  Entry to classes and levels will be dependent on numbers and suitability and will be at the discretion of the Principal Teachers Curriculum, but we will do our best to support the choices of all pupils.

I am very keen that all pupils wear the full school uniform, including school tie and blazer.  When pupils wear full uniform, I believe that they feel part of the school community and that this impacts not only on their behaviour around the school and town, but also on their performance in school. School ties can be bought from the school office (£4.50) and, at parents' request; the blazer fitting company will visit the school on 22nd August from 3.30pm to 5.00pm.   Should you wish your son/daughter to be fitted for a new blazer please come along then.  Your support in encouraging your child/children to wear the uniform would be appreciated.  Many pupils have blazers but not all wear them, most have ties but a small number seem to keep them in their schoolbags - the more we encourage pupils to wear both blazer and tie, the more it will become accepted as the norm.

A lot of work will be done to the school building over the summer.  In August you will notice new flooring, including a revarnished floor in the assembly hall, and that walls and staircases have been repainted.  I hope that pupils will be able to take pride in the school and that this will impact on the amount of littering we see at the moment.  There are plenty of bins around the school and I am disappointed at the amount of rubbish left lying around rather than in these bins on a daily basis.  After the summer there will be a push to maintain cleanliness around the school.

You will be aware that the school day starts at 8.55am (a warning bell will sound at 8.50am) and that pupils now go straight to period 1 instead of form tutor time.  This means that the learning and teaching starts straight away; arriving late not only affects a pupil's own performance but also that of other pupils in the class.  Parents will continue to be informed of late arrival in the morning and consequences will be issued for repeated, unexplained late coming.  We are also working hard to monitor attendance throughout the day as closely as we can.  Pupils from S1-5 will only be able to sign out of school if they have an appointment card, a note from a parent/carer or if the parent/carer has contacted school; if a pupil asks to leave school without any of these, the school office will get in touch with you to confirm the appointment.  S6 pupils may sign out of school if they do not have a class; if pupils miss classes they should attend, this privilege will be withdrawn. 

The timetable will come into effect on Wednesday 16th August.  Please note the new times for the structure of the school day below:

Monday to Thursday

Period 1 : 8.55 – 9.45Period 2 : 9.45 – 10.35

Period 3 : 10.35 – 11.25Morning interval : 11.25 – 11.40

Period 4 : 11.40 – 12.30Period 5 : 12.30 – 1.20

Lunch : 1.20 – 2.10Period 6: 2.10 – 3.00Period 7: 3.00 – 3.50

Friday

Period 1: 8.55 – 9.45Period 2: 9.45 – 10.35

Period 3: 10.35 – 11.25Morning interval: 11.25 – 11.40

Period 4: 11.40 – 12.30Period 5: 12.30 – 1.20

Dux of the School for 2017 and Proxime Accessit

Joint Dux of the school for session 2016-17 is Morgan Hart and Molly Munro.The Proxime Accessit is Georgina Carter.

Many congratulations to all of them for their outstanding academic performances this session.

On Saturday 24th June they were at the annual Edinburgh-Angus Club garden party at the Westpark Centre, Dundee, along with the prizewinners from the other Angus and Dundee schools. They were accompanied by their families. A very proud day for all concerned.

We also celebrate and congratulate:

Montrose Academy’s New School CaptainsAfter a great deal of consideration Montrose Academy decided to appoint three School Captains and three Vice Captains.  Criteria taken into account included: pupil applications, the three stages of the application process, staff nominations and pupil nominations.  

The School Captains for 2017/18 are Linzi Cavanagh, Georgia Fullerton, Molly Munro.The three Vice Captains are Lisa Davidson, Eilidh Walker, Harris Porter. They have already made an excellent start in their new positions.

The Sports Champions S1 Girls – Alicia Smith

S1 Boys – Stewart SimpsonS2 Girls – Orla McLeod

S2 Boys – Logan StewartS3 Girls – Ola StromskaS3 Boys – Mitchell Smith

Senior Girls - Emma HayesSenior Boys – Alasdair Campbell

English Department

One highlight of the year was our Literacy Transition Day in February where every P7 pupil in Montrose spent a day in the English Department being taught by English teachers. This was an excellent opportunity for pupils to meet Academy staff and to gain an insight into what they can expect in English when they join us in August. Some of the topics covered were creative writing; debating and Scots language. We found this to be a very positive and successful event which we look forward to repeating next session.Another notable event was a theatre trip by senior pupils to see a production of Arthur Miller’s ‘Death of a Salesman’ in the Dundee Rep. Many of the pupils attending this event were studying the text as part of their certificate courses and will have gained extra insight from seeing a live performance. We have exciting plans for next session including the launch of reading competitions for BGE (S1-S3) and Senior (S4-S6) pupils that will be run in conjunction with the school library. Pupils will have the opportunity to win medals and prizes donated by local businesses. We also intend to establish a departmental Twitter account to improve communication with parents, pupils and the community.

Health Improvement Session 2016 -2017

It has been a busy year in Health Improvement this session.Home Economics has offered after school clubs, such as Ready Steady Cook and Creative Textiles.We have just completed our 4th trip to the Highland show to enjoy the best of Scotland’s farm produce and foods. The faculty has been involved in the delivery of the Interdisciplinary projects, which have a community focus, and the other a health focus.In Physical Education there have been lots of opportunities for pupils to development their physical skills and competencies, as well as many leadership opportunities, through the delivery of extracurricular activities offered by the PE staff, Active Schools Coordinator, and coaches.An outline of these successes is detailed below;

Sports Leaders – This course facilitates leadership qualities at Higher level, and some twenty pupils have been successful, through the delivery of after school clubs at Primary schools and the Academy. Pupils have also worked together to assist the management of a Zumba event, P2 festival, and assisted with the Sports marathon. Dundee Academy of sport worked with the pupils to develop their l4eadership styles.

Sports Ambassadors – The key role of the Ambassadors, S4-6 pupils, is to promote sparing opportunities to young people.The 12 hour sports marathon on the 16th / 17th March was set up to promote sport to Montrose Academy pupils and raise money for charity.It involved S1 to S3 pupils playing sport non-stop from 7pm to 7am. There were 60 pupils taking part and the evening involved visits to the Montrose Rugby and Montrose Tennis club. The pupils then returned to Montrose Academy and took part in a variety of sports including Basketball, Netball, football and disability sports such as boccia. . The Young Ambassadors are made up of S4 to S6 pupils who are responsible for developing sporting opportunities within the school.The event was supported by links with GSK. The event this year raised the following amounts:Save The Children: £730.71p, which will be matched by GSK Montrose. Comic Relief: £730.71pMontrose Academy Sports Fund: £626.31p

Netball - The girls’ team trained regularly, and participated enthusiastically in the Scottish Cup.

Hockey Club - Again this group of pupils trained regularly after school and participated in friendly matches against other Angus schools, and played well in the Dundee league for the first time.

Football - Our S1 boys’ team were 2nd in the league in AngusGirls’ junior football team played in the cash back Sevens and reached the Scottish Finals in Glasgow, having beat teams from Angus, Fife, Dundee, and Perth.

Angus Rugby Select under 16’s - Four of our pupils have been successful in being selected to play at this level.

Cross Country - Competitors had a successful event at the Angus Schools cross country event. County Sports - Some 60 pupils represented the Academy at the event at Caird Park with good success, with the S2 girls winning their event. Please see results below:

The Faculty has also facilitated various trips i.e. Barcelona, Water Sports, USA, Duke of Edinburgh.

We look forward to building on these achievements in the new session.

County Sports 2017 – Results

Tuesday 13th June, Caird Park

S1 Alicia Smith – 3rd 100m & 1st 200mLauren Stephen – 1st Shot Putt

S2Orla McLeod – 1st 800m & 1500mFinlay Wallace – 2nd 800m Jamie Low – 1st Hurdles Lewis Smith – 2nd Triple JumpLogan Stewart – 2nd 300m & High Jump

S3Bethany Hall 1st – 800mLuca Foley – 3rd Hurdles

SeniorEmma Hayes – 1st 400m & Triple Jump & 3rd 200m Niamh McGlynn – 3rd Shot PuttEmma Gunn – 1st Javelin (PB) & DiscusAlasdair Campbell – 1st 800m &1500m Liam Duncan – 2nd Triple Jump

Library News

It has been a busy year in Montrose Academy School Library. As well as the everyday job of helping to support the academic needs of the school community, we have continued with our range of extra-curricular activities. We ran our second ‘Stairway to Reading Heaven’ challenge which was won by S1 pupil Ailie Moir who received a Kindle Fire for reading and reviewing books by 10 different authors. The Chess Club proved as popular as ever, and the year culminated with Nathan Jackson (S2) being crowned as Montrose Academy Chess Champion. The ‘Books and Banter’ club continued to thrive with the help of Mr Bratt, and saw many lively literary discussions, quizzes, displays, and book events. Our World Book Day celebrations involved the whole school, with pupils being challenged to match staff members with book characters; and we have also had a number of successful craft clubs, and raised nearly £1000 through regular charity cafes and bake sales. A final thank you must go to our enthusiastic team of pupil Librarians who have helped us out this year.

We are Sailing

At the end of April a group of 9 S3 pupils along with Mrs Waggott PT PC&S and Mr Jones ASN enjoyed a week of sail training on the west coast of Scotland. The group was put through their paces on board the Ocean Youth Trust Scotland yacht, the Alba Venturer. The young people (and staff) enjoyed variable weather conditions as they sailed around the Clyde around the Kyles of Bute to Tarbert, through the Sounds of Bute to Lamlash then through the Firth of Clyde to Greenock. Not only did the young people learn sailing skills, they also developed lifelong skills such as problem solving, leadership skills, the need for teamwork and mutual trust whilst also building on their self-confidence. The young people worked tremendously hard and were a credit to themselves and the school. The group would like to thank the OYT, Montrose Rotary Club and Cash for Kids for their support in funding this worthwhile experience.

GirlsGetSET SCHEME The S5 girls were tasked with a brief back in September. They had a client who wanted a subsea xmas tree designed as well as a protection structure. These all had specifications that had to be adhered to. The girls had to research everything from scratch from what a xmas tree is to materials they would use to build it to how they would hold up under stress. They have worked all year producing work at specific deadlines and were

assessed at GE Oil & Gas, Aberdeen by a senior engineer and a regional leader for Europe. 1 of our 2 teams won! The S3 girls completed 3 projects throughout the year, each ended with a Dragon's Den style situation. The winners were then compared to the winning teams from the Aberdeen schools and the project winners announced at Girls Day on June 15th. The 3 projects were: a solar powered phone charger, a water purification system and a stock retrieval system. Again they had to research everything, produce a PowerPoint, poster and model for each project. Beef Stew won the best project for the stock retrieval system out of all schools who entered. The S, 2 and 4 girls have been on various trips during the year doing different things. The S1/2 have been to 3 activity based events in Aberdeen and the S4 girls have been to Angus Training Group where they were spoken to about apprenticeships and shown around the workshop, and they went to Aberdeen University's school of engineering where they met professors and students and found out a bit about engineering at University.

The Poland Trip

Last week saw the Montrose Academy History Department’s first ever Poland Trip! The trip was organised and run by Mr Donald. What a memorable experience it was for students and staff. We sampled lots of delicious Polish food, and enjoyed a lovely hotel beside the historic old town of Krakow. Over the next few days we became very familiar

with this ancient and beautiful town, and with is parks, square and shops. Highlights included the Royal Castle, the cathedrals, and the Oskar Schindler Factory.We were amazed by the world-famous Salt Mines at Wieliczka, visiting towering caverns, endless tunnels, surreally-lit underground lakes, and sculptures of heroes, kings and saints carved from salt! We were all amazed by a huge underground cathedral whose walls, alter, polished floor, and stunning artworks are all hewn from rock and salt — illuminated by elegant chandeliers of salt crystals. The most affecting experience was our visit to Auschwitz. The horrific things that happened there were hard to grapple with and we all felt quite overloaded with the endless catalogue of atrocities which our guide. We stood in a dormitory block, beside the railway platform where human

beings were sorted left to immediate death or right to unimaginable suffering, a process which we reimagined. We looked at the gas chambers, at the execution wall, at the harrowing medical and punishment blocks. We passed by the many rooms containing tanks filled with goods systematically stolen from those who died here: tanks filled with stolen pots and pans, with brushes, with shoes, with babies’ shoes. We laid flowers beside a memorial out of respect and left them behind there before we gratefully departed. Talking to the pupils, though, it is clear that we all took away some searing memories, difficult questions, and a sense of responsibility to guard against all of the things which led to that place there. Pupils spoke about how they would always remember their visit there.Particular thanks to Mr Donald for all his efforts in organising the trip, and to all our brilliant, trustworthy pupils whose behaviour throughout was so faultless— and such a credit to their parents, carers, and school.

Alton Towers Trip

Late on Thursday night, 65 over-excited pupils and seven thrill-seeking staff made a sweetie filled over-night bus journey to Alton Towers. After a service station stop for breakfast and a quick freshen up, we drove through the picturesque winding roads of Alton and arrived just before the park opened. Tickets in hand, and group photo taken, we had 8 hours to explore the gardens and brave a variety of

Rollercoasters and rides. The weather was kind to us, and whilst the sun stayed hidden, it was warm and dry, and the queues were mercifully short, allowing plenty of ride time and for everyone to have a go on everything they wanted. Re-grouping at the parks close, everyone appeared to be tired but happy, having thoroughly enjoyed themselves. The journey home was certainly a lot quieter than the one going down!

Wider Achievements Awards’ Evening

The Wider Achievement Awards Evening ran for the second year on Wednesday the 14th of June and it was great success. Well done to all the award winners, it was fantastic to see so many pupils being recognised for the hard work and commitment that they have shown towards activities both within

and out with School. Also, it was excellent to see so many parents and guardians showing their support and helping to create the positive atmosphere through attendance at this event. In addition, we appreciated having SQA Sport Leadership senior pupils assisting staff running this event on the night, thank you. We were delighted to welcome Steph Inglis as our guest speaker this year. Steph has had an impressive career in Judo including becoming a Commonwealth Judo Silver medalist at the London 2014 games. She provided an inspiring message based on her own experiences about the importance of pupils trying to achieve their own personal best and not always measuring success in comparison to others. It is really important that we gather as much information as possible about pupil achievements throughout the year in order to ensure that we can celebrate these. At various points in the year there will be letters sent out to find out information about your Childs achievements. There will also be an achievement email address provided for you to contact the school with update information throughout the year. This event was a great end to the school year and well done again to all the award winners. Thanks Mrs Hepburn

Music Department News

This year has been another busy one for the Music department. The MAMA Alphabet Concert in November, co-ordinated by Dr MacFarlane and the seniors’ enrichment group with help from Music staff and instructors, made for a very enjoyable evening. We started with a vocal trio rendition of ABC, included songs from musicals, a bit of rock, the wind band, Baroque ensemble and orchestra and ended with a massed performance of Zero to Hero.Cluster concerts run by our wonderful team of instrumental instructors have taken place every term, including the most recent dance-themed one: ABBA, Strictly Come Dancing and The Blue Danube waltz were among the numbers played expertly by Montrose Academy and cluster primary pupils alike. At the autumn one £289 was raised for Motor Neurone Disease. There was a special Creativity event at Brechin High in early June at which our musicians played again - they have been non-stop! They certainly did us credit.At Christmas S1 and S2 singers went to Fordmill Nursing Home to sing for the residents and staff - it is great to maintain and develop community links. S1 and Rebecca Eagleton performed again at the end of term assemblies and service. Our thanks to go to all of them.The Baroque Ensemble have also performed in Old and St Andrews regularly - many thanks to Miss Wyllie, Miss Smith, Mrs Jones, Miss Mines and Mr Judge for their continued hard work, energy, enthusiasm and support.

Another very special event happened in April: we played host to 67 Icelanders who came just to Montrose Academy to hold string rehearsals and concerts. I know that they really enjoyed their two days with us and it is a shame it was such a short visit! We sent them home with a lovely painting of Scurdiness Lighthouse and hopefully lots of good memories.

Our musicians have been busy during this last week of term too at the Awards Ceremonies: singers from S2 and S5 plus all the wind band and orchestra providing musical interludes. Our thanks to all involved and congratulations on a great year's work.Finally some curriculum news: Music Technology is running as a pilot course at S3 and we are looking forward to hearing some great dance tunes from the group when we come back in August!

Rock Challenge

On Friday, 16th June, 105 pupils from the Academy took part in the Rock Challenge Scottish final at the Caird Hall in Dundee. The team won their heat in March, and this success saw them compete in the final against the top 9 secondary schools from across Scotland.A great day was had by all, and the standard of performance from all schools was incredibly high. Whilst the Montrose team didn't achieve a placing, they won several well deserved awards including lighting, costume, student leadership and the coveted Spirit of Rock Challenge.Planning for our 2018 Rock Challenge entry has already begun! 

GSK PARTNERSHIP

Once again, this session saw a busy schedule in our partnership with GSK.  GSK ambassadors helped with our Numeracy Day as part of our transition programme. Apprentices also mentored our Industrial Cadet team supervised by Mr Hardie of the Maths Department. We also had senior pupils attend the plant for a half day per week for 5 weeks on work placement in the various engineering disciplines and laboratories. Our well established “Lunch n Learn” initiative also continues, the latest visit involved S3 pupils receiving an informative talk on asthma followed by a tour of the Plant and laboratories where they learned, amongst other things, that the people at GSK Montrose manufacture the whole world’s supply of the Active ingredient in Ventolin inhalers.We look forward to continuing to expand our long established links with GSK in future years

Key Dates for Session 2016-17

Tuesday 15th August 2017 In-service day 1 (pupil holiday)

Tuesday 15th August 2017 Course choice changes (11am – 1pm)Wednesday 16th August 2017 Term starts for pupilsTuesday 22nd August 2017 Blazer Fittings (3.30pm – 5pm)Tuesday 12th September 2017 S1 Settling in EveningFriday 29th September 2017 End of Autumn termMonday 16th October 2017 Winter term beginsWednesday 22nd November 2017 S4-6 Targeted Parents’/Carers’ EveningWednesday 29th November 2017 In-service day 2 (pupil holiday)Thursday 30th November 2017 In-service day 3 (pupil holiday)Friday 1st December 2017 St. Andrew’s Day HolidayThursday 7th December 2017 S3 Parents’/Carers’ EveningFriday 22nd December 2017 End of Winter termMonday 8th January 2018 Spring term beginsMonday 15th January 2018 S1 Parents’/Carers’ EveningTuesday 30th January 2018 S2 Parents’/Carers’ EveningThursday 15th February 2018 In-service day 4 (pupil holiday)Friday 16th February 2018 Mid-term holidayMonday 19th February 2018 Mid-term holidayThursday 22nd February 2018 S5/6 Parents’/Carers’ EveningWednesday 7th March 2018 S4 Parents’/Carers’ EveningFriday 30th March 2018 End of Spring termMonday 16th April 2018 Summer term beginsMonday 7th May 2018 Mid-term holidayMonday 28th May 2018 In-service day 5 (pupil holiday)Friday 29th June 2018 End of summer term

Please be aware of additional texts, emails and letters and our Academy website for updated information and current events, dates and activities.