JUNE 2015 - Home Page

Waid Matters
Issue 75
June 2015
End of Session 2014-15.a good year
As we come to the end of the summer term we are finishing what has been a very good year for
the school. A very positive HMIe Inspection report, an announcement of a new school building
and two well attended Awards ceremonies celebrating achievement on a large scale has seen a
flurry of excitement around the building. While the weather has not been wonderful the
atmosphere in the school has been very bright.
Added to this a whole series of successes in the latter part of the term has helped to bring a very
positive feeling. Our Young Enterprise team ‘Empresa’ came second in the National Finals of
Young Enterprise in the Quality Scotland Organisational Excellence Award. The team had also
picked up numerous awards at the Fife Finals. Peter Aird took first place in the national
Inspire- Aspire Awards for S3 and Madeleine Orr took third place and Vitalina Matuseva was
presented with a medal for ‘Global Citizens in the making’. Lisa Whyte won the Moderator’s of
the Church of Scotland’s Medal for her poetry as well as being awarded the Rotary Young
Citizen of the Year Award. Catherine Speight won the National Schools Burns competition Gold
medal for Instrumental playing, an award reserved for the highest level in Burns competitions.
Pupils who won Burns Awards were invited to the Provost of Fife’s reception in The Town House
in Kirkcaldy. Elliot Hartley gained an award for 500 hours of voluntary work under the Saltire
Award Scheme.
10 of our pupils took part in the year-long First Chances programme with St Andrews University
and completed the programme with no less than a merit, some with distinction and 3 with a new
category of ‘higher distinction’. The projects that the young people were involved in were
incredibly impressive.
Our sporting pupils performed incredibly well towards the end of term picking up 5 Gold, 7 Silver
and 5 Bronze in the Fife Schools Track and Field competition while Stephen Paterson won the
Fife Schools Golf Handicap award. Our own Sports Day results show that we have a high
number of talented athletes.
It was confirmed towards the end of term that our Eco schools group had been successful in
gaining our 4th Green Flag which means that we now have permanent Green Flag status. This
group also had the distinction of producing the first Travel Plan for any Fife secondary school
and received a certificate to confirm at the beginning of June.
In the culmination of our Annual Award Ceremony it was with great pleasure that Campbell
Fleming was awarded the St Andrews University Dux Award along with the Waid Academy Dux
Award. These awards are for the highest academic performance in one sitting at Higher level.
All in all the year is finishing on a high and we look forward to a similar if not better year ahead of
us next year.
Reminder School restarts on Wednesday 19th August for all learners.
Have a great holiday=.more on these items inside.
LITERACY
Visiting Writer: Morag Macrae (A report by Lauren Donaldson-S3)
On Friday the 1st of May, Morag Macrae, a writer visiting the local area, spent time with two third
year English classes. Within the 20 minute sessions Ms Macrae read each class a short story
from her self-published collection “The Zone” and welcomed any feedback. Her stories are
targeted at reluctant readers and focus on teenage issues like peer pressure and identity. The
session aimed to motivate and assist pupils regarding their own creative writing, an area in
which pupils have the opportunity to develop when they undertake their portfolios for National
Qualifications in S4. Both classes responded positively and benefitted from the experience.
NUMERACY
Maths Challenge
Our Junior Learners took part in the annual Maths Challenge. All learners were awarded a
certificate by the board which was presented to them at the Annual Awards Ceremony on 23rd
June.
HEALTH AND WELLBEING
Waid Health and Wellbeing Day
The school held its annual Health and Wellbeing Day for 1st, 2nd and 3rd years on Tuesday 12th
May. Interhouse softball and rounders were held for all year groups and pupils were able to
experience coaching sessions delivered by Lundin Mill Bowling Club, Anstruther Tennis Club,
Fife Parkour, Anstruther Golf Club, Waid Karate Club, Judo Sportif and the Ashleigh Montador
Dance Academy. There were also workshops presented by Stewart Barton Physio, East Neuk
First Responders, Elmwood College Cookery, Environmental Health, Healthy Eating Beyond the
School Gate and Oral Health. The school expresses it thanks to all the clubs, groups and
individuals who contributed to what was a highly informative, successful and enjoyable day.
S1 Food & Drink Challenge
Locally grown, locally sourced and very beefy, was
the theme for this years S1 Food and Drink
Challenge at Waid Academy. With over 125 pupils
participating judges were treated to a feast of
burgers as they tried to come up with a suitable
addition to Ardross Farm’s summer BBQ range.
Judge Nikki Storrer from Ardross, who set the
challenge was particularly impressed at the range
and variety of different and creative flavours and
themes, from Mexican Jalapeno burgers to fellow
judges Jane Stewart’s Ainster Farmhouse cheese
and
Byam
Trotters,
Trotters
Independent
Condiments, Wild Garlic Pesto. Nikki also said she
was pleased to see such a wide range of fresh local
ingredients used to accompany or flavour their dishes.
The winning team, Jessica Mills, Sarah Davies, Gregor Ritchie-Scott and Alexander Smith.
Their Chorizo and Parmesan burger was pronounced delicious. Local hoteliers Ken and
Christine Lawson said the standard was so high it was difficult to pick a winner and indeed the
second and third place competitors came really close.
The competition was partially funded by a donation of fresh mince from Adross’s prizewinning
herd. While Mary Bruce from Scottish Co-operative kindly donated a voucher for the winning
team. Fife Economic Development representatives, Sandra Robb and Owen Curry praised the
hard work each and effort each team had displayed in creating all the financial and marketing
information on their stalls. Fellow judges Lady Catherine Erskine, Cambo Estate, John O’Neill,
Rotary Club, Carol Brunton, Royal Highland Education Trust and second year Hospitality
students from Elmwood Nicola and Euan who came along to help on the day, all enjoyed the
experience and were impressed by the level of dedication, not to mention culinary skills, the
groups had demonstrated.
RME
YPI Scotland
On Tuesday 28th April, the Programme Director of YPI
Scotland visited the school to interview staff and students
who were involved in the first year of YPI in The Waid
Academy. This interview will form part of a film that will be
shown at the national event that will be held on 19th June
in Perth. The winning group were represented and other
participants in the programme to talk about the benefits of
the programme as well as how it fitted into the S5 Core
RME Programme. Staff were interviewed as well and
asked about the YPI programme benefits learners and
contributes to CfE.
This year was the first year the school participated in YPI and the winning group who
represented Families First were successful in the final to win a grant of £3000.
YPI Scotland National Event at Perth Concert Hall.
Throughout the year all S5 learners have participated in YPI in Core RME. YPI aims to engage
all learners in issues of philanthropy and charity within the local community.
S5 learners had to choose a social action charity in the local community. Once they had chosen
they were responsible for visiting the charity to experience the work carried and create a
presentation which reflected this. Winners were selected from each class who then participated
in a final judged by local councillors, the rector and head boy and girl. The winning group was
then awarded £3000 by YPI to be presented to their chosen charity.
To celebrate the success of the learners we were invited to attend the YPI national conference
at Perth Concert Hall on Wednesday 10th June 2015.
The conference was attended by 140 schools from across Scotland. It was a busy day with a
wide variety of guest speakers and performances. The theme of the day was #Bethechange
and focused on the importance of philanthropy amongst young people and how they can be
agents of change in their own communities.
The learners who attended from Waid Academy (Demi Forsyth, Lisa Whyte and Connor Wright)
featured in a video at the conference where they shared what they had gained from taking part
in YPI this year.
The day was extremely inspiring and filled with many uplifting stories of how YPI can change
the lives of many, and was rounded off with a special performance by Matt Cardle. Waid
Academy looks forward to being part of YPI again next year with the new S5 learners after the
holidays!
SPORT
Fife Under-14 Rugby Cup
The Fife Under-14 Rugby Cup was held on Wednesday the 20th May at Kirkcaldy Rugby Club.
On a dry day, perfect for running rugby, Waid’s first match was against Bell Baxter B. From the
kick off Greg Suttie’s drop kick bounced perfectly for Mungo Somerville who gathered the ball to
score the game’s first try. Struan Anderson and Paul Murray both scored 2 tries and Olly
Barrass and Camilo Saravia scored one each for a 7 tries to 0 win.
Glenwood proved a tougher test in the next tie, however tries from Mungo Somerville, Paul
Murray, Frank Fry and Scott Titterton produced a 4 tries to 0 win.
In the next round Waid faced a select from St Columbas HS and Woodmill HS and although
they conceded 3 tries, scores by Olly Barrass, Mungo Somerville, Camilo Saravia and 2 by
Lawry Barclay ensured Waid a place in the final.
Their final opponents were Bell Baxter A who had overcome Lochgelly HS, Buckhaven HS and
Queen Anne HS. After a period of Waid pressure centre Mungo Somerville opened the scoring
cutting through the opposition to score between the posts. Bell Baxter were quick to respond
and from the restart put Waid under pressure and after slick passing touched down to even the
sresulted in him scoring another 2 tries before half time to give Waid a 3 tries to 1 lead.
Waid began the second half determined not to
sit on or throw away their lead. Mungo
Somerville scored his fourth try before having
to replaced after being brought down by an
illegal high tackle. Bell Baxter took advantage
of reshuffled back line and score to cut the
deficit to 2 tries. Waid stepped their game up
and the tackling and support play was
excellent. Camilo Saravia scored 2 tries either
side of a Olly Barrass try to make the final
score Waid 7 tries Bell Baxter 2 tries.
This was impressive performance overall from
the Waid side and the result of a lot of hard
graft done on the training field.
Waid Squad – Andrew Allen, Struan Anderson, Olly Barrass, Lawry Barclay, Christian
Bongiorno, Jack Christie, Jude Corns, Frank Fry, Duncan Jack, Charlie Lewis, Paul Murray,
Kim Pearson, Camilo Saravia, Mungo Somerville, Greig Suttie and Scott Titterton.
core. Mungo Somerville was proving difficult for Bell Baxter to pin down and his elusive running
Fife Schools Athletic Championships
At the Fife Schools Athletic Championships at
Grangemouth Waid athletes won a total of 22
medals including 9 gold.
Ailsa Cruickshank won the gold medal for the
group A girls 2000m Steeplechase and gained
4th in the 3000m. In the boys Group D Mungo
Somerville won a Bronze in the Shott Putt and
a 4th place in the discus while Paul Murray
came 4th in the High Jump. Ailsa Cruickshanks
also won the 1500m Steeplechase making her
the Scottish Steeplechase Champion=.a
massive achievement .
Golf
Steven Paterson won the Fife Schools Golf Handicap competition at Kirkcaldy Golf Club on
Monday with a net score of 65.
FAIRTRADE
Fairtrade Cheese and Wine
On 21st May, Waid Fairtrade group raised over £150 from a Cheese and Wine tasting evening
for staff and their families. On the evening ten Fairtrade Co-operative wines were sampled
along with a selection of British made cheese, fresh bread with Fairtrade olive oil and balsamic
vinegar. Staff were pleasantly surprised at how acceptable the Fairtrade wine was for a
reasonable price. The favourite of the evening was a South African Brandvlei Pink Sparkling
Moscato, perfect for summer. As well as working hard organising events to keep the school
status as a Fairtrade school, this year the group has donated 10 goats and 10 chickens to
impoverished farming communities in Africa, given £200 to the Fairtrade Foundation to raise
education levels on Fairtrade farms in developing countries, donated £100 of Fairtrade tea,
coffee and sugar to the East Neuk foodbank and raised £368 for Traidcrafts cotton growers in
earthquake hit Nepal. The Fairtrade group plan to complete another very successful year with a
Fairtrade bake sale in school at break on 19 June where a selection of home baking, all made
with Fairtrade sugar, chocolate and cocoa will be on sale.
ENTERPRISE
Tenner Challenge
S2 pupils at Anstruther secondary school, Waid Academy raised an astonishing £4000 for
children’s cancer charity, Love Oliver.
Waid pupils took part in an enterprise challenge during March to turn £10 start up capital into a
business idea and generate money for charity. Pupils also competed amongst themselves to
create the best product or run the most successful business. For a whole month the local area
was awash with tablet makers, cake bakers, car boot sellers and sponsored everything’s! The
winning team comprising of Hunter Parsons, Struan Anderson, Jude Corns, Dominic Bruce and
Charlie Lewis sold fresh vegetables in school and door to door making £502.34 profit. Love
Oliver founder and competition judge, Jennifer Gill, pictured here receiving the cheque on
behalf of the charity, said she was overwhelmed by the commitment and dedication of the
pupils; all of whom completed this challenge in their own time outside school hours. The money
raised will go towards care packs for children in hospital and assistance to families with
terminally ill children.
Runners up Niamh Syme and Kiah Appleyard,
who ran an Mothers’ Day carwash, coffee and
cake café with fellow team mates Shannon
McBeath and Alexandra McColl expressed how
much they had enjoyed taking part in the
challenge as it had taught them real business
skills and given them a greater understanding
of the hard work involved in running your own
business and having to satisfy your customers.
Tenner loans young people £10 for one month
and challenges them to turn their enterprising
ideas into a reality. Tenner is run by Young
Enterprise, which has 50 years’ experience as Britain’s largest enterprise education charity.
www.Tenner.org.uk
Waid Academy win Fife Company of the Year and place at Scottish Finals
Waid Academy Enterprise group Empresa a group of nine S5 pupils, are getting ready to visit
Glasgow in June to take part in the Young Enterprise Scotland Company of the Year Final.
Empresa’s winning idea was a mini elasticated carrier bag pouch called “Bags for bags”,
introduced to help shoppers take their reusable bags into stores, an essential item since the
introduction of the carrier bag tax.
After months of hard work the group scooped 5 prizes at the Fife final in March, winning
Innovation Award, Runner up Best Report, Runner up Best Presentation and Overall Company
of the Year. Company member and Managing Director Fraser Provan also won Runner up
Salesperson of the Year, losing out to classmate and competing team member Charlie Anne
Smith of Fresh whose team also won runner up Environment Award.
Since winning the team have been busy manufacturing more stock after selling out at the last
parents evening. Fraser and his team are thrilled at their success as he says “It’s going to be a
lot of work and we’re all off now studying for our exams, we realise we might be a bit of the
underdog going through as while we were consistently getting high scores we didn’t have the
best report or give the top presentation. We are just really proud of all we’ve done and pleased
the school has been so supportive in sending us to the finals, we just want to go there and give
it our best.”
With 147 pupils and 19 companies starting out on the Young Enterprise Company Programme,
at each stage of the competition teams found the going too tough and dropped out so all credit
to both Waid teams determination and perseverance to make it through to the Fife Finals.
Young Enterprise Fife Finalists ‘Empresa’ at Scottish Finals
Waid team Empresa, who scooped an amazing
5 awards at the Young Enterprise Fife Finals in
March represented Fife at the Scottish Finals at
the Thistle Hotel on Wednesday 17th June. The
team had an exhausting day setting up their
stall, taking part in individual and group
interviews and presenting in front of a packed
auditorium of over 250 guests. At a glittering
award ceremony hosted by comedian and
presenter Des Clarke the team went on to
achieve runner up in the Quality Scotland
Organisational Excellence Award. With so many
other competing schools taking part the group
can be really proud of all of their achievements
to date. Well done, Fraser Provan Managing Director and fellow Directors Chloe Hutchon,
Robyn Brown, Megan Denholm and Alana Campbell.
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS
Connecting Classrooms – funded by the British Council
Waid Academy and their Partner School, KIIT World School, New Delhi have once again been
successful in what will be the last round of funding in the British Councils Connecting
Classrooms programme. Within the programme both schools will be involved in various
activities including literacy, dance and the Inspire Aspire Competition. The enterprise groups in
each school are now working together on a saree project.
Our colleagues from KIIT World School visited Waid Academy from Friday 28th May to
Thursday 4th June 2015. Dr Sangeeta Bhatia - Principal at KIIT World School, Ms Rashmi
Srivastava - International Schools Co-ordinator and Science Teacher, Dr Richa Verma, Senior
School Headmistress and Computing Teacher were welcomed with bouquets of flowers by the
Rector, and pupil Morgan Morris in the morning with traditional Scottish music by Catherine
Speight.
During their week long stay in the the East
Neuk they witnessed the finals of the Eco
Warriors challenge, met with many different
departments to connect classrooms and
even made some traditional Indian foods. At
the weekend they even managed to find
time to do a bit of sightseeing! While they
were visiting they met many learners and
teachers to build strong classroom bonds
between each country.
Waid Academy and KIIT World School are
looking forward to a sustainable partnership,
which will encourage school communities to
become truly Global Citizens.
ECO SCHOOLS
Eco Warriors 2015
On Friday May 29th all of S2 pupils gathered in the hall to make presentations to be judged by a
group of visiting professionals. The pupils were tacking the tricky question: ‘By the year 2050
how Scotland /UK should be meeting its demand for energy?’ This question couldn’t be more
relevant in this time of political change alongside ‘international obligations to cut the burning of
fossil fuels and raising the element of renewables energy. Scotland and the UK are signed up for
that.’ (BBC news April 2014). The context is also that the UK government has signed up to a
colossally large commitment to new nuclear power. As Malcolm X once said ‘The future belongs
to those who prepare for it today’ - our S2s had certainly prepared for their presentations and
decided how their future ought to be. The style of presentations included posters, 3D models and
mock TV interviews. Each group used their experience and learning from science, maths,
modern studies and geography to present their plan for energy generation in Scotland in 2050.
The judges, Alistair Macleod, Rhona McLaren, Alex Fryer, Reni Timmermans and Kate Grellier,
were deeply impressed by the pupils’ range and depth of knowledge but also the passion with
which they spoke. The winning team (Edward Adamson, Keiran Wood, Cameron Baird and
Thomas Breen) were presented with hand painted plates from hotplatespottery.co.uk. Individual
prizes went to James Doran, Luke Provan, Megan McAlpine-Wemyss, Ethan Hawley and Jack
Christie. Let’s hope these young individuals will be better equipped to make wiser energy
choices to sustain Scotland’s infrastructure in the future.
S1 Beach Clean
Two groups of S1 learners participated in the annual beach clean which whilst helping in the
local community also offers practical learning on environmental issues.
LANGUAGES
The 25th Anniversary Exchange :Le Collège St Jean-Baptiste - Bapaume, and Waid Academy- Anstruther – 2015
This year saw 37 pupils from Waid Academy spending a memorable and rewarding week with
their exchange families in Bapaume, the town twinned with Anstruther in northern France, as part
of the 25th Anniversary Exchange. Four teachers accompanied the group which had increased in
size from the previous year including the French teachers Mrs Falls, Mr Gauffre, Mrs Wedderburn
and Modern Studies teacher Miss MacMaster.
Day One on Wednesday got off to a flying start as pupils and teachers alike enjoyed the rides
and attractions awaiting them in one of the largest theme parks in Europe, north of Paris, Park
Astérix. Fuelled by fizzy drinks, sweets (and lots of coffees from ‘Café Diane’) both the pupils and
teachers enjoyed an exhilarating day of theme park rides, high speed thrills, ghost trains, and
watching the dolphins perform. Some teachers were content to cruise around the lagoons in
more subdued rides! The group finished the day in high spirits returning to Bapaume as pupils
compared tales of who had the best screams and who was the most terrified on the park’s many
rides.
After a good night’s sleep, we met again at the Collège on Thursday morning ready for Day Two our day trip to Paris. The two hour bus journey allowed pupils to catch up and swap stories of
evenings with their host families. Pupils were beginning to swap tales of their experiences of life
first hand with a French family, with ‘bisous’ on both cheeks in the morning to say ‘Good
morning’, and hot chocolate being served in bowls at breakfast.
First off was a guided coach trip around Paris, with our expert tour guide Mme Falls on the
microphone, to take in many of the City’s famous landmarks along the way, such as the Arc de
Triomphe, Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. Pupils were able to see all of the key sights in Paris at
close hand, observing the designer shops on the Champs Elysées, café culture, as well as the
typical Parisian traffic chaos!
Following a picnic lunch in Paris, our next stop was the world famous venue of Stade de France,
with a capacity of 80,000 people for global sporting events like football world cups, as well as pop
concerts by famous artists like Beyoncé, JayZ, ACDC, and the French legend Johnny Halliday.
Pupils were delighted to be able to
view behind the scenes in the VIP
rooms, the Presidential viewing
area, and the all-important changing
rooms, as well as a chance to buy
great presents in the stadium giftshop (lots of rugby and football tops
were purchased).
The day continued with a dinner and
disco for the Exchange programme,
held in the Collège, with a delicious
buffet supper which saw the Scottish
and French pupils dining together,
before letting their hair down outside
for a big disco and sing-along.
Friday started with a visit to the local
Bêtises de Cambrai sweet factory,
where we were treated to a
demonstration of how the famous local bonbons are made, and being able to sample the sweets
which are sold in French supermarkets and exported around the world. Further opportunity for
shopping and café culture was provided in the charming town of Cambrai itself, before the group
headed off to visit the WW1 battlefields of the nearby Somme region in the afternoon. Resident
tour-guide Martin provided an exceptional insight into what life must have been like in the First
World War trenches of the Somme. Visits to Thiepval, Beaumont-Hamel and The Lochnagar
Crater saw pupils pay their respects to the soldiers who served in the war.
The day ended with a very warm reception at the town hall in Bapaume by the local mayor and
his representatives, as well as members of the Twinning Association who have seen the
Exchange through 25 successful years. Staff and pupils were treated to ‘aperitifs’, before
departing for dinner.
Saturday morning was spent visiting the beautiful town of Arras spending our remaining Euros
during our visit to the famous market held in the picturesque squares, with its bustling
atmosphere and mixture of local produce and souvenirs which saw pupils having the opportunity
to try out their French shopping skills to buy gifts. Pupils and teachers then parted company for
the remainder of the weekend which was spent with their respective families, involving a huge
variety of activities including kayaking, trips to a local nature reserve, trips to Brugges in Belgium
(famous for chocolate and beer!), and a trip to the zoo. Many of the exchange families hosted
events together, providing a chance for pupils to see each other on the Saturday and Sunday for
family lunches and dinners.
We bid farewell to our French friends on the final morning on Monday, with emotional scenes at
the school as families said their goodbyes to their new Scottish friends. Our final stop on the last
day, en route back towards Paris Charles de Gaulle airport, was a morning sight-seeing in the
quaint medieval town of Senlis, led by Mrs Wedderburn and her map, we were guided through
beautiful quintessential French cobbled streets, passing pretty churches, a palace and gardens,
and a cathedral called Notre Dame. Waid pupils were excellent customers at the local pâtisserie,
queuing up patiently outside and buying up the whole shop with delicious French pastries,
croissants and cakes for the journey.
Following a picnic lunch on our way to the airport, it was finally time to say ‘Au revoir’ to France
and return home on our flight from Paris back to Edinburgh, where pupils were delighted to be
welcomed home by waiting family and friends, and to begin to tell their tales of the incredible
experiences they had on the French Exchange.
The return visit by our French visitors took place 10 days later. A busy schedule included visits to
Edinburgh and Stirling Castle, the Butterfly Farm as well as more local attractions such as St.
Andrews, the Fisheries Museum and May Island. The evening entertainment programme
included a very successful ceilidh accompanied by the Kilrymont Accordion band, which saw a
packed dance floor as we introduced our French guests to the Scottish Country dances, and
entertainment provided during the break by a wide range of talented Waid pupils performing
Scottish songs such as Auld Lang Syne and My Love is like a Red Red Rose. A disco was also
organised by Morgan Morris in Colinsburgh for the pupils to enjoy, and for the grown-ups an
‘aperitif’ reception and tour was held at the Hill of Tarvit House by the Franco-Scottish Society to
welcome our guests.
We are sure following the success of this 25th anniversary exchange, it will continue long into the
future.
French Sports Day
Our new S2 French classes enjoyed a glorious day in the sunshine outside on Wednesday with a
series of joint lessons hosted by the PE and French department, to introduce pupils to two
popular sports played throughout France – handball and the game of boules (or bowling) known
as pétanque.
Classes were divided into two groups – boys and girls, and were introduced to the games of
handball on the astro-pitch, and pétanque on the lawn behind the sports centre. The Handball
matches saw pupils learning to throw the ball into the net, and understanding a new set of rules
similar to netball and basketball, involving throwing, passing, and dribbling the ball. The level of
competition was high as teams competed against each other in a mini-tournament.
The game of pétanque, originally played in Provence in the south of France, is now played in
town and village squares throughout France, involving two teams competing to see who has the
ball landing closest to the jack (the cochonnet). Pupils took the rules very seriously, measuring
carefully to check which team had landed the ball closest to the jack.
The matches were then followed by a French ‘goûter’ or snack in the sports hall café, with a
delicious spread of traditional French snacks including pains au chocolat, crêpes (thin French
pancakes) with chocolate/hazelnut spread and Petits Filous fromage frais yoghurts, and after
having worked up a thirst in the heat outside, refreshments included Orangina (the French brand
equivalent to Fanta) and jus de fruits.
The sports day provided a fun opportunity for pupils to learn about the sports that form such a
large part of French culture, and closely link in with the current learning in the classroom on
sports and leisure activities.
Thanks to the PE department for their continued support and
excellent instruction.
EMPLOYABILITY
Employability Skills Programme
In May the S4 Employability programme at Waid Academy was a great success with 35 pupils
enrolled on the course. In total 30 of these pupils took part in a work placement opportunity. A
great thank you goes out to all the local businesses and potential employers who offered these
pupils this valuable opportunity. The Employability programme not only engaged pupils with
employers giving them this hands on experience but also provided them with the chance to gain
valuable qualifications through working towards and SQA Employability Award. A total of 20
pupils successfully achieved this award with a further 10 gaining individual unit awards and
others working toward gaining credits later this year.
As part of the award Mhairi McKenzie, Director of Mhairi McKenzie Associates volunteered to
put her Human Resources expertise to good use and ran an interview skills workshop and
Interview day. Along with several friends and colleagues helping her she provided the
opportunity for pupils to learn valuable experience in preparing a Job Application, CV and
attending an interview for a chosen profession. Mhairi commented on their enthusiasm and
motivation in preparing for this event and how well they had presented themselves on the day.
Business Dynamics
As part of the Employability Skills programme in May Business Dynamics hosted an
employability activities session with volunteers from Institute of Applied Technology, CITB and
the Business and Finance sector. During the day staff and volunteers had teams making robots,
building bridges, testing their perception skills and pitting their creative skills against each other
in a design challenge. The day received positive feedback from all who attended with volunteers
commenting on how pleasant it was to work with the Waid Academy pupils.
Tree of Knowledge
Local motivation company Tree of Knowledge enthused pupils taking part in the Employability
Skills Programme with a two day workshop, which increased their motivation and provided an
enjoyable break from study.
GENERAL
Master Classes
Day long sessions in each subject were run by class teachers each day before the SQA exam.
We had a very good uptake from learners taking time to practice their skills, build their
confidence, and consolidate their knowledge.
Study leave programme
Our Study programme covers Preparing for Work, Responsibilities of Employment – Health and
Safety in the Workplace, Getting ready for work, Building Your Own Employability Skills,
Leadership at Barry Buddon, Business Dynamics, Tree of Knowledge sessions and Recruitment
Centre Day.
Community Race Day
On Saturday 2nd May at 12.30pm, Mrs Ogilvie, Mrs Caira, Mrs Davies and Mr Duncan
represented The Waid Academy in a community racing day held by St Ayles CRC at Anstruther
Harbour.
There were seven other teams including Anster Allsorts, Anster Haddies, Anstruther Fish Bar,
Casa Candles, Scottish Fisheries Museum,
Tennis Club and Thorntons.
The teachers were drawn to race against the
Anster Haddies in the very first heat and after a
strong start but a lot of confusion lost their race.
After a stewards enquiry it was agreed that the
heat should be raced again so after the other
heats were over the Waid teachers were called
again.
The second heat was very close but the Waid
lost out to the Haddies again and had to lay down
their oars and admit defeat.
The Scottish Fisheries Museum were the overall winners with the Tennis Club runners up.
It was a great day where the community came together to cheer on their favourite teams with tea,
coffee and cake being served by the St Ayles rowing team. All the teams were awarded with a
certificate and a team photo and the Scottish Fisheries Museum were presented with the
silverware.
The Church of Scotland Moderator’s Medal
Congratulations to Lisa Whyte who entered the Moderator’s Medal
competition and the judging panel agreed that she was the outstanding
winner of the 16-18 category, her poem managed to capture the ‘peace’
theme very well. Lisa has been invited to the Heart & Soul event on 17
May to receive her prize.
Malala Yousafzai Desk
Waid Academy is delighted to receive their Malala Desk. The desks are
inscribed with a message from Malala Yousafzai, the young girl who was
shot on her way to school, and who has recently been awarded the Nobel
Peace Prize. The inscription reads "Let no one be forgotten".
The desk will act as a constant reminder to all that you can't put a price on education.Car wash
Volunteers had a busy day, washing eighteen staff cars – which raised a total of £90 for the
Kindrogan account. Thanks to you all for your support,
TAYPlan Youth Camp 2015
Four Waid learners participated this year, Aiden McGowan, Matthew Sloss, Michael Lumsden
and Alexander Casement. We are delighted to announce that they came third overall and their
team design will be on the Dundee Waterfront website and also on the wooden hoardings along
the Dundee Waterfront. The activity was based on using Minecraft to put together the design
which would complement the designs of the other teams.
The Waid School Travel Plan
We are delighted to announce that the Waid School Travel Plan Charter was signed on Friday 15
June. The charter is as a result of much hard work over the last 9 months and special thanks
goes to
Marta Ramage – Travel Plan Co-ordinator
Stuart Goodfellow – Technician Engineer, Traffic Management (North Fife)
Alice Pearson - Teacher, Waid Academy
Diane Williamson - Parent
Hannah Coburn – Pupil
Nicole McBride – Pupil
Shaunlee Ogilvie – Pupil
Julie Speight – Pupil
Jog Scotland
An inspiring group of young people feature in the Summer edition of Jog Scotland’s magazine
‘Stride’. The ‘Allsorts’ took up jogging as part of their general fitness to do with their Duke of
Edinburgh activities. Long time supporter of the school and running in the area, George Finlay
has taken them under his wing and is impressed at the improvement in their fitness. The full
article can be seen on http://www.jogscotland.org.uk/stride-magazine summer edition 2015 page
41.
Office Bearers 2015-16
Head Boy
Kyle Dillon
Head Girl
Lisa Whyte
Depute Head Boy
Joseph Duncan
Depute Head Girl
Emma Busby
Depute Head Boy
Callum Weir
Depute Head Girl
Daisy Nicoll
Student Congress
Presidents:
James Sexton
Maria Vint
Vice Presidents:
Sean Dillon
Rachel Mach
Ka.e Fry
Natalie Petrie
House Captains:
Adrian
Charne Janse Van Rensburg
Mark McBain
Andrew
Marina McMillan
Greg McCallum
David
Catriona Smith
Ben Coates
House Vice Captains
Adrian
Charlie Paterson
John Wood
Andrew
Ailsa Cruickshanks
tbc
David
Rosie Mackinnon
tbc
Arts Ambassadors:
Charlo4e Durie
Thomas Harrison
Media Co-ordinators
Julia Carlton
Ross Halliwell
Connor Wright
Ac.ve Schools Ambassadors—to be confirmed
Health & Wellbeing
Ailsa Cruickshanks Rosie Mackinnon Heather Aird
Ambassadors:
Commi4ees
Chari.es:
Shannon Newlands
James Coburn
Yearbook:
Chloe Herd
Donald Johnston
Cody Mowbray
Formal Events :
Caitlan Duncan
Mollie Dunn
Jack Mackenzie
Health and Wellbeing: Joanna Imrie
STEM Ambassadors:
Flynn Johnstone-Hey
Connor Longmuir
John Wood
Daniel Morales-Miller