Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Knox News - June 2010
Knox News - June 2010
Knox News - June 2010
Knox News
Pencaitland Road, Haddington, East Lothian, EH41 4DT
Email: knoxacademy@knox.elcschool.org.uk
Web: www.ka-net.org.uk
Dear Parents/Carers,
Welcome to the last Knox News of session 2009-2010. The summer term has been very busy
with a wide variety of activities taking place in and out of school.
Mr B Dillin (Principal Teacher of Computing) has been at Knox Academy for 35 years, 24 of
these as Principal Teacher. During his time here, Mr Dillin has witnessed many changes and has
led the department through a bewildering number of moves of accommodation. A valued
member of staff, Mr Dillin’s commitment to the school, his hard work and sense of humour will
be missed. Mr Dillin’s contribution to the school’s Curriculum Development Group has been
pivotal to the implementation of Curriculum for Excellence in the school. He has contributed to
the wider life of the school by being part of extra-curricular activities, most notably as a
stalwart of the Italy trip. I know staff will miss his support, good humour, wise counsel and
organisation of the annual staff golf competition.
Mrs E Elliott (Modern Languages) is retiring after 18 years as a permanent member of staff,
before that, for several years, she was a temporary member of the Languages Department.
As well as her contribution to the Modern Languages Department as a loyal and hardworking
teacher, Mrs Elliott has contributed to the wider life of the school. She has been a valued
member of various committees; in particular, staff will miss her endeavours with the Staff Social
Committee. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mrs Elliott for her many years of work
with the Haddington Twinning Association, liaising with and arranging visits for the respective
Twinning Associations in the two towns, organising school visits to Aubigny, arranging for
Twinning Scholars' work placements and making correspondence links between pupils. Her
expertise in this area will be missed greatly.
Best wishes to both members of staff for happy and healthy retirements.
continued...
The four teachers who have been with us for their probationary year will be leaving:
Ms S Auchinleck (Art), Ms H Harpur (Mathematics), Ms C Morgan (Drama) and Ms C Sayers
(Geography). All are talented teachers and we wish them every success in their careers.
Some temporary staff have left the school this term already: Mr J Greig (Computing),
Mr M Hughes (RMPS), Ms M Stuart (Pupil Support Base), Mr A Lambert and Mr J Stirling (both
PE).
I am sure you join me in thanking all of the staff above and wishing them good luck for the
future.
This means there will be many staff changes after the summer. Full details of staffing for next
session will be issued in the August Pack sent to all parents and carers.
On the 18th June we held the Leavers’ Ceremony to say farewell to pupils leaving from S4
and S5 and, of course, the whole of S6. We wish all our leavers health and happiness.
Many of our pupils will have a tense time in July and August waiting for the SQA results. The
results should reach pupils by email on Wednesday 4 August and in the post on Thursday
5 August; no information will be available from the school before 5 August.
A big thank you to all sections of the school community for another hectic, successful and
enjoyable session.
School closes at 4 pm on Thursday 1 July, the autumn term for pupils starts at 8.44 am on
Thursday 19 August.
JB Craig
Head Teacher
If anything changes eg your email address, mobile telephone number or if you move house,
please get in touch so that we can update our records.
Remember that you can also subscribe to news updates on the school
website.
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Activities Week 2010: Trampolining
On Monday 10 May, Knox Activities Week 2010 began.
One activity choice was trampolining, which was to be run
by Miss Jeffrey, along with Kayleigh and Kirsty, two coaches
from the City of Edinburgh Trampoline Club. 14 pupils
signed up for the activity, which would involve four full-days
of trampolining at Knox Academy, Musselburgh Sports
Centre and Lasswade High School. This gave the group the
opportunity to try trampolining and learn new moves,
routines and synchro!
Over the week, tasks were set and challenges met. The spirit of the group was great and this
allowed the coaches to really push the pupils on, with many learning front somersaults and
even some learning back somersaults. This was a great achievement for a weeks work.
On Day 3 at Musselburgh Grammar, the group was faced with two full-sized trampolines for
the first time. This created a real buzz as they were much bouncier than the ones used at the
school. Again, the pupils worked really hard, learning new moves and working in pairs to
complete synchro routines (simultaneous trampolining in mirror image).
On the final day the group travelled to Lasswade High School Centre, the main training venue
of the City of Edinburgh Trampoline Club. Here the group had 4 full-size trampolines resulting
in even more time on the trampolines and a chance to attempt some quadruple person synchro!
The group were given time to practice their routines as there was a mini competition after their
lunch break, where they could show of their new skills and be awarded with medals. They
competed in Beginners, Novice, Intermediate and Advanced Levels, with 3 youngsters
managing to complete routines with more than one somersault in it!
Level 1: 1st - Emma Innes, 2nd - Graham Jones, 3rd - Daniel Smith
Level 2: 1st - Gareth Evans, 2nd - Niall Robertson, 3rd - Eilidh Johnston
Level 3: 1st - Connel Erskine, 2nd - Samantha McClymont, 3rd - Jordanne Grant
Level 4: 1st - Lloyd Connell, 2nd - Sam Turvill, 3rd - Finlay Shearer
This was great fun and all performed really well, trying their best in each event. Well Done!
The whole week proved to be a great success and the pupils
really worked hard. They were rewarded with an Achievement
Certificate from CETC. I was really impressed with how
enthusiastic the Knox pupils were throughout the whole week and
it was a pleasure to work with them. It would be great if they all
kept up their trampolining, we hope to see them at some of our
Summer programmes this summer holiday!
Kayleigh Jeffrey
City of Edinburgh Trampoline Club
www.cityofedinburghtrampolineclub.co.uk
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Activities Week 2010: Health and Beauty
This year for Activities Week I took part in the Health and Beauty activity. This was run by Miss
Dowle, Miss Adam and Miss Machen. The Pupils that took part were Carla Dunn (3L1),
Emma Bald (3L3), Megan Wilson (3L1), Lejla Kilic (3T3), Azra Konjevic (3L1), Jade Watson
(3G1), Shelby Leckie (3L2), Jodie Hoy (3L1), Katie-Ellen Wigginton (3T2), Angela Barrie (3T2),
Stephanie Hay (3T2), Shannon Wilson (2L2) and Beth Watters (3T3).
During the week we had various people coming in to do our hair, nails, and make-up. On
Monday we were shown different methods of street dancing. We went to the swimming pool
and gym in Dunbar on Wednesday, and staff from The Bead Shop came in to show us how to
make bracelets and necklaces. Cheer-leaders from the Red Flame Dance group worked with
us on Thursday which was great fun.
We all enjoyed the week and would recommend it for next year.
First stop was the Glasgow Museum of Transport. The pupils were
given a guided tour of a replica 1938 street. They were then shown
round the various trams, buses and cars housed in the museum giving
an insight into how road transport has developed over the last 150
years. The pupils were particularly impressed by the vintage cars!
Next stop was the People’s Palace to see artefacts relating to Glasgow’s social history. Having
studied a unit on housing, the pupils were fascinated by the ‘single end’. They also enjoyed the
‘Steamie’ exhibit where they pretended to be characters from Tony Roper’s classic drama
which we had watched in class.
Finally it was off to Clydebuilt. This museum depicts the rise and fall of the shipbuilding
industry in Glasgow. Although they don’t usually give secondary school groups guided tours
they made an exception for us and the pupils were treated to the excellent knowledge of a
guide who not only has an active interest in the History of the River Clyde but who also has the
skills and technical knowledge of one who has sailed in the Merchant Navy. After a tour of the
museum we were taken outside to the pontoons for a look along the river where many
shipyards have been. We even saw a Royal Navy Destroyer which is now undergoing sea
trials having been built on the Clyde.
The pupils were a credit to themselves and Knox Academy by displaying impeccable
behaviour. The staff in the museums made a point of complementing the pupils on their
enthusiasm. This was a very enjoyable day and I know that the pupils will put this knowledge
to good use in the SQA exams.
S McPhee
History Department
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Haddington Success at Trampoline Competition
16 pupils from Haddington travelled to Lasswade
High School Centre on 8 May for the annual
City of Edinburgh Trampoline Club Schools
Championships. This competition was
open to youngsters from the Borders,
East Lothian, Midlothian and South
Lanarkshire and over 100 individuals
took part.
The Knox Academy team were strong and came home with 2 medals in the Intermediate
Secondary Junior Boys category: 1st Place - Keeley Robertson (1G2) and 2nd Place - Ewan
Cunningham (1G3). The girls performed well in a tough group of Novice Secondary Junior
Girls with Sian Thomas (3G1) and Kaelyn Pritchard (1G1) coming 6th=, Jordanne Grant (3L3)
finishing 8th and Anna Heawood (1T3) in 9th Place.
The winning school team this year was Liberton High School, Edinburgh. Well Done to all
involved.
L Jeffrey
Geography Department
This year Sean has taken part in many national events such as the Scottish
National Time Trials in Fort William, the British Championships and the
British National Cyclo-Cross in Birmingham where he came 19th out of
the 36 competitors.
R Couper
Sports Coordinator
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Activities Week 2010: Aubigny and Paris
At 8 am on Sunday 9 May, 31 pupils and 4 teachers, Mr Hutchinson, Mrs Elliott, Mrs Cochrane
and Mr Johnston left for Glasgow airport. After a couple of hours of checking-in and
shopping, we were off. For some it was their first time flying and for others the first time going
abroad without parents. We arrived in Charles de Gaulle about 4 pm local time and set off
for a two hour bus journey to Haddington’s twin town, Aubigny. When we arrived we were
greeted by some of the local pupils and the Deputy Mayor.
Next day we were given a tour of the town and school where we had lunch. In the afternoon
we visited the nearby town of Bourges where we were given a tour of the cathedral, a visit to
the crypt and climbed 365 steps to the top of the tower. Then we had time for shopping. That
day was the best weather we had, as we had lots of rain and cold. There was no need for
sunglasses, shorts or suncream! In Aubigny that evening the Twinning Association kindly hosted
a lovely meal for us. Afterwards there was time to get to know our new French friends. After
saying our goodbyes, we went back to the hostel to pack for the rest of our trip.
The bus took us back to Paris and we found the hotel in heavy rain, then had our first trip on
the metro. After a quick lunch, we visited a perfume museum which was interesting and some
of us purchased some gifts. We had time for shopping before going back to the hotel to
unpack. After dinner, we went to Montmartre using the funicular railway. We could see the
whole of Paris and it was beautiful except for the weather. After having a crepe, it was back
on the metro to the hotel. The following day we went up the Eiffel Tower which was amazing,
visited Notre Dame before having lunch and going to the Louvre. We caught a glimpse of
Mona Lisa and other things. Then we went to the Champs Elysees for some shopping and
visited the Arc de Triomphe. After dinner we went on a river cruise down the Seine which was
lovely. After another crepe at the Eiffel Tower, we could watch the tower illuminated. Next
day was an early start for Disney which was a lot of fun.
Before we knew it we were back on the plane returning home. Although it’s nice to be back,
we had an amazing time in France and we all want to return. Despite the bad weather, we all
managed to enjoy ourselves, even the teachers!
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Absences
Thank you to all the parents/carers who contact Knox before the school day to inform us if
their youngster is going to be absent. Sometimes the telephone lines are very busy and your
patience is appreciated. We also appreciate the letters sent in with pupils when they return to
school.
• Continuing to contact the school before the school day if your son/daughter is going to
be absent (the office is open from 8 am).
• Sending notes regarding appointments in to school at least one day before the
appointment (including child's name and registration class).
• Sending notes when your child returns to school (including child's name, registration class,
dates of absence and reason for absence).
• The school now accepts absence notes via email. If you wish to do this please email
knoxacademy@knox.elcschool.org.uk with your child’s name and registration class in
the subject line.
Your support is always appreciated. Recent fundraising events have included The Duck Derby
raising £800. Results: 1st place - Mary Watson (£50); 2nd place - Beth Elliott (£15) and 3rd
place - Anne Sturgeon (£15). T’s in the Park raised £700.
Could Anne Sturgeon please contact the school office at Knox Academy.
The next confirmed event is the whole school Christmas Dance on Thursday 2 December.
M Ball
KASG
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Dress Code
A reminder to parents/carers that pupils are expected to wear the School Dress Code at all
times. Please could you ensure that your youngster has the appropriate clothing for the school
day:
Years 1 to 6 inclusive:
Years 5 and 6:
All pupils are expected to wear the dress code as described above and a navy blazer with
the school crest. Christmas leavers are not required to wear a blazer but may do so if they
wish.
Prefects:
Prefects are expected to wear blazers with the school crest and braiding at all times.
Outdoor Garments:
Outdoor garments may not be worn in class.
Extremes of Fashion:
In general terms, we would expect all our young people to maintain a sense of decorum. By
way of example, we would not expect to see bare skin/midriffs or shoulders. As in previous
years, we will continue to tackle areas of concern with sensitivity and on an individual basis.
If pupils do not wear Dress Code they lose points from their Pupil Points total and subsequently
lose points for their House. Parents/carers will be informed in writing if their youngster is
regularly infringing the School Dress Code rules and we do ask for your support in ensuring
that the pupils of Knox Academy look smart and business-like.
The following items are examples of non-compliance with school dress code:
• hooded tops
• strappy/vest tops
• hipster trousers
• skirts worn over trousers or footless tights
• big belts that are not black or navy
• large beads/pieces of jewellery
• shorts of any kind (long or short)
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Activities Week 2010: Northern Adventure
Our journey to Shetland began on Sunday 9 May at 10 am, when we set off from Knox by
minibus bound for Aberdeen. It took us about three to four hours to get to the ferry in
Aberdeen. The journey from Aberdeen to Lerwick, via Kirkwall in Orkney, took us fourteen
hours, but the ferry provided enough entertainment to satisfy everyone. This included a
cinema, a bar area, restaurants, an arcade and a deck that gets very windy!
Once in Lerwick we had a short wander in the fresh air. Strangely enough the weather was
constantly shifting but we still got to see some seals. Before we headed to our hostel, we went
to the Shetland Museum that contained exhibits about the history of Shetland and its
inhabitants. After spending some time in the museum, we headed to our hostel. The
accommodation was moderately comfortable with plenty of space to muck about in. For the
rest of the day, we tried to play rounders on the beach but the tide was too high so we
skipped stones on the water for a while.
On Tuesday we went to the shopping area of Lerwick to purchase souvenirs. The shops there
were decent and had a colourful variety of products to buy. In the afternoon we went to see
Puffins at Sumburgh Head followed by a visit to an 18th Century Croft House and Watermill.
The lichens growing on the walls around Sumburgh Head were not yellow and powdery as in
Haddington, but light green and bushy. Before heading back to the hostel, we had a quick
game of rounders and cricket on the beach. If I hadn’t known where I was, I would have said
that the beach was in a tropical region.
On Wednesday we headed for Unst, the most northerly inhabited island in the United
Kingdom. This involved two short ferry crossings from the mainland of Shetland. Once there,
we walked through the Hermaness nature reserve to see Muckle Flugga and its stack. This
really is as far north as the United Kingdom goes. Whilst on the nature reserve we saw
Bonxies – or Great Skuas – huge brown birds that swoop and shriek at visitors.
On the final day we went to another museum in Lerwick and to do some last minute shopping
before setting off home. The journey on the ferry was only twelve hours as it went straight
from Lerwick to Aberdeen. Arriving in Aberdeen at 7 am we set off for Haddington.
Our team, XL, would like to invite you to join us in this venture by becoming a sponsor. As with
real F1 cars your, or your company’s name, will be displayed on our vehicle, uniforms and
publicity material. You will be invited to meet the team and be kept up-to-date with progress.
Any contribution, corporate or individual, big or small, would be greatly appreciated.
To find out more please contact Ms Leggatt in the CDT Department. You will find the website
www.f1inschools.co.uk useful – we are competing in the Bloodhound Category.
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Knox Has Got Talent
On the Thursday 1 April, Knox once again showed the school is full of talent. With 6 acts
signed up for the show - including a very special staff act - it was a very busy lunchtime.
Knox’s Head Boy, Ally Brown, decided to start the show and set the bar to high standard. He
was closely followed by Simon Simpson who showed his talented impressions of Gok Wan,
Brian Blessed, Joker from Batman and Alexander from Compare the Meerkat. All three
judges, Mrs Craig, Mrs Ingham and Mr Illingworth, enjoyed these performances.
The next two acts were both singing acts, one a very memorable performance by Mr Dempster
and Miss Morgan which the audience thoroughly enjoyed and will be remembered for some
time. The next singing act was Sophie Lawrence and Rowan Bland (both 1L3) who sang Don’t
Stop Believin’ and again all 3 judges highly commended their performance.
The final singing act of the afternoon was Kaelyn Pritchard (1G1) and Rebecca Cole (1G2)
who sang Pixie Lott’s song ‘Mamma Do’ which the audience loved and all 3 judges thought was
the best performance so far. It would be a tough act to follow. Eilidh McSporran (2G3) on the
piano was the final act and her performance was again of a high standard, but who did the
judges feel was the best?
The judges first of all highly commended all the performances but they were unanimous in their
decision and the winners were Kaelyn Pritchard and Rebecca Cole.
The event raised a total of £171.40 with all the proceeds going to Radio Forth’s Cash 4 Kids
appeal.
Roddy Coull S6
on behalf of the S6 Charities Committee
By the second day we had started with our actual animation projects which were to be finished
by Thursday. They used stop-motion animation (i.e. take a picture, move the object, take a
picture, move the object, take a picture … etc, then you run them together). The story of
Orville and Anka (by Iona and Liska) used an enchanting music-box piece which proved quite
difficult to find.
By Thursday we had pretty much finished our projects and we were off to see How To Train
Your Dragon. The film was good and we ended up being the only ones in the cinema. We
took the public bus there and back and it was a bus journey to remember … there was plenty
of laughter!
By Friday our projects were finished and we watched them over … what a week!
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Young Enterprise: Lothian Board Awards
On the 25 March 2010, the five members of Team Rise
attended the end of year presentation of all the Young
Enterprise businesses in the Lothians.
We were all pretty nervous of the unexpected during the journey and
even more so as we pulled up to the Stuart’s Melville College Performing
Arts Centre in Edinburgh. There were 23 other businesses there from around
Edinburgh and the Lothians. We would not only be performing our presentation
on the stage surrounded by all of them, but also the judges and many other adults
involved.
As the evening went on however, we gained some confidence as we first won a silver plate for
the ‘Best Human Resources Director', followed by third place for ‘Best Marketing Director’, a
second place for ‘Best Production assisted by the Managing Director’ and a second place for
‘Best Sales Director’.
Altogether, the night was a huge shock in terms of our success for us all, and we therefore had
a much better evening than any of us had imagined. The Young Enterprise experience is
something we have all benefited hugely from and we would recommend it to all S5 pupils next
year looking for a definite challenge, and even to earn some extra cash!
Team Rise: Emma Lynas (Managing Director); Tom Gates (Finance Director); Phillippa Jackson (Human
Resources Director); Lewis Wilkie (Sales and Marketing Director); Andrew Wright (IT Director); Link Teacher:
Colin Dempster; Business Advisor: Finlay Marshall
Emma Lynas S6
Managing Director - Rise
We set off with high hopes of sun, sand and excitement, as had been the story in previous
years. We didn’t believe the weather forecast, why should we, they’re not usually right.
Day one is usually a relaxed affair with the emphasis on getting to know
your boat and your fellow paddler.
Most people did a good job of getting to know their fellow paddler, but
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some chose to totally ignore their partner in the boat and try and do exactly the opposite to
what was expected. As you can imagine this made for some interesting turns, pirouettes and
going backwards down the river.
It was raining when we got up, and it continued to rain until we got off the river. Hard as we
paddled we struggled to keep warm as we made our way down the Mighty Mighty Ardeche
river.
My day was brightened up by two staff managing to make a spectacular exit from their boat
on one of the rapids. They somehow managed to jam their boat against a rock in the middle
of the river, causing a mass pile up. They tried to blame this on the PGL instructor, and then
proceeded to try and rescue all the pupils who then fell in because of them. The self
proclaimed “Heroes of the River” successfully finished the day without further incident. All
pupils should be commended for their efforts that day as they battled through the rain and
cold to paddle 14 km to the pick up point.
The rain that followed us down the river let up for a little while but returned with a vengeance
later on. The camp was flooded, thunder and lightning kept us on our toes and we were
thankful of our raised cabins. Day three was beautiful, but the previous night’s rain had
increased the height of the river by 7 metres which made it too dangerous to go on.
As we set off for the sunshine of the Mediterranean coast we were waved goodbye by another
thunderous downpour. The Med proved to be drier and sunnier and we got on with sailing,
snorkelling, sea kayaking, catamaran sailing, and some climbing and abseiling to make up for
the cancelled windsurfing(another storm). The pupils were also offered the chance to
experience some French cuisine in the form of l’escargot (snails cooked in garlic). I’m not quite
sure if everyone tried it, but the expression on the faces of the faces that did was priceless.
Apart from a few errant teenagers, the trip delivered everything we hoped. The pupils
experienced activities they’d not done before, and a lot of them were pushed outside their
comfort zone, and actually enjoyed the experience.
Roll on 2011!
K MacDonald
PE Department
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Home Economics
We are delighted to mention some of our extra curricular success stories
for 2009-2010. The year started with Abbie Lindsay (4T2) and
Andrew Lund (4L2) winning the East Lothian Chef Competition in
September. They had to cook a two-course meal for judges.
The pupils were praised for their high level of ability and the
knowledge of the techniques required. Presentation skills
were highly commended, as was their choice of dishes to
meet the brief.
Our most recent accomplishment last week was the Little and
Large Cooking Competition where a senior pupil, Ben Nisbet,
had to lead a team of two King’s Meadow primary pupils,
through the preparation and cooking of a foreign dish of their
choice and a dessert. In a close fought
competition Ben and his team were
victorious and were praised for their outstanding flavour in
the dish, and their presentation. This challenge requires
good communication skills, being able to work as a
team to make choices
but able to work
independently to
achieve results. The
competitors also
required to be
aware of safety
and hygiene in a
kitchen environment.
K Hossack
Home Economics Department
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Activities Week 2010: Creative Cookery
During Activities week I was privileged to be involved in the
Creative Cookery package. The pupils and teachers
(Ms Smith, Miss Hossack and Mrs Harpur) were a joy to work
with and I personally learned a lot.
In the afternoon we served the clients tea and cakes and enjoyed a
chat with them. Everyone got to take a plate of goodies home which
were greatly received. We received a lovely thank you letter from the
Day Centre expressing how much they had enjoyed our visit.
Well done to all the pupils involved. I know that all the staff had a wonderful four days.
L McInnes
Head of Mathematics
‘Sweeney Todd’ tells the tale of Benjamin Barber as he returns to London to seek his revenge
on Judge Turpin for what he did to him and his family. With Mrs Lovett in desperate need to
keep her pie shop open and Mr Barber (who is actually Sweeney Todd) killing so many people
… the obvious answer is to hide the bodies in the meat pies … after all she does have the
worst pies in London, but not for long!
Louise Boyd (3G2), S3 Drama Pupil, said ‘I think Sweeney Todd was really good and I enjoyed
it more because it wasn’t as gory as I thought it was going to be.’ Greg Russell (3T2), another
S3 Drama pupil, added ‘The special effects were outstanding and I loved how the stage was
on the thrust’.
Mr Campbell said ‘This was a fantastic production that really enabled pupils to see how
theatre arts can enhance a piece of theatre. The pupils were fantastic too and it was a great
first trip for the Standard Grade Drama Class’.
J Naples-Campbell
Drama Department
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The Big Bang Scotland
A team of six made up of Caitlin Brock (2L2), Erin Craig (2L2), Molly Ferguson (2T2), Holly
Merritt (2T2), Rebecca Friary (2G2) and Struan Stuart (2T1) (Team Reknoxable) have been
working on a project since November. The project was about recycling and we chose to focus
on a bike station which was for members of the public and pupils, where they could take their
bikes and get them fixed or donate them so that we could take them apart and use the spare
parts to help fix other bikes.
On 14 May, the team travelled to Edinburgh University to take part in a competition called
Young SET Ambassadors Challenge, which is run in conjunction with Edinburgh University, but
sadly we did not win. After getting feedback on our project from the judges the team went
back to Knox and made changes to make the project even better.
On the 7 June the team travelled to Dundee to Abertay University to take part in The Big Bang
Scotland competition with other schools from across Scotland. The team got extremely good
feedback from the judges but didn’t win any prizes; however we did get a silver crest award
at the end. This is a very good achievement for these second year pupils and we have
enjoyed the experience very much.
Caitlin Brock, Erin Craig, Molly Ferguson, Holly Merritt, Rebecca Friary and Struan Stuart
S2 Pupils
Ethos Quaich
Aidan Lindsay (S6) was awarded second place in a county-wide competition to honour pupils
who are or who have made a difference in their schools. The "Ethos Quaich" is awarded
annually by Anti Bullying East Lothian. Aidan was nominated because of his work with junior
pupils as both a Buddy and House Captain. Aidan is also involved in running the Hockey Club
and has helped run ACE Friday mornings for our S1 pupils.
Outside of school Aidan is kept busy through his commitment to the Scouting
Movement among numerous other things. Aidan has always been ready to
assist pupils and staff at the drop of a hat and has carried out his duties as
both House Captain and Prefect with generosity and good cheer.
We wish Aidan well in his future endeavors and we shall miss him here at
Knox Academy.
S Ingham
Depute Head Teacher
Knox News - The Newsletter of Knox Academy - June 2010
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Activities Week 2010: Italy
After a busy day in school 51 pupils set
out on a 30-hour bus journey to Italia
via Scotland, England, France and
Switzerland. We went with Mrs Barber,
Mrs Ball, Mrs Slowther, Mr Dempster,
Mr Wren and Mr Stirling.
On Sunday we got on the coach again for a spectacular drive to Riva del Garda. In the
morning we visited the Cascata Varone, a waterfall where apart from the cascading water we
were able to admire all the plants of the area. This was also our first opportunity to do some
shopping. In the afternoon we went for a trip on Lake Garda stopping at Limone. Working in
groups we carried out a tourist survey trying out our Italian and then had some free time to
wander about.
We didn’t have the bus drivers on Tuesday as they had a day off, so
we explored around the hotel area and performed our plays on Romeo and
Juliet with a modern twist for the Golden Gondola Award. Later on, the teachers treated us to
an ice cream of our choice, they were all different but nice. Although it wasn’t wall-to-wall
sunshine we hit the beach where a few brave people went into the water while the others
played rounders. That night we had our disco in a local club called Splash.
Thursday was our final day in Italy and we had a walking tour of Venice and
two other small islands near it; Murano, where we watched the Maestro blow
some of the famous glass and Burano which we nicknamed Balamory because of
all the brightly coloured houses. We had free time on this day, and it was good to look
around.
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On Friday 14 May it was “Ciao Italia” and we left for another long
journey.
The majority of us thought the second hotel was better as it was near the beach with more
freedom to shop in the evening!
Throughout the trip the rain was off and on, but we had quite a
lot of sunny spells too. On one night thunder and lightning came
but it didn’t affect us as our activities weren’t weather
dependent.
Aylee Bunting, Ailsa Macaldowie, Matthew Moore, Emma Paterson, Emma Scott
S2 Pupils
She has now been awarded a Stevenson French Exchange Scholarship to support her in a year
studying at Grenoble Stendhal University. Her award is part of an initiative designed to
create and maintain links between Scotland and France. Upon her return she will have to
present a report about her experiences.
During her time in France she also plans to go back to Aubigny to stay with the family who
hosted her two years ago. Some of the friends she made there are now at universities across
France and this will give her the opportunity to visit them and experience life in other French
cities. It promises to be a very rewarding opportunity for her.
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Knox Academy Awards: Session 2009-2010
S3 SUBJECT PRIZES
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S4 SUBJECT PRIZES
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FRASER & ISOBEL SPOWAGE PRIZES FOR
OUTSTANDING WORK IN ADVANCED HIGHER
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SERVICE TO THE SCHOOL
Sports Day
Sports Day at Knox Academy was once again very successful. Pupils were given the
opportunity to compete in various activities including: Welly Wang; Giant Skittles; Beat the
Goalie; Bean Bag Throw; Golf Putt and Relays.
The winners of the Athletics and Sports championships are listed below. Well done to all
involved.
Athletic Champions
Sports Championships
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EAST LOTHIAN COUNCIL
Department of Education & Children’s Services
School Session Dates 2010/2011
* Revised School Session Dates with extra in-service day for staff on Wednesday 18 August 2010
Staff Pupils
TERM 1
= 88 days = 84 days
TERM 2
TERM 3
= 47 days = 45 days
Total – 195 days Total – 188 days
Knox News - The Newsletter of Knox Academy - June 2010
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Activities Week 2010: Jewellery Making
This year there were a lot of different in-school activities
during Activities Week. Stephanie King (3L1), Corrie
Paton (3L2), Hannah Herriot (3L3), Heather Dickson
(3L1), Lauren Dickson (3L2), Heather Barr (3T3),
Catherine Crawford (3L1) and Becky Gunn (3L2) all
took part in the jewellery making course with Dr Wilson.
The next day we did a workshop at the Bead Shop where we were taught some new bead
looping techniques and made eye-catching coloured wire beads. We then progressed to
making beaded rings and earrings.
On the final day we finished off our pieces of jewellery and took lots of
photographs of the pieces we made. We all really enjoyed jewellery
making and improved our skills - we would recommend it to anyone that
stays at school during Activities Week!
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Active Schools Raise £190.90 for Sports Relief
Over fifty pupils from S1 and the cluster P7s took part in a fun afternoon
of sports to raise money for Sports Relief.
The event organised by Rory Couper and Suzanne Laing (Active Schools
Haddington Cluster) brought together a group of pupils who took part in
Basketball, Table Tennis, Trampolining, Dance and Dodgeball. The group
of participants also donated £2 each and completed a mile run in a relay
format.
Active Schools use this event as a Transition experience for the primary pupils who will be
attending Knox Academy next year. It allows them to meet the current first years and make
new friends, meet some of the school sports club coaches and see the facilities that they will be
using next year. This is the second time the event has fallen on Sports Relief and is a great
way to raise money and awareness for the charity.
Early in the day teachers and S6 pupils guessed 'who could keep it up the longest' and raised
£90 to add to the total.
R Couper
Sports Coordinator
We are aware that a number of our copies of Knox News do not make it home successfully via
pupil post. Copies of Knox News are produced at the end of each term: October; Christmas;
Easter and Summer.
Please can you return this tear-off slip to the school office or alternatively email your opinion
to knoxacademy@knox.elcschool.org.uk.
............................................................................................................................................................................
as it currently distributed via pupil post with the ability to read online as well
I am happy to be notified when the Knox News is published online and read online
without receiving a paper copy
Signature: ______________________________
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