In honour of Keiran Mckandie - Elgin Academy, Moray · V i s i t u s o n t h e w e b : w w w . e l...

I s s u e 3 5 - M o n d a y 1 8 A p r I l 2 0 1 6 w w w . e l g i n a c a d e m y . c o . u k

C o n t a c t u s : T e l : 0 1 3 4 3 5 4 3 4 8 5 E m a i l : a d m i n . e l g i n a c a d @ m o r a y – e d u n e t . g o v . u k

In honour of Keiran Mckandie

The whole school community was deeply shocked and devastated when we heard that Keiran Mckandie (S5) had passed away as a result of a tragic accident on the morning of Sunday 20 March 2016. In school, Keiran was a very happy young man, with an ever-present smile and a friendly manner towards everyone. His great passion was downhill mountain biking, a field in which he achieved a great deal. He will be extremely missed in school, and here, some of his friends and teachers pay tribute to him.

I can’t believe that I’ll never see you or your big cheesy smile again. I wish we could have laughed at our little joke one last

time. You really were one in a million, Keiran and I’ll never forget you. Thank you for all the memories.

Sleep tight Keiran. Thoughts go out to family and close friends. You were a great guy and never failed to put a smile on anyone’s face. You’ll be missed by so many.

Keiran was a great guy, taken far too young. It’s hard to put into words just how sorry I am for your loss. He had such a positive

impact on everyone around him and will be sorely missed. He never failed to put a smile on my face on the walk to school, always with a funny joke, or a new story to tell about his biking. He brightened up the lives of so many. Ride in peace Keiran.

Keiran was always willing to make the most of learning and the best of life.

There was one time I especially remember and it was when me, you and Doug went biking at the Oaks. Doug wanted to try a

backflip and me and you just looked at each other and laughed. I ended up making it into a video and put it on Facebook. Doug was pissed at us but me and you thought it was absolutely hilarious because the whole video was just Doug falling off.

RIP Keiran ma man. Keep shreddin’.

Keiran, I only really knew you for just over a year but that year has been one of the best of my life. For all the time that I knew you, you never stopped smiling and were always able to make me laugh. You were such a great guy and have left a huge hole in the group. I can’t even begin to imagine how hard this must be for those closer to you than myself but one thing I can say is

that we all love and miss you mate. Rest in peace Keiran.

Keiran was a lovely young man with a great smile. I am so thankful I had the opportunity to get to know him so well in school.


Welcome As we start the summer term, there is great sense of optimism in the school. Our senior pupils face a very busy time with exam leave starting in under three weeks time. Students and staff have been working hard to get ready for these exams, with many hours being spent in study support outwith normal lessons, including classes offered during the Easter break. We wish all our students well for the forthcoming exams. Younger pupils also have a busy term ahead, with the start of the new timetable due to take place on Monday 9 May. We also look ahead to Activity Days and Sports Day, and S3 pupils in particular, will be looking forward to their residential trips. Yet again, this newsletter reflects the huge range of events and opportunities for young people at Elgin Academy. We hope you enjoy reading it. With best wishes for the term ahead. David Barnett Head Teacher

Winners of the Secondary School Award Elgin Academy won the Secondary School Award at the annual Moray Young Citizen Awards Ceremony on Friday 18 March 2016. This was presented to representatives from our Youth Philanthropy Initiative finalists. In winning this award, they were presented with a cheque for £500. In the individual category, Shoaib Rasul (S4) was Highly Commended for his work in organising a charity cycle ride from Elgin to Aberdeen for Children in Need, and Emily Morris (S3) was Commended for her work in supporting young people with autism. Well done to all involved – we are very proud of you!

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Sport Relief Elgin Academy pupils and staff raised funds for Sport Relief in week commencing 14 March in several ways. The PE department organised a 1000-mile challenge, where individual students ran a mile. They, in fact, completed 1552 miles and raised over £500. On Thursday 17 and Friday 18 March, a selection of tasty cakes were sold in the hall in aid of the SSPCA as well as Sport Relief. On Thursday 17 March, pupils and staff did Zumba in the hall, and on Friday, facepainting was also on offer as a fundraising activity.

V i s i t u s o n t h e w e b : w w w . e l g i n a c a d e m y . c o . u k

Staffing Update Nicky Grant, currently Depute Head Teacher at Kemnay Academy, has been appointed as our new DHT, replacing Mrs Cameron, who became Head Teacher at Milne’s High School. She will commence her duties with us on Monday 30 May 2016. We have welcomed Hazel Strachan to our staff as part-time teacher of History. Alan Davis has been appointed to the permanent part-time post of Teacher of PE. Claire Reynolds has been appointed as part-time teacher of Modern Languages, and will take up her post in August. Dawn Phillips and Caroline Smit have been appointed to the post of Acting PT Support for Learning on a job-share basis. They will take over from Katie Roy, who has now started her maternity leave. Sharon Murray has been appointed to the post of part-time clerical assistant, meaning that we will now be looking for a Senior Clerical Assistant.

Down’s Syndrome Awareness Week The Support for Learning Department sold Easter cakes and biscuits in the hall at break-time on Thursday 24 March 2016 to raise funds for the Down’s Syndrome Association and raised £48.

Art Show - date for your diary The annual exhibition of students’ artwork will take place on the evening of Monday 25 April 2016. This will also include work from the Cake Craft classes and will feature performance from our musicians. This event is free and is open to the public.

Chemistry Analyst Competition Three Higher Chemistry pupils from Elgin Academy - Aimal Ahmad Khan, Murray Robinson and Lee Ferguson - were selected to represent the school at the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Analyst Competition which took place at Robert Gordon University. The boys completed three experiments over the course of the day, gained experience of the University style labs and developed problem solving and team work skills. Matthew Edwards also did a lot of preparation for the event but was unable to attend on the day. The boys are photographed (right), with fellow competitors from Speyside High School.

Visit from Claire McFall We were excited to welcome writer Claire McFall, Scottish Children’s Book Award winner, to Elgin Academy on World Book Day, Thursday 3 and also on Friday 4 March. Claire lives and works in the Scottish Borders and until now, Moray was listed as being one of the places she was unable to visit, because of the distance from her home. However, we were delighted that Claire agreed to visit Elgin Academy. This is a coup for the school, both being able to welcome much-admired Claire McFall and having the opportunity for all in school to meet a national award-winning writer. Claire’s first book, Ferryman, is a love story which retells the ancient Greek myth of Charon, the ferryman of Hades who transported souls to the Underworld. This is novel that won the Scottish Children's Book Awards, the country's largest children’s book prize. Her second novel, Bombmaker, is a Young Adult dystopian thriller in which the main character, Scottish teenager Lizzie, struggles to survive in a London dominated by gangs and plagued by terrorism. Claire’s latest novel, Black Cairn Point, is a paranormal thriller about a camping trip gone wrong and it is the top-requested book in Elgin Academy Library at the moment. Claire talked to S2 classes about her books and helped S3 pupils to develop their creative writing skills. Her books were for sale all week in the library, and pupils queued up to buy her books and to have them signed by Claire. This visit was made possible by Scottish Book Trust and its Live Literature Funding scheme. We were honoured that Claire McFall agreed to visit us and meet her many awe-struck fans in school – both pupils and staff.


Claire McFall Visit Thurs 3 March and Friday 4 2016 - Feedback from S2 This was a great talk, that made me want to read all three of Claire’s books. Another thing I liked was her attitude; she was happy and looked like she was enjoying herself, which made it fun for us. She used a lot of humour, which made it such an enjoyable talk. I also enjoyed the interactive anagrams, fill in the blanks and anagrams. Molly Buckley I think she did very well in the time she had. She talked about and read from her three books. When she was reading, her voice had a lot of enthusiasm, so the books sounded really exciting to read. Some of her books were made-up, but in Black cairn Point, things actually happened to her in real life. That was a really good idea, because the reader believed the fantasy part more. Claire gets her ideas from everyday life. In Bombmaker, she got inspiration from a movie. Her talk was really good and I’ll try and grab her books. Page Reaich I really enjoyed Claire McFall. I found her funny and relatable. I also thought the little quizzes were good. Having read both the books she talked about, I thought she had picked out really good points in them that didn’t spoil anything. I was a bit sad that there wasn’t any time for her to read from Bombmaker and I still have to read that. My favourite part was at the end, when we could ask questions and get our books signed. I would have preferred it to be over two periods, but beggars can’t be choosers and I’m just happy I got to meet Claire McFall. Oliver Stalker This session was great, because Claire McFall was interactive with the audience and had lots of quizzes and tips. She also told personal stories, as well as the inspirations for her books. Morven Donaghy I thought Claire was a very clear speaker; when she was telling us stories about her camping trips, she was very descriptive, making it easy to understand her. I think it would have been better if we had got two periods to listen to her. Halle Knight-Genever I enjoyed when Claire Mcfall read parts of her books out. I am reading Bombmaker and she explained where she got her ideas from, as well as for her other books. I also enjoyed when she signed our books and talked to us about the books we were reading. I liked when she also explained where she got the idea from for Black Cairn Point and how part of it is based on a real-life event. Overall, I really enjoyed Claire’s talk and I was very interested in what she said. William Dixon I like how Claire read parts of the book. I think this was a great talk and I really enjoyed it. Daisy Stalker I thought that the book extracts were good and the quizzes were engaging. Claire McFall kept my attention and she was very down to earth. Lucas Engstrand Claire McFall was a very good speaker. She was clear and wasn’t too fast. She kept me interested throughout the talk and told some funny stories. I am very keen to read her books. Overall, she spoke extremely well and it would have been nice to have had a bit longer for her session with us. Branford Edgar I really enjoyed the talk and listening to what Claire had to say. I liked that she told the story behind things. It was good that she got the audience involved and that she read parts of the book out loud, so that we got a better idea of what the books were about. Chloe Addison Claire McFall was very interesting and something new, because I have never seen an author in person before. This was good for me and I hope I can experience something like this again. Kiegis Henderson I enjoyed the visit from Claire McFall because she was interesting to listen to. It made me want to read her books because she didn’t just read the books and say “buy them.” She gave background on her stories and included events that have happened to her, some of which I could relate to. Brooke Williamson Claire McFall was a very charming, down-to earth and witty personality. She gave a good overview of how she came up with the ideas for her books and what her books were about. I liked how she gave a quiz involving different bits of literature. Matthew Hamilton Claire McFall was very well spoken and she tried very well to involve the audience. She presented her talk well and was well prepared. The way the seating was arranged was very good and everybody could see her. Claire also gave very good advice about writing. Nicola Booth Claire was very entertaining and energetic. I enjoyed hearing her talk about her experiences, which were very thought-provoking. I do think it would have been better to have had her for longer and hear about Bombmaker. She had a lot of energy that keeps people entertained and was very truthful. She was really nice signing the books and she signed them from the main characters. The 50 minutes were very entertaining. Natasha Ogle


World Book Day - 3 March 2016 We celebrated World Book Day on Thursday 3 March with our own big, happy, booky day of reading.

We Dropped Everything to Read for 15 minutes and books, ebooks and magazines were picked up for a reading hush in school. This annual event is one of the ways in which we are all encouraged to make reading a regular part of our routines and to see that it as a valuable, lifelong habit that everyone should enjoy, every day. What’s more fun(damental) than reading, really?

The exciting Book Wars event at lunchtime, saw pupils and staff visit the Pop-up Café in the library, to enjoy Books & Buns. The entertainment in this unique café was provided by senior pupils and staff, as they talked about a much-loved book for two minutes to the audience, who then voted for their favourite speaker. Many thanks to our panel of Alex McLaren and Thomas Meikle, both in S6 and to staff Mrs Main, Mrs Roy, Mr McWhirter and Mr Tsotsi, for sharing their favourite books.

The Pop-Up café was bursting with patrons (our pupils and staff) and all enjoyed Book Wars immensely. The votes in Book wars resulted in a tie between Mrs Main (Flowers for Algernon) and Mr McWhirter (The Bible). This meant Sudden Death! Both panellists had to sum up their book in one sentence and Mrs Main emerged as the winner. A very worthy winner too, congratulations to Mrs Main. Well done to all who competed in and watched our Book Wars on World Book day. Thank you to our fantastic canteen staff too, for creating and providing the delicious iced buns.


Rugby Cap Dean Roger from this year’s S6 (Moray House) has won his first International Cap, playing for the Scotland U-18 team against England U-18 last Sunday ( March 6th ) in Stirling. Dean, who started his playing career with Moray moved to Highland in Inverness so that he could play in the national leagues and so gain more experience. Whilst a student at Elgin Academy this session, Dean raised, organised and coached the school 1st XV, participating in the Moray schools league. We are very proud of Dean’s hard work and achievement and wish Dean every success with his future rugby career.

Scottish Space School Congratulations to Aimal Ahmad Khan (S5), who has been successful in

being selected for Scottish Space School. With only 100 places, and over 300 applicants, this is a great achievement.

Football in Stornoway The Senior team made the crossing from Ullapool to Stornoway to play the Nicolson Institute in the Semi- Final of the North of Scotland Cup. Despite taking a 1 -0 lead the Seniors eventually lost 2 -1 to a very physical and strong Nicolson Team. There is no doubt that playing on the 3G surface greatly favoured the home team. The boys however gave their all and were credit to the school in what was a fantastic trip in equally as fantastic weather conditions.

Duke of Edinburgh Homecoming Challenge Friday 26 February saw the launch in Elgin Academy of the DofE Homecoming Challenge to mark the 60th year of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award started at Gordonstoun and Elgin Academy as the Moray Badge in 1936. This was so successful that founder of Gordonstoun Kurt Hahn wanted to make it a national award. He consulted with Prince Philip and persuaded him to give his name to what became the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, which was launched 60 years ago this year. The Homecoming Challenge will be a unique opportunity for S3 students from across Moray who are undertaking their Bronze DofE to take part in a historic expedition. Participants will travel by bike, in canoes and on foot through the mountains and glens and along the coastline of Scotland from Balmoral to Gordonstoun. Each leg of the challenge will run concurrently over two days between Saturday 30 April and Sunday 1 May, ending up with a celebratory event at Gordonstoun.

Moray Parent Forum The S1 team who won the Moray wellbeing competition in designing a game focussing on Health and Wellbeing gave an excellent presentation to the Moray Parent Forum on Wednesday 24 February. Well done to Urquhart Dyce, Lewis Grant, Cameron McDonald, Louis Russell and Rory Stanley.

Cross Country Well done to our Cross Country team who performed very well in the North Scotland cross country on Wednes-day 24 February 2016. A particular highlight was Sophia Green finishing 2nd in her event.

Scottish Apprenticeships Week Elgin Academy students have been able to access three different events as part of Scottish Apprenticeships Week. On Tuesday 1 March – there was a visit to the school by Robertson Construction – a large local employer of Modern Apprentices. On Wednesday 2 March 10am – 2pm – pupils on the schools link college courses had the opportunity to visit a showcase in the college of a wide range of local employers who offer modern apprenticeships. Finally, on Wednesday 2 March, Skills Devel-opment Scotland ran an evening Parent & Pupil information session at their office in Elgin where local employers and training providers were on hand to answer queries and give advice.

Prize-winning Photography Congratulations to S4 student Andrew Robertson, who has come 3rd in the Scottish Landscape Photographer of the Year competition (youth section). Well done, Andrew!

Judo Success Congratulations to Reece Edwards (S1), who won a bronze medal at the Ultimate Judo championships in Edinburgh on Sunday 21 February 2016

Mid-session Department Reviews In the second half of February and in March every year, the Headteacher and Deputes meet with every Principal Teacher to analyse data from the prelims and to be updated on progress with Department Improvement Plans. This process started on Monday 22 February, and will continue over the next couple of weeks.

Litter Pick with Tesco The school and Tesco worked together on Monday 22 February to combat issues around litter. A group of S6 students worked with staff from Tesco to clear litter from the area around Morriston. It was very useful to work collabora-tively with Tesco - our joint clear hope is that these events would not be needed in the future.

Fairtrade Fortnight Thursday 10 March saw our second Fairtrade Fortnight Bake Sale, organised by our S3 pupils. They also visited the Moray Council Chamber.

School Visitors On Tuesday 16 February, we were pleased to welcome Patrick Harvie MSP, John Finnie MSP, and Isla O'Reilly & James MacKessack-Leitch to Elgin Academy. They took part in lessons in Graphic Communication and Human Biology, and met staff and pupils around the school.

Highland League Debut for Euan Congratulations to Euan Storrier (S5), who made his Highland League debut for Rothes FC on Wednesday 9 March 2015.

Football Success Well done to our girls’ football team who came third on the day and second overall in the Moray League Round 3.

Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme The Duke Of Edinburgh Award goes from strength to strength in Elgin Academy. Shortly before the end of term an amazing 53 participants took place in a training day for bronze and silver participants.

The commitment and enthusiasm of staff who give of their time to lead these activities cannot be underestimated.


Scottish Children’s Book Awards A group of us attended The Scottish Children’s Book Awards 16 Ceremony in Glasgow on Wednesday 2 March. We had a very early start, leaving Elgin at 5.30am, but it was worth it, to meet the shortlisted authors and to hear about their books. The winning author was Danny Weston, with his book The Piper. We learned about the authors’ inspirations and it was good to put faces to names. The Q&A and interaction with the authors was great, but the best part was seeing our own Marcus Huby receive his prize for the book review competition and cheering him on. We enjoyed being part of SCBA16 and we also enjoyed the range of tasks in school, based around the books. S3 pupils: Hollie, Zoe, Katharine, Kirsty, Fergus, Marcus, Lewis, Cameron and Gregor.

Filmtastic Pupils S3 pupils Tom Jenkins, Harry Allen and Jack Wiseman have been highly commend-ed by Scottish Book Trust for their book trailer in The Scottish Children’s Book Awards 2016 competition. The panel felt that the boys’ trailer captured the atmos-phere of the book extremely well and that their use of cinematography and sound were excellent. This trailer is now available to view on the website www.scottishbooktrust.com. A second book trailer from Elgin Academy caught the judges’ eyes: Kirsty Anderson’s film was noted as being a really strong entry, which stood apart from many others in its approach. Congratulations to our Fantastic Four and well done to all our S3 Scottish Book Awards pupils for their hard work throughout this collaborative Library and English department project.


Football Champions Congratulations to our Senior Boys Football team, who have won the Moray Schools league this year. Well done!

Happy National Pi Day Pi Day is on the 14th day of the 3rd month, all relating to 3.14 (or a rounded ‘pi’). This magical number is celebrated across the world annually on 14th March each year and on Monday, we enjoyed a very Hap-Pi day. Pupils enjoyed challenges in both the maths department and in the library throughout the day. Congratulations to Fergal Hinnigan and Jolie Henderson, both in S2, who were first to finish the Library Pi puzzles and claim their prizes, which were, naturally enough, pies.

Elgin Academy is a very Active School! Badminton S1 – S6 Wednesday 3.30 – 4.30 @ Elgin Academy Games Hall. Come and play in a friendly relaxed environment. Contact Miss Gardiner for details. Basketball S1 - S3 Thursday 3.30 – 4.30pm @ Elgin Academy Games Hall. Contact Mr Sim for details. Boys Football S1/S2 Team, Under 15s Team and Senior Team Coaching and match supervision is delivered by Mr. Baker, Mr. McAvinue, Mr Robertson, Mr Mone and Mr McArthur. Contact Mr Baker. Girls Football S1-S4 Monday 3.30 –4.30pm @ Elgin Academy Games Hall. Sessions are led by senior pupils Jade Walton and Katrina Buckle. Girls who attend weekly training sessions will be given the opportunity to compete in the Moray Secondary Schools Girls Football League. Contact Active Schools Coordinator Anna Riddell for details. Fitness S1-3 Monday and Thursday lunch times. Contact Mr Sim for details. Netball S1 – S6 Tuesday 3.40 – 5.00 @EA games hall. Sessions are led by Fiona Houliston and Carinne Taylor. All abilities welcome. Contact Anna Riddell for details. Running Club S1 – S6 Wednesday 3.20-4.30. Contact Mr Davis from the PE department for details. Hockey S1 – S6 Thursday 3.30 – 4.30 @EA astro turf. All abilities welcome. Contact Miss Scholes for more details. Mountain Biking S1-S4 Beginners’ taster sessions can be arranged for summer term. Contact Active Schools Coordinator An-na Riddell to express your interest. Rugby Weekly training sessions and matches. Contact Mr Kelly for more details. Skate Boarding Thursday 3.30 – 4.30 in the summer term @Cooper Park Skate Park. Contact Mr Pellegrom, who will be leading the sessions. Table Tennis Thursdays 13.00 – 13.30 in the small hall. YDance (Funky Dance Sessions) S1-S2 Girls Tuesday 3.30 – 4.30 @ EA Dance Studio continues. Senior pupils Sophie Finlay and Chloe Cumming will be delivering the sessions. Contact Active Schools, Anna Riddell for details.

A massive thank you to all the teachers, coaches, assistants and senior pupils delivering sessions!


Dates for your Diary

Monday 25 April Art Exhibition

Friday 29 April 2016

Study leave for S4/5/6 starts at 3.20pm

Monday 2 May 2016

May Holiday

Monday 9 May 2016 New timetable starts for new S2 - S4

Monday 16 May 2016

Senior Phase Information Evening

Thursday 19 and Friday 20 May 2016

In-service closure days

Wednesday 25, Thursday 26, Friday 27 May 2016

Activity Days

Friday 3 June 2016 End of SQA exams

Tuesday 7 June 2016

S6 Leavers’ Ball

Monday 13 June 2016 Awards Ceremony (S1-S3)

Tuesday 14 June 2016

Awards Ceremony(S4-S6)


Primary 5 Science at the Academy 28 Primary 5 pupils from West End recently visited the Academy, accompanied by their teacher Mrs Badenoch. The pupils had covered the water cycle at primary school and, at the academy, observed a teacher demonstration by Mr Gray on sep-arating water and alcohol .They then carried out hands on practical work of melting/freezing salol crystals and looking at them under the microscope and tracking convection currents in water with a coloured crystal. The visit was hugely enjoyed by all.

French Visit to Aberdeen On Wednesday 10th February, the Advanced Higher French class attended the French school of Aberdeen. The school was set up by the French oil and gas company Total to teach the children of their French staff living in Aberdeen. The pupils follow exactly the same French curriculum as their counterparts in France. Due to the nature of their parents' jobs, they often have to change countries and therefore attend similar French schools around the world. Some pupils had previously lived in the Congo, Canada, Cameroon, China, and Brazil. Our 4 AH attended French, geography, computing and science lessons all in the medium of French. This was a challenging situation for them but they managed to learn new things all the same, especially from a cultural point of view. Being immersed in a foreign language for a whole day was tiring but they gained in confidence as the day went on. The experience should give them additional skills to tackle their Speaking assessment with the SQA Visiting Assessor in March. It is hoped that further links, possibly short overnight stays with French/Scottish families, can be created between our modern languages dept and the French school of Aberdeen in the near future.

Kickboxing Success Finlay Wright attended the WAKO British Championships in Solihull at the weekend. It was a tough weekend for Finlay as he had 6 or 7 fights on the Sunday between two different weight categories. He is 61 kg and won the British titles in both the under 63kg category and the under 69kg category. This is the most important WAKO (World Association of Kickboxing Organisations) competition on their annual calendar as the title holders gain a place in the WAKO British team in preparation for the WAKO World Championships in late summer/autumn.

Rugby at Murrayfield Scotland beat France 29-18 and the Academy was there to see Scotland win the fixture for the first time in 10 years. A mini bus load of fans and staff travelled to Edinburgh to watch an enthralling match and soak up the electric atmosphere of a bouncing Murrayfield. It was a fantastic day out and one for all to remember and particularly the pupils who had attended a 6 Nations match for the first time.

In honour of Keiran Mckandie - Elgin Academy, Moray · V i s i t u s o n t h e w e b : w w w . e l...

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