An giblean 2016
SkyeLines
Ard-sgoil Phort Righ
Portree High School
Viewfield Road
Portree
Isle of Skye
(01478) 614810
Portree.high
@highland.gov.uk
Absences:
Portreehigh.absence
@highland.gov.uk
“Let
Me
Trust”
Inside this issue:
Show Racism the Red
Card Competition
may 2016
The SQA exam period is almost at an end. The pupils have worked
very hard and there has been full attendance at all the exams. The
process has run as smoothly as ever and our Invigilators have
expressed delight at our young people’s conduct throughout. I would
like to take this opportunity to thank them, especially our Chief
Invigilator Mr A Ross, who has decided that this year will be his last.
This brief mention will not sufficiently cover the enormous contribution
he has made to the life of Portree High School. It is sufficient to say
that he is a legend! Happy retirement Mr Ross and thank you.
This newsletter is full of May’s highlights; Jonathan Beaton – runner up
in the Show Racism the Red Card Competition which had over 1,000
entrants; the Junior Athletics with pictures of the successful
Champions inside; the Youth Philanthropy Initiative; the STEM robot
competition – no robots are not taking over just yet; shinty; Open
University success; maths challenges – the list goes on and on!
Our pupils have enormous opportunities to experience a host of wider
achievements and this edition showcases this.
I hope you all enjoy reading about their exploits as much as I have.
Miss C MacDonald, Headteacher
HOUSE
PUPIL SUPPORT
Blaven:
Glamaig:
Marsco:
Tianavaig:
Mrs C Waddell
Mrs S Cormack
Mr N Burrows
Mrs D MacLeod
E-MAIL ADDRESS
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
Open University
STEM Robot Competition
Company Chordelia
Sport
UKMT Maths Challenge
Youth Philanthropy
Initiative
Nordic Fiddlers Bloc
A Midsummer Night’s
Dream
Gourmet Challenge
SQA Exams End: 3rd June 2016
Duke of Edinburgh Practice Expedition: 3rd and 5th June 2016
Inset Day: 6th June 2016
New Timetable: 7th June 2016
Duke of Edinburgh Gold Practice Expedition: 12th and 12th June 2016
Parent Council Meeting: 13th June 2016
Highland Games: 14th June 2016
Junior Prizegiving: 15th June 2016
Senior Prizegiving: 16th June 2016
Duke of Edinburgh Qualifying Expedition: 17th and 19th June 2016
STEM Busking: 17th June 2016
P7 Days: 22nd, 23rd and 24th June 2016
Success Assemblies – All Years: 22nd June 2016
P7 Parents Evening: 23rd June 2016
Meanbh Fhèis Àrd-Sgoil Phort Righ – New S2: 28th June 2016
Duke of Edinburgh Qualifying Expedition: 27th – 30th June 2016
SkyeLInes
May 2016
O ver 1,000 young people across Scotland took part in this year’s Show Racism the Red
Card competition. Portree High
School pupil Jonathan Beaton
led the way in anti-racism
campaigning by coming second
in the Show Racism the Red
Cards
National
Anti-racism
competition. Jonathan came up
with a fantastic entry to combat
racism and promote a message
of an inclusive Scotland that
welcomes refugees. The standard
of entries was extremely high
this year, resulting in a tie and
Police Scotland had to cast the
final vote, which saw Jonathan receive the Highly Commended Award in the
Secondary S1-S3 category and he won four tickets to watch Ross County FC (his
favourite team) play next season.
Ex-Rangers player and Red
Card Coach, Derek Ferguson,
commented
on
Jonathan’s
artwork stating that
‘the
artwork made a huge impact
and it is heart-warming to see
such socially-conscious young
people like Jonathan letting
refugees know that they have a
home in Scotland. The use of a
lighthouse and a safe space for
refugees coming off treacherous
and overloaded boats was
extremely powerful’.
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May 2016
Congratulations to Rhianan MacDonald of 6M, who was
successful in passing the Open University's "Molecules,
Medicines and Drugs" module. Pupils in S6 now have
the option to study for a number of Open University
modules in their study column, allowing them to gain
greater knowledge and understanding in a diverse range
of specialist courses.
STEM Robot Competition
The Robot Competition was organised
by the University of the Highlands and
Islands science, technology, engineering
and maths (STEM) team. The challenge
was for pupils to come up with a pitch
of up to eight minutes about why their
school should win a robot, explaining
how it would be used to help pupils
learn about the STEM subjects. Portree
High School was judged to have one of
the most convincing and creative
pitches and won a four foot tall
Meccano Meccanoid robot after sending in a video presentation. The robot can speak,
move, record sounds, respond to voice commands and connect to smart devices.
The pupils (all S3) are pictured from left to right:
Sarah Gillies, Callum Shaw, Michael MacQueen, Thomas Prentice and Shadri Nel.
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May 2016
Company Chordelia
Company Chordelia visited Portree
and, with support from Skyedance,
ran a workshop within the PE
Dept. All the participants worked
hard. In the evening the girls
attended the Company Chordelia
performance at Aros.
Somhairlie MacLean Quaich Competition
At the recent Somhairle MacLean Quaich
competition held in Portree the Portree High
School teams won both the girls (6-0) and
boys (4-0) competitions.
S1 – S3 Football
In a recent football match vs
Lionacleit the visitors won 3-1.
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May 2016
At the HDS Junior Athletics Day in Inverness, Ester Strachan won
a gold medal and Garion McCrimmon was awarded a bronze in
his event. Jordan Richardson, Dean MacInnes, Ali Lamont, and
Craig McCaffer took part in the 100m and 200m. They also made
up a 4 x 100m relay team.
Since returning from this event, Garion McCrimmon has been
selected to participate in the National Athletics Championships in
Grangemouth on 1st June 2016. This is the first time Portree High
School has had an opportunity to attend such a prestigious event.
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May 2016
S1 Winners: Eachann Macrae
(missing from photograph) and
Holly MacLean
R/Up Joe Jones and Lauren
MacFarlane
S2 Winners: Callum Musgrave
and Abby MacLean
R/Up Ross Gordon and Emily
Matheson
S3 Winners: Connor Gilpin and
Christina MacDonald
R/Up: Calum Robertson and
Elaine Deas
In core PE pupils in S3 have
had the opportunity to opt into
a rowing group. Isle of Skye
Sailing Club have created a new
rowing section in their club. To
‘showcase’ this there will be a
rowing race in Portree on
Highland
games day in
August.
Qualified
coach
Jeremy Rossiter is working
with a small group of S3
pupils. The picture shows their
first training session.
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May 2016
Well done to all pupils who participated in the recent UKMT Junior Maths
Challenge.
Congratulations go to the following pupils who performed particularly well:
Archie MacLean 1T1
Iona MacCaskill 2G2
Best in School, Best in S1 and Gold Award
Best in S2 and Silver Award
Silver Awards also go to Sara Oussaiden 1M1 and from S2 Elsa Galbraith 2B1, Emily Matheson
2G2, Isla Macleod 2G1 and Jennifer Shaw 2M1.
Bronze Awards go to Ruari Lates 1G1, Charlotte Gordon 1G1, Gemma Taylor 1G1 and Iona
Towers 1M1 and from S2 Kieran MacLean 2G2, Niamh Mackinnon 2G1, Ronan White 2G2 and
Iain Cormack 2G2.
TRY SOME EXAMPLE MATHS CHALLENGE QUESTIONS:
JUNIOR
INTERMEDIATE
SENIOR
Answers on page 13
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May 2016
Youth Philanthropy Initiative
A group of pupils have won £3,000 on behalf of local charity in Portree High School’s first year
running the Youth Philanthropy Initiative.
At the final, judged by Maggie Cunningham (BBC Alba), John Gordon (Councillor), Robert Muir
(HIE), and Jane Tierney (International Development), 25 third year pupils at Portree High School
battled it out for a substantial amount of money.
In front of a live audience of peers, staff, friends and family, charity representatives and judges they
used their research, presentation, and creative skills to convince the panel that their chosen charity
was the most deserving of the cash.
The charities represented were Isle of Skye Youth Pipe Band, Am Fasgadh (Skye & Lochalsh
Mental Health Association), Skye Cancer Care, RNLI (Portree Branch) and Rag Tag ‘n’ Textile.
Each group made their case – all of which were detailed and persuasive – and it took the judges
an hour and fifteen minutes to deliberate.
In the end there could only be one winning team. Chloe Urquhart, Emily Macdonald and Craig
MacLeod wowed the judges with their
research and insight into the work that Am
Fasgadh – which is based in Portree – does
to support those with mental health issues.
Their presentation included interviews with
staff member Alex Jones as well as guests at
Am Fasgadh, including people who have
been using the service for over a decade.
Their passionate case was backed up with
facts and figures focusing on how the £3,000
will make a real difference for people living
in Skye & Lochalsh.
The pupils will present Am Fasgadh with a
cheque for £3,000 at the school’s prize giving
ceremony on the 15.06.16.
Alex Jones of Am Fasgadh has highlighted how important this project has been. He said:
“We always like to raise awareness of mental health and of our service in order to help break down
the stigma that still surrounds mental illness and so that people will know where to turn for
support when they need it. The YPI project has been a great way of doing that.
“Chloe, Emily and Craig came with open minds and a real desire to hear about the experiences of
our members. They did a fantastic job of communicating that to a wider audience.
“The standard of the presentations was really high all through the competition. I know that when I
was at school I would have found the idea of getting up and giving a presentation to so many
people completely terrifying.
“As the pupils said in their presentation, the NHS doesn’t pay for our Saturday and Sunday
opening. The prize money will keep the weekend service going for 3 months.”
A Year-Long Process
Since December 2015, all pupils in S3 at Portree High School have been preparing to secure
£3,000 for a local charity. As part of the international Youth Philanthropy Initiative (YPI), pupils
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SkyeLInes
May 2016
have investigated social issues in Skye and Lochalsh, they have made connections
with local charities addressing those issues, and are advocating on their behalf.
On the 11th of March, the entire year group competed at a morning of knockouts, judged by local
businesspeople, journalists and community leaders. Am Fasgadh made it through to the final
round, and was successful in the second round of judging on the 22nd of April.
The Youth and Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) is a programme currently delivered in 143 secondary
schools in Scotland by the Wood Foundation. Each team researched a local social issue which
they feel passionate about, and identified a local grassroots charity which works on the issue. They
then worked together in groups of 4-6 to create their presentations. This year saw the creative use
of video, social media, public speaking and drama performances.
All the groups met with representatives of their charities, and many went on to visit their projects in
order see their work in action. Some pupils have been lucky enough to get involved first hand,
learning how to cook, the importance of gardening, how to act during a cardiac arrest and how to
pilot a lifeboat.
Across Scotland this year, a total of £429,000 will be donated. Every year, over 50,000 pupils
across the world take part in YPI.
Isle of Skye Youth Pipe Band: Below Dougal McKiggan, Arthur Brook Young and Aaron Maclean.
Rag Tag ‘n’ Textile :
.
Lachlan Jarvie,
Elie Farquhar,
Ryan MacAskill, Sacha
Carter and Ross
McKenzie.
RNLI (Portree Branch): Below
Lucie Lamb, Alexander Leitch, Jordan Kelley, Archie Carter and Amy MacInnes.
Skye Cancer
Care: Martin
Pringle, Rachel
MacLennan, Katie
Mary Fraser,
Callum Grundy,
Jessica Jackson
and Ross
Johnston.
The other charities represented were: Skye & Lochalsh Visually Impaired Association, Lucky 2 B Here, Pets
as Therapy, Kyleakin Connections, Alzheimers Scotland, Viewfield Garden Collective, Highland Hospice,
The Royal British Legion (Lochalsh Branch), The Royal British Legion (Portree Branch) and Cookstart Skye.
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May 2016
Nordic Fiddlers Bloc
This month a group of Portree
High School pupils travelled to
Sleat (Sabhal Mor Ostaig) to
watch “Nordic Fiddlers”. The
trip was organised by Miss
Amos, Mr Purrett and fellow
teachers who came to watch.
The concert went on for two
hours including a raffle and
refreshments
during
the
interval. Before the concert
began the pupils had a chance
to ask the members of the
band a few questions about
their background of fiddle
playing.
Nordic Fiddlers Bloc is a group consisting of three fiddle players who all have a passion
for traditional music. The band of fiddlers, Kevin Henderson (Shetland), Olav Luksengard
Mjelva (Norway) and Anders Hall (Sweden) were seen to be enjoying themselves as they
passed smiles to each other on the stage. In their latest album “Deliverance” they all
share backgrounds originating from each of their countries, bringing their own
traditional songs together. Each song they played had its own story which they told
individually, giving the music a personal touch. The pieces of music have similarities
within each other interlinking with their own nationalities.
As the music continued through the night, seeing the fiddlers play was amazing; the
concentration that went into each song was perfected with practice. Their music will have
influenced the public and fellow fiddle players from Portree High School.
During the interval, the raffle offered a variety of prizes such as: their new album, a bottle
of whisky, a Gaelic place name booklet and some kippers. Mr Purrett claimed three of the
prizes overall; it must have been his lucky day!
Overall, for the fee of £5 that the school had offered with transport, it was an amazing
trip and we would recommend that you experience the excellence of this band whenever
you have a chance.
Written By Freya King and Chloe Robertson 2B1
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SkyeLInes
May 2016
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
We all really enjoyed the intensive five day Shakespearean course that Mr Coles and Mrs Wright
ran for us. They were fantastic at teaching us how to learn our lines, how to fit in the
choreography, and how to make sure the scenes all flowed nicely into one another.
After four and a half days of rehearsing, we performed the parts of the play we had practised
most. There was a variety of people there to watch the performance, a mixture of teachers and
pupils. We all felt that it went well and that the hours of rehearsing really paid off in the end. It
was a long process and we all got positive comments from the audience once the performance
was done.
The Process
Day 1: We read through the play and started to
work on different ideas to do with A
Midsummer Night’s Dream. We did
exercises and workshops to translate
Shakespearean language into modern day
language.
Day 2: We all got our parts and started the
choreography. We decided what sort of set
we wanted for different scenes and the way the
onstage set was positioned.
Day 3: We started to run through the play as a group and made alterations to the set design.
Day 4: We split off into small groups and individually at points in the day to learn and
remember lines. We worked on and improved our group choreography and dancing throughout
the play. In the afternoon, we did a workshop which was about everyone’s views on the play.
We all did individual tasks that we picked ourselves. They included writing poems and
prologues and costumes designs.
Day 5: We perfected the scene changes and did more line learning and backstage tasks, like
keeping quiet (which was the most difficult thing!). We also ran through the play about 3-4 times
before the final performance in the afternoon.
Reflection
One of our favourite scenes was the Puck and Fairy scene, where we changed the singular
‘Fairy’ into ‘Fairies’ and had all of the girls saying the Fairy lines and having Ella, the main Fairy
part, dancing as we said them. This was good because it showed a huge amount of team work
and how we had all gotten to grips with the rhythm of the poetry. Mrs Wright also said that she
really liked the choral speaking of that scene.
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May 2016
What we weren’t so good at was the line learning – it was a bit of a shambles at
first and was really hard to memorise, but once we had got the hang of them they sounded
great.
Even though the rehearsals were long and tiring we enjoyed every second of the experience. In
feedback the majority of people said that they would have liked the course to be longer, and it
would have been better if we could have had more time to work on set and costumes.
During the rehearsals we developed our leadership, directing, memory, teamwork and
obviously acting skills. We were all a bit wary at first but we soon started to open up and work
well as a team to create a great performance.
We would love to do it again, and recommend it to anyone who loves drama or English.
By Katrina Martin, Julia Coe, Shadri Nel and Emily MacDonald
Gourmet Challenge
On Wednesday 25th May the S2 Gourmet Challenge (sponsored by Portree Co-op) was held in the
Home Economics Department. Five teams took part and the judging was carried out by Duncan
McLardie (Co-op Manager), Ali Johnston (Co-op Depute Manager and chef) and Miss Scott
Moncrieff. They had a very difficult decision to pick the final three dishes. The judges said that they
were very impressed with the standard of cooking by the pupils.
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May 2016
1st Prize went to Elsa Galbraith and Freya King with ‘Can’t Resist Chocolatey Raspberry Cake’.
2nd Prize went to Iain Cormack with his ‘Oh Deery Me’.
3rd Prize went to Leah MacLeod and Corrina Coll with ‘The Kilt Chop’.
Anna Campbell and Becky Maclean created ‘Super Duper Scottish Sushi’ and Freia Morris and
Teal Dobie created ‘We Found Nemo’.
Duncan McLardie presented each pupil with a Co-op voucher.
Well done to you all!
Pictured left to right: Ali Johnston, Freya King, Iain Cormack, Corrina Coll, Leah MacLeod,
Elsa Galbraith, Duncan McLardie and Miss Scott Moncrieff in front.
ANSWERS: to Maths questions
Junior
B
Intermediate
Senior
19
A
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