Brief Updates 2019/20
Wednesday 25 September - European Day of Languages was celebrated across the school today. Thanks to our amazing S6 Language Ambassadors for leading the event. The day included an S1 fun and fact filled assembly accompanied by reggaeton-a-thon, world photo booth and a charity bake sale.
Wednesday 25 September - A great World Challenge launch for parents last night! Thanks so much to our amazing past challengers who I think said more about the benefits of World Challenge then we ever could have! So the sign up is on! Anyone interested please sign up online by 10th October. See Miss Still or Mr Findlay if you have missed the information evening but are still interested!
Vietnam, here we come!
Vietnam, here we come!
Tuesday 24 September - Yesterday was S1 Health Day at Gryffe. This being the start of Gryffestyles Week. Pupils attended various Wellbeing workshops with the morning being kicked off with a bang by Brian Costello from Headstrong! More details in this months newsletter.
Monday 23 September - All pupils in S4-6 received a letter about the Senior Phase Parent Information Evening, which will take place on Monday 7 October, 6pm - 8pm. This event will begin with a subject showcase, which will provide parents with information about individual courses, such as assessment and coursework information, homework expectations and study support. This will be followed by two presentations in the theatre: Miss Holmes, PT Pupil Support, will talk about how we recognise & promote achievements and Brian Costello, from Headstrong Scotland, will talk about helping young people cope with exam pressure.
Monday 23 September - Today was very special for S4 pupil Sasha Kaloheris, who was given the opportunity to be interviewed live on Celtic Music Radio. Sasha also impressed listeners with her music - all her own compositions. Amazing talent.
Listen to the podcast here -
http://podcast.canstream.co.uk/celticmusic/index.php…
Photo used with kind permission of Celtic Music Radio.
Listen to the podcast here -
http://podcast.canstream.co.uk/celticmusic/index.php…
Photo used with kind permission of Celtic Music Radio.
Friday 20 September - History pupils are currently in Poland and yesterday they had a tour of Auschwitz Birkenau. Their tour guide stated that it was a pleasure to be with "exceptional" pupils this afternoon. Today, they will visit a Jewish Museum and meet with a Holocaust survivor. These are lessons which will stay with the group forever.
| Gryffestyles Week 2019 |
Thursday 19 September - Please read the attached letter which provides information on our Health Awareness Gryffestyles Week, including timings for our 3K Fun Run.
Wednesday 18 September - Gavin Newlands MP on Twitter - 'One of the few professional benefits of prorogation is being able to attend more Community Councils. So my thanks to Houston CC for allowing me to attend this evening. Great to hear the contribution of @GryffeHighSch pupils. Would be good to see this replicated at other CC's.'
Please note some changes to the school calendar for later this session.
VE Day holiday has been confirmed at Friday 8 May 2020 .... we had that already in our calendar. However there are two confirmed extra In-Service Days
Wednesday 6 May becomes an Additional In-Service Day (Our calendar had it originally as Thursday 30 April, so the Thursday 30th will be a normal school day)
Thursday 7 May becomes an In-Service Day (It had originally been Friday 1 May, so Friday 1 May becomes a normal school day)
Friday 8 May is the May Day Holiday (We had originally predicted this)
All changes will be made in the school calendar, under the Calendar tab above.
Monday 16 September - 'Parents in Partnership' initiative continues with Parents enjoying sessions in HFT and PE this morning, followed by an information session on ‘Teaching and Learning’. Last week it was the turn of Modern Languages, Science and Wellbeing. Parents can be seen here learning about the pH scale and identifying the pH value of some household substances. This mirrors what S1 pupils are learning at the moment in 'Becoming a Scientist'. In PE they were very quick to learn a routine.
Thursday 12 September - The whole of S1 and S2 took part in a STEM roadshow presented in partnership with BAE Systems, the RAF and the Royal Navy. This event is designed to enhance the interest of young people in Engineering and the opportunities that are available for them in this field. The presentation was exciting, interactive and showcased a range of new technologies, based around the theme of connectivity and communication.
Wednesday 11 September - The Media Team had a great afternoon making the news at Sky Academy Skills Studio in Livingston. All 16 pupils worked very hard taking on their various roles as presenters, editors, experts, reporters or working with cameras. Have a look at the news report that they produced as they learned about the value of good teamwork when working under pressure. Well done to all of the pupils!
https://youtu.be/fefQJ8rGs6A
https://youtu.be/fefQJ8rGs6A
Friday 6 September
The wait is over...
It's been announced...
The excitement begins...
The wait is over...
It's been announced...
The excitement begins...
Friday 6 September - Mrs Jardine reports that the Modern Studies and History pupils have had an amazing day in London. They left school at 10pm last night and dropped off at the Horse Guards Parade. They walked up the Mall to Trafalgar Square and had a quick stop for breakfast. They met Lord Melvyn Bragg who was kind enough to stop for a picture. The pupils then went on to have a tour of Parliament and take part in a workshop. After lunch it was time for a visit to the Imperial War Museum where all pupils visited the Holocaust section. All 43 pupils have been amazing. They answered lots of questions, asked some of their own and were incredibly respectful in the IWM - all on very little sleep! We are very proud of them and have loved the day, but cannot wait for our beds!
Have a look at some more pictures on our Facebook album -
https://www.facebook.com/pg/gryffehighschool/photos/?tab=album&album_id=2453454228222804
Have a look at some more pictures on our Facebook album -
https://www.facebook.com/pg/gryffehighschool/photos/?tab=album&album_id=2453454228222804
Thursday 5 September - S3 pupils in Graphic Communication are currently working with Mill Magazine to create a page layout for the Nov/Dec issues. Owner Paul Dickson visited our pupils yesterday to introduce them to the brief. He will judge the best entry and it will be published in the next issue. Pupils were keen to ask Paul all about his company and what the role of graphic designer is really like.
We look forward to Paul continuing to work with our pupils and seeing our winner's design in print.
We look forward to Paul continuing to work with our pupils and seeing our winner's design in print.
Digital Ninja?
Do you want to design your own App ?
Win a trip to London?
If so, then you need to join the Digital Ninjas.........
Wednesday 4 September -The September NEWSLETTER, has been uploaded and can be found under the 'NEWS' tab, then 'Newsletters'.
Tuesday 3 September - Great to see the Gryffe Duke of Edinburgh team out again. Miss Badger reports that our Young Leaders are doing a fantastic job with their map reading skills and planning route cards for our Bronze group.
Tuesday 3 September - Advanced Higher Spanish pupils enjoyed a trip yesterday to see Spanish filmmaker Almodóvar’s new release at the Glasgow Film Theatre, followed by some authentic Spanish Tapas.
Monday 2 September - The Monday 'Parents in Partnership' group enjoyed Maths and Music this morning. It is amazing what you can learn in Music in 25 minutes!
https://www.facebook.com/1809604165941150/posts/2450432041858356/
https://www.facebook.com/1809604165941150/posts/2450432041858356/
Thursday 29 August - Here are your S6 Wellbeing Ambassadors this year. All pupils will have a specific Wellbeing responsibility and can be recognised as they wear a purple Wellbeing lanyard.
Tuesday 27 August - Delighted to see so many new faces at the first Parent Council meeting of the new term last night. There were 24 parents in attendance and they had the opportunity to meet some of this year's PMG (Pupil Management Group) and hear all about their plans for the coming session. They also heard from Aaron Mills, who gave a most interesting and impassioned impromptu account of his recent World Challenge expedition to Bolivia. There was then some great discussion on several topics including Activities Week, DofE and SQA Exam Results. More detail in the September newsletter.
Monday 26 August - Over the course of the next six weeks, over thirty S1 parents have gone ‘back to school’ for our Parents in Partnership Programme. The unique programme involves parents attending class and experiencing the teaching methods and vocabulary their children encounter on a daily basis within Gryffe. This is our fourth cycle of the programme and due to the ever increasing popularity, for the first time we are excited to offer the programme twice a week. Mr Anderson and Mr Findlay would like to thank all parents and staff for their involvement in the initiative. Our picture shows some concentrated faces in Art today learning weaving skills.
Friday 23 August - Our S6 Pupil Management Group at their weekly 8:00 am breakfast meeting. School Captains Lewis Da Silva and Lauren Rodgers chair the meeting, with Mr Johnson, Mrs Brown and Mr Findlay present. Our young school leaders discussed, and created points of action, on: Wellbeing; Communites; Citizenship; Charities; Eco; Models of Excellence; House Captains and initiatives; and achievements. We also discussed Team Building, Houston Community Council meetings and pupil/staff photographs to help all know who is leading and driving initiatives. A very busy and productive meeting from a group of young leaders who are, without doubt, driving improvement within Gryffe and the community.
Wednesday 21 August - Well done to Craig Ross, Mirren Murray and Matthew Hill who attended the Houston Community Council Meeting at Houston & Killellan Church Hall. They updated the Community Council on the school commitment to keep the community clean, with a particular focus on South Street and the South Mound, as well as our Eco and Green Flag achievements, including our aim of requesting an electronic car charging station within the Gryffe High School Car Park. They also spoke of other achievements within Gryffe, detailed within our newsletters, and including our School Show and Dance Show where there is always an open invitation to the local community to attend.
Wednesday 21 August - S6 Wellbeing Ambassadors received training today at Houston & Killellan Church hall. As always the pupils were engaged, motivated & excited to support the Wellbeing of Gryffe over the next year. Please keep an eye out for them out and about in the community. See their first newsletter article (4th Sept) for full details.
Monday 19 August - S4 Work ExperienceWe have now extended the deadline for completion of S4 work experience forms to Friday 30th August 2019. Beyond this point, we cannot confirm that there will be sufficient time to secure council clearance for placements and, as a result, pupils in this position will not be guaranteed to take part in the work experience programme.
Please support this worthwhile experience and encourage your child to return the completed form in advance of 30th August. All forms should be handed to Mrs Carmichael.
Please support this worthwhile experience and encourage your child to return the completed form in advance of 30th August. All forms should be handed to Mrs Carmichael.
Monday 19 August - This year we are organising an Activities Week for all S1, S2 and S3 pupils in order to offer a wide range of educational experiences that we cannot normally provide during the school year. We have tried to provide an exciting and varied programme for these days and we hope that every pupil will be able to take part. Please find the details in the document below.
| Activities Week Booklet May 2020 |
Thursday 15 August - We were delighted to have all our pupils return to school today, looking forward to a great year ahead. Every year group had an Assembly where we reiterated our commitment to our School Values and Charter; our procedures for things like attendance, latecoming, lockers, social areas and behaviour in the community; Fire procedures; Activ8 and key dates of importance over the next few weeks. We also stated and explained how our school continues to improve year on year in both pupil achievements and in the SQA Examination Results - last year had been our most successful year for results, and this year our pupils managed to improve yet again in 7 out of the 9 key benchmarks areas......... fantastic.
We would also like to thank all parents/carers for their support in the introduction of Blazers across all year groups. We had just over 95% of pupils wearing Blazers today, incredible, and most of the pupils not in Blazers have actually ordered one. Our aim, as you would expect, is for ALL pupils to be in Blazers.
We would also like to thank all parents/carers for their support in the introduction of Blazers across all year groups. We had just over 95% of pupils wearing Blazers today, incredible, and most of the pupils not in Blazers have actually ordered one. Our aim, as you would expect, is for ALL pupils to be in Blazers.
