Fri 2nd May 2025 (75)

Dear All,

I hope you’ve had a lovely week and managed to enjoy some of the glorious sunshine we’ve been blessed with lately. It’s been another fun-packed and fulfilling week here at ACMS. Here’s a quick look at what we’ve been up to.

Study Leave

Well done to all our S4, S5 and S6 pupils for making it through the first full week of study leave! It’s been reassuring to see them looking calm and confident as exams begin, and there were even some big smiles as they emerged from their academic music exam...always a good sign!

As I mentioned in assembly earlier this week: study leave can feel strange at first, especially with so much unstructured time. Please make sure you’re planning your days carefully: include time for revision, breaks, exercise, and of course, music practice. Don’t wait for inspiration to strike - stick to your plan and trust the process!

Practice Time

With our senior pupils on study leave, we’ve had a brilliant opportunity to work more closely with the lower school on both practice and performance techniques. The quality of individual work this week has been fantastic. It’s been genuinely exciting to hear how focused, committed, and musically mature our younger students are becoming. There’s been a real sense of purpose and passion in the building. Bravi, tutti!

Parents’ Meeting

A huge thank you to all the parents and carers who joined us for this term’s ACMS meeting. It’s always lovely to see such a great turnout, and it undoubtedly reflects the high level support you give to your children and to our work at ACMS. Thank you for being such a vital part of the community.

Performance Exams

Congratulations and good luck to our S5 and S6 pupils who sat their SQA Advanced Higher performance exams today. It was exciting to see so many happy and relieved pupil faces after the the exams. Well done for all the hard work you’ve put in.

External Ensembles

We were delighted to hear the recent announcement from the Bon Accord Silver Band about the launch of their new Youth Band. Applications are now open for young brass and percussion players, and the application form can be accessed HERE

There are many fantastic external ensembles across the city and shire, and we’re thrilled to see so many of our ACMS pupils involved. Mrs Smith is kindly putting together a list of well-known groups, which will be uploaded to the ACMS online bulletin board. If you know of any others that should be included, please do email her directly.

Looking Ahead

Just a quick reminder that next week is an ACMS non-teaching week. That means:

• No after-school or evening activities

• No tutor lessons or ensembles

Monday is a bank holiday, and Tuesday is an Inset day for staff, so pupils have another day off.

Wednesday to Friday are part of Dyce Academy’s Activities Week, with work experience opportunities running alongside continued study leave for senior pupils.

Please note: Boarding will open from Monday afternoon for pupils sitting public exams on Tuesday. For everyone else, boarding reopens on Tuesday afternoon.

We return to a full and normal timetable on Monday 12th May.

Wishing you all a restful bank holiday weekend and a great week ahead – however you’re spending it!

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