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HEAD TEACHER'S NEWSLETTER
It was a pleasure to welcome our new S1 pupils to school on Tuesday and Wednesday and a great time was had by all. They are enthusiastic, friendly, happy and polite, and we look forward to having them join us properly in August.
More proof that teenagers are amazing came with Thursday evening’s Sports Awards ceremony. The outstanding range of MGS and cluster primary sporting talent filled the audience and I with pride. Summer Gargaro, Eleanor Myles and Rosie Livingstone, our Sports Ambassadors, planned the entire event and hosted it with a confidence and maturity beyond their years. They will write a piece about the awards for the last newsletter of the year next week.
This last full week of school (and I cannot quite believe it is!) is busy with events such as the summer Music concert on Wednesday, S2 and S3 dance on Thursday and the eagerly anticipated Sports Day on Friday.
I hope you have all enjoyed the sunshine this weekend, and long may it last.
Jodie Hannan
Key Dates
Monday 19 June: Parent Council online 7-8pm. Please use this link to access the meeting: meet.google.com/yrj-evzt-teh
Wednesday 21 June: Summer Rock/ Pop Concert 7-9pm.
Thursday 22 June: Summer dance for new S2 and S3 pupils 6-8pm in the Hall.
Friday 23 June: Sports’ Day at Pinkie playing fields 9am-noon.
Wednesday 28 June: School closes for summer holidays at 3.25pm
Monday 14 & Tuesday 15 August: Inset Days for staff only.
Wednesday 16 August: All pupils return to school.
Staffing Update
Farewell to…
Mr Mather in Maths who is leaving us at the end of term for an amazing new adventure in New Zealand.
Ms Castles in Maths, who is relocating to London.
Both these Maths posts have already been filled for August 2023. Huge thanks to them both for their steadfast commitment to the department in recent staffing challenges.
Congratulations to….
Ms A Chisholm, currently Acting Head of House for Moray, who has been appointed to a well deserved permanent Depute Headteacher post at Queensferry High School in Edinburgh. Ms Chisholm has been at MGS for 19 years.
Ms E Ferguson, Business Support Officer and the beating heart of school operations, who moves to Randall House in July. Ms Ferguson has been at MGS for over 11 years.
We are sorry to see them all go, but wish them all the very best for the new chapters in their careers.
Welcome to…..
Mrs L Donohoe, currently at Letham Mains Primary School, who has been appointed to the post of Business Manager and will take up her role on 31 July.
Recruitment still in process
The adverts for a full time Physics Teacher, HE auxiliary, and Pupil Support Worker all close on Sunday 18 June with interviews and recruitment to be concluded before the end of term.
A Learning Support Auxiliary post will be advertised in late June and interviews will be held in the week of 17 July.
Head Pupil Team
I am delighted to let you all know that Eva Hills and Charlie Devine are our Head Pupils for next year, with James Blakeley, Eleanor Myles and Isaah Majid as the three Depute Head Pupils.
The competition and calibre amongst all seven applicants was incredibly strong and I believe that the blend of talent, passion, dedication and enthusiasm in this team is outstanding.
Congratulations to all, and special mention to Hannah McCaffrey and Max McKenzie for their honesty in sharing their stories of why the school is so important to them.
Eva and Charlie’s inaugural newsletter article is below, and they will be joining the last Parent Council meeting of the year on 19th June to introduce themselves.
Huge thanks to Faith Cairney 1C1, Maisie Ross 1C2, Josh Thomson 3G3 and Mr Fox for being such an important part of the interview process.
The Wrap Up, with Charlie & Eva
Welcome to ‘The Wrap Up, with Charlie & Eva’, and we are your new Head Pupils for 2023-24. Here are a few things about us…
Hi everyone, I'm Charlie and along with Eva I’m going to be one of your Head Pupils this year.
A few things about me are that I’m quite an active person who plays on the school rugby team, I also really enjoy science and taking part in events that happen around the school!
This year I have taken Advanced Higher Maths, Chemistry and Biology, and when I leave school I hope to go to medical school to become a doctor.
In my free time I enjoy playing rugby, listening to music, and hanging out with my lab-retriever named Buddy!
I have lots of plans and aims for the Head Pupil team, for example I’m personally aiming to introduce a neurodiversity week in the school to spread awareness and celebrate our differences, as well as improve the communication the student body has with the head pupil team!
Hi, I’m Eva and I am also a Head Pupil alongside Charlie.
I have a huge passion for music and really enjoy listening to it. I especially love to sing and play the bass guitar. In my spare time I go out gigging and busking as well as hanging out with my friends. I also have a neverending vinyl collection which is constantly growing and on repeat.
This year I have taken Advanced Higher Music, Higher Media, Higher Business and Higher Art. When I finish school I hope to go to university to pursue a career in journalism and would love to become a news anchor one day. I am also particularly interested in print media.
As part of being in the Head Team I hope to increase the positivity throughout the school and make it a more fun and enjoyable place to learn so that it is a memorable experience for all!
We are both very much looking forward to the year ahead! Have a great well earned weekend everyone!
Charlie & Eva
Uniform
It’s so lovely to have warm weather and on such days we are happy for boys to wear shorts with shirts (can be short sleeved) and ties as long as any logos on the shorts are small. Please note that football tops and shorts are not part of a dress code for school or PE at any point, even in summer.
A reminder also that crop tops and bra tops are not school dress code at any time, even in warm weather, and that if girls are wearing shorts they must be an appropriate length and style for school ie. not hot pants/ cropped cycling or exercise shorts.
We keep a supply of clean shirts and jumpers in school and may ask a pupil to wear one if what they come to school in is inappropriate.
Thank you for ongoing support of our dress code.
College Arrangements
These are the arrangements for senior pupils who have college on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, and study periods.
The majority of college courses do not commence until August so pupils who have college timetabled for Tuesday and Thursday afternoons in June from 1pm should go home.
As per last year, we are encouraging seniors to study independently so pupils who have study classes timetabled for periods 1 and 2 on any morning should remain at home to study then sign in at the school office at 11.15am in time for P4 classes.
Pupils who have study classes timetabled for P6&7 on any afternoon should sign out of school at the office by 1.45pm at the latest and go home.
Study classrooms at other times during the day will be allocated shortly and pupils registered there by members of SLT.
S1 & S2 Summer Dance
Our first S1 & S2 Summer Dance is on Thursday 22nd June, 6pm - 8pm. Tickets are on sale for £3 (payment only via iPay). There will be a ceilidh, disco, tuck shop, photo wall and game stalls. It will be cash only on the night, so please ensure pupils have any cash should they wish to buy any treats or play the games.
This is for all pupils to attend, as a final farewell to our S1 & S2 Rosehill Pupils. Our S6 pupils have been working hard to create games and decor for the evening and have done a brilliant job so far.
We can’t wait to celebrate our great S1s and S2s next week.
Beekeeping
Five members of staff have spent the past year training as beekeepers at the Newbattle Bee Academy. They have been looking after colonies of bees at the apiary and attending lectures on beekeeping. The course culminated in an exam last weekend and Mrs Watson, Dr Brown, Miss Rankin, Miss Scott and Mrs Dias all passed the Basic Beekeeper Qualification. We would like to thank Musselburgh Area Partnership for funding our places on the course, as well as our Mentors at the Newbattle Beekeepers Association who supported and trained us all year. The apiary is under construction at the moment and we can’t wait to welcome the bees to the hives next term!
Duke of Edinburgh
Twelve of the S3 pupils have been successful in completing all aspects of the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award this year. Their activities have varied from volunteering at Brownies, RDA and coaching; building up stamina and skills in a chosen sport and honing their skills in cooking, music, art - just to name a few! The award requires commitment from all participants in their own time to complete each section, as well as taking part in two expeditions where we walked along the John Muir Way from Thorntonloch to Gullane across four days. We are very proud of all of the young people and what they have achieved. For those who have not quite finished the sections yet, these can still be completed and signed off by assessors as soon as they are complete.
Wider Achievement: Dementia Choir Fundraiser
Since the timetable change, the Wider Achievement Dementia Choir class have begun the planning process of setting up ‘Memories From Music’. This is a wider achievement class where pupils will take the lead in setting up a choir within the community for those with dementia. The aim of the choir will be about involving young people with the community and breaking stigmas around dementia.
The class has decided to organise a fundraising day on Wednesday the 28th of June (the last day of term). All pupils will be able to dress down for £1. There will be ribbon pins made by the wider achievement class that are available to buy for a donation. There will also be a bake sale at break time for S4-6 pupils and a bake sale at lunch time for S1-3 pupils that will both feature some musical entertainment!
The wider achievement class will put a portion of donations towards covering any costs for their community project and the rest will be donated to Alzheimer Scotland.
This project is entirely led by the pupils and so far, they have really stepped up with excellent ideas and shown dedication and responsibility towards organising this project.
To follow the class’s progress with their project, follow our Twitter: @Memories_Music_
RUTS
MGS secured places for the week commencing 24 July 2023. Only 8 spaces available so be sure to sign up.
HealthFest @ QMU
Newsletter Archive
There's an archive section on the newsletter site with all of the previous newsletters organised by date. It can be viewed by clicking on 'Archive' in the menu or using this link: https://bit.ly/ht-newsletter-archive.
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