MUSSELBURGH GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Friday 20 December 2024

Key Dates

January 2025

Term starts for all pupils and staff - Monday 6th January 

Senior Phase reports issued to pupils -  week beginning 13th January

S2 Parents Evening 5-7pm - Tuesday 21th January

Parent Council online briefing 7-8pm meet.google.com/vnh-jkwe-kkd  - Thursday 23rd January

Remember you can find all events on our school calendar, and you can add this calendar to your own too. 

     S6 Study arrangements 

From Monday 6 January many of the study classes for S6 pupils and a very small number of S5 pupils will change. 

We recognise the importance of encouraging our senior pupils to develop independent study skills, but we need to change the location of these classes to meet the changing needs of the school.  These classes will continue to be staffed.

Instead of all study classes being in the Study classroom (A12), a number of study classes will now be dispersed with pupils going to the Library, or Mathematics, or Modern Languages or Humanities or Music or Business Education for their study periods. Some of these pupils already go up to these faculties and the Library instead of coming to A12. 

The expectations of not using phones for social purposes, only for learning; not bringing in food;  being on time; and focusing on studying will apply regardless of which study area pupils have been allocated to. I must also make it clear that pupils are not to loiter in the canteen instead of being in their study area. 

Pupils should sign in to their new study class by using the QR code, and can find which study area they have been relocated to on their Google classroom.

All S5 and S6 parents and carers have been emailed a letter and the details of where pupils will be studying is in the S5 and S6 Google classroom.

     S3 Forth Bridges Trip 

On Monday S3 Physics and Engineering Science pupils went to the Forth Bridges Education Centre. The day started with an interesting chat about what engineers do in industry and how the three bridges all have different designs.

Afterwards, the pupils took part in an engineering challenge where they had to design a bridge in teams of 10 or 11. The teams had to allocate a project manager, communications manager, quality control officer and a health and safety officer. The pupils really engaged with this and came up with some creative solutions to the problem demonstrating excellent problem solving and teamwork.

Lastly, we braved some challenging weather to have a walk across the Forth Road Bridge which was a really enjoyable end to our day. Thank you to all that attended, you represented the school excellently.

     MGS Senior Christmas Dance 

On Tuesday, we had our Senior Festive Dance, which was a huge success. The pupils were all so well-mannered, enthusiastic and great to spend the evening with. Every single pupil danced the night away and I think it was the most impressive ceilidh dancing yet!

We would like to say a massive thank you to Mr Dickson, Mr Anderson and Mrs McKay for being the best ceilidh band on the night - it’s so special to have such great live musicians performing for the kids.

All photos from Mrs Walker’s amazing photobooth are accessible on the S5 and S6 Google Classroom.

SCQF Ambassadors Update 

The Ambassadors have been a bit quieter this month due to prelim exams taking priority, but we’ve continued with our planning behind the scenes. 

Mrs Neill attended a brilliant SCQF Networking event in November at Holyrood High School where she heard from Graeme Day, Minister for Higher and Further Education, and Pauline Radcliffe, CEO of the SCQF Partnership. Both speakers emphasised the importance of Equity, Mobility and Access when designing school curricula and when schools are planning their offering of courses for pupils. Pupils from Balerno High School and Galashiels Academy also spoke; it was so interesting to hear about what SCQF Ambassadors are doing in other schools. 

There were also representatives from several course providers such as Powering Futures and The King’s Trust; Mrs Neill came back with loads of ideas about how to move forward with courses and the Ambassador role at MGS. We have a lot to get on with in the coming months!

The first thing we need to focus on in the new year is speaking to pupils in PSE classes ahead of making their course choices for next year. It’s so important that pupils know which courses are available to them, and what these courses involve, when they make these important decisions. Look out for your SCQF Ambassadors in PSE soon!