HILLHEAD HIGHLIGHTS
November 2014
Dear Parent / Carer,
Please find enclosed some of the many highlights that have happened during the month of
November. As always there is a great deal to celebrate and we continue to be very proud of all of
our young people. This month, our S5 pupils embarked upon their prelim exams for their new
qualifications. Results are currently being collated and S5 parents/carers will receive a full report in
January. I would like to commend senior pupils who raised £3,348.27 for Children in Need this
month. Despite the terrible weather on the day itself our pupils were out collecting all over the city
and I was delighted to receive very positive feedback from local businesses and members of the
public about the conduct of our young people.
During our assemblies in November we looked at the importance of good behaviour and positive
relationships and the values of tolerance and respect. These values are very much in evidence on a
daily basis at our school and are regularly commented on by visitors to our school who are
impressed by the ethos of our school. Delegates from all over Scotland were with us for an
Education Scotland event on November 11th and joined us in respectfully marking Remembrance Day
with a two minute silence. It was also great to see so many of you at the S5/S6 Parents’ Evening later
that day.
As a school we are committed to improvement and in November we reviewed our progress with our
current School Improvement Plan. A significant amount of work is going on across the school to
make a real difference to the lives – and life chances – of our young people. Pupils have also been
involved in this review and I have been very impressed by the leadership shown by our Pupil Council
members. Senior pupils are now leading weekly Pupil Council drop-in sessions, which is just one way
that we are continuing to develop Pupil Voice within the school. Our Parent Council is a tremendous
support and I would like to thank them for all of the time they give up on behalf of our school
community.
Best wishes,
W Wight
Head Teacher
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Children in Need is a charity that helps disadvantaged families and children around the UK to have a
better life. Our school has been fundraising for this charity for an incredible 22 years. This year, we
had 140 pupils participating in the fundraising activities, including S5 and S6 pupils and members of
the Charities Committee – one of our MTA options. On Friday 14th November pupils took part in a
range of activities – including charity bucket collections around the city- and raised an amazing
£3,348.27.
We interviewed members of the Charities Committee about the
event.
What was your favourite costume?
Our favourite costumes were Donald and Daisy Duck, the banana
and the Scooby Doo crew.
What did you dress up as?
Ava - I dressed up as the golden ticket.
Talitha - I was Veruca Salt from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
What is your aim for next year?
Our aim for next year is for others to have more enthusiasm, more people taking part and more
planning, advertising and promoting.
Miss Douglas and her Event Management M.T.A. pupils baked and decorated
cupcakes for Children in Need and raised £50 by selling them around the
school.
Mr Wight received emails from members of the public praising the behaviour
and efforts of the fundraisers.
We would like to say thank you to everyone who made a donation or helped
to make the day such a success. A huge thank you to Ms Gowans and the
Charities Committee who organised all of the fundraising and made our 22nd
Children in Need Day such a success.
Article by Arzu Sadat-Khan and Taylor Shirley
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We have had a new addition to the school grounds –four large planter
boxes. The planters are made of recycled wood scaffolding and their
installation is thanks to our partnerships with Partick Housing
Association and the RSPB. During MTA time, S1 pupils have the
opportunity to achieve their John Muir Discovery Award and the
planters are a welcome addition to our outdoor learning, allowing
pupils to develop their green finger skills as well as learning about the
environment. Mr Milne, who leads our John Muir activities worked
with pupils and our partners to select the best spots for the planters
and pupils will be able to tend the planters every week as part of their
MTA. The group hope to grow many flowering plants to attract bees.
Carrots, potatoes and cabbages will also be grown and either used in
school or donated to a local food bank.
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Our staff Social Committee arranged a fundraising coffee morning for the Beatson West of Scotland
Cancer Care Centre in Glasgow at the end of November and raised£412.00. The Social Committee
would like to thank Roots and Fruits, Bank Street Café and Andrew Reid Quality Butchers who
supported us with generous prizes for the raffle and also Miss Campbell and Miss Douglas who
provided all of the delicious refreshments.
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October in Home Economics ended with S4 baking for Hallowe’en and learning to feather ice in the
process of decorating the cakes. At the start of November S3 also decorated cakes but as they used
water icing for the first time, the pupils made a simpler version of a decorated cake for Guy Fawkes
Night with bonfires made of chocolate. Meanwhile S5 baked and decorated whisked sponges with
cream and coconut as a final cook before the preliminary examination for the new National award.
The exam tested the ability of the senior pupils to plan, cook plus clear up and resulted in a three
course meal being made over two and a half hours. The meal consisted of red lentil and vegetable
soup, pork (or Halal lamb) and orange stir fry with noodles and a traditional Victoria sandwich.
Senior pupils will sit final practical exams in the spring term and should be cooking at home regularly
to work on improving their skills.
All S1 and S2 have now swapped from Food to Fabric and vice versa. S1 have nearly all completed
their second of two Pupil Voice questionnaires and the results can be seen on the noticeboard in the
Home Economics corridor. It also shows the pupils who have not yet completed the homework. The
department uses this information to plan the S1 and S2 Broad General Education part of Curriculum
for Excellence. It is also helpful in arranging to provide alternatives for pupils with allergies or
particular religious needs. As long as the teachers know in advance, pupils are given suitable
foodstuffs to match their needs.
Miss Campbell’s S3 Fabric pupils are well under way with making their own choice of textile item.
Their knowledge of commercial pattern use is increasing as they start to learn more and more varied
techniques e.g. transferring pattern markings using tailor tacking or carbon paper and tracing
wheels, stay stitching, iron–on interfacing, cutting on the bias, stitching darts and so on. Some pupils
are still cutting out as they have opted for complicated bag making with contrasting fabrics and
linings.
Miss Douglas and her M.T.A. pupils baked and decorated cupcakes for Children in Need and raised
£50 by selling them around the school. All recipes are available from Miss Campbell.
Further information about Home Economics activities can be found on the school web site. Scroll
down on the front page and click on ‘week beginning’ to find out ‘What’s Cooking’, plus details of
fabric lesson and homework are available. Information can also be found about ‘Early morning
Sewing’ which is Miss Campbell’s daily extra-curricular activity.
From left to right- S4 Hallowe’en baking group, S4 feather icing, S5 cream cakes
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Well done to Erik Tayyar, Kieran Rafferty, Mushab Lafau and Makhib Choudkhuri and who were all
victorious at the Glasgow and East Dunbartonshire Schools Chess Tournament at Milngavie Town
Hall in November, winning a total of 18 out of their 19 games against pupils from a number of
schools - including Bearsden Academy, Douglas Academy and Bishopbriggs High School. Each pupil
received a gold medal for their efforts.
As well as being fun to play, chess is known to develop higher order cognitive skills. The club meets
in T18 in the terrace building at lunch times between 1.10pm and 1.40pm on Mondays and
Wednesdays. All pupils, particularly S1 are welcome. Please see Mr. Bhopal for details.
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S2, S3 and S4 pupils are being given the opportunity to take part in a Trek
America trip in June 2016. The trip will involve camping and trekking through
California and Nevada. Mr Moran and Mr Milne are helping to organise the trip and will be joining
pupils on an excellent adventure through the west coast of America. Pupils will visit the Grand
Canyon, the Golden Gate Bridge and Yosemite National Park - the home of the world’s largest tree,
the 86 metre tall General Sherman. Mr Moran explained that the more people who come, the
cheaper the trip will be but at the moment the total cost per person is expected to be £1400-£1800.
Please see Mr Moran or Mr Milne for more details.
article by Harris Dale
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In November, the music department took a group of 33 to see the 1970s rock
opera, Jesus Christ Superstar. The musical is based around the last few days of
Jesus’ life, and the performance featured a great live band. After the show, pupils
were given the opportunity to go backstage and meet the cast, thanks to Jude
Taylor’s father who played Judas in the show. Everyone was very impressed by the
performance and thoroughly enjoyed the outing.
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CREST Science Award is one of our S4 Wider Achievement activities which take place every Monday
and Wednesday afternoon. Pupils who chose CREST science decide on an individual project to
research. Once the research is completed, each pupil presents their project to their class mates to
achieve a certificate at either a bronze or silver level.
We interviewed two of the pupils who chose CREST this year:
Jack Hardie (S4)
Why did you choose this Wider Achievement option?
I chose it because I’d like to achieve the CREST certificate.
Could you tell us about your project?
It’s a bronze level project about finding organic substances to make toothpaste which is just as
effective as the one we use from a day to day basis.
Do enjoy your wider achievement? Would you recommend it to anyone considering it as an option
next year?
Yes, but you should be aware that you need to put a lot of work into your project.
Sarina Azimi (S4)
Why did you choose this wider achievement?
I am interested in science and I think the certificate will help me in the future.
Could you tell us about your project?
I’m doing a bronze level project about the usage of alternatives to shampoo and evaluating their
effectiveness.
Do enjoy your wider achievement?
Yes. I believe that this wider achievement is beneficial.
Ms Hewitt:
Why should CREST Science be recommended to other pupils?
“They are able to achieve a certificate at Bronze or Silver level. It engages people in the sciences and
allows them to study any stem science.”
Article by Hilary Sikhosana
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All S2 pupils took part in an exciting three day Inter-Disciplinary Project in November. Our IDL
Working Group of teachers, led by Miss Buonaccorsi, had worked very hard since the start of term to
develop the project and it was decided that the focus would be water. Pupils learned all about the
biology and chemistry of water, the challenges involved in irrigating crops and the dangers of
dehydration. Organisations such as Scottish Water and the Scottish Fire Service and charities such as
WaterAid all took part in the project and S2 pupils had the opportunity to take part in lots of
experiments and activities. The three day project ended with a quiz on the final afternoon with
questions such as, “How much water is required to grow enough food for an average day’s meal for
a human being?” Pupils had also worked on poster competition to highlight what they had learned
during the project and prizes were awarded for the best posters. S2 pupils also raised money for
WaterAid by having a non-uniform day. Many thanks to everyone who helped make the project such
a success. For more photos, please see our twitter account @HillheadHS
Article by Krzysztof Pukacz
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Every week, Mr Foster runs the film club and pupils in school are welcome to watch the fantastic
blockbuster movies. Film club is on every Wednesday, after school at 3:15 and entry is free!
SHOWING IN DECEMBER:
3rd December - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
10th December - The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
17th December - The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Article by Hilary Sikhosana and Zamzam Jama
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Mr Pender (maths department) is one of the coaches of our football teams and told us about four of
the matches that have taken place in November. The first match was the S3 boys against the Gaelic
School in which Hillhead gave a very strong performance – in part due to the fantastic leadership
skills of the Captain Dylan Kirkwood to win the game 9-1.
In the second game the S3 boys played against Jordanhill. Despite freezing conditions, our boys
managed to pull up from 3-0 position near the start to to 3-2 by the end of the first half- with an
excellent goal from Matthew Heatley. Unfortunately Hillhead lost 4-2 but it was a very exciting
game.
The S1 boys then were at home against Shawlands. Even though the boys did not manage to win the
game it was a great team performance including brilliant goals from Patrick Young.
Finally, the S2 boys played the Gaelic School. With an astonishing 6-0 lead for Hillhead with only
fifteen minutes to go, the Gaelic School pulled back and drew with us, 6-6. Mr Pender described this
event as: “Grabbing a draw from the jaws of victory!”
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During November many people in and outside of school wore a red poppy. Red poppies are
used to symbolise the blood spilt in the trench warfare of the Western Front in World War I, where
the only colour in the landscape apart from the grey sky of Northern France and the brown bombchurned soil was given by the poppy. We wear the red poppy to remind us of the soldiers in WWI
and all conflicts after it, and the money raised from them goes towards helping veterans, wounded
soldiers and their families.
Ms Pinterich (R.E.) also raised money for the Peace Pledge Union by selling white poppies. The
Peace Pledge Union has been selling these white poppies since 1933 and the proceeds go to
supporting anti-war and non-violence projects such as education in schools and the No More War
movement.
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Modern and Community Languages
In Novmeber, 30 S1 French pupils visited the Glasgow Film
Theatre to see the première of Belle et Sébastien, a
beautifully shot film set in the French Alps. In French with
English subtitles, it tells the story of a young boy and the
friendship he develops with an abandoned dog.
‘Génial!’ ‘Super! ‘was the general opinion - here’s some more
snippets of what our film critics had to say:
J’ai aimé le film Belle et Sébastien.
Le petit garçon était adorable.
J’ai adoré le chien, Belle, parce qu’elle
était mignonne. C’était fantastique !
Rebecca Martin 1C
Le paysage était
magnifique et
excellent. J’aime
Belle et Sébastien
J’ai adoré Belle.
Elle est courageuse.
J’ai aimé le film
C’était fantastique!
Colm
Downey
Thomas Farmer
The trip was organised as a reward for the excellent attitude some of our S1 have
shown since joining their French classes. It was hard to pick just 30 as so many of
our young people have been contributing so well, but those who weren’t lucky
enough to go will this time be first on the list next time!
Higher French :
11th – 14th December:
Some of our Higher French pupils
will be enjoying the sights and sounds of
Paris at Christmas. This most beautiful
of cities is even more captivating lit up
in all its Christmas splendour. We will
visit Montmartre to see where the film
‘Amélie’, part of the Higher French course, was
filmed and go on a walking tour of the Latin Quarter as well
as taking in all the major landmarks. There may even be
time for a bit of shopping as we browse the Christmas
Markets which line the famous Champs Elysée…..
Joyeux Noёl!
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On Wednesday 12th November Miss Ayton (Chemistry) led a very successful trip to the Science
Centre. 118 S2 pupils and 29 S1 pupils spent the day at the Centre learning about different careers
in science. Pupils were treated to an IMAX film called Under the Sea and a science show called Who
Needs Science?
Pupils also went to the science mall to take part in interactive and practical experiments as a part of
the whole learning experience. Everyone involved had a really good time and described it as a great
learning opportunity and were thankful for the experience.
Miss Ayton said that she hopes to plan more trips like this in the future.
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In October, some of S5 pupils took part in the Glasgow Public Speeches competition. The first heat of the
competition was held in Hillhead High School with Ratuka, Nicky, Rohama, Mohamed and Rebecca all
delivering their speeches to a large audience of staff and pupils. The panel of judges, which consisted of
Miss Hyslop, Mrs Ruddy, Miss McGlone and former English teacher at Hillhead High, Mr Flanagan, were all
very impressed with the pupils’ speeches.
Congratulations to Rebecca Gault, who made it through to one of the heats of the competition. Her speech
on ‘Teenage Voice’ was a great inspiration to others wishing to participate in public speaking. Mrs
Malcolm, who went along to support Rebecca, was very impressed, as were the judges who commended
her performance.
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Article by Emma Moore
Hillhead High is a truly international school and in this new section of the Highlights, we explore
some of the different nationalities that make up our school community.
With a stunning coastline, 11 official languages and it’s three capital cities; Pretoria, Cape Town and
Bloemfontein, South Africa lies on the southern tip of Africa and is the world’s 25th most populous
nation. We spoke with Daniel Modiba (S1) who was born in Cape Town.
INTERVIEWER: When did you move to Scotland?
DANIEL: About two years ago.
INTERVIEWER: What do you like about Scotland?
DANIEL: The people. They’re very welcoming.
INTERVIEWER: What do you miss about South Africa?
DANIEL: The climate is a big one, I guess. But I really miss the food.
INTERVIEWER: Who is your South African hero?
DANIEL: That’s a tough one. Can I say two? Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu.
by Lewis Cranston
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December
Wed 17th December
Thurs 18th December
Fri 19th December
Mon 5th January
Event
S5/6 Senior Dance
S1-S6 Pantomime Trip
School Assembly
Hillhead’s Got Talent
Staff Panto
School closes at 2.30pm
School re-opens
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