On Thursday 10 October we recognised World Mental Health Day through a variety of activities in the school.
Thank you to the Mental Health S6 Pupil Committee – Positive Mental Action (PMA) for their work on the lead up to and on the day itself. This included Euan, Niamh, Hannah, Holly, Sarah, Sophie and Rhiannna.
Thank you and well done to S6 pupils Nicholas for producing the video.
St Ninian’s High School pupils, Isla and Erin have been selected to U16 Great Britain ski team to compete in FIS international children’s ski races.
Isla will compete in Folgaria, Italy in what is the Childrens’ World Championships.
Erin will travel to the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Please find the link to the announcement here.
Outstanding success for both. Well done.
School will be open as normal on Friday 11 October. School will close at 2:40pm.
The staff in-service training day will take place on Monday 21 October.
The S3 Fashion and Textile Technology class demonstrating their creative skills in machine embroidery at a textiles workshop in Dumfries House, Cumnock. Excellent work!
| It’s World Mental Health Day today!
The World Health Organisation recognises World Mental Health Day on 10 October every year. We encourage people to look after their mental health all year round, but today is a great opportunity to consider the different ways that we can boost our wellbeing, and to start a conversation about mental health. Did you know? In any given week, 1 in 6 of us will experience a common mental health problem, such as anxiety or depression. Here are some tips for looking after your wellbeing – this World Mental Health Day and beyond: Stay active Physical activity can really help with keeping your mood positive. Even if you are very busy, find time to do some exercise you enjoy – we know it’s getting colder but consider hopping off the tube a stop earlier and walking the rest of the way, avoid the lift and take the stairs or sign up to an impromtu exercise class after work! Get enough sleep Often sleep is a casualty when we are stressed, anxious or depressed, but we know it is vital for our wellbeing. Avoid stimulants such as caffeine in the evening. Have some wind-down time before going to bed and try and keep to a regular sleep routine. Avoid looking at screens in bed, even mobile phones. Finally, consider your sleep environment (such as light, temperature and noise), and make sure it is comfortable and conducive to sleeping! Give yourself space If it’s all getting a bit hectic, take time out – even if it’s brief! Go for a walk, have a cuppa with a colleague (away from your desk), listen to music. Eat regular meals It can be tempting to overdo it but keeping your routine, eating plenty of fruit and veg, and drinking enough water will help keep stress at bay. Stay supported You are not alone! Stay connected to your sources of support and if you’re not sure where to turn, you’ll find details of some useful organisations here. and most importantly… look out for each other! |
The Mental Health Pupil Committee will be selling handmade ribbons tomorrow.
Thank you to Mrs Lynch and the S2 & S3 fashion and textile classes for making our ribbons.
Our St Ninian’s Family and Friends Quiz will take place on Friday 25th October. Tickets will be on sale at lunch time tomorrow in the street area. All money raised will go towards co-curricular activties in the school. All pupils/families welcome.
Our Mental Health Committee will be holding a stall on Thursday and selling Mental Health ribbons in the street area.
Some of the Mental Health First Aid Team will also be there to talk about their role.
Congratulations to Rachel Callan who won Young volunteer of the year 2019 at the East Renfrewshire Coaching Officiating and Volunteering awards 2019. Rachel does an excellent job coaching Giffnock North U11s! Well done.
In The Pope Video for October, which is being released during the inauguration of the Extraordinary Missionary Month, the Holy Father proposes imparting a “new impulse to the Church’s missionary activity.”
(Vatican City, October 1) — This month of October, The Pope Video is directed to all Catholics, inviting them to reawaken their missionary awareness and face “the challenge of proclaiming Jesus and his death and resurrection.” This month’s edition of the video is presented in the framework of the beginning of the Extraordinary Missionary Month (EMM)—#MissionaryOctober—convoked by Pope Francis “with the aim of fostering an increased awareness of the missio ad gentes and taking up again with renewed fervour the missionary transformation of the Church’s life and pastoral activity.” The Pontifical Mission Societies have echoed the words of the Holy Father, who has expressed the desire that this EMM may be “an intense and fruitful occasion of grace, and promote initiatives and above all prayer, the soul of all missionary activity.”
“Missionary outreach is paradigmatic for all the Church’s activity.” There are regions in which the Church is still nascent and needs special support—mission territories, as they are called. Currently, there are 1,109 such territories located in Africa, Asia and the islands of Oceania, and the Americas. It’s estimated that 37% of the Universal Church is mission territory; that is to say, more than a third of the Catholic Church. This situation implies work that is in constant evolution, since as new territories are created, new social, educational, and pastoral institutions are assigned to cover all kinds of needs. An enormous portion of the Church’s social and educational work is carried out in mission territories.
In this video message, Francis proposes “reaching the peripheries—the human, cultural, and religious settings still foreign to the Gospel.” It is a universal call for all to announce the Gospel as missionary disciples. This renewed impulse, however, does not mean engaging in proselytism, but rather communicating life: “God, his divine life, his merciful love, his holiness! It is the Holy Spirit who sends us, accompanies us and inspires us. He is the source of our mission.” The starting point of the missionary endeavour is the joy of the Gospel, and Francis explains that it must be proclaimed with respect for the cultures and traditions of all people, with the awareness that “the soul of the mission is prayer.”
Fr. Frédéric Fornos, SJ, International Director of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network (which includes the Eucharistic Youth Movement), emphasises that “we can do many things and spent a lot of energy at the service of the mission, but without prayer there’s no true fruitfulness, and everything will become laborious because instead of being docile to the Holy Spirit we trust in our own strength and will… Experience teaches us that it is our prayer, a personal encounter with the Lord, that gives rise to the desire to serve his mission in the world around us, in our neighbourhoods and cities and even travelling throughout the world. The mission is not, in fact, a duty or an obligation, but a joyful abundance that overflows from our baptism, from our new life in Christ, and which we cannot help but share.”
In his monthly prayer intention and at the beginning of this Extraordinary Missionary Month, Francis prays that “the Holy Spirit may engender a new missionary spring for all those baptised and sent by Christ’s Church,” members of a “pilgrim Church [which is] missionary by nature.”
Thank you to parents and pupils who attended the S1 Information and Numeracy evening last night.
We hope you found the evening to be very informative and a worthwhile experience.
Please find copies of the presentations, workshops and numeracy and Mental Health First Aid leaflets that were used on the S1 website .
Please take time to complete the evaluation if you have not already done so using the attached QR code or link to the form.
Today is “Active Girls Day” and girls across Scotland will be encouraged to take part in physical activity.
In order to celebrate this event, S1-S4 female pupils in our school were offered the chance to take part in a Clubbercise session organised by Miss Miller and Active Schools – assisted by the female members of our PE Department.
The focus of today was to develop self-confidence, self-esteem and active lifestyles. This gave us a fantastic opportunity to talk to female pupils about these important issues.
Well done to all of the girls who participated in this event! Videos and photographs can be viewed on the @stninianshighpe twitter page.
Any S5/6 pupil wishing to attend the event below should see Miss Duncan – These sessions are aimed at pupils who are aged between 16-18 years of age and are looking to pursue a career in a medicine and related professions including Physiotherapy and Family Support Services.
Event:
Young Person’s Career Information Session on the 10th October 2019 from 9.45 – 12.30 at The Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice, Bellahouston Park, 20 Dumbreck Road, Glasgow.
https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/er/StNinians/files/2019/10/School-Calendar-03.10.19.pdf
Please note that the S1 Parent Focus Group next Tuesday 8th October has been cancelled. Please find linked the revised calendar.
On Wednesday 18 September and Thursday 19 September, S1 and S2 pupils participated in our annual sponsor event. Both year groups accomplished a 2K Fun Run which involved various obstacles, challenges and team tasks.
In total a fantastic and very generous amount of £7165.46 was raised. All of this will go directly towards funding co-curricular activities for our young people.
Congratulations to Mr Cheshire’s 1a9 class and Miss Briggs S2 class. These classes individually raised the most amount of money and will be rewarded with the opportunity to attend a trip to Blackpool Pleasure Beach in June.
Thank you to all pupils who contributed to these events and all parents and families for supporting them.
The National Parent Forum of Scotland “Nutshell” guides give helpful information for parents and carers to support their children to make key decisions and subject choices. These include:
Well done to Hannah who was second in the Junior Great Scottish Run race in Glasgow at the weekend.
On Tuesday 1st October we held our first Catholic Leadership Seminar. The focus for this seminar was Servant Leadership.
Msgr. Monaghan opened our seminar with a prayer that he has specially written for the course:
Dear Lord
Help me to be a good leader, strong in faith, determined to help others, and by prayer and example, to remain faithful in your service.
Let me learn qualities that will make me, not just a manager, but a leader enlightened by my Catholic faith or informed by my presence in a Catholic school.
Grant that I shall realise that my experience of being a pupil in St Ninian’s High School will transform me to be not just a leader, but a passionate leader after the mind and heart of Jesus my Lord, and directed by the Gospel and the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Amen
Mr Marshall then gave the students an outline of what the course will entail and explained that if successful, pupils will successfully undertake a leadership role within the school and gain an SCQF Level 6 Qualification in leadership.
Mr Docherty, Head Teacher, was the first guest speaker to present to the group. In his presentation Mr Docherty explained how his own leadership experiences were shaped by his faith and the teachings from Our Lord.
Following a discussion and some refreshments the group then went to the Oratory for a time of reflection with Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.
We would like to thank Mr Docherty, Mr Bradshaw, Mrs Jenkins, Mr Fuchs, Fr. Baillie, Fr. Patten and Msgr. Monaghan for attending the seminar.
Our next meeting will take place on Tuesday 29th October at 3.45pm. Fr. Baillie will be our guest speaker.
Mr Marshall and Mr Docherty’s presentations and handouts can be accessed here:
S5 Catholic Leadership Academy Seminar One
Well done to Sophia Laurie 3a2 who was part of the National Children’s Orchestra of Great Britain, who worked with Blue Peter presenters to launch a new Blue Peter Music Badge for BBC Music Day. The badge was designed by singer Ed Sheeran.
Thursday 3rd October 7pm- 9pm.
Parents will hear about the S1 experience so far followed by a numeracy workshop with their son/daughter’s Maths teacher which will offer strategies to help parents support their child with their Maths learning and homework tasks. The second workshop will be an opportunity to hear about the mental health and well–being school focus and meet with Pastoral Support staff.
Well done to Fraser MacIntosh 2a1 who was invited to be part of the Scottish Swimming District Regional Programme. He was also selected to represent Scotland West in the National County Team Championship in Sheffield this weekend.
Very well done!
On Thursday 26 September, we celebrated the European Day of Languages.
S6 pupils Fiona, Laura, Tommy, Grace, Kathleen and Sinead ran French crêpe and Spanish tortilla stalls at interval and lunchtime and the cafeteria put on a European themed menu with Moussaka, Patatas Bravas, Quiche Lorraine and Scotch pies!
Some of our pupils, former pupils and staff feature in the following video where they talk about the importance of learning a foreign language. Thanks to Nicholas (S6) for producing this video with input from Jule (S3), former pupils Michael McLaughlin and Nicola Martin and staff members Mr Allan, Miss Henriot and Mr Swol.
Thanks to Mrs McCrea and all in the Modern Languages department who contributed to this excellent day.
Thank you to those who came along to the Reading Festival last week.
Please take a minute to complete an evaluation on the evening to allow us to gain your feedback.
Renfrewshire Swimming Heats
Pupils interested in competing at the Renfrewshire Swimming Heats should give their name and PB to Miss Miller by Tuesday 1st October.
Aidan Moody in S4 has done exceptionally well recently with his tennis success.
In the past month Aidan has won 3 in a row!
U18 Boys champion – Giffnock Club Championship
Gold medal – Scottish LD tournament
U16 Boys champion – Glasgow southside interclub tournament
and Giffnock LTC’s most improved player 2019
These are outstanding achievements. Well done Aidan!
On Thursday 19 September, we successfully hosted our first Reading Festival. Miss Ramsay of our English department gave the following presentation on the benefits of reading and how we can include more reading for enjoyment in our lives.
Thanks to all pupils, parents and staff who attended this fantastic event organised by the English department.
SCHOLAR’s upcoming Online Tutor Sessions are:
For more information on how to take part in upcoming sessions, please visit SCHOLAR’s Online Tutor Sessions. You can see regular updates via Twitter @SCHOLARuk and Facebook SCHOLARprogramme. |
The Bake Sale held on 3rd September 19 raised a total of £149.31. Funds were raised for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Well done to the pupils involved:
Sarah Holmes 5a2
Evy McCulloch 5a9
Olivia Hamill 5a3
Emma Dougan 5a2
Mia Bell 5a6
Rachel Callan 5a6
Emma Murray 5a2
The Bake Sale held on 13th September 19 raised £225.30 for Lasallian Developing World Projects. Well done to Kathleen Reilly 6a7!
Caritas Gathering points added:
Tuesday 8th October
Tuesday 5th November
Tuesday 3rd December
Tuesday 14th January
All 3.30 – 4.30 in the Oratory.
https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/er/StNinians/files/2019/09/School-Calendar-18.09.19.pdf
The EGX London information evening on 24th September has been added. Please find attached revised calendar
https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/er/StNinians/files/2019/09/School-Calendar-17.09.19.pdf
On Sunday 15 September a group of pupils and staff celebrated Mass at St Mirin’s Cathedral in Paisley in honour of the visit of the relics of Saint Therese of Lisieux.
Some of our Sixth Year pupils had the privilege of carrying the relics into the Cathedral.
On Monday 16 September, a second group of pupils and staff will have the opportunity celebrate Mass in the presence of these outstanding relics.
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