Dear Parent/Carer

I hope that you are well and are finally over the weather disruption. I have to say that it is still causing ripples here … especially for those involved in SQA qualifications, who have a backlog of assessments. I hope that those young people will respond in the appropriate way, by putting in some extra effort over the coming weeks. One way they can do this is by signing up for our “Easter School” classes. Please see the attached timetable which has been prepared by Miss Diamond. Thanks to all the staff who will be giving up their time in their holidays.

The Saturday revision programme continues tomorrow with Latin, Classical Studies, Engineering Science, Graphic Communication and Design & Manufacture. It’s a great chance to catch up and prepare for the exams, which start on Monday 30 April with Spanish and Urdu.

Our S2 Course Choice information was issued last week, with the deadline extended until 14 March and the S2 Parent/Carer evening was held over until next Tuesday (13 March). Please catch the Guidance staff on the night if you have any queries about course choice.

We also had some really good input on Wednesday and Thursday this week from the Scottish Council for Development and Industry, which supports the Smallpiece Trust Engineering Charity. They held “Energiser” science events in the Hall for S1 and these were a great success. Many thanks to Tom Adams, the facilitator and also to Miss Tennant (Principal Teacher of STEM), who arranged the whole engagement.

On Wednesday evening, we hosted the Crown Office Procurator Fiscal Public Speaking Fife Final in KHS. Very well done to Morgan Faulds and Cara Hayes (both S3). The girls were up against Auchmuty, Dunfermline and Inverkeithing and spoke passionately on the theme of “Banter or Bullying?”. I am delighted to say that Morgan and Cara were declared worthy winners and will now go on to represent Fife in the Sheriffdom Finals (ie Central, Tayside and Fife) which take place at Perth Sheriff Court on Wednesday 28 March (see photo).

Also on Wednesday evening, Miss Diamond and Mr Broadway attended a Scottish Parliamentary Reception at Holyrood on the theme of school bullying. This was hosted by “Respectme”, which is the national anti-bullying agency, and our school was asked along because of our strong commitment to creating a safe, happy and fair school. Miss Diamond and Mr Broadway met John Swinney, the Deputy First Minister and Education Secretary, who congratulated the school on our approaches to building an inclusive school culture.

The big event this week is undoubtedly the “Friends of Kirkcaldy High School” Ceilidh which takes place this evening. I’m really looking forward to this as the ceilidh is a true highlight in the KHS calendar. We have the Bert Pozzi Ceilidh Band and a Valente’s Fish Supper, with various other entertainments. Many thanks to FoKHS for all their brilliant support of the school.

Next week we welcome our new Head of Music, Ms Simpson, who is joining KHS from Broxburn Academy in West Lothian. It’s also a “themed learning” week across S1-3. Where appropriate, lessons will focus on the skill of numeracy eg calculating, estimating, drawing graphs, use of shapes etc.  This is timed to coincide with “Pi Day” on Wednesday. See if you can work out why it’s always on the 14th of March! Teachers will no doubt be creative in planning learning that day, with circles a theme in many lessons.

It’s also a busy SQA assessment week including; Administration, Art and Design, Drama, Fashion and Textiles, Music and Spanish tests and assignments taking place at different times throughout the week. On Monday, our “First Chances” group have a trip to St Andrews University.

On Tuesday we’ll have S1/2 vaccinations in the Hall then after school we are holding our rescheduled S2 Parent/Carer Evening (postponed from this Tuesday). It’s also our regular Parent Council meeting at 6pm and everyone is welcome to come along. The main items will be feedback about the recent snow closures, an input from our LGBT student group and an update from Miss Ashby about our “Rights Respecting School” work. An assessor is visiting KHS on 27 March to see if we qualify for the UNICEF “Silver” Standard. Miss Ashby (Social Subjects) has prepared a booklet explaining our progress with the RRS Award and our “Charter” sets out the 7 Articles selected by our school community to be the focus of our work. It explains what the pupils will do and what the adults will do to ensure everyone accesses their rights in our school. Early next week, we will be sending out a Parent/Carer questionnaire on Survey Monkey and we would really appreciate your feedback about how well you feel we are doing. Your views will be taken into account on the Silver Award Assessment Day. Many thanks for helping with this.

As well as “Pi Day” on Wednesday, our Sports Leaders are assisting at the Disability Sport Fife Badminton Championships and we will host an NHS Fife “stall” outside our dinner hall to highlight the dangers of smoking. In the evening, we’ll have a rescheduled performance of “The Ceasefire Babies” in school. Our Drama Department are performing this play at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh at the end of the month as part of the National Theatre’s “Connections” Festival. Many thanks to Mrs Bruce, who has put so much of her own time into directing the show.

We hope to be able to issue the S4 Reports next Friday. However, due to the snow closures, we may need to delay until the start of the following week. Thanks for your understanding … that’s another one of those “ripples”. At lunchtime, all S6 with an interest in Further or Higher Education (ie College or University) are invited to a talk from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS). The theme is student finance. Thanks to Mr Farquharson for setting this up.

The menu next week is;

Monday: Lentil soup, Macaroni Cheese, chips, vegetables

Tuesday: Tomato soup, Roast Chicken, baby boiled potatoes, broccoli

Wednesday: Minestrone soup, Pork sausage casserole, potatoes and vegetables

Thursday: French onion soup, Red Thai Chilli Beef, noodles and vegetables

Friday: Leek and potato soup, Breaded fish/Steakbake, chips, peas

We also have baked potatoes, pizza, pasta, sandwiches and salad available every day as well as our new outdoor snack bar. Please also remember that we offer a free cup of soup with bread for all our young people, regardless of their “free school meals” status.

As well as the Easter School timetable and the RRSA booklet, please find attached our usual “employability” bulletin … many thanks to Miss Nessel. Please do be in touch if we can assist with any matter of concern.

Fond regards,

Derek Allan

RECTOR

9 March 2018