Active, Glasgow 2014, Sport

Game On: Sport Your Trainers for Glasgow 2014!

February 5, 2014 K. Mayer 6 Comments

[Please click here to visit the latest Sport Your Trainers post, including details of a great blog competition!]

The countdown is on, with less than six months until the best athletes from 70 nations and territories arrive in Scotland to compete at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

To warm up for Scotland’s biggest-ever festival of sport and culture, you are invited to join in with Glasgow 2014’s annual Commonwealth Day celebration, Sport Your Trainers. The big event will take place on 10 March 2014 and organisers are continuing their tradition of encouraging young people to wear their trainers on the day as a symbolic gesture of support for Glasgow 2014. It doesn’t stop there: in the lead up to summer, the Games provide a platform for learning across the curriculum and beyond.

Sport Your Trainers is a great opportunity to bring the XX Commonwealth Games to life in your school, group or local community. Game On Scotland, the official Glasgow 2014 education programme, contains a wealth of information, resources and opportunities which can be used to design your own inspiring Sport Your Trainers activities. Why not learn about the nations and territories of the Commonwealth or arrange taster sessions in Games’ sports? Sport Your Trainers provides the perfect moment to celebrate Games-related learning and activities as we count down to the Opening Ceremony.

Over half of the people in the Commonwealth are under 25 years of age and we want to make sure that the children and young people of Scotland have every chance to engage with Glasgow 2014. Why not start making plans today?

To register for this Scotland-wide project and to receive a link to a Digital Toolkit filled with Sport Your Trainers resources, please email SportYourTrainers@glasgow2014.com

Please note pupils are encouraged to wear their trainers to school on Sport Your Trainers day, Monday 10 March. However, it is not compulsory. Local Authorities/school senior management should use their discretion as to whether this is appropriate footwear for their schools.

Clyde, Game On Challenge, plaque

Blackwood, Killermont, Mossvale & St James’s all awarded plaques

February 4, 2014 User deactivated 3 Comments

Clyde was continuing his Game On Scotland tour today, his 7th day of this most recent tour visiting schools around Scotland. Once again he was recognising excellent Games-related learning by awarding Game On Scotland plaques to some of the schools on his travels. Today began with a plaque presentation to Blackwood Primary, South Lanarkshire then onto Killermont Primary in East Dunbartonshire and finishing at St James’s and Mossvale Primaries in Renfrewshire. All four schools were the first in their area to receive the Game On Scotland accolade for their use of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games as a context for learning. Congratulations!

If your school would like to receive a Game On Scotland plaque (as well as a range of other benefits, including mascot visits), then make sure you register a Game On Challenge, telling us about your plans.

Clyde, Game On Challenge, Inspire>Aspire, plaque

Banchory and Broxburn latest schools to receive plaques

February 3, 2014 User deactivated 2 Comments

Into the second week of his Game On Scotland tour and Clyde stopped at Banchory Primary in Clackmannanshire and Broxburn Primary in West Lothian, awarding both schools Game On Scotland plaques in recognition of their great Glasgow 2014 work. Congratulations to both schools, which are the first in their local authority areas to receive a plaque.

Banchory Primary has made excellent use of the materials and opportunities available on the Game On Scotland site, taking part in Glow Meets, using the learning journeys and joining in with projects and competitions. The school has also been getting active with cycling a big part – pupils have been undertaking training and are now part of bike clubs, with funds raised to take a trip to the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome later in the session. Speaking of fundraising, pupils also raised £800 through enterprise activities to support community projects in Ghana. That’s just a flavour of a huge range of activity, but the story here is very much about seizing opportunities to enhance learning and working with partners in the community to realise ambitions!

Meanwhile, at Broxburn, there are more great examples. Using the obvious connection to physical education as a starting point, the school has then broadened out their learning across the curriculum. The school gratefully acknowledges the support they’ve received from a Big Lottery grant, which has allowed them to secure training for staff and recruit sport coaches for after-school clubs. Amongst other things, the school has also been involved in learning around the Queen’s Baton Relay, the Inspire-Aspire programme and Champions in Schools.

Clyde, Game On Challenge, Holly Cram, plaque

Seven more schools awarded plaques

January 31, 2014 User deactivated Leave a comment

Today has been the busiest day of Clyde’s tour so far. Clyde visited five schools and all of them were presented with Game Scotland plaques and our Game On Scotland ambassador, Holly Cram, also presented a plaque to another two schools – seven in one day! Clyde began the day by awarding East Renfrewshire’s first plaque to Busby Primary School, before moving on to visit four Glasgow schools: St Fillan’s Primary, Cardinal Winning Secondary, St Joachim’s Primary and Eastmuir Primary. Cllr Archie Graham of Glasgow City Council joined Clyde to present the plaques to four of the schools and Holly also visited Lourdes Secondary and Shawlands Academy to present their plaques. It’s been an exciting and hectic day!

All seven schools are to be congratulated on the way they have used the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games as a context for learning, and in such different ways.

Culture 2014, Glasgow 2014

Culture 2014: Join the party!

January 30, 2014 User deactivated Leave a comment

The Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games features 17 sport across 11 days of competition, but it’s a whole lot more than that: it’ll also coincide with one of the largest cultural programmes ever seen in Scotland.

Game On Scotland already features some of the largest projects, such as Big Big Sing and Get Scotland Dancing, but today a further 42 projects were announced as part of the programme and there’s a great mix of activity which will appeal to all ages. The new announcements include more than 800 children from across Scotland taking part in two family classical music concerts, films inspired by true stories of journeys of Shetlanders on ships made on the Clyde, and new light being shed on some of Glasgow’s forgotten architectural gems.

The newly announced projects join an unprecedented nationwide programme of activity featuring new work created by world-leading and emerging Scottish and international artists in response to the country’s hosting of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and our relationship with the Commonwealth.

Aiming to enhance the Games experience for Scotland’s communities, spectators and visitors as well as presenting the best of Scotland’s culture alongside that of the Commonwealth, the Cultural Programme includes almost 200 projects and exhibitions and over 800 events involving thousands of artists, performers and participants, across hundreds of locations and venues the length and breadth of Scotland.

Covering theatre, dance, music, visual arts, comedy and digital media; small scale indoor shows and outdoor spectaculars; work on bicycles and by rivers; in theatres, community centres, botanic gardens, art galleries, cinemas, public spaces and much more, audiences can expect everything from the intimate to the epic, the intense and life-affirming. Stories will be told of individual lives and communities, special places and moments in time.

Some relevant highlights of the programme are noted below, but you can find information on all projects (and search listings where dates are confirmed) at www.glasgow2014.com/culture.

Programme Highlights:

The Spokesman
Performed in parks across Scotland, this outdoor theatre production by Visible Fictions has the cast and audience travelling through the story on bikes.

Blue Block Studio
The Blue Block Studio pop-up space provides creative play for babies under 24 months and their adults, plus a storytelling performance for 2–4 year olds.

Glasgow Girls
Based on a true story, this National Theatre of Scotland production is a lively musical play, following a group of seven teenage girls who unite to campaign for their asylum seeker friend, when she and her family face the threat of deportation.

Scale
Scottish Dance Theatre is bringing the city of Dundee to life with projections of giant toddlers, a pop-up park, and other groundbreaking collaborations between internationally renowned artists. Every type of public space will become a playful site of city-wide dance.

Aye Write
The Aye Write! programme comprises a wide range of ticketed author events for adults and children, but also extends to a schools festival, and a variety of free community and family events.

Active, Award, Legacy 2014, Legacy tickets, Uncategorized

1000 tickets for Game On Scotland

January 29, 2014 K. Mayer 15 Comments

Game On Scotland is delighted to have been allocated 1000 ‘Legacy Tickets’ by the Scottish Government. The education programme aims to engage learners across Scotland with the Games by creating exciting learning opportunities across the curriculum. These tickets will be instrumental in contextualising learning and provide young people with the once in a life time experience that helps to create a lasting legacy well beyond the Games itself.

If you don’t want to miss out on the opportunity to be considered for Legacy tickets’ through Game On Scotland make sure your school is part of the ‘Game On Challenge‘ network and features on the interactive map.

Game On – “Be part of it!”

Clyde, Game On Challenge, plaque

Kirkton of Largo and Glamis awarded plaques

January 29, 2014 User deactivated 1 Comment

On day three of his Game On Scotland tour, Clyde was out and about visiting schools in Fife and Tayside and two of the schools visited were also awarded Game On Scotland plaques. Kirkton of Largo Primary School is the first Fife school to receive a plaque for their outstanding Games-related work, with Glamis Primary taking the honours for Angus. Congratulations to both!

The Queen’s Baton Relay has been a major focus for Kirkton of Largo, with pupils tracking the progress of the baton around the 70 nations and territories of the Commonwealth and posting updates on Twitter. These updates led to Vision Africa, a charitable organisation, offering to take the pupils’ baton to Kenya, where it featured in the real Queen’s Baton Relay alongside famous Kenyan athlete Kipchoge Keino. The school has also been engaged in researching the countries of the Commonwealth, has signed up to the Digital Commonwealth project and even featured Clyde in their nativity! You can follow the school’s updates on Twitter at @KirktonPS, including lots of photos of Clyde’s visit.

Glamis Primary pupils have been set 30 Commonwealth Games challenges, linked to sports but extending out across the curriculum. From boxing to lawn bowls, they’ve been working on peer-led projects and even involved families and the local community. In the words of one teacher, their work has spread “Commonwealth Fever” throughout the school. The school will be continuing its work right up to the end of session, with more pupils set to be involved as their activities build to a climax.

Clyde, Game On Challenge, plaque

North East schools Airyhall and Meiklemill receive plaques

January 28, 2014 User deactivated Leave a comment

On the north east leg of his latest Game On Scotland tour, Glasgow 2014 mascot Clyde was pleased to recognise the efforts of another two primary schools: Airyhall School in Aberdeen City and Meiklemill School in Aberdeenshire. Both schools became the first in their local authorities to have their achievements recognised in this way.

Pupils from nursery through to P7 at Airyhall have been getting active, with taster sessions in rugby, football and even Zumba! They’ve also nominated their own batonbearers for a school network Commonwealth Games and designed doors for each class, reflecting traditions and customs from different nations and territories of the Commonwealth. The school has been counting down to the Games with lots of other exciting activities and has been tracking the progress of the Queen’s Baton Relay, ahead of their own version across their school network.

Meiklemill School has been nothing if not ambitious, engaging in a huge amount of activity related to the Games. Like Airyhall School, there’s simply too much to mention! Highlights include active challenges as part of the school’s Health Week, including 2014 skips, a 2014m collective walk and a simulated bike ride from Ellon to Glasgow. As well as learning about the Commonwealth and work on the Queen’s Baton Relay, they’ve also made great use of Clyde as inspiration in the school, so were no doubt delighted to welcome him in person.

Both schools deserve congratulations for what they’ve achieved and, excitingly, they’ve outlined lots more activity still to come before the end of session.

Glow Meet, Holly Cram

‘Meet’ Holly Cram, the Game On Ambassador: Thur, 30 Jan, 10am

January 27, 2014 K. Mayer Leave a comment

‘Game On Scotland’ Special:

Holly Cram – the Game On Scotland Ambassador live on Glow

30 January, 10.00

http://bit.ly/1eDHCnt

Holly, a Scottish International Hockey player with over 140 caps, has join the Game On Scotland Team as official ambassador to assist schools in making the most of the exciting opportunities the 2014 Commonwealth Games offer young people.

Holly will tell you about her exciting carreer as a international hockey player and share some of her insights into what makes a successful team player. She will also answer any questions you always wanted to ask a top athlete!

See you all on Thursday! Game On!

Clyde, Game On Challenge, plaque

Two more schools receive plaques: Gargieston Primary and Fisherton Primary

January 27, 2014 User deactivated Leave a comment

Glasgow 2014 mascot Clyde was out and about today visiting primary schools in Ayrshire and made time to present the latest Game On Scotland plaques to two more schools. Gargieston Primary School in Kilmarnock became the first East Ayrshire school to be recognised, with Fisherton Primary School in Dunure the first South Ayrshire school to get their plaque.

Both schools have been using the Games as a context for learning across the school and have well-developed plans for even more work in the terms ahead. Congratulations are due to both schools for all their hard work!