Congratulations to the Sneddon trio of Euan Bradshaw, Niamh Speirs and Rebecca Gault for capturing the Junior Quiz title from their Curran and Houldsworth rivals.  The Curran team comprised Meghan Hill, Louise Irving and Derek Tyson while Houldsworth was represented by Reegan-Jaye Boal, Liam Dunnachie and Matthew Turnbull. Each time had one member from each of the year groups S1-S3.

 Mr Tom Bruin, Principal Teacher of Pupil Support, was the Quiz Master and posed a number of really challenging rounds to our junior ‘masterminds’. It was only in the closing stages Sneddon House pulled clear, eventually finishing with an 8 point lead over nearest rivals, Houldsworth.

 The final scores were: Sneddon 57points; Houldsworth 49 points; Curran 31 points.

Quiz ‘Columnists’ (from left to right): Curran, Houldsworth and Sneddon

Second year pupil, Amanda Crichton secured a Bronze Medal in the Scottish Open Judo Championships held recently in Edinburgh. This was Amanda’s first-ever competitive tournament and she can be rightly proud of her success. Amanda now looks forward to developing her judo skills with her local club in Newmains and further tournament success.

Amanda Crichton proudly displays the judo bronze medal she won recently.

Reagan Binnie, of third year, secured a very creditable third place in the 800metres final at the recent Scottish Schools Indoor Athletics Championships at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow. This was Reagan’s first competition since moving up to the Under 16 age group and bodes well for her future participation in the event. Reagan continues to excel in a sport that saw her crowned North Lanarkshire Schools Athlete of the Year in 2012.

Last week a party of Clyde Valley senior pupils joined their counterparts from three other North Lanarkshire secondary schools for the return visit to Italy in the annual North Lanarkshire – Pistoia Exchange programme. Fifth year pupils, Eilidh Smith, Lynsey Walker, Alex Murphy, Carly McIlroy, Jarad Bruff and Nicky Felvus and sixth years Emma Brown, Dean Dunn and Jack Hall enjoyed the chance to visit the Sismondi and Pacinotti Institute in Pescia, Tuscany. Having hosted their Italian ‘twins’ during their visit to Scotland in September, the Clyde Valley students completed a busy programme, giving them a real taste of life in the heart of one of the Italy’s most stunning regions.

The Clyde Valley party began their adventure with a day trip to Pisa, with many pupils taking the opportunity to climb to the top of the world famous Leaning Tower. They then enjoyed a visit to stunning, classical Florence.  The pupils also enjoyed a day-trip to the beautiful walled city of Lucca. Everyone enjoyed sampling the markets, cafes, stylish shops and restaurants as they gained a real insight into typical Tuscan life.

The pupils also experienced four seasons in one during their visit. They enjoyed glorious spring sunshine during their trips to Pisa, Florence and Viareggio. One day after basking in the sun on Viareggio beach, the Scots found themselves stranded in their hotel as all schools across Tuscany were closed due to heavy snow. The downpour that followed could not dampen the spirits of the party as they trudged through the slush around Lucca!

One of the highlights was again the day spent at the Viareggio Carnevale. The Scots joined close to 250,000 other spectators to marvel at the colourful floats. As always, the impressive floats offered biting comment on Italian and world politics, but also celebrated many aspects of Italy’s rich culture.

Perhaps the most significant part of the trip was when the pupils visited the homes of their Italian twins. The warmth and friendliness of the families to each Scot was overwhelming. 

 Our pictures capture just some of the many places visited by the Clyde Valley students during their Tuscan adventure.

Two Clyde Valley pupils have made it through to the Scottish finals of the YouthLink Scotland 2013 Awards. YouthLink Scotland is the national body that promotes all youth activities anywhere within local communities. In its annual awards it looks to recognise the outstanding achievements of young people and those who lead youth activities the length and breadth of the country.

Lauren King of S6 is one of three national finalists in the category ‘Role Model/Mentor of the Year’. Lauren is a Member of the Scottish Youth Parliament. She has just launched her re-election campaign. She serves on many local and national groups forcibly representing the views of young people and is particular champion of those young people with any from of disability. Lauren has contributed to the formation of North Lanarkshire Council’s policies promoting youth involvement across the Council.

Ryan Burrell of fourth year is a finalist in the category ‘Volunteer of the Year’. Along with several other members of the school’s S4 SkillForce class, Ryan helped give a much-needed makeover to the Craigneuk Community Centre in Airdrie. Ryan was nominated for demonstrating outstanding leadership and setting a fine example to other team members.

Lauren and Ryan will anxiously wait to discover if they have triumphed in their respective categories at the YouthLink Gala Dinner to be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Glasgow in mid-March. Mr Sommerville will accompany the two students to this prestigious occasion.

Lauren King and Ryan Burrell, YouthLink Scotland finalists.