Head Teacher Blog
Dear Parent/Carer
I hope you have had a good week.
So yesterday (Thursday) marked my two-year anniversary at Greenfaulds. Thankfully this year I don’t have Covid and have the headspace to reflect upon my time so far as Head Teacher of this amazing school. On Wednesday, I was interviewing and was asked by a candidate, what made Greenfaulds such a good school? Without any hesitation my response was the young people. Everyday I count myself hugely fortunate that I get to lead and work in a school where the young people are so engaged, funny and clever. It is a true honour. However, a culture like the one that exists within Greenfaulds does not just happen and is a true reflection of the hard work of staff and families to build such an atmosphere.
As always, if there is anything you would like to see included within the blog, don’t hesitate to be in touch.
Pupil Successes
As an avid cyclist I always look forward to hearing of the successes of our many pupils who take part in a range of two wheeled competitions. This week I learned that we now have 3 newly crowned Scottish BMX Champions.
Tillie McCrum has become the Scottish National Champion in the 17–29 year old Women’s competition.
Cooper McCrum became the 13-14 year old Cruiser Scottish National Champion
Brodie Geddes became the 13-14 year old Scottish National Champion
A fantastic result for these young people as well as reflection of the cycling talent that exists across the school.
Charlotte is just Wicked!
I was delighted to hear that that Charlotte Brown has been chosen as one of the regional winners in the Sky Up Academy Studios poster design competition for the new Wicked movie.
Congratulations Charlotte – we hope you and your class are looking forward to using your free tickets to see the new Wicked Movie in cinema!
Thank you to all of the S1 & S2 pupils who worked hard in Drama, Art and Technical classes with Ms MacAngus, Miss Fleming and Mr Cochrane to produce some fantastic designs. We hope you enjoy the movie.
Modern Language Ambassadors
Across the school, we have a wide range of Senior Pupils undertaking a range of leadership roles. This week, I’d like to highlight the work of the Modern Language Ambassadors. Our S6 Language Ambassadors have now completed their first P7 French lessons. They have prepared lessons very well, with the help of Miss Henry. All primaries, have been visited. P7s have all responded very well, and our S6 pupils have been a credit to the school. Thanks also to the staffing team in Modern Languages for escorting our pupils to the primaries & providing them with support & guidance.
Our Language Ambassadors will do their next visit after Christmas. I look forward to hearing of their progress in 2025.
Art Showcase
On the 26th of November the Art Department are hosting their first Higher and Advanced Higher Exhibition. The exhibition will feature work from last year’s Higher and Advanced Higher pupils folios. The standard of this work is incredibly high and the night will be a great opportunity for families to come along and admire the talent and hard work of last year’s Higher and Higher Pupils. Tickets, which include refreshments, are available from the school for £5.
Jingle Sale
Our Pupil Parliament Eco Committee are busy planning our second, Jingle Sale on the night of the 27th of November. Those of you who came along last year will agree that it was a huge success.
If anyone would like to run a stall at the event selling either crafts (jewellery, cards, gifts, home baking) or preloved clothing, toys/games, books please get in touch with Mrs Meikle on nlmeiklel@glow.sch.uk. Stalls will cost £10 each and capacity is limited.
Ski Trip December 2025
After a very successful trip in December 2023, I am delighted to let you know that the school is once again organising a trip to the ski resort of Pila, in Italy.
The trip will take place from 14th December 2025 until December 20th December 2025. The Trip will be for the current S1 and S2 who in December 2025 will be in S2 and S3.
If your child is interested in going on the trip, a copy of the letter is available here.
S5/6 Reports
On Wednesday, all families of pupils in S5/6 should receive their child’s report via Parent Portal. These reports will contain the working grade as well as target grade for each subject, agreed with class teachers. I am sure you will find the teacher comments and proposed next steps particularly helpful.
If you have not yet signed up for the Parent Portal, the sign up process is relatively straightforward and is available here. If you are struggling to sign up, there is a help document which is available here. Alternatively, please contact the school and we can support you to access this resource.
S1 Family Night (November 21st)
All families of S1 pupils should have received an email with booking instructions for the S1 Family Night taking place next week. This will be the first opportunity to meet your child’s teachers in a range of subjects. It will also be an opportunity to speak to your child’s Principal Teacher of Pupil Support or a member of the Senior Leadership Team. We are looking forward to seeing everyone on the night.
SQA Update
Coursework
The following SQA information has been shared with pupils this week in classes and on Teams, but it is also important for families, so we would encourage you to please access the link below.
Coursework gives pupils the chance to show that they understand their subject. It also gives them a significant amount of marks towards their final grade, however there are very clear guidelines and rules for pupils. SQA have created the booklet ‘ Your National Qualifications’ which pupils and parents should find helpful. Your coursework – SQA
Timetable
Please also find below the link to the 2025 SQA Exam timetable.
https://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/files_ccc/nq-2025-exam-timetable.pdf
Important information re’ Alternative Venue Requests
SQA wish to be clear in respect to Alternative Venue Requests for sitting exams. In the past, some pupils have been in competitions with their clubs, for example the World Dance Championships in Florida. Pupils may have requested to sit an exam there during this time. This arrangement is not permitted. If pupils choose to go to competitions with their clubs during the SQA Exam timetable, they miss the affected exams and would be withdrawn from the subject(s) missed. Pupils will not be allowed to sit the exam elsewhere or at any other time. An alternative venue request will only be considered if a pupil has been selected to represent their COUNTRY in a National Team event and this would have to be brought to our attention immediately. This is not a school decision.
Pupil Contact Details
There are times when we need to contact S5 and S6 pupils. Whilst we can contact you to pass on information, we would believe that at times, it would be easier and faster to be able to text pupils directly. For example, pupils attending college first thing one morning go to the college, but we receive information that the course is cancelled that day. Currently, we need to contact families and ask you to contact your child. As such, we would like to trial the ability to text pupils in S5/6 directly. In order to do this, we would ask that you complete the very brief form if you are happy for us to keep your son/daughter’s mobile phone number on record.
https://forms.office.com/e/skrP0CptVb
Girls Blazers
Scotcrest, our amazing uniform suppliers have been in touch as they have noticed a difference in colour for girls fitted blazers to the girls standard blazer and the boys blazer. There was quite a marked difference in colour.
They checked the remaining stock and have found that Banner has produced the wrong shade in these girls fitted blazers and unfortunately no one had noticed it. The reason no one had noticed it was that all the blazers come with plastic packaging and it’s only when you take the blazers out of the packaging that it became really noticeable.
The correct blazers have now arrived and Banner are more than happy to replace every one of the pupils who may have bought the wrong shade of blazer. To enable you to swap your blazer please contact them directly. Their contact details are as follows:
62 Clark Street, Airdrie, ML6 6DW Tel: 01236 768686 | Web: www.scotcrestschools.co.uk
Live and Learn Mindset for Exams
On Tuesday 19th November, a very motivational presenter form ‘Live-n-Learn’ will meet with S4 pupils in groups, and spend some time on Study skills, time management, positive mental attitude etc. It is hoped that this will help pupils with their preparations for their mid-term assessments which begin on 25th November.
Supported Study
As I mentioned in the last few blogs, the range of supported study sessions is growing on a weekly basis. There are a number of departments offering either tailored Supported Study or an ad-hoc supported study system and I wanted to share the details around this with all families. The current list is available here.
Modern Languages have this week published their Supported Study programme which is accessible here.
For S4 pupils we have also established a quiet study room for Exam Preparation/Assignment work/Homework etc on Fridays at 12.45 pm. Pupils are more than welcome to stay until 3pm or leave whenever they want to. This will just be a quiet space to help them feel more organised and feeling better going into the weekend, with less to do on the dreaded Sunday night!
For pupils attending we will provide ICT access if they need it for Research, Notes or Past Papers etc. Moreover, it doesn’t mean they have to go every week but when it suits them.
If your child would like to access this resource they can sign up using the QR code below or on the posters in the social area.
Online Study Resources
For Senior Pupils we wanted to ensure that we were providing as much support for them as possible for studying and revising. Alongside traditional supported study in school I felt it appropriate to draw your attention to two online resources.
Firstly, this year we have continued our school account to provide our pupils with access to interactive study materials via the ACHIEVE platform https://achieve.hashtag-learning.co.uk.
When signing up to create their own account pupils should use their school GLOW Email address and use the unique Greenfaulds High School Code (XQfQPVhy) to activate their account. As you will see they will have access to many resources for learning key concepts, testing their knowledge, self-evaluating etc.
Secondly the e-sgoil study resources – Pupils can access a range of resources including help with Study planners, revision tips, managing stress etc. They can also access a wide range of subject webinars every week. Details are posted each week to advise what topics are being covered each evening in the Webinars. They can Google Esgoil Study support and it’s very straight forward or can use this link. We have posted the link on Teams for them already.
Transportation concerns
A big thank you to everyone who responded to my communications over the last few weeks around school transport. Your support is greatly appreciated. I would continue to stress that if you are collecting your son/daughter at the end of the day by car, please be aware that the process may take a little longer than previously. I would also ask that if you are waiting to collect your son/daughter that you utilise the parking bays within the car park as there many spaces available here as well as in the drop/off pick up area. There is also the opportunity to collect your child a little later, the school building is always open, warm and safe for your son/daughter to wait inside for an additional few minutes to avoid you having to wait in standing traffic.
Thank you for all your ongoing support and understanding.
Free School Meals and Education Maintenance Allowance
A reminder to all families, if your family normally receives Free School Meals or EMA (16+ yr. olds) please remember to reapply for continuation of this service as it does not automatically continue each year. Families need to apply annually. There were a few incidences today of pupils not having money on their cards. We did of course ensure that they received lunch but please do ensure that you have reapplied for Free School Meals. Please apply here: Free School Meals and Clothing Grant Application | North Lanarkshire Council
Likewise, for families of young people over 16 they may be eligible for the Education Maintenance Allowance and the link is here: Education Maintenance Allowance | North Lanarkshire Council Once pupils have received their forms they should bring them to Mr Adler for a meeting about expectations to receive their EMA.
If families would like any support with these forms, please contact Mrs Foley who would be delighted to support you in completing these.
Dates for your Diaries
Given how hectic life can be I thought you might appreciate me drawing your attention to the following school events taking place over the next week:
Monday 18th November: Inset Day (School Closed to Pupils)
Thursday 21st November: S1 Family Night
I hope you have a lovely weekend.
Moran Taing
Jamie
Jamie Vaughn-Sharp
Head Teacher
