Here are the News Items from our previous website:
NOTE: Some links may not be active yet. Apologies for this – more an more will come online as we move files from our old website to this one. In the meantime, all of our archived files are available on our old site – http://www.portland.n-lanark.sch.uk/
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Our December Newsletter is available below. If you would like a paper copy, please contact the school.
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Portland’s Footballers Show Promise
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In a four match tournament, the team found the form to finish well. To read all about it, click ‘La Gazzetta’:
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National Poetry Day – Thursday 8th October 2015
To mark National Poetry Day, a number of pupils wrote poems on this year’s theme of Light. You can download this year’s official anthology by clicking here.
Our own poems were divided into two groups: The first group consisted of ‘Spectrum’ poems, comprised of 7 lines – each one reflecting the colours that make up the spectrum of white light (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo & Violet).
Spectrum Poems:
(Note: The ‘Google’ poems were constructed by taking the first ‘hits’ from a Google Image or Web Search for each colour.)
Found Poems:
(For a definition of ‘Found Poetry’ click here.Our poems were ‘found’ in encyclopedia entries about ‘Light’)
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Parents & Carers:
We would like to invite all interested parents and carers to join our Parent Council and Parents Support Group.
Our young people travel to us from all over North Lanarkshire (and sometimes from beyond). We realise that our parents and carers do not have the same opportunities to meet with other parents and carers, often offered in mainstream education activities.
Our groups offer you the chance to meet with other parents and carers who have pupils in Portland and to discuss any enquiries, concerns, situations and to offer support to each other. Many of our parents and carers have similar experiences and have met similar challenges – both with young people and with education. In previous years, our Parent Support Group has been well-attended and has been a rewarding support experience for all.
Please contact the school office if you would like to join with others in discussing shared experiences over coffee. We even offer scones.
Finally, if getting here is a problem, we offer free transport to parents and carers attending meetings and events.
We look forward to seeing you.
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New Staff
We are pleased to welcome the following new members of staff:
Mr Gibb – P.E.
Mrs O’Mara – Additional Support Needs
Mr Simpson – Maths
Mr Stott – Maths
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New School Day
The structure of the school day has changed a little, to make all Periods the same duration. (Previously, we had 1 one-hour period and 5 forty-five minute periods. Each Period will now last for fifty minutes.)
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Click below for our latest Portland High School newsletter.
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World Book Night
23rd April is World Book Night. Once again, Portland High School has been selected as an insitutional supporter of this event. That means we have been given a number of copies of one of this year’s selected titles to distribute.
We will be gifting copies of “Chickenfeed” by Minette Wallters to pupils, staff and partners.
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A body is found in a chicken run…
Based on the true story of the ‘chicken farm nurder’ which took place in Blackness, Crowborough, East Sussex, in December 1924.
Norman Thorne was found guilty of the murder of Elsie Cameron, but even at the time of his execution there were doubts about his guilt.
Still swearing his innocence, Norman Thorne was hanged on 22 April 1925.
Bestselling author Minette Walters brings a thrilling story to life in this gripping short novel.
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Portland Eclipse Pictures
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Kennan Angus managed to get superb pictures, the cloudbase acting as a great filter, of the Solar Eclipse on 20th March.
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Portland Proud of Team’s Performance
Those familiar with Italian football will recognise
the style of the daily footballing newspaper read there.
We produced our very own version to celebrate our
success in the Schools’ Football Tournament we took
part in on 25th February 2015.
Click on the picture below to access reports on
the action from our four matches.
FORZA PORTLAND!
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Portland High School – Christmas Lunch – 17th December 2014
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A montage of pictures from our Christmas Lunch which saw a traditional meal served, followed by our Grand Prize Raffle and a presentation.
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Mr McGovern presents our cheque for £950 to St Andrews Hospice. Well done to all our staff and pupils who helped to raise this sum of money. Christmas is a time for giving and we are delighted to give our support to his great charity.
As well as the St Andrews Hospice, we have raised money this year for Motor Neuron Disease Charties and for Open Arms Malawi. We are proud to be responsible global citizens.
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We wish all our pupils, staff, parents, carers and stakeholders all the very best of the season. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
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Getting Creative About Conflict
Two of our current pupils were given awards of Merit, and will be published in an anthology. As part of their English lessons the pupils entered the Young Writers Poetry Competition, writing with the theme of conflict. You can see their work and their awards on the Portland Poets page. Well done lads!
Hallowe’en Crafts and Competitions
Pupils spent some time carving Pumpkin Heads in the lead up to Hallowe’en.
A prize was awarded for the spookiest pumpkin, as chosen by Mr McGovern.
Spike with his winning carved pumpkin.
Mrs Natesan, plotted Hallowe’en coordinates in Maths and, to practice estimates, the pupils took part in a Guess-the-Pumpkin’s-Weight Competition.
William, prize in pocket, guessed the weight of the pumpkin.
Thank you to all the staff who helped with our Hallowe’en Activities.
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FACEBOOK
Portland High School now has a Facebook Page – please look in and ‘Like’ us.
This will be another source of information and announcements.
October Newsletter
Our latest newsletter, from October 2014 is available online. Click below.
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ICE BUCKET CHALLENGE UPDATE
The school was delighted to receive a certificate thanking us for the donation we made to Motor Neuron Disease Scotland.
Mr McGovern and Mr Thomson joined in the fundraising craze that swept the globe and staff and pupils ‘bought’ buckets of water to drench them both. The sum of £186.00 was raised.
Well done to everyone who participated and donated.
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A New School Year Begins
Here is the Head Teacher’s letter containing important information for the school session 2014/2015.
You can access the key information on the ‘Information’ page.
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The Ice Bucket Challenge
Portland High School, and in particular our Head Teacher Mr McGovern and Depute Head Teacher Mr Thomson, did not escape the Ice-Bucket Water Challenge that is currently trending on Social Network sites.
Film footage of the school day that ended with a soaking for two of our Management Team has yet to be edited, but these pictures will suffice just now.
To donate to Motor Neuron Disease Charity text the following message to 70070
ICED14 £5
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New School Year: New Elective Studies
Our new Monday Elective Studies have just begun. Our pupils will follow either:
- Discovery: General Studies, General Knowledge & Documentary
- Swimming Lessons
- Gardening
- Walking and Outdoor Pursuits
- Photography
School Newsletter
At the end of last term our latest newsletter was sent out to our parents and partners.
Here it is:
Creativity Flourishes at Portland
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Two of our Portland Poets performed their work at the Reigart Poetry Partnership event, held in Cardinal Newman High School on Thursday 5th June.
In total, five of our pupils have had poems included in the North Lanarkshire anthology and Ryan (on the left) won the Adjudicator’s Prize.
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The Photography Club make the news again with our pupils’ work included in an Art Exhibition in the North Lanarkshire Municipal Buildings.
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Photography Club
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Our photographers seem to be getting good at rooting out some
‘weel kent’ faces. On recent visit to see the Kelpies, our lads bumped
into BBC News economics editor Robert Peston.
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 Craig and Robert Peston
 Craig and Clark got a view through a different lens from behind the BBC cameras.
 Clark’s picture of a Kelpie shows his good eye for colour and tone, picking out the stainless steel sculpture against the leaden sky.
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The Photography Club Elective pupils were surprised on a visit
to South Queensferry when they were approached by two members
of parliament. Alistair Carmichael (MP for Orkney & Shetland) and
Fiona Hyslop (the Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for
Culture and External Affairs) asked if they could be photographed
with a couple of our star pupils.
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School Newsletter March 2014
Click on the link below to view the latest school newsletter
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World Book Night
Lucky pupils (and some surprised taxi drivers) were given a book in celebration of World Book Night (23rd April). The novel ‘Hello Mum’ by Bernardine Evaristo was be gifted to students and partners to celebrate this reading event just after the Easter holidays.
Described as “Amazing Modern Fiction” partners, pupils and parents should enjoy reading this short novel.
 What’s it about?
It’s a hot afternoon. Tension is in the air. A gang of youths on bikes gathers outside a chip shop. A teenage boy is stabbed and left bleeding on the street.
The boy’s mother wonders how this could have happened to her son. She is full of questions, but… the answers lie so close to home.
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Portland Poets
Local company Reigart (who already sponsor Albion Rovers) has once again sponsored the Reigart Poetry Partnership competition for schools in North Lanarkshire.
We are pleased to say that a number of entries were entered from Portland High School.
Pupils were asked to write on any aspect of the theme ‘Who’s there?’
Ten poems, in total, were entered for the competition—eleven if you count one that was also translated into Scots for submission.
(See the English page under ‘Learning & Teaching’ to read some of the boys’ poems.)
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February 2014 – Portland High School has started the journey towards recognition as a Rights Respecting School. Staff and pupils have been consulted on a Relationships Policy currently being produced in the school. Before the policy is finalised, parents and carers’ opinions will be sought.
If you are coming to our Celebrating Success event, you can pick up a copy of the questionnaire there. Your opinion counts.
The same is true of anyone close to the school community. If you would like to comment on our Relationships Policy and/or the Rights of Our Children, please contact the school.
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Certificate Received
The Festive Season is a distant memory but it is with pride that we remember our Christmas Lunch for the donation we made to St Andrews Hospice.
Thanks to the tireless efforts of the support staff who organise the fund-raising raffle, the greetings cards made throughout the year by Mrs Morris, and donations from staff and pupils alike, we raised £1000 for this very worthwhile cause.
Margaret Donald, the School Manager of the Fundraising Team attached to the Hospice dined with us and was presented with a cheque to support the work of this local charity.
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