Parents of students currently in Fourth and Fifth Year are invited to attend a meeting on Thursday 28th February 2019 from 7 – 8.30pm in the school theatre. At this meeting detailed information will be provided regarding students’ curriculum choices for session 2019-20.

This meeting will cover subjects at Advanced Higher Grade, Higher Grade, National 5 and National 4 and a final draft ‘Option Form’ will also be issued.

In addition, there will be a short presentation by a member of North Lanarkshire’s Foundation Apprenticeship Team about the increasing number of Foundation Apprenticeships which will be available to students from next session. This presentation will cover the detail of how this qualification can be achieved as it is a mix of classroom study and a placement in an industry relevant to the particular field covered by each Foundation Apprenticeship. These qualifications benefit from strong support from relevant industries as they were created in close partnership with them.

A key aspect of Foundation Apprenticeships is their equivalence to Higher Grades A-C. These have now been agreed with most Scottish Universities with many at A Grade equivalence and in certain cases, universities will count an appropriate Foundation Apprenticeship as equivalent to 2 B Grade Highers due to its relevance to the course being applied for.

A friendly reminder that the February School Holidays are Monday 11th and Tuesday 12th February next week for both staff and pupils.

Wednesday 13th February is In-service Day 4 and is also a pupil holiday.

School reopens as normal for pupils on Thursday 14th February 2019 at 8.55am – St. Valentine’s Day! 

Have a great Break!

A reminder that the First Year Parents’ Evening will take place on Thursday 7th February 2019 from 4.00 – 6.30pm.  All parents and guardians are invited to meet with their child’s teachers and obtain up-to-date information about their progress throughout the year.

We wish all members of our school community a joyful and holy Christmas and a prosperous 2019!

School closes for the Christmas holidays on Friday 21st December 2018 at 2.30pm.  It re-opens on Monday 7th January 2019 at 8.55am. Have a great Break!

As part of the centenary commemorations of the First World War, S4 History pupils visited the ‘Digging In’ mock trench site at Pollok Park in Glasgow at the end of November.

They braved the wind and rain to get a real experience of life in the trenches, communicated via semaphore, tried on uniforms and gas masks, used periscopes, handled memorabilia and created advertising campaigns on behalf of the wartime British government to eat more home grown vegetables.

This was an excellent experience designed to consolidate their studies of Scotland and the Great War. Below are some more photos of the trip:

Refently a cheque for £600 was handed over to a representative of St. Andrew’s Hospice to support the work of the Hospice.  These funds were raised by staff and pupils who took part in the annual St. Andrew’s Hospice Schools’ 6K event in Strathclyde Park in September of this year. Well done to all involved and many thanks to the staff of the hospice for the excellent work carried out by them day in and day out caring for members of our local communities.

Pupils are busy with a variety of Advent activities. They are encouraged to attend Mass on Tuesday and Thursday at 8:40am. These masses are celebrated by Fr. Martin Delaney, school Chaplain, in our new Oratory.

In Religious Education classes, pupils are making donations to fill Christmas parcels for the needy. As well as this, they are being asked to donate socks, gloves and woolly hats to donate to charities which work with homeless people. Pupils are also encouraged to provide the names of senior citizens who would like to attend the school’s Senior Citizens’ Christmas Party, which takes place this year on Thursday 13^th December at 2pm.

The Christmas Celidh season is now with us and Taylor High will be holding the following Christmas Ceilidhs over the next two weeks

Ceilidh dance (with some disco) for S4 – S6 pupils: Wednesday 12th December 2018 from 7 – 10pm in the school theatre.

This dance will feature a live ceilidh band and is not to be missed by students in S4 – S6!

S1 Christmas Ceilidh: Monday 17th December, 1.30 – 3.45pm

This dance, for pupils in First Year, will take place in the school theatre within the normal school day ending at 3.45pm. Tickets are currently on sale from Miss Evans, Principal Teacher of Pupil Support for First Year pupils. The lunch break will be extended on this date until 1.30pm to allow pupils to go home and get changed or, alternatively, to change in school.

S2/S3 Christmas Ceilidh: Tuesday 18th December, 1.30 – 3.45pm

This dance, for pupils in Second and Third Year, will take place in the school theatre within the normal school day ending at 3.45pm. Tickets are currently on sale from Mr. Phairs (Second Year) and Mrs. Cooke (Third Year), Principal Teachers of Pupil Support. The lunch break will be extended on this date until 1.30pm to allow pupils to go home and get changed or, alternatively, to change in school.

Pupils who do not attend the two ceilidhs held within the school day, for pupils in First to Third Year, will remain in class and work normally during these events.

The school’s annual Christmas Fayre will take place on Wednesday 5^th December from 3.00 – 6.00pm approx.  This will feature many of the usual stalls including Santa’s Grotto, Bouncy Castle, Tombola, Bottle Stall, the much sought after Taylor Christmas Hampers, Raffle and lots more.  Donations for this year’s Fayre are very welcome.  If anyone would like a stall at this year’s Fayre, please contact the school at 01698 274976. The funds raised will support a wide range of activities throughout the year ahead. Many thanks for the support we get from the local community each year for this event especially C& M Events who donate the Bouncy Castle each year and have done so for many years!