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 It seems a long time ago that we were returning from our summer holidays, now we are waiting for the clocks to change! Our largest intake of S1 pupils, 102, for many years have settled in well, with many joining new clubs and activities. Congratulations to Phoebe Pearson and Ged Murphy who have been elected as the S1 representatives on our Pupil Council.
In the SQA exams our S4 pupils produced our best ever results in the challenging National 5 exams. The percentage of S4 pupils gaining five awards has shown a steady rise over the last four years, which is very pleasing as we are keen that all pupils gain as many qualifications as possible. In S5 we are impressed by the percentage of pupils who gained at least one, three or five Highers as these are some of our best ever results. In S6 over 67% of this year group gained at least one Higher. We continue to seek the best options for our pupils and work with neighbouring schools to provide a range of courses. An example of this is in Advanced Higher English where our English Department hosted pupils from two other school as well as our own pupils. I am proud to say this resulted in one A pass and ten B passes for the eleven pupils at Advanced Higher, a truly outstanding success.
When is 90% not a good thing? As Headteacher I am keen that all lessons have “pace and challenge”. This makes it difficult to catch up if a pupil misses any lesson. Pupils are scheduled to be in school 190 days per year, if their attendance is only 90% then they will miss 19 days or nearly 4 weeks of work. If a pupil has 90% attendance from S1 to S5 it is the equivalent of missing half a year of school, thus making it very difficult to do well in SQA exams. We ask that pupils maximise the opportunities available to them and that attendance in class is a high priority.
John Robertson
Headteacher
Calderhead High School
The Outward Bound Trust is an educational charity that offers young people learning and adventures in the wild, building their resilience and confidence. Two groups of pupils were fortunate to experience Outward Bound Leadership programmes this term at the Trust's Loch Eil Centre. This is situated on the shores of the loch, near Fort William, and is the Trust’s most remote outdoor education centre. Our staff and pupils had a wonderful time and learned much from the experience.
Our first group of S5 and S6 pupils enjoyed many different experiences including a jog and a dip in the loch, abseiling and hill walking. They even tried some foraging and sampled some freshly picked wood sorrel!
The second group involved twelve S4 pupils who also had a great time and enjoyed many fantastic team building exercises, including gorge walking, monster tree climbing, canoeing, and a ‘jog and dip’ session, which involved a very cold dip in the loch!
Special mention must go to our brilliant staff who accompanied the pupils and participated in the activities with them!
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Some of our S5 pupils were trained as Mental Health Ambassadors in September over an intensive two day course. On the first day they learned about mental health, focusing on all aspects of mental health and how it's ok not to be ok. The following day their leadership skills were put into action as the pupils led their peers through the five lessons that they will deliver to our S2 cohort later in the year. They finished the training with some reflection and fun activities. |
 We were invited by the Scottish Book Trust and BBC to attend the recent Authors Live event at the BBC Studios in Glasgow. This event was for National Poetry Day and featured Gray Crosbie talking to poets Dean Atta and Rachel Plummer. Prior to the event, our pupils participated in a BBC L.A.B. workshop where they created a wonderful film poem based on the theme of identity. The L.A.B operate as part of BBC Scotland Learning and provide free, in-school digital media training workshops which cover topics such as filmmaking, podcasting, animation and scriptwriting.
A group of S3 Science students attended the Step into STEM event at New College Lanarkshire on 2nd October 2019. Students enjoyed six workshops throughout the day and sampled animation, forensics, hairdressing, beauty therapy, milk production and robotics. Pupils were tested with a number of challenges throughout the day and spoke to employers at length regarding future careers in STEM industries.
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Well done to all the pupils and staff from Calderhead High School who participated in the St Andrew’s Hospice Lanarkshire Schools 6km event at Strathclyde Park event on Sunday, 15th September to help raise funds for the hospice. |
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The S6 Advanced Higher English class enjoyed a day trip to Waterstone's and University of Glasgow, supporting them with their dissertation reading. Immersing themselves in true student life, they spent a day discovering wider fictional texts connected to their thesis topics at the bookstore before heading into Glasgow University's 12 storey library, learning to operate the secondary, non-fictional reading systems that the English Literature students use there for critical writing. The class were treated to some specialist knowledge (and a lovely array of treats!) at Waterstone's on Sauciehall Street before learning to properly navigate "uni life" at the West End campus, public transport cancellations and all. A thoroughly beneficial day, aiding pupils in working towards their qualification as well as preparing them for life beyond the classroom.
 We were delighted to welcome Alex Scarrow to Calderhead High School on 13th September, when he spoke to S1 pupils about his writing and treated them to a reading from the first book in his Time Riders series. Alex then conducted a workshop with older pupils studying English and Media and shared a fascinating insight into the structure of films, which can also be used for writing books and stories. This visit was part of North Lanarkshire Council's Read to Succeed initiative, funded by the Scottish Attainment Challenge. This affords every S1 pupil in all of the North Lanarkshire schools an opportunity to attend an author event, where they hear about the author's books and the inspiration behind their writing. Author visits inspire and encourage pupils to read for pleasure and to write creatively.
Hundreds of pupils from secondary schools across North Lanarkshire Council, including ten pupils from Calderhead, gathered at St Ambrose High School in Coatbridge on 26th September to celebrate this year's Read to Succeed programme. Pupils enjoyed hearing from the author and publisher Keith Charters; Head of Service Anne Munroe; and Terry Cowan from the Literacy and Numeracy base. The highlight of the event was the talk by Dan Freedman, author of the Jamie Johnson football books, and the pupils were delighted to receive a signed copy of his book. The Read to Succeed programme is funded by the Scottish Attainment Challenge and aims to encourage pupils in S1 to read for pleasure.
 Congratulations to our pupils who were awarded the Path Skillz Group of the Year Award at a ceremony at the Scottish Parliament on 10th September after being nominated for their outstanding contribution to making their communities happier and healthier.
Getting Better Together worked with a group of pupils from Calderhead High School on a Path Skillz project to resurface 100m of disused path in Shotts to transform it into a safe and welcoming walking and cycling route. The group used litter pickers to clear up and then worked in ‘squads’ creating a base for the path before laying down the path surface. The pupils (and staff) worked extremely hard despite the horrendous weather and did an excellent job.
Six members of staff and over forty pupils travelled to the Etihad Stadium on 31st August to watch Manchester City play Brighton. The pupils had a great time playing in the fan zone in the stadium before they watched the game. A special thank you to all the staff who accompanied the pupils.
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Contact us
Website: http://www.calderhead.n-lanark.sch.uk/
Email: ht@calderhead.n-lanark.sch.uk
Tel: 01501 826701
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