Burns Supper

Tickets are selling fast for the school’s annual Burns Supper, which will take place on Thursday 12th February. This year’s Address to the Haggis will be presented by Sophie Murphy and our MC is 5th year pupil Kelsey Dunn. There will be musical interludes from the choir and band. Tickets are £5.00 and are available from Mrs. Cassidy, PT Guidance - 01292 550521.

London Trip

There are still places available for the trip to London in June. For further details please contact Ms. Fuller in the Art Department.

Student teachers

We wish a warm welcome to our student teachers Ms Eibhlin Corrigan in English, Ms Shade Smith in PE and Mrs. Misbah Nur in Biology. They will be in school from 2nd February to the Friday 13th March.

Art Attack

The Art Department run their Art Attack club every Wednesday after school: 2.45pm – 4.15pm. Everyone is welcome to attend and there is a free bus to take pupils home afterwards.

East Ayrshire Youth Sports Personality of the Year

Congratulations to Lyndsay McCreath on becoming the East Ayrshire Youth Sports Personality of the Year. Lyndsay received her award for her performances in gymnastics and for coaching the junior teams.

Spring Read

Mrs Bax, the librarian, is running a competition for pupils to design a logo for the Spring Readathon. The winning design will be entered into the East Ayrshire competition.

U Can Do It 2

In Business Education and ICT, S2 pupils will be taking part in the ‘U Can Do It 2’ Roadshow in Kilmarnock where pupils will experience workshops given by local industries.

Financial Visitors

A representative from banking will be in school to speak to our Learning Partnership P7 pupils’ as part of the financial maths programme. Also, S1 pupils will be speaking to staff from the Doon Valley Credit Union about the opportunity to start saving by opening savings accounts.

Homecoming 2009

As part of the school’s Homecoming celebrations, Burns Club pupils Robbie Uriarte and Peter Featherstonehaugh attended a wreath laying ceremony in Burns Statue Square. They laid a wreath to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns. The pupils then attended a civic luncheon in the presence of the First Minister Alex Salmond and Winifred Sloan, the Provost of Ayr.

Stock Market Challenge

On Thursday 22 January five pupils from S3 represented Doon Academy at the Stock Market Challenge, which was held in the Mitchell Library, Glasgow. Pupils were given £15,000 to invest in the Stock Market with the object being to maximize the team’s portfolio value by buying and selling shares in nine listed companies and by trading in the Euro. The event gave pupils the opportunity to experience the excitement of dealing on a live stock market trading floor in competition with other regional schools. Pupils taking part were Ashleigh Mitchell, Lauren Mitchell, Laura Halbert, Ritchie Lindores and Gavin McFadzean. Mrs Stewart, Principal Teacher of Business Education and ICT, accompanied the group.

Spring Read

For the East Ayrshire Spring Read we are delighted that two authors, K. M. Grant and Catherine McPhail will be visiting the authority to discuss their work and give pupils tips on how to improve their writing skills.

Art news

In the Art Department, auditions will shortly be held for models for the fashion show. Lesley Baird the President of our Burns Club will be judging the Burns design competition and the winning design will be on the front of the Burns Supper programme. In the Coalfield Art Competition congratulations to 1st place Larissa Stirling, 2nd Natasha Allison and 3rd Cameron McCrorie.

Malawi

S1 to S3 Mentor Groups have begun discussing fundraising ideas to gain funds to provide meals for Malawian school children. These ideas will be developed into a programme of activities in the school. All the funds raised will go to the charity Scottish International Relief.

Rag Bag Collection

The school’s eco group, chaired by Mrs Elder, will be holding a Rag Bag collection to raise funds by recycling old or unwanted clothing and shoes. Any items of clean dry clothing or other textiles may be brought to the social subjects department.

Mini-motos

The latest challenge undertaken by 3rd year Doon Academy students in the Motor Vehicle and Fabrication Department is a complete overhaul of two mini-motor bikes. The purpose of this task is for the students to understand the basic operating principles of automotive technology. The students will remove engine, brakes, steering and wheels of the bikes until there is only the frame. They will then carry out basic fabrication repairs, paint the frame and then rebuild the bike. It is hoped upon completion the bikes will be tested by our very own Stig (Tom Bone).

New Citizenship programme

The Citizenship Programme has begun with a new group of S3 boys. 14 boys will be working after school, every Thursday for 10 weeks, on various activities including healthy eating topics, engineering with the college engineers, and sports. Good Luck boys!

Scottish Parliament visit

Doon Academy’s BBC School News reporters have been invited in February to the Scottish Parliament to interview our local MSP Cathy Jamieson. The reporters will be meeting Ms. Jamieson and having a behind the scenes tour of the parliament building.

Pamela Feggans

Congratulations to former pupil Pamela Feggans who has qualified, in Murcia Spain, for the Women’s European Golf Tour. Staff and pupils at the school wish Pamela every success on the golf circuit.

Burns Supper

Doon Academy’s Burns Supper will be held on Thursday 12th February from 7pm. The evening promises to be another outstanding success with the Immortal Memory presented by Kyle McCormick; recitations from our Burns competition winner, Lauren Shaw, runner up Fiona Kennedy and mathematics teacher Bryce Wilson. Tickets, priced £5.00, are available from Mrs. Cassidy 01292 550521.

New Ramp

Doon Academy and Kilmarnock College Motor Vehicle and Fabrication Department took delivery of their latest addition, a two-poster ramp. The aim of this latest acquisition is to provide the students with an enjoyable, challenging and active learning experience. Over the past few years, funding for these unique programmes have been sourced by the school, which has involved exploring many different opportunities. Other equipment we have includes MIG, TIG and spot welding equipment, machining lathes and a surface grinder. It is hoped that the department can open its doors wider and interest the local community by offering various short evening courses.

Dance

The Y Dance team will be in school teaching dancing skills to PE pupils.

Ski Trip

The school’s annual skiing trip will take place on the weekend of the 6th to 8th February. 36 pupils will be taking part and they are all hoping for lots of snow!

Art Competition

Congratulations to Robyn Boyce and Nicole McAllister who received highly commended certificates for the friends of the RSA competition. Well Done girls. Also, Doon Academy pupils have had great success in the Coalfield Art competition. Larissa Stirling gained 1st place with Natasha Allison 2nd place and 3rd place Cameron McCrorie. Congratulations to them all.

New ramp

To start the New Year off on an exciting footing the Doon Academy and Kilmarnock College Motor Vehicle and Fabrication Department have taken delivery of a new two-poster ramp. This will further improve the teaching and practical work of the programme. The students will be able to carry out practical aspects of braking, suspension, and drivelines on donated vehicles from Kilmarnock College. This equipment further enables the students to step closer to a fully recognised engineering certificate through the Institute of the Motor Industry, which we are hoping to have implemented by June 2009.

Mobile Phone Competition

In the Maths Department pupils are busy working on a competition to design a poster for a new mobile telephone store in the Burns Mall Kilmarnock. The winning entry will receive a new mobile telephone. The competition is open to all year groups.

Art Club

Also, art students from the Glasgow School of Art will be visiting the school to work with senior pupils on the upcoming fashion show. Anyone interested in developing their artwork should attend the Art Club, which meets every Wednesday after school.

Burns Supper competition

In the Art Department pupils are busy working on their artwork for the Burns Supper competition. There will be year group winners from 1st and 2nd year and the overall winning design will be used for the supper programme.

Goodbye, Mrs Lake

Staff and pupils bid a fond farewell to Mrs. Donna Lake who has taken up her new position as Principal teacher of Mathematics at Kyle Academy. Good Luck Mrs Lake we will miss you.

Burns Supper

This year Doon Academy’s Burns Club celebrates its 10th anniversary and we have many events being planned. One of which will be our annual Burns Supper to be held on Thursday 12th February.

BBC School News Reporters

Doon Academy’s BBC School News reporters have been invited in February to the Scottish Parliament to interview our local MSP Cathy Jamieson. The reporters will be meeting Ms. Jamieson and having a behind the scenes tour of the parliament building.

Literature Circles

In English, S3 pupils taking part in Literature Circles have been choosing the books for their group reading. The pupils used book review sites to help them make their decision. The Discussion Directors have selected their group and are busy allocating team roles. Literature Circles are a fun way of encouraging pupils to read and discuss books.

Uniform success

Senior Management organised a snap S1 assembly and were very pleased that everyone was in full Doon Academy uniform. The pupils were rewarded with a goodie bag. Well Done to S1.