Y dance display at SLF

On Thursday 23rd September, 13 S3 pupils travelled to the SECC in Glasgow to take part in the Learning Festival. All the pupils had been involved with East Ayrshire’s pilot scheme which highlighted the dangers of smoking, drinking and taking drugs alongside encouraging the pupils to take part in exercise, in particular dance. The pupils had learned a dance routine which they performed in front of an audience at the SECC and some spoke about their experiences. Well done to the following pupils who had a great day out and represented their school and district in a very positive manner: Hope Stark, Zoe Gibson, Demi McCreadie, Varri Murdoch, Tammy Reid, Tami McLelland, Hazel Murdoch, Raegan Heggie, Blair McCrone, Carly Hay, Fiona Kennedy, Rachel Maxey, Kody Nutt and Alex Dearie.

Maths Challenge 2010

Well done to S3 pupils Connor Strang and Hayley Mitchell and S4 pupils Heather Dunn and Rosie Coles who represented Doon Academy at the Maths Challenge 2010. The team performed well in a closely contested competition which was narrowly won by Loudoun Academy. Thank you to Mr. Dunlop from the Maths department who accompanied the pupils to the event.

Under 15s netball success

The following pupils have been picked to represent Ayrshire in the Under 15s netball league: Lauren Shaw; Claire Boyd; and Jade Scott. The girls had to endure 2 gruelling trials at Queen Margaret Academy and beat off competition from another 55 girls who came from all over Ayrshire. Well done girls Doon Academy’s staff and pupils are very proud of you!

European Day of Languages

Doon Academy celebrated the European Day of Languages by learning new words in as many different languages as possible ranging from Arabic to Swahili. Pupils made puppets and filmed sketches in French, as well as singing songs and playing games. A great day was had by all!

Scottish Chamber Orchestra

Musicians from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra (SCO) visited the school and conducted workshops with pupils to help them extend their musical talent. The pupils then attended a performance by the SCO which was described by pupils as magical.

Wear it Pink

The S4 Care Group working with Tammy Borthwick had a visit from Wendy the community midwife. Wendy spoke about her work and the group asked many questions. They have also been busy organising fund raising activities for this year’s ‘Wear it Pink’ Day on Friday 22nd October in aid of breast cancer research. The group have arranged for face painting, a pink wearing non-uniform day and two raffles. All donations are welcome for this worthy cause and well done to the care group for your excellent enterprising attitude.

Board Games for Alzheimer's Scotland

In the Art department a group of S3 pupils are working with Enterprise Officer Linda Paterson and Jennifer McKeand from Alzheimer’s Scotland to produce board games for people with dementia. The group already have some good ideas and they could make history as nothing like this has been made before. We wish them every success.

Hospital visit

Principal Teacher of Guidance Steven Kelly accompanied a group of 10 S5/6 students to Ayr Hospital for a NHS Awareness Day to find out about possible careers relating in the health industry.

Student Teachers

Our student teachers, Suzanne Frazer and Ruth MacCallum, have now returned to university following their two week observation placement. We look forward to their return at the beginning of November.

Art Trail Workshops

Local Loch Doon artist Geoff Forrest visited the school and held workshops with pupils in preparation for the forthcoming Art Trail.

New School Captains

Congratulations to Marie Reid and Kyle Stewart who have been selected to serve as School Captains.
They will be ably assisted by Vice Captains Lesley Baird, Tazmyn Hearton, Alistair Dunn, Gordon Copeland and prefects Caitlin Downie, Nicolle Edmonds, Connie Hose, Sophie McFarlane, Aimee McKnight, Megan Stark, Megan Freel, Paula Glancy, Chelsea Maitland, Natalie Millar, Andrea Miller, Sheryl Murray, Stephanie Smith, Larissa Stirling, Lisa Teasdale and Conner Weir. We wish them all every success in performing their duties.

Sponsored Walk

Doon Academy's Sponsored Walk will take place on the afternoon of Friday 1st October. The pupils and staff will undertake a 5k walk leaving from the school, along Bellsbank Brae and through the Craigengillan Estate. This event will help pupils and teachers raise money for the school. Funds will go towards educational trips and outings to help broaden our pupils’ curriculum.

Science Museum trip

The S3 Doon Academy/Kilmarnock College engineering class with be visiting the Science Museum in Glasgow with college staff Billy Tomlinson and Keith Johnstone. The pupils will be undertaking a series of challenges relating to the interactive exhibits.

BBC Local News project

Doon Academy’s BBC School News Reporters were delighted to welcome local community members Miss Annie Joss MBE and Mr James Gilmore to the school. Miss Joss and Mr. Gilmore spoke to the reporters about their work and lives particularly relating to living in the Doon Valley area. They then worked with the reporters on the internet to research information. Laura Simpson from the BBC recorded the event for possible broadcasting on the BBC.

Ayrshire Under 15 Netball Trials

Congratulations to S3 pupils Claire Boyd, Lauren Shaw and Jade Scott who have reached the 2nd round of the Ayrshire under 15 Netball Trials. Good luck in the next round girls!

Skills for Work

In PSE all S3 have begun their first assessment for ‘Skills for Work’ this programme is to prepare them for their work experience and Workit in 4th year.

Work Experience

S4 pupils will be on work experience placements the week of the 4th to 8th October.

The Nine Lives of Roddy Hogg

The Baldy Bane theatre company visited the school to perform, for all S1, their road safety play ‘The Nine Lives of Roddy Hogg'. The play introduces a rich variety of characters as Roddy’s way through life sees him using up his nine lives, one by one. The consequences of his actions are fatal.

Sheepdog Trials success

Congratulations to S4 pupil Robbie Welsh who came 19th out of 60 representing the Scotland team at the International Sheepdog Trials in Ireland. This is a tremendous achievement for Robbie as he is the youngest person ever to qualify for the Scotland Team.

Dracula trip

Higher and Intermediate 2 English pupils will be visiting the Palace Theatre in Kilmarnock on the evening of Thursday 7th October to see a production of Liz Lochead’s ‘Dracula’. The cost is £11 which includes ticket and transport. Please see Mrs. Murray or Miss. Borthwick for more details.

Young Musician of the Year

Doon Academy’s ‘Young Musician of the Year’ competition was a tremendous success and everyone really enjoyed the evening. The Master of Ceremonies was former pupil Lorna Dempsey and the adjudicator was East Ayrshire’s Instrumental Service Manager Paul Wood. Guest artistes were the Dalmellington Senior and Junior bands conducted by Ian Taylor. Thank you to Band Leader Hugh Johnstone MBE who donated the winning trophies. This musical extravaganza featured outstanding competitors: Leanne Waugh, Michael Harvey, Robbie Uriarte, Claire Boyd, Stephanie Carrick, Paul Jamieson, Annabel McTaggart, Darren McLelland, Nicky Fairbairn, Kirsty McCormick, Fiona Kennedy, Frazer Buchanan, Lisa Chalmers, Lauren Young and Hazel Limond. The winner was Tazmyn Hearton with her rendition of Valerie and runner-up was Gail Limond playing How Great Thou Art on the Eb Horn. Congratulations to everyone who took part in the event which will be an annual feature in the school calendar for years to come. . Thank you to Mrs. Rae Principal Teacher of Music and Music Instructors David Sullivan, Barbara Lee and Gary Patterson for all their hard work, dedication and expertise.

The Music department will be hosting a fundraising event on Friday 21st October.

Activate

We welcome back Nancy Law from Careers Scotland who will take the ACTIVATE group for S5/6 students. ACTIVATE helps students develop skills, and obtain the knowledge, to assist them in moving on from Doon Academy to further education or into employment.

Coalfields Art Competition

In the Art department pupils have once again been taking part in the Coalfields Art Competition. The theme this year is ‘Toys of Yesteryear’. Doon has won 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in this competition for the past 2 years and there are high hopes for this year’s entries.

Spring Read 2011

East Ayrshire school librarians are putting together a bid for Spring Read 2011. The authors they are going to ask for are Keith Gray, Gillian Philip, Cathy Forde and another.

Student Teachers

Two student teachers from the University of the West of Scotland are on placement in the school. Ruth MacCullum is in Biology and Susanne Frazer in English. We wish them every success and hope they enjoy their time at Doon.

Sponsored Walk

Doon Academy's Sponsored Walk will take place on the afternoon of Friday 1st October. The pupils and staff will undertake a 5k walk leaving from the school, along Bellsbank Brae and through the Craigengillan Estate. This event will help pupils and teachers raise money for the school. Funds will go towards educational trips and outings to help broaden our pupils’ curriculum.

Cambridge University visitor

Doon Academy staff, parents and pupils were delighted to welcome Cambridge University’s Schools Liaison Officer Joshua Jowitt to the school. Joshua spoke to pupils and parents about the entrance requirements for Cambridge and about university life.

Scotland team place

Congratulations to S4 pupil Robbie Welsh who is in the Scotland Team to go to the International Sheepdog Trials in Ireland on the 15th and 16th September. This is a tremendous achievement for Robbie as he is the youngest person ever to qualify for the Scotland Team. Also, we believe no other national team has had anyone as young as Robbie in their team. Good Luck Robbie from everyone at Doon Academy.

Summer Reading Challenge winner

Mrs. Bax our librarian ran a summer reading competition where she asked S1 and S2 to read a book during the summer holidays in an interesting or humorous place and to submit a short review to the Doon Reads blog. Frazer Buchanan read Theresa Breslin’s book ‘Prisoner of the Inquisition’ in a cupboard and under his bed! He submitted his review and made Mrs Bax laugh on a dull Monday morning and so he won! Congratulations to Frazer who won a signed copy of the book.

Business Challenge

The S3 Business management class are busy working on their projects for the Coca-Cola Challenge.

New Peer Mediators

Congratulations to S6 pupils who received their Peer Mediation training and have now qualified as Peer Mediators. The mediators will help junior pupils with any problems they encounter in school.

Theatre trip

Higher and Intermediate 2 English pupils will be visiting the Palace Theatre in Kilmarnock on the evening of Thursday 7th October to see a production of Liz Lochead’s ‘Dracula’. The cost is £11 which includes ticket and transport. Please see Mrs. Murray or Miss. Borthwick for more details.

BBC project

Doon Academy’s BBC School News Reporters have been selected by the BBC to be one of 10 schools in Scotland to work with the BBC on a Media Literacy/First Click project. The reporters will work with older family and community members to learn together whilst researching a topic of their choice. The participants will have access to BBC archives and the chosen topics may be commissioned by the BBC for broadcasting on television and radio.

Ayrshire Netball Trials

S3 pupils Jane Scott, Lauren Shaw and Claire Boyd will attend the Ayrshire Netball Team trials to be held at Queen Margaret Academy on the 15th September. We wish them every success.

Art Attack Club

The Art Attack Club is held every Wednesday 2.45pm to 4.15pm. All budding artistes are welcome to attend.

PE Pupils of the Month

In the PE department the S1 pupils of the month are Cheryl Allison and Sam McCrorie. Congratulations to them both.

Netball training

Netball training for the girls’ teams is held on Tuesday lunchtime and after school on Thursdays. All girls are welcome to attend please see Mrs. Ferrie for details.

BBC Blast

The S3 Media Group had a really interesting and informative day when they visited the BBC Blast event which was held at the Low Green Ayr. The group worked with BBC staff to write and record ‘Sketching Britain’ a radio comedy sketch show which was broadcast on the BBC Blast Out Loud radio programme. Lauren said ‘It was a great day and I really enjoyed recording the show in the sound booth’.
Here is their recording



See more Audio at TeacherTube.com.

ASDAN Bronze Award

Congratulations to S4 pupil Liam Haining who has completed six modules of the ASDAN course and will be presented for a Bronze Award. The modules Liam has worked are Home Management 1 and 2, Number Handling; The Environment, Expressive Arts and the Wider World. Liam is now working towards his Silver Award and, if successful, will be the first pupil from Doon Academy to achieve such an award.

Ski Trip 2011

Mrs McLay is organising the annual ski weekend to Aviemore. The trip will take place after school Friday 4th to Sunday 6th February and the cost is £175. Please see Mrs. McLay in Guidance for further details.

Young Musician of the Year

Doon Academy’s Young Musician of the Year Competition will be held in the school hall on Friday 10th September 2010 from 6.40pm to 9pm. This musical extravaganza will also feature the Dalmellington Senior Band. Tickets are £3.50 for adults and £2 for children and are available from the school office 01292 550521. The ticket cost includes refreshments and a finger-buffet.

West FM School of the Week

Well done to S4 pupil Dara Murphy who applied for the school to be West FM’s School of the Week and was accepted. Songs dedicated to Doon Academy were played on the radio at 8.30am and 3.30pm for a week.

Under 13 Footlball

Mr. Kelly was pleased with the turnout for the Under 13 Boys Football Trials. A squad of 15 will be selected to compete in the Ayrshire League and Ayrshire Cup competitions. Good Luck Boys.

DAFT

Former pupil Shayla Tullis visited the school to tell pupils about her new drama groups which have begin in Dalmellington and Patna. The sessions are based around learning about acting techniques in theatre and film. We wish her every success.

Targeted Support

The school launched its Targeted Support Programme on the 1st September. This after school group meets to give pupils a chance to catch up with class work and homework which proves tricky or has been missed.

School photographer visit

The school photographer has taken individual and class photographs of S1, S3 and S5 pupils. These will be available shortly for purchase.

Health4Life logo competition

In the Art and Business and ICT departments S1 to S3 pupils are designing a logo for our new Comenius ‘Health4Life’ Project. There are 4 prizes to be won for the best designs and the overall winning logo will be entered for the international competition with our partner schools in Belgium, Greece, Poland, Portugal and Spain. Good luck to all the pupils taking part in the competition.