Poetry Workshop at the Sea Fever exhibition

S3 Art and Design students took part in a poetry workshop with author and poet Kate Tough at the Dick Institute in Kilmarnock on Monday the 19th of November. Students firstly had a tour of the Sea Fever exhibition and then created their own poems based on the exhibition. All students really enjoyed the workshops and had fun writing their poems. Students will now take what they have learnt and write a poem about themselves based on the self portrait they have been working on in class.

S3 Leadership 2

The second part of the S3 Leadership Academy was a great success. Pupils developed various leadership skills from teamwork, respect, creativity, integrity, focus and awareness. An assembly will be held next week where students will graduate and receive their certificate and polo shirt. Well done to all who took part.

Leadership

The second half of our 3rd year students will take part in our Leadership Academy. Workshops will be based in school where students will be developing their team working skills, perseverance, creativity, awareness and focus. Students will also take part in a residential at Dalguise where they will be involved in various outdoor activities over the weekend.

Leadership Academy

S3 students will be taking part in the school’s Leadership Academy. Workshops will be delivered in school over three days and then a residential will take place in Dalguise where students will take part in outdoor activities over the weekend.

Army Work Experience

Congratulations to S3/4 pupils Taylor McKnight, Michael McCreath, Reece Higgins, Robert Brown, Patrick Gilmore, Connor Halbert, Aaron McKinstray, and Cameron Smith who attended a work experience placement with the Army at their barracks in Garelochhead.

ASDAN visit to Craigengillan

The S3 ASDAN group visited the Craigengillan Estate to help raise awareness of the Country Code. While there, we saw and heard plenty of wildlife as well as meeting some very friendly horses. Mrs Chapman showed us the outdoor curling rink. We were careful to leave gates as we found them and although we admired some wild flowers (bluebells), we didn't pick them. We were all fascinated by Kody's observation of a snail crossing the road. She marked its starting point with a coin so we could see how far it had got on our way back- not very far was the unanimous decision! It was a blustery day but we managed to dodge the showers and we all agreed the fresh air made a pleasant change from the classroom!

Netball success

On Monday 7th March, Doon Academy’s S3 netball team visited Ardrossan Academy for the next game in their league. After a long bus journey, our girls were eager to get going. The game started with a fast Ardrossan point but Doon was not put off, as they quickly got another 3 points back. Annabel McTaggart controlled centre court with ease with Tammy Reid and Paige McMahon helping in the wings. By half time, the score was 10-1 to Doon and spirits were high. Going into the second half, Ardrossan managed to pull back some points after their half time change over but it wasn’t enough. Sophie Dobbie and Jade Scott worked the circle like experts and managed to get another 5 nets. At the opposite side of the court in defence, Claire Boyd and Amy Fulton, worked well together in keeping the Ardrossan shooters from scoring many more. The final score ended with Doon Academy winning 15-6. Well done to Sophie Dobbie who received Player of the Match for her accurate and consistent shooting.

S3 Peer Education

An S3 peer education group has been assembled with the help of Heather McCormick and Melissa McCulloch from community learning and development. The group will focus on developing a play/film based on important issues within the local community and present it to associated primary schools.

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.

Business Challenge

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

Leadership

S3 pupils attended a Leadership course at Kilmarnock College where they undertook activities in communication and leadership skills as part of Doon Academy’s Leadership programme.

S3 Examx

Pupils in S3 have now finished their examinations and teachers are busy marking their papers. Many thanks to our invigilators for their assistance with the exams.

Cathy MacPhail

Pupils in S3 taking part in Literature Circles visited Kilmarnock Academy to see famous author Catherine MacPhail. The trip was arranged as part of the East Ayrshire Spring Read programme. Ms. MacPhail spoke to the pupils about her books and how she researches her ideas for the stories. Everyone enjoyed her talk and they also picked up ideas which would help them with their folio writing.

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.

Campus Day

FOCUS West (formerly GOALS) will be hosting a Campus Day in December for 30 S3 pupils. Pupils will undertake tasks to assist them in their future goals in Higher Education.