With a week to go before we finish for Christmas we are focusing on keeping all our pupils engaged in their learning. Many of the seniors, who have just sat their prelims, will be beginning to get some of their marks back and will be discussing their next steps in learning with their teachers. There will be further engagement on this with parents/carers at the Parents’ Evenings in January.

Next Friday morning, our last day of term, we are going to have a whole school quiz after break time and also watch our Christmas Concert together as a school.

Staffing

Tricia Mulroy (Business Support Assistant) leaves us this week to take up a post at Belhaven Hill School. We would like to wish her all the very best in her new post.

Vicky Lyon (Pupil Support Leader for Support for Learning) Dr Lyon will leave us at the end of the first week back after the Christmas holidays to take up a teaching post in Midlothian. We will miss her great knowledge and skills; not just in her expertise in SfL/ASN but across the wider school in terms of activities she had led in her time here – including Duke of Edinburgh.

S2 Parents’ Evening

Thank you to all parents who attended the parents’ consultation on Wednesday evening and from speaking to staff, conversations about your young person’s learning, progress and next steps were very productive. Since we have moved to virtual parents’ evenings attendance rates seem to have risen – which is great – as it is when the school, parents/carers and pupils work together that the best results ensue!  So thank you all for your engagement and support. 

Parent Council Meeting - Learner Pathways and Careers

Thank you to Chris Trotter (Skills Development Scotland) and Elaine Gorman (Developing the Young Workforce) for speaking to the Parent Council last night about the service they offer to our young people, learner pathways and the vast array of options available to our young people.  Our S2-S5 pupils will begin selecting their new courses for next session in February and there will be further information to pupils and parents in January in regard to this, as well as a Parents’ Information Evening to help support these subject choices.

E-Sgoil – Learner Pathways (S2 –S5 Parents and Pupils)

Please join E-Sgoil between 13 and 17 December for their Winter Pathway’s weeks. There will be four 30 minute sessions per day where experts will share their career journeys and advice for young people. No registration is required and you can access these sessions here. Sessions are recorded so you can access these anytime or even watch them during the Christmas break.

Foundation Apprenticeships (FAs)

Skills Development Scotland and the National Parent Forum for Scotland (NPFS) have arranged a session for parents on FAs. This will take place on Tuesday 14 December from 7-8pm. Parents can register here. This event is free of charge.

Christmas Lunch

This took place yesterday, Thursday 9 December. Thank you so much to our wonderful catering team who put on an amazing spread for us all. It was very tasty indeed and pupils and staff really enjoyed it.

Christmas Kindness

We have been working really hard over the past 18 months to strengthen our links with our local community groups/charities, from which many of our young people and their families receive invaluable support. Haddington Bridge Centre and Lammermuir Larder have launched their 2021 Christmas gift and food bank appeal and we are fortunate enough to be joining forces for the second year in a row. Any donations of new, unwrapped gifts would be gratefully received. 

Collection boxes will be available until Monday 13 December and can be found at Aubigny Sport Centre and Home Bargains store in Haddington.   We are also collecting donations of non-perishable food items. Each registration class will have a collection box available for donations.  Alternatively, gifts/food items can be handed into the pupil support base until Monday December 13. 

Thank you for your generosity and continued support (by Gail Fraser)

Poppy Scotland

The Poppy Scotland Team went around Haddington to deliver tins and poppies to shops in the local area. Many shops were happy to help and in total, the shops, schools and people in Haddington raised over £5,350 for Poppy Scotland! Certificates were made and given to the shops who participated in raising money for Poppy Scotland, with most of Haddington’s High Street and the surrounding area partaking.

The Knox Poppy Group also volunteered to stand in Tesco for two hours over two weekends, leading up to the 11th of November, which helped Tesco to raise over £2,900 for Poppy Scotland - an astonishing amount. On the 11th of November, the Poppy Scotland team hosted a bake sale, with poppy-themed biscuits and cupcakes. The bake sale accumulated to a total of £88. The social area was decorated to fit the poppy theme, and a two-minute silence was held at 11am, before the bake-sale. Knox’s Senior Pupil Leadership Team attended the Remembrance Sunday Service at St Mary’s Church to represent the school, laying a wreath at the Cenotaph.

Knox Academy’s total was £261.21, an incredible amount raised by the office, staff and pupils.  The team went around the school and into classes to collect donations and hand out poppies. Thank you all for your support and donations, overall, we raised a fantastic £5357.98! (by Anna Grosse, S6)

Amnesty Group

The Amnesty Group is holding a badge, candy cane and other goodies stall in aid of this charity at break on Tuesday 14th December in the Foyer area.  Pupils are encouraged to come along and support this and human rights. (By Liane Montgomery)  

Netball

Congratulations to the 14 girls who attended their first netball fixture of the year with Mrs Leighton, away to Preston Lodge High School. We were able to field two teams across S1-S3 year groups and had several small games. For some of the girls, this was their first competitive match and did extremely well adapting to the pace of the game with the help and support of our experienced players. Unfortunately the accumulated score ended in 24-16 to Preston Lodge but we look forward to the return leg in the New Year! (By Lana Borwick)

Covid-19

Please continue to report all positive Covid-19 cases to covidinschools@eastlothian.gov.uk or if you do not have access to email, telephone 01875 613921. Please also inform the school so we can amend your young person’s attendance record. Pupils should continue to do twice weekly LFD tests. LFD kits are available every morning on arrival to school and during the day from the office. They can also be collected from pharmacies and test centres.

Please do not send pupils to school who have symptoms. They should self-isolate and book a PCR test and not return to school until they know this is negative and they have no symptoms.

The Parent Club also provides useful information on testing for pupils.

Dates for you diary (please also see the School Calendar for overview and updates):

Friday 17 December – End of Term (12.15pm)

Wednesday 5 January 2022 – Term starts (8.28am)

Thursday 13 January – S4 Parents’ Evening (virtual)

Tuesday 25 January – S5/6 Parents’ Evening (virtual)

Monday 31 January – Parent Council (6.30-8pm – virtual)

Monday 14 February – Monday 21 February (inclusive) – Pupils’ holiday

Monday 21 February – Staff in-service training

 

Sue Cook

Please also remember to follow us at: www.ka-net.org.uk @knoxacademy @knoxacademyHT for the latest information and updates