ALLOA ACADEMY NEWSLETTER November/DECEMBER 2011

Dear Parents/Carers,
The song says “It’s beginning to feel a lot like
Christmas” and that is certainly true of Alloa Academy in
the last few days. Christmas has spread all round the
school - in PE the activity has been social dance as all
ALLOA ACADEMY
NEWSLETTER
November/DECEMBER
2011
students prepare for our Christmas ceilidhs; there has been the sewing of Christmas
Wreaths and tree decorations and the baking of many mince pies in Home Economics;
the Enterprise and Employability class has been selling Christmas tree decorations,
goodie bags and decorated jars of sweets; S2Technology classes have designed the
Christmas cards that have been sent out from the school; our EASN department have
already had a fantastic Christmas party; in English, work is centred around Charles
Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”; the Creative and Aesthetic team put together a lovely
evening concert with Art work on display and staff are busy rehearsing their zones and
acts for the famous penultimate event. As usual then, the school has a constant buzz
of activity and you will see photos from many of these activities and all of the others
going on in the school in this Newsletter.
It has, in general, been an extremely busy term for us. Over the course of
November and December, we had three Parents’ Evenings, all of which were well-
attended. We do appreciate the opportunity to speak directly with you and share ideas
about how your children are progressing and how we can work together to help them.
Thank you also to all parents who filled in evaluation forms about the different format
of the evenings. So far, the support for each style of Parents’ Evening is about equal,
with positive and negative points made about each. There are still several responses to
be returned from the staff.
The monitoring of learning and teaching has been a priority for us this term. We
were visited by our Quality Improvement Officers who observed 33 lessons around the
school and who spoke with groups of pupils and staff. The feedback we have received
from them has been highly positive. The SMT also completed a monitoring period with
the English department and found that there is a huge variety of types of learning

going on in classes there. We observed drama lessons, philosophical enquiry, poetry
competitions, co-operative lessons on Higher texts and students’ responses to them,
group work of varying kinds and reading challenges. Classes in English have also enjoyed
completing the Biscuits for Excellence Reading Challenge which some of you completed
during the Open Evening in early October.
As you are all aware, we have had a day’s closure due to industrial action and a
half-day closure for the high winds and stormy weather. We are very much hoping that
we will be able to get through next term without any major disruption of the kind
brought about by the weather last year! Communicating with you about school closures
and indeed about what is going on in the life of the school is a priority for us. We have
made positive use of our text facility this session and we try to keep Clacksweb and our
own school website updated with news about forthcoming events or changes to plans. A
copy of the reports and photographs which are sent weekly to local newspapers is also
uploaded weekly to the website. We hope that you enjoy reading about the
achievements and exploits of the school community!
At the end of this term, we will be saying farewell to Support Assistant, Janet
Robertson who has served generations of children in Alloa Academy. Janet is retiring
to spend more time with her family but has intimated that she would like to volunteer
with the adult literacy service. On behalf of the many children whom Janet has
supported over the years we thank her and wish her well for her well-deserved
retirement.
It only remains then, for me to thank you all for your continuing support and to
wish all families and friends of Alloa Academy a very merry Christmas and a Happy New
Year 2012 with a traditional Ayrshire blessing:
Lang may yer lums reek and yer kale-pots bile
An’ may the wee moose ne’er turn away frae yer floor-
sacks wi’ a tear in his e’e.
Jackie Ebsworth
Headteacher: Mrs J. Ebsworth
Alloa Academy
Bowhouse Road, Alloa FK10 1DN
Tel: 01259 214979
Email: alloa@edu.clacks.gov.uk

Drop in
You are welcome to contact us at any time, by phone, 01259 214979,
by e mail alloa@edu.clacks.gov.uk or in person by calling in at the school
office. If there is something that you would like discussed with the
Management Team in person you can also use our drop in facility which operates
from 15.30 – 17.30 every month. The next date for your diary is:
Wed 25th Jan Tues 28th Feb
Supported Study
St Creative & Aesthetic: Staff are available in Art & Music most nights of the
week for any pupils who require help or somewhere to
complete their homework.
English Faculty: S4 and Higher supported study takes place every Thursday and
Int 1 and Int 2 every Tuesday.
Maths Faculty: Supported study for all levels is on every Tuesday, Wednesday,
Please Note:
Thursday and Friday.
Tracking and monitoring letters
for S3-S6 will be issued on
the following dates next term:
Mon 9 th January;
Mon 30 th January;
Mon 5 th March;
Thurs 29 th March
Jeans for Genes
Thanks to all pupils and staff that
helped organise or contributed to the
Jeans for Genes Appeal. We received
a letter of thanks and a certificate
for the £745.11 raised during our
appeal day.
Well done everyone.

Louise Robinson 1E2 03-Nov
Declan Walls 1B2 05-Nov
Blair O'connor 3E1 05-Nov
Claire Ramage 4B2 05-Nov
Colin Fotheringham 2B2 07-Nov
Jamie Allan 2S1 07-Nov
Ami Thomson 2B2 08-Nov
Jack Hann 4S1 08-Nov
Bruce Redfern 4S1 08-Nov
Gregor Whyte 2E1 09-Nov
Claire Banks 3S2 09-Nov
Chloe Douglas 2E1 10-Nov
Amy Alexander 2S2 10-Nov
Daniel Rodger 3E2 10-Nov
Connor Duncan 4B1 10-Nov
GX International
On Wednesday 26 th October the school received a visit from GX International, a
Christian youth group from Kansas with a passion for urban sports. The troupe
travels all over the world and are currently in the middle of a Scottish tour. They
delivered a high-energy performance in two morning assemblies, wowing pupils with
impressive break-dancing, skateboard and BMX stunts and rapping. They performed
free shows in Alva on the following Thursday night and in the Alloa Town Hall on
Saturday night.
Christmas Charity Appeal
We are continuing to collect household items for Start-up Stirling, and have had a
good response so far. Thank you to all pupils and families who have made a
donation. There is still time before the end of term to donate tinned or dried
goods. Start-up Stirling puts together packs of goods to help homeless people set
up when they get accommodation and they will be extremely grateful to receive the
goods donated by Alloa Academy.
The troupe were well-received by the pupils and excited everyone with their
presentation. We would like to thank them for their wonderful contribution.

Talent Show
Last month junior and senior pupils were treated to an afternoon of talent, put on by
their fellow students! Mr Veitch made a charismatic host, announcing the acts and
drumming up anticipation between sets.
The winner of the junior show was Adelle Turner, who sang beautifully. She was invited
back to sing at the senior show whilst the judges made their decision.
The senior show saw an array of musical talent, with four acts competing for first place.
Tristan McLelland sang a brave solo, Megan Thomson accompanied Kyla Lynch’s vocals on
piano, the Ali Boag Experience covered a hilarious Flight Of The Conchords song and The
Jack Pickles National Symphony Orchestra played some cool Arctic Monkeys’ songs. The
judges decided that the winners were The Jack pickles National Symphony Orchestra,
comprised of Gary Taylor, Bobby Patterson, Dean Oliver and Jack Pickles.
Well done to all the contestants for taking part, and to everyone who put effort into
making the show possible.
By Sophie Kindreich

The current S5/6 Enterprise and Employability class have been involved in many
vocational projects.
S5/6 Enterprise and Employability Pupils
On Wednesday the 12 th of October the school held an opening evening which all
pupils and parents could attend. The Enterprise and Employability class were
involved in many ways such as arranging and running a tombola stand, running a
cafe and taking orders for small Christmas cakes made by the Home Economics
department. They cost £6.50 each and come in a diverse range of, Christmas
trees, Reindeer, Snowman, Santa, snowflakes or Silver stars!
The tombola stand, run by Amanda Hamilton, Lisa
Furmage, Eilidh MacPherson and Gemma Niel, involved
the pupils collecting all the prizes and donations;
promoting the event and setting up a system of selling
raffle tickets for a chance of bagging some great
prizes!
Another aspect of the Open Evening which the
Enterprise and Employability class were involved in
was the smooth running of the Cafe. The pupils,
Shannan Love and Kendall Christie were selling tea,
coffee and a delicious selection of cup cakes.
Yummy!
The Enterprise and employability class also arranged
a karaoke party for EASN which was on the 14 th of October and a Halloween
party which was on Friday the 28 th of October.
OOO, spooky!

Open Evening.
By Alison MacFarlane
Alloa Academy welcomed the public through their doors for yet another
successful Open Evening. The event which was held on Wednesday the 12 th of
October saw pupils, parents, friends and the wider community paying visit to
different departments in the school. Visitors had the
chance to talk to different teachers and to have a
look around the classrooms and other learning areas
such as the library and canteen, which would not
normally be open to the general public.
There was a 1600 by 1600 display that contained a
piece of work by every single pupil in the school giving parents the opportunity
to see their child’s progress and hard work. During the evening we ran a merit
system where the visitors could, upon seeing
a pupil’s work, nominate them for a merit
award.
There were several events taking place in
each department; with hands on experiments
in Science, engineering skills being
demonstrated in Technical and cookery in Home Economics, there was something
for everyone. The Art Department were keeping visitors busy with a Biscuits
for Excellence quiz, where the public had to go round each department, finding
out which biscuit the Art teachers had made that would link with each subject.
The winners were: 1 st place, Lucy Deas (3B2), 2 nd place was Jasmine and Jordan
Lockie (4E1 and EASN respectfully) and in 3 rd
place, Jack Jarvie (3E2). There were also various
displays on during the night, including music
students performing some of their own pieces and
PE pupils engaging in a game of basketball.
Sports Development staff and Parent Council
members also attended the evening, offering advice and news about up and
coming events. The Enterprise and Employability
students were on hand with some of the Prefects,
House Captains and Head Prefects to offer tours
around the school, with a few of the Enterprise and
Employability students selling wooden bird boxes.

There was also a refreshment stall with some
delicious homemade cakes, baked by our own
Home Economics staff and pupils.
The feedback from the event, from everyone
involved was
reassuringly
positive, with
many visitors commenting on the displays of
work and how welcoming both the pupils and
staff were. The Head Girl would like to thank
all Prefects who were involved in the evening –
it was very much appreciated not just by the
staff but by the visitors also. Thank you to
Katie Bell, who took the photographs. Mrs
Ebsworth, Head Teacher commented “This
was a brilliant event which gave us the
opportunity to show off some of the great
work which goes on in Alloa Academy! Well
done to everyone involved”
Discos & Ceilidhs
The Halloween disco was a major success as we had an all senior party of spookiness where
it was ensured everyone was having a great time.
The fun evening helped to raise funding for the prom and yearbook at the same time!
Both of our junior and senior Christmas ceilidh events were extremely well-attended and a
great time was had by all. A big thank you is due to Jack Delaney and his band that, once
again, inspired our dancers to great performances. Mr Mackenzie kept things moving along
in his usual festive style and the level of fashion savvy was extremely high. Look out for
photos of the events.

Stephanie English (5E1) recently won the
ARKWRIGHT award, a scholarship for
engineering. She applied for the
scholarship in November, and had to
complete a series of aptitude tests and
interviews before she was awarded it.
WELL DONE STEPHANIE
From winning the scholarship
Stephanie will receive £300 this
year and £300 next year to
further and enhance her
knowledge of engineering, whilst
the school will receive £200 this
year and £200 next year to fund
their engineering projects.
Jade Campbell 2B2 12-Nov
Brooklyn
Proudfoot 3S2 12-Nov
Freya Mackay 1E1 13-Nov
Katie Bell 2S2 13-Nov
Amy Muir 4S2 13-Nov
Micheal Brown 3B2 15-Nov
Catrina Glancy 3S1 15-Nov
Elizabeth Mitchell 5B2 15-Nov
Robyn Jaffray 4E2 16-Nov
Calum Boyd 6S2 16-Nov
Thomas Fullerton 1B2 17-Nov
Edgar Lugo 3E1 17-Nov
Hannah Stirling 4S1 17-Nov
Josh Brown 2E1 18-Nov
Connor Paterson 4S1 18-Nov
Christopher
Stewart 5B2 18-Nov

CREATIVE & AESTHETIC
ART
FACULTY NEWS
Some of our Advanced Higher Art pupils recently went on an excursion to Edinburgh
to visit the Botanic Gardens and the Leith School of Art open day to enhance their
studies. Miss Alexander accompanied the pupils.
MUSIC
Pupils from the Music Department enjoyed an excursion to Glasgow on 1 st Nov to the
Royal Scottish National Orchestra’s concert for schools. Pupils listened to
movements of 5 of the most famous pieces for orchestra and were taken through
the background to the pieces by the presenter. Pupil comments were very positive
and Mrs Young (PT) was very pleased with the behaviour of the pupils.
After school clubs in Music are:
Tues – singing group taken by Miss Nunn (Vocal tutor)
Wed – Rock Choir taken by Mrs Young
Thurs – Instrumental group taken by Miss Ferguson
All new members welcome to all of these clubs.
Mrs Young would like to thank everyone who helped out in the Faculty for the recent
Open Evening, in particular those who performed.
Staff are available in Art & Music most nights of the week for any pupils who require
help or somewhere to complete their homework.
Alloa Academy Concert Orchestra: "Rehearsals are going well and we will be starting
to look at some Festive music, in the coming weeks. New members are always
welcome. The Orchestra is open to all instrumental players in the school. Rehearsals
take place on Thursdays at 3.10 in room 0-095. If anyone would like any further
information please contact Miss Ferguson in the Music Department."

S1 pupils have participated in the “Biscuits for Excellence” quiz. Created and introduced
by Miss Wilson in the Art Department “Big Biscuits” started as an S3 unit of work which
involved debate, reflective writing and making giant biscuits. This was followed by the
“Biscuits for Excellence” quiz at the Open Evening which proved to be a great success.
Miss Wilson liaised with each faculty to create subject specific biscuit posters and
questions - English posters, for example, included questions about Penguin books/biscuits
and alliterative biscuit titles. Prizes were donated by Nikki McWilliams, an ex-pupil who
now runs her own design business – featuring biscuit inspired products from cushions to
badges. Since the Open Evening staff members have participated in the quiz and, most
recently, first year pupils participated – the most exciting cooperative close reading task
to date.
ENGLISH:
Pupils participate in the
Biscuits for Excellence”
quiz

The S4 Employability unit closed with the Employability Awards Ceremony on the 21 st
November. Pupils who had successfully completed the unit were awarded certificates.
Work experience employers were invited to attend. Personal accounts of pupils’
experiences can be read further on in the newsletter!
Advanced Higher English pupils are making steady progress with their dissertations and
creative writing folios. These units are perhaps the most demanding parts of the course,
but are also the most rewarding. The pupils are studying a rich variety of (personally
chosen) texts for the dissertation, from an autobiographical account of life in Auschwitz
(“If This Is A Man” by Primo Levi), to a gothic mystery novel (“The Woman In Black” by
Susan Hill), to feminist science-fiction (“”The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood) to
a 350-page poem about the fall of Satan (“Paradise Lost” by John Milton). The full list of
studied texts, accompanied by the pupils’ reasons for choosing them, can be found on one
of the notice-boards in the English department. Have a read and be inspired!
One of our Advanced Higher pupils has had five articles published in The Herald, a
national broadsheet newspaper. This is a wonderful achievement.
Selected pupils will be invited to attend the Raising Attaining Group during Supported
Study sessions – though these sessions are, of course, open to all pupils. In previous
years those who attended such a group (and completed the work at home) improved by at
least one grade.
Unfortunately the Blood Brothers theatre trip had to be cancelled due to poor weather
conditions. The bus company kindly refunded the travel costs and the theatre offered
replacement tickets to pupils who could manage to make their way to the theatre on
another evening.

HEALTH & FITNESS:
It is nice to be congratulating one of our staff in the newsletter. Well done to the PE
Department’s Mr Mackenzie who recently represented Scotland in a senior hockey
tournament in Singapore. What a treat to have a celebrity in our midst especially one that
can inspire so many of our promising, young, sporting talent.
The Clackmannanshire Schools Cross Country Event took place on Tuesday of last week in
extremely difficult running conditions and foul weather. Alloa Academy was represented
by over 50 pupils all of whom performed well despite the wind and the rain. Special
congratulations go to our medal winners: Jodie Currie, Martin Mcnee, Aiden Cameron,
Shaun Morrison, Shaun Johnston and Nikki Reid. S5 boys won the team event. Well done
to them. Our Young Ambassadors once again made a valuable positive contribution to this
event – thanks to all of them.
On the right is a selection of
delicious looking Halloween cakes
made by pupils in the Home
Economics Department.
We are sure you will agree that
the quality of the decoration is
outstanding.
Gold PE Awards
From Left to Right:
Rachel Green, Chloe
Bremner, Shaniah McDade
and Kiera Gibson all receive
Gold PE awards.
Well done girls.

Rugby Match Report
The Brewin Dolphin cup match took place recently at Earslfield against Grangemouth High
School with our own team’s squad size depleted.
An early injury to Andrew Strang and later to Captain Chris Thomson meant that Alloa had
to work harder; with Andrew Stewart kicking the ball over the heads of Grangemouth,
catching it and scoring an excellent try.
Eventually Grangemouth’s larger numbers prevailed. Both sides played well and it was a
close game with Grangemouth narrowly scraping a victory.
Congratulations to the whole team for an excellent performance, and a rematch has been
scheduled when the team has a full squad.
Senior Boys
Rugby
Ross Stewart
Unfortunately the boys have gone out of the Central Schools bowl after we were unable
to play our fixture at Queen Victoria School due to water logged pitches. A coin was
tossed a QV have progressed to the next stage. The team are understandably
disappointed by this as we had an early departure from the SRU Brewin Dolphin Bowl. We
are actively seeking fixtures against local schools which will provide the boys with a much
desired opportunity to play!
S1-3 Rugby
Training is going well and fixtures are being arranged with Alva and Lornshill Academies
to provide the pupils with small sided and combined schools games.
Girls Rugby
The girls are working hard with Craig Bolan the Rugby Development Officer on a
Thursday night from 4pm-5pm on basic skills in preparation for the 7’s season but are
keen to play games against other schools. Anyone wishing
to join the girls rugby team should speak to
Alison Mcfarlane or Shelby Sammels.

Swimming
Congratulations to the Alloa Academy Swim Team who represented the School
at the Central Schools Swim Meet at Grangemouth Sports Complex on Saturday
12 th November.
Gold Medalists were –
Becca Hay 400m IM
Lewis McIntyre 400m Free 100m Free
Lachlan Ryan 100m Breast Stroke
Alloa 2 Canon Relay – Becca Hay, Craig Alexander, Joanna Petrie, Lewis
McIntyre
Silver Medalists were –
Joanna Petrie 200m Back crawl 100m Back crawl
Jordan Whitehead 200m Free
Craig Alexander 200m Breast Stroke 100m Fly
Jamie Marshall 100m Back crawl
Bronze Medalists were –
Lachlan Ryan 200m IM
Ruairidh Lawless 200m Back crawl 100m Fly
Jamie Marshall 200m Free
Eilidh McKay 100m Breast Stroke
The medalists have all achieved Scottish Schools Qualification times and will
hopefully be notified of selection in due course. All twelve swimmers competed
at an extremely high standard and contributed to the school finishing 3 rd out of
21 schools with a total of 94 points. A fantastic effort by all, well done.
Boccia Stars
Forth Valley Disability Sports Annual Schools Boccia Championships recently
took place at Tullibody Civic Centre.
Ben McLuckie won an individual silver medal.
The Alloa Academy team of David Wilson, Elle Wilson and Lee Duncan were joint
3rd with St
Modans HS.
All of these pupils will now go on to represent Alloa Acsdemy at the National
Schools
Boccia Championships which will be held in The Peak, Stirling, in February 2012.

Gymnastics
The Alloa Academy Gymnastics Team finished 3rd out of 6 teams to collect
bronze medals in
level 2 competition at the Scottish Schools Gymnastics Heats for
Clackmannanshire at Alva
Academy on Sunday 4 th December. The girls competed on both floor and vault
and recorded some very
competitive scores.
The team consisted of Neve McAleer, Gillian Reid, Jodie Currie and Rebecca
Bissett
Cross Country
Well done to all of the runners who represented Alloa Academy in the
Clackmannanshire Schools Cross Country Championships in the West End Park on
Tuesday 14 th December. All of the runners; some of whom it was there very
first race, performed exceptionally well in very poor running conditions.
Event medalists were –
S2 Girls: Jodie Currie – Silver
S3 Boys: Martin McNee – Gold
S4 Boy: Aiden Cameron – Gold
S5 Boys: Shaun Morrison – Bronze
S6 Boys: Shaun Johnston – Bronze
S6 Girls: Nikki Reid – Silver

Thank you to our AdiStar Young Ambassadors who helped coordinate our team
and staff both the Primary and Secondary events, you were a much talked about
credit to the school!
M MODERN STUDIES:
On Tuesday 13th December S3 History pupils visited the Riverside Museum:
Scotland's Museum of Transport and Travel. The purpose of the visit was to enrich
learning by allowing pupils to see the developments that have been made in
transport as part of the Standard Grade course - specifically from the 1880s to
present day. Pupils also were given the opportunity to learn more about the
Shipbuilding which took place on the Clyde which added to the knowledge they
developed in class. As an extra bonus we had the opportunity to board the Tall Ship
which sits in the Clyde and take a tour.
Jamieleigh Tanner 3S1: "I really enjoyed my trip to Riverside Museum, we got to
see a lot if interesting stuff and see how things have changed over the years, a
great day out."
Catrina Glancy 3s1: "Yesterday we went to the Riverside Museum. I thoroughly
enjoyed my visit because I got to see how technology has changed!"

VISIT T O THE TRANSPORT MUSEUM:

Lorna Douglas 1E1 20-Nov
Clodagh Killigrew 2S1 20-Nov
John Taylor 1E1 22-Nov
Jack Stewart 2S1 24-Nov
Niall McKenzie 3E2 24-Nov
Amy Armitage 1S1 25-Nov
Alanna Johnston 2E1 25-Nov
Lauren Archer 4B1 25-Nov
Sebastian
Poskitt-Marshall 5S2 25-Nov
Cameron Hunter 1S1 26-Nov
Amy Knox 2B1 26-Nov
Michael Douglas 4B2 27-Nov
Cameron Allan 4EASN 27-Nov
Becky Bissett 6E2 27-Nov
Kyla Lynch 5B2 28-Nov
Jack Birnie 1E2 29-Nov
Kerrylee Green 4S2 29-Nov
Shaun Johnston 6E1 29-Nov
Christy Bain-Bramely 3B1 30-Nov
Ellie Thompson 4EASN 30-Nov
Jake Browning 5E2 30-Nov
Kendall Christie 5S1 30-Nov
Korrie Couper 5S1 01-Dec
Steven Raby 2B2 02-Dec
Lisa Carruthers 2E1 02-Dec
Ryan Gray 4E1 04-Dec

SCIENCE:
At the open evening S6 pupils were taking parents’ blood pressure and
conducting demonstrations. Parents and pupils were offered a chance to try out
the Van de graph machine and the chemists among us were even given a chance
to create exploding methane bubbles using fairy liquid and the gas from the
taps.
Feedback indicated that as a whole the parents appreciated the practicality and
effort made for the open evening in the science department. It allowed them to
visually understand and put into context some of the science practices in a
learning environment!
SOCIAL SUBJECTS:
On Wednesday the 5 th of October, the current S5/6 higher religious studies
class, previous students and people interested in sitting the course next year
visited Samye Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple.
The trip was a very valuable experience for everyone involved as it allowed the
current students the chance to consolidate their learning while making the
people interested in sitting the course next year even more eager through the
chance to ask their tour guide all sorts of questions and experiencing some
aspects of a day within a temple at a very basic level.
The day consisted of a guided tour of the temple with explanations of all its’
different aspects, starting in the prayer room. The students also got the
chance to take part in different types of meditation.
At the beginning of the tour the students were in the prayer room. Within the
prayer room there were many interesting features including statues of the
Buddha. The guide then told us a little about a typical day within the temple
which included waking up very early, individually cleaning and then filling 1000
bowls of water and blessing them before placing them as offerings to the
Buddha. Then we participated in a simple breathing meditation.
After lunch, which was eaten in the temple canteen, where there was also silent
tables for the monks and nuns who had taking a vow of silence the students and
teachers were giving the chance to go exploring outside the temple before
meeting back in the prayer room. There were many statues and interesting

objects all representing different aspects of the Buddhist teachings. There
were two of which that were particularly appealing. There was a statue which
had a small wall around it, upon which people had left many random objects as
offerings to the Buddha. Many of our pupils decided to leave something in order
to show respect. The other was a prayer tree which allowed all visitors to put a
small donation in the box and tie a ribbon to the tree while stepping back and
making a wish. Also outside there were prayer wheels and many ashes in
remembrance of both humans and animals.
Another aspect of the day was participating in different forms of meditation.
One of which was a breathing activity in which you clear your mind of everything
and concentrate on your breathing. Later on in the day we moved on to more
complex meditations. We also got the chance to sit in on one of the prayers at
which there were many chants being spoken.
Just before the bus arrived to return to school everyone got the chance to visit
the gift shop and buy a souvenir to remind them of the great experience. The
shop had an amazing selection of goods including; prayer beads, prayer flags,
key rings, badges, books, candles, small statues of the Buddha and much more.
Overall, the visit to the Buddhist temple was an interesting and more
importantly a worthwhile learning experience.

TECHNOLOGY:
Our S1 pupils were issued with an e-pal from one of the feeder primary schools
and they sent them a personal invitation to the Learning Festival. They
recorded their thoughts and feelings about Alloa Academy in the Diary Room,
found in the Business and Computing Department, and also ran stalls for the
department on the day.
The enterprise and employability class created some Christmas craft and held a
sale on Friday the 9th of December. Each item for sale was handmade after
training at Retroglass; produce included glass stars, coasters, hanging
decorations, candy jars and goodie bags. These will make excellent Christmas
presents, so it’s no surprise they sold really well.
The S2 Business and Computing classes designed their own Christmas cards. A
winner in each class was chosen, and their cards were reproduced and were sent
out by Mrs Ebsworth to represent the school. Winners were Adelle Turner, Ami
Thomson, Brandon Cooper, Claire Goodman, Greta Martnyuk, Jamie Kerr, Lisa
Carruthers, Nadine Perry, Rebecca Strang, Ryan Leask, Sophie Davidson, Sophie
Pickles and Tom Wilson.
The Higher Computing class went on an outing to Strathclyde University for a
Christmas lecture. Mr McEwan accompanied around 12 students on Friday the
9th December to attend the lecture on cyber-security.
ASN:
Alloa Academy is progressing towards Dyslexia Friendly School status. As a
part of this process a workshop evening on how to support your child in Alloa
Academy, was held on Thursday 10th November.
Also there is a useful website: www.beatingdyslexia.com
If you have any queries with regard to this please contact Roger McAdoo, ASN
Department at Alloa Academy.

EASN
EASN had a Halloween party on Friday 28 th October. The Halloween party was a perfect
success. We had lots of fun. We all danced to the music and played lots of games.
Lee Duncan won best dressed with his prisoner outfit and Stevie Akande took the prize for
the girls with her vampire costume.
A big thanks to Christopher Thomson and Rebecca Gray for organising the event and also a
big shout out to DJ White for mixing the decks.
The Senior Class are attending Forth Valley College on a Tuesday. We are studying Art,
ICT, Cookery and Independent Living. We have made Macaroni Cheese, cakes and lots more
in cookery. In our Art classes we have made our own sketch books.
Neil Carruthers and Matt Deighton-Ashcroft have been selected to be a part of the Forth
Valley team to compete in the Scottish Disability Sport Junior Championships on the 16 th
November at Scoutstoun Leisure Centre. They are hoping to bring some medals back for
the school.

Two of our senior pupils, Melissa and
Hollie, interviewed some S1 pupils to ask
their opinion of their first year at Alloa
Academy.
The first years that participated in
these interviews were:
Catherine Rice (1B1), Chloe Perrie
(1B1), Emily Penman (1B1), Ross
Logan (1B1), Darren Stark (1S1),
Tj O’Neil (1S1), Michaela Whitfield
(1S1), Aiden Craig (1B1), Aidan
Brown (1B1), Jordan Duff (1B1),
Chloe Kenny (1B1), and Kaitlyn Gray
(1S1).
We would like to thank them all for
being so helpful and responding in the
ways that they did.
First year at the academy
What is your opinion of
first year?
Do you prefer it to
primary school?
Catherine: “It’s good, very enjoyable. Yes, I
like the fact that you aren’t stuck in the same
class, you get to move about and in most
classes you get to sit beside who you want.”
Chloe P: “It’s better because you get more
subjects. It gives you more subjects and you
learn more maths and French and stuff.”
Emily: “Good, but kind of scary because of all
the older people! Yes, more room to walk
about and have more teachers and subjects”
Ross: “I quite like it because walking between
classes makes you feel refreshed and it’s good
because you have different teachers. Yes,
because you aren’t stuck in the classroom for
the full day.”
Darren: “It’s alright. I prefer it to primary
because you are not stuck in the same class all
day.”
Tj: “It’s better than primary. There is more
space and you get better subjects. I like
moving about and not being stuck in the same
class all day, but, I hate going up all the
stairs.
Michaela: “I enjoy it.”
Aiden C: “I enjoy it, better than primary.”
Aidan B: “It’s better than primary.”
Jordan: “It’s harder work than primary.”
Chloe K: “It involves harder work, but you
have more freedom.”
Kaitlyn: “I enjoy it.”

Catherine: “English because I enjoy
reading and PE because the teachers are
nice and it’s energetic.”
Chloe P: “PE and English. In English we are
doing plays which I enjoy and in PE it’s fun
to play football and do gymnastics.”
Emily: “PE, it’s energetic but in PE you get
to run about and it’s fun.
Ross: “Social Subjects, because the
teachers funny and down to earth.
Especially, Geography finding out about
different cultures.”
Darren: “Woodwork because it is a
practical subject and you don’t have to
write or listen all period. Also, English
because we are doing a drama play and a
short story and I like it.”
Tj: “PE, I’m a sporty person and like to run
about.”
Michaela: “Art and Science because the
work is fun and I like the teachers.”
Aiden C: “PE or Science because they are
more fun and being active is better.”
Aidan B: “HE and PE because you get to sit
near your friends and cook.”
Jordan: “Social Subjects because it’s
interesting and you get to realise what
happens in modern day.”
Chloe: “Art, because you get to be
expressive.”
Kaitlyn: “Home Economics because I enjoy
cooking.”
What’s your favourite Subject, and
why?
What about the staff?
Catherine: “Most of them are nice.”
Chloe P: “Some are quite rubbish and some
are quite good.”
Emily: “Majority of them are nice but some
are serious and not nice.”
Ross: “Some are more serious than others.
Some are really nice and funny.”
Darren: “I don’t get on with all teachers.
Some are annoying but some are sound.”
Tj: “I like some of them. In certain subjects
I don’t get on with them.”
Michaela: “I think they are good at
teaching. I get on with some of them.”
Aiden C: “Some are good but some shout a
lot. I’d rather they didn’t shout it doesn’t
help.”
Aidan B: “Some are ok. Some are awesome.”
Jordan: “The English department has
amazing teachers.”
Chloe K: “Most are ok, but some are
crabbit.”
Kaitlyn: “I get on with them all. They are
lovely.”

Thomas O'Hara 2B1 06-Dec
Jenny Edwards 6S1 06-Dec
Sean Martin 2S2 07-Dec
Konnor Neil 3S2 07-Dec
Kieran Love 4B2 07-Dec
Nicole McNally 4B2 07-Dec
Jordan McGowan 2B2 08-Dec
Emma Campbell 4E2 08-Dec
Bobby Patterson 5B1 08-Dec
Connor Hay 1E1 09-Dec
Kayleigh Murray 3B1 10-Dec
Kirsty Logan 3B2 10-Dec
Euan Grieve 4S1 10-Dec
AnnLouise Cameron 4S2 10-Dec
Shannon Mulraney 1S1 11-Dec
Alexander Cunningham 3B2 11-Dec
Hannah Thomson 3B2 11-Dec
Gemma Mcewan 3S2 11-Dec
Hollie Allan
Opinion on the canteen – food and prices?
Catherine: “The food’s ok as you get a bigger and better choice than at primary
but the prices should be equal for different meals. Everything should be £1.”
Chloe P: “It’s good but I think the prices should go down. They should have two options of
soup and more options of meal deals.”
Emily: “It’s ok but could be better, if they put the prices down and had more of a choice.”
Ross: “Food had a good variety. MORE HOT DOGS!!
Darren: “The food’s fine.”
Tj: “The food’s alright, I’d like to see Spaghetti Bolognese on the menu.”
Michaela: “More chicken burgers. The prices are fair because if you went to another shop
it would be expensive.”
Aiden C: “I prefer to go to the shop or up the town.”
Aidan B: “The hot dogs are good but it’s good to go up the town with friends as well.”
Jordan: “Prices are expensive. I only like the hotdogs or pizza.”
Chloe K: “I like everything in the canteen but it’s expensive and a rip off for what you get.”
Kaitlyn: “I don’t eat in the canteen. I bring my own packed lunch”
5E1 11-Dec

English/guidance employability unit
In October 2011, I participated in work experience. I went to Perfection
which is a beauty salon in Alloa. On my first day I walked down, on my way
down to work I was very nervous but I was confident. I was properly
prepared. I was met by the receptionists and did a lot of cleaning and
watched people get treatments done. I worked with many different people
that worked there including the owner. I finished at 4 o’clock. At the end
of the day I felt exhausted but happy as I was excited about the next
day.
There was a lot I enjoyed about my work experience. I enjoyed helping
out, meeting new people and raising my confidence. I enjoyed knowing what
I was to do if I was to open up my own business. I think I was best at
cleaning; I used different equipment to do this such as nail equipment, and
different stuff. The 3 key skills I practised and developed the most were
being more confident and helpful and knowing what to do in an awkward
situation.
My work experience week was really exciting and enjoyable. Helping out and
getting stuff treatments done was a treat! I also enjoyed meeting new
people and knowing what it was like to be in a working environment. It was
easier than I expected. It gave me a lot more confidence!
In conclusion, work experience was a great experience I found a new
interest and it gave me a choice of what I want to do when I am older. My
work experience was what I expected to be, fun and enjoyable. I am glad I
had a chance have this experience.
W2 Personal Experience. By Claire Ramage

W1 Work Experience Rebecca Bridgeman
In October 2011, s4 Alloa Academy pupils commenced the Employability Unit. The broad aim
of the unit was to make people think about the world of work. English and Guidance worked
together on this project. Some of the tasks they done was helped all of 4 th years find
somewhere to go on a placement for the week, and had assemblies to tell us all about the
Employability Unit. On Mondays all the 4 th years gathered in the hall to have talks with
people about how to do interviews and what to act like in the work place.
Everyone had to fill out a pretend job application to give to some people from outside school
that were going to come in and have mock interviews with us. On the job application we had
to write down what we wanted to do for a job and write down our expected grades for the
exams, and also write down why we think we would be good at the job. A few local people
from different businesses came in to give us our mock interviews. They asked us lots of
questions about ourselves and why we think we would be good at the job and all the subjects
I liked best at school. Then they marked down grades for things like our appearance and
confidence etc.
All s4 pupils had the opportunity to participate in work experience. We could either go out
and find our own work, which I did or if you couldn’t find anything you could go to guidance
and ask them to find something for you. As 4 th years we were expected to be responsible and
mature about going in to the work place and not make a fool of the school.
The name of the company I worked for was called ABC nursery/Clackmannanshire Council.
They have roughly about 25 employees working there. I worked in the 2-3 years old room
and in there were 3 fulltime staff and 2 part-time staff working in that room. The woman in
charge of the room I was working in was called Linda Stewart and the overall head of the
company is Susan Fagan.
During the week I was there I worked with a woman called Amanda Speris. Her job title is
Early Years Worker. She had to do a two year training course at college and she has her
S.N.N.E.B qualification. With the work she does she said she has to use good communication
skills and good listening skills. She said she really like working with the families and the
children that go to the nursery. She said she had another job outside that one which was
childminding. I also asked her what else they would like to do and she said, family support
worker within the community.
After work experience s4 pupils were expected to complete some folio pieces for English work
e.g. writing a thank you letter and a personal experience. The Employability unit will be
concluded by inviting employers and interviewers to Alloa Academy to attend a short
ceremony of thanks.

The Learning Festival.
The school hosted a Learning Festival on Thursday, 13 th October 2011, inviting along
primary 7 pupils from local primaries to help support pupils with the transition from
primary to secondary school. The transition from primary to secondary school is an
important part of the lives of young people. As a part of its commitment to ensuring that
every young person achieves their full potential, Alloa Academy aims to provide all pupils
with a smooth transition from primary to secondary school.
In preparation for The Learning Festival, our S1 pupils were issued with an e-pal from one
of the primary schools and they sent them a personal invitation. They also recorded their
thoughts and feeling about Alloa Academy, in the Diary Room, in the Business and
Computing faculty. As well as running the stalls for all departments on the day.
At The Learning Festival pupils took part in different activities and could view some of the
learning that takes place within the school. Research has shown that the more aspects that
one pupil experiences, the happier they will be in their transition. This is one of Alloa
Academy’s S1 Curriculum for Excellence days, which involves all S1 pupils leading and
directing primary pupils as well as demonstrating some of the learning that has taken place
within the school.
S5/6 Enterprise and Employability pupils
helped with the preparations for the Learning
festival, such as:
filling the goody bags, making welcome posters
and downloading the diary room clips.
Everybody’s help was greatly appreciated

Ross Donnelly
4E2
12-Dec
Rebekah Shaw 4S2 12-Dec
Fraser Paton 5S2 12-Dec
Kirk Higgins 3E2 13-Dec
Shelby Hynd 4B2 13-Dec
Lachlan Ryan 6S1 13-Dec
Sean Bradie 2S1 14-Dec
Ross Duncan 4B2 16-Dec
Rhys Cooper 4S2 16-Dec
Laura Meldrum 6B1 16-Dec
Rebecca Gray 6S2 17-Dec
Tom Hutchison 4B2 18-Dec
Ruairidh Lawless 1B2 19-Dec
Ben McAulay 1E2 19-Dec
Yasmin Pratt 5B2 19-Dec
Shannon Robinson 5E2 19-Dec
Jade Hamilton 4S1 20-Dec
Kaitlyn Anderson 4B2 21-Dec
Liam Weir 4S1 21-Dec
Blair O'Donnell 5B2 21-Dec
Kayley Pinkerton 3B1 22-Dec
Cameron Chalmers 3E2 22-Dec
Raphael Dukes 3E2 22-Dec
Mark Johnston 4S1 22-Dec
Holly Crawford 5B1 24-Dec
Jack Breingan 4E1 25-Dec
Steven Thomson 4E1 25-Dec
Jamie Clelland 1B1 26-Dec
Chloe Bryce 3B2 26-Dec
Iain Medhurst 3B1 28-Dec
Sarah Fairley 5E2 28-Dec
Rhys Whyte 1S1 29-Dec
Andrew Gibson 6B1 29-Dec
Catherine Rice 1B1 30-Dec
John Lee 5B1 31-Dec
Keiron O'Neill 5E1 31-Dec

Christmas Ceilidhs
Both of our junior and senior ceilidh events were extremely well-attended and a
great time was had by all. A big thank you is due to Jack Delaney and his band
who,once again, inspired our dancers to great performances. Mr Mackenzie kept
things moving along in his usual festive style and the level of fashion savvy was
extremely high. Look out for photos of the events.
Alloa Academy Penultimate
The Penultimate Experience takes place today; Wednesday 21 st December. Pupils
will attend the various zones that have been set up in the morning and the
staff-run show in the afternoon.
There will be two shows and members of staff have been rehearsing their parts
for several months and have been working very hard!

Sports clubs
EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
The school has a number of sporting clubs for pupils to participate in
Club name Day Time Location Year group
Olympics club Tuesday 3:10 – 4:00 Gameshall S1
Badminton Wednesday 3:10 – 4:00 Gameshall S1 – S3
Football Wednesday 3:15 – 4:15 Astrograss S1 – S6
Basketball Thursday 12:35 – 1:10 Gameshall S1 – S2
Boy’s rugby Thursday 3:10 – 4:00 Astrograss S1 – S6
Girl’s rugby Thursday 4:00 – 5:00 Astrograss S1 – S6
Tae Kwan do Friday 3:10 – 4:00 Gameshall S1 – S5
For more information on any of the clubs or competitions talk to Anne Manson.
Anne can be found in the P.E base on Tuesdays from 2:00 till 4:00 and
Wednesdays 12:35 till 3:30
15 Below Snowsports club runs weekly trips to Sno!zone Braehead for
recreational skiing and snowboarding. They will also be beginning a new block of
snowsports lessons for any pupil wishing to learn how to ski or snowboard.
Snowboarding lessons will be on Wednesdays at the Sno!zone. Skiing lessons will
be at Firpark Ski Centre, Tillicoultry.
Any pupil interested in any of the above activities should see Ian Findlater or
Mrs Abel in the P.E base.
Miss Connel’s Science Club on Wednesday evenings in room 1-032 and
Miss Nimmo’s Photography Club on Monday evenings after school.

Full participation in PE – the importance of bringing your PE kit
and what happens when you don’t
As you will be aware, Alloa Academy is a Health-Promoting school and we
encourage all of our students to get involved with physical activity in a variety of
ways including taking part in curricular PE lessons in S1-S4 and joining in with the
wide range of after-school activities on offer.
Pupils in S1 have three periods of PE per week, while those in S2, S3 and S4 have
a minimum of two periods per week and may have 5 periods in total if they have
chosen to do Standard Grade PE.
It is extremely important that all pupils bring their PE kits on the days when they
have PE, so that classes can be started on time and on a positive note. If some
pupils in the class have forgotten kit, it can waste time and set a negative tone
for the start of the lesson, which then impacts on the other pupils in the class for
the rest of the lesson. We therefore ask all pupils to check their timetables on a
daily basis and pack their bags for school with the necessary equipment for each
day.
If a pupil fails to bring PE kit, a demerit will be awarded. House Group Leaders
and Principal Teachers are on the alert for this and it is likely that the PT or HGL
will have a conversation with the pupil about the need to remember kit. Hopefully
that will be enough to ensure that there are no further incidences of failure to
bring kit.
If a pupil fails to bring kit on a second occasion, parents will be alerted by
Groupcall and asked to support the pupil to be better organised. If further
instances occur, a letter will be sent and PTs Pupil support will contact home. We
hope that, by working together, we can ensure that all pupils participate fully in
PE.
On the occasions when kit is not brought there are several alternatives:
Pupils may collect spare kit from the Pupil Support Base at any time of the
day and return it there when it has been washed.
During the class, pupils will be assigned a task within PE which does not
require kit e,g, keeping score, giving feedback on performance or other
suitable tasks. This will also apply to pupils who are not fully fit and unable
to take part in the complete PE experience.
Other relevant work will be issued for completion during class time in the
class area.
Should a pupil not be co-operative and refuse to carry out the above options, he
or she will be removed from the class to another learning area where a reflective
exercise should be completed. In this instance a letter will be sent home to ask
for support in ensuring co-operation.
We hope that these procedures and working with home will ensure that all pupils
have a positive and healthy experience of PE in school.

HOLIDAY DATES SESSION 2011/12
Event Date
Autumn term begins (Staff only): Monday, 22nd August 2011
Autumn term begins (Pupils): Tuesday, 23rd August 2011
Autumn term ends: Friday, 14th October 2011
October holiday begins: Monday, 17th October 2011
October holiday ends: Friday, 21st October 2011
Winter term begins: Monday, 24th October 2011
In-service Days Thursday and Friday, 24th and
25th November 2011
Winter term ends: Thursday, 22nd December 2011
Christmas holiday begins: Friday, 23rd December 2011
Christmas holiday ends: Friday, 6th January 2012
Spring term begins: Monday, 9th January 2012
Spring half-term holiday begins: Monday, 13th February 2012
Spring half-term holiday ends: Friday, 17th February 2012
Spring term ends: Friday, 30th March 2012
Easter holidays begin: Monday, 2nd April 2012
Easter holidays end: Friday, 13th April 2012
Summer term begins: Monday, 16th April 2012
May public holiday: Monday 7th May 2012
Summer term ends: Friday, 29th June 2012
In-service days
Monday, 22nd August 2011 Thursday, 24th November 2011
Friday, 25th November 2011 Monday, 13th February 2012
Tuesday, 14th February 2012