A’ chàirdean,

Airson fios:

 

DÙBHLAN NA SEACHDAIN!

 

Siuthaidaibh! Thèid a-muigh agus seall dhuinn ur dealbhan

Coiseachd, ruith no air a’ bhaidhseagal - chan eil e gu diofar fhad ‘s a tha thu a’ cur dealbh suas agus a’ cleachdadh an taga-hais #GLUAIS

(Strava, Instagram agus/no Facebook)

 

‘S e buidheann airson aois 12-18 a th’ ann an Gluais! Lorg e air an app, Strava.

 

 

On you go! Get outside and share your pics

Walk, run or cycle - it doesn’t matter as long as you post a pic and use the hashtag #GLUAIS

(Strava, Instagram and/or Facebook)

 

Gluais! is a group for 12-18 year olds. Request to join on the Strava app.

 

https://www.facebook.com/comunnnagaidhlig/photos/a.643355869035681/3632612326776672

 

 

CalMac Seagoing Modern Apprenticeship Programme 2021/22

We are delighted to announce that we are launching recruitment for our 2021/22 Seagoing Modern Apprenticeship programme on Monday March 1st.

Seagoing Modern Apprenticeship Programme 2021/22

Recruitment is launching on March 1st 2021

We are delighted to announce that we are opening our application process for our 2021/22 Seagoing Modern Apprenticeship Programme on Monday 1st March. We are looking for enthusiastic talent to join our next cohort starting in September 2021.

Recognised as a leader of seagoing apprenticeships by the Merchant Navy, CalMac offers three types of apprenticeship - Engine Rating, Retail and Catering Rating and Deck Rating.

Successful candidates will begin their career gaining hands on experience on board our vessels while also spending time learning the theoretical knowledge at college.

While no formal qualifications are required, we are looking for candidates who will live and breathe the CalMac values, show a passion for learning and form the next generation of maritime experts.

More Information

Places are highly sought after and interested candidates should take a look at our website for more information.

We would encourage students to also check out our Career Guide 2021 for Seagoing Modern Apprenticeships. It is full of useful information on the programmes we offer including the recruitment process and case studies from past and present Modern Apprentices.

Our current apprentices will also be sharing their stories during Scottish Modern Apprenticeship Week launching March 1st through to March 12th on our social media channels including: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. We will also be sharing lots of useful information including how to apply so please follow us.

Key dates

Applications open on Monday March 1st @ 9am.

Applications close on Friday March 12th @ 5pm.

Next Steps

Applications will only be accepted by completing the application form through our website.

We hope that you find the above information useful and we look forward to welcoming applications from your students.

Thank you for all your support,

The CalMac Ferries Team

Duke of Edinburgh

Congratulations to Mya Carmichael and Bella Sutherland for completing their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Certificates of Achievement and Maighsi Rough for completing her Silver! Excellent achievement in the current conditions, well done!

The skills completed were

yoga (physical), gardening (skill) and online fitness sessions for primary pupils (volunteering)

running (P), learning sign language (S) and helping at scouts (V)

learning piano - online lessons (S) and helping at Brownies

West Highland College UHI | Colaiste na Gàidhealtachd an Iar UHI

Are you in S4-S6 and looking at options for your Senior Phase?

Get a step ahead of the rest by studying at college whilst still at school, with loads of subjects to choose from.

There are two live online events to help pupils and parents understand the options available – including Highland Senior Phase (24th Feb, 7pm) and Apprenticeships (25th Feb, 7pm).

Find out what you need to know all in one place: www.uhi.ac.uk/highlandseniorphase

#ThinkUHI

Please find the link below to this week’s #cleachdiaigantaigh timetable with information about different sessions and events that are happening this week to support GME pupils. Please go onto our website to find the pdf with the links. 

http://www.parant.org.uk

Bùithtean-obrach ciùil is seinn an-asgaidh thar làithean-saora a‘ Ghearrain. 

 

Free music and Gaelic song workshops for all 5-18 year olds this February holiday. 

 

Anyone interested in attending the events should register at www.sruc.ac.uk/opendays. Following registration a link and joining instructions will be emailed a few days before open week.

The last 12 months have definitely highlighted the importance of the rural sector and the need to protect our food supply chain, countryside and environment. There’s never been a more exciting time for students to embark on their journey in this thriving sector.

Scotland’s Rural College can offer wide portfolio of rural and land-based related courses from college access to undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. In Aberdeen, we currently offer courses in Wildlife, Conservation and Environmental Management, Rural Business, Animal Care, Vet Nursing and, of course, Agriculture. Our unique progression routes allows students to combine a love of animals & the outdoors with science and technology, inspiring them to become the next generation of leaders in their field.

New for 2021, we are excited to be introducing an HND in Equine Studies, which will be taught in conjunction with Aberdeen Riding School, a BSc in Veterinary Nursing and a PDA bridging qualification which will allow students short of the entry requirements for the BSc in Veterinary Nursing to access the degree.

 

There is a web development apprenticeship currently going in the Fort William area with the engineering company, Solv Flow. As an IT & Web Development apprentice you will develop and maintain a flat website initially with a view to adding content driven features. This role includes support for our website, online shop and for our FLOWSOLV(R) software. School leavers can apply via https://www.qa.com/vacancy-search/it-web-development-apprentice-1211-0001-00020426/

 

More information can be found on the company’s website as well: https://www.solv.net/Contact.htm

Clàr #Cleachdiaigantaigh  

 

Here is next week’s timetable of Gaelic activities.  It will also be available on the Comann nam Pàrant website - http://www.parant.org.uk

SCHOLAR's upcoming Online Tutor Sessions are: Day Date Time Subject Level Topic Tuesday Tuesday Tuesday 02/02/2021 16/02/2021 02/03/2021 6pm 6pm 6pm Chemistry Chemistry Chemistry National 5 National 5 National 5 Chemical changes & structure Nature’s chemistry Chemistry in society Thursday Thursday Thursday 11/02/2021 25/02/2021 11/03/2021 6pm 6pm 6pm Biology Biology Biology National 5 National 5 National 5 Cell biology Multicellular organisms Life on Earth   For more information on how to take part in upcoming sessions, please visit SCHOLAR's Online Tutor Sessions. Please note that worksheets will be available and should be attempted before some sessions. You can see regular updates via Twitter @SCHOLARuk and Facebook SCHOLARprogramme. Best wishes,   SCHOLAR Development Team

Safety: Ice The Dangers of Frozen Water  (From The Highland Council)

 

Please be aware of  the dangers of walking on ice- particularly frozen ponds, lochs, rivers and canals.

 

The following link may be helpful

 

https://www.rlss.org.uk/news/the-dangers-of-frozen-water

Activities for Gaelic medium pupils

Bòrd na Gàidhlig, as in the initial lockdown, are to produce a timetable of online Gaelic events. These events are being organised by several Gaelic organisations during the current school closures.

Each week the timetable under the banner #cleachdiaigantaigh will be posted on Comann nam Pàrant's Website - http://parant.org.uk/index.php/ - and appear on our social media channels. We hope the information will be a useful resource which for Gaelic Medium parents and can help support their pupils’ learning experience in the home.

Scholar

New SCHOLAR video- Information for Parents and Carers

To give parents and carers a sense of the variety of engaging activities available, SCHOLAR have produced a new 3 minute video, “Information for Parents and Carers”, aimed, primarily, at parents and carers of learners in S3-S6.

Our new video is available at https://bit.ly/ParentsAndCarersInfo

Best wishes,

SCHOLAR Team

https://scholar.hw.ac.uk

 

 

As schools across Scotland are closed to the majority of pupils, Skills Development Scotland careers advisers will continue to provide careers information and advice by phone and digitally.

Our advisers will contact pupils who were scheduled to have a face-to-face appointments to make alternative arrangements.

Subject Choices

If your child is choosing their subjects, their school careers adviser will be providing support over the coming weeks to help them think about their choices, including a one-to-one conversation. There’s also the opportunity for you – as a parent or carer – to join the conversation and discuss where their options might take them in the future. As current government guidelines don’t permit these conversations to take place in person, we’ll seek to make alternative arrangements by phone or video conference.

You’ll also find lots of helpful tools and information to help with subject choices, on the careers service website, My World of Work. Visit www.myworldofwork.co.uk/subjectchoices

Please be aware that career information and advice is available online for anyone who needs it at My World of Work.  You can also contact your local centre to speak to an adviser or call the SDS helpline on 0800 917 8000.

Message from Highland Council Headquarters

As you know, the First Minister announced at the weekend that there will be some changes to the way schools return after the Christmas break. Tomorrow (Tuesday 22 December) a letter will be issued to all parents and carers of children and young people in Highland schools to give you the key information about this. Please do not contact the school today about the new arrangements, to allow School leaders and staff to focus on planning for the new term.

We expect to have information from the Executive Chief Officer for Education for staff and parents by close of play today. We will share this by email and social media.

In English, after reading in Roald Dahl’s autobiography of a local confectioner sending chocolates to his school to sample, S1 pupils were inspired to write to chocolate companies around Scotland to offer their services as Expert Chocolate Tasters. They were delighted when three companies responded. Tunnocks; The Tobermory Chocolate Company and Iain Burnett, Highland Chocolatier from Pitlochry sent the class samples, whereupon each expert was to taste and to give their considered opinion. Words failed us to express the culinary delights of those lessons, but here is a very small ‘flavour’ of the responses:

Tobermory Chocolate Co

“I wouldn’t change a thing”

“It was like heaven in a chocolate”

“An amazing burst of flavours with an orange and tropical tease”

“The fudge snowman was chocolate paradise at the beginning followed by a taste of caramel crossed with fudge and a hint of coffee at the end”

Tunnocks Caramel Crème

“It’s just plain epic. I can’t describe it other than that!”

Iain Burnett’s

“‘The strawberry Velvet is the best chocolate I’ve tasted!’ - Seasoned chocolate tasting veteran – 2020”

“This is the flavour I have been dreaming about – the Velvet Praline”

So, if you are still looking for a last minute Christmas present, the S1’s might tell you where to look. And I bet you wish you were the teacher…

 

The Pupil Council have decided to have a (free) festive clothing day (Wear Red, Christmas
jumpers, etc.) on Thursday 17th December. This is also the Christmas lunch day.
 

Ard Christmas shinty 6’s tournament is now on Friday afternoon from 1.30 – 3.30pm

Families on low incomes in receipt of free school meals can apply for a COVID winter hardship payment from Scottish Government

 

Families with children in receipt of free school meals due to reasons of low income are eligible for a £100 per child Covid winter hardship payment from the Scottish Government.

There are no restrictions on how families choose to spend the additional payment. The payment is per child not per household. However, P1-3 pupils receiving free school meals due to universal provision, not due to low income, are not eligible.

In Highland, the Highland Council will administer this payment on behalf of the Scottish Government. Eligible households do not require to apply for this payment, the Council will contact those families directly with payment details.

Households who think they are maybe eligible for the Covid winter hardship payment and have not received notification of an award by Monday 21 December 2020 should contact the Councils Welfare Support Team on or email

welfare.support@highland.gov.uk

Who is eligible for free school meals due to low income?

Families with children in receipt of free school meals due to reasons of low income are eligible for the Covid winter hardship payment. Eligibility for Free School Meals based on low income, is where the household is in receipt of:

• Income Support

• Universal Credit (where the monthly earned income does not exceed £610).

• Income-based Job Seekers Allowance

• Any income related element of Employment and Support Allowance

• Child Tax Credit, but not in receipt of Working Tax Credit, and your income is less than £16,105 (as assessed by the HMRC)

• Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit and an income below £7,330 (as assessed by the HMRC)

• If you are 16 to 18 yrs old and receive any of these benefits in your own right, then you can claim for yourself

• If you are an asylum seeker receiving support

• Pension Credit Guarantee Credit

The payment for the £100 per child Covid winter hardship payment will be made prior to Christmas for those who were in receipt of free school meals due to low income on 30 November 2020.

Households who apply and awarded free school meals due to low income after

30 November 2020 will be eligible for the Covid winter hardship payment up until 22 December 2020. Those eligible families will be notified, and an award will be made no later than 15 January 2021.

A cash payment via PayPoint voucher will be made to eligible households. Vouchers will be redeemable at local PayPoint outlets. A small minority of households will receive payment via Post Office Pay-out and will be advised in their notification.

 

 

Please see the link to events running locally.

Our first masterclass is with well-respected musician and tutor Seylan Baxter. Seylan, a cellist, will host her session “Playing by Ear” on Thursday 10th December at 7.30pm via Zoom. It’s open to all ages, levels and instruments, and tickets are subsidised thanks to our funding.

We are also running a theatre project called “1943 Classic B&W” Although we have started the project, there are spaces for anyone from AHS to join in as it is currently remote, digital rehearsals. There is no cost to join in and it’s open to all ages 11 -to adult.

https://www.facebook.com/events/833319257515963

Please see the link to events running locally.

Our first masterclass is with well-respected musician and tutor Seylan Baxter. Seylan, a cellist, will host her session “Playing by Ear” on Thursday 10th December at 7.30pm via Zoom. It’s open to all ages, levels and instruments, and tickets are subsidised thanks to our funding.

We are also running a theatre project called “1943 Classic B&W” Although we have started the project, there are spaces for anyone from AHS to join in as it is currently remote, digital rehearsals. There is no cost to join in and it’s open to all ages 11 -to adult.

https://www.facebook.com/events/833319257515963

Congratulations to our newly appointed Highland Youth Parliament/Scottish Youth Parliament Representatives

Kayla Gordon – Member of Scottish Youth Parliament

Mitchell MacPherson – Member of Highland Youth Parliament

Angus Dunn – Member of Highland Youth Parliament

 

Unfortunately, After school Shinty and Football are cancelled this week, Tuesday 8th December, due to work on the floodlights.