S2 Bridge Building

May 31, 2018May 31, 2018Leave a comment

S2 pupils had an inter house bridge building competition. This event provides an opportunity for pupils to gain an insight into practical engineering and construction. There are lots of pictures on Flickr.

The challenge is to design and build a wooden bridge to span 1000mm which will carry the maximum load for minimum cost.

There were 3 prizes, the best bridge design, best team work and the most cost effective solution. Maree were the winners in all 3 categories, well done!

Thanks to Angela Rae our STEM ambassador for helping out on the day.

School Calendar

November 30, 2017Leave a comment

The school calendar is now available! It features artwork from all year groups from S1-S6 and is £6. The calendar has also been supported by many local businesses. It’s available to buy at the school office, library, Cornerstone, Farm and Garden Store and Poolewe Village Store and other local outlets around Gairloch area. All profits made go towards school funds.

They will also be on sale at the Senior School Exhibition opening this evening to which all are welcome – from 5.30pm in school library.

S1B SMART visit Shieldaig Lodge

May 10, 2017Leave a comment

What we did

What we did for SMART was we went to the falconry to see and find out other stuff about the different kinds of birds and the baby owl. (Alana)

See more photos on Flickr

What we learned

We learned about different types of Eagles and saw a baby owl. We learned some of the Lodges history and that the lodge was pretty much a hospital for the injured of the plane crash near there years ago and that they have one of the biggest wine/whisky/gin collections and that it would cost you £1,000 to have a sip of their best gin/whisky. Overall we learned a lot about Shieldaig lodge and the eagles and it was really fun and i hope other people for SMART can go there and we can go there again. We learned that Hannah (S4) worked there helping cleaning up the rooms and being a server for food and dining. (James)

Hannah (S4) explains her roles at Shieldaig Lodge Hotel

How it links to the John Muir Award

While we were at the falconry we DISCOVERED all sorts of things about different birds and at the falconry they were CONSERVING certain types of birds and by putting on social media we are SHARING what happened. (Hannah)

Panorama by Ruaraidh (S1)

Easter Assembly

April 11, 2017Leave a comment

We joined with members of the wider school community to celebrate the end of term and mark Easter.

We had an inclusive display from the Lord-Lieutenant’s Youth Award winning basketball team to highlight the importance of working as individuals and a team.

The Skills & Learning group from West Highland College UHI – Gairloch, who meet in the school each Wednesday, were also presented with their RSPB Love Nature Wild Challenge awards.

We were also able to celebrate the success of a number of different pupils.

Eight pupils from S5 have been presented with their Silver Duke of Edinburgh Awards. Completed over 6 months they were involved in many different activities to contribute to their volunteering, skills and physical sections. They included – amongst others – learning the chanter, coaching badminton, beach cleans, playing the saxophone, indoor rowing, archery, operating the PA system at Church, helping with Scouts, playing the piano and shooting. Well done Gregor, Roddy, Iain, Jack, Carys, Eilidh, Hannah and Leonie!

Catherine & Scarlet (both S4) were presented with their bronze Duke of Edinburgh certificates. The girls took part in improving their skills on the violin & electric guitar, volunteering at a local children’s group and with the GALE centre and together took part in Indoor Rowing.

Lucy, Arlene, Charlotte & Natasha (Primary) were awarded certificates for their entries into the Rotary International Young Photographer Competition. Their photos, on the theme of reflections, are on display in the library over the next few weeks.

Activity Tourism go Kayaking

April 2, 2017April 2, 2017Leave a comment

Our Activity Tourism course often works with local providers and draws on the wealth of experience they have in operating successful businesses sharing outdoor activities with locals and tourists. Ewe Canoe, one such provider, has been working in partnership with the pupils this year. Jasmine Connop (S5) tells us about their experience.

We went out for the day Kayaking, in the harbour, with Connor Brown.

Lots more photos on Flickr

We did it Because we had to experience an activity in the local area, plus we had to find out information about the activity like: Hazards involved when doing the activity and how to do the activity. Although we had to do it to pass our units, we also did it for fun and for experience in kayaking.

We learned what equipment is needed to keep us safe when kayaking, we learned how to work as a team and how to stick as a group, also we learned how to turn the kayak in a more efficient way.

It was a very worth while experience, I personally would 100% do that again. Connor made it very enjoyable by playing games, teaching new skills and he kept on top of how we were feeling to make sure we were all okay and were happy.

S2 work on Science Skills Academy branding

February 17, 2017Leave a comment

S2 pupils were drafted in to UHI’s STEM Hub to work with Graphic Design Company, Dynam, on the logo and branding for the Science Skills Academy.

S2a at the new UHI campus in Inverness

Groups of pupils from different schools/age groups were chosen to work with Dynam to gather ideas for the brand. Hopefully, some of their input and ideas will come through in the final design.

This was a great opportunity for the pupils to learn about Graphic Design in a working environment.

Jahia works on her branding ideas

Spectroscopy in a Suitcase

January 31, 2017January 31, 2017Leave a comment

On Thursday 19^th January, some senior pupils studying Advanced Higher and Higher Chemistry had the opportunity to attend a “Spectroscopy in a Suitcase” workshop at Ullapool High School. This is an outreach activity from Edinburgh University and provided a rare opportunity to see and use some analytical techniques only usually available in University laboratories. The theories behind UV-Vis, IR and NMR spectroscopy are studied at Advanced Higher. In this workshop, pupils learnt about the theory and used some of the equipment for a problem-solving activity.

Jack and Roddy working with equipment from the University of Edinburgh

The pictures above and linked on Flickr show our pupils in action during the practical work, the high quality of their results (the graph is a straight line!) and the whole group including the workshop leaders from Edinburgh and Ullapool pupils.