Author: Clare Russell

Musical Fun with Drake Music and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra

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On Wednesday 4th September the staff and pupils of Room 16 attended a music composing workshop run by Drake Music and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

We arrived in the hall and took our seats as 2 cellists played a smooth and relaxing melody.  A third musician played various instruments and handed them out to pupils to join in.  My favourite moment was when he started playing a trombone and one very shy pupil simply grinned and said “Wow!”

The pupils (and staff) had the opportunity to play various percussion and wind instruments.  Pupils were given a sense of control as the cellos and trombone would repeat the sounds they had made.  You will see lots of big grins in the photos.

 

 

Settling in: Room 16

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We have been settling in to the new classroom, with familiar faces and new faces. In PSE we talked about what we like to do with our friends and made a poster to decorate the classroom walls.

 

Room 19: A New Class!

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This year we have a new class, Room 19. In Room 19 we are Senior Phase pupils (S4-6) and we are following a timetable that will allow us to progress on to the learning experiences offered in Howes Hoose, our Leavers Class.

Our learning focuses on developing independence and life skills. In our morning meeting, we chat about our day and our targets. We also practise life skills through setting the table, preparing snacks and tidying up. We take turns following a rota for chores.

We are often out and about in and around school. Our literacy and communication skills are being developed through our newspaper, the Haddo Herald, a joint venture with Howes Hoose. Some of us write the news and we use it to practise talking to others and asking questions. Going around classes to deliver the paper helps us to communicate with less familiar people and to practise using equipment such as our talkers.

Our numeracy skills are developed through wider learning opportunities such as our sandwich enterprise. We go shopping for ingredients and this lets us practise our money skills, as does managing our budget and payments. We also work on time and think about this in relation to our daily routines.

Some of us are also doing work experience this year. This begins in school with opportunities such as supporting younger pupils in Outdoor Education. We also have a young man working regularly in the school kitchen, preparing food and doing dishes and we have young people doing grass cutting, gardening and working in community centres and shops.

We think it will be a good year in Room 19!

Review of the Year in Room 18

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Our highlights of the year have been …

Our class enterprise: we made and sold sandwiches every week throughout the year. We donated money to Charlie House (£800), made a donation to the Bendrigg Trip and enjoyed a class outing.

We loved our time at Bendrigg.

This week we went to Hazlehead Park. We saw the Gruffalo and the Oor Wullie statues that are around Aberdeen.

We have also enjoyed work experience opportunities in and around school, including work with our Janitor and working in the school kitchen with the Catering Team.

We have had a great year and look forward to building on our learning next year, developing our skills and extending our experiences outside school.

Howes Hoose go swimming at Knockburn Loch

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The pupils in Howes Hoose enjoyed a day out at Knockburn Loch, open–water swimming. The weather was kind to us but the water was still a little chilly!! We had on wet-suits to keep us warm and buoyancy aids to keep us afloat! We swam all the way around the Loch, 850 metres. It was an amazing experience, “ the best day of my life so far,” according to one young man.

The facilities at Knockburn are excellent and I am sure we will be visiting again soon to take advantage of all the other activities on offer, maybe paddle boarding next. Watch this space!

Potted Sports

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Everyone enjoyed the Potted Sports organised by our PE Department on Wednesday. Thank you to everyone involved for the hard work that went into this, including our Howes Hoose pupils who supported at the stations. We all had a great time moving around in our class groups, finishing up with a running ‘marathon’ for any Secondary pupils wishing to participate. They were well supported by those opting to spectate.

Room 18 and Howes Hoose at Bendrigg

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A combination of Room 18 and Howes Hoose pupils recently went to Bendrigg in the Lake District. They all had a fantastic time, practising their independent living skills and taking part in a wide range of outdoor activities including caving, canoeing, zip sliding and climbing. We did ourselves proud – staff included – pushing ourselves outside of our comfort zones and trying new activities. Quote of the week: “it’s been nice knowing you,” as one young man zipped off down the slide!

Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Final Expedition at Wiston Lodge

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The pupils from Howes Hoose successfully completed their final expedition for their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award. They spent 2 days at Wiston Lodge set in the beautiful countryside beside Biggar,  staying in log cabins which were warm and comfortable. Just what they needed after spending lots of time outdoors in the lovely Scottish Summer weather! There was also a kitchen cabin where the young people prepared their own breakfast and packed lunches, and this cabin was used to chill in their PJs with a hot chocolate before bed.

All the pupils participated fully in all the activities despite the cold and damp weather. They cooked a meal for themselves outside on the first night and walked over 4 kilometres through the hills the following day. Thankfully the torrential rain forecast passed by and, although not sunny, it was dry. Everyone, especially Al, our D of E Assessor, was pleased with the way the pupils all worked as a team, helping each other over fences and gates, guarding against cows and generally keeping each other going. It was a brilliant trip.

Pupils and staff also enjoyed some outdoor activity around the Lodge, walking the trails and practising their route finding skills using the landmarks we’d seen. The second day saw us treated to a cooked dinner, with breakfast in the Lodge at the end of our stay.

The completion of the expedition, added to the other sections of the Duke of Edinburgh programme –fundraising, volunteering and learning a physical skill – means that all the “Howes Hoose Heroes” have now achieved the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award. Huge congratulations to them all and a special thank you to the PSA staff and Toby from D of E who supported them throughout the training and expeditions.

Room 14 Enjoy the Sun at Stonehaven

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Room 14 enjoyed a trip to Stonehaven beach.  We had lunch from the Bay Chipper and a play in the park.  Room 14 boys enjoyed themselves.