Month: June 2016

School’s Out For Summer

School's out chalkboard

So, the 2015/2016 school year is over! And what a busy and interesting year it has been for the school and Parent Council.

We have enjoyed a successful year working with Bryan Paterson and his dedicated team of teachers and staff. Our members have been involved in the interview processes for the Rector, the appointments of 3 new Deputy Head Teachers, and Curriculum Leaders for Mathematics and for Expressive Arts and PE. We have supported the school, raising thousands of pounds by running fundraising events and have improved electronic communications with parents as well as sending out the weekly bulletins and played our part in the local community, including Trinity Community Council and Friends of Victoria Park. Watch this space for more news of a joint fun event in August with Trinity Academicals RFC!

The school itself is clearly on an upwards path, with a positive vibe, building on its strengths and tackling those areas where there is still room for improvement and really starting to go places. We are looking forward to welcoming 160 new S1s and their families to the school in August – a 33% increase on the intake last year. None of this would have been possible without everyone pulling together to achieve it.

Our first meeting in the 2016/2017 school year is 6 September. Please hold the date and thinking about coming along to take part or simply learn more.
On behalf of the Parent Council, I would like to thank all parents, carers, pupils, teachers and staff, Council staff, Councillors and MSPs for their support in the last year. We hope you all have great summer holidays and return refreshed and ready for an exciting new year. Finally, we would like to wish all those pupils and teachers who left Trinity Academy this year the very best of luck in their future careers and destinations.

My World of Work

My World of Work logoThe My World of Work website includes resources to help parents with their education, qualifications and career choices and explore the routes they could take. The website is maintained by Skills Development Scotland – Scotland’s national skills body – so the material on the site is appropriate for the Scottish education system, qualifications and further education opportunities.

There is a permanent link to the site on our links page.

The spread of cities over 6000 years

Using the results of a recent report by a team of Yale researchers, this visualization shows the growth of cities across the globe from 3700 BCE to the present day.

By 2030, 75 percent of the world’s population is expected to be living in cities. Today, about 54 percent of us do. In 1960, only 34 percent of the world lived in cities.

Anvients cities were far smaller than now and the researchers used the following sizes to define cities.

  1. Ancient (3500 BCE to 1000 BCE) ≥ 10,000 inhabitants
  2. Classical (1000 BCE to 1000 CE) ≥ 100,000 inhabitants
  3. Modern (1000 CE onward) ≥ 1,000,000 inhabitants

Harvest Festival

Parents and guests at the gardening group’s harvest festival enjoyed a fantastic presentation from the students and the University of Edinburgh’s Geosciences Outreach programme. This was followed with a tour of the allotment and a chance to take away some samples of really locally grown salad leaves and herbs.

Well done to everyone who took part — students and teachers.

Harest festival tour

Gathering the harvest

School gardening

Harvest Festival

Edible education

Trinity Academy Gardening Club are holding their Harvest Festival. It takes place Thursday 23rd June from 5:00 to 7:00pm in the Sports Hall and they are really keen to share their experience. Everyone is welcome to attend and learn about the work they have been doing with S1.

If you are interested, please RSVP by email so they have an idea of how many to expect. It will be interesting to see how teaching is being taken out of the classroom and hopefully get some fresh vegetables from their allotment!

Parent Council Award 2016

Congratulations to Milly, Eleanor, Kirstin and Dominika from S3 who won this year’s Parent Council Award for the creativity they showed in Design Ventura. In addition to the cup they were presented with replicas of the puzle that took them to the final of the design completion in London.

We found it hard to choose a winner from some great nominations this year.

Parent Council Award Winners

Glasgow to Edinburgh Cycle

Anatomy of a bicycle

A goup of parents and teachers from Trinity Academy will be taking part in this year’s Pedal for Scotland Classic Challenge, cycling 50 miles to raise funds for the school. This year’s event takes place on the 11th September.

They will be looking for volunteers to join the event so if you would like to take on a personal challenge andhelp the school please get in touch.

Of course if you are unable to take part you will be able to sponsor the riders or make a contribution. Look out for details soon.

Glasgow to Edinburgh Classic Challenge Banner

Brain Maze: Amaze Your Brain

MRC Festival of Medical Research open day on 24th June

(this opportunity is open to those aged 16 or over. Those under 16 to be accompanied by an adult)

Brain maze banner

Do you want to experience how scientists investigate the ageing of the human brain!

On Friday the 24th June the Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology (CCACE) and Centre for Regenerative Medicine (CRM) are hosting an open day event as part of the MRC’s Festival of Medical Science 2016 called The Brain Maze: Amaze your brain.

When you come and take part in this exciting event you will navigate through twelve activity rooms that look at how the brain and body changes throughout our lifetime and how scientists measure those changes. You’ll need to keep your wits about you to navigate the brain maze. But don’t worry as we will give you a map. Along the way you’ll learn how and why some people’s brains and bodies fare better than others as they get older, and how research gives us clues to how we can age better.

You’ll descend into the basement of the University of Edinburgh’s Department of Psychology where you will discover how CCACE and CRM use the latest techniques in brain imaging, genetics, stem cells and psychology to investigate the brain and body from youth to old age. Along the way you’ll encounter some of the men and women who investigate the workings of the human brain and body, seeking to understand why some people’s brains and bodies fare better than others.

This is a free event which is open to all but you must book your two-hour slot in advance through Eventbrite.

Dates for your diary

Please note below the dates for Trinity Academy’s Parent Council Meetings for session 2016/17. Meetings start at 7 pm.

  • Tuesday 6 September 2016
  • Tuesday 25 October 2016 (AGM)
  • Tuesday 29 November 2016
  • Thursday 26 January 2017
  • Tuesday 28 February 2017
  • Thursday 27 April 2017
  • Tuesday 6 June 2017

A few more dates for the diary…

  • Saturday 20 August ‘Trinity Accies Fun Day’ – Community joint venture between Trinity Academicals and Trinity Academy with Parent Council support
  • Sunday 11 September Glasgow to Edinburgh Cycle Ride (Pedal for Scotland event). Volunteers needed!
  • Friday 23 September Race Night