Currie supports Earth Hour

We will be joining over 450 schools in Scotland by having our own Earth Hour in school today when we’ll be asking everyone to turn their lights off for Periods 1 & 2.

Earth Hour is not about saving an hour’s electricity, it’s much bigger than that. It’s about realising that the actions we take, from the energy we use, to the food we buy and water we drink has an effect on the world. We all depend on our amazing planet and need to look after it – not just for an hour a year, but every day. So Currie is make a statement that we do care and  is turning the lights out for one hour – and remember Our World is Brilliant, let’s help keep it that way.

Merchant Company success for Adrian Clark

Last night Adrian Clark of S6 finished second overall in the Merchants Company Prize for Initiative Award for 2012.  This is awarded annually to a senior school pupil (or group of pupils) from an Edinburgh school who, in the opinion of the judging panel, has demonstrated exceptional initiative over the preceding 12 months.  Adrian’s initiative was his un-assisted cycle from Portugal to Edinburgh via several European countries raising several thousand pounds for Maggie’s charity in the process.

Currie pupils mark Earth Hour at Edinburgh Castle

To mark WWF’s Earth Hour in Scotland, pupils from Currie Community High School and WWF Scotland volunteers will be assembling a candle display of the words ‘Climate Action Now’ on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle using LED tea lights. The construction of this display will be timed to be complete at the same time as the castle’s floodlights are switched off at 8.30pm. The switch off will be co-ordinated from the esplanade with a member of Historic Scotland staff in the castle, which will include switching off the castle flambeaus.

 

The process will be photographed and filmed from 7.30 onwards with a time-lapse film of the candles being put out.

 

As the construction is being filmed there will be fiddlers playing and a polar bear, panda and tiger jigging around to raise some cheer for the volunteers putting out the candles, and also provide some imagery for the film/photos.

 

Just before 8.30pm everyone will gather by a giant light switch and Richard Dixon (Director, WWF Scotland) will lead the countdown to the switch off. 

 

Currie High Family Spring Clean

Spring Clean Poster

We're planning a Spring Clean of Roley's Wood on Friday 4th May and we'd love your support! Pupils, staff and parents will work together to do a big litter pick and burn clearance in Roley's Wood as part of Keep Scotland Beautiful's National Spring Clean Campaign. Come along at 12.45pm for an hour's tidy up in Roley's Wood and then share an eco-barbeque afterwards. Younger children are welcome to come too, gloves and litter pickers are provided!
If you'd like to come, email Lauren Craigie at cchspip@gmail.com and let her know numbers and any dietary requirements by 27 April.

Crabbie Curling success

Rowena Steven, part of a joint Currie Community HS and Balerno HS curling team won 8 of their 9 games to win the Crabbie School League beating schools along the way including Craigmount HS, Stewarts Melville and Mary Erskine School. Currie Community High School have only won this title twice back in 2002 and 2006. This is a great achievement for Rowena and her friends at Balerno HS.

Currie through to the U15’s Colonel Clark Cup (League Cup) final

Well done to Mr Davidson’s 'Blue Army' who marched through to the U15’s Colonel Clark Cup (League Cup) final last weekend. The boys were down two goals at half time against Boroughmuir but after an inspirational team talk from the coach and two great team goals, finished by Alex McNeil and Callum McArthur, the boys got back into the tie. Extra time finished with no more goals scored and it was a nervous penalty shoot out that followed. The boys managed to win the penalty shoot out 12-11 with an unbelievable save from Scotland’s next No. 1 Andy Smith in the sudden death stages.
Well done to all the squad who contributed to this win against the league leaders, you did yourself and the school very proud! Roll on the cup final!

Matthew Scott gets international debut

Well done to Matthew Scott, a former pupil of Currie High who is now playing for the Scottish Rugby team.
Matthew made replacement appearances in two Scotland under-19 internationals in 2009. His debut was in the 55-13 success against Italy at Lasswade in March 2009, followed by the Dourdan match against France a month later.  Before that he played for Edinburgh’s district interstate under-17 and under-18 teams. He is now studying law at Edinburgh University.
In 2010 Matthew was selected in the under-20 6 Nations squad and played in all but one match, featuring as a replacement in each of his four under-20 capped matches.

He made his international debut off the bench against ireland in the March 2012 RBS 6 Nations, having come into the team as a late replacement for the injured Nick De Luca, and took the field after the subsequent injury to Lee Jones.

Well done Matthew, Currie is proud of you!

Matthew Scott, former pupil

'Tree fellers' were walking in a wood...

 

Today we found that the time had come to consider the management of our perimeter woodland planting. Twenty years ago Roley Walton had a dream to plant a corridor of trees and shrubs, linking our Curriehill Woodland Strip (now Roley’s Wood) with lines of trees west of the school. This would make a wildlife corridor providing wider breeding, feeding and spacial possibilities for our woodland flora and fauna. Ten years ago, Millennium Forest Scotland and Fiona McLean in Biology made the dream a reality! Ten years on the trees have grown to the stage of needing thinning and general management. Some of the older trees (isolated individuals aged 30 or 40 years) growing behind the younger trees are now causing neighbours some difficulties! Rachel Avery planned a meeting for today to address this issue with Ross Woodside (Lothian and Fife Green Network Partnership). The partnership has provided Rachel with a management plan and the promise of a small amount of practical help.

S2 Construction Challenge - pupils views

On the 19 January 10 people in S2 went to the Corn Exchange. Luckily we were two of those that were chosen. We did 6 challenges all to do with construction and building. Our favourite one was making the picnic bench. We liked this because it was girls vs boys and we won. We also tiled a roof, built a shed and made a wishing well. The other activities were an electrical challenge and a plumbing project. In the picnic bench activity we had to build a picnic bench with seating by assembling two A-frames and attaching a table top and two bench seats. We hung tiles on a roof and the pattern made a smiley face. That was also a really good activity. On the shed assembly the boys decided to lock us in it and we were stuck until they tried to take it down and it fell on us. Overall we had a great time and it was really good fun even though we only came 4th.

By Bella Shirsinger–Barton and Sophie Bladon 2H1

email newsletter 13 March 2012

The latest newsletter has just been sent to parents for whom we have an email address.
It can also be viewed on the school website under news.

newsletter 13 March 2012

Africa Week trailer 2011

Check out this trailer for Africa Week. It gives a flavour of the activities that were on offer.

A 'fruitful' venture

Pupils from Currie Community High School and Woodlands School have come together to plant 8 new fruit trees in a shared orchard. Pupils from the Eco Committee at Currie High supported young people in the Woodlands Eco Committee, who all have complex learning difficulties, to plant the apple and plum trees.
The orchard area now contains 13 apple and plum trees, of 11 different varieties. The fruit will be used in cooking lessons for both schools, and will also be available for community use. Funds to buy the fruit trees came from the Central Scotland Green Network Orchard Grant Scheme.