Bottletop mosaics in progress

The S2 JASS bottletop mosaics are going to be fantastic! The group completed two of the three panels yesterday after school, featuring a rainbow and a peacock butterfly. We'll try to do the third panel one day next week so they can be put up in the LRC over the holidays. 

 

Well done to Jenna, Billie and Erin for seeing the project right through to completion. Thanks to John for all his help, Mr Hermiston for sourcing all the materials and Mrs Steel for helping translate Jenna's designs into the final beautiful mosaics.

New eco display

The eco committee have been working on a new display that highlights all the fantastic work done at Currie over the last two years. We've been focussing on three different Eco topics:
- Litter
- Food and the Environment
- Sustaining Our World

The Eco Committee decided to make a tree with three parts, and show our actions in words and pictures as leaf shapes.

Early next session we'll do an Environmental Review of the whole school to see how we're doing and get ideas on how to improve. Then we'll choose some new topics to focus our efforts on.  If you have any ideas on how Currie High can be more sustainable please let someone from the Eco Committee know, or put your idea into the Suggestion Box in the LRC.

Refugee Week

This is Refugee Week! The Amnesty International group has put bulletin notices in every day to raise awareness of refugees and asylum seekers in Scotland. We are also showing the following 2 minute film in the school foyer, and at registration. Do have a look...

www.scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk/courage

John Muir Award Celebration

The xl group (new S4) held their John Muir Award celebration experience today. They had made beautiful cards for staff inviting them to join us in the woods.  Everyone spoke about activities they had done towards their John Muir Award, as part of their 'Share' challenge for the award itself. Mrs McKinnon gave everyone their Discovery Award certificate, and then we all cooked damper bread over a wee fire in the woods. Congratulations everyone!

Nest Records Update (Currie Ecology Nest Records - BTO Nest Record Scheme)

The rooftop Oystercatcher chick just before it is let go, back to its parents.

Our BTO licensed ringer carefully fits the chick with its ring and number:

FA81541.

A quick 'hello' to Currie Ecology pupils.

 

Date:  13th  June 2013. UPDATE 3
Nest Box  No./ Nest record No.	Location	Species		Nesting Activity	Notes
1/	Quad.	Blue Tit		-	A few days ago only 4 healthy chicks remained but they were growing well. Today they were dead – cause unknown.  The adults were still present and looking after the box, so could have been disease.
2/	Front (Sparrow)				Apparently unoccupied
3/	Front (Sparrow)				Apparently unoccupied
4/	Front (Sparrow)				Apparently unoccupied
5/	Roley’s Wood	Blue Tit		-	This was a failed nest.
6/	Roley’s Wood	Great Tit		Successful nest	Should be fledged and away by now.
7/	Roley’s Wood			TBC	Still to be re-visited
8/	Roley’s Wood			TBC	Still to be re-visited.  Someone disturbed the box by trying to take it off the tree.
Open Nests
	Quad.			Successful nest	4 chicks fledged
	Main building roof	Oyster- catcher		Two chicks were running freely with pin feathers – one found dead today.	The larger healthy chick was ringed, number FA81541. There were some Herring Gulls loafing around so the dead chick might be a result of an attempt at predation.

Its summer!

Things are growing in our school grounds!

Soft fruit bushes planted last year by Explorer Scouts

Courgettes

 

Oats! We're hoping to make oat cakes eventually!

Radishes are coming on well

Everything in the greenhouse looks great!

Duke of Edinburgh volunteers

4 S3 volunteers have been helping with school grounds maintenance and improvement every Wednesday after school from March this year. We've weeded vegetable beds, sowed bee-friendly flower seed, built a ladder in a pond to prevent hedgehogs from accidentally drowning, set up an automatic watering system in the greenhouse and helped keep the grounds and Roley's Wood free from litter! Thanks to Josh, Blair, Cary and Dylan for all their hard work for the Volunteering section of their D of E Award!

Outdoor learning at Currie

With the fine weather we've been having for the last few weeks, pupils have been out in the school grounds and Roley's Wood on a regular basis.

S1 Art & Design pupils have been researching particular species of native tree and flowering plant, and their associated insects and birds for observational drawings. They found their species in Roley's Wood to draw from life, as well as using photographs.

In music, all S1 pupils found a quiet place to sit on their own in Roley's Wood to complete a 'sound map' - listening carefully to all the noises they could hear.  They then went on to create a composition based on these sounds, using instruments they made at home from recycled materials!

In Health and Food Technology, pupils have been out in the woods learning about wild food, and sampling some of the local delights, from few flowered leek and wild garlic to some tasty lime tree leaves.In the second lesson of thie unit, they cooked up some dishes using foraged ingredients, including dandelion flower pakora and nettle soup.

S3 Home Economics pupils planted up all the veg beds in the school, and sowed seed in our greenhouse.  they planted carrots (including a multi coloured Harlequin variety!), parsnips, beetroot, lettuce, radish, cauliflower, cucumber, courgette, pepper and chillis.  They will check on progress regularly, and the ingredients can then be used in the department!

Bottle top mosaic

A group of S2 girls have been collecting plastic bottle tops to make a beautiful mosaic as part of their JASS Award.  They've collected 10 black bags full of tops, and have spent the last few lunchtimes sorting them into different colours.  We hope to start making the mosaic next week. It will feature butterflies and take pride of the place in the LRC by Mrs Marriott's desk.

Currie Ecology Nest Records Update - June 4th

(British Trust for Ornithology Nest Record Scheme)

A large brood of Great Tits (by J Buckley).  Our's only had 4 chicks (see below).  This may have been connected with the cold Spring.

Some of Currie Ecology checking Box 6

Date:  4th June 2013 – UPDATE 2
Nest Box  No./ Nest record No.	Location	Species		Nesting Activity	Notes
1/	Quad.	Blue Tit		Female brooding 7 live chicks	One egg did not hatch . The chicks are about four days old.  The male is coming to the box with food and making alarm calls
2/	Front (Sparrow)				Apparently unoccupied
3/	Front (Sparrow)				Apparently unoccupied
4/	Front (Sparrow)				Apparently unoccupied
5/	Roley’s Wood	Blue Tit		1 dead day-old chick	This is a failed nest – probably the chicks were eaten by a predator.
6/	Roley’s Wood	Great Tit		Four large chicks	Not far off fledging.  Each one was ringed with a unique BTO ring.  With this we might be able to follow their life story.
7/	Roley’s Wood			Nest started	More building in evidence but the nest is not yet complete - watch this space!
8/	Roley’s Wood			5 eggs	Female brooding. Can't be far off hatching now.  Not many eggs for a Blue Tit.
Open Nest Nest record No.
TBC	Quad.	Blackbird		Nest empty	The four fledged birds in their juvenile plumage have been in the Quad for the last week or so.  They are flying well!   The nest record card is off to the BTO for their database!