Issue 2 – November 2012

1. BELLAHOUSTON ACADEMY Sport & Health News Issue 2 – November 2012 In my 3rd year at Bellahouston Academy, I was able to choose theDuke of Edinburgh award. I have completed my Bronze award, which consisted of 3 months volunteering, 6 months physical, 3 months skills, and a 2 day, one night expedition. I have now achieved my Silver award in 4th year. This involved 6 months of volunteering, 6 months physical, 3 months skills and a 3 day 2 night expedition. Throughout both awards I have taken part in different activities like skiing and swimming and I learned how to navigate. This award is a real adventure and brings groups of different people together through hard-work, commitment and effort. By Gary Hannah (S5) S1 and S2have been very lucky to get somerugby taster sessionsduring core PE. We got to play full contact games and we did some really fun rugby related games such as shark attack. Shark attack is when one person stood in the middle and we had to run to the other side. The person in the middle had to tackle people and then they would become a shark with them. It was really fun and I really enjoyed it. The BEST part was getting MUDDY!! There is now a rugby club after school on a Monday, 3-4pm! By Craig Rowan S2 “Well done is better than well said” – Benjamin Franklin

2. Introducing our Sport and Health Captains: Gary Hannah S5, Nicole Kilday S6 and Brogan Wallace S6. I wanted to be a Sport and Health Captain because I believed that health and wellbeing wasn’t looked upon as a major issue by some pupils. I wanted to promote the importance of health and to contribute to continuing improvements in the health and wellbeing system in our school. I also wanted to promote sport and encourage people to become more active. - Nicole Kilday “So far we have been involved in a number of activities as Sport and Health Captains. We led a stall at the S1 fresher’s fayre, encouraging the first years to sign up for some of our after school clubs. This was very successful and our after school clubs are now well attended by many pupils”. As Sport and Health Captains we were put forward to be Young Ambassadors for sport in Scotland, representing Bellahouston Academy. As a result, we have attended a conference in the new Commonwealth Arena – this was the first event held there! We help to run the Sport and Health Council and are now looking at promoting more clubs for senior pupils. We have also made up questionnaires to get pupils’ feedback about what is currently available. By Nicole, Gary and Brogan.

3. I am a Sports Leader at Bellahouston Academy. This year we are participating in a project called “Sky Sports Living for Sport”. The aim is to try to motivate and inspire others to take part in sport. We will be running a sporting event within our school, trying to get other students active. When you enter this project you are assigned an athlete mentor. Our mentor is Rhona Simpson. She is a multi-international capped Hockey player, she has competed in two Olympic Games representing team GB (1996, 2000) and three Commonwealth Games too. She has also played over 200 matches representing Scotland in her 35 year hockey career. On Friday 5th of October, Rhona came to Bellahouston Academy to visit us. She told us about her career and the high’s and low’s along the way. At the end of her presentation, her message was that no matter what, if we put our minds to something and keep a positive attitude, we can accomplish anything! She was really inspiring and we cant wait to get started on our project! By Sophie Byers S6 Rhona Simpson The S1 FRESHERS’ FAYRE at Bellahouston Academy gave our new first year a taster of what exciting events we have in store for them. It was a great success and every single S1 pupil browsed the stalls. They had the opportunity to sign up for our after school clubs such as rugby, girls football, boys football, badminton, basketball, netball and cricket. My stall was run by Sport and Health Captain Gary Hannah, myself, Fraser Ward, Emma Mathieson and Neil McIntyre, It was great fun. We all helped each other. Now the clubs have kicked off to a great start and so many people have turned up to take part. The Fayre was a great success! By Dean Baber S2

4. This year we have an Under 14s Football Team at Bellahouston Academy.Our first game together was against Hillpark Secondary School in the Glasgow Cup. It was a tough game and the surface we were playing on was terrible. We were getting beat 3-0 in the first half then we came back and we won 7-5. I was very proud of myself and my team-mates. Jordan Hay did amazing after scoring 3 goals! I also scored 3 goals and the other one was an own goal by Hillpark! The next week, we were playing Bishopbriggs Academy. This was a hard game. We lost 5-1. Jordan Hay scored for us. Sadly we got knocked-out of the Glasgow Cup. The following week, we played our first game in the league against Hillpark at Nethercraigs. We won 5-1. Our goal scorers were Adam Lynch and Jordan Hay who scored one each, I scored 3 again! It was a great performance after our defeat from Bishopbriggs. On Wednesday 3rd October we played against Lourdes Secondary. It was the best game in the League that we have played so far. Musaab Tumir scored 1 against Lourdes and the final score was 1-1. Luke Thornton had a superb game in goals and he kept us in the match. Our last game was against St Paul’s High School and we won 7-4! We are now top of the league! By Yusuf Bamba (S2) “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm” – Ralph Waldo Emerson “Clyde” the Scottish thistle has been picked to be the mascot for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth games. He is named after the river that flows through the host city - THAT’S US!! Clyde was designed by a twelve year old girl named Beth Gilmore. He was revealed through A special video narrated by games ambassador Billy Connelly. By Ciaran Quinn S2

5. I was put forward to become a Young Ambassador for sport in Scotland, representing Bellahouston Academy and recently attended a conference in the new Commonwealth Arena in aid of this. We were very lucky as this was the first ever event that took place in the arena, we got to see some of the facilities such as the Velodrome, which was very exciting. We took part in workshops and activities throughout the day. Every group had their own mentor. In the first workshop we came up with different ideas to promote sport, which was a good experience because it gave me lots of ideas to come back and bring into the school as a Sport and Health Captain. In the second part of the day we went with a different mentor and had to create a play to advertise the success of the British Olympians at London 2012. I found this great fun because we all worked together and were creative to try to win the competition, it also allowed me to meet lots of new people. The best part of the day was meeting Emily Maguire who was part of the British hockey team that won bronze. This was exciting because we were allowed to hold and get pictures with Emily and her bronze medal. After that we met Craig Heap who was a commonwealth gold medallist in gymnastics - we also got pictures with his medals and got to hear his life story about how he became so successful. Overall I enjoyed the full day it was very inspiring and helped me learn how well I could do if I really put my heart into it. By Nicole Kilday S6 Chanthira Suwanno 2H Aisha Abdul Rahman & Sidra Shafiq 2H

6. In June Bellahouston Academy hosted the Pollokshields Primary Sports Day. On this day we had a number of activities for the pupils in Primary’s 3-7 to take part in, for example; the javelin throw, athletics, long jump and some fun activities were also provided. Our sports leader class helped out around these activities, and guided the pupils to each activity. My job was to help out at the javelin throw, here I had to demonstrate to the pupils how to hold and throw the javelin correctly and also to insure the pupils were behaving well. Some pupils also kept scores and at the end of the day the pupils who had performed the best received medals for their hard work. The day was a great success and the pupils from the primary were all very well behaved and seemed to have had fun. The sports leader class were also very well organised and helped the day run smoothly. By Nicole Kilday S6 My first day at theSchool of Sport was so scary. My main worry was not making friends but that was not a problem as everyone was really nice. The school was a lot different than I thought it would be and the training was a lot harder then I was used to. The head ofbadmintonat the school is Craig. He selected all my competitions that I would do that year. I did okay but my main win was winning the singles at under 13 Gold in Belfast. I played the final better then I have ever played. The school helped me improve so much. I am now in S2 and things have changed a lot since last year. I have improved both at badminton and my fitness thanks to the school. I am now doing a lot better at my competitions. I have participated in 3 competitions so far this year, two in Scotland and one in England. In both my Scottish competitions I have came 1st in singles and doubles and in one of the tournaments there was a mixed doubles event too - I won that. In England I got to the semi-final of the singles and got 3rd in the doubles. The school has helped me so much and I enjoy it a lot. The new S1 pupils have started and are now doing a lot better in their competitions already. Primary 7 pupils are already saying they would love to attend the school as they see a big improvement in the pupils attending already. By Sarah Sidebottom S2

7. Our new first year pupils have been studying their favourite things about their new school – Bellahouston Academy with Mr McKenna. We watched a play a couple of weeks ago called “Take a Drink”. It was about alcohol and how it can be bad. The actors were great. They were at a party, they all drank alcohol and had different stories. The guy was sick and choked. Then one girl was dancing and got put on ‘you tube’ and the other girl got stabbed in the face. When the guy was sick it was horrible! Alcohol can be dangerous! By Alex Zotov, James Leiper and Aaron Aird S2

8. Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award Our S3 Duke of Edinburgh pupils have been participating in skiing and snowboarding to fulfil the ‘Physical’ aspects of their award: During our whole lesson today, it was pouring with rain and it was freezing. Near the end of the lesson we started learning to turn and then put your skis back into the snow plough position, using the markers as a guide. I kept on hitting them with the back of my ski’s when I was going down the slope but I got there in the end. It’s quite good. By Rabia Ali S3 The first time I went skiing was on the 13/9/12. I was taught how to put on my skis and boots and then we went on to the slope. They showed us how to get up the slope, it wasn’t hard, I got the hang of it quickly. When we got half way up we had to make a triangle shape with our legs - they called it the pizza slice - and then we had to go down the slope with the pizza slice. After a while I got better at it so we went higher up the slope. We did the same thing until we were good enough and had the confidence to go up the travelator. I went up the travelator once then it was time to go. By Mohammed Seleman S3 The second week was much better, I didn’t fall once and I was more confident. They taught me how to stop while I was going down the slope which was a bit hard but I got used to it, Scott (the instructor) told us to make the triangle bigger so it stops quicker. To make the triangle bigger we moved our feet in but we did not move our legs. The third time I went skiing was good. They taught me how to turn whilst going down the slope. It’s great fun! By Adam Ahmed S3 Former Glasgow School of Sport and Bellahouston Academy pupilMichael Jamieson achieved a silver medalin the 200m breast stroke with a time of 2 minutes 7.4 seconds at the London 2012 Olympics. Although every athlete drives for gold, it took a world record of 2 minutes and 7.28 seconds to beat Michael, and with commonwealth silver also under his belt Michaels achievements are making him a likely competitor and gold medallist for Rio: “I was desperate to get on the podium tonight to repay the support we've had," he said after he achieved his silver medal… I had planned for this and I think that helped with the nerves. For so many years I've gone over this in my head. I prepared for it and I am delighted.“ Michael, 23, has been preparing for this since his first year at school of sport, now 11 years on he has finally achieved the dream…or has he? Will he make his dream of Gold a reality in Rio? Only time will tell… By Brogan Wallace (S6) + Ciaran Quinn (S2)

9. There is currently a Broadsheet Breakfast Club on a Thursday and Friday morning for senior pupils in the Library from 8.15am. Pupils can catch up on the days news in the papers and have access to a FREE tea, coffee or hot chocolate and some toast or a brunch bar. For the past few years the girls’ football club has become increasingly popular with pupils from S1 to S6. The club is currently run after school by Mr McCloy on a Tuesday. At the club pupils are able to learn new skills and improve on the skills they already have while having fun. The skill level of the team has improved over the years. Pupils get to take their new skills into games where they play against other school teams at Toryglen. So far the girls have been a great credit to themselves and the school, by winning games against tough opposition. The girls should be very proud of themselves and we look forward to their success in the future! By Nicole Kilday

10. Our Intermediate 2 Hospitality class are currently taking part in a competition. We have to participate in a class ‘cook off’ and make a dish that costs no more than £3. Our mentor chef, Kenny, chooses people from our class to go into the next round against different schools in the area. Thereafter, four people who are successful in that round go into the grand final where one winner will be chosen. We are also trying to organise the culinary excellence course for the second year. This allows us to visit a hotel for 10 weeks to work in the kitchen and learn how to cook and how to set up and work in front of house. At the end of this ten week course we organise and deliver a function for people who have been invited. We look forward to this course! By Nicole Kilday S6 We go to netball club and since joining we have leaned that there are seven people in a netball team and five different areas in a netball court. Netball club is a great way to meet new people and it’s also free! It’s good that we get to play games against other schools too. By Rebecca Boyle, Jo Gillies and Naomi Morrison S2 Congratulations and thank you to Mr Thomson and Miss Logan who led 19 Bellahouston Academy pupils in achieving theirDuke of Edinburgh Award. Well done to: Shawnie Wright Chloe Cassidy Ashraf Karenzi Ellidh Clark David Kennedy Courtney Fraser Dana Malone Amy Gow Keira McKee Jordana McGlinchey Robyn McLaren Gary Hannah Lhiam Millan Hannah Jenkins Jack Murphy Ashley McRobert Amy Prentice Hardeep Singh Scott Thomson Congratulations also to Mr Thomson on receiving an “Inspiration Award” for his commitment and contributions to Duke of Edinburgh. I go to badminton club with Miss Mitchell in the School of Sport. This year we have lots of people coming along. We have to share the court space so we play half court games. It is so much fun and we get to make new friends. By Chanthira Suwanno S2

11. COMENIUS TRIP to Italy… Recently, a group of pupils from Bellahouston Academy, as part of the Comenius project, spent a week in Italy. The Comenius project has been ongoing for several months and has also included a trip to Germany last February. The main aim of this project is for pupils to communicate with other individuals of a similar age, who live abroad, to learn more about each other and our cultures. In Italy, our pupils experienced living with an Italian family for a week. It was a great, enjoyable experience which allowed us to experience life inside an Italian family. Every day the Scottish, German and Italian pupils met up and went on many visits. We visited Rome, the Trevvi fountain, the Vatican, a cheese factory and we also spent a day relaxing on a beautiful beach! This was a great opportunity for all pupils who thoroughly enjoyed it. By Aminah Din (School Captain) S5 In PSHE we have been learning about “Challenging Sectarianism”. Sectarianism is when different religions start to fight and argue with each other. We should try to prevent sectarianism because innocent people get hurt and even die because of it. We should respect everyone! By Shoayb Beg and Przemyslaw Grzesik S2 In PSHE we study lots of different topics like health, drugs and alcohol, litter, relationships, cyber safety and bullying. Our favourite topic so far was fire safety! We got to visit a fire station and do fun things to make us more aware about the dangers of fire. It was so much fun! By Chanthira, Aisha and Sidra S2

12. Bon Voyage Mr Thomson! Sadly, Bellahouston Academy bids farewell to Mr Thomson from the P.E. Department who was successful in securing a post at the Royal School of Dubai. Good Luck on your travels, we will all miss you! “You were a great teacher in first year and a good coach for our football team. Good luck in Dubai!” – Corey Kilday “Thanks for teaching us and Good Luck in Dubai!” - James Lundie “We will miss your stories Sir! Good Luck in Dubai” “Sir, you were the best P.E. teacher we ever had!” “Well you have been simply the best sir. We know you are leaving us for Dubai but we will always remember you. You were one of the best P.E. teachers and were great at teaching. We wish you didn’t have to go because you taught us well you were really funny. I remember once when we had rugby and you were watching us and writing stuff down. I could tell you were enjoying watching us because you couldn’t stop laughing. We were doing really well and then we suddenly just started falling down and people were getting dirty and everything. You will be missed Sir. ” - Ryan Dixon Bellahouston Academy Staff have been participating in training for the Duke of Edinburgh Award with Mr Thomson. We have been packing rucksacks, pitching tents, navigating around Bellahouston park and learning how to use camping stoves. It has been great fun! Congratulations to Emma Mathiesonof S4 who won 1st prize in the Grand Final for Freestyle and Disco at the European Dancing Championships! This is an oustanding achievement! Well done!