Category Archive: Uncategorised

twopointsix challenge - Miss Patton takes part

Miss Patton’s 2.6 challenge

Safe science experiments to try at home!

Always make sure experiments are carried outwith the help of an adult

1. Rainbow wizard’s brew

• The will teach your child about chemical reactions between acid and baking soda which react to produce carbon dioxide.
• You will need:

Baking Soda

Water colours or food colouring

Glitter

Dishsoap

Vinegar

Glass jar

Small plastic containers

Tray

Step 1: Fill the jar halfway with vinegar

Step 2: Add a few drops of one colour of watercolour paint or food colouring and some glitter.

Step 3: Squeeze in some dish soap, stir, and place the jar on a tray. Step 4: Add in a heaped teaspoon of baking soda, stir again, and watch the foaming begin!

The soap makes it foam rather than fizz. To keep the reaction going continue adding baking soda and vinegar when the foam starts to slow. To make it change colours, add a tablespoon of vinegar mixed with one color of liquid watercolor/food coloring every so often. Make sure to dump the coloured vinegar into the center of the brew.

Source: babbledabbledo.com/20-science-projects-for-preschoolers/

2. Magic an egg in a bottle

• This will teach your child how temperature affects pressure, with the match heating the bottle so it expands and the contracting when heat supply disappears.
• You will need:

Peeled hard-boiled egg (or soft-boiled, if a yolky mess interests you)

Flask or jar with an opening slightly smaller than the diameter of the egg

Paper and match

Don’t forget the adult help

Step 1: Set a piece of paper on fire and drop it into the bottle.

Step 2: Set the egg on top of the bottle (small side pointed downward). When the flame goes out, the egg will get pushed into the bottle.

You can also get the egg out. Please see thought.co.com for more info on this experiment: www.thoughtco.com/egg-in-a-bottle-demonstration-604249

3. Grow your own lettuce

• This will teach your child about plant propagation.
• You will need:

Stumpy of any lettuce you have.

Step 1: Place the lettuce hearts in a shallow container of water. Make sure the water does not cover the lettuce.

Step 2: Change the water each day.

Make sure your give your lettuce a daily dose of sunshine and within a week you should have lettuce for lunch!

Source: www.littlebinsforlittlehands.com/growing-lettuce-from-stumps-kitchen-science/

4. Make your own lava lamp–

• This will teach your child about density and buoyancy experiment.
• You will need

A clean Transparent PET bottle.

Oil, as an experiment you can try different types of oils and see how this affects you lava lamp.

Water

Alka-Seltzer tablets

Food colouring

Step 1: Fill the bottle about half full of water and add a few drops of food colouring

Step 2: Fill the rest of the bottle with cooking oil,and allow the components to settle and separate

Step 3: Break an Alka-Seltzer tablet into quarters, and drop one piece into the bottle.

Step 4: Watch as the bottle swirls and churns like a real lava lamp!

Source - www.fizzicseducation.com.au/150-science-experiments/kitchen-chemistry-experiments/how-to-make-a-lava-lamp/

5. Magic milk

• This will teach your child about creating, mixing and testing amongst other things.
• You will need:

Milk – any kind

A bowl or casserole dish

Food Colouring or liquid water colours

Glitter (optional)

Liquid dish soap (don’t use antibacterial or it won’t work well)

Toothpick

Step 1: Pour a small amount of milk in a dish, just a thin film that covers the bottom of the dish.

Step 2: Squeeze a few drops of food colouring or liquid water colours into the milk. Add glitter, if desired.

Step 3: Dip the end of the toothpick into the dish soap and then into the centre of one drop of coloured milk. Don’t stir it, just watch the colour explode.

Source - https://sciencekiddo.com/magic-milk-science-for-kids/

“At a time of enforced separation, Kilgraston School is very much together.”

Hyperbole is frequently misused. On this occasion, I feel justified in saying that the speed of unfolding events has been almost incomprehensible for each and every member of our community.

However, I am extremely proud to report that, at the end of our first week of the new working arrangement, every part of Kilgraston has more than risen to the challenge.

Plato said: ‘Necessity is the mother of invention’. Never before has there been a need to reinvent working practice so rapidly.

Every member of our close Kilgraston community has changed their routine, embracing new and unfamiliar arrangements. But despite this, a full roll-call has been maintained.

This is an extremely difficult time; for our community and the entire world. Like never before, working as a collegiate is vital and I feel immensely honoured – and humble – at the way in which pupils, staff, parents, guardians, everybody, have embraced the ‘TEAMS’ technology, enabling us to carry on.

I understand that there are many challenges to having children at home: trying to help teach, trying to work, trying to maintain a routine. I understand the worries of pupils thrown into disarray with exam changes, the possible influences on future education and the ensuing anxiety that this will cause parents and carers.

But please remember that you are not alone.

At a time of enforced separation and distance, we are very much together. From Mexico to Spain, France to Kurdistan, Dingwall to Dorset, we’re still a family and very much there for one another.

There is no ‘I’ in either team nor TEAMS. There is only a collective effort. These changes have been hard for everyone but, together, we will get through this and emerge stronger and more resilient.

Every individual has played their vital part, ensuring our Kilgraston School will continue to be the unique and precious community with which we are all so familiar.

Despite these extenuating circumstances, many, many parents and guardians have taken time out of their busy day to write and thank staff for the dedication and ingenuity demonstrated this week, thus ensuring a fulfilling curriculum for their children.

If you will permit, I would like to sign-off with their words, not mine. At the end of this extraordinary week, thank you so much for your assistance and consideration.”

Dorothy MacGinty, Headmistress

from parents & guardians…

• “Can we just say how impressed we have been by the level of support the girls have received this week - much more direct involvement by teaching staff compared with schools in the west. Well done Kilgraston.”
• “From our perspective, the virtual teaching has been going very well indeed. Not unexpectedly, (my daughter’s) have risen to the occasion and fully embraced the new ways of learning. A big thank you to all staff for their creativity and commitment to continuing to provide learning and routine for the girls. A brilliant demonstration of how young people can be supported to cope, even thrive, in the face of adversity. True resilience-building.”
• “Thank you for all your communication and organisation at this difficult time. The ‘Teams’ seems to have worked well and all the teachers continue to provide fantastic support. It is much appreciated at what is a difficult time for the girls with their exams being cancelled. Stay safe and many thanks.”
• “As I sit at my dining table working through this morning’s emails, I am listening to an U3 English class being delivered by Mrs Ramsay on Zoom. The girls are excited by the whole experience and interacting well. I have always had respect for teachers but Mrs Ramsay has gone up a further notch. Great stuff – making me smile and feeling proud to be part of it in some small way!”

• “I just wanted to send a quick email to thank you and your team for implementing an efficient and effective changeover for the girls to continue their learning. Daughter (Upper Fourth) has been really diligent in making sure that she is doing her work and keeping up to date. Thank you, as it cannot have been easy to put everything together in a short period of time and under a situation that was changing every day. Best wishes”
• “A well balanced and pragmatic risk-based approach from Mrs MacGinty. I am sure I speak for many of the parents - if you need any support (as many of us are now working from home) do reach out. More than happy to help out maintain some sort of normality for the girls, brawn or brain offered. Pass on my support.”
• “I just wanted to say thank you for all the excellent communication you have given parents. I feel that in a crazy situation you have led from the front and maintained a real contact with us parents and kept us up-to-date as you have been able. I am so sorry that we have not been able to stay open and I think you and your staff have really kept calm in this crazy time. I am thinking of you all in these difficult days and send my very best to you and your staff.”
• “Thank you so very much for all your communication and I look forward to getting the girls back to school as soon as possible. In the mean time we shall buckle down and keep healthy!! Best wishes, please all take care of yourselves and thank you for what I consider an amazing job that you are all doing.”

I Talk To The Trees: Distance Learning Outside

As we face the prospect of watching one of Scotland’s famous long, hot summers pass by while at a safe social distance of at least two metres from each other, we have started to witness some unforeseen, though not entirely unwelcome, effects of our communal lockdown on the natural world. The European Space Agency reports decreased nitrous oxide levels of up to 80% over northern Italy. The waters of Venice lagoon are now so clear that fish are once again visible (though, sadly, the dolphin pictures appear to be fake). Deer are wandering through empty streets and subway stations in Nara, Japan, and boar have been strolling with impunity through the city of Barcelona.

So when the indoor classroom becomes too much, how else can you educate and entertain the troops. Here are some handy hints on using the nature we have on our own doorsteps:

1. Birdwatching – get into your garden, or from a window in bad weather, and get birdwatching. Join in the fun via the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds social media channels and use #breakfastbirdwatch on to part of a virtual community of birdwatchers. The Society’s website also has a list of family-friendly activities, some of which – like building a bird box, planting flowers to attract bees and butterflies, and making a minipond – can be done in your own garden, as part of their ‘Wild Challenge’ award scheme.
2. Live footage of animals - even on those occasional rainy days, there is no excuse for not connecting with nature. The Scottish Wildlife Trust maintains a series of webcams through which you can watch live footage from some of their reserves, including the famous osprey nest at Loch Leven; and Edinburgh Zoo has webcams in a number of their enclosures, including that of the pandas. If that’s not enough, the BBC have made nine separate Sir David Attenborough box sets available through the iPlayer, going all the way back to the classic 1979 series Life on Earth.
3. Check out the Royal Horticultural Society’s ‘Grown Your Own’ advice page. Amidst the global spread of the coronavirus, it has reported a recent spike in traffic to this particular advice page, as people turn to gardening as a way to guard against food shortages as a result of panic buying, and as a way to maintain their mental health.

And remember, even if you’re not of the green-fingered persuasion, you could always tune up your guitar and head outside to greet nature with three chords and the truth, like the group of musicians in Sheffield who have been playing gigs in their back gardens to maintain community spirits while people are self-isolating. And remember the Norwegian saying, ‘Det finnes ikke dårlig vær, bare dårlige klær’ - There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing.

Dr Phillips, Head of Geography

Links

RHS ‘Grow Your Own’ advice page: https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/grow-your-own

RSPB ‘Wild Challenge’ activities: https://www.rspb.org.uk/fun-and-learning/for-families/family-wild-challenge/activities/

Scottish Wildlife Trust webcams: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/things-to-do/watch-wildlife-online/

Happy DIY Home: https://happydiyhome.com/how-to-grow-your-own-food/

Edinburgh Zoo webcams: https://www.edinburghzoo.org.uk/webcams/

Sir David Attenborough box sets: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/group/p06m42d9

Young Musician of the Year

The Kilgraston Young Musician of the Year competition reached dizzy heights last week with fantastic performances from the girls. The standard was extremely high according to the adjudicator Peter Grant, Director of Music at Ardvreck.

Young Musician Results

Kilgraston Young Musician of the Year 2020

Emma D, L4 - Violin

Kilgraston Junior Young Musician 2020

Olivia K, L3 - Piano

Junior Years: Beginner / Grade 1 Class

Niamh S, U3 - Voice, 1st

Rebecca M, U3 - Clarsach, 2nd

Sofia IvB, L1 - Violin, Highly Commended

Junior Years: Grade 2 Class

Grace R, U3 - Voice, 1st

Chloe B, L3 - Voice, Highly Commended

Junior Years: Junior Open Class (Grade 3 or above)

Olivia K, L3 - Piano, 1st

Senior Years: Grade 2 to 4 Class

Maia B-A, L4 - Voice & Guitar, 1st

Anais C, U4 - Piano, 2nd

Laura I, U4 - Voice, Highly Commended

Senior Years: Grade 5/6 Class

Lucy H, L6 - Baritone, 1st

India H, U5 - Piano, 2nd

Mischa S, U4 - Voice, 3rd

Senior Years: Open Class

Emma D, L4 - Violin, 1st

Emily S, U5 - Double Bass, 2nd

Perform In Perth Success

A number of girls were entered into a variety of categories at Perform In Perth this year, and despite fierce competition, took home numerous top three placings. The results for Kilgraston girls are as follows:

Practice Chanter - Libby D (2nd place)

Advanced Xylophone Solo - Yolanda N (2nd place)

Prepared Reading (ages 7-8) - Elsie S (2nd place), Emma H (3rd place), Alice H (merit certificate), Olivia G (merit certificate)

Prepared Reading (ages 9-10) - Chloe B (=3rd place), Erin F (=3rd place), Natalie D (merit certificate), Hannah A (merit certificate)

Prepared Reading (ages 11 - 12) - Melissa A (first class certificate), Edith S (merit certificate), Rebecca M (merit certificate), Lucy H (merit certificate), Heidi S (merit certificate)

Bible Reading (ages 7-8) - Poppy H (1st place), Busi M (=3rd place), Sophie P (=3rd place)

Bible Reading (ages 9-10) - Caitlin O (1st place), Chloe B (2nd place), Ishbel F(=3rd place), Elizabeth S (=3rd place), Hannah A (first class certificate), Lucy M (first class certificate), Mia R (merit certificate), Flora P (merit certificate), Daisy D (merit certificate), Sally B (merit certificate)

Bible Reading (ages 11-12) - Melissa A (1st place), Rebecca M (2nd place), Kirsten M (3rd place)

Verse Speaking (ages 5-6) - Sofia I (2nd place), Minnie S (3rd place), Jessica H (merit certificate), Bethan F (merit certificate), Ella B (merit certificate), Emily M (merit certificate), Hattie S-R (merit certificate), Rosie D (merit certificate)

Verse Speaking (ages 7-8) - Alice B (merit certificate), Florence H (merit certificate), Isla R (merit certificate)

Verse Speaking (ages 9-10) - Caitlin O (2nd place), Chloe B (3rd place), Lucy M (first class certificate), Sally M (merit certificate), Lucy B (merit certificate), Emma B (certificate), Erin F (first class certificate), Hannah A (first class certificate), Delilah M-F (merit certificate), Olivia K (merit certificate)

Burns Poems (ages 7-8) - Sophie P (1st place), Lyra M (2nd place), Zoe M (=3rd place), Sofia Dunsire (=3rd place)

Burns Poems (ages 9-10) - Olivia K (=2nd place), Megan S (=2nd place)

Burns Poems (ages 11-12) - Alyth B (2nd place)

Dramatic Solo (ages 11-12) - Chloe B (1st place), Lilly D (3rd place), Niamh S (merit certificate), Grace R

S.C.D Girls Only 12 & Under - Awarded to Chloe B (Julie Young Dancers) - 1st place, Honours certificate

Congratulations to all the girls who took part!

Women and Business welcomes medical Professor to Kilgraston School

Women and Business - leading ladies

The School’s series of talks has, so far, hosted specialists from the fields of accountancy, law, journalism and private enterprise. Future visits include a Professor of Stem Cell research, the Commercial Director of Gleneagles, an engineer with SSE and a leading orthodontist.

Lectures give senior school pupils the opportunity to hear, first hand, from industry experts, while also being given the chance to speak to them on a one-to-one basis.

Medically minded

Prof Ibbotson spoke to pupils about the route her career had taken, including a spell as a Harvard Medical School Research Fellow in Boston, where she conducted photochemistry research: “Take every opportunity,” she told the 80 pupils, “During my medical student days and career, I’ve spent time studying and working in Sydney, Vancouver and even Bermuda, where I had the chance to focus on paediatrics.”

Initially attending Leeds Medical School - qualifying with a first class honours degree in biochemistry and honours in her medical degree - Prof Ibbotson also completed a postdoctoral thesis in blood clotting disorders and diabetes: “I had wonderful mentors there who sparked my interests in blood clotting and leg ulcers and, ultimately, led to my specialism in dermatology.”

Moving back to Newcastle, the Professor took up postgraduate dermatology training, developing an interest in the effects of sunlight on the skin, where there was “lots of dedicated research into the effects of different wavelengths of light on the diagnosis and treatment of different types of skin diseases.”

Clearly still very passionate about her profession, Prof Ibbotson explained her research into light and skin to the girls, for example describing how pharmaceutical industries have requirements to investigate how drugs may interact with UV light on the skin and that the Photobiology Unit at Dundee University carried out research in this field: “Many drugs are light-sensitising and need to be thoroughly investigated,” she told the audience, “we also specialise in photodynamic therapy, a treatment for non-melanoma skin cancer and sun damage, which combines a drug that makes cells sensitive to light with exposure to visible light.”

Careering ahead

The audience, many of whom were considering a medical career, learnt about necessary undergraduate qualifications. At Dundee University, assessment is based on school exam results, UCAT (University Clinical Aptitude Test) and MMI interview.

“Medicine is very competitive, with approximately one in ten applicants being offered a place” explained Prof Ibbotson, “that’s the bad news! But the good news is that it is an extremely rewarding career and there are lots of options regarding career choices with a medical degree, along with a 100% graduate employment rate.”

One Sixth Form pupil, who has been offered places to read Medicine at four Scottish universities, also addressed the girls: “I approached my GP practice and was given a few days’ work experience,” she said, “But also, I kept being told how important ‘soft skills’ were so I’ve found taking my Higher Drama very helpful with communication.”

At the end of the lecture, pupils quizzed the Professor on various routes through a medical career, including general practice, medical and surgical specialties and one enquiry regarding plastic surgery: “There are some very focussed young ladies here.”

The next generation

As well as being the Head of the Photobiology Unit at Dundee University, the Professor told pupils that she continues with research and teaching,particularly enjoying her involvement with the undergraduate medical student programme.

“Early in my career, I was lucky enough to be mentored very well,” she concluded, “so it is always a complete pleasure to offer guidance to the next generation of medical enthusiasts.”

Kilgraston School was very privileged to have welcomed Professor Ibbotson.

A packed house at Kilgraston School for Professor Ibbotson’s lecture on 13 March 2020

Naturewatch: The Cromwell Tree

On 30^th January 1649, King Charles I was executed on a scaffold erected in front of the Banqueting House of the Palace of Whitehall in Westminster, London. In response, on 5^th February, the Parliament of Scotland declared his son, Charles II, who was living in exile in the Netherlands, to be King of Scots.

Charles returned to Scotland on 23^rd June 1650, landing at Garmouth, Moray and signing the 1638 National Covenant and 1643 Solemn League and Covenant which brought both Scottish Royalists and Scots Covenanters rallying to his cause. Less than a month later, on 22^nd July, Oliver Cromwell and his New Model Army arrived in Scotland from Ireland and, by the end of the year, they had taken control of the city of Edinburgh and much of southern Scotland.

In a largely symbolic gesture, Charles was crowned at Scone on 1^st January 1651; by July, Cromwell’s army had crossed into Fife and begun to advance towards Perth, stopping to rest at Bridge of Earn where, it being a Sunday, it is said that Cromwell preached an eloquent sermon. The Royalist garrison at Perth surrendered on 3^rd August and, to maintain control of the city and its surrounding countryside, Cromwell ordered a citadel to be built on land that is now occupied by South Inch car park.

Of greater significance here, though, is a Spanish chestnut (or sweet chestnut) tree that was planted on the Kilgraston estate on the day of Perth’s surrender. If the story of its planting is true, this tree would now be approaching 369 years of age. However, while the upper part of tree appears to be a mass of dead branches, the lower part does show signs of fresh growth. The tree is still visible across fields to the north of school, a still-living reminder of Britain’s turbulent political and religious history.

Sports Round Up

Kilgraston senior netball team’s landslide win qualifies them for the Scottish Cup Finals

The senior netball team played Elgin Academy on Wednesday in the semi finals of the Scottish Cup. The girls played an incredibly fast-paced match to win 44-7. This means the team have now qualified for the Scottish Cup finals. Well done girls!

Arran takes the win at swimming gala

Tuesday saw 64 girls take part in a house swimming gala. All the girls put in their best efforts, however, the winners were:

Seniors - Rania M

Under 16 - Katherine B

Under 14 - Rebecca M

Under 13 - Maia B-A

Under 11 - Edith S

Under 9 - Emma H

House Champions - Arran

Well done to all those who took part.

‘Inspired performance’ sees senior hockey team win against QVS

On Saturday the senior girls had a great games and practice on a beautiful sunny morning.

We welcomed QVS to play our Senior team and L5/U4 team

The senior team were 2 – 0 down after half time but an inspired performance in the second half, with 2 – 2 and 30 seconds left to play Connie scored the winner, with Ellie scoring the other 2.

In the 2^nd game Erin scored an amazing 4 goals and Jessica scored the 5^th to win 5 – 0.

Well done girls!

Kilgraston girls ski to success at Prep School Ski Championships

Kilgraston entered three teams for this event, the youngest consisting of Lower and Upper 1! They were truly amazing, as the weather certainly wasn’t. Not only were they challenged with a steep and difficult slalom course, they had to battle against the wind to stay up! (Alice, Sofia, Minnie and Jessica)

Our B Team came 3^rd, winning bronze medals. (Hannah, Willow, Delilah and Elsie)

The A Team won silver medals with a 2^nd place. (Lucy, Edith and Sally). Lucy came 2^nd in the U.11 category so came home with two silver medals).

A huge congratulations to the girls and a thank you to all the parents who helped.

Connections made at Kilgraston School with National Theatre performance

How do you approach the thorny issue of modern-day angst without alienating your audience?

‘The It’ by acclaimed playwright, Vivienne Franzmann, is how.

Set to a contemporary backdrop, the production exposes the kernel of anxiety that grows within troubled teen, Joy Fremantle.

Mythical beast ‘The It’ takes on a life of its own, slowly claiming its host.

Kilgraston School was selected to participate in the prestigious National Theatre Connections project and, along with a handful of other UK schools, pupils had to perform a designated play.

Primarily this would take place at their own school, followed (for those from Scotland) by a performance at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh on March 25.

Finally, if chosen, pupils travel to London later in the year to perform infront of a paying audience.

Surround sound

“Joy, I’m not going to nag you, it’s your future,” bellows her father.

“Who was that child?” questions a teacher.

“Joy, Freemental,” scoffs a classmate.

The influences on the unhappy teenager’s life are the same as any you will find across the nation: parents, teachers, friends, classmates, social media. Normal day-to-day life.

But watch closely. This tale is a possible metaphor for any young person.

“There’s something growing in my belly,” Joy complains.

Of course, there isn’t, but what is present is the feeling of being anxious and overwhelmed by life.

The maw of direct correlation between Joy’s misery and her contemporaries’ increasing disinterest, opens up.

With her discomfort growing to “the size of a West Highland Terrier,” still nothing is done.

Many witness her downfall, but, crucially, fail to act, seeing their own experience as a singular observation, not fitting it into the greater jigsaw of Joy’s troubled life.

“She stopped coming to class.”

“She became very withdrawn.”

“She stopped communicating.”

The curtain comes down

At the very last minute, Joy discovers she is not alone. Dystopic references throughout the play give credence to the onset of anxiety.

Tragically though, it is too late. Dramatically, ‘The It’ claims its victim on the school’s sports field.

This was a delicate and perhaps, at times, sensitive topic to interpret.

However, the cast of 14 and 15 year olds addressed it head-on, handling their production with energy and insight. What could have been an uncomfortable hour was made entertaining with several comic touches – cardboard Instagram cut-outs and bossy teachers - lightening the mood.

Reflection

National Theatre Director, Kash Arshad, was on hand to offer praise and advice.

Speaking after their performance, he told the girls: “This was a thoroughly engaging and strong interpretation of ‘The It’. It is a tough play, dealing with a tough subject, but there was a lovely mix of serious moments and humour, so it never felt too heavy or preachy.”

Entertainment with a serious message; don’t ignore what’s in front of you. Beauty may be skin deep but trouble reaches far further into the soul.

Mairi Fraser

Lower Fifth pupils at Kilgraston performing Vivienne Franzmann’s ‘The It’ in the School’s theatre during February 2020