Ian Cairns' Weblog

Hi Suzanne

iancairns — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:53:22 +0000

Today suzanne is looking at blogging

Easter Holidays

iancairns — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 17:13:12 +0000

Today is the first day of my Easter holidays. Two weeks away from school. I wonder what I will do? So far I have two days hill walking organised, a day’s working at my football club to plan next year’s website modifications and a day out with my youngest daughter.

I need to get my school blog up to date with my revision notes for all my courses. I will set aside a couple of days for this., I also need to get my knowledge up on HD video streaming.

a wee test

iancairns — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 12:08:54 +0000

this is a new blog

october holidays decorating

iancairns — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 16:04:48 +0000

It’s the school October week right now. What should I do? Go and find the sun – not sure there is any real hot sun in Europe this time of year. Go hill walking in Aviemore – sounds good but high winds and rain are a bit of a hinderance. Decision made – I will decorate my hallway – sounds dull but I enjoy DIY.

I got my hallway ‘skimmed’ as they say in the trade a month age. It needs sanded and painted. I enjoy creating something quite ordered out of chaos. I spent two days sanding and undercoating the walls. Next the skirting and door frames needed a bit of work. Thank goodness for ‘decorators caulk’ It fills all these gaps and imperfections.

The hall is narrow and dark so I heeded light colours. It was a choice between almond white and calico. Almond white won and is now on the walls. I pained the wood satinwood white. I do not like shiny white woodwork.

So next is the flooring. Do I go for maple flooring – the same as I have in my living room? Or do I put a carpet in the hall? Wood would be best – it depends on the cost.

a curriculum for excellence

iancairns — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:16:24 +0000

Today is the end of the first term at school. It was in in-service day. This means no pupils, only staff. We spent the day on a number of activities. How to coach, how to set up an self-evaluation programme and the Curriculum for Excellence (ACE).

ACE is interesting. For too long schools have focussed on exam performance. How many highers pupils obtained. We ignored what skills pupils were learning – problem solving, teamwork, analysing and so on. Also what attributes they developed- confidence, contributers to society etc.

Now ACE is set to promote the ‘four capacities’:

confident individuals
successful learners
responsible citizens
effective contributers

We are supposed to start this ‘new’ curriculum next session (i.e. August 2009). Watch this space and see what happens.

about to Glow

iancairns — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 07:23:15 +0000

Today I am being trained as a mentor for Glow. This is a national intranet for education. My authority, East Renfrewshire Council, are about to roll out Glow to its school .

Glow - Scotland

I am looking forward to seeing the potential of Glow and how it can assist us to deliver a more effective and interesting curriculum.

winter wonderland

iancairns — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 20:10:19 +0000

The end of term. The Christmas holidays are upon us. Fourteen days of freedom from homework, tests and prelims. This term has been has been hard. And next term is worse!

We have been experiencing winter in Glasgow these past couple of weeks. Temperatures well below zero and ice and frost. No real snow yet. I live in hope. Below are a couple of pictures of my school covered in its winter coat.

paris..the beautiful city

iancairns — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 22:00:44 +0000

Last week I was fortunate to visit Paris. I was asked by the Modern Languages department of my school to accompany a group of sixth year students on an educational trip to Paris.

The four day trip was designed to give advanced higher french students an opportunity to indulge their linguistic skills with native french speakers.

The early start of 5am at Prestwick Airport was the only hard part of the trip. We visited the Eiffel Tower, UNESCO headquarters and sailed down the river Seine on a bateau-mouche and that was only day one.

The next day we had to walk as the transport workers were on strike (strike in France – unusual!!). We went to the Opera House which was perhaps the most beautiful building ever and shopped in the Galaries Lafayette (Paris’ most famous department store). In the afternoon we visited the Sacre-Coeur and lunched in the Place du Tertre. Evening saw us at the cinema to watch a comedy about love.

By Friday the buses were running and we used one to go to the Orangerie Museum to see magnificant Money Water Lillies Collection. Lunch was had in the Latin Quarter before a quick visit to Notre-Dame Cathedrial and back to the hotel on the Metro (which was now ok). that night we had a stroll on the Champs-Elysees before bed.

The final day was given to a look round Versailles Palace and the Pompidou Centre before an excellent RyanAir filght back to Prestwick.

The final chapter of this tale is that I had a flat battery when I got back to my car after landing. I had left the interior light on four days ago. A big thanks to the staff of the car park who helped me with jump leads at midnight.

day out at cairnpapple

iancairns — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 22:22:19 +0000

Cairnpapple is an important prehistoric site. Built over 500 years ago, it contains six hearths and a great henge or enclosure.

The site has a magnificent view. On a clear day it is possible to see as far as Arran to the west, Bass Rock to the east the border hills to the south and the highlands to the north.

The site is very interesting and offers the visitor a close look at life thousands of years ago. Unfortunately I visited it on a Thursday and it was locked up. The shop was closed (no-one there to take my £3.50) and the burial grave was padlocked. It’s a shame as many sites throughout Scotaland are free to enter and not padlocked. I wonder if its proximity to Edinburgh has a bearing on charging people to visit it.

Here is the Historic Scotland Hut that is used as the visitor’s center and evidence of what the locals use the hill for

visit to rosslyn

iancairns — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 19:48:39 +0000

As it is the October holidays, I took myself off to visit Rosslyn Chapel. You know it. It was in The Da Vinci Code.

Rosslyn Chapel or to give it its official title, The Collegiate Chapel of St Matthew, is a fascinating place. It was built in 1446 by Sir William St Clair. The build took 40 years to complete. It was built close to the village of Roslin on the south side of Edinburgh.

It was one of 37 collegiate chapels built in Scotland between the reigns of James I and James IV (1406-1513). Its purpose was to spread intellectual and spiritual knowledge. The extravagance of the build depended upon the wealth of its patron. Rosslyn was ornately decorated as the St Clair family were one of Scotland’s wealthiest land owners.

Below are some examples of the mason’s handiwork in the construction of the chapel.

A lot of speculation has been written about Rosslyn. Some think it contains the Ark of The Covenant, others the Holy Grail. Why was it left untouched by Oliver Cromwell? It there some secret secreted there?