School returns for many more pupils in Badenoch and Strathspey from tomorrow
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Many more school pupils in Badenoch and Strathspey are gearing up for a return to the classroom tomorrow.
The headteachers at Grantown Grammar School and Kingussie High School have said they are looking forward to welcoming back senior students initally and the start of a return to normality after the upheaval caused by the Covid pandemic.
Almost all children across Scotland have been learning remotely since the start of the year.
The youngest primary school children returned to classes nearly a fortnight ago and they will be joined by P4-P7 pupils from tomorrow.
Grantown Grammar School headteacher Claire McGonigal said: “Staff at Grantown Grammar are very much looking forward to welcoming pupils back to school tomorrow.
"Senior pupils will be in on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday spending blocks of time in all of their qualification courses each week.
"Junior pupils, S1, S2 and S3, will be in each Thursday and should see each subject area over the three weeks.
"When pupils aren’t in school they will continue with remote learning.
"Senior pupils have been collecting their testing kits and I’m sure that everyone will have their masks ready along with school clothes for Monday.
"It’s so nice to be able to start the journey back to full time face to face learning.
"Although we are only going to be doing this phased return for three weeks until the Easter holidays, it should get everyone back in the mindset of normal school life which will set us up nicely for after the Easter holidays when we will hopefully be almost back to normal.”
Kingussie High School headteacher Ian Adamson praised the help of the local community and businesses with the return of pupils.
He said: "It has really been aided by the community digging in and helping us. The Macdonald Aviemore Resort is opening a hotel for us so that we can get pupils in for well-being sessions.
"I approached them for assistance and they have been so helpful.
"The S1, S2 and S3 pupils are going to continue with their blended learning from home but on a Thursday afternoon we will be doing a face to face session with all S1-S3 children in their own local community facility.
"The Aviemore pupils will attend at the Macdonald Highlands Hotel from where I will deliver a health and well-being reconnecting session with them to get them ready for their school return."
These will be broken in S1, S2 and S3 groups to make them more manageable and socially distanced.
Similar well-being sessions will be held at Kincraig Community Hall for pupils in the village and surrounding area, at High Life Highland's Badenoch Centre in Kingussie for pupils living in and around the town, and Newtonmore Primary School hall, also on Thursdays.
They will be run over three consecutive Thursdays.
Senior pupils from S4 to S6 will return to the school from tomorrow to Thursdays for lessons.
There will still be some live lessons for S1-S3 before they return to the classroom after the Easter Holidays all being well.
Macdonald Aviemore Resort director Iain Miller said they were pleased to be able to provide a venue for the high school.
He told the Strathy: "We are happy to be of help, and hopefully this is the start of a return to normal for us all."
