From 16th—18th March, 12 Stranraer Young Curlers represented Stranraer Academy at the 2018 Scottish Schools Curling Championships at Intu Braehead with three rinks competing in five round robin games over two days with the play-offs and finals being played on the Sunday. In section A Stranraer Academy was represented by Karlyn Lyon (skip), Niall Ryder (third),Matthew McCrone (second) with Robbie Lyon playing lead. Their games got off to a good steady start with two wins out of three games, losing dramatically 15shots to 1 against the Kelso rink, but more importantly losing six ends. Their last two games on the Saturday saw the winning way back on track, however after all the five games had been played it was third place in their section with 8points 19ends, S/U7 T/S 41.Also playing in the early games were Stranraer Academy 3 with Logan Hare skip, Adam Cairnie third, Findlay Hare second and young Kerr Lyon from Castle Kennedy Primary School playing lead, Kerr was playing as pupils being in P7 and from a feeder school. This rink really played some fine curling against pupils much older than them. Logan and his rink got off to a good start on the Friday morning with a win against Beith High School 11shots to 4, their second game in the afternoon saw them play High School of Dundee and a closer game however an other win 7shots to 5, their last and late game on the Friday night was against Dumfries High School but the boys took an other win 7shots to 3 and an early night for this rink. All fired up on their last three wins in the Friday games, Saturday morning didn't get off to a good start with a small defeat of 9 shots to 6 down against Stirling High School for Logan, Adam, Findlay and Kerr. With a break between that game and their last the boys regrouped and finished off their round robin games with a convincing win against I would have said to be one of the favourite rinks to win overall the boys took on Perth High School. Perth had the hammer in the first end and were forced to a 1shot, Perth stole a 1 in the second end, but Stranraer came back strong with a 2 in the third end, stealing a 1 in the fourth end, a further steal of a 3 in the fifth end, stealing single shots in ends six and seven going down the last end 8-2 up the boys were happy to give Perth a 2 in the final end giving Stranraer the win 8shots to 4 and top of their section with 8points, 23ends, S/U14 T/S 39 and through to the quarter final against Kelso High School on the Sunday. The Stranraer Academy 2 rink skipped by Frazer Taylor, Kaleb Johnstone third, Harry Hay playing second and Ross Plant playing lead stones played two of their five games on the Saturday with a win of 8shots to 4 win against Perth, their afternoon game against Elgin Academy was a 10shots to 9 win. The first of their three games on the Saturday saw them continue their wins this time 10shots to 4 against Lockerbie Academy 2. Their fourth game was against Cumlloden Academy with a win of 12shots to 3. Their last game in their round robin was against a young Dalbeattie rink which no matter how Frazer and his rink buried their stones the Dalbeattie rink seemed to find the luck of the rub offs and find the button, this was Frazer, Kaleb, Harry and Ross's only loss with 7shots to 5 against saw them qualify second Section D and play St. Joseph's College, Dumfries in the quarter finals on the Sunday morning. Sunday morning in Intu Braehead was warmer than the outside temperature saw Stranraer 3 skipped by Logan, Adam playing third, Findlay second with young Kerr playing lead stones take on Kelso High School, with a bit of nerves starting to creep in saw the first two ends being blanked by Logan, Kelso in the third end stole a 2, Logan came fighting back with a 1 in the fourth and fifth ends, Angus Bryce skip for Kelso turned the pressure up taking a 4 in the sixth end, however the boys regrouped and got a 1 in the seventh but going down the last end needing a 3 to draw for an extra end was a tall order but only managed a 1 losing 6shots to 4, the score line didn't reflect the true game with some good curling from all the Stranraer rink, from very good draws and take outs to just true one hundred percent effort from all four boys. On rink seven was the quarter final between Stranraer Academy 2 skipped by Frazer, Kaleb vice, Harry second with Ross playing lead stones against the rink from St Joseph's College, Dumfries. On ranking St. Joseph's had the hammer in the first end taking an early lead with a 2, Frazer came back with a 1 in the second end, Neven Harmjanz skip for St Joseph's turned up the pressure on Frazer taking a 3 in the third end, Frazer with only one stone counting in the fourth went in to the fifth end 5shots to 2 down, St Josephs took their 1 in the sixth stealing a further single shot in the seventh saying that Frazer started off well placed in the seventh end but only managed to keep two of his stones covered and taking a 2 and 7shots to 4 down decided that they had had enough after seven ends needing a 3 in the last end to force an extra end offered a hand shake. Article by Jim Ryder (parent) Photos by S6 Digital Photography Pupil Ross Plant and Stranraer 1 and 3 team photos by Jim Ryder.

Girls Qualify for Cashback 7's Football Finals! To cap off a fantastic week of girls sporting achievement in Stranraer Academy, the junior girls football team have qualified for the Cashback 7's Finals earlier today in Dumfries. After progressing through the group stages with some tough matches, the girls were equal on points and had to then settle with the final spot with play-off match, where they emerged victorious! Well done girls! Unfortunately, the two boys teams did not fare so well and failed to qualify, better luck next year boys!

Well done girls! What a fantastic achievement!

Junior A Team Netball Final Today! Good luck to the Stranraer Academy Junior A Netball team who are playing against Langholm Academy in the Regional Netball Final tonight in Dumfries! The girls are undefeated so far, having won all 9 games they have played! Good luck girls! Additionally, the Junior B team finished 3rd in the league and the senior team finished 5th - congratulations to the team members involved too!

Girls Regional Rugby 7’s Champions 2018! Stranraer Academy U18 girls won the Dumfries and Galloway School Rugby 7s tournament held at Dumfries Rugby Club on Wednesday 14th March 2018. They competed against 3 other teams from across the region and performed to a high standard in all of their games. Their first test was against Douglas Ewart, a rough match where the team had to really dig deep to get a 6-6 draw. After that the girls got into their stride and won their next two games comfortably to meet Douglas Ewart again in the final. Knowing they had to put in a strong performance put a little more pressure on the team but they worked hard and came away with a 6-3 win to become Regional 7's Champions! Well done girls! Team (not in order): Bronagh Gibb, Lauren McCulloch, Kirstin McCulloch, Trinity Newell, Rachel Reid, Shauna Birkhead, Rebecca Torbet, Alanah Irvine, Ellen Watt, Leah Hughes

S4/5/6 SQA Exams Information All S4-6 pupils were issued with the annual 'Your Exams' booklet for the upcoming 2018 exam diet. This booklet is very useful and contains information regarding the exams, such as preparation, rules and regulations and what to expect if you are sitting exams for the first time. The booklet can be downloaded from the following links: App: More > Files > SQA & Exams Website (Curriculum > SQA & Exams tab): http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/sqa-your-exams-booklet-2018.html The 2018 Exam Timetable is also available to download from the school website and here on the app. It is also available from the SQA website. App: More > Files > SQA & Exams Website (Curriculum > SQA & Exams tab): http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/sqa-exam-timetable-2018.html For more information on the exams, such as useful apps, please visit the following link: https://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/41619.html

SDS Cross Country Today! Good luck to all pupils representing Stranraer Academy today in the Scottish Disability Sport Cross Country Championship at Bellahouston Park, Glasgow! The pupils have great weather to compete in and are looking forward to the event! The photos shows the pupils warming up before the event begins! Good luck everyone!

Important Information for Parents / Carers Headteacher of Stranraer Academy, Mr N. Dawson has issued a digital letter addressed to all Parents/Carers regarding speculation about a staff meeting last week. Pupils will not receive a paper copy to take home. The letter can be read on the website under the Communication tab or by following this link: http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/letter-to-parents--carers---monday-19th-march-2018.html

S5/6 SAAS Funding for Further Education 2018/19 The Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) will open applications for funding in mid-April. You should apply for funding as early as possible and do so before 30th June to ensure that you receive your funding in time for your course starting. If you have a conditional offer you must also submit your application, there is no need to wait for your SQA results. The funding for fulltime courses includes: • HNC • HND • Undergraduate Degrees • Nursing and Midwifery For more information on how to apply, please visit the SAAS website: http://www.saas.gov.uk

Showcase Tickets On Sale Now! Tickets are now on sale for the 2018 Stranraer Academy Showcase from today and can be purchased at the school office. Ticket prices are £4 adults and £2 children and OAP's. The Showcase will be held in assembly hall on Tuesday 27th March from 7-9.30 p.m. Doors open at 6.30 p.m. Please come along and support the event!

Scottish Schools Curling Championship This Weekend! Good luck to Stranraer Academy pupils who are competing today and over the weekend in the Scottish Schools Curling Championship at Braehead Curling Rink in Glasgow. There are 3 teams representing the school in the Championships. To keep up to date with the latest scores, please visit the following link: http://competitions.scottishcurling.org/competitions/scottish-schools-curling-championship-5/ Good luck to all our teams!

ILF Transition Fund for Young People The new ILF Transition Fund provides money, for up to one year, to support young people living with disabilities (as defined in the Equality Act 2010) to improve their lives. This includes autism, learning difficulty, physical disability, mental health (e.g. anxiety or depression) or hearing or visual impairments. The purpose of the Fund is to help young people, between the ages of 16 and 21 living with disabilities, with the transition after leaving school or children’s services to be more independent and to continue spending time with other people. For more information, please see the leaflet on the App / Website or by contacting Mrs K McClelland, Principal Teacher of Support for Learning at the school. App: More > Files > Support for Learning Website (Faculties & Subjects > Support for Learning tab): http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/ilf-transition-fund.html