We are collecting Tesco Schools and Clubs Vouchers and any would be very gladly welcomed!

This week Hawick High School has been given the Hawick Olympic Torch, made by Hamish Smith. The torch itself has been taken to The Got2Dance group. The freestyle dancers have a training session on a Monday night and a Tuesday night. Both sessions run from 6:00 to 7:30. The Monday night session tends to be for younger children and the Tuesday night for older children. We were shown their routines and we all thought they were excellent. Some of the group members are training for a competition at the end of the year; we all hope they do well.

By Ellie Douglas and Niamh Rafferty

BBC Bitesize has launched message boards for pupils studying for their Standard Grades and Highers. As well as the games, videos and tests for our range of subjects, pupils can now post queries or help others with their revision online. There are teachers on standby, during the holidays and all the way up till the exams, who will offer tips and answer queries about tricky aspects of their course.

The message boards are moderated and are open for posting daily Monday – Sunday, from 9am to 9pm. We hope this will be a useful service over the revision period and while teachers are off having a deserved break. These new BBC Bitesize message boards can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/mbstandardgradeandhigher/.

All of our content, as well as websites, programmes and events from across the BBC that we think may be of interest. to teachers, parents or learners in Scotland can be accessed through our homepage at http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningscotland.

Early on a Wednesday morning in February, a group of twenty-seven pupils and five adults left Hawick and began their journey to the amazing country that is Russia. Some spent their time on the plane brushing up on some helpful Russian phrases taught to us by the Rector in advance of the trip to survive the week away. As two of the lucky pupils who went, we can tell you it was truly an experience of a life time. Seeing the iconic places like St Basil’s Cathedral, Red Square and the Kremlin in Moscow, we know it was an experience we will never forget. Even the snow and temperatures of minus twenty-seven degrees didn’t faze us though the food was definitely from another culture! But the frequent trips to Russian Pancake Shops and post-Soviet MacDonald’s gave us the energy to keep snapping away on our cameras at places like The Great Patriotic War Museum and the Novodevichy Convent adjacent to Tchaikowsky's "Swan Lake".

Going back to Red Square on the last night for ice skating and some well deserved hot chocolates we gathered our things and headed for the train station. This led on to another memorable event namely the infamous sleeper train to St Petersburg which reminded many of our pre-trip fundraiser, Dr Zhivago, only without the guns. Waking up on the train in St Petersburg made us eager to go and explore! Here many filled another memory card of photos of the Winter Palace, the battleship "Cruiser Aurora" which launched the Great October Revolution in 1917 and the Hermitage with its many palatial rooms. While in the "City of Ballet", described by many as 'The Venice of the North', some pupils chose to go and see “The Nutcracker” in what was once the Tsar’s own private theatre which left many wondering how the Russian dancers still have toes! One of our highlights would have to be dancing on the frozen River Neva with music coming from a stretch-limo on the banks. With cameras bursting with photos and a bag full of washing, we packed up our Russian Matrushka souvenir Dolls and set of home. (goodbye) Russia!

Jessica Simpson 3KD

Fiona Hamilton 3KD