Trailblazing Black Isle P7 pupils prepare to make 'virtual' transition to Fortrose Academy

PRIMARY pupils making the step up to a Ross-shire secondary are making history this week with a "virtual" transition made necessary by the coronavirus crisis.

Fortrose Academy's feeder primary schools on the Black Isle are involved in the virtual transition week which started today.

The milestone transition aims to help pupils familiarise themselves with their new surroundings before the traditional school summer holiday period.

However the closure of schools as a precautionary measure during lockdown has meant that pupils will miss out this year.

Instead they were asked to log in to a virtual assembly today.

The school said in a message to its prospective new arrivals: "So sorry we won’t be meeting you all in person but look forward to that in August!"

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said earlier today that a return to face-to-face teaching is amongst her top priorities.

As things stand, schools will return after the summer holidays in August.

Pupils have been taught remotely since lockdown making use of the Google Classroom suite of tools and the digital hub devised by Highland Council.

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