Our Learning Blog

We have been learning loads of fascinating information about world war one, ships torpedoed/sunk, the soldiers that served for our county, and the community heroes all because of one thing… Its been one hundred years since world war one (also known as the Great War) ended and since the Tuscania got torpedoed by a German U-boat. We all remember this tragic, heart-touching moment because not only was their lots of American Soldiers on the Tuscania and killed  but their was loads of Islay and Jura Soldiers on the Tuscania as well! In memory of the brave, and mighty Soldiers we lost, in the front school grounds we have made the most remarkable WW 100 sign that some of primary 6/7 made created and planted a variety of plants; Tulips, daffodil, poppy, bulbs and many more. In p6/7 we went down to the pier to venture the war memorial. Everyone chose someone from Islay and Jura to find facts and figures about them. I decided to learn more about A. Mackinnon. Alastair Mackinnon. Some miraculous facts I found out about Alastair was:

Alastair went to Port Ellen Primary School when he was a kid. In 1908 he went to Fettes Collage in Edinburgh. Fettes Collage looked like quite a posh school for someone to go to in 1908. After Collage he went to Edinburgh University. Eventually Alastair set off to go to war.

He Died on 14/10/1916
Aged 21
8th Bn.
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders

Son of the Rev. James Mackinnon, M.A. and Margaret Mackinnon, of the Manse of Kildalton, Port Ellen, Isle of Islay.
Alastair home was Kildalton House.
People/family living with Alastair in 1901: James Mackinnon (head) aged 35, Margaret Mackinnon (wife) aged 34, Alastair Mackinnon (son) aged 5,
Sheila Mackinnon (daughter) aged 3, Margaret Mackinnon (sister) aged 30, Maggie Mckay (Servant) aged 31
Mary White (servant) aged 13.

Alastair Mackinnon had and inscription on his grave;
“BEATAE MEMORIAE”

The facts about Alastair I found most interesting was who lived in his home at the time of 1901 because I now have a good image in my head of what it was like to be him at the time especially with two servants.

A couple of weeks ago a poet called Ryan Van Winkle came into the P 6/7 class and helped us to write a good poem and think of ideas. Ryan Van Winkle went to all the schools on Islay and he will be putting together all of our ideas to make a poem about World War 1. We learnt how to make good similes, metaphors and personification, we wrote on the board all the things that human can do and objects can’t do. We also wrote down about the objects senses, I decided to write about the table and how it is annoyed how it has to lift all the pots and how it hurts when people lean on it. After we then wrote a poem about Islay and what we would miss about it if it was during the war. I said I would miss all of the  nature although I wouldn’t miss the smell of fish. Ryan Van Winkle had a fidget spinner and he dabbed and everyone in the class laughed.

On Wednesday 14th February primary 6/7 went to the Islay museum to learn more facts about ww1 and also about life on Islay in the past. We are all researching a soldier that was in the war and trying to find facts out about him. Some of us got facts from the museum. We also got to look at some objects from the past on Islay and also some objects from the war as well. One of the things we got to look at was a book that had poems in them that we got to read. We also got to see some bullets from the war. Although we got to hold the fake ones, they were still fascinating to look at. At the end we got to have a look around the museum to see what we could find. Once we found an object we wrote facts about it and then we drew it. I drew a medal and I learned that on the rim it says the name of the man and what rank he is. My favorite thing in the museum was the machine gun  because it looked old, rusty and fascinating.(I would not like to wear all of that!)  At the museum I learned that in the war the men were forced to wear old Kilts, itchy jackets, heavy green helmets, and old boots.

By Rebecca and Ellen

For the choir this year we have been learning a song that relates to WW1. This year our song is called The White Swan. The man who wrote this was in the war. We all gathered down there because it had been 100 years since the Tuscania sank in 1918. It had also been 100 years since the war ended so on that day we went down to the graves at Kilnaughton and sang that song to everyone who was there. Also there were some people videoing us and now we are on TV. Lots of other people were there and they were saying poems and at the end we placed these small crosses with poppies on the top and we put them around the graves and in the ground. I really enjoyed singing for everyone who was there.

By Rowan Morris

Our school has been learning about WW1 and the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders museum lent us some primary and secondary resources from WW1. They lent us: helmets, a kilt, a jacket, a water bottle, a tin that you could keep your food in and inside it there is a sauce pan to cook you food in, a belt that you can keep your bullets and small guns in, two medals, a whistle, bandages, gas masks, gas goggles, cleaning products like a comb,pins,a brush, a razor and a thing to hold your buttons in to clean them, they also sent us a fork and a knife, a exercise book, books to show you what to do in the war and posters to show people in action and meals that they would eat.

From all those things I learnt that in the war you had to have all your equipment with you. I also learnt that you have a lot of cleaning products. That they eat stew that looks and sounds disgusting . I learnt that the gas masks have been changed over the years to better ones. That the kilt and jacket was very itchy. Thank you to the museum for sending our school all those things.

By Abi Logan

In the last few weeks every Thursday primary 5-7 have been going swimming to practice for the swimming gala. We have been learning how to get better at front crawl and back stroke. My favorite part is when we do lengths at the end. The swimming gala is a competition for the whole school. The races are separated into classes and the points from 1st 2nd and 3rd go to the three houses, Texa, Nave and Orsay. At the end there is a relay race. The fastest boys and girls from p6/7  race at the end. There is a house with the most points and they win the swimming gala.The swimming gala is on the 5th of march.

On a Tuesday at lunch time at Port Ellen Primary School Charlie, Ciaran and Aidan run a Knex Club for P4-7. We put everyone into groups of 5. Every week there is different things that get made and done like frisbees and tracks we also made a lot of houses out of knex. A lot of people came to Knex club so we had a lot of things that were made. After the Febuary break we are starting Knex club again.  We hae also been doing Knex building challenges in class.  We built a hydro electric machine, a wind powered machine and a solar car in class from Knex and even maneged to make electricity.  It was very exciting!