In 2011 CAST renovated and relaunched an important art collection held within our schools and every year we run a successful writing competition using the collection as inspiration. The competition for 2016 is now OPEN and we are delighted to announce it has continued support from Scottish Book Trust. There will be first, second and third prizes of books for pupils. The winning pupil’s school will also receive £250 worth of books. Winning pieces will be posted online as part of the Argyll Collection website and on SAL. This year’s theme is ‘Getting Up To Mischief’ and we are focussing on four paintings. These paintings are held within different Scottish collections and represent children at play. Click TAC competition 2016 for full info and TAC writing competition images for the paintings on their own. GOOD LUCK!
Category Archives: Literacy
Tesco Bank Summer Reading Challenge 2016
This year the summer reading challenge is entitled ‘Big Friendly Read” and starts on Saturday 2nd July in Oban Library. Visit bigfriendlyread.org.uk for full info or click on the image below to read the leaflet……. Continue reading Tesco Bank Summer Reading Challenge 2016
Primary 2/3 iPad puppet shows
P2/3 had a fabulous afternoon videoing their puppet shows this week and then watching all of the masterpieces. The show was the culmination of weeks of work; creating a character and a storyboard. Making the puppet and scenery then writing the play. They rehearsed their plays using the ‘Puppet Pals’ app on the school’s new iPad after which they were ready to use their puppets and be videoed. Well done P2/3 for all your hard work. What Successful Learners you have been this week Mrs McGuire.
Outdoor Learning Twilight
The first gathering of Oban and Lorn Little Owls met at sunny Ganavan on Monday 30th May at 4pm. OWLS (Outdoor and Woodland Learning Scotland) is a national group, formed from the Forest Education Initiative and promotes outdoor learning. At our gathering we shared ideas, tried out some new maths and talking and listening activities and of course had a brew on the Kelly kettle.
Remembering Mrs Tato at Strachur Primary
Bowmore Goes Gaelic!
On Thursday 28th April, we hosted a Gaelic Open Afternoon to share our learning with our families and friends! Each class’s IDL had a Gaelic theme – whether it was historical or cultural!
Gaelic songs were sung, Gaelic stories were told. Lots of lovely art work illustrated the stories children had been learning about! The Gaelic tradition of the belief in the fairy world was explored – there was even a glittery fairy garden in the grounds of BPS! Many children are going home to create their own.
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First Shared Finish at Colgrain
On Tuesday we had our first Shared Finish of the Summer term. We couldn’t believe how beautiful the weather was, so we planned lots of outdoor learning opportunities! We had fun throwing wet sponges to create sums, making natural material graphs, using sticks to make capital letters, writing fairytale stories in the Magic Garden….and so much more! Lots and lots of parents came to share in the fun. Afterwards, we all came together to reflect on what we had enjoyed and what we had been learning about. We used this information to help us plan for next week. We can’t wait!
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Cast ‘Pilgrimage’
Tarbert Academy Drama Club performed ‘The Pilgrimage’ by Pauk Goetzee at the Argyll Drama Festival last week! They were winners of the Youth Achievement Trophy, with the adjudicator, Kevin Boland, commenting on ‘the high standard of acting from a very talented team’. The Club is open to pupils from P7 upwards and this year’s cast ranged in age from P7 up to S5. Here they are just before going on stage!
Speech Making Week at Rothesay Primary
Last week all pupils at Rothesay Primary wrote speeches for their Challenge Homework. The pupils then had to deliver their speeches in class and answer any questions their classmates might have. Topics ranged from holidays, to hobbies, to family pets – Mrs Shaw even met a little black puppy in the corridor after having been a ‘live’ prop! Pupils learned the skills of note making, using prompt cards, ways to use props, how to involve your audience and how to listen and think of questions to ask if you were in the audience.
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Open Afternoon at Southend Primary School
On the 23rd of March Southend Primary School held an Open Afternoon to share their learning with parents and carers. There were five stations, and we were each in charge of one of these, using our knowledge to teach parents and carers. These stations included, Reciprocal Reading, Garageband, Origami bookmark making, screen printing and food and health. At the Reciprocal Reading station the parents were given the roles required for this and had to carry out that specific role when reading the text.
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Author visit in Mid-Argyll
On Thursday the 31st of March children from across Mid-Argyll in P4 and 5 enjoyed a workshop with children’s author, Emily Dodd.
Emily, whose books include, ‘The Mouse and the Grouse’ and ‘Can’t Dance Cameron’ worked with the children on how to write a good story. She used the two book characters, ‘Book Buddy’ and ‘Reading Rhino’ that the children in Mid-Argyll had voted on for our recent Reading is Fun competition.
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Children’s Author visits Strone Primary School
A warm welcome was given to children’s author Simon Puttock when he spent the afternoon in school as part of his visit to Cowal.
Simon is the author of Mouse’s First Night at Moonlight School which has just won the Bookbug Readers 3-7 years category at the Scottish Book Trust Awards.
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World Book Day Celebrations at Luing
Rockfield Celebrates World Book Day!
Rockfield Primary School held a very successful World Book Day celebration on Thursday 3rd March 2016. Pupils and staff participated by dressing as their favourite fictional character and bringing in books to swap. We would like to thank everyone who brought in books, as we gathered so many that every child from Primary One to Primary Seven was given the opportunity to take home a book of their choice, a wonderful success!
World Book Day at Strachur
Strachur Primary and Pre-5 had so much fun celebrating World Book Day last Thursday. Staff and pupils dressed as their favourite character from a book and we shared snippets from our favourite books from home. The Pre-5 children enjoyed a Bookbug session in the morning and the older pupils read to our P1-2 in the afternoon. We have also spent some money on a new library for the school – house captains helped organise the books and everyone got to take one home on loan. It was a very busy day!
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World Book Day at Taynuilt Nursery
Staff…………………..well, Little Red Riding Hood’s Granny, Cinderella’s ugly Stepsisters and Stepmother celebrated World Book Day with the children from Taynuilt Nursery on Friday. Everyone dressed up as a charachter from their favourite story book or Nursery Rhyme. We read a avariety of traditional fairytales which the children choose and listened to with delight.
Great fun and giggles were had by all!
Mid-Argyll pupil council ‘Reading is Fun’ event
The children in the Mid-Argyll pupil council have been working together over the last few months to organise a ‘Reading is Fun’ event.
They ran two competitions, one for children in 1st level and one for 2nd Level to come up with a book character to encourage reading in these age groups.
Continue reading Mid-Argyll pupil council ‘Reading is Fun’ event
World Book Day at Rothesay Primary
As usual, World Book Day was a great success at Rothesay Primary. To celebrate 100 years of Roald Dahl, pupils dressed up as one of his characters or a character from their favourite book. We had all sorts – Miss Trunchbull, The Grand High Witch, Charlie Bucket, Willy Wonka and a crowd of Oompa-Loompas! Our local book shop, Print Point, moved into the library so that everyone could spend their book tokens and the school pupil librarians went round the classes sharing their favourite books.