Primary School of the Year 2022
On the 24th of October 2026 Port Ellen primary school have been chosen to sing with the Scottish opera at the high school. The play that we are going to do is a Hansel and Gretel. In that play we are the undead children and have to learn to sing an opera chorus. It will be great fun. We got picked first out of schools on Islay and we were very lucky to get picked.
On Friday 11th of September P5-7 went to Kilnaughton Beach/Woods To build dens and cook on a fire. We heard about the mess at the woods so we went to clean them as part of our plastics topic.
When we arrived, we were put into groups. In those groups we made dens in different spots all across the woods. We all made group flags to represent our dens. To have a bit off fun, the team with the most rubbish collected won 50 house points!
The woods have a big bit down at the bottom taped of because of all the plastic waste. Then we also went to the beach and had lunch there. Some people toasted apples and peppers. When we where having lunch we were all siting on a big hill and eating our packed lunches. After that we cleaned the beach and made environmental art with the rubbish we collected. After that we all went around looking at everyone’s art on the beach. Then we collected all of our rubbish back in to the bags and took it away so we didn’t leave it a mess. After that we walked back to School in the lovely weather we were lucky to have.
Last Friday our class went to Kilnaughton woods and beach to pickup plastic for our topic and make fires and build dens. We walked from the school to get there and we all made flags and clans. At lunch time we walked down to the beach had our lunch and made some fires. Then we went further down the beach and made plastic art. Over all it was really fun and I am glad we went.
We went to Kilnaughton on 11.9.26 we went to the woods and beach to clean. There was also a place in the woods that was boarded of because there was so much plastic it was really dangerous. It was Kilnaughton woods.
As soon as we got into school we had to put on our water proofs to go to the woods. When we made it to the woods we got instructions, to make dens. After we made the dens. we listened to chapter 8 of our book song of the dolphin boy. We started collecting rubbish like monster cans, glass bottles and crisp packets.
After we finished we went down to the beach. We roasted apples and peppers over a fire while ate lunch. After we ate lunch we made sculptures out of sand and plastic we got. We picked all of it up then went back through the woods. after we walked back. We got out our water proofs off got ready for home and that was our day at the woods and beach.
-By Jackson Ayres And George Smith-
On the 27th of August 2026 primary 5-7 had the children’s book author Justin Davies. When he came to visit us he talked about his new book Fire Bloom, he explained why he had chosen jelly fish for the topic in his book. In one of the other fantastic novels he mentioned his love for rowan berry jam puff pastry’s, so Primary 7 made him the delicious treat with some jam with locally sourced rowan berries that were picked in the school ground along with some apples to make the jam.
Justin Davies came to the school for the Islay book festival along with lots of other wonderful authors. The whole class really enjoyed the book festival and we hope that Justin Davies enjoyed his time in Port Ellen Primary.
We are absolutely delighted to share that Port Ellen Primary School has achieved the UNICEF UK Gold: Rights Respecting Schools Award.
This is a very special achievement for our whole school community and recognises the hard work, commitment and enthusiasm of our pupils, staff, families and partners. We are incredibly proud that children’s rights are not just something we learn about at Port Ellen, but something that is woven through the life and work of our school.
During our accreditation visit, the assessor spoke with pupils, staff, parents and members of the Senior Leadership Team. The final report recognised that children’s rights are “embedded across the school” and “underpin every facet of school life.” It also highlighted the confident way our pupils can talk about their rights, explain why they matter, and describe how they are relevant to their own lives and to the lives of children around the world.
The report praised the school’s clear strategic approach to embedding rights, the passionate commitment of staff and other duty bearers, and the strong focus on health, wellbeing, inclusion and positive representation. It also recognised the important role pupils play in leading change through citizenship groups, pupil voice, campaigning, fundraising and community action.
We are particularly pleased that the assessor saw how children at Port Ellen are becoming confident rights holders who understand that their views matter. Pupils spoke about taking action in school, in the village and beyond, including beach cleans, the “poo patrol” campaign, Fairtrade work, fundraising, writing to CalMac, and sharing their learning with the wider community.
This award reflects the work of many people. We would like to thank our pupils, who speak so confidently and passionately about rights; our staff team, who work hard to make rights visible and meaningful every day; our parents and carers, who support our rights-respecting ethos; and our wider community partners, who help bring this learning to life.
Achieving Gold is not the end of our journey. We will continue to build on this work by helping children explore dignity, deepen their understanding of global citizenship, and develop further opportunities to challenge injustice and take action for children’s rights locally and globally.
We are extremely proud of everyone involved. This award belongs to the whole Port Ellen Primary School community.
We are delighted to announce that Port Ellen Primary School has achieved the Gold Reading Schools Award! This fantastic achievement recognises our commitment to developing a strong reading culture across the school, where children are encouraged to read for enjoyment, explore a wide range of books and share their love of reading with others.
A huge well done to all our pupils and staff who have helped make reading such an important part of life at Port Ellen!
For my last Endeavour fair, I wanted to pick something that meant a lot to me, so I picked first aid because when I am older, I want to be a doctor. Endeavour is a thing we do every year since p1-7, we pick a topic and we work on this topic for 6 weeks and on endeavour day we show it to parents and the entire school.
For the actual first aid bit, I learned how to do CPR and how it stands for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation. And how CPR does not restart the heart but helps pump the blood to start it. Then I learned how to put someone in the recovery position and how to open the airway.
I believe this was one of my best Endeavours and I would gladly do this again!
The Recovery position
My endeavour this year was my last one, so I had to make it count. I chose interior design because I never even thought about doing it until Mrs Clark brought it up, I knew it would be an amazing for my last endeavour especially because I could make so much with this project.
The first thing I knew I wanted to make was a model of a room and up-cycle something. I ended up making a mood board, a mini room and up-cycled furniture. The progress I made was super good because of what I had on my table. I had lots of compliments on my furniture because I showed photos of my before and after of my stool and my bedside table so people could see the changes I made.
This year was super successful in my opinion because I achieved everything I wanted to, I had to overcome lots of things like my drawers not fitting but it all worked out in the end.
Hello, my name is Kirsty, for my project this year was volcanology and geology. If you don’t know what Endeavour is Endeavour is an ambitious project that we choose. on Endeavour we share half of a table and this year I shared a table with Ellouise. I set up my table with rocks such as pumice, a small part of a volcanic dike, two ammonites, fools gold, focalized water splats, and a rock with two piddocks in it.
When the fair started I was just talking about why I chose my project and answering questions that people asked me such as what is t4hat, how is it made, and what was challenging. I choose my project because I like looking a rocks and I also like watching videos of volcanoes erupting.
My project was games design. The reason I chose games design was because I love video games and they really entertain me.
“Kodu” is the application I used to program my game. It is easy to use and makes coding simple.
It uses “WHEN” and “DO” commands, for example WHEN the program sees an apple, the DO is used to walk towards it. It’s a fun simple application and I really enjoyed working with it.
There was a lot of challenges on the way like how to restart the level when you die. It was a very long process but we got there in the end. I have really enjoyed using Kodu and presenting it thanks for coming to the endeavor.
Hello, my name is Soarcha. For my project i did illustration, i was working on colour theory, contrasting colours, anatomy and perspective. i managed to make two posters, one focusing on colours while the other explaining tips for perspective and anatomy and a few colour tips. I made some drawings to put up on display like a small story showing sketches and a finished result, i also put my first time trying perspective on display too.
My project was very ambitious, i had a plan in mind a few months before endeavour day, i practiced for a long time trying to get anatomy mastered, although i still have lots to learn i think i have the basic muscles and proportions just right though, though my skill in perspective isn’t that good i still need to practice a lot I’m not able to put characters in backgrounds yet which is something i should practice.
I was sharing my table with Honor at first but she had a CPR dummy, it was to big for a shared table so she got her own, then i shared a table with George, i liked my project because i enjoy drawing and i wanted to push my art skills to the next level so i can draw more things, i enjoy a challenge but not one that would make me rage if i got something wrong, that’s why i picked illustration, i thought my endeavour was a great idea so i chose it and started practicing i used channels on Youtube for tutorials, but the channels i used the most were DrawLikeaSir, and Shrimpy. I made a blooket and let some people play it too, but the internet wasn’t the best today so sometimes it didn’t work, that was what i did for my endeavour!
For my endeavour I done quilting, I chose a patchwork quilt because it inspired me with its colours and patterns.
The quilt was up on display on my table I also had pretty pieces of fabric that I’m going to make into a quilt but I haven’t finished it yet. Lots of people came up to my stand to look at my quilt some people even asked me how to make a quilt.
We have been working on endeavour since the end of march to june, everyone worked really hard.
This year I done woodwork for my Endeavor and i loved it. I done it because my dad is a joiner and carpenter and I love his work it is so neat . I think i done a very well I think I done better than last year because last year i done sea glass jewelry and that was a bit rubbish. my project is really ambitious because if you cut a piece of wood wrong then the whole thing is ruined and I done a risk assessment for if i got cut. Today at the fair I was showing tools and my project with the dremal that I have Thanks
This year my endeavor is cake design which is something that i have a good interest for. I chose this endeavor because i love decorating things aspecaly cakes. The ambitious part about this project is that i will make something with fondant and then try and put it on and it will just rip and then i have to let it dry over night or sometimes longer. I managed to sell all of my cupcakes today and i got a lot of money that i am going to give to cancer research.
Today we had our Endeavour fair and I did the ELC (The nursery) I made two floor- books and I had made a presentation. The Endeavour fair is to show the things that we have learned about work on our Endeavour’s for most of the term and then show it the week before the end of school. Endeavour is a really fun thing we do in school. I love doing Endeavour its so fun and presenting our Endeavour is my favourite part of the whole thing.
Thank you for coming to the Endeavour fair.
Emily Hannett.
For my Endeavour this year I chose fishing because I thought that if I picked something I liked learning about it would be fun to do so I chose fishing.
products
My project had 3 things at the end and it was my mackrel patty my website and book that tells you about fish on Islay in fun ways.
Difficultys
When I was doing my projects I came across lots of problems such as
. tangles
. organising
. timing
and lots more but in the end I managed to get out alive and end up finishing successfully.
How was my project ambitus.
My project was ambitus because I wasn’t just fishing I was learning new techniques learning how to make a website and even having to go out with my uncle to lift up creels and they were really heavy
What have I learnt
I have learnt new ways to fish fillet and cook fish and now pulling up creels is a lot easier than when I first started
The children in P5-7 had a fantastic afternoon with the RAF coding and designing robots to deliver a special package to a satellites in space 🛰️ 👩🏻🔧👨🏻🔧 ! Well done for excellent teamwork, perseverance and problem solving 🌟
Today, P5–7 visited two different woodland areas as part of our Forestopia topic. We explored a healthy, thriving forest and compared it with an area that had been deforested. The children looked closely at the plants, trees and habitats in each area and considered how the differences might affect the animals and other living things found there.
This gave us a great opportunity to investigate how forests support biodiversity and healthy ecosystems, while also thinking about the impact that deforestation can have on our environment.
P67 went on a geology trip to Saligo bay with David Webster to learn all about Islay’s geology. They identified rocks on the beach, had a go at splitting their own rocks and even made volcanoes! A fantastic day learning all about the geology of Islay and being geologists! Thanks to David Webster and the Field Centre for providing a wonderful learning experience. 🌟 We are learning about the geology of Islay 🌍 Article 29 We have a right to education that develops our talents.
Port Ellen primary school buddy’s P1/2 and P6/7 have gone on a school trip to Finlaggan.
Straight away we got on the bus and started to head down it was a long drive but 100% worth it because the trip told us all about our new topic Vikings! Once we got there we started right away the P7 and their buddies went onto an island called the large island it was so cool because there was ruins and a stone bridge under the water connecting to a smaller island called the council island this was where they made big decisions.
This island had a lot of purpose as is was a tiny village surrounded with water so nobody could raid them and we explored the island we went back to the visitor center and this lady had a presentation for us to look at, she talked about place names the Vikings made, and the routes they took on there longships it was very fascinating.
After we had finished at Finlaggan we went to Port Mor to have lunch it was super fun because we got to play in the park for a bit after we had finished. Not long after we got back on the bus and went to the museum where we listened to Malcom when he told us about Islay’s history with Vikings. Then we where told to find the oldest thing in the museum but I wont tell so you yourself can go to the museum and find it!
This long day full of fun and history was almost over as we got back on the bus for one last time and headed back to school to go home.
By – Ellouise and Findlay
P1/2 were amazing at performing the nativity on 17th of December called the Knock Knock nativity. I felt really engaged with this performance because the children were outstanding and did an amazing job at playing their part. We also had some amazing narrators and some great fluffy little sheep, which were performed by the nursery!
One of the most amazing things in this nativity was when they were using Makaton in their songs because it is a really hard thing to learn and it fitted in with the nativity.
Over all this nativity was outstanding and we loved to watch it.
Panto review: Ali Baba and the Bongo Bandits
I was rolling on the ground like a dog in the mud, I felt engaged and part of this amazing pantomime, Ali Baba and the Bongo Bandits, this story made me crack more than an egg hit on a hard metal pan! Ali Baba and the Bongo Bandits was an amazing panto original made by Craig Hawes; this panto was about Ali Baba and the princess trying to find the royal ruby which had been stolen by the evil grand vizier and the horrible group of bongo bandits!
The timing for the songs for this panto was outstanding! Especially when Bongo (the leader of the bandits,) made the plan to raid the royal palace and steal some bags full of treasure, soon the bongo bandit song played, signalizing something ruthless and horrid was about to happen! The acting was stunning I could see every movement and could easily tell if one was panicked, exited, angry etc, this made the panto interesting and engaging! The audience was always a part of the panto, such as being able to shout out words written on signs popping out from behind stage, and having confetti thrown on people, and it makes everyone laugh and make the panto even more entertaining!
One of the greatest things about this panto was the costumes and props for this panto were stunning and made each character stand out and add to the personality, atmosphere and overall vibe of the panto, though some props were not as sturdy and a bit flexible, like the spears used by the guards the props still looked amazing! The backstage staff had amazing teamwork and were able to swap out different sets concomitantly! And managed to help all the cast members walk (or run,) on stage at the right time this was amazing and helped the cast make less mistakes! All the cast/pupils were amazing and sounded so confident while delivering their lines this helped the audience understand better, when the pupils are confident, they are louder, bolder and clearer, which is much better for the audience than mumbling or stuttered lines which I heard none of throughout this panto everyone seemed so confident and amazing!
One thing I think the cast should improve is sometimes not speaking over laughter because when someone does something utterly hilarious in a panto everyone bursts out into laughter, and some people continue talking while the audience is laughing this cast was great at it but i still think that is one thing that could be improved!
My overall opinion of this panto, it was amazing, jaw dropping better than outstanding, this panto was so dynamic and had great background sets and story line, 100% would recommend 10/10 one of the best pantos i have ever seen.
This year we had a Christmas Fair on Saturday 6th December 2025.
In this Christmas Fair there was a baking Stall which had: Chocolate, Cupcakes, Waffles, Biscuits.
Bottle Stall which people brought different kinds of bottles like: Wines, Whiskey, Beer and Juice.
School Stalls had: Reindeer food made by The ELC, P12 made Christmas Tree Decorations, P234 made Board for Santa, P56 made T-light holders and Flapjack, P67 made Stockings and Sock Puppets.
In total we raised over £2000 towards the P7 trip.
Hope you have a lovely Christmas and a Happy New year.
The cupcake challenge was on the 6th of December and there was the cupcake challenge. On the 4th of December there was four groups and the designs were Christmas tree, penguin, snow men and the grinch .
We wanted to know what flavours and decorations that we want on the cupcakes, so we took a survey to see what the most popular flavour and design. The most popular flavour was caramel, and the popular design was penguin.
The cakes sold out at the fair!
Captains meetings: we have one one a month and we have houses in school which are Nave Texa Orsay. We meet in classrooms and ask our house what changes they want to make in school. The right we use in captain meetings are number 12 the right to have you voice heard.
Roles as a captain
Captains don’t just give people points, we have to do roles like we have snack and toothbrushing, lunches and cloak room and finally scrap store. We also tally points; you get points for doing something good. Then on a Friday we go round and grab the sheet and we have this thing in excel that has all the pupils names on it and then we write that amount of numbers that they good and we write the total on a board down the stairs. The Captains board is also something e have to make sure is up to date. I like being a captain.
by April
The whole school is learning Makaton this year as part of our Rights Respecting Schools journey to Gold.
Makaton is a UK-based language program that uses a combination of speech, signs, and picture symbols to help people with learning and communication difficulties to communicate and understand. Learning Makaton helps children understand who cannot communicate verbally, but it also helps all children with their understanding and communication, so it is very inclusive.
Primary 6 and 7 have been learning Makaton as part of their Neurodiversity topic, and have made videos to share. Here is their Makaton animals video.
Article 30 The right to use your own language.
This term we were doing debating and there were six teams. One of the teams were debating that school uniforms should be banned and the other team was debating that school uniforms shouldn’t be banned. It started with somebody introducing the debate and then the other team introduced their debate. Then the second person said all the facts for their team that school uniform should be banned they would say a fact about how much it is or it can be hard for some family’s to pay for it and then the other team would say a fact that school uniforms shouldn’t be banned. then the third person would try to counter their argument.
We enjoyed debating lots of issues.
by Robbie and Joshua
The Mod is a great way to learn and create Gaelic masterpieces to keep the Scottish Gaelic language going! Lots of people went to the Mod this year and even won some gold medals and trophies for their amazing Gaelic singing.
Firstly, we have a list of amazing p1-2s that came to the Mod: Poppy, Emmy, Harper, Holly, Bryn, Hugh, Zoe, Finlay, and Nola! We also done some great interviews with some of the p1-2s to listen to their thoughts about the mod, “I loved the mod so much and I even got a golden medal!” – Finlay, “I really liked the doing Gaelic at the mod and I also won a trophy!” -Hugh, “I liked seeing my mum and dad at the mod with me!” -Poppy, “I liked winning a trophy and loved singing in Gaelic!” -Harper.
Secondly, we also have some winners for the Gaelic art competition! Findlay in p7 got 3rd place in the art competition, then we have Hannah p6 coming in on 2nd place that amazing! Lastly, we have Soarcha, who won 1st place in the competition that’s outstanding!
Going to the mod was a great experience for everyone it’s great for all kids and adults to learn, sing and show of their wonderful talents! Going to the Islay Mod is a must do!
-soarcha
