Parent Update – November 2021
Christmas Cinema Trip
We are all delighted that our cinema trip can go ahead this year, in a safe way. It will be a lovely treat for the children and will help everyone to feel that school life is beginning to return to normal. Rather than all classes visiting the cinema on the same day, there will only be two year groups each day. This will allow us to limit the number of children in the cinema and on the buses. Our nursery and P1 children will remain in school for an online Christmas show. The classes all voted for their preferred film and the visits are now planned as follows:
Wednesday 15th December – P2&3 – Elf (PG)
Thursday 16th December – P4&5 – Elf (PG)
Friday 17th December – P6&7 – Boss Baby 2 (PG)
The children can come to school dressed in Christmas jumpers and/ or casual clothes on the day of their cinema trip. The cost of the cinema is being covered by the Parent Council funds and the transport will be paid from school funds so that there is no costs to families at such an expensive time of year. The children will leave school at 9.30am and will be back in time for lunch. All you need to do is provide a drink and small snack for them to enjoy during the film. If you do not wish for your child to take part in this trip please contact the school office so that alternative arrangements can be made.
Christmas Cheer!
Sadly we are not yet allowed to invite parents into the school grounds or building for events. As a result each class will video a performance of Christmas song which will be shared with parents so that you can enjoy it in the comfort and safety of your own homes. Look out for it on Class Dojo during the last week of term.
In-service days – 1&2 December, St Andrews Day 3 December
Please remember the school is closed to pupils on the above dates. Our focus for school improvement this year is promoting positive relationships and supporting children to develop emotional intelligence and social skills. This is in response to feedback from children, parents and staff about the impact of COVID and lock downs. Over the in-service days staff will be learning about strategies to support self-regulation, positive behaviour and inclusive classrooms for children with additional support needs.
Playground development
We have been extremely fortunate to be awarded funding from Education Scotland to pay for a creative partner to work with us on our playground project as well as £47,000 from Choice for Angus. Developing the playground and opportunities for outdoor learning are an integral part of our school improvement plan and our focus on positive relationships and wellbeing. Helen McCrorie is a freelance artist and film maker who will deliver play workshops for classes, consult with children, families and the wider community about play and she will also be working with our P6 classes to produce a film about play. Helen has already with linked with Scrapantics to develop loose parts play and you will see new fencing being installed soon in the upper playground for this purpose. We will keep you informed about this exciting project and let’s hope we can host an outdoor screening of the P6 film in the summer!
Learner Led Conferences
We trialled video meetings over the last couple of weeks and we will be seeking some feedback from parents and staff soon. Although there have been a few technical difficulties the overall feeling so far is that the video meetings have made life easier for busy families. Thank you for your patience as we work through the technical issues!
Children in Need
What a fantastic achievement Grangers and an amazing amount of money – £660 raised for Children In Need! We heard some lovely stories of children donating some of their birthday money or pocket money. Thank you to everyone!
Playground supervision
Thanks to all parents who are dropping off/ picking up children at the school gates instead of in the playground. We have chosen to make an exception for our P1 children to ensure they are collected safely and following the long weekend we will also have a member of staff near each gate when the P2 children leave at the end of the day. This will just give everyone further reassurance that the children are all being collected safely. Please do not hesitate to contact the school should you be delayed at pick up time and we will gladly look after your child(ren) until you arrive.
Change of shoes
Our playground is predominantly grass and we try to allow the children to use as much space as possible. However the grass has been very wet over recent weeks and I am sure you are more than aware of how muddy it is has been given the state of the shoes and uniforms coming home! On particularly wet days the children are not allowed onto the grass but it would be helpful if children could bring a change of shoes/ wellies in a bag for outdoor play on all other days. Alternatively if you would prefer that your child does not play on the grass they can always stay on the concrete areas so it would be worth discussing this option with them.
