The Easter holidays are almost upon us and despite ongoing challenges with staff and pupil absence due to COVID we have managed to have a very successful term. Our P2-7 children enjoyed their cinema trips, our football and netball teams won their tournaments, our cross country teams enjoyed huge success at the Angus Championships and we even managed to take our P7s to Ryze. I am amazed that we have been able to make all of this happen and I am hugely grateful to my staff team for their flexibility and support, they really are a fantastic bunch! It is wonderful that the children have experienced a more ‘normal’ school year and it certainly looks likely that they will have a full year without the disruption of the last two years. As the holidays approach the following updates might be helpful:

Updated COVID guidance – Revised guidance for schools will see some positive changes next term.  The changes can be summarised as follows:

The weeks are flying by and it is so positive that school life seems to be gradually getting back to normal. That said we continue to be impacted by COVID absences and self-isolation periods that affect staffing and there are times when it means we are not as available to parents as we would be normally. I am hopeful that the nearer we get to the summer the more improvement we will see  – forever the optimist! In the meantime I would like to share some updates that you might find helpful.

Grange parent survey The recent update for schools allows us to consider removing staggered pick up and drop off times as well as staggered breaks. The staggered breaks have been extremely positive and resulted in a reduction in accidents and incidents in the playground and an improved lunch service for the children. For these reasons I am keen to retain our current breaks however I would like to capture the views of parents regarding start and finish times. A number of parents have highlighted that they would prefer for all children to start and finish at the same time for convenience at the start and end of day. However I am very conscious that aligning the times might incur additional childcare costs which I am keen to avoid. I have also been gathering the views of children who would prefer to have slightly shorter breaks and more planned outdoor learning times. They are also extremely keen to change our uniform to school hoodies in line with the high school. This would avoid the need for outdoor learning and PE kit as the children would come to school dressed more casually every day and ready for whatever type of learning is planned. While I am keen to respect the children’s views, I am very aware it is parents who provide the uniform so it is essential that we get your opinion. Please take a few minutes to complete our survey about the school day and school uniform.

Staffing news! I am delighted to inform you that Mrs Landsburgh has been appointed as substantive Depute Head Teacher and Mrs Smith as Principal Teacher. They are already established members of the Grange team and I consider myself very lucky to work alongside such committed and supportive colleagues. Along with Mrs Oldham they certainly make a dream team and I look forward to all the exciting improvements we will drive forward together in the future. It is with mixed emotions that I can share with you Mrs Graham, Additional Support Needs Teacher, is moving onto a new, exciting post with Aberdeen City Council. Mrs Graham has been a great support to many children, families and staff and though she will be missed we wish her the very best of luck in her new position which she will take up mid March.

Mobile phones It is no surprise that the number of children who now bring mobile phones to school has greatly increased. First of all I would like to emphasise that children do not need mobile phones in school as all contact with parents should be made via the school office and of course they bring them at their own risk. If children do need to bring their phone to school it must be switched off as soon as they enter the grounds and we encourage them to place it in the class box which will be stored in the cupboard for safety. I would also encourage parents to closely monitor mobile phone activity out of school as we have been informed recently of a number of situations where children are creating groups on social media apps and being unkind towards others. This is an important area of learning for our children given that is the way they now communicate so they need guidance to help them get it right.

Rainy days The slight relaxing of COVID guidance for schools means that we can now allow our P2-7 children into the gym hall before school on rainy days. It is always better if the children can arrive as near to the bell as possible to avoid them getting wet but where staffing allows the doors will be opened at 8.45am and they can go directly to the hall. The P1 children will enter through their own doors and go straight into class as normal.

Class Dojo The purpose of Class Dojo is to share  children’s learning and achievements with parents and to give any class updates. There is often a delay with messages coming through on Class Dojo and it cannot be relied upon to share information such as absence or lunch arrangements. I would encourage parents to contact the school office by phone: 01382 768101 or by email: grange@angusschools.org.uk in these types of instance or if you require a timely response. I would also ask that any concerns or issues are addressed by telephone so that Class Dojo continues to be used in the way it was always intended, with a focus on learning. By all means use Class Dojo to request a call from your child’s teacher at a time that suits you both.

Winter Support Fund Our school has been awarded a small amount of funding for allocating to families who are experiencing financial insecurity or who are in financial crisis. If you like to be considered for this funding please use the link to apply.

Progress updates Our teachers make ongoing judgments about children’s progress in learning based upon class work and assessments. Three times each year we record this information to allow us to track progress and consider any support or challenge that is needed. If there has been any change to your child’s progress in learning since the parents evenings in November the teacher will be in direct contact with you. If you have any concerns at all about your child at any time, please do not hesitate to be in touch to arrange a call.

Finally, I would like to thank you for your ongoing support of our school. I will be in touch soon with the outcome of the survey regarding the school day and uniform and I will be seeking your views about the refresh of our vision, values and positive relationships policy so please watch this space…

Take care

Lorraine Will

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 15^th December – P2&3 – Elf (PG)

Thursday 16^th December – P4&5 – Elf (PG)

Friday 17^th 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.

Please click on the link below to access the latest update from Mrs Tweed.   This update includes information on classes for next session and general school news.  #believe

Parent Update 4.6.21

#safehappy&learning

Welcome to Term 4! Please click on the link below to access the latest parent update from Mrs Tweed.

#safehappy&learning

Parent Update 21.4.21

Click on the link below to read the latest parent update from Mrs Tweed.

Parent Update 31.3.21

Happy Easter everyone!

#believe

#safehappy&learning

Here is the latest update from Mrs Tweed about the full re-opening of schools on Monday the 15th March 2021.

Parent Update – 10.3.21

We are looking forward to seeing all of our pupils next week.

#believe #progress

Please click on the link to view our latest parent update from Mrs Tweed.

P4-7 Parent Update 23.2.21

Here is information for parents relating to the return of Nursery to P3 pupils week beginning 22nd February 2021.

Parent Update 16.2.21 – P1-3 School Return

Parent update from Mrs Tweed – Issued on the 29th of January 2021.

Parent Update 29th January 2021

#engageyourself