Many of the rights listed in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child are reflected in the work that we do in school. Some of the display boards around the school now have a sign displaying the right and article of the convention that the work reflects. Some examples are pictured below. See if you can spot any more in the school over the next few weeks!

We raised funds for UNICEF on Friday, 10th February by participating in the Day for Change event.  Day for Change 2012 focused on UNICEF’s Education through Sport programme in Uganda, where sport and play are used to improve the health and happiness of children. Sport can enrich children’s lives, building confidence and respect, and helping them learn the importance of teamwork. 

In Uganda, UNICEF uses sport and play to reach vulnerable children who are often excluded such as orphans, children with disabilities, former child soldiers, child refugees and children left homeless by conflict.  Find out about one child’s story by clicking on the link below:

http://www.unicef.org.uk/Latest/Photo-stories/Carolines-Story/

Last week all our classes were visited by Robyn from the Scottish SPCA.  She spoke to us about the work of the Scottish SPCA, wildlife welfare, responsible pet ownership and the health and hygiene of animals.  Robyn also focused on the world of work and we were able to ask her questions about her job and career path.

The Scottish SPCA is Scotland’s animal welfare charity.  They receive no government or lottery funding and rely on public donations to rescue abandoned and neglected animals across Scotland.  Further information about this charity can be found at:

http://www.scottishspca.org/

Robyn gave a chat to P1-3 and then spent Wednesday and Friday visiting the P4-7 classes.  Her visit was very informative and as well as being a good role model she promoted positive citizenship values.

Here are a few examples of our classroom charters.  Our class charters help us to foucs on specific rights and what our responsibilities are.  We worked collaboratively to decide on which rights our class would focus on.

We considered the significance of 11November, Armistice Day, at our stage assemblies today.  The word ‘armistice’ comes from two Latin words, arma (weapons) and sistere (to stop).  An armistice is a truce, an agreement to stop fighting and be still.  The eleventh day of November is known as Armistice Day because, this was the day, in 1918, when the First World War ended.  It was agreed that the fighting should stop on the ‘eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month’.  A year later, King George V, asked that people remember and hounour those who had died with a two minutes silence.  Almost one hundred years later, Armistice Day continues to be a time to remember those who have died in war.

On Friday a two minutes’ silence will be observed by the school community.  It will be a time for us to stand still and remember.

This session we are working towards gaining our Rights Respecting Schools Award.  The Rights Respecting Schools Award (RRSA) recognises achievement in promoting the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and encourages pupils and staff to model good practice in terms of  rights and respect.  Through our blog, we aim to keep you updated with what’s going on in and around our school.