All posts by Mr Gray

P5 Glenkens Cluster Pupils at Carlingwark

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Last Thursday 13, P5 children from all three Primary Schools in the Glenkens Cluster took part in the annual Residential Trip to Carlingwalk. Although it was for only one night, some children appeared to have packed enough clothes for a week!

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Once we had arrived at Carlingwalk, we had a tour of our accommodation for the night and got ourselves ready for our outdoor activities.

We spent the rest of the day in Dalbeattie Forest; enjoying Orienteering and Mountain Biking activities! All the children rose to the challenge of reading their maps in order to find the markers, hidden in the different parts of the forest and there was a lot of excellent team work so that the pairs worked well together, to try to be the first back each time.

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The boys and girls grew in confidence, handling and manoeuvring their bikes, to tackle the uneven surfaces of the forest tracks. They all enjoyed the exhilarating ride along the trails.

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After all that exercise we were more than ready for a lovely meal at The Scottish Pantry, followed by a moonlit walk back to the Carlingwalk Centre. Back at the centre the children enjoyed playing a number of games before getting showered and ready for bed.

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After a good night’s sleep (for most!) our next day of adventure began with a filling breakfast. We then put our outdoor clothing on once more and set off for the day’s challenge; to climb Screel Hill! It was great to see everyone trying hard to both climb up and scramble down the hill. Not everyone found it easy, but everyone overcame their fears and told themselves that they could do it. By the time we’d got back to the car park to get on the mini bus to take us back to Carlingwalk, the children who had found the walk the hardest were saying it was the best thing they had done during their two day adventure!

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Both Mr Gray and Mrs Turner agree that the children behaved very well and showed excellent team building skills during the trip, as well as being friendly and supportive of each other. Talking to the children on the way back to school on Friday evening, the children all agreed that they had a fantastic time!

Well Done P5s!

Rotary Club Quiz Success!

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The Kells team of Sophie, Freya, Danny and Henry were successful at the Castle Douglas Rotary Club Primary Quiz on 16th February. Kells were tied with Gelston going into the last round. However, Kells managed to score two more points in the Pot Luck round which meant that Kells were the winners for the first time. The victorious team now go forward to the Dumfries & Galloway Final in Dumfries later in the school year. The photograph below shows Kenny Murray, CD Rotary Club President presenting the shield to the team. Well done!

Visit to Scottish Dark Skies Observatory

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On Tuesday 31st January, after school, pupils in P5/6/7 went on an adventure with Carsphairn Primary, deep into the Galloway Forest near Dalmellington. Their mission was to learn about how they could see more, in the night sky, using the telescopes at the Observatory.

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In P5/6/7, as part of our Interdisciplinary, Topic work, we have been learning about planets in our Solar System so, living so near to the UK’s first Dark Park meant that a trip was the ideal opportunity to learn more through a truly interactive experience.

In class we have watched films about the different planets, stars and moons in our Solar System, as well as carrying out investigations; to find out the role gravity plays in keeping planets, including Earth, orbiting around the sun. We’ve even used scaled models, to calculate and try to understand more clearly, the massive distances between planets and their distances from the Sun.

 

 

However, the joy of seeing some of these things, such as the planet Venus, in the sky above us, really impressed us and helped us with our understanding of our Solar System. We all agreed the experience of seeing how an observatory works and using a real telescope was well worth the visit.

Blood Bike Visit

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Recently Judith Sauberlich and Dave Hook from Dumfries & Galloway Blood Bikes visited Kells. The pupils were told all about the voluntary service where blood and medical supplies are transported around the region from one hospital to another. They also got the opportunity to ask questions, and more importantly, sit on the motorbike. The pupils also came up with some fundraising ideas for later in the school year to raise money to support the work of this valuable service.

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Annual Burns Lunch at Kells

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Kells Primary held their annual Burns Lunch on Friday 3rd February. The event was hosted by P7 pupils. All pupils and staff were treated to speeches and entertainment provided by P5, P6 and P7 pupils. Henry delivered the welcome address and introduced the speakers. The Selkirk Grace was recited by Miss Deshayes. Freya carried in the haggis to the skirl o’ the pipes. This was followed by the Sophie and Henry reciting the Address To A Haggis. Some of the P6 girls helped serve haggis, neeps and tatties to the pupils and staff. After the lunch, Henry and Sophie delivered the Immortal Memory. The Toast to the Lassies was presented by Henry and Mr Thompson. Sophie made the reply on behalf of the lassies. After the traditional speeches, the pupils who came 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the Scots verse competition received their certificates. The winners then recited their poems. Primary 5-7 also performed ‘Charlie is my Darling’. A very enjoyable lunch was concluded with everyone singing ‘Auld Lang Syne’.

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Annual Scots Verse Competition

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On 27th January we held our annual Scots Verse competition. Staff were delighted that Mr Mike Duguid was once again able to visit the school and listen to the pupils reciting their poems and decide the first, second and third places in each year group. The pupils who were given a place will receive their certificates at the Burns Lunch.  Well done to all the pupils involved!

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