Text Messages
Our average monthly bill for sending text message reminders to parents is £90. We use this service for emergency announcements such as road closure updates or schools closure information. We notice that we have been sending texts to remind parents of sporting events or to remind them of deadlines for payment. Please look at the blog or contact the school for further information to help us reduce the need to send text messages in the future.
James Clerk Maxwell Family Science Festival
Please see the link below for further information about a science festival being held this Saturday in honour of a local scientist with links to Parton.
https://gallowayglens.org/james-clerk-maxwell-family-science-festival-14th-march/
Projected Roll for August 2020
We have capacity for 75 pupils in school and our projected roll for August 2020 is 83 pupils. We need to think creatively about how to accommodate these additional catchment pupils.
The Parent Council are arranging a meeting in the next few weeks to discuss this further.
Coronavirus Advice from the Local Authority
All schools are being issued with hand sanitiser and antibacterial soap. We continue to encourage thorough hand washing. Please see the previous post for more detail from the Local Authority.
What’s on this week?
- Monday 9th March – P6&7 pupils to Curling
- Tuesday 10th March – P5-7 Rugby, Cross Country Practice after school, Headteacher out of school all day
- Wednesday 11th March – P5-7 Rugby and Headteacher out of school all day
- Thursday 12th March – 17:30-19:30 Parents’ Evening
Primary 4 Curricular Swimming
Primary 4 pupils will be attending swimming lessons every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 17th March until 2nd April. Transport is provided.
Bikeability Training
Every year we provide training for our P7 pupils so that they are safely able to ride their bicycles on the road. A tutor is able to deliver training for parents to enable them to become ‘Bikeability’ instructors. The tutor will also come to the school and work alongside parents until they feel confidently able to work with small groups of pupils. The more parents who are willing to participate in this, the safer our children will be on the roads.
We really need to train up a new cohort of parents. Please see the attached letter for more information.
REMINDER OF UPCOMING BIKEABILITY SCOTLAND TRAINING COURSES BELOW
Diary Dates:
Please note the change to the Show Show Date. We have had to move it to Tuesday 31st March at 6.30pm in Crossmichael Village Hall instead.
| Thursday 12th March
5.30-7pm
Monday 16th March at 6.30pm |
Parents Evening
Lockerbie Manor Information Evening for current P5 and P6 pupils who will be in P6 and P7 in Feb 2021 |
| Wednesday 18th March
3-5pm |
Parents Evening |
| Tuesday 31st March at 6.30pm | School Show – ‘The Bumblesnouts Save the World’ |
| Friday 3rd April at 9.30am | Easter Service in Church |
We decorated potatoes as our favourite characters from a book for World Book Day on 5th March.
Best wishes,
Mary E Lidstone-Scott
Headteacher
As a parent I believe a closed Facebook group solely for parents to be the way forward for cascading reminder information such as ‘P5/6/7 remember outdoor clothes for rugby today’. We seem to be one of very few school who don’t have a Facebook group for this purpose.
Thank you, Kim. When I approached parents last year, the majority were against a school based social media page. However, Gelston parents do have a ‘Facebook Parents’ page. This would need to be something decided by the parents and set up by the parents. It is a good idea as long as everyone remembers to contact the school directly if they have any queries about school based issues. This avoids any confusion. Best wishes, Mary L-Scott