Communication and Data Protection

In the interests of Data Protection, we wanted to ensure that we are no longer holding pupil details on unused apps or websites.

Crossmichael Primary no longer uses the ‘Seesaw’ app that was being trialled by Mrs Glover last year.  Pupil details have been deleted from this app and we advise that parents delete the app if they were using it.

I have contacted the administrator of the old websites and I have asked them to delete the websites and URLs.

We still use https://www.classdojo.com/  as a way of recording House Points but we no longer store any email addresses or information other than your child’s first name on this secure website.  We no longer use the ‘Parent Share’ function in Class Dojo.

We continue to send GroupCall texts to your mobile phones.  GroupCall is directly linked to data from our Council based SEEMiS system.

The Expressions app is also linked to GroupCall and SEEMiS but we do not use it after gathering feedback from parents.  You may delete the Expressions app.

Crossmichael Primary Health Group

Pupils from our Health Group wish to encourage healthy eating by having ‘Fruity Fridays’.  On a Friday we encourage pupils to bring fruit or vegetables for snack and they will be awarded House Points.  The group will record numbers over the next few weeks and months and pupils will be rewarded for taking one step towards being healthier.

Scholastic Book Club Breakfast – – Friday 29^th November

Our Book Fair arrives on Thursday 28th November for a week.  It will be open in the mornings and afternoons when Mrs Martin is in the office.  We would like to invite you to our ‘Book Fair Breakfast’ on Friday 29^th November from 8.15-8.55am.  Parents should contact the school office to let us know if you intend to come along to this.

Here are our Pupil Groups in Crossmichael Primary School.

(We will update these to include our House and Vice Captains and our Health Group once all children return from being absent.)

7.11.19

Dear Parent/Carer,

Primary 7 Open Evening

We would like to invite you to a Primary 7 Open Evening at Castle Douglas High School on Tuesday 26^th November from 6.30 – 7.30pm.  Tea and coffee will be available from 6.15pm.

 The purpose of the evening is to inform you about the transition programme and to explain how your child will be supported through the process.  Some S1 pupils will talk about their personal experience of transition and the Junior Leaders will explain their role in supporting the P7 pupils.  The evening will end with a tour of the school where you will have the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

We realise that moving to High School can be an anxious time for both pupils and parents and we hope that we can put your mind at ease and make it an enjoyable and exciting experience for the young people. Please do not hesitate to contact the school should you have any questions.

Yours sincerely,

Alison Cook

Depute Headteacher, Castle Douglas High School

Parent Council Bingo Night

On behalf of the school and the Parent Council we would like to thank everyone who supported us at our Bingo Night on Friday 15th November.  Thank you for your donations to the raffle and for the tray bakes and cakes.  Thanks to those of you who helped to set up the hall and tidy away the chairs and tables at the end of the evening.  Special thanks go to Liz and Sue for being our Bingo callers.  Also, thanks to Rosie Porteous for providing the beautiful cake for the raffle.  I am delighted to announce that we raised £651.15.

Dumfries & Galloway Parent Council Forum

There is a meeting on Thursday  (21st November) at 7pm at Castle Douglas High School open to parents.  The main focus will be on sharing and discussing next steps for Education Services within the Council as we face budget savings.  We cannot continue to spend money in the same way so we need to ‘transform’ our approach.  Several meetings were held across the region to discuss ideas and this meeting is a chance for you to find out more about what this will mean for our school and our children.  It would be extremely helpful if some parents could attend and feed back to the Parent Council.

 

Best wishes,

Mary Lidstone-Scott

Headteacher

Clerical Assistant

We are delighted to announce that Georgina Benson is our new Clerical Assistant at Gelston on a Tuesday and Friday.   We are waiting for paperwork to be processed so that she can start working with us soon.  She will receive your telephone calls on the days when she is working.  Miss Vicky Campbell is based at Crossmichael on a Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Communication

We are always keen to keep in touch with you.  Here are the main methods of communication:

• write a note in your child’s homework diary
• post comments on the Blog under ‘Recent Posts’
• telephone the school office on 01556 670282 and make an appointment to speak to your child’s teacher
• email the school office: gw08officecrossmicha@ea.dumgal.sch.uk
• contact the Headteacher directly on 07741 686730

Parent Council Bingo Night – Crossmichael Village Hall – Friday 15th November at 7pm

Please support us by attending our Bingo Night to raise money to support our pupils in Crossmichael Primary School.

You can help us by:

• attending our fantastic Bingo Night!! (Books are £3 per adult and £2 per child)
• providing a donation for the raffle (to be handed in at the school office by Thursday 14th Nov)
• providing a tray bake to go along with refreshments (please bring along to the village hall from 5.30pm on Friday)
• helping to set up the village hall from 5.30pm on Friday

We look forward to seeing you there!

P7 Open Evening at Castle Douglas High School

P7 pupils and parents are invited to attend an open evening at Castle Douglas High School on Tuesday 26th November at 6.30pm.

PE Kits

We have noticed that some pupils are forgetting to bring a full PE kit to school with them.  A PE kit should consist of a separate T-shirt, shorts/ jogging bottoms/ leggings, socks and PE shoes (PE shoes can also be used as indoor school shoes).

Clothes and Personal Items

Please label all clothes and shoes with you child’s name.  Also, please check that your child has not accidentally brought home another child’s clothing.  We have a few missing cardigans and jumpers at the moment.

1. After School Dance and Fitness Club

Active Schools and Community Sport are running a three week ‘Dance and Fitness’ club starting on Tuesday 5th November at 3pm.  It is open to pupils in P1-7 and costs £1 a session.

P5, P6 and P7 Biosphere Explorers!

The Galloway & Southern Ayrshire Biosphere has a vision to make life in our Biosphere better while caring for the natural environment. A key strand of this is the education of the next generation biosphere residents in sustainable development, increasing awareness and connections with the ‘working countryside’.

The Biosphere Explorers project, run by the Crichton Carbon Centre and funded by the Hollywood Trust and the Galloway Glens Scheme, is working towards this aim with an education programme delivered in schools consisting of a series of workshops aimed at increasing knowledge of the local natural environment and human interactions with it. This project will run for two years and will be focussed on school age children, with elements for all residents of the area.

Our P5, P6 and P7 pupils will be participating in these workshops each each Tuesday afternoon (from 29th October) led by the Biosphere Explorers Officer, Shalla Gray. The sessions will include:

Please ensure that pupils have brought their outdoor clothing with them on these days.

Pokemon Cards

Many of our pupils are enjoying bringing Pokemon cards to school so that they can swap them with their friends.  Unfortunately, we are experiencing several incidents on a daily basis where pupils are disagreeing about swapping cards.  Although we have tried to support pupils in using the cards appropriately, these discussions are now eating into our learning in other areas.  Therefore, I ask that you will support us in discouraging your child(ren) from bringing these cards to school.  We appreciate your support on this matter.

 

We had lots of fun at our Halloween Party this afternoon.  Everyone had a go at doukin’ for apples, separating Skittles, building Starburst towers, carving pumpkins and taking part in a balloon obstacle race!

Special thanks to our parent helpers – ‘Goulish’ Gilli, ‘Spooky’ Shani, Susan ‘Spectre’, Pamela ‘Poltergeist’ and ‘Devilish’ Debs.

Here are some photos of us having a great time!!

PLEASE CLICK ON INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS AND LEAVE A COMMENT IF YOU WISH.

Welcome Back

Welcome back to Term 2 at Crossmichael Primary School.  I hope you had a wonderful holiday and are looking forward to this term.  Last term, we raised an amazing £1070 on our Sponsored Autumn Walk so thank you very much to everyone who contributed.

Halloween Party

We are having our Halloween party on Wednesday 30th October in the afternoon.  Pupils can change into their costumes after lunch.  They may wear non-uniform instead.  It should be SPOOKTACULAR!!

P5, P6 and P7 Biosphere Explorers!

The Galloway & Southern Ayrshire Biosphere has a vision to make life in our Biosphere better while caring for the natural environment. A key strand of this is the education of the next generation biosphere residents in sustainable development, increasing awareness and connections with the ‘working countryside’.

The Biosphere Explorers project, run by the Crichton Carbon Centre and funded by the Hollywood Trust and the Galloway Glens Scheme, is working towards this aim with an education programme delivered in schools consisting of a series of workshops aimed at increasing knowledge of the local natural environment and human interactions with it. This project will run for two years and will be focussed on school age children, with elements for all residents of the area.

Our P5, P6 and P7 pupils will be participating in these workshops each each Tuesday afternoon (from 29th October) led by the Biosphere Explorers Officer, Shalla Gray. The sessions will include:

Please ensure that pupils have brought their outdoor clothing with them on these days.

Parent Council Bingo Night

Pupils are arriving home with flyers for the Bingo Night being organised by our Parent Council on Friday 15th November at 7pm in  Crossmichael Village Hall.  All proceeds go towards the school.  Tickets cost £3 for adults and £2 for children which includes books and refreshments.  There will also be a raffle so please leave your donations in the school office before the night.

Please note that our Halloween Party has been moved to Wednesday afternoon.  Pupils should bring costumes to school and change into them after lunch.  (They may wear non-uniform instead if they wish.)

If any parents are available to help decorate the PE hall from 2pm on Tuesday 29th Oct then could they please contact the school office to let us know?  Also, if any parents are able to help out at activity stations (pumpkin carving, doukin’ for apples, donuts on a string, balloon game, etc) then please let us know.

We are sure the children will have a SPOOKTACULAR afternoon!!

Well done to everyone who braved the weather for our autumn walk. We had a great time!

Thank you for joining us for lunch and thanks to Wilma for the delicious soups and sweets too.