Portpatrick Primary

Today marks the day WWI ended, at 11 a.m. on the 11th day of the 11th month, in 1918.

The whole school came together to remember the members of our armed forces who have served, and still do serve us around the world today.

We talked about what the poppies we wear represent.  We also discussed why we raise money by selling poppies to help and support those who have made sacrifices.

We shared how we observed the two minute silences held around the country yesterday for Remembrance Sunday.  Some children were at church, some were in the supermarkets and some marked the occasion in their own homes.

We all stood together today and held a one minute silence to show our respect and thanks.

#Responsible Citizens

As part of Outdoor Learning Day, P4-7 visited our local Post Office shop today.  Margaret, the manager of the shop, kindly gave permission for our pupils to carry out a budget challenge working with money on the premises, working with real stock.  We made use of what is is our local environment to engage with real-life learning.

The children were given a choice of budget with which to select and plan party food and drink for our imagined class party.  They had to choose and cost items on the shelves, decide how many of each item was needed for our group and, thus, give a total unit cost.  They then had to find a final cost for all their selected the party items to determine whether they had kept to their budget.  If they were over budget, they were required to make decisions as to what items to keep or swap for alternatives.

The session was very productive; providing a real life context for using money.  Margaret was keen to lend a hand and help the children make decisions on their ‘purchases’.

Our thanks go to the staff at our local Post Office – community participation!  Morning shoppers were happy to see a productive team in action.

# Successful Learners

 

 

Portpatrick Primary have had a great learning boost as a result of our links with local Industry employer, Lactalis McLelland.

Mr Nick Dietz, HR Manager, very kindly donated 5 Ipad minis to our school to help support our digital literacy development.

The children are thrilled to be able to now access a wider range of technology to enhance our learning across the curriculum.

Mr Dietz gave his time to talk to the children about the skills for work that a company such as our local creamery look for in an employee. He also chatted about how science, technology, engineering and maths are used to run an efficient organisation;  making the cheeses we all know and love.

We are keen to expand the quantities of Ipads we hold to allow greater engagement.  To this aim, the school is pursuing funding options to allow us to do so.  Watch this space…

A very big thank you is given to Mr Dietz and Lactalis McLelland for their generosity.

Lactalis McLelland#Effective Contributor

P7 had a grand time this morning as they were given the chance to layer up and head out to the North West Castle for a morning of curling. They got an opportunity to glide around, sweep the ice and slide the stones along and then got straight down to business for a mini session of games!

Finally all the boys and girls mixed up for a final game and although our Portpatrick pair gave a noble performance, it was Leswalt that took the title.

The P7’s had a great time – many thanks must go to Mrs Thorburn for transporting them and supervising them this morning.

This afternoon pupils at Portpatrick primary were creepin’ it real as they got dressed up for their annual Halloween party. The party was run by our wonderful House Captains, Findlay Thorburn and Lillie Baker who organised some fang-tastic  games for everyone to participate in. Everyone was in great spirits and the effort that went into the costumes was incredible.

The winners of the games are as follows;

Costume Parade: P1-5 Louise

P6-7 Alba

Halloween Corners : Stephen

Halloween Jungle Tig : Ruby

Halloween Statues : Ruby

Wrap the Mummy : Erin’s Group

Best Dancer: Maya

Then we had Dookin’ for Apples to round off a wonderful afternoon.  A very special mention to Findlay Thorburn and his mum for creating some wonderful handmade Halloween prizes, it was very much appreciated by all.

See below for photos.

Our Prize Winners;

Party Fun ;

Class Photos;

Primary 7 enjoyed their first day at Stranraer Academy in the company of all the other Primary 7 pupils from the cluster.  The day had an enjoyable focus of Music, with members of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra travelling down to Stranraer to conduct a workshop with all the pupils.

Our pupils were singing, dancing, playing games, composing and learning about the orchestra and their music in a fun filled day.  After lunch they were joined by older pupils from the Academy who came along to listen to the final performance from the musicians.

All returned to Primary, more familiar with Stranraer Academy and informed and entertained by the orchestra.

The whole school were given some very wise advice on how to stay safe during this season’s bonfire celebrations.  Representatives from both the Police and Fire Brigade came to talk to children about the dangers that are present when they are near fireworks and bonfires.

Everyone agreed that Guy Fawkes celebrations are great fun, but that we should all make sure we take simple precautions to keep ourselves out of harm’s way.  We now know how to behave sensibly around fire and fireworks.

Thank you to our emergency services.

#Responsible Citizens.

P5 and 6 were given the opportunity to visit Balgracie Dairy farm as part of a R.H.E.T. organised initiative.  The pupils were given a guided tour and an explanation of farm processes that apply technology, science and engineering to carry out tasks.  They learned about the many, many jobs that are required to keep a healthy and productive dairy stock and how farming is undertaken in an environmentally responsible way.

All the milk from Balgracie farm goes to Nestle to make Kit-Kat chocolate.  We were treated to a few ‘biccies’ to take home with us to sample after our visit!

The children then applied their recount writing skills to share their experience with their partnership Glow e-buddies.

See below for an example of recount writing from Ruby P5:

All about Balgracie Farm!  Ruby Rankin P5

Introduction:

Today P5-6 went to Balgracie farm on the 29.10.19 at the farm.  We learned about dairy farming.

Arrival:

When we arrived we had to dip our feet into a soapy bucket to kill any germs so we didn’t infect the animals.  Then, Mrs Mc Nicoll gave use a pair of gloves and we were not allowed to take our gloves off.

Baby calves:

Next, we went to see baby calves. They were all six weeks old. They had blue or red tags on their ears. Blue was for boys and red was for girls. When the calves are born they have to get colostrum milk within six hours or they get ill.

Milking parlour:

After we saw the baby calves we went to see the milking parlour. Mr Drennan showed us the milking pumps they use to automatically milk the cows.  He demonstrated the automatic nut feeder that gives the cows food to eat whilst they are being milked. He also showed us a yellow cream that you put in the udders so they don’t get bugs.

Sleeping barn:

Next, he showed us the cow beds.  They were made out of rubber.  There was a motorised pooper scooper to clean away any slurry.  The slurry is used as fertiliser for the fields.

# Successful Learners

This afternoon pupils at Portpatrick Primary were delighted to be invited up to Dunskey estate to help Chef Chris make some apple crumble using foraged apples from the trees in the walled garden.

First, we had to pick the apples. Although this was harder than it looked for the average 3 1/2  ft tall 5 year old! Luckily some of the older pupils were on hand to help. Mrs Baker even produced the most spectacular “apple picking device” we had ever seen.

Next, we took a walk up to the main house where Mr and Mrs Orr Ewing gave us a warm welcome and lead us into the dinning room. Once we had taken our jackets off and washed our hands, the brilliant bakers were ready to go.

Led by Chef Chris the children made their crumble. To say we enjoyed ourselves would be an understatement. As you can see, there were smiles and giggles galore. Uniforms are sure to be needing a wash after having fun with the flour!

Chef Chris then gave the children a taste of the apple crumble he had made earlier. It was delicious!! Lastly, the boys and girls were given a copy of the recipe and their own crumble to take home to bake and share with parents.

Huge thank you to the Orr Ewing Family and all the staff at Dunskey Estate for having us. What a wonderful way to round off a fantastic first term.

Happy Holidays everyone!