Author: Ms Whorlow

For Scottish Careers Week 2024, our P7 pupils had an exciting day of career exploration at Stranraer Community College. The day kicked off with a fun ‘Would You Rather?’ game, where pupils worked in teams to brainstorm different careers using a range of props. They then explored a range of job options on My World of Work, discovering everything from technical trades to creative fields, helping them get a better idea of what might suit their skills and interests. 

Pupils took a guided tour around the college, visiting various departments like the Hairdressing Salon, Beauty Rooms, Technical Workshops, Mechanical and Groundwork areas, Childcare Rooms, and the Kitchen & Café. At each stop, they learned about the practical skills and qualifications needed for these careers, getting a real feel for what it’s like to work in these roles.

The day wrapped up with a Shark Island challenge, where pupils worked together to solve problems and use key meta skills like communication,

teamwork, and critical thinking—skills that are essential for any career! The visit also tied back to the UNCRC rights, reminding pupils of their right to career information (Article 28) and education that prepares them for life (Article 29).  To top it all off, everyone received a goodie bag full of career resources, making it a fun and inspiring day for all involved! 

National Odd Sock Day marks the start of Anti-Bullying Week. Odd Socks Day 2024. Our children ‘chose to respect‘ by wearing a colourful array of different socks. We talked about how the world is a brighter place because of difference and our uniqueness.

The day sends an important message to pupils that they should be
allowed to be themselves free from bullying and helps us celebrate
Anti-Bullying Week in a fun and positive way.

UNCRC Rights of the Child – Article 2: No Discrimination, 29: Aims of Education

SHANARRI – Safe, Nurtured, Respected, Included

Pupils, staff, veterans and community members joined together today at our Village War Memorial to remember all those in the armed forces who have made sacrifices for us in the past, and for those who continue to do so today.

Rev. Breakey led a service with poignant poems and readings by the children. She recounted the story of Stoker John Smith who’s name is on our village war memorial. He was a local Portpatrick Primary pupil who lost his life at just 19 years of age when his submarine was hit by a torpedo. Lacey’s Daddy shared information on the campaign medals he has been presented with for his time in the armed forces. This helped make the Remembrance service personal for the children and deepen their understanding of the selflessness of those who protect us to keep us safe from war.

We were very touched to be joined by our local veterans and community members.

The children stood respectfully for the 2 minute silence, giving the occasion the dignity it deserves.

Here is a short animated storybook about the Scottish Poppy

The Poppy Story Book Animation (English)| Learning films | Poppyscotland

UNCRC Rights of the Child – Article 29: Aims of Education, Article 38: Protection from War

Sustainable Development Goals: 16: Peace& Justice

Metaskills: Integrity, Feeling and Sense Making

Our Digital Leaders from St. Joseph’s and Portpatrick met today at Portpatrick Primary. They participated in a Digital Leader training day to help them drive forward as Leaders of Learning.

After a tour of the school led by Adam and Arran, there was a lot to work through on the agenda from developing our digital literacy skills to working together to help our classmates keep safe online. Have a read of the minutes of the meeting to see what Effective Contributors and Responsible Citizens they are in planning.

Watch this space for a report written by our Digital Leaders on their training day experience.

There was time for socialising and making new friends during morning break. It was a great day of collaboration, leading and friendship.

UNCRC Rights of the Child – Article 15: Setting up and Joining Groups

SHANARRI – Achieving, Responsible & Included

The Portpatrick Community Development Trust kindly organised a fantastic Halloween party for our pupils from both Portpatrick and St. Joseph’s.

The hall looked amazing with creepy decorations galore. The refreshments were a frightful delight with vampire blood and ghost spirit drinks along with Halloween themed sweet and savoury treats.

The event was very well attended, particularly for such a wet and windy night – it all added to the mood.

The children looked fabulous in their costumes. They had a blast together with lots spooky Halloween games and activities organised to entertain. There were dangling sticky doughnuts to try to snare, bobbing for apples, disco moves and spooky corners to name but a few. The boys and girls didn’t stop from the moment they arrived till it was time to go home.

Our grateful thanks to the PCDT for generously organising this event for our partnership children.

UNCRC – Article 31: Play, Article 15: Joining in Groups

SHANARRI – Active, Included

Portpatrick Primary came together in partnership with Portpatrick Hotel to hold a McMillan Cancer Big Coffee Morning on Friday 2th of September. The hotel kindly hosted the event for our local village school.

There was an impressive array of delicious home baking donated by the community. Supporters came out in force to attend the charity event. It was great to see everyone enjoying the atmosphere and the sweet treats on offer. The boys and girls gained valuable experience of working in the hospitality industry by meeting and greeting, waiting tables and taking on the role of hosts. This helps develop those important Metaskills which are the skills we need for learning, life and work. The raffle proved very popular with tickets sold right up to the last minute. The children are very proud to have raised £470 for this worthy cause.

Our grateful thanks go to all of the Portpatrick Hotel staff who helped the event run so smoothly. We are also very grateful for all the kind donations and support we received to make the coffee morning such a successful community occasion.

UNCRC – Article 15 Setting up and Joining Groups, Article 26 – Social & Economic Help

SHANARRI – Achieving, Responsible & Included

Pupils from Portpatrick primary rolled up their environmental sleeves to take part in the Great British Beach Clean 2024.  This is a week-long citizen science event, where hundreds of beach cleans take place up and down the UK.

Portpatrick pupils went down to our local harbour and cleaned along the shoreline removing lots of plastic which can be a danger to wildlife.  The children removed lots of discarded and washed up rubbish, making the beach a cleaner and safer place. They also chose to clean up around Ewan’s Space playground and village areas. They were supported by community volunteers Sian & Heather and Brenda from ONUS (Our Oceans Need Us). 

Our children are responsible citizens who always like to do their bit to protect our environment and help our communities.

UNCRC Rights of the Child: Article 24 – Looking After the Environment

SHANARRI – Responsible

Pupils at the North Rhins and West Rhins Schools are delighted to share that they have been awarded the Gold Rights Respecting School Award from UNICEF. Having already achieved their Bronze and Silver awards, Leswalt, Kirkcolm and Portpatrick Primaries have been working hard over the last 18 months to achieve their Gold award, with our Pupil Council reps leading on this. Although the 3 schools are no longer partnered together (with Portpatrick now being part of the West Rhins Schools), we started our journey towards the Gold award together, so it seemed fitting that we finished it together!

The award is split into 3 strands – it aims to teach children about their rights; they learn through their rights by demonstrating positive relationships and attitudes, and respecting others’ rights; and finally they learn to take action through their rights to become responsible global citizens.

The UNICEF Rights Respecting School assessor visited all 3 schools at the end of May and pupils were able to share with her the many activities that we’ve worked on in our journey towards gold, including: Children’s Right’s Tuesday; learning about rights at assemblies; our class charters; linking rights to our school events such as House Captain elections, Children’s Mental Health Week and Children in Need; our worry boxes in class; learning about Child Line; our climate change protest; and all of our various pupil voice groups, such as our Eco Schools work.

The schools were provided with a report, sharing strengths and some next steps for when we work towards the Sustaining Gold award. The report stated that, “It was evident that children’s rights are embedded across the school and underpin every facet of school life.” The assessor felt that we have, “Very articulate children who knew a wide range of articles and were confident in the concept of rights.” She was impressed with the extent to which rights are embedded in the day-to-day life of all three schools and the strong commitment of passionate staff as champions of children’s rights. Finally, the assessor highlighted that pupil voice is valued highly across the schools with visible actions arising from pupil suggestions and an understanding from children that they can influence positive change.

We are thrilled that our hard work has been recognised and we have been awarded this accolade. We are looking forward to continuing our Rights journey as we work towards the Sustaining Gold award.

UNCRC Rights of the Child – Article 4: Making Rights Real

SHANARRI – Achieving, Nurtured & Responsible

This week, we had a fantastic start to a new series of workshops for our Primary 5-7 pupils! We were delighted to welcome Matthew from Youth Work to our school, where he will be working with our children throughout the school year on various important topics. The focus for the first three weeks is: online safety!

In today’s digital age, understanding how to stay safe online is more crucial than ever, especially for our young learners. From social media to gaming, our children are exposed to a wide range of online environments, and knowing how to navigate these spaces safely is vital. That’s why we’re thrilled to be working with local community agencies like Youth Work to provide these valuable workshops.

The first workshop was a huge success! The children were fully engaged, participated enthusiastically, and had lots of fun while learning important rules about staying safe online. Matthew did a brilliant job of making the topic interesting and accessible, helping the pupils understand key concepts such as protecting personal information, recognising suspicious behaviour, and knowing what to do if they feel uncomfortable online.

We’re so pleased to see our school fostering strong partnerships with community organisations to bring these essential lessons to our pupils. As we continue with this series, we’re excited to see our students grow more confident and knowledgeable about online safety.

Keep an eye out for more updates on our workshops with Matthew and Youth Work throughout the year!!

• UNCRC Children’s Rights:
  • Article 13: Freedom of expression
  • Article 16: Right to privacy
  • Article 17: Access to reliable information
• SDG Goals:
  • Goal 4: Quality Education
  • Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities
  • Goal 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions (protecting children from exploitation and harm)
• SHANARRI Indicators:
  • Safe: Ensuring children are protected from harm online
  • Healthy: Promoting emotional well-being by teaching safe online practices
  • Achieving: Supporting children in developing digital literacy
  • Nurtured: Encouraging a supportive environment for discussing online challenges
  • Respected: Recognising children’s rights to privacy and protection
  • Responsible: Encouraging responsible behaviour in online environments
• Meta-Skills Used:
  • Focusing: Concentrating on understanding and applying online safety rules
  • Critical Thinking: Evaluating online content and situations for safety
  • Sense-Making: Understanding the importance of safe online behaviour
  • Communicating: Sharing concerns and seeking help when needed
  • Integrity: Making ethical choices online
  • Curiosity: Exploring the digital world safely and responsibly

We are thrilled to announce that our 3 Primary 7 pupils have started their journey to become Playmakers, a program led by Alison Murray from Active Schools to help them develop as sports leaders! Today marked the first session, and the six pupils who were in attendance got stuck right in, showing great enthusiasm and energy. They loved every moment of it!

Over the next weeks, our Primary 7s will be taking part in the Playmakers program, which is designed to build their confidence, leadership, and communication skills by planning and organising fun sports activities for their peers. Each of the pupils has been given a booklet to fill in as they progress through the sessions, reflecting on what they have learned and how they can become great role models in promoting physical activity.

We’re so proud to see our young leaders already engaging so actively in their first week! Keep posted on more updates of our Primary 7s in action as they continue their journey to becoming Playmakers and sports leaders! For now, check out the photos below of our Primary 7s excited to embark on this fantastic new project.

• UNCRC Children’s Rights Covered:
  • Article 12: Right to be heard and have a say in matters affecting them
  • Article 29: Education must develop a child’s personality, talents, and abilities to the fullest
  • Article 31: Right to rest, leisure, play, and participate in cultural and recreational activities
• SDG Goals Covered:
  • Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being (Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all ages)
  • Goal 4: Quality Education (Inclusive and equitable quality education for all)
• SHANARRI Indicators Covered:
• Active: Encouraging physical activity and engagement in sports
• Included: Ensuring every child has an opportunity to participate and feel involved
• Achieving: Developing leadership and organisational skills
• Meta-Skills Used:
  • Collaborating: Working together to lead and organise activities
  • Leading: Taking initiative and guiding peers in sports activities
  • Communicating: Sharing ideas and instructions clearly with others
  • Feeling: Building empathy, understanding emotions, and supporting peers
  • Adapting: Adjusting to new roles, challenges, and situations in the leadership journey
  • Initiative: Taking proactive steps to plan and deliver fun and engaging activities
  • Integrity: Demonstrating fairness, honesty, and respect while leading and participating