Author: Ms Whorlow

Our annual school sports day was well attended by friends and family today.  Luckily, the weather was kind to us.  The boys and girls enjoyed a great range of sporting challenges from egg & spoon to distance sprints.  The children demonstrated a great attitude of sportsmanship and encouragement towards one another throughout the afternoon. The parents were keen to have a go and were ‘good eggs’; joining  in our obstacle races.  There are rumours of a steward’s enquiry over conduct on the Daddies race, however 😉  Results will be communicated as soon as possible.

Effective contributors – Confident Individuals

On Friday 9th of June, the whole school set off for a day of learning and fun at Dumfries House in Cumnock.  We were joined on our journey by P5-7 from Leswalt Primary.  On arrival, the groups split off to participate in different activities.  P1-4 went on a bug hunt, exploring creatures in the habitats around them.  The children helped to construct a ‘bug hotel’ and visited the garden area to pot plants of their own.  P5-6 explored the conditions plants need to grow.  They then moved on to plant rapeseed in pots in the potting shed.  The pupils also considered what materials are biodegradable before creating their own compost gardens in a bottle to take home.

Both schools came back together to have free time in the adventure playground.  The boys and girls then enjoyed an ice-cream before returning journey.

Primary 5 and 6 were treated to another great session with Pitch, Pulse and Magic today.  The Spencer Strachan duo performed a range of classical pieces on the violin and cello.  The children were asked to identify the tempo and the musical concepts in a selection of famous pieces. For example, the pupils had to guess the animal being depicted in the Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saens.

There was opportunity to explore inter-disciplinary learning links with science (sound).  The pupils were asked to identify how sound is produced and how it travels.  They also carried out a water pitch experiment to identify which glass of water, when tapped, produced the highest/lowest pitch sound and why.

We also linked to our Language and Literacy work of poetry this term.  The pupils used their Higher Order Thinking Skills to Create movement to music that was matched a poem read aloud by Jenna.

This session was followed by our continuing Feis Rois Ukelele workshop.  Primary 5 and 6 are  becoming very proficient in identifying, reading and playing musical chords on this instrument.  They are able to work collaboratively to play very pleasing group compositions.

Successful Learners – Effective Contributors.

P1-4 went on a journey through time today as part of their ‘Life Long Ago’ topic. They experienced a History Alive workshop exploring the Roman Era.  Kathryn delighted the boys and girls by dressing up as a Roman Centurion.  She displayed a range of authentic artefacts and weapons for the children to explore.  Our Roman visitor then shared many facts about Roman traditions, culture and lifestyle.  The children were given an opportunity to be hands-on by dressing up and engaging in role play.  There was much discussion on what life must have been like and how it compares to life today.

Here are some quotes from the girls and boys recounting their experience:

“I asked a lot of questions about lots of different kinds of things.   My favourite thing to do was dress up as a rich Roman lady.   After dressing up I went to hold a sword and it was really heavy!   Ava Lily.

“The Roman visitor brought some Roman weapons like swords and spears and some armour. After that, we got to play because the Roman visitor brought Roman costumes and some Celts costumes. We play- fought with fake spears.  It was very fun. We got to try lift very heavy armour.”  Finlay Schofield

Class 2 have been learning about the foods we produce in Britain.  We have studied farming calendars to identify which foods are in season and when.  We have also been exploring the journeys certain foods make to come to our supermarkets out of season from abroad.  We have been considering the ways in which food is preserved to extend its life.

To apply this learning, we have made fruit tarts using preserved and fresh strawberries that are out of season in Britain at this time of year.  As it is May, our fruit has travelled from Spain, which is approximately 2,300Km away.  We are able to identify the impact that this can have on the environment in Food Miles.

We applied our Language reading skills to follow an instructional recipe.  We also used our food hygiene practices to work cleanly and safely.  Throughout this task the class we employed our soft skills of cooperation, teamwork, sharing and negotiating to complete our task.  We all agreed our tarts tasted delicious!

 

On Monday 15th of May, P6 attended Operation Safety at Stair Park as part of an annual education and awareness service operated by our emergency services.  The boys and girls participated in workshops on a range of areas to help educate them on some dangers and risks they might face and how best to deal with them.  The workshops attended were:

• Coastguard – keeping ourselves safe when rescuing someone drowning
• Ambulance – assessing the situation and recovery position
• Police – alcohol and its effects
• Fire Brigade – Dangers in the home
• Police – Vandalism
• Scottish Power – Electricity and its dangers
• Police – Social media safety
• Police – drugs

The children developed a deeper awareness of the potential risks and discussed strategies to help them cope sensibly with them.

On Friday 28^th of May, Portpatrick and Leswalt Primary schools came together for a very special event.  We were joined by four members of the film crew for ‘The Keepers’ movie which is being made here right on our doorstep.

The boys and girls used their Higher Order Thinking Skills to create probing questions to ask our guests. This provided a unique opportunity for us to find out about the world of work in the film industry as part of our ongoing ‘Careers in the Community’ research. We were pleased to receive 2 producers (Andy Evans & Ade Shannon) and 2 scriptwriters (Celyn Jones and Joe Bone) – all with very successful careers.  The gentlemen were extremely accommodating and were delighted to answer the children’s questions enthusiastically.  We were even treated to an improvised role play to highlight the creative process of story writing.  Joe and Celyn were a Spanish beach bather and a hungry blue whale respectively.  They acted out the children’s ideas in a delightful skit.

Finally, both schools were presented with a wonderful keepsake of the occasion. We received a film promotion poster autographed by the lead actors and director.  This will be treasured as a rare memento of this fabulous event.

 

The whole school had a fabulous day at Logan Gardens on the 27th of April.  First, we all enjoyed a social picnic on the garden lawns.  We got to observe the friendly coy carp in the pond who came up to say hello to everyone.

Class 2 worked with Kath to use their observation and mapping skills to create 3D mapping of the area using natural resources.  They also  applied their maths skills to use compass points and coordinates to navigate around the gardens.  Later they were given the option of either being scientists or artists by surveying their surroundings and recording their findings on a scaled location line.

Class 1 enjoyed a nature walk with Kath before taking part in a texture treasure hunt.  The children created beautiful collages using foraged natural materials.  Then followed an experience of using magnifiers and microscopes to observe plants up close.  The group then created their own 3D map of an area of the garden using natural materials to represent the landscape, plants and flowers all around them.

The sun shone for the whole session and everyone had a great time!

 

 

 

 

Class 2 braved the biting wind to apply their measure skills for area and perimeter today.  We used our playground to undertake a range of measure challenges. Using our knowledge of shape properties, we had to draw squares, rectangles and triangles of given perimeter and areas.  We also had the option to choose our own dimensions where we then calculated the area and perimeter as appropriate.  We remembered to apply our formulae and to use the correct unit of measure.  We also developed our HOTS & soft skills by working collaboratively in pairs.  We cooperated, negotiated, listened and applied our skills.  We were successful learners.

I can explain how different methods can be used to find the perimeter and area of a simple 2D shape. MNU 2-11c

A representative team of 4 pupils from Class 2 travelled into Stranraer with Pat today for the S.P.F.L. Trusted football tournament arranged by Allan Jenkins.  The boys and girls performed well alongside their Leswalt teammates in inter-school matches.  They played 3 matches; winning 3-0 against Sandhead and drawing two with St. Joseph’s and Glenluce/Castle Kennedy.  Afterwards, they were allowed to see the S.P.F.L. trophies up close.  Major teams such as Celtic, Rangers and Aberdeen vie to win such esteemed trophies.  Everyone then received a commemorative medal before returning to school.  The team then shared their experience with their classmates.