All our classes have been working very hard making their Christmas crafts to sell at tomorrow’s Christmas Fayre.

Here is a sneak preview of what each class will be selling:

P4 have been enjoying their role as ‘Missio Champions’ within the school.

As we all get ready for the beginning of Advent, P4 put together and distributed some fun Advent activities for all the classes.

We also gave everyone a Missio Advent Calendar to remind us all of the importance of keeping Jesus at the centre of our Advent Journey.

We hope that everyone has a wonderful and prayerful Advent.

P4

Advent calendar

There will be a change to tomorrow’s lunch as follows:

Lentil Soup, Pepperoni Pizza, Quorn Chow Mein, Gammon and cheese roll.

Thursday’s lunch menu has also been changed as follows:

Vegetable soup, Chicken curry, Vegan sausage roll and beans, Gammon and chees roll.

A reminder that tomorrow is a Dress Down Day.

Please bring with you anything you can manage to donate for our Christmas Fayre  which is next week.

Lauren, Vivienne, Judyta and Rhianna from P6  recently attended the Grand Hall for the annual Day of Dance.

They had a great day and did a wonderful job in representing our school!

***Raffle Closing Wednesday 29th November and the lucky winner will be announced on Friday 1st December***

Don’t miss out on winning a fabulous prize in our November raffle!

Tickets are £1 for 5 and can be purchased on Parentpay now!

The Scottish Government are currently consulting on the delivery of Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenting within Scottish schools. 

You can read about the proposed content and delivery via the link shown below, and I would strongly encourage you to do so.   

Delivery of relationships, sexual health and parenthood education in Scottish schools: draft guidance – gov.scot (www.gov.scot) 

In addition, and perhaps of greater accessibility/ease of reading, Parents/Carers may find that the RSHP website provides a clearer insight into the content often recommended for delivery against the above guidance. 

At Primary School age, the curriculum is at Early to Second Level. 

Early Level 

First level 

Second Level    

As a Catholic faith-based school there are elements of the proposed content linked to the guidance that may, depending upon individual perception, sit in direct contrast to the faith dynamic of our provision, which naturally permeates our ethos and delivery.   

We absolutely understand and welcome the fact that not all of our pupils are Catholics, but also recognise strongly that all families sending their children to our school respect and understand our ethos, and the central role that faith plays in the wider life of the school and in our daily practice. 

Given that parents/carers are the first educators of their children, I feel it is imperative that you are fully aware of the above consultation and are encouraged to submit a response. 

The previous version of the guidance was very clear in acknowledging the rights of Catholic schools to deliver Catholic teaching on aspects of human relationship and sexual development. The revised guidance has removed this reference.  

Encouraging parents/carers to do so is also strongly advocated for by the Scottish Catholic Education Service (SCES) and the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland. 

SCES, on behalf of the Bishops’ Conference has produced a briefing paper for the consideration of parents/carers who have elected to send their children to Catholic schools. This briefing paper is attached for your information. 

SCES has also produced a supporting consultation return that you may, if you see fit, elect to refer to prior to making a response. Both of these items have been combined in the attachment provided.

As with any consultation, parents/carers are free to respond in full, in part or not at all. However, parent/carer voice is extremely important and central to the education of children in schools across Scotland. I sincerely and strongly encourage you to try to complete a response prior to the consultation deadline of Thursday 23^rd November. Responses can be submitted via this link: 

Consultation Response 

Parents/Carers wishing to make a response by post can do so by submitting a response to: 

RSHP Teaching Guidance Consultation 

Area 2B North 

Victoria Quay 

EDINBURGH 

EH6 6QQ 

It is my understanding that responses need not address every question within the consultation. I am to understand that some parents/carers are electing to respond to questions one and six specifically. It is for individual parents/carers to determine whether or not they wish to respond in full or in part.  

Thank you for your support in this matter. 

Kind regards

Andrea Fergusson

Briefing Paper and Letter Template For RSHP consultation (1).pdf

Reminder that dogs are not allowed to be in school grounds at any time whether they are on a lead or being carried.

Thank you for your continued support with this matter.

Mrs Fergusson

Tempest will be in school on Monday 20th November for individual and family photographs (if requested) to be taken.

Thankyou

TeamMC

Our classes are having their photographs taken this week for our “Class Christmas Calendars”. We will be taking orders for these at our Christmas Fayre on 1st December.  If you do not wish your child to be in their class photograph, please contact the school office asap.

Thank you

As you are aware, our Christmas Fayre takes place on Friday 1st December. We are kindly asking for donations of home baking for the Fayre.

If you are able to donate any baking, please hand it into the school no later than Thursday 30th November. If you require any tins/tubs/tupperware back, please make sure your child’s name is clearly marked on it. 

Thank you

MCPS-Learning Visit

Please find attached the outcome of the schools recent Learning Visit.  This will also be posted on the school app and a copy sent via email to parents/carers.

Learning Visit parent letter.docx

If you received a text message to say you child/children had been successful in gaining a spot in our school choir here are the details of the rehearsal time etc:

Rehearsals begin tomorrow ( 14th November) after school from 3pm-4pm and will run on a Tuesday for the following 3 weeks up to and including 5th December.

If your child is a member of school choir they will be required to sing at our Christmas Fayre on Friday 1st December, more details on that to follow…..

If your child/children had expressed an interest in the school choir and were unsuccessful, we apologise; our numbers were very limited, however, there will be many more exciting  opportunities to take part in activities throughout the coming year. 

A reminder that our Pupil Progress Meetings are this week on the following days:

Wednesday 15th November @ 5pm-8pm

Thursday 16th November @ 3.30pm-6.30pm

You should by now have received a slip with the date and time of your allocated appointment. If you have not yet had this, please check your child’s schoolbag in the first instance and thereafter contact the school office .

We are delighted that the Book Fair will be available at both our Pupil Progress Meetings and that FOMC will also be there selling raffle tickets for Christmas Fayre prizes.

We will be holding our Christmas Jumper Day on Friday 15th of December this year. If you have any children’s Christmas jumpers at home that no longer fit or you no longer need, please hand them into the school and we can use them for our jumper exchange.

Thank you!

A reminder that this Friday (17th ) is a dress down day for Children In Need. 

Please do not bring any donations into school. You can make any donations for Children in Need through a direct link which is now live on Parentpay. 

Thank you

Gentle Reminder that payment for this years trip to the Pantomime is now overdue, payment can be made using your childs Parentpay account or if you require a barcoded letter please contact the school office

Thankyou

Reminder that our Pupil Progress Meetings will take place next week on the following days:

Wednesday 15th November 5pm-8pm

Thursday 16th November 3.30pm-6.30pm

Next week is Book Week Scotland

On Wednesday next week (15th November), P1-3 will be gifted their celebration bags, and can bring pyjamas to change into in school in the afternoon and will enjoy milk and cookies. 

A reminder that tomorrow (Friday 10th Nov) is a dress down day!

We are kindly asking for pupils to bring in donations tomorrow for our tombola and bottle stall for our Christmas Fayre which is being held on 1st December.

***Please note that any alcohol must be handed straight into a member of staff at the school by an adult***

During November we will have a number of dress down days on Fridays.

Friday 10th November – please bring in a donation for the Christmas Fayre tombola or bottle stall

Friday 17th November – Children in Need Dress Down Day.  Please follow the link on ParentPay to donate

Friday 24th November – please bring in a donation for the Christmas Fayre tombola or bottle stall

There will be a change to Thursday’s lunch menu (9/11):

The choice will now be:  Vegetable soup, Chicken Curry, Vegetarian sausage roll, Gammon and cheese roll.

There will be a change to tomorrow’s lunch menu (7/11):

The choice will now be:  Pepperoni pizza, Quorn Chow Mein or Chicken mayo pasta.

Welcome to the P3 curriculum overview for term 2. This will be a busy term with lots of new learning as well as  fun and exciting activities to prepare for Advent and Christmas.

Literacy

Our focus in term 1 was using our class novel to create descriptive writing by describing the main character, Horton, and using rhyming words and adjectives to describe what he hears and the things he sees. Through descriptive writing, we also have been using our topic about vertebrates and invertebrates when using descriptive bubbles. During term 2 we will now focus on narrative and report writing. As well as talking and listening games and activities such as Show and Tell.

P3 have been participating in reading and spelling activities and children have been working within groups to revisit previous sounds and texts, ready to use their skills and strategies to tackle new and unfamiliar spelling sounds and reading books.  Our writing focus is currently descriptive writing, and these written pieces will come from our class novel and topic of Vertebrates.

Numeracy

Our focus in numeracy has been place value, however, this is something we will regularly revisit with children consolidating previous learning on 2-digit numbers, initially to 99. Then the children moving to three-digit numbers beyond 100.  Children were and will continue to partition these numbers and confidently discuss this in terms of (H) hundreds, tens (T) and units (u), whilst building on their understanding of number and number patterns. In term 2 the focus will be using addition with two-digit numbers before moving to three-digit numbers. Word problems will also continue to be a focus to consolidate our strategies within this operation of number.  Children have been using their ‘Thinking it through’ jotters as the term progresses to develop problem solving skills, applying knowledge of number to new contexts and develop strategies for number problems.

Beyond number, children have been focusing on measurement and using different equipment to measure in cm and metres. Children have been estimating using rulers and metre sticks before measuring objects to see how close their predictions were. For term 2 the focus will be 2D and 3D shape identifying real life examples, comparing the properties of 2D and 3D objects, and creating their own 3D shapes.

Health & Wellbeing

All children have now had the opportunity to be Pupil of the Day and will start to be chosen for the second time in term 2. Our Pupil of the Day has been receiving lots of compliments.  We will continue to explore emotions, and how we recognise these emotions within ourselves and in others and learning how to control them.

In P.E, our sessions will continue to take place on a Tuesday and a Thursday and our focus in term 2 this time will be, Social Dance, Football and Gymnastics. In term 1 children were participating in hockey and badminton.  Children will use their transferrable skills when playing in a team.

Our focus during R.E sessions has been Mary in October, moving to Saints and Remembrance, the routines of the church and the celebration of Mass.  We will also spend some time reading and discussing bible stories relating to friendship and love, whilst considering how each of us are unique and have our own God given talents.

Topic

The children will be participating in activities in different areas of the curriculum including social studies and will be focusing on climates and weather around the world.  Children have been exploring and developing an understanding of living things as this was a focus on our topic Vertebrates topic where  children have been sorting and categorising living things into vertebrates and non-vertebrates.

We hope this is the start of a very fun filled successful term and that the children enjoy learning across the curriculum.

Take care,

Miss Grimley