Category: Parents

Resources Available Through ERC Culture and Leisure

Over the last few weeks as part of our weekly article to you, we have promoted “Press Reader” which gives access to over 7000 top magazines and newspapers from around the World. But are you aware of all the other amazing online resources and activities for all ages that are available from East Renfrewshire Culture and Leisure? You can follow on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for popular activities including:
Stay Active at Home
A range of live and recorded fitness classes on Facebook every weekfrom Zumba and HIIT to Yoga and Body Balance.  There are online classes for Live Active and Vitality clients too.
Bookbug
Live and recorded Bookbug sessions from the libraries team on Facebook every week
Sports Challenges
For all ages from the Active Schools team on Twitter every Wednesday
Online Reading Group
Open to all on Facebook
Not a library member? Visit: www.ercultureandleisure.org/joiningthelibrary to join and access online resources straightaway.
 
Next week is Learn at Work Week and Mental Health Awareness Week so look out for information on other resources available next week.  If you can’t wait until then have a browse around – https://www.ercultureandleisure.org/eresources
 

P7 Transition

PRIMARY 7 ONLY
Dear Parent/ Carer,
Usually around this time of year we would be organising pupil visits for High School Transition Days which typically happen in June. This year, due to our uncertain position and inability to access school premises as usual, these need to be organised differently. Over the last six weeks,  I have already been in contact with local High Schools and we are in the midst of sharing transition information with colleagues at Woodfarm and elsewhere, and are agreeing what other transition arrangements may look like. There have been some discussions around use of, for example, video clips and/or short individual visits at a later date.
We are also aware that for some children they may not be going to our local cluster High School. Once this picture is confirmed by the authority with all of our families in the next few weeks, we will contact them directly with additional information when it becomes available to us.
Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns so I can try to help. As always, our Senior Leadership Team are available to contact via school mail at SchoolMail@giffnock.e-renfrew.sch.uk
Kind regards,
Kirsty Rawley
Depute Headteacher
Giffnock Primary School

Health and Wellbeing Information

We appreciate the amount of information that is currently being shared around Health and Wellbeing so we have set up an area specifically around present circumstances and health on our school website. The tab is called ‘Community and Wellbeing’. You can find this at:
In this tab we will share general Health and Wellbeing information for adults and families, with materials from East Renfrewshire Council and other sources. We hope you find these of interest and helpful at this time.
Should you have any questions or concerns please continue to keep in touch with us via school mail at:

Education Scotland Newsletter

Education Scotland have created a weekly newsletter, specifically for parents and carers, which will support learning at home. This first newsletter includes learning activities for Literacy and Numeracy, support on wellbeing and a focus on the theme of food. Follow the link below to see the first copy of the newsletter.
Each week the newsletter will contain hints and tips for you, the parents and carers, as well as ideas for learning activities which your children can complete on their own or that families can do together.  The activities do not require lots of materials and the tasks are designed to encourage the children’s creativity and independence. There will be a theme for each week which will cover different curricular areas. A creativity challenge for the week is also set. You can sign up to receive the newsletter directly each week.

Nursery Parent Survey

Nursery only

We hope that you, your children and your families are all well and coping as best as possible in these challenging times.
We continue to want to do the very best that we can for our children and we therefore want to hear your perspectives. To this end, would you please be kind enough to spend a few minutes completing the survey through the link below:
We would be grateful if you could do so by Monday 18th May, following which we will be collating the evaluations.

Railway Safety

Network Rail has launched a new awareness-raising campaign to warn against trespassing on the railway. There has been increasing levels of trespass on the railway during the current lockdown period. Over 70 trespass incidents have been recorded on Scotland’s Railway since March 20, when Scotland’s schools closed ahead of the full lockdown on March 23. Trespass is proving to be an issue across the country including locations in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Fife, Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, Renfrewshire, Perthshire, the Lothians and the Highlands. Incidents in just the last week include:

On May 2, two adults and a child were reported to be trespassing on the railway near Neilston and a male trespasser was on the line in Dunfermline.

On May 1, two young people were spotted trespassing near Dalgety Bay station and a male trespasser crossed the line near Dalmeny.

On April 30, a group of teens delayed trains after trespassing on the line near Coatdyke and three young people were spotted on the railway near Whifflet.

On April 28, three teens delayed trains near Hamilton West station and a male trespasser delayed services near Alexandra Parade in Glasgow.

Network Rail works closely with the British Transport Police to keep Scotland’s Railway secure and trespassers and vandals will be prosecuted. The public can also help to keep the railway safe by contacting Network Rail’s 24-hour helpline on 03457 114141 to report any locations where trespassers are gaining access to the tracks.

To find out more about the dangers of railway trespass, visit www.youvstrain.co.uk, the campaign led by Network Rail and the wider rail industry to address the issue of trespass on the railway.

www.networkrail.co.uk

Parental update

NURSERY – PRIMARY 7
Dear Parent/Carer
We would like to update you and share information on a few matters below:
May 7th Inservice and May 8th Holiday:
There will not be any remote learning facilitated on these days, including no new Google Classroom work being put up. The OLM and Glen Family Centre ‘Hub schools’ will remain staffed and open on these days, when we will continue to support key worker families’ children. This will be the same for the second May week-end, for Monday 25th and Tuesday 26th May.
Parental survey regarding Remote Learning:
Thank you for taking time to complete this. We have taken all responses up to last Friday 1st May and will be collating them over the next two days with the aim of looking for key themes to share and/ or act upon in the coming days.
School closure and next steps:
As you may be aware, there has been speculation in the media regarding likely timings for changes that may lie ahead. We continue to take our lead at school level from both authority and national guidance. We are also very mindful of not adding any further anxiety or uncertainty in these challenging times. Both at national and authority levels, there is ongoing consideration and scenario planning for what the weeks and months ahead may look like. At this time however, there is no further information that we have to share about any change to the current situation. With this in mind, we will continue to provide the most effective and successful learning and teaching formats that we can through the systems that we have put in place.
Resources:
We know that some of the simple resources for home learning might become harder for you to access at this time. For some of our families, this may or may not be more of an issue. With this in mind, we would like to offer you a time when you are able to come along to the OLM Primary School Hub and collect blank jotters, paper and pencils. This is of course entirely optional and we need to respect social distancing at this time. It must be a parent/ carer of the child collecting and not the child themselves. The resources will be set up to simply take without the need for any physical interaction and we would like to invite you at the following times:
  • Nursery to Primary 2: Monday 11th May, 12.30pm -2.30pm
  • Primary 3 to Primary 5: Tuesday 12th May, 12.30pm -2.30pm
  • Primary 6 to Primary 7: Wednesday 13th May, 12.30pm -2.30pm
The address for OLM Primary School is Robslee Road, Thornliebank, G46 7DD (opposite the entrance to Woodfarm High School) and the telephone number is 0141-570-7280. There is a large car park just to the front of the main entrance.
Communication and support:
We understand that this remains an extremely difficult time, with many new challenges being faced. As a school community, we want to support our families and one another in any way that we can. Your child’s class Google Classroom remains the central focus for all learning activities and contact with your class teacher. Our website pages on Remote Learning continue to provide a range of information and support:
Our school Twitter feeds can be accessed through the school website and also provide a range of valuable information for our families:
If you have any further questions or issues at this time on any matter, please do not hesitate to contact the school via the school email address in the first instance: schoolmail@giffnock.e-renfrew.sch.uk

ERC Keep Your Eyes Open for Child Abuse and Neglect

NURSERY – PRIMARY 7

Dear Parent / Carer

We have been asked by East Renfrewshire Council to share the information below with you:

Sadly home isn’t a safe or fun place for everyone.
During lockdown, our social work teams have experienced an increase in the number of children requiring to be removed from their family homes, and while this is hugely concerning, we’re also worried about the vulnerable children and young people in our communities that aren’t known to us.
With the closure of schools and nurseries children and young people are being seen less and this means that we are not able to identify those who are, or are at risk of, being harmed/neglected as we normally would.
To do this we need your help. Have your eyes and ears open.
If you are worried about a child that you know, please call us confidentially on 0141 577 8300.
Whether you’re a parent, family member, neighbour or member of the community, if something doesn’t feel right, call and report it.
There has also been a rise in domestic violence over the last six weeks. Please also look out for friends, neighbours or family who you think might be suffering at the hands of a partner – whether it be physically, emotionally, sexually or financially.
Locally, more than 1000 women and children contact Women’s Aid East Renfrewshire for support every year.
Women’s Aid East Renfrewshire can be contacted on 0141 404 0015 and the 24-hour national abuse helpline is 0800 027 1234.
Stay safe and thank you for keeping your eyes open.

NHS Thursday Night Clapping

Each Thursday evening at 8pm we show our appreciation for our NHS and key workers through a clap, which has become a very special weekly moment. The Music Education Partnership Group
(MEPG) is organising something extra special for Thursday 30th April. They are encouraging musicians all over Scotland to pick up their instruments and play “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”. MEPG have created backing tracks as well as parts for many instruments which you can find on their website as well as further information.

https://wemakemusicfornhs.weebly.com/

If you do not play a musical instrument but would like to take part you could make an instrument of your own to play on the evening or learn the song words to singalong. Let’s come together in a slightly different way this week to support our NHS and our key workers.

Kind regards,
The Giffnock Leadership Team

P7 video entry to French Competition

As part of their learning in French this school year, our P7 children have entered a national competition in creating their own French song and video. Our P7s managed to get this completed just before the lockdown came into place.
Whilst we realise this may be of special interest to our P7 families, we felt that it might be something that others would like to see too, in particular given the lack of ‘normal’ school life and of seeing groups of our children together in their learning.