Pupils in Primary 6 and 7 are invited to St John’s Parish Church on Saturday 20th December at 4.30pm or on Sunday 21st December 21st December at 10am, 12pm or 6.30pm. Pupils should bring the crib that they made in school and Father Paul will gift them a baby Jesus and bless it. A coffee morning will take place after 10am Mass, in the hall.
All Welcome.
Finally, it only remain for me, on behalf of the entire staff of the school, to wish you and your families a peaceful, Christmas and a happy, healthy New Year.
Gerard McLaughlin
Head Teacher
FREE SCHOOL MEALS FOR PRIMARY 1 TO 3 PUPILS: COMMENCING MONDAY 5TH JANUARY 2015
I write to inform you of the start of the free school meals provision for all Primary 1 to 3 pupils. This initiative was announced following a decision by the Scottish Government earlier this year and will start in East Renfrewshire Council on Monday 5th January 2015.
As of Monday 5th January 2015 all Primary 1 to 3 pupils will be provided with a healthy lunch that meets the requirements of the Health Promotion and Nutrition (Scotland) Act 2007 and I would ask you to encourage your child to take up their entitlement and try the various food available.
Facilities Management catering staff have been working with Head Teachers and school staff to ensure that all children have a positive and enjoyable experience at lunch time. We have developed a menu to allow the pupils to try new and varied foods and we intend to consult with parents towards the Spring break to seek views on the menu. I have attached a copy of the menu for your information and to allow you to discuss this with your child, this information can also be accessed through the following website www.eastrenfrewshire.scottishschoolmeals.co.uk
I wish you and your families’ best wishes for the festive season and look forward to seeing your child for their free lunch in the New Year.
Yours sincerely
Fiona Morrison
Head of Education Services (School Performance & Provision)
Santa came to visit the children of the Coral Reef on their trip to The Avenue Shopping Centre at Newton Mearns. The children had a fantastic time tucking into hot chocolate and cakes, supplied by Costa Coffee, who also gave them a special room all to themselves. This enabled them to enjoy their visit from Santa as a group. It was all organised by the Centre Manager Michelle, who went out of her way to make it a fantastic experience.
A big thank you to Michelle and Alan, the manger of Costa for making this all happen.
St Mark’s collected and donated food and presents to Barrhead Foodbank and Yorkhill Hospital.
The Pupil Council are holding a fundraising event on Friday 12th December. Pupils can wear a Christmas jumper to school but instead of bringing money pupils should bring an item for the local food bank. The food bank needs the following items:
Many thanks for your continued support.
The aim of active schools is to offer all children and young people the opportunities and motivation to adopt active, healthy lifestyles, now and in adulthood. We aim to do this by increasing sporting opportunities before, during and after school. To assist us we have a group of volunteers, coaches, leaders and teachers who help deliver these activities and we would like you to be part of the programme.
From active travel initiatives to helping school clubs we have roles big and small to suit your requirements. Even if you don’t have coaching certificates or qualifications we can help you get them!
If you are interested in volunteering with us, please complete the form your child has brought home from school.
Barry Cook
Senior Active School Coordinator
In the lead up to Christmas, our school choir brought festive cheer to the staff and customers of Tesco in Barrhead! They sang a fabulous medley of Christmas hymns and songs and raised a whopping £109.42 for Yorkhill Children’s Charity. Well done and thank you to all of the children in the choir for their fantastic effort!
Primary 7 attended Lockerbie Manor residential outdoor centre last week. They were joined by Primary 7’s from St John’s and St Thomas’ and lots of new friends were made. The children enjoyed a week of abseiling, obstacle courses, zip wires, archery and so much more .
Follow the link for the minutes of November’s Parent Council Meeting.
To celebrate Book Week, 2014 St Mark’s had two very special visitors.
Nick Sharratt
Nick Sharratt, illustrator and author came to see Primary 1-3. Nick read from his books and helped the children to write and illustrate a story. It was great fun!
Stuart Reid
Stuart Reid came in to see Primary 4-7. He spoke to them about his work and had everyone in stitches. Primary 5 were lucky enough to have a personal visit from Stuart to find out more about creative writing.
St mark’s recently received a cheque for £500 from Tesco. We plan to use it on PE equipment for the school. Thanks, Tesco!
Last week we had a very successful Financial Education Week in St. Mark’s. The aim of Financial Education Week is to develop financial understanding in ensuring that young people leaving school have the skills required to deal confidently with everyday financial issues.
Children throughout the school worked on a variety of activities. Brandon, Sophie, Bethany, Noah, Mehraan, Charis, Anya and Joseph from the upper school, delivered lessons on the history of money, and showed the children throughout the school, how to make their own banknotes.
Pupils were also delighted to have the chance to touch £500 worth of shredded banknotes.
As in previous years, parents and carers generously gave up their time to talk to pupils. We would particularly like to thank, Mr Skinner, Mrs Connolly and Mrs Amereh , who came in to talk about the importance of budgeting in their jobs.
Pupils in Primary 3 had a visit from staff and pupils from St. Luke’s, who delivered a lesson on money and who, much to the delight of the children, came bearing gifts of pencils and notebooks for each child.
The St John’s Parish Children’s Liturgy group will present their Nativity performance at 6.30 pm on Christmas Eve before the vigil mass . Rehearsals will begin on Sunday, 23rd November. Children of Primary school age who would like to participate should meet in front of the altar after 10 am mass each Sunday from now until Christmas. The practices will last approximately 20 minutes. We need plenty of sheep, shepherds and angels in addition to the main characters! Please encourage your child to join us as part of their faith journey.
A group of nine Danish educators visited St. Mark’s today as part of a visit to Scotland to learn more about the Scottish education system. They heard presentations from Mr McLaughlin, Miss Healey, Mrs Hallan, Mrs Rook and Mrs Law about teaching in learning in St. Mark’s and were very impressed with the variety of ways learners are supported in our school.
When walking around the school and playground, they commented on the warmth, friendliness and good manners of our pupils. What particularly caught their attention was that all of our children were smartly dressed in full school uniform, as children in Denmark do not wear uniforms.
They are returning to Denmark with lasting memories of a school, we can all be proud of.
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