Busy Busy!
My apologies for putting this newsletter out early but I feel there are so many new and exciting things going on in Royston Primary that I would like to let you know about. PLEASE READ! Some of our pupils say that parents/carers do not read our newsletters and this would be a real shame if it were the case. This is one of the main ways we communicate with you and let you know about school life.
Parent Evening
As you know parent meetings were changed to 1st March. This will indeed go ahead and appointments will be out imminently. Appointments will be around 10 minutes depending on class size however if you feel you need longer to discuss issues then please do let us know and we can make a separate appointment time.
Staffing
I think it is important to continually update you on our staffing situation. Firstly I would like to again congratulate Miss White on her new and exciting role of PT3 in school. At present we are looking for a PT1 and we will be interviewing very soon for this. We are currently on Glasgow City Council supply waiting list for a long term staff member which is role related.
Unfortunately Mrs Stirling will be absent from school for a few weeks and we continue to await supply staff for this. In order to support pupils in that class however, Miss Bonner will become class teacher there until an alternative is found.
As our role continues to grow (by 7% in this term alone) our need for supply staff will grow too but there is a lack of supply cover right across the council and so we make best use of all teachers we have, and find creative and innovative ways to work.
At present we also have a student working with P7/6. Mr Baker working in close partnership with Mrs Jamieson.
Attendance at school
Attendance at school is compulsory. I have been monitoring attendance recently which has slipped into unacceptable range and this is very disturbing. If your child has an attendance rating of less than 94% you will hear from me shortly. We will always be on hand to offer support and advice if there are difficulties in getting your child to school every day. This goes without saying, however by keeping your child from coming to school you are negatively impacting on their learning and development. Please do speak to us if you are finding difficulties with this.
World Book Day
World Book Day is on the 3rd March…we will be having our own event on the 4th! On the 4th March we will be having a day all about books and reading! We would be delighted if all pupils could dress up as their favourite book character and, weather permitting, we will have a parade outside at 9am. We will have a winner per school stage. Thereafter we will organise a reading marathon where by pupils will select books and be read to by staff and we hope some parents. If you would like to be involved in reading to pupils in short blocks we would be delighted to hear from you! If you could read in a language other than English we would like to hear from you too. If you are willing to volunteer please let me know by Monday 29th February so that we can organise group sizes.
In addition to this P2 and P4/3 will be heading off to Mitchell Library for some events in line with Book day. More information will come to specific classes.
School Holidays
School will close for Easter holidays on Thursday 24th March and re-open on 29th March. We will then close on 1st April at 2.30pm for spring break. We will re-open as normal on 18th April.
Easter and events
Our Easter assembly this year will be performed by primary 2 and primary 6/5. This will be held on 24th March at 9.45am. Parent council will be holding a wonderful coffee and bingo afternoon on the 24th also. This event will be in the afternoon. More information about this will come shortly.
Scottish School of Cooperation
At present we are working towards the above award. A school of cooperation is one where all voices are heard and acted upon where appropriate. It is a democratic place where all opinions are taken seriously and respected. Respect is the key! We aim to ensure we take on board all view points and continuously strive towards equality and equity. This award will simply confirm the work we do in Royston and bring added value for the pupils, families and wider community.
Credit Union
As you will be aware, we have offered out the opportunity for pupils to join the credit union. In essence, for pupils this is simply a way to save money and begin to understand the basics of money management. There will be no opportunity for loans and some of the other opportunities for adults, but it will allow pupils to see what they can do to ‘build up’ an amount of money. If you have completed your application form, your child will also have a letter giving more details today. If you have not done so and you would like your child to join, please do just pop into the school office where there are spare application forms. You can sign your child up at any time.
GymFest
Our pupils are working very hard in after school gymnastics club. They are preparing to showcase their skills and talents at the Emirates Arena in a city wide event on the 10th March. They will then have another opportunity to showcase at a community gymnastics and dance event to be held in Smithycroft Secondary on the 22nd March at 6pm. We really hope you will support your child to participate by bringing them along on that evening.
‘Fruit n Veg Barra’
We are delighted to be bringing a ‘barra’ right to our school. This will begin on the 22nd February and run every Monday thereafter. Fruit and vegetables will be on sale at significantly reduced prices and some our own P4 and P5 children will take on the ‘seller’ jobs. Please do come with a little money and a carrier bag every Monday from now on!
RagBag
We await arrival of our ‘ragbag’ collection box. This should be in school very soon and we will let you know when you can begin donating. Please do start gathering together any ‘soft’ items that you do not need anymore, for example clothing, bedding, towels etc. For every kilo donated by you, school will receive money, and this will go directly into school fund for your child to benefit from.
Cycle Shelter
As you will know, we have been successful in our bid to having a cycle and scooter shelter installed in the school playground. This is due to happen on the 15th and 16th March. I know there are a number of pupils who bring cycles and scooters to school already and we hope to raise numbers by giving them a secure place to store their possessions. We continually try to encourage our pupils to be more active and hope that this will give them the opportunity to ‘get active’ on their travels to school.
Smoking
I would like to ask you kindly not to smoke outside the school entrances or in the very close proximity. We continually try to encourage our pupils to make positive, healthy choices in life and having people smoking close to the school gates does not reinforce that message. It will indeed give our pupils a very mixed message, and I’m sure you will agree that we want all of our pupils to get positive clear and firm messages about the harms of smoking.
Car Park
You may have noticed that the car park gates have been closed at 3pm. This is in order to protect the safety and security of our pupils. The entrance way to the car park is very tight and ‘blind’ and I feel this is a very easy and quick way to stop the vehicle movement around the area that the pupils will be walking.
Library
All pupils will begin fortnightly visits to the library. This will be purely for a short block of reading for enjoyment, which is a part of our curriculum in literacy. Our hope is that by allowing pupils the opportunity to explore a range of books, they will find a genre that they will particularly enjoy, this enhancing their reading skill. Can I please ask that if your child has books at home belonging to the library that they are returned this week so that they can be taken back.
Gym Kit
I am continually surprised at the number of pupils not bringing gym kit to school for gym days. I have specified quite clearly all classes gym days and any changes to this have been communicated. In some classes there can be around 6-8 pupils with no gym kit on a regular basis. We completely understand that on the odd occasion this may slip yours and your child’s mind but this should not happen on a regular basis. It is a requirement that we facilitate at least 2 hours of PE each week and we are unable to do this if your child is not dressed safely and appropriately. If there are any issues with children not taking part in PE please do speak to me or the class teacher.
Annual Clean Up in Royston
Pupils in P3-P7 will be involved in this year’s annual clean up event in connection with SpireView and Copperworks. This will take place in the afternoon of March the 1st. Pupils will be protectively clothed but please do ensure your child has a warm jacket and comfortable waterproof footwear.
Athletics Festival
Some of our primary 7 pupils will be attending an athletics event at the Emirates Arena on the 1st March. Pupils will be selected by our lunch time athletics coach from pupils who have committed to attending club every week.
Outdoor Learning
We are almost set to resume our full programme of outdoor learning again, in collaboration with SpireView and Copperworks. All pupils will have weekly lessons outside with the significant aspects of learning being about teamwork, problem solving, collaboration and cooperation. Please ensure your child is clothed sensibly to be able to learn inside and out.
PEEK Project
Very soon our pupils will have some outdoor sessions with PEEK project (Possibilities for Each and Every Kid) They are aiming to set up ‘play’ activities in the local community and want to give the pupils some taster sessions during playtime and lunchtime. This will begin on 10th March.
Youth Forum
In partnership with SpireView and Copperworks we have elected a group of pupils from Royston Primary to share their views on their local community. 8 pupils have been identified; if your child was one of them they would have brought home an information sheet regarding this about a week ago.
The forum has had their first meeting and they had lots to share! It was really interesting and informative and allowed the pupils to see that their voice is important and would be acted upon where possible.
We hope the group will meet once per month in the boardroom at SpireView/Copperworks.
GEEK WEEK
Week beginning the 7th March pupils will be exploring all things connected to ICT. Class teachers will be looking to incorporate this into regular lessons, ensuring a clear focus throughout the week. If you have any skills/talents that you could offer, and a little time to come into school, please do get in touch!
Children’s Rights Week
Week beginning 14th March all pupils will focus on Children’s Rights alongside all other classwork. This is a key aspect of learning in school and it is important for pupils to have a deep understanding of how this impacts on them. Classes will focus on appropriate rights and learn about how these affect their lives, in comparison to children across the world who do not have rights. Please do speak with your child about their learning during this week.
Book Fair
This year we will be having a scholastic book fair. This will run from 16th – 23rd March. During that week all pupils will get a chance to look at the books and you will receive a little slip if your child identifies a book that he or she would like. There will also be opportunities for you to come into school and browse. We hope you will see the value in this in trying to promote an enjoyment of reading and comprehension. A percentage of all money raised in the fair will come back into school fund to support pupils with resources, outings and visiting experts.
Trip to Edinburgh
On the 16th March P7/6 will be setting off on an adventure to Edinburgh, our capital city. They have a very full day and will arrive back late afternoon. Pupils will be travelling by train, visiting Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh Castle and other key locations around the city. Pupils will need to have a packed lunch and any medication required with them, and should be dressed in school uniform. P7/6 parents/carers will receive more information about this nearer the time.
Tennis Festival
P4/3 will be attending Gorbals Leisure Centre on the 16th March to participate in a tennis festival. P4/3 pupils have been learning the key skills during their PE sessions in school and will demonstrate these skills further at the festival. This outing is planned for the afternoon and so pupils will have an early lunch prior to leaving.
My apologies for the lengthy newsletter this time! All I can say is we like to keep busy! Please note: our newsletter is also placed on the school website if you happen to misplace it.
I aim to communicate as much information as I can in what I believe to be the best way. If you have any thoughts on how this could be improved I would be glad to hear about them.
Jane McShane
Head Teacher
