At the start of primary 7, each one us were matched with a primary 1 buddy. The whole process starts at the end of primary 6 when we visit them in their nurseries and play with them so they get used to us and we become a familiar face before they begin school.

When I went up to see my buddy Lawrie, I introduced myself and asked him his name. We played for a bit and his friend from nursery joined in too! We played in the water pool with the dinosaurs, he really enjoyed it. As I left I told him I would see him again on his induction days and on his first day at school.

I was really excited to start Primary 7, I couldn’t wait to see my buddy again. My whole primary 7 class went down to help get the Primary ones ready for playtime and then we went outside to the playground to play with them and help them make new friends.

One of the main reasons we do this is because it builds our communication skills, makes us put someone else before ourselves as we have to think about their needs and how we might support them in their first few weeks of school. We had to put ourselves in their shoes and remember how big a change it was coming to school for the first time and thinking that eveything was so new – the building, the classroom, the noise of the playground, all the different faces and of course getting used to a new teacher. When we are older, we might have children of our own and this is good experience of having some responsibility where we get to see what it is like to be a role model and set a good example.

We are learning to use these skills because its important in life to look after others and think of others before yourself.  We had the opportunity to build so many skills and this help us in the future because we will know how to relate to others who might not have the same interests as us and also the younger ones have different needs. I really enjoyed visiting the P1 classroom each Friday and helping them with their learning. We were able to encourage them as they worked on their tasks such as writing or artwork. We also helped to teach them how to look after themselves and were a friendly face to go to if they had a worry.

I learned most of these skills by looking after my wee sister when she was younger and it encouraged me as I was growing up so I was ready for primary 6 when I became a playground pal too.

l have found being a buddy pretty successful as I am a good role model. I remember not being very focused when I was younger and sometimes I would have a carry on but now I have learnt my mistake and matured a bit and I hope the P1’s follow our examples.