As always a busy school week, a fabulous week.

This week we welcomed all of our new Primary One pupils for this coming session. It was wonderful have such a great number of our future pupils and their parents join us for two separate sessions. Incredibly the children very quickly settled into their classes – they really looked like they belonged already. Our Pre-Entrant programme offers a great opportunity for all of our new starts to come together and begin to form friendships which could potentially last a lifetime. It is also a super opportunity for us to begin to get to know our new parents and to further stengthen the relationship we have with those who already have children in our school.

In August of this year we aim to have 3 primary one classes, for the purposes of pre-entrant programme Miss Phee, Miss McAvoy and Mrs McCoy acted as P1 teachers. I cannot comfirm this arrangement until I have final clarification of staffing from our Authority. (Hopefully soon)

Grateful thanks to Monsignor Tom Millar for O.L.G.A Cathedral Parish for his inspiring introduction to our second day. We are truly blessed with our clergy and the continued support they offer to our school community. Thanks also to Mrs Pauline Findlay, Mrs Ann Munro & Mrs Gillian McShane who came along representing our Parent Council and our fabulous Fundraisers. These parents are an excellent example of the incredible relationship we enjoy with our Parent Forum. I cannot speak highly enough of our Parent Council and our Fundraisers, they add a very important dimension to our school which takes us from good to great.

Perhaps the best off shoot of our Pre-Entrant Programme is the reaction of our current P1 pupils who suddenly go from being our babies to, and I quote: ‘ we’re nearly primary 2, we’re big now’ fabulous! They were so proud to give permission to Pre-Entrant pupils to utilise their classrooms. I think ‘chuffed to bits’ is probably the most accurate description.

Throughout the rest of the week our pupils enjoyed a variety of learning opportunities both in and out of class and indeed, in and out of school building. P7 pupils are now heavily involved with transition programmes from High School. From now until the ned of term we welcome a host of secondary school staff to our school to meet their new students and to have opportunity to meet with our P7 class teachers to ensure a seamless transition for our P7 pupils. Our current P7 pupils were the first set of pupils whom I enrolled way back in January of 2006. I took up post on return to school after Christmas break and enrolled our current P7s the following week. I remember it vividly  and it has been an incredibly enjoyable adventure watching them grow from P1 through to P7, I look forward to doing the same with our current Pre-Entrant children.

Meanwhile……In a relatively quiet nursery this week (as 30 of our nursery pupils are our Pre-Entrant pupils) here’s what’s been happening according to our nursery blogger, Mrs Margaret Mary Murphy:

It has been another very busy week in nursery. On Monday Mrs Shields found a huge abandoned dog called Raffles who had a message around his neck and a bandage on his paw. Apparently he had been running and had had a bad accident which resulted in his paw being injured. Mrs Shields brought him down to the nursery to see if the children could help him. The children had just being introduced to a story about Het the Vet which is a continuation of their rhyming theme.

When Raffles arrived he opened up a big discussion about how the children could help not only Raffles but other pets and animals. They discussed what sick animals need to make them better. A mindmap of all their ideas can be found in the cloakroom. The children decided to make a vets surgery in the home corner. The oven is now being used as an incubator for sick animals and the babies blankets are being used for the animals. Bananas the Heather group’s mascot whose stuffing had  started  to fall out ended up as one of the first patients along with Raffles to be ‘admitted’ for treatment.

The children fully engaged in their roles as vets and could be seen operating on some of the soft toys in the nursery. By Friday the surgery had been expanded into the garden providing a space for the animals to get some exercise in their recuperation. The shed has been transformed into an operating theatre and by the end of the session it had expanded into a pet shop selling animals and pet food. The children’s imagination has been fantastic. In the art area they have been drawing pictures of animals in great detail and telling stories about their pets in the writing area and talking about what words rhyme with their pets names. The children have been asked to bring photographs of their pets so that we can display them in the nursery.
We have received feedback already from one parent who said that their son had come home asking for rubber gloves and spent the night putting plasters on all his toys. Feedback is always gratefully appreciated.
In the garden the vegetable patch is now well under way with lettuce, cucumber and broad beans already planted. Our new greenhouse will be the home for the carrots for the next few weeks. Lets hope for a bumper crop!
As of Monday 20/5/13 there will be a  new parent’s rota on the door of the playroom. If you can help in anyway please put your name on the day of your choice. We are always looking for help in the snack area, story corner and throughout the nursery.

My sincere thanks to Mrs Murphy for this weekly update, I know I love to read all about the nursery and their fabulous, varied curriculum. Just makes me want to be there all the time.

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Many thanks

Mrs Shields