Good afternoon, we have enjoyed another busy week in school and in nursery.

Our week began, as always, with our Monday morning assembly and our Missio collection. Our children are so generous with their collections it is a wonderful aspect of our assembly as our P7 passkeepers collect the money, Mrs Campbell plays some reflective music and our whole school sit in silence offering this moment to God. It is a truly spiritual experience and a lovely way to begin our week.

Tuesday of this week we welcomed a team of school nurses who administered the flu vaccination to all children whose parents had returned the form. All passed off without incident, thanks to Mrs Duffy for organising this in such a professional manner. Our school nurses were delighted with the hospitality offered to them and all commented on the manners (and bravery) of our children.

Our four Primary Seven pupils who are transferring to Taylor High School next session began their transition programme this Wednesday, they all behaved impeccably and enjoyed their first visit to their High School. This programme will continue for eight weeks. Wednesday also saw our joint garden gang get together and add to the beauty of the outside of our building. My thanks to Mrs Collins for her hard work and dedication to this group.

Our week ended on a fabulous note as Primary Seven got everyone In The Mood to dance, sing and reminisce of times gone by. World War II was the theme of this magical extravaganza and we were all transported to a time when food was rationed, children were evacuated and camaraderie was at an all time high. Primary Seven were brilliant, their dancing skills, singing and acting talents were being displayed in abundance. A HUGE thanks to P7 pupils to Mrs Loose, Miss Mullen, Miss Green, Mrs Campbell, Mrs McCoy and our classroom assistants who all worked so hard to make the assembly such a great success.

 On a sad note, could I ask you to remember Mrs Susan Murphy (P5/6) and her family in your prayers. Mrs Murphy’s dad died this week. As a school community we extend our heartfelt sympathy and we will offer our Monday morning Rosary for Mrs Murphy and her family.

On a practical note, Mrs Campbell has taken over class teacher duties in P5/6 for the time being.

REMEMBER: Hallowe’en Parade and apple dookin’ will take place on Thursday afternoon. We look forward to welcoming our pupils and staff in their dressed up finery.

 Meanwhile…………..our nursery explorers have been very, very busy.  Here’s our intrepid reporter (Mrs Murphy) and her column.

• The Autumn walk before the October week was a huge success and a big thank you goes to all parents/carers who joined us, their help ensured that each child got the opportunity to go. The rangers from the Greenlink led the walk and the children discovered that deer live in the forest next to the school. The wardens showed them where the deer sleep at night and pointed out fox paths leading to foxes lairs. They planted seeds and berries and made collages with all different coloured shaped leaves and clay gargoyles that they stuck to the trees to make a scary trail.  The eco committee children from the school also joined us on the day.  A big thank you goes to Susan and her staff from the Greenlink for their continued support and we hope to enjoy more time with them in the near future. This week the children have been recalling the walk in their floorbooks and in the writing area in more detail.
• Outside the children are still learning about nocturnal animals. They worked as a team to build a dark den for their furry nocturnal friends to visit. They linked different sized poles together to make a frame for the tarpaulin to go over and secured it with some tent pegs. They helped to make it even darker by putting some black bin bags over the fencing. They then put pictures of nocturnal animals in the den and on other parts of the fence. They also played games where they pretended to be nocturnal animals.
• Over in the maths/science area the children have been playing a game where they have to place pictures of animals on the right board one board symbolises daytime and the other nightime. Again linking in with our current theme.
• In the art area they have been making fabulous pictures using Autumn colours and rolling conkers in the paint to make abstract patterns. These turned out very colourful and look fabulous.
• Autumn fruit tasting continued in the snack area.
• On Wednesday the children got a chance to explore our new indoor climbing frame. They were all very excited about our new piece of equipment.
• On Thursday the children got another surprise as Little Bill (our baby owl) was joined by the rest of his owl family. The children were so excited to see all the owl family cuddling together in the nest on the tree in the middle of the playroom. Bill’s mum and his siblings Sarah and Percy had swooped into the nursery overnight and were reunited with Bill.  Who knows what adventures they are going to get up to now!
• Also Thursday started our 6 week Mini Movers programme. This is a coach led programme which promotes healthy eating and exercise. The coaches provide great opportunities for the children to improve on their hand to eye coordination skills through fun games.

• The forthcoming week will see the start of the lending library. Each group has a specific day for this please check the board to see which day applies to your child.
• The Halloween party is on Thursday please note sessions on this day will run as normal.