Welcome back, everyone! I hope you all had an enjoyable and relaxing September weekend.

It looks like we’ve been blessed with perfect weather for our sponsored walk: not too cold, and plenty of sunshine to enjoy during our brisk walk around Drumpellier Park. Please can I ask, if at all possible, that all sponsor money is into the school office by this coming Friday. Thank you.

Many thanks to those parents, family and friends of our Primary 1 pupils who were able to attend last Thursday’s Prayer Service. I’m sure you’ll agree that the boys and girls led us beautifully in the prayers and songs. As mentioned in this month’s newsletter, the P1 prayer service was the first of this session’s class assemblies. The next one will be led by P4/3 and will take place on the first Friday afternoon after the October break. Invitations will be sent out from pupils to their chosen guests in due course.

Have a good day, everyone. If you see us on our walk this afternoon, please encourage us with a beep of the horn and a wave!

A HUGE WELL DONE to this very proud P7 pupil who won the super skateboard with his FANTASTIC pirate story! Make sure you give your brother a shot!

There’s going to be one very excited St Bart’s pupil by the end of today. We have a special Pirate theme in the dining hall at lunchtime and everyone who stays for a school dinner and submits a pirate-themed picture, poem or story will be entered into a prize draw for a fantastic skateboard! Good luck everyone!

We’ll be welcoming parents, family and friends of our Primary 1 pupils for a special prayer service this afternoon to mark their first term in primary school. The boys and girls will lead us in some of the prayers they have been learning and will also sing two songs to thank God for looking after them during their first few weeks in Primary 1. Father Doherty will give the children a blessing at the end of the prayer service. The service will begin at 2.15pm in the music room (please enter the school through the main entrance) and tea and biscuits will be served afterwards. I look forward to seeing you there.

Please remember that our sponsored walk will take place (weather permitting) on Tuesday afternoon. Many thanks to those parents and carers who have volunteered to help with supervision. Let’s hope for good weather, but please ensure that your child comes equipped with sensible shoes for walking and a warm, waterproof jacket. Thank you.

Finally, don’t forget that St Bartholomew’s is closed tomorrow and Monday for the September weekend. Have a relaxing break and see you on Tuesday!

It’s been a hectic few days here at St Bartholomew’s. When I finally got home last night and sat down with a much-needed cup of coffee, I also took a bit of quiet time to reflect on a well-known ‘poem’. It never fails to encourage me, so I thought I’d share it with you in today’s blog. Hope it gives you a boost too!

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.
Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.
Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,
at other times there was only one set of footprints.

This bothered me because I noticed
that during the low periods of my life,
when I was suffering from
anguish, sorrow or defeat,
I could see only one set of footprints.

So I said to the Lord,
“You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you,
you would walk with me always.
But I have noticed that during
the most difficult periods of my life
there have only been one
set of footprints in the sand.
Why, when I needed you most,
have you not been there for me?”

The Lord replied,
“My child, the times when you
see only one set of footprints,
is was then that I carried you.”

Primary 6 and 7 had a fantastic excursion to the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh yesterday. I’m looking forward to hearing about some of the things the boys and girls learned during this morning’s assembly.

A special blue bag has been sent home with your child for the annual ‘Bag2School’ collection of old clothes. Bags can be returned to the school at any point between now and 9am on Wednesday 2nd October. Log onto www.bag2school.com for further information.

A date has now been set for this year’s Confirmations. The Sacrament will be celebrated with Primary 6 and 7 pupils on THURSDAY 20th FEBRUARY 2014 in St Bartholomew’s Church.

Finally, please note a slight change to the date of our annual sponsored walk. This will now take place (weather permitting!) a week today, Tuesday 1st October. All funds raised will go directly to school trips and resources for pupils across the school.

Good morning, everyone. Hope you all had a great weekend.

Visitors to St Bartholomew’s never fail to comment on the fantastic wall displays that give the entrance area to our school such a welcoming feel. Every class, including the nursery, has a board in this area and this allows visitors to gain an instant snapshot of some of the super work going on across our school community. The current wall displays are particularly special as they contain a photograph of every single child in the school. It’s a real treat at the moment to have so many happy, enthusiastic faces smiling out at you when you walk through the school! Please take the opportunity to browse the wall displays next time you visit St Bart’s… your child’s photo will be in there somewhere!

Primary 6 and 7 are off to Edinburgh today to visit the Scottish Parliament. They’ve been learning about our Scottish political system in class this term, so today’s trip to the capital will be very worthwhile indeed. Have a great day, boys and girls. Best behaviour and manners, please!

Finally, a wee reminder that this is a four day week: St Bartholomew’s will be closed this Friday and next Monday for the September weekend.

Have a good day!

Our Personalisation & Choice modules started yesterday and it was a jam-packed afternoon of exciting activities from one end of the school to the other. We had jewellery making, clay work, music and drama. The delicious smell of scones was wafting from the Get Together Room while another group of children were keeping fit in the Music Room. Some pupils were busy in the ICT suite working on our school website, Mr Lynch was coaching our budding footballers in the hall and there was even a group of children in white coats investigating a shocking crime: who stole the Cool Class Cup?!! A fantastic time was had by all, both pupils and teachers, and a few of the boys and girls told me at the end of the day that they can’t wait until next week! Thank you to all the staff for taking the time to prepare such a variety of fun activities and well done to all the boys and girls for taking part so enthusiastically!

Despite the dreadful weather, P4/3 brought a ray of sunshine to the residents of Blair House yesterday morning. You can read about their visit on their class page (click on the ‘Learning’ pencil). Thank you for being such great ambassadors for St Bartholomew’s, boys and girls.

BUILDING UPDATE: The new blinds will be fitted in P1, the nursery and the ICT suite today. We still have temporary heaters in classrooms and working areas – I will continue to keep you informed about progress with the new heating system as information is released to me from the contractors. Finally, a particularly welcome piece of news on the refurbishment of the school building: contractors are making preparations to refurbish the boys’ and girls’ toilets outside Primary 4 and 5 in the very near future. These will be used as a ‘trial run’ before rolling out the refurbishment to the remaining toilets in the school. I’m sure you are as delighted as I am at the huge investment North Lanarkshire Council is making in our school building.

Have a good day, everyone, and a relaxing weekend once it arrives.

The boys and girls did us proud yesterday when we had our two special visitors in St Bartholomew’s. Andy Bathgate and Elizabeth McDowall from Scripture Union were extremely impressed with the children’s behaviour, manners, smart uniforms, Biblical knowledge and singing. Most importantly, they left without any doubt in their minds that faith is central to life in St Bartholomew’s. Andy and Elizabeth spent part of the morning observing RE in Primary 4/3. You can find out what they saw the children learning by visiting the P4/3 class page (click on the ‘Learning’ pencil).

I received an Email from Elizabeth McDowall not long after she left. She wrote:

‘Just wanted to say a big thank-you to you and all your staff for your hospitality towards Andy and myself during our visit today. You put in a lot of effort to give us a good overview of prayer and religious input in a Catholic school, and we now feel better informed.’

Well done, boys and girls! I’ve said it before, but I must be the proudest Head Teacher in the whole of North Lanarkshire! Also, a special thank you to Mrs O’Neill, Mr Hughes and Mrs McAuley for preparing the children for yesterday’s visit. It was very much appreciated.

Keep an eye on the Scottish Catholic Observer over the next few weeks for an article on Andy Bathgate and Elizabeth McDowall’s visit to St Bart’s.

We are delighted to welcome two special visitors to St Bartholomew’s Primary this morning. Andy Bathgate is the Chief Executive of Scripture Union, Scotland, a Christian organisation which works with young people in schools and through activity camps. He will be accompanied by Elizabeth McDowall, the co-ordinator of the organisation’s ‘Pray for Schools’ initiative, which aims to see every school in Scotland prayed for on a regular basis. Andy and Elizabeth will be observing the faith dimension of a Catholic school and will have lots to see during the course of the morning. They will join us for our weekly prayer service, meet with pupils and parishioners, observe an RE lesson in P4/3, speak to representatives from St Ambrose High School and join our whole school community for Mass. Welcome to St Bartholomew’s, Andy and Elizabeth! We hope you enjoy your time with us!

The weather has turned quite a bit colder and our new heating system is still a week away from being finished. As intimated in the text sent to parents and carers yesterday, temporary heaters have been brought in to heat the school and these have been located in all classrooms and other areas where pupils regularly work.

The school photographs ran like clockwork yesterday and proofs of the pictures will be sent to you in due course. John Wilson will return to St Bartholomew’s at the beginning of December to take a new whole-school photo for the foyer. He will also be available during Confirmations and First Holy Communions for those parents who wish photographs to be taken.

Finally, a transformation is underway in our nursery! Please be patient as we reorganise and revitalise the corridor area and playroom over the coming weeks. I’m sure both you and your child will love the changes!

The day of our school photographs has arrived! John Wilson will transform the music room into a temporary studio and it will be a non-stop day of top buttons being fastened, ties being straightened and cheesy smiles all round!

St Columba is sometimes given the credit for bringing Christianity to Scotland but it was actually St Ninian, whose feast we celebrate today. The traditional story is that Ninian was the son of a Christian tribal chief somewhere in what is now known as Dumfries and Galloway. He became a bishop and built a monastery in the town of Whithorn. It is said that St Ninian would often retreat to a cave on the beach near his monastery to be alone in prayer. I have fond memories of making the annual pilgrimage to St Ninian’s Cave as a child… Certainly a peaceful place, but definitely not the warmest!

Today is also the three year anniversary of the papal visit to Glasgow. Many of you, like me, will have very special memories of the Mass in Bellahouston Park, where 75,000 people gathered together in the September sunshine to celebrate the Eucharist in the company of Pope Benedict XVI. During his homily, the Holy Father addressed Catholic schools directly. It would be worthwhile for us to revisit these words and draw fresh inspiration and encouragement:

‘Scottish Catholic schools have taken up the challenge of providing an integral education to greater numbers of students, and this has helped young people not only along the path of spiritual and human growth, but also in entering the professions and public life. This is a sign of great hope for the Church, and I would encourage the Catholic teachers of Scotland never to lose sight of their calling to use their talents and experience in the service of faith.’

St Ninian, missionary to Scotland, pray for us.