St Bartholomews

As mentioned in my blog last week, we received a visit from Angela Glover from the North Lanarkshire Literacy Base on Thursday. I was very touched to discover the following message from Mrs Glover when I logged onto the blog over the weekend:

Dear Mr Young,

Angela Glover

Thank you for your kind words; they mean a lot to both pupils and staff.

I’ll be spending much of today in Primary 5 and I’m very much looking forward to joining in with the children’s learning and having the opportunity to chat to the boys and girls about their views on being a St Bartholomew’s pupil.

The Book Fayre arrived on Friday and will be open throughout this week. As usual, there will be the opportunity to purchase books at Parents Evening on Thursday.

I had a great day in Primary 2 yesterday and was very impressed indeed with the children’s enthusiasm and hard work. Of course, we made sure we grabbed a selfie before I headed back to my office!
There are two exciting school trips today:

Primary 5 are off to Tullie House Museum in the historic city of Carlisle to learn more about the Romans. The museum has a life-size model of Hadrian’s Wall, along with some genuine Roman artefacts. Have a super day south of the border, boys and girls.

Meanwhile, Primary 4 are travelling closer to home. They’re off to Scotland Street School in Glasgow to find out more about life in Victorian Britain. The highlight of the day is sure to be the chance to dress up and experience what it was like to be a pupil in a Victorian school. Scary stuff!

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What an absolute treat it was to spend Tuesday with Primary 1! I thoroughly enjoyed joining in with the children’s learning and it was fantastic to see such an enthusiastic and hard-working bunch of boys and girls. They really impressed me with their reading, writing, maths and computer skills and I even got a pancake delivered to my office at the end of the day! Many thanks to Mrs Carlin and P1 for making me feel so welcome.

I’m popping along the corridor today to spend some time with Primary 2. Once again, I’ll be joining in with the children’s literacy and numeracy lessons and chatting to the boys and girls about their learning.

Please remember that Parents Evening is a week today, Thursday 9th March. This is slightly earlier than usual to accommodate our school show, ‘A Night on Broadway’, which takes place on Thursday 30th March, just before the Easter break.

A very warm welcome this morning to Angela Glover from the North Lanarkshire Literacy Base. Mrs Glover has heard about the various literacy initiatives we’ve been developing in St Bart’s this year and has decided to come for a wee nosey. We hope you enjoy your visit!

Finally, some words from Pope Francis as we begin our Lenten journey:
‘When the journey is uncertain and you fall, God, rich in mercy, will extend his hand to pick you up.’

As it is Ash Wednesday today, the whole school will be attending mass  at 10am in St Bartholomew’s church. We will be walking to church with the assistance of parent helpers – a big thank you to our volunteers. We would be stuck without you!

Ash Wednesday is considered a day to cleanse the soul before Lent begins. Ashes are used to mark a cross on the foreheads of parishoners to symbolise repentance for sin. Palm crosses from the last Palm Sunday are burned and the ash is used to mark parishioners. This is a period of reflection and a time for fasting from food and festivities.

It symbolises the days which lead up to Jesus’ crucifixion and subsequent resurrection, when Christ spent 40 days and nights alone in the Judean Desert being tempted by Satan. Lent is traditionally marked with fasting, abstinence and prayer. Most people tend to give up something until Lent ends to “purify” their bodies. For children it could be something such as chocolate, sweets, television, tablets, laptops or certain toys, others use the time to volunteer at a charity or donate money to a good cause. Some people also think about this time in terms of carrying out ‘good deeds’ instead of giving something up… I know that in the past, children have told me that they help around the house, in the garden and consider vulnerable neighbours.

On annother note…A reminder to parents that the first session of Box Fitness after school club starts today. All children who handed in application forms are included in the club and in fact, limited spaces are still available. Please ask at the office if you require a form and Mrs Claire will be more than happy to help!

Mrs Bolland 🙂

Happy Shrove Tuesday!

Shrove Tuesday is the day that precedes Ash Wednesday and we will be joining St Bartholomew’s parish community at church tomorrow for 10 am mass. As it is determined by Easter, for which the actual date changes on an annual basis. It always falls 47 days before Easter so the date moves but always falls between February 3 and March 9.This year Pancake Day takes place on Tuesday 28th February. I know that there will be lots of pancake making going on in the Nursery today and I will certainly make a point of popping down there to join the fun… I hope that you all enjoy some delicious treats at home later on.

Mr Young will be in today and spending a very large part of his day in Primary 1, both experiencing and joining in with the wonderful activities and learning that take place there. I know that he is very much looking forward to it.

As always, our running after school club is on today – please remember kits etc. Thank you again to Mrs McLean for organising this and I know that the boys and girls look forward to this brilliant club every Tuesday. Fingers crossed for dry weather so that our runners can experience the wonderful fresh air of Coatbridge!

Mrs Bolland 🙂

Well done to Primary 2 for a super assembly on Friday. Your presentation on friendship brought sunshine into the hall and left us all smiling from ear to ear!

Some parents/carers may have heard on the news a couple of weeks back about the new Pupil Equity Fund from the Scottish Government. St Bartholomew’s has been allocated a substantial amount of money for the 2016/17 financial year and I’m attending an event today, along with 300 other Head Teachers, to hear more about the equity fund and receive guidance on how the money can best be used. Watch this space!

Finally, tonight’s Parent Council has been cancelled; the next meeting will be at the end of March. Mrs Bolland, however, will be arranging a consultation with parents and carers around our new three-year plan. Please take the opportunity to give us your feedback on our aspirations for the next three years.

Primary 1 – Kaitlyn

Priamry 2/3 – Lee

Primary 3- Junior

Primary 4 – Kelsey

Primary 5 – Summer

Primary 6 – Shakira

Primary 6/7 – Lucy

Cool Claa Cup; Primary 3

Primary 2 are all set to welcome their family and friends to their class assembly this afternoon. Their presentation is all about friendship (something P2 are great at!) and the boys and girls are really excited about sharing their learning with their guests through words and music. As usual, the assembly begins at 2.00pm, followed by refreshments and a visit to the children’s classroom.

I had a great day in Primary 6 yesterday and was sooooooo impressed with the children’s discursive writing (William Wallace: villain or hero?) and the huge enthusiasm and skill they showed during maths. The thing I particularly liked was that the children were not afraid to make mistakes in their maths, but saw them as learning opportunities. The five members of the focus group who spoke to me at the end of the day said how much they enjoyed their learning in P6 and how proud they are of the progress they have made this year… and, of course, we managed a selfie!

I thoroughly enjoyed spending the day in P6/7 on Monday. Many thanks to the boys and girls and Miss Keirnan for making me feel so welcome. I rounded off the day by speaking to a ‘focus group’ and got some great feedback from the children, as well as a great selfie!
Today, I’ll be popping next door to join in with Primary 6’s learning. I’m very much looking forward to spending time with the children and joining in with their various learning activities throughout the day (and I’m sure we’ll find time for another selfie before 3 o’clock!).

Finally, a huge thank you to the two P7 pupils who so ably led our Prayer Service yesterday morning. Your reverence and clear voices helped everyone there to be still and pray and we’re looking forward to you leading the prayers each Wednesday throughout this term.

I’ll be spending much of today in Primary 6/7, joining in with the children’s learning, taking the opportunity to look at their work and chatting to them about their thoughts and feelings on being a pupil in St Bartholomew’s Primary. What a great way to start the week!

It’s the ime of year again when we formally seek feedback from parents and carers on how St Bartholomew’s is doing. A questionnaire will be sent out to all families next week and I would very much appreciate you taking the time to complete it: your views and suggestions are very important to us as we endeavour to make St Bartholomew’s the best school it can possibly be.

Primary 3 will be spending time in the new STEM Zone throughout this week. The zone was a major hit with P1, P2 and P1/2 and I’m sure the boys and girls in P3 will be equally enthusiastic and engaged as they get the opportunity to delve into all the exciting activities and challenges on offer. Keep an eye on Twitter to see the children in action!