All posts by Mr Billen

Songs For Time Travellers

May 7, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

On Thursday 7th May, pupils from Abernyte Primary travelled to Perth Concert Hall to take part in the annual Show-In-A-Day event. Following on from last year’s successful performance of “The Sound of Music”, schools were invited this year to take part in a performance which charted the development of Western music throughout history.

Pupils and staff dressed the part, wearing costumes based on outfits from the 1960’s.

After a day of song rehearsals, a short performance was put on, which featured the songs:

“Timelord”

“The Complete History Of Western Music”

“Chattanooga Choo Choo”

“Rock Around The Clock”

“At The Hop”

“Let It Be”

“Wake Me Up”

Layla (P5) reports:

“Hundreds of primary school children spent the day at Perth concert hall for Day of Song. The theme this year was Songs for Time Travellers. Each school had chosen a different decade and both children and teachers were dressed in the fashion of those times. They filled the auditorium and two children from each school were chosen to go on stage to stand on stage together. Everyone sang the various songs from the past which they have been busy learning over the past few weeks which included among many Let it be by the Beatles. An adult orchestra accompanied them and a great time was had by all.”

Enterprise

Take Your Child To Work Day

April 23, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

Cara (P6) reports:

“At take your child to work day, your child gets to go to your work and see what it is like. When I went to my Mum’s work I was able to be in a work environment. It sounded quiet and everyone was kind to each other. It’s quite amazing how you imagine the place but when you get there it is different from what you imagined. When I was there, I could feel pressure in the atmosphere from the employees. It’s a great experience at how a job works when you go there. Children should go when they are old enough. Children can go when they are in P6 to S3.”

Council Info

Early Learning and Childcare Parental Consultation

April 2, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

The summary of results of the Early Learning and Childcare Parental Consultation that took place 28 November – 19 December 2014 is now available. Please see the link and the attachment.

The aim of this consultation was to understand families’ different needs and preferences for Early Learning and Childcare, to help shape the way that this is delivered across Perth and Kinross Council.

http://www.pkc.gov.uk/article/10190/Early-Learning-and-Childcare-Parental-Consultation

Council Info

Strengthening Families

April 2, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

Strengthening Families

What’s it all about?

The Strengthening Families Programme is a 7 week programme that helps families with young people aged 10 years old to prepare for their teenage years.

Becoming a teenager can be a challenging time for young people and parents alike.

Strengthening Families is proven to support both parents and young people through this time of change.

What happens?

Each session is held in the evening and lasts for 2½ hours.

During the sessions you learn by watching DVDs, taking part in activities and discussions. In the first hour parents and young people meet in their own groups to take part in activities with group facilitators. In the second hour everyone comes together again to be involved in family activity. An evening meal is provided for all the family and crèche and transport is also available.

What are the benefits?

Parents and carers

With each session your confidence will grow as you…

Learn about different ways to support your young person; and
Learn how to set boundaries as they get older.

Most of all, Strengthening Families helps your whole family to experience your young person’s teenage years more positively.

Young people

With each session your confidence will grow as you..

Develop skills for handling peer pressure, which helps to avoid problems such as drugs and alcohol;
Develop skills in learning how to better appreciate the feelings of others; and
Learn how to set your own goals for the future, helping you to achieve greater success when you move onto secondary school.

Your whole family

By the end of the 7 week programme you will have a much better understanding of each other’s strengths and qualities, helping you to become much stronger as a family and better able to support each another.

How can I access this programme?

The programme will be running in:

Fairfield Community Centre, Royal School of Dunkeld from Monday April 27^th
Glenearn Campus, and Strathearn Campus from Tuesday April 28^th
Community Connect Rattray from Wednesday 29 April
Loch Leven Campus from Thursday 30^th April

If you would like to join in the programme just complete an application form which you can get from school or contact:

Evidence2 Success 01738 477836, e mail evidence2success@pkc.gov.uk or visit the website www.pkc.gov.uk/strengtheningfamilies

Science

Joint School Forensic Science

March 26, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

On Thursday 26th March, the pupils from Abernyte were joined by the pupils from Blairingone, Logiealmond and Glenlyon to form the B.L.A.G. Joint Forensic Science Task Force.

Pupils worked together in collaborative groups to solve the mystery of the contaminated powdered milk from the teacher’s break-time coffee. Investigating different white solids to test how they reacted when mixed with either water or vinegar, pupils had to use careful observation, noting down their findings in an organised table. These results were then cross matched with the reactions of the sample from the crime scene to identify the mystery white solid that had been used.

Pupils also learned more about separating mixtures, using chromatography to identify which black pen had been used to write the note found at the crime scene.

Pupils of all schools enjoyed working together to solve the mystery!

Glenlyon wrote, “Thank you so much for inviting us to your school. We loved the experiments and it was good to work with all the other children”.

Dance

Day of Dance

February 17, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

On Tuesday 17th February, the pupils from Abernyte Primary joined up with the pupils from Collace Primary to move and groove to “Radioactive” by Imagine Dragons at the annual Day of Dance. Pupils from both schools had been practicing at individual schools and at joint rehearsals for weeks prior to the performance and had put a lot of effort into learning the dance choreographed by Mrs Holt. Both schools had recently learned about Bridge Technology, so the glow-in-the-dark dancers incorporated performances as the three different bridge structures that span the Forth into their act .

Festivals

Pancake Day

February 17, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

On Tuesday 17th February, the pupils at Abernyte celebrated Shrove Tuesday with a traditional pancake bake. Pupils worked co-operatively, learning hygiene, food safety and cooking skills, while also brushing up on their measuring of volume and mass. After all the cooking, when they got to taste their hard work, everyone agreed that it was flippin’ great!

Healthy Schools

Cross Country

February 16, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

On Monday 16th February, four of the P5-7 pupils took part in the Cross Country Championships at Perth Racecourse. After weeks of training our competitors ran alongside approximately 120 runners around the cross country circuit which is a distance of approximately 1 mile. Congratulations to all of our runners as every one of them managed to run the full course!

ICT

Photography Workshop

January 29, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

On Thursday 29th January, the pupils from Abernyte Primary were joined by Blairingone Primary and Logiealmond Primary for a day of Science and Photography.

Pupils got to know one another better before working collaboratively to test different foods for the presence of protein. This involved crushing up food with a pestle and mortar with water to create a solution, then filtering this solution using filter paper and a funnel, before testing these different food solutions for proteins using Albustix.

In the afternoon, renowned nature photographer Kenny Bean held a workshop where pupils learned to use the macro function on a digital camera, and some inspiring photography tips, before being set loose at Barry’s Wood to create their own photographs. The children then had a chance to view and manipulate these pictures back in school.

Some of the pictures were so good that some may go on display as part of a Photojournalism exhibition showing at Strathearn Artspace in Crieff during March 2015. A digital exhibition of a larger selection of images is also planned to be shown in Pullar House, Perth, and hopefully also at Perth Museum & Art Gallery.

Blairingone had this to say about the day:

“We had a fantastic day yesterday at Abernyte when we took part in science and photography workshops. Our pupils really enjoyed all the activities and they even made some new friends! They especially loved going out into the woods and photographing nature. Thank you so much for making us all feel welcome. Your hospitality was amazing.

Thanks again

All from Blairingone”

Having now received the CD of photos taken by the pupils, here are a couple of the best ones:

Healthy Schools

Cooking Bus visit

January 22, 2015 Mr Billen Leave a comment

On Thursday 22nd January, P1-6 went on a trip to visit the Cooking Bus at Balbeggie. As part of the Focus on Food campaign which is promoting healthy eating across Scotland, pupils learned about The Eatwell Plate, the main food groups, why our bodies need different foods and where our food comes from before working together to create two of their own culinary masterpieces.

Working in small groups, pupils prepared Chilli Bean and Cheese Potatoes, followed by a Tomato and Chive Salad, while learning about food hygiene and brushing up on their cooking and cutting skills.

Strengthening Families

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