It was great to see so many parents in school last Friday. The children loved sharing their learning and showing them around the classroom and the school. I think everyone got dragged along the ‘Kindness Trail’ which the children have loved this term. The art work throughout the school is amazing and the children are very proud of their pieces.
Danny brought his two puppies in to school to show the rest of the children.
The puppies were so friendly and very cute. All the children got a chance to cuddle and pat them.
The adults also got a chance to cuddle them……
Blue skies and sunshine for sports day this year at Strom Pitch!
The children have harvested their first produce. The radishes were ready to be eaten so the children pulled some up and brought them into school.
They all had a chance to taste a little bit in class – not the most popular vegetable but they all tried some.
The cooks also got some radishes which they prepared for the classes at lunchtime.
It is always so exciting once the plants start to appear! The bairns are doing a great job of looking after them and thankfully the weather is improving and there is a bit of warmth and sunshine.
Kindness is one of the schools’ Core Values and we feel it is the most important. It is always on the agenda but it is good to make it a focus and spend time discussing with the children different ways of being kind and how it makes us and others feel.
The children listened to stories, watched clips and had discussions about kindness. We also had little role play scenarios to act out and discuss.
Any children who were noticeably kind could choose a smiley face and add it to the Kindness Trail which is making its way around the school corridors.
Lots of parents have emailed in Acts of Kindness that they have seen the children doing at home. They loved hearing the different ways their peers have been kind and it has really spurred them on with their efforts.
All adults in the school are noticing their kindness and commenting on this with them. The cooks are well impressed with the good manners at lunchtime with lots of pleases and thankyous.
On Friday the tide was low so the bairns went to the Taing beach to take part in the Voar Redd Up. They mostly found bits of rope and plastic but the more unusual finds were a toorie and cans and bottles in the grassy area between the school and the top of the beach road.
There was also time to go exploring and find shells and crabs.
It is always great to get outdoors, especially when the sun shines.
We all went for a walk in Strom Road noticing differences around us with the changing Seasons.
There was great excitement when the children spotted lots of tadpoles all along the ditches.
We had a look in the school pond and found lots of frogspawn there so hoping to spot tadpoles soon.
A huge thankyou to the parents who helped to water the plants throughout the Easter holidays. They have fairly shot up. The sunflowers were ready to be re-potted into bigger pots so the children have been busy doing that and lots of watering this week.
As part of their literacy this term the children have been learning how to write instructions. Lucy-Jo was very clear on how to plant a seed.
It was lovely to welcome lots of Grandparents into the school and classroom again. The children were so delighted to be able to share their learning and show them what they love doing at school.
The primary 1/2 class are the Eco-Committee for this term. They shared their plan in assembly last week of how they were going to involve the whole school in planting and growing their own food in the Polycrub this year.
Each class have been given a section of the polycrub to be responsible for planting in. There is also a rota for watering and looking after the plants throughout the term.
There have been lots planted already – tatties, peas, radishes, carrots, lettuce, beetroot, to name a few.
The children have also planted sunflower seeds and tomatoes in little pots which will need careful looking after and re-potting oncce they grow a little bit.
Each class is responsible for not only looking after the plants but keeping the polycrub tidy and organised for the next class or group of children who come in.
it is also a great space outdoors at Whiteness Primary to play. The children took a break from planting to work on their teamwork skills and have a lot of fun on the hill.
The children moved on from wanting to help treat pets to help treat each other. They asked for a hospital, so after a lot of chat about what we would need they set it up.
It has been such a popular area of the classroom and it is lovely to see the children being so kind and compassionate toward each other. I think their may be a few doctors and nurses of the future here.
As it is the long weekend and the children wont be at school for Valentines Day they have been getting cards made for all the people they love.
Its great seeing how one simple idea can lead to so many different interpretations and designs.
The children were talking about how much they loved animals and telling each other what pets they have.
We spoke about how to look after pets and then decided we needed a Vet area in the classroom. They have loved making sure all the pets are well cared for and looking after them if they need a visit to the vets.
They all painted their favourite pets, which they shared with the NGUHA Jarl Squad as part of their quiz.
How many dogs can you see?
The children had a great time today exploring and playing with the new resources ready for them in the classroom.
The vets area was really popular and the children worked together to plan out what they would need in the vets to look after the animals.
They collaborated and worked well together to build the train set. It was great to listen to their conversations and how they shared their ideas. The children also loved investigating the snow and ice in the water tray.
Lots of great vocabulary and science going on.
They spent part of the day outdoors, making the most of the snow. It was amazing to see the friendships, teamwork, problem solving and creativity going on. They had so much fun.
Just before they headed back indoors it was time for a photo with their igloo and snowman.
The Primary 1’s and their school buddies get together every week. They have been learning about dates and months in class and created these beautiful birthday cakes to pop their birthday candles in. they are absolutely beautiful and really brighten up the school corridor.
These are just a few of the fabulous mixed media collages the children made of grandparents. They are so eye-catching and everyone smiles when they see them on the classroom walls.
The children arrived back at school today and were delighted with a bit of Halloween fun in and around the classroom.
Many of the children loved the dressing up and Witch’s kitchen area.
During art they followed instructions well and made little pumpkin collages.
It was such a nice morning that the class went out and did a scavenger hunt for spooky images hidden around the school grounds.
In the afternoon they listened to a story and all took part in Drawing Club.
In between times there was practical maths lessons and reading activities so a very busy first day back.
The p1/2 children have been the school’s STEM committee this term so they set a challenge to the pupils in the whole of primary. The children presented the task to the older children and provided them with the resources required.
The children were put into mixed age groups of 5-6 pupils. They were given a set of materials and had to work together to create a paper chain. There was a time limit and limited resources.
There were prizes for the longest chain and for the team who demonstrated the best ‘teamwork’. It was amazing to see how the children collaborated and shared out the different jobs within their groups.
The final chains were laid out and measured against each other to find the winner.
Every morning the children use the Zones of Regulation area to indicate how they are feeling. There are opportunities to talk about their feelings and there are ideas for self-regulation. There are little activities and resources to support the children’s understanding of different emotions.
This is also a nice little area to just chill quietly or chat.
