Mrs French turned her attention to interior design this week as we created a new space in the school for pupils to use. The Glass Room is located on the upper floor and at the corner of the building above the main entrance. The Glass Room is a pupil meeting room space with soft chairs and furnishings. We felt it was particularly important to have a special place in the school to celebrate children’s success and to meet with pupils to plan events and share ideas for learning. Mrs French’s keen eye for detail has ensured this is a very welcoming space for learners to use. Most importantly, this space is reserved as a positive space for pupils and will not be used as a reflection space or to speak with any pupils following an incident of unsettled behaviour.
Superstars and Champions
Over the course of last week, pupils who achieved Superstar or Champion status were awarded their certificate at the end of the day. Mrs French and I have enjoyed meeting with pupils to celebrate their success and award their certificate. Using a daily award time, we have more time to speak with pupils and recognise their achievement than we previously did during weekly assembly.
At the weekly assembly, all Superstars and Champions are asked to stand up so that the school community can applaud and recognise their success. Superstars and Champions will then be invited to take up ‘the best seats in the house’ with a row of chairs in the assembly hall.
Protecting this time to recognise the achievement of learners and those pupils who have been exemplary citizens of the school is part of the positive school culture we are continuing to develop.
Red Nose Day
The pupils in Room 8 did a fantastic job organising Red Nose Day for the school and nursery class. They have been busy selling red noses throughout the week and held a bake sale which raised £647.47. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this fantastic total. The pupils in Room 8 also led learning by teaching the other pupils in school about the history of Comic Relief and the impact that a small donation can make to a person’s life. They shared the impact of donations in the UK and overseas.
A huge thank you to Room 8 pupils and Miss Harris for leading learning on Global Citizenship at Heathery Knowe PS and Nursery Class.
GIST
The GIST Road Safety Roadshow will take place at school next week. Primary 4-7 pupils will participate in a two part session.
The indoor presentation includes guidance on how children can stay safe on the roads. This is part of the Health and Wellbeing Curriculum and links classroom based learning with skills for life and work.
During the outdoor presentation, children are given an opportunity to explore inside the cab of the vehicle and get to see first-hand the view from the driver’s seat. The presenter will conduct a practical demonstration, putting the theory learned in class into practice. They will discuss stopping distances and driver blind spots with the children in a safe and controlled environment.
Following the visit, the school will be supplied with Gist high-visibility vests for the children, a classroom activity pack and a selection of bonus Gist accessories. The high visibility vests will be kept in school and used for walking trips etc in the local area.
Learning outwith school
The pupils have many opportunities to learn outwith the classroom environment. During these sessions, pupils have opportunities to see the application of learning in real life contexts, deepen their understanding of learning and make connections across curricular areas.
- Following an in depth block of classroom based learning, Primary 5 are visiting Robert Burns Birthplace Museum in Alloway. They will have opportunities to explore the local area and it will deepen their understanding of the Scottish Studies they have been undertaking.
- Primary 7 are visiting the Sky Academy. The pupils have been developing skills in working collaboratively on this project. The groups have already created story boards and shared ideas. Sky Academy will provide a real life context for learning and an opportunity to find out about a career working in the media.
- Primary 4 visited Pizza Express last week as part of the learning they have undertaken in Health and Wellbeing. They made connections with maths through measure and learned about a career working in hospitality.
What’s on next week?
- Monday – Room 7 pupils all day excursion
- Tuesday – Primary 7 visiting Sky Academy
- Wednesday – Big Blether – all parents welcome
- Wednesday – Open Afternoon
- Wednesday- Dance Competition (evening performance)
- Thursday – GIST Showcase
- Friday – GIST Showcase
Thank you for your continued support
Kind regards
Kirsty Duff
