Author: H. hknoweps

Thank you to all families who supported World Book Day activities for the pupils. The home learning activities were outstanding and the children all enjoyed a ‘walk about, talk about’ session to admire the different settings.

Glee Performance 

Our senior choir participated in the South Lanarkshire Glee Competition on Wednesday evening. The pupils worked extremely hard with Mrs Gallacher to prepare for the competition and delivered an exceptional performance on the evening at Motherwell Concert Hall. The judges commented on the children’s precision of movement in choreography, team work as a choir, enthusiasm and beautiful vocal performance. We are very proud of their effort.

Improving Library Areas 

We are continuing to work in partnership with the University of Strathclyde to improve our school. The current focus is on improving the reading areas across the school. All teachers are creating cosy reading corners in the classrooms and are focusing on ensuring these are comfortable, calm areas that encourage children to settle and become absorbed in reading. The leadership team are focusing on transforming the school library area on the top corridor.

We are embracing the challenge of developing the areas but also ensuring the areas are more interactive through the use of QR codes to link to the author reading the story aloud for younger pupils and  to provide a link to more information about the author for older pupils.

The school will continue to apply for grant funding to support the development of reading areas within the school and consider the possibility of a permanent outdoor classroom to promote reading during breaks and lunch time.  We would welcome donations of any children’s books, soft furnishing (eg cushions), wicker baskets, neutral coloured fabric / netting that could be used to help transform the areas.

Reading Cafe 

The school is opening a ‘Reading Cafe’ for pupils. Initially this will be open two lunchtimes per week. After the children have eaten lunch, they are welcome to come along to the Reading Cafe in the library area to enjoy some quiet reading time. Staff will be available to read to pupils, support their selection of books / magazines and to ensure the environment remains settled.

We have very limited magazine resources for older pupils and would appreciate the donation of old magazines (for example, Auto Express magazine, PC Pro magazine). We have signed up to a free trial of First News children’s newspaper and will evaluate whether this is a resource children enjoy before making a decision regarding an annual subscription.

Playground Update 

There are ongoing drainage issues in the playground. After the heavy rainfall, the playground had a large puddle which meant pupils  had restricted access to their play space. It is also causing the grassy areas to remain water logged and muddy. Inspectors have been out to survey the site. Next week, I am meeting with the school’s  Property Officer to discuss the best long term solution to the drainage issue. I hope to have an update to share with parents and staff soon.

What’s on next week?

Monday – Pupils representing the school at the Rotary Burns Competition
Tuesday – ParentPay being set up in school
Wednesday – Property Inspector meeting Head Teacher
Wednesday – Senior Football festival
Thursday – Room 5 pupils visiting Pizza Express

Thank you for your continued support

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

The pupils and staff have enjoyed a busy week in school. Most classes are undertaking assessments of children’s progress at the mid – point of the year which will help teachers to plan for the remainder of the session. Teachers are also writing annual reports for parents and they will be issued on Friday 3rd April.

The PTC kindly donated £300 to support the purchase of classroom resources. I would like to extend our thanks for the ongoing support from the PTC and parents who support fundraising events. Mrs Kane is organising a resource order with whiteboard pens for pupils at the top of the list.

Monitoring during indoor breaks 

We have revised the procedures for indoor breaks in school in response to feedback from pupils and staff and monitoring incidents of unsettled behaviour. Pupils in Rooms 1-3 continue to be monitored by Primary 7 pupils with a supervising staff member working between Rooms 1-2. Classrooms 3-4, 6-7 and 8-9 are monitored by a member of staff working between each of the two neighbouring rooms. Classrooms 5 and 10 are monitored by a member of staff in the room.

We will review this once again at the Spring Break and seek both pupil and staff views about the new arrangements.

St Andrew’s First Aid 

The Health and Wellbeing Working Group organised a first aid day for learners. St Andrew’s First Aid trained volunteers came into school and taught children how to respond in an emergency including putting someone in the recovery position, checking their breathing and providing CPR if required.

At Heathery Knowe, we are continuing to expand the curricular experiences offered to learners to incorporate life skills and develop confident citizens.

Thank you to St Andrew’s First Aiders for giving up their time to support our learners.

Walking Bus

“A Walking Bus is highly visible and supervised by trained adults, which reassures parents who are concerned about letting their child walk to school on their own. Parents will also find that they have extra time in their days as they don’t have to do the ‘school run’.

The benefits of a Walking Bus are not only visible on our roads but also in our children – research has proven that they are more alert when they get to school and are more ready to learn after walking to school, there are great benefits to their health, they gain invaluable social experience by interacting with their peers on the journey to school and they also achieve a greater sense of citizenship and the community as they begin to look more closely at their environment. Not to mention the important road safety skills they learn by walking to school. It’s also great fun – the list is endless.”

The Heathery Knowe PS Junior Road Safety Team have written a letter to parents:

Dear Parent/ Carer,

In an effort to ease congestion around both schools as well as improving pupil’s fitness, we are considering setting up a ‘Walking Bus’.

A Walking Bus is a group of children walking together to school under the supervision of trained adults – a ‘driver’ and a ‘conductor’. The children are picked up at designated ‘bus stops’ along the route and walk to school together.

Routes will be established along those roads most used by our pupils, depending on the level of interest from parent’s and also parent’s willingness to volunteer as drivers and conductors.

We are trying to find out whether or not this suggestion has your support, so if you would be interested please complete the following online questionnaire.

If you would prefer a paper copy of the questionnaire and leaflet please let us know.

Yours sincerely

Aicha, Emma, and Keira

Junior Road Safety Officers  

Further information about setting up a Walking Bus will be uploaded to the website for parents to view.

What’s on next week?

Monday – Waterstone’s Visit – Room 8
Tuesday – Waterstone’s Visit – Room 9
Tuesday – Play and Enquiry Based Learning training for staff
Wednesday – Head Teacher attending Early Years Improvement Planning
Wednesday – Waterstone’s Visit – Room 10
Wednesday – Glee Performance at Motherwell Civic Centre – good luck to our superstars!
Thursday – World Book Day
Friday – IT refresh meeting to discuss our computer requirements for the next fixed term.

Thank you for your continued support.

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

Mrs Caldwell returned to the nursery last week after maternity leave. We are delighted to welcome her back to work on a Monday and Tuesday. Mrs Kerr will remain as the Nursery Teacher Wednesday – Friday.

Parent Pay 

All South Lanarkshire Council schools are moving over to using ParentPay as the method for making payments to school. We are in the process of setting up ParentPay at Heathery Knowe Primary School. This means that we will shortly be accepting payments online for items such as dinner money and school excursions / experiences. Using a secure website called ParentPay, parents will be able to pay online using your credit / debit card or continue to make cash payments at PayPoint stores.

Our ‘Go Live’ date is 30th March 2020. ParentPay will be used across the school and nursery when we return from Spring Break.

• ParentPay is easy-to-use and will offer you the freedom to make online payments whenever and wherever you like, 24/7
• Payments can be made by credit/debit card or also through PayPoint
• Full payment histories, balance alerts and statements are available to you securely online at anytime
  ParentPay will be the only method of making payments to school when it is fully operational as we will operate as a cash free school. 

National Galleries of Scotland 

All pupils at Heathery Knowe Primary School and Nursery Class are participating in the National Galleries of Scotland art competition. All entries will be displayed as part of an art exhibition at the parent consultation meetings in May.

Children will create their masterpiece in class using the following competition themes:

Nursery – If I had  a pet
P1-3 – Toys 
P4 -7 – Magical Creatures and Fierce Monsters

If you would like to find out more information about the national competition, please use the link below:

https://www.nationalgalleries.org/art-and-artists/features/national-galleries-scotland-art-competition-schools

School Gardening Club 

We are very keen to work with the children to restore our raised beds and planters / hanging baskets for around the entrance area. Unfortunately at the moment the raised beds need a significant amount of restoration before children would be able to tend to them.

We would welcome any support from parents, extended family members or local gardening companies to do the ‘heavy work’ so that the pupils can enjoy growing bulbs and vegetables over the course of the year.

If you are able to help or suggest any contacts in the local area, please get in touch with the school. We would really appreciate any support to ensure our school grounds are refreshed and revitalised for the pupils to enjoy.

What’s on next week?

Monday – Deirdre Grogan (University of Strathclyde) visiting Nursery, Room and Room 2
Tuesday – Big Blether – 9am and 5.15pm
Wednesday – All staff participating in Nurture training
Friday – Pupils participating in an introduction to first aid
Friday – Head Teacher at Curriculum Conference

Thank you for your continued support

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

All pupils and staff returned refreshed after mid-term break and ready to begin the very busy second half of the term. Although pupils were only in school two days this week, Primary 4 started tennis coaching, Primary 6 visited Motherwell and Glasgow catherdrals and Primary 7 continued to prepare for the Junior Mock Court experience.

Beat The Street – East Kilbride 

Beat the Street arrives at East Kilbride on 19th February and runs until the 1st April. We have received a fob and information pack for each pupil. Children will bring home their Beat The Street pack on Monday so they are ready to start when the game launches on the 19th February. Our closest Beat Box is Box 19 which will be placed between St Louise PS and Heathery Knowe PS.

How to Play 

1. Find Beat Boxes nearest to you on the map.
2. Tap the Beat Box with your card until it beeps and flashes.
3. Walk, cycle, run or scoot to a different Beat Box within an hour.
4. Tap the Beat Box with your card and fob until it beeps and flashes to score 10 points.
5. Now carry on your journey and score more points for each extra Beat Box you tap.

There are tap prizes and leaderboards for the winners with the most points at the end of the game. Some classes may decide to register as a class on the school’s leaderboard. Children will bring home and EV5 form to be completed if the class is participating in this community initiative.

There is more information available including  details on how to register using the following link:

https://www.beatthestreet.me/eastkilbride/

Children’s Mental Health Week 2020

Many of the classes participated in activities related to children’s mental health prior to the long weekend. The theme for this year was, “Find Your Brave” and I had an opportunity to hear about the many different ways our pupils are quietly brave as they undertake new experiences and new learning.

Finding time to be still and silent benefits physical and emotional health. The children live in a fast paced world of instant communication and sensory stimulation. Moving forward, our senior pupils will be encouraged to find 5 minutes each day to ‘be still and chill’. This will be built into the school day and will involve finding a quiet spot in the classroom or in the playground depending on weather and taking 5 minutes to be still and silent. Room 10 will pilot this initially before it is extended to Room 9 and then Room 8.

PTC Bingo and Quiz 

The PTC Bingo and Quiz night takes place this Thursday and we hope you will be able to join us for the event.

• 6.20pm – Doors open
• 6.40pm – Single line and house bingo
• 7.00pm – Quiz
• 7.20pm – Fundraising games
• 7.45pm – Finish

Prizes include a cinema voucher, comedy club voucher and ice skating voucher.

Tickets can be purchased in school from Monday 17th February.

What’s on next week?

Mon-Fri – Senior Leadership Team will meet teachers to discuss pupil progress
Tues – Teachers participating in Play Based / Enquiry Based learning training after school
Wednesday – Room 10 Curling / Senior Boys Football
Thursday – Senior Netball

Thank you for your continued support

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

The school is closed for mid – term holiday on Monday and Tuesday next week. On Wednesday the school and nursery classes are closed to children while staff participate in inservice training. The staff team will focus on improving our learning environments following a consultation with learners about the layout and organisation of classrooms and open areas. We look forward to welcoming children back to school on Thursday after a well deserved break.

Car Parking 

Some parents have contacted the school to raise their concerns about the safety of the school car park.  Please support the school by driving into the car park slowly and carefully. The drop off areas are designed to provide parents / carers with a safe space for dropping off children. Please ensure that your child gets out on the pavement side for their own safety and do not double park. If you need to stay longer at school, please use a parking bay for your visit. Remember, engine idling is an offence that carries a fixed penalty notice. For the wellbeing of our school community, please turn off your engine while waiting in our car park.

We appreciate that the surrounding roads outside Heathery Knowe PS and St Louise PS becomes very congested. We would ask that you continue to be considerate of residents living in nearby streets, avoid dangerous parking (e.g. on yellow lines or zigzags) and turn off your engine while waiting to collect pupils.

Glee South Lanarkshire

Heathery Knowe’s fabulous senior choir is busy rehearsing for the South Lanarkshire Glee Challenge 2020.  The choir must rehearse and perform the set song and a song of choice that fits with the theme ‘One World, One Dream’. We are very fortunate that a professional singing coach gave up her time to offer the Heathery Knowe choir a free workshop and choreography session to help rehearse their song of choice. If you would like to know more about Glee Challenge, please use the following link:

https://www.frissonfoundation.org.uk/primary-school-glee-challenge

The choir participates in the South Lanarkshire competition on the 4th March 2020. If your child is participating in this event and you would like to purchase tickets for the audience, please use the following link:

https://culturenl.co.uk/the-glee-challenge-south-lan/

Scottish Mock Court Case Project 

Primary 7 pupils are embarking on a challenging interdisciplinary learning project along with schools across Scotland. The Scottish Mock Court project uses a court case to encompass a range of curricular areas. Children produce art work, newspapers and even design and create their own robes for court.

“Last year the case focused on The Sims, the Byte family and SMC Insurance. With parents away, what was meant to be a small gathering, turned into a party that left a great deal of damage in its wake, food bought on account and claims and counter-claims by the insurers as the Sims try to recover their loss against their insurance policy. Internet safety features, the use of social media and well as a generous helping of science, all to argue your case.”

The children prepare the fictional case developing skills in separating fact from opinion, debating, distilling information to key points, speaking persuasively to the Sheriff and using a wide range of evidence.

Finally, the children get an opportunity to visit Hamilton Sheriff Court to present their case to the Sheriff.

You can find out more about the Scottish Mock Court Case project using the link below:

https://www.mockcourt.org.uk/juniors.php

Buddy Reading

The Buddy Reading project is becoming well established across the school with older pupils sharing a love of literacy with younger pupils.  Primary 6 pupils in Room 8 are working with Primary 4 pupils in Room 6. Primary 7 pupils in Room 10 are working with Primary 3 and 4 pupils in Room 5 and some Primary 1/2 pupils.  By reading together for 10 minutes a day the children can share a love of reading, develop confidence in reading aloud and extend the vocabulary of younger pupils.

Quiz Night

Plans are well underway for the PTC Quiz and Bingo evening. Tickets will be on sale in school week beginning 17th February. The doors open at 6.20pm, with the first game of bingo starting at 6.30pm.

A full schedule will be shared in next week’s blog.

ELC Inclusion Fund 

Heathery Knowe Nursery Class is delighted to have successfully bid for a grant from the ELC Inclusion fund. The ELC Inclusion Fund provides funding to Early Years settings to support children with additional support needs in Scotland through resources, staff training and adaptations.

Heathery Knowe Nursery is using the funds for adaptations to the bright ceiling lights and to reduce sensory stimulation in some areas of the playroom. The additional funds will be used for resources to support children with additional support needs.

What’s on next week?

Monday – Holiday
Tuesday – Holiday
Wednesday – INSET. School closed to pupils
Thursday – Pupils return 9am
Friday – P6 Cathedral Visit

Thank you for your continued support

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

The Parent Teacher Council met on Tuesday night to plan for school improvement, raise funds to support the school and discuss any ongoing issues. We also welcomed parents to the ‘Big Blether’ on Tuesday morning and afternoon. We appreciate the support of parents and teachers at these events.

PTC Quiz and Bingo Night 

On Thursday 20th February, the PTC will host a family bingo and quiz night instead of the family ceilidh on the annual calendar. The evening will start at 6.30pm and finish at 7.45pm.  Tickets will be on sale at school from Monday 17th February. Adult tickets cost £2 and children’s tickets are free.

We hope you will be able to join the PTC for this event.

There is no Valentine’s disco for pupils this year as this family event replaces it.

‘Bud’ – Poppy Scotland 

The pupils in Rooms 8, 9 and 10 read ‘Letters from the Lighthouse’ by Emma Carroll during Term 1. This led to learning about World War 2 and the impact of conflict on societies around the world.

On Tuesday, we welcome Poppy Scotland’s ‘Bud’ to Heathery Knowe Primary School grounds. Bud, an 18 tonne truck, transforms into a travelling museum and classroom to help senior pupils develop their  understanding of remembrance, the nature of conflict and the poppy’s role in modern Scottish society as a symbol of unity and hope.

All pupils in Primary 6 and Primary 7 will participate in an interactive learning session on ‘Bud’ and have an opportunity to explore the museum. St Louise PS senior pupils will also have an opportunity to visit ‘Bud’ and share learning with  Heathery Knowe PS pupils.

You can find out more about this experience using the following link:

https://www.poppyscotland.org.uk/poppy-bud-in-full-bloom-as-major-remembrance-project-launches/

‘Bud’ will need to park on a flat area outside the school building. It will either be located in  front of the office or outside the gym hall. We will ensure that the area is clearly marked to ensure pupil safety.

Scottish National Standardised Assessments

Over the next term, children in Primary 1, 4 and 7 will be assessed using Scottish National Standardised Assessments. The assessments are carried out as part of normal classroom routines. They are adaptive, which means that if a child is experiencing difficulty, the questions will get easier, and if a child is doing well, the questions will become more challenging.

The results of the Scottish National Standardised Assessments provides teachers with information about a child’s progress in numeracy, reading and writing. It is one piece of evidence about a child’s progress and is used alongside class work, teacher observations and other assessments to form a view on overall progress.

If you would like to find out more about Scottish National Standardised Assessments, please follow the link below:

https://standardisedassessment.gov.scot/parents-and-carers/

If you would like to discuss your child’s participation in Scottish National Standardised Assessments further, please contact the school office to make an appointment.

Photographer

During the Big Blether, there was a discussion about the reason for the school and nursery changing the photographer . Parents have had the opportunity to share their views using electronic consultation and we have taken the views shared into account.

The main reason for this change is to ensure that the nursery and school photographs are taken by the same company at the same time so that families only receive one set of proofs home to select from. We have chosen a company that offers a cost effective package for parents, backgrounds and poses to suit school and nursery and a date at the start of term (21st August 2020) to come into school.

Residential Experiences

During the Big Blether, there was a discussion about the reason for the school moving towards one residential in Primary 7 rather than two separate residential experiences in Primary 6 and Primary 7.  The reasons for this are:

• We have been tracking the patterns of attendance at residential experiences. A significant number of pupils are electing to go to one or the other or not both. This means that pupils are not sharing the experience as a year group.  When a full class of children do not attend and a significant number remain in school, this has an immediate teacher cover implication for the school which must be met through the school budget. If the class teacher attends the residential experience then a supply teacher needs to be funded to teach the children remaining at school. With a Primary 6 and Primary 7 residential, this needs to be organised and funded twice a year. The school does not receive funding for this cover from South Lanarkshire Council.
• We rely on teachers volunteering to lead residential experiences and are very fortunate that the staff team have been able to commit to two residential experiences each year up until now.  Many of our teachers have young families of their own or caring responsibilities for relatives and cannot attend a residential experience. Our teachers are committed to ensuring children of Heathery Knowe Primary School have the best experiences however attending a residential experience is voluntary and takes teachers away from their own families and caring responsibilities outwith school.
• All schools have been tasked  by the Scottish Government to reduce the costs associated with attending school. This is why we have chosen to use a more local residential experience at Lockerbie rather than Ardentinny and Robinwood. We have not chosen the cheapest option for the residential experience as we felt that the activities the children participated in, standard of accommodation and the chance of good weather were important considerations and have decided that the adventure offered at Lockerbie Manor was the most cost effective, high quality experience.

I understand that some pupils and parents are disappointed however I hope this clarifies the school’s reason for moving towards one Primary 7 experience.

Mid Term Break

The school and nursery are closed to pupils on:

• Friday 7th February – INSET day
• Monday 10th February – Holiday
• Tuesday 11th February – Holiday
• Wednesday 12th February – INSET day

What’s on next week?

Monday – Poppy Scotland ‘Bud’ visiting school
Monday – Head Teacher and Miss Houldsworth attending SLC Play Working Group
Tuesday- Poppy Scotland ‘Bud’ visiting school
Tuesday – Play and Enquiry Based Learning staff training
Thursday – Miss Inglis attending moderation event
Thursday – Nursery Big Blether
Friday – INSET DAY – SCHOOL CLOSED TO PUPILS

Thank you for your continued support

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

We finished the school week with a Scottish assembly. The children and staff enjoyed spending time together as a school and celebrating the talents of pupils and staff. Thank you to all parents who supported pupils to practise poems and learn lines for this event. I would also like to extend our thanks to ‘Ross The Piper’. Ross volunteered to come into school and play the bagpipes for our assembly and we appreciate his support.

School Reports to Parents 

South Lanarkshire Council is reviewing the school reporting format for parents and we anticipated that Heathery Knowe Primary School would be part of phase 1 and able to use the new format this year. However, as there has been a slight delay, we will continue with the reporting format used in previous years.

Within each curricular area, reporting will focus on:

• Progress in learning / strengths
• Next steps
• How you can help your child

There will be no descriptions of learning experiences or topics covered. We hope that the focus of comments in this way ensures that it is informative and useful to parents to support their child’s learning.

Reports will be issued to parents on 3rd April 2020.

South Lanarkshire Council: Pupil Attendance 

South Lanarkshire Council has issued an updated draft operating procedure to monitor pupil attendance and this is required to be implemented in schools once it has been finalised.

This is a staged intervention approach to promoting attendance at school:

Stage 1 – attendance below 95% (missed 5 days or more since August)
Stage 2 – attendance below 90% (missed 10 days or more since August)
Stage 3 – attendance below 85% (missed 15 days or more since August)
Stage 4 – attendance below 80% (missed 20 days or more since August)

We have a number of pupils with an attendance rate between 90-95%. Within the new guidance, letters will be issued to parents of pupils at stage 1. This is a change from the previous procedure at Heathery Knowe Primary School where the leadership team would monitor attendance in this group but would not make formal contact with parents.

The letters follow a standard South Lanarkshire Council template rather than school template so you may notice differences in the format and wording used in attendance letters.

Pupil Equity Funding

Last session (2018-2019), we focused on purchasing whole school resources to support teaching and learning of numeracy and mathematics. We have introduced smaller group teaching for mathematics and the pupils and staff report this has had a significant and positive impact on engagement and progress within this curricular area. The children will participate in Mathematics Assessment for Learning and Teaching (MALT) to individually measure progress in numeracy and mathematics over the year.

This session (2019-2020) we have purchased whole school resources to support the teaching and learning of literacy, specifically grammar and handwriting. This is a whole school progressive approach to develop core skills in writing alongside spelling and extended writing skills.

School Photographer 

Mrs Gallacher has consulted with a number of local school photographers. Next session, Heathery Knowe Primary School and Nursery Class will use Instant Images to take individual and family photographs.

The school photographer is booked for Friday 21st August 2020.

P7 Residential (Current P5 group)

The Primary 7 residential for the current Primary 5 group has been organised for Lockerbie Manor from 25th-29th October 2021.

The cost will be £230 per child for the week. 

The payment plan options will be issued next week with a weekly, monthly and termly payment option.

Our current Primary 5 group has already started fundraising for the bus costs and will continue to do so. If they are able to fundraise more than the bus cost then the cost per child will be reduced.

PTC

The first PTC meeting of the new year takes place on Tuesday 28th January at 7pm. The PTC provides invaluable support to the school by providing a consultative group, support for events and as a fundraising group. All parents are welcome to attend.

What’s on next week?

Monday – All staff participating in University of Strathclyde Play Pedagogy /Enquiry Based Learning 3.30-5pm
Tuesday – Big Blether 9.15am/5pm with Mrs Gallacher
Tuesday – Head Teacher at Learning Community Management Team
Tuesday – Mrs French attending ‘An Empowered Primary Curriculum’ conference
Tuesday – PTC 7pm – all welcome

Thank you for your continued support

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

This week marks half way through the school session. Teachers have been focusing on the breadth of curricular experience for learners and engaging more widely with learning outwith school. During the first half of the session, P1 pupils have enjoyed visits into Glasgow using public transport, P6 pupils visited the theatre to hear the BBC Symphony Orchestra. We organised a whole school theatre visit, P6-7 author visit and visits to the library / bookshop. This week, Primary 4 visited King’s Theatre to enjoy a performance of Billionaire Boy and Primary 5 launched the ‘Clyde in the Classroom’ project with a visit to Glasgow Science Centre.  We continue to try and balance the range of experiences offered to pupils whilst being very mindful of the cost to parents.

Infant enrolment and classes for next session

We welcomed many new and familiar faces to school last week to register for Primary One. Families who live within the catchment are automatically allocated a place at Heathery Knowe Primary School. The next process is for South Lanarkshire Council to review all placing requests. Once this process is completed, we will be aware of the intake of Primary One pupils to Heathery Knowe PS in August 2020. Once the intake is confirmed then the structure of the other classes is reviewed in terms of the number of classes overall, size of classes and number of composite classes required.

Cost of the School Day 

This session we are auditing how much money we are asking parents for to support school experiences and events. For each class there is an ongoing record of the costs of excursions and school events and this information will be collated and shared in the summer term. It will be used as part of the ‘Cost of the School Day’ review to ensure that we continue to reduce the costs associated with attending school.

You can find more information about the Scottish Government’s commitment to this using the link below:

https://education.gov.scot/improvement/practice-exemplars/the-cost-of-the-school-day-programme-child-poverty-action-group

Money Matters 

South Lanarkshire Head Teachers  had the opportunity to hear a presentation from ‘Money Matters’ at the Head Teacher conference on Thursday.

Money Matters offer free, confidential and impartial advice – they can help check your benefit entitlement, assist with the claims process, challenge decisions and represent you at Social Security appeal tribunals. For debt issues they look at your financial circumstances, contact creditors, discuss options and give budgeting advice; Contact number: 0303 123 1008

The Telephone Advice Line offers a similar service specifically aimed at pregnant women and families with young children; Contact number: 01698 453154

Money Matters have agreed to treat Head Teacher referrals as a priority. If you need assistance from this service, please speak with a member of the leadership team and we can organise this for you. The only information the school needs to make the referral is the reason for the referral (broadly debt advice, benefits advice etc) and permission to contact Money Matters on your behalf.

We are able to organise an information session in school. If you would be interested in attending, please complete the survey link below:

https://forms.gle/YyzS88R4JeEXxy8z7

Provision of personal hygiene products in school

The school offers a range of sanitary products in school for any pupils or adults who require them. Sanitary products are available in the downstairs toilet in the foyer and in the senior female toilets. Pupils are welcome to take additional provisions home during school holidays.  If any adults or older siblings require additional products for holidays, we can make them available.

We are working towards making a wider range of personal hygiene products available to pupils who may not be able to purchase them at home. If you are able to make a donation of shower gel, deodorant, toothpaste or toothbrushes, we would be very grateful. The products will be made available to children and families who would otherwise be unable to afford these items regularly.

What’s on next week?

Tuesday – Primary 4 Room 6 are visiting EK library
Tuesday – Miss Jack (Student Teacher) starting in Room 9
Wednesday – Teacher meeting after school
Friday – Scottish Assembly
Friday – Head Teacher attending Columba 1400 Leadership Academy 

Thank you for your continued support

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

Heathery Knowe PS and nursery children and staff all returned this week refreshed and ready for the term ahead. I hope all our Heathery Knowe families had an enjoyable winter break.

Clyde in the Classroom

Primary 5 learners are visiting the Science Centre next week for the launch of ‘Clyde in the Classroom’ at Heathery Knowe Primary School. ‘Clyde in the Classroom’ is a hands on project that raises awareness of the need to look after our environment, promotes ways to engage with nature and develops knowledge and understanding in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.

The children in Primary 5 will be responsible for the care of brown trout in the classroom hatchery. Each week the children will work with Clyde River Foundation Scientists at Heathery Knowe Primary School. Primary 5 children will share their learning across the school and we hope everyone in the school and nursery has regular opportunities to visit the hatchery and see the development of our trout. At the end of the project, Primary 5 pupils will return to the local river and release the fish having ensured the impact of pollution and other adverse factors on the population of brown trout is minimised.

More information about the project can be found at www.clydeintheclassroom.com

Play Based Learning 

Staff at Heathery Knowe Primary School and Nursery Class are working in partnership with University of Strathclyde and South Lanarkshire Council to develop knowledge and understanding of a play/ enquiry based curriculum. Deirdre Grogan is a Principal Knowledge Exchange Fellow with University of Strathclyde and will bring theoretical knowledge, practical experience and innovative practice. Over the next six months, Ms Grogan will work with staff and visit the nursery playroom and P1-3 classrooms regularly to help us further develop a curriculum that is play and enquiry based and responsive to children’s needs and interests.

If you are interested in following the work of Ms Grogan with Heathery Knowe PS and Nursery and across Scotland, please follow her on Twitter using @deirdre_grogan

The staff are looking forward to engaging in this professional learning experience and working in partnership with the university to develop our practice.

TIme keeping and Attendance 

The school is continuing to monitor pupil attendance. Letters will be issued to pupils who have an overall attendance rate of less than 90%. Parents of pupils with an overall attendance rate of less than 80% will be invited to attend a meeting to discuss this further.

We are now monitoring time keeping more closely to support children who are regularly late for school.  If your child(ren) register late for school, we will contact you to make sure you are aware of this. This week alone, 27 hours of learning time was lost through late arrival at school.

Contacting the School

The Senior Leadership Team all have increased teaching duties this term to ensure that children receive as much support as possible to make progress in their learning. This means we may not be able to speak with parents as often without an appointment however we will continue to return calls or arrange appointments with families promptly.

Transitions 

It is now time for us to start preparing for the new session by organising the transition of pupils into Nursery, Primary One and Secondary School.

• Primary 7 – All Primary 7 pupils received a letter informing them of their allocated secondary school. This is determined by the child’s home address rather than the primary school attended. Any parent who does not wish their child to attend the allocated catchment school can make a placing request to another school. Placing requests should be made before the 15th March. A decision will be made no later than the 30th April. Placing requests can be submitted using the following link:

https://www.southlanarkshire.gov.uk/forms/form/79/secondary_school_placing_request

•  Primary 1  -Parents / carers of children who are five years of age between 1st March 2020 and end of February 2021 are required to register their child for school.  This applies even if the school placement will be deferred. The children must be enrolled in their catchment school. Registration at Heathery Knowe PS takes place Monday 13th all day, Tuesday 14th all day or Wednesday morning.  Any parent who does not wish their child to attend the allocated catchment school can make a placing request to another school. Placing requests should be made before the 15th March. A decision will be made no later than the 30th April. Placing requests can be submitted using the following link: 

https://www.southlanarkshire.gov.uk/forms/form/80/primary_school_placing_request

• Nursery –  The Government provides funded early learning and childcare places for all 3 and 4 year olds and eligible 2 year olds. Children who are between 1 March and 31 August are eligible for an 1140 hours funded place commencing 13 August 2020.  If your child’s birthday falls between September and February they can access their funded place from the Monday following their third birthday. Parents are asked to note that for session commencing 13 August 2020 the closing date for applications is 28 February 2020. You do not need an appointment to register for Nursery.

What’s on next week?

Monday –  Infant enrolment
Tuesday – Infant enrolment
Tuesday – Ms Grogan visiting school
Wednesday – Infant enrolment
Wednesday – Primary 5 – ‘Clyde in the Classroom’ visit to Science Centre
Thursday – CQIS and Inclusion Conference – Mrs Duff out all day
Friday – Primary 4 ‘Billionaire Boy’ at King’s Theatre

Thank you for your continued support.

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff

We have reached the end of the second term at Heathery Knowe Primary School and Nursery Class. We finished the term with a shared carol concert with staff and pupils from St Louise Primary School. The staff at Heathery Knowe PS and St Louise PS  are looking forward to strengthening the links and opportunities to work together in 2020.

Thank you 

On behalf of all the staff, I would like to take this opportunity to thank families for their ongoing support and partnership working with the school. Staff were overwhelmed with the generous gifts and notes of thanks from families at the end of term. Happy Christmas to all our pupils, families, staff and friends of Heathery Knowe Primary School and Nursery Class.

Festive Feedback 

Please provide feedback on the Christmas experience at Heathery Knowe Primary School this year by completing the survey using the link below:

https://forms.gle/uZLAmSJx6tF3JAaj7

The feedback will be used to inform the planning for Christmas 2020.

What’s happening week beginning 6th January?

Monday – School re-opens to pupils 9am
Monday – Quality Link Officer is visiting the school
Thursday – NURSERY Big Blether 9am / 3pm
Friday – Senior Manager of Pupil Support visiting the school

Thank you for your continued support.

Kind regards

Kirsty Duff