Thanks to an amazing effort by West Lothian Council teams, contractors and parents/carers, all but 13 council primary, nursery and special schools WILL safely open tomorrow (Monday, 5 March).

They join West Lothian’s 11 secondary schools, which will re-open on Monday as planned.

The following schools will remain CLOSED on Monday:

Blackridge Primary
Connolly Campus, Blackburn
Deans Primary, Livingston
Eastertoun Primary, Armadale
Hopefield Nursery School, Blackburn
Longridge Primary
Our Lady of Lourdes Primary, Blackburn
Our Lady’s Primary, Stoneyburn
Parkhead Primary, West Calder
Pinewood School, Blackburn
Riverside Primary, Livingston
St Joseph’s Primary, Whitburn
St John the Baptist Primary, Fauldhouse

All 13 of these will re-open on Tuesday 6 March.

All other West Lothian Council secondary, primary, nursery and special schools will be OPEN on Monday 5 March at the normal time. Parents/carers will receive a groupcall to confirm if their school is open or closed.

Re-opening nearly 100 schools following severe weather is a major job, with significant checks carried on every building required before it can be safely opened, such as ensuring they are still structurally sound, heating is working and toilet and catering facilities are in good working order.

Snow clearing work in school grounds is ongoing to ensure a safe route for staff and pupils, with up to five feet of snow drifts requiring cleared in some schools.

Due to the amount of specialist work required, it has not been possible to safely open every school on Monday.

If your child’s school is open, we would encourage you to send them if it safe to do so. Parents should carry out their own assessment of whether it is safe for their child to travel to school from their home, depending on their individual circumstances.

Parents/carers should take extra care when travelling to school on Monday, especially as some crossing patrol staff may not be in place.

All school transport will operate as normal.

Parent/carers of pupils attending special schools who receive transport should check with their provider on whether they are able to take their child to school.

There will be no breakfast clubs on Monday, and lunch menus may vary from usual. Wraparound care will be in place as normal, and parents/carers should confirm any after school arrangements with their provider.

⛄❄SNOW DAY❄⛄

Here are some suggested activities that your child can do to continue their learning. Activities have been set within stages. Please post any pictures or comments to our Facebook or Blog.

❄️*P1 ACTIVITIES*❄️

– Write a little story about your snow day and bring it into school
– Draw a very detailed snowy illustration of your fun day
– Cosy up with a nice warm drink and read your reading books/home story books
– Build me a snow dog! 🐶
– Build a big snowman and get your mum or dad to help you measure how tall he/she is! Tallest snowman may win a prize!
– Access: http://www.gregtangmath.com/tenframemania and see if you can set a Primary 1 record for highest score
– Access: https://www.topmarks.co.uk/Search.aspx?Subject=16&AgeGroup=1 and practise some addition and subtraction games
– Access: http://www.doorwayonline.org.uk/literacy/speller/ and practise some spelling
– One very helpful thing to do would be to look in your homework folder and practise correct formation of all letters and numbers
– Write your balloon words in the snow
– Make snowballs of different weights and roll them down a hill, see which one travels the farthest/fastest

❄️*P2-4 ACTIVITES*❄️

*write a snowy poem (acrostic, rhyming, repetition) ❄

*build a snowman ⛄ and measure how tall he is (send photos on Dojo if you wish)

*exercise counting 🏃🏼‍♀🏃🏼‍♂- keep warm by doing star jumps, jogging on the spot etc and counting in 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s and 10s. Practise reciting your 2, 5 and 10 times tables

*draw/paint a picture of the view outside your window 🎨 ✏

*use number gym/Greg Tang maths online /Topmarks Hit the Button to work on your number bonds 📱💻

*cosy up with a nice warm drink and read your reading book or library book 📚

*practise writing your spelling words in the snow

*design a cosy outfit to wear in the snow 🧥 👢

*make different weights of snowballs and roll them down a slope – which one travels farthest/fastest?

❄️*P5-7 ACTIVITIES*❄️

*build a snowman ⛄ and measure how tall he is

*write instructions on how to do something you did on your snow day (baking, snowman etc.) 🍰

*draw a picture of a snowy landscape ⛰ ❄️

*use number gym/Topmarks Hit the Button to work on your times tables 📱💻

*read at least 2 chapters of your accelerated/library book. 📚

*write a summary of what you’ve read.

*practise writing your spelling words in a creative way. 🔡

*measure the depth of the snow at 3 different points during the day. Did the depth increase or decrease? ⬆️⬇️

*use your knowledge of the solar system and write a paragraph about why we have winter. 🌍

*use a restaurant menu to create 4 multiplication/division problems. Solve your problems using efficient strategies. ➗✖️

*create a quiz about something you are interested in (include an answer key). 🔑

Again, Please share any pictures of the activities you’ve completed on Facebook or the blog! 📷

Most importantly, stay safe and have fun! ❄☃