Primary 6 had a fantastic day yesterday at the Broxburn Academy Science and Technology event. Pupils had the chance to learn about structural engineering and took on the paper table challenge. We learned that things are strong in threes and triangles are the strongest shape. Primary 6 also worked with some 3rd year pupils to explore some scientific experiments, our favourite experiment was the ooze.
Primary 6 are off to Glasgow Science Centre today to take part in a “Car-azy” Workshop. We will be learning about circuits, recycling and problem-solving.
This week, Primary 6 have been revising some more mathematical concepts. We started yesterday with both classes discussing the best methods we could use to simplify fractions. We found that we liked this method:-
Divide both the top and bottom of the fraction by the Greatest Common Factor (you have to work it out first!).
Example: Simplify the fraction 8/12 :
The largest number that goes exactly into both 8 and 12 is 4, so the Greatest Common Factor is 4.
Divide both top and bottom by 4:
÷ 4
right over arrow
8/12 = 2/3
right under arrow
÷ 4
That is as far as we can go. The fraction simplifies to 2 /3.
We practised these together and are going to create our own this week in our home learning.
Today, we completed our revision of written methods for solving division calculations and challenged ourselves to solve some particularly difficult calculations with decimals too! We found that some of our methods for solving multiplication calculations helped us.
We also learned about the General Election in Newsround and heard some pupils from St Margaret’s singing songs from their “Little Shop of Horrors” production. They were really talented!
A few weeks ago Primary 6 revised their prior learning about probability. They then learned a handy formula to calculate probability as a fraction and applied their new knowledge to mathematical word problems. Our formula was :-
Probability = Number of desired outcomes
___________________________
Number of possible outcomes
We answered some tricky questions on probability in our homework last week:- Can anyone work this problem out now?
Last week we started a new Class Dojo series based on how to deal with difficult situations and mindfulness. We also watched some special BBC Newsround clips of the author and poet Micheal Rosen talking about how he dealt with sadness in his life and discussed ways we might attempt to deal with difficult emotions. Next week we will link our breathing and calmness to our prayers.
Today primary 6 have been learning how to find the area of a triangle. We saw how the L X B formula worked for rectangles and then how it applied to parallelograms. Finally, we saw how the formula could be adapted for triangles. We calculated some areas and even made some problems up for our friends to work out too…well done P6!
This week we have also been working on our novel study. The novel is “The Runaways” by Ruth Thomas. We have been using our literacy ‘sleuthing’ skills to make predictions about what might happen and will also be creating a character study for each of the main characters.
We have started a new topic on Europe. At the moment we are learning facts about the continent and making fact files to use later when we choose our own country to study in depth.
This week primary 6 have been looking at ratio and proportion in maths. We used what we knew about simplifying fractions to help us reach the simplest ratio too. In number talks we broke down large numbers into easily divisible chunks to make mental division easier. In art we looked at pattern and created some optical illusions, some of which are shown below. In language we have been learning how to use clues in texts and film to write predictions about storylines. We hope that this will help us to create clues in our own writing to ‘draw the reader in’ to our stories!
This week Primary 6 have been learning about the probability of an event occurring. We looked at the formula used to calculate probability and linked this to the fractions and decimals work that we have recently completed in maths. Did you know that if you ask 35 random people what day and month their birthday is on, you have an 80 percent chance of two people having their birthday on the same day?
In language we learned about non- chronological reports and completed peer assessments using the success criteria to guide us. We were excellent at grouping our facts and using descriptive language and our next steps are to use causal language more confidently in our report writing.
This week, primary 6 have been revising the properties of a variety of 3D shapes. We tried to make as many as possible using the building sticks. We then counted the vertices, faces and edges. The dodecahedron has an awful lot! We also learned a catchy song about the properties of different triangles… ask a primary 6 pupil to sing it to you tomorrow!
Yesterday, Primary 6 received a visitor from Edinburgh University who is studying Biomedical Sciences. Ms Johnstone came in to ask us some questions about our experience at the zoo. We also got the opportunity to put her in the “hot seat” and ask questions about studying science at university such as what subjects we would need to study at high school and what lectures are like! It was really interesting!
Today, Primaries 4 to 7 enjoyed a fantastic visit from the travelling art gallery. The exhibits were all about work and routine which made us think about our own routines in a new way. We loved the people-sized sculptures dressed in bright prints and the ‘workers’ happiness’ graphs. Thank you once again to the travelling gallery for giving us the opportunity to think differently about things!
This week Primary 6 have been learning about volume and capacity. We have looked at units of measurement and challenged ourselves to estimate volumes. We also worked together to solve some tricky problems.., we worked them out…can you? (The problem is in one of the photos).
Yesterday Primary 6 and Primary 7 went to Broxburn Academy to work with tutors from Badminton Scotland in a series of skills workshops. This was especially exciting as the badminton world championships are being held in Scotland this year in August!
Primary 6 had an EGGciting end to their engineering topic today when they completed a egg drop challenge. They gathered in groups and designed an egg carrier which would absorb or deflect the forces on the egg when the egg was dropped from a height. When they tested the carriers only 3 eggs out of 11 tested broke! Some budding physicists in P6!
Primary 6 were looking at using similes in our writing this week and then using our knowledge to create interesting IMAGERY in our poetry. We worked as a class to think of as many nouns and adjectives relating to Winter and then created our own simile poems about Winter. The cold weather this week really helped us to think about what it felt like!
We liked this poem by N.M. Bodecker
When Skies are Low and Days Are Dark
When skies are low
and days are dark,
and frost bites
like a hungry shark,
when mufflers muffle
ears and nose,
and puffy sparrows
huddle close –
how nice to know
that February
is something purely
temporary.
N.M. Bodecker
In maths we have challenged ourselves to calculate the area of compound shapes (those made up of more than one other shape) and investigated shape patterns and tilings, here is one of our tilings, which was created using a variety of 2D shapes.
We also had the opportunity to visit the travelling art gallery which complemented the STEM work that we have been doing on bridges and engineering. The virtual reality tower block was the most popular!
Primary 1 and Primary 6 got together for language learning on Wednesday by creating a Spanish cafe in class. We learned how to ask what a customer would like and how to reply with our food choices – all in Spanish! Mrs Baty and I were delighted with our children’s confidence and their ability to have a short conversation in Spanish – we were also delighted that we all got to eat fruit, cake, cheese and chocolate!
This week Primary 6 have been learning about decimals, place value and negative numbers. We looked specifically at these outcomes in the Curriculum:-
As our Victorians topic drew to a close we were learning about the Victorian artist and designer William Morris. His work included wallpaper design and printing, furniture design, textiles, stained glass windows, tiles and tapestries. The influence of his designs can still be seen in textiles and wallpaper prints to this day. We followed a tutorial on how to create a William Morris inspired flower and used inks to colour them. We were really pleased with the results!
Our Primary 6 topic for the next few weeks is the Forth Bridges and the engineering work that goes into designing and making a bridge. Our classes have had a look at the curriculum outcomes that we need to cover and will be thinking of experiments and activities to help us achieve them. This project is a part of our STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) work. For information on STEM, you can look at this site:- https://www.stem.org.uk/
To get us looking at different types of bridges we started our project by creating oil pastel line drawings of a suspension bridge…
This week primary 6 started their Reciprocal Reading Project. Everyone had a specific role in their reading group with a task to complete related to their comprehension of the given text. Some of the tasks, such as the “predictor”and the “clarifier” were difficult, but everyone worked really hard to contribute to their group by concentrating on the important aspects of their role. The leaders discovered that it was difficult to be both encouraging and firm whilst ensuring that everyone was on task. However, Lord Sugar would have been proud of their efforts!
Well done to our amazing p6 quiz team who came 2nd in the Rotary Primary Schools Quiz!
They tied for 1st place but missed out on the top spot in the tiebreaker question!
You all make everyone at St Nicholas very proud! Keep working hard!
Today as part of our Rainforest topic primary 6 visited the woodland area beside the canal to begin comparing the Scottish landscape with the tropical rainforests. We are so excited about this topic, we’ve planned lots of wonderful activities. The thing we want to know most about is the tribes!
Primary 6 enjoyed a wonderful day today at the Almond Valley Heritage Centre and Scottish Shale Oil Museum! Our topic is Scottish Industries and we loved seeing how life in Broxburn would have been in the days of mining and shale oil.
We played games in the adventure zone, made candles using parrafin wax, explored the history of industry in Broxburn. Then we visited the old Mill, and the farm!
We had lots of fun on the trampolines, gokarts, wartime garden, animal enclosures and parks!
Thank you to Sami, Manpida, Freya and Ali’s mums for coming along and sharing this day with us! Even though it was cold and wet, we all had a fantastic time!
As you know, Primary 6 are running a charity appeal as part of our assembly, we are sending a lorry of donations to refugee children in Calais!
Please watch our appeal advert, we hope we can persuade you to help!!!
As you know, Primary 6 are running a charity appeal as part of our assembly, we are sending a lorry of donations to refugee children in Calais!
Please watch our appeal advert, we hope we can persuade you to help!!!
Primary 6 have been enjoying getting active to practice multiplication and spelling skills!
Primary 6 opened their doors this afternoon to share their learning with parents, grandparents, aunties and friends. They were all very enthusiastic and throroughly enjoyed telling everyone about the links they have made with so many different curricular areas through the Storyline of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We have looked at characterisation in-depth, gone through the process of designing and carrying out the classroom transformation, found out about the journey of chocolate and how important Fairtrade is to those involved in the cocoa bean trade, invented our own sweets, created some fantastic acrostic poems and learned to illustrate in the style of Quentin Blake. It has been a great topic and this is just the tip of the iceberg – there has been a lot more learning involved.
Each week we evaluate our learning – this week we decided to try and beat the expert. One of us sat on the chair at the front of the class, put on the special hat and shared our knowledge and understanding of a subject/topic given by our teacher – we had one minute to do it!! Our classmates then got the chance to quiz us further to confirm what we knew. It’s a great way to reflect on what we have learned and make connections with different curriculum areas and the everyday life.
This week Klaudia was the expert on the life cycle, Lukazs – making leaflets and Oliver shared all his knowledge of acrostic poetry.
Very clever guys we have in our class!
Primary 6 ventured out of the classroom to pay a visit to the zoo in order to learn all about the life cycle. We had a great day and found out all about the male monkey’s blue bottom, the amazing way a panda can stop a pregnancy and got to see lots of little baby penguins being looked after by their parents. It was a great day and fabulous learning experience.
“I think the penguins are cheeky because they steal each other’s pebbles for their nest”.
” The apes are really clever being able to swing from branch to branch without falling very often. It’s cool how they change colour when they grow up to make it easier to tell males from females”.
“The panda’s poo was yellow and he did over 40 of them a day!”
P6 parents should have had found their golden tickets by now
(if your kids haven’t eaten it yet!)
We look forward to seeing you all…
It’s not just the children that have to learn at school – the teachers do too. Along with 23 other teachers from around Scotland, I spent the weekend with the Field Studies Council on the Island of Cumbrae, off the west coast of Scotland, finding out how to take more learning outside. The weather was extremely inter-changeable, but that didn’t stop us – even the seals came out to say hello. It was a very busy, but informative and fun few days where I have carried out activities relating to, amongst other things, changing landscapes, plankton, mammal trapping, worm hunting and Geo-squishing!!!!
I can’t wait to try some of these new ideas out 😉
Mrs Buchanan-Coutts
Primary 6A have worked hard this year and as a reward for earning a collective total of 8000 Dojo points throughout the year, we had breakfast with Mrs Buchanan-Coutts and Mrs McCauley.
It was absolutely delicious …
Article 28
We have a right to an education
Last term Primary 6 learned all about Europe. We split into different countries, so we could find out about one country in depth, then share our findings with the rest of the class. We then decided to open up our classroom as a Trade Fare and present to other classes. It was all very interactive, with exploding volcanoes, board games, language lessons, songs and even cake and chocolate!
Article 29
Education must develop every child’s personality, talents and abilities to the full. It must encourage the child’s respect for human rights, as well as respect for their parents, their own and other cultures, and the environment.
As you can see, Willy Wonka has made a bit of an entrance in Primary 6. The class have been working very hard with Mrs Buchanan-Coutts and Mrs Macauley (our student teacher) to complete design briefs, learn how to draw in the style of Quentin Blake, understand how Roald Dahl used various techniques to introduce his characters and keep their values and traits running throughout the story and convert our classroom into the factory itself; complete with Oompa Loompas. The latter involved technology and art as well as A LOT of trial and error, problem solving and making amendments – all traits of a good inventor!!
There’s much more learning to come and our topic will culminate in Golden Tickets being sent inviting parents to an open showcase to see it all.
“Come with me and you’ll be in a world of pure imagination
Take a look and you’ll see into your imagination”
Article 31
Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.
Finlay and Rachael both had something to celebrate this week and brought in their medals to prove it!! Rachael won a medal for her swimming, beating her own PB in the process and Finlay received his for participating in the Forrester Rugby Festival. Well done to you both.
Primary 3 joined Primary 6 today to learn all about Holy Week. We helped tell the story before working together to complete the Stations of the Cross. It was great fun and we learned lots from each other.
Come again soon!!
Woohoo, Taylor does it again!!!
Taylor and his partner Coire travelled to Ireland last week and represented Scotland in a competition between Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, Ireland and Wales. They not only walked away with Gold, but also helped Scotland to win overall.
Next stop – Taylor has been asked to train with the BRITISH squad!! Well done, Taylor.
Perfect timing!
Primary 6 recently learned all about light and shadows and along comes a partial eclipse to help us understand it all.
Primary 6 witnessed the eclipse (safely) last week through various means. We watched it live on the interactive board, saw it through special glasses that Noah brought in and also by using a pin hole camera made by Mrs Buchanan-Coutts; Rachael brought one in too. It was absolutely fascinating, but also quite eerie when all the birds started to get confused!!
Primary 6A collect Dojo points on a daily basis for lots of things, such as attendance, following instructions, working hard, participating in discussions, completing homework, being prepared for lessons and teamwork.
There are several ways to spend our points – we can use the teacher’s chair for a day, have extra netbook time, give some of our points to a friend and ask them to be a personal assistant for the day or get a homework pass.
Recently, some of the class cashed in their points for a reward by having lunch with the teacher. We put on some tunes, sat round the table chatting, enjoyed some yummy doughnuts and had a boogie. It was great fun.
Article 29
Our education allows us to share our talents.
This week the school has been ringing out with music, as the stars of the school production of ‘Annie’ were able to share their hard work with their friends and family. The cast, who have been working hard on the show for only seven weeks, performed Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week to packed audiences.
Set in 1930s New York, Annie tells the story of an eleven-year-old girl, who has been living in the horrid Miss Hannigan’s orphanage for girls her whole life. She has the dream that one day she will be reunited with the parents who left her a letter and a locket so many years ago. Annie’s quest to find her real parents and the adoption by the billionaire businessman Oliver Warbucks is what provides dramatic plot for this spectacular and heart-warming musical.
We would like to thank all the parents, grandparents and friends who have donated their time, props, costumes, and for supporting learners in their learning of lines and dance routines.
Every single performer gave everything they had, helping to make this production so successful.
Thanks are due to all the staff who helped with auditions, rehearsals and backstage. Of course, the entire performance could not have happened if it were not for all the brilliantly talented actors, actresses and chorus who helped to make the event so memorable. Well done everyone!
Here’s just a few photos with lots more to come. Please leave a comment about your thoughts on the production…
You have the right to an opinion and for it to be listened to and taken seriously.
Primary 6 have been demonstrating their quality communication skills. As part of our new Social Subjects topic, we are all working in groups to learn about different countries in Europe. In order to complete the challenge, we have to share our ideas, listen to each other and make sure that everyone in the group has their say and is participating – the discussion tokens help us do this.
We visited the library this week to get some books to help us and are looking forward to persuading our parents to visit out country during our open exhibition after the Easter holidays.
No pen day – no problem! As part of our Lenten Appeal programme, Primary 6 used lots of interactive ways to keep learning as part of no pen day. We used counters instead of pencils during literacy; jigsaw puzzles, tarsia and games on the whiteboard to show our understanding of fractions.
Article 28
We have a right to learn new and interesting things at school
Primary 6 have been learning all about light and shadows. We have looked at different light sources, white light, reflection and shadows.
We made small characters and observed how the sun’s position changes the shape and length of their shadow. You can see our results below…
Congratulations to Finlay who succeeded in being granted 6th Kup (green belt) in his recent kick-boxing exam.
Well done, Finlay. We are all very proud of you.
After studying for the last 2 months, four of our Primary 6 pupils attended the Regional round of this year’s Euroquiz. Georgia, Jasiu, Alexander and Finlay had prepared extremely well and managed to get full marks in the first round on languages! Against 20 teams from schools all over West Lothian, our team came in 4th overall and should all be very proud of themselves – we certainly are! Here they are showing off their certificates. Well done.
Article 15
We can meet with friends and join clubs
Congratulations to Sophie, who came 2nd, and Rachael who achieved successes at Broxburn Swimming Championships. Rachael also gained high recommendation for her Highland Dancing. Well done both of you.
Article 28
We have a right to learn new things
Primary 6a have been learning all about sound and the classroom was buzzing (literally) with the sound of bells as we carried out some tests to see which materials make the best sound-proofing.
Each group wrapped an alarm in different materials, placed it in a box and then measured how far they could go before the stopped hearing the alarm. We discovered that although bubble wrap is pretty good, foam is the best muffler of sound.
Next, we have been given a challenge to find out how different animals communicate with each other through solids, liquids and gases.
Article 29
We should have to opportunity to share our talents and achievements
Rachael was very proud to share her success in her recent highland dancing exam when she received a Highly Commended result.
Well done, Rachael.
Article 28
We are able to learn and develop our knowledge at school
Primary 6 have been developing in their knowledge and understanding of time. Some of us have been learning about how to calculate the amount of time that has elapsed on timetables and some of us have been working on converting analogue time to digital in one minute intervals.
In one activity, we were all given an analogue watch and we had to move around the classroom to see who had a watch with the different digital times on it that were on our sheet. This was a great way to practice and confirm our understanding before we move on to 24 hour time.
Jammin’ Andy came in to school to get us all into shape before Christmas.
Here’s a few pictures of us stretching and moving to some cool tunes!
Article 29
We share our talents with other
Faith entertained Primary 6 today with her rendition of Away in a Manger and Silent Night, played on the harp.
Thank you very much, Faith
Everyone had their glad rags on, the aftershave was most definitely flowing, the lights were flashing and the music pumping. This could only mean one thing – Primary 6 and 7 were able to show off some of their dancing moves at their Christmas disco.
Here’s a few photos of them having fund and enjoying themselves…
If for any reason, the school is unable to open (Boo!!), here’s a few activities to keep you occupied.
Literacy
http://www.neoformix.com/Projects/TextFlake/index.html
Maths
Thinkers Key Activities
Article 15
We have a right to join clubs and meet with friends.
Congratulations to Hannah, Sophie and Rachael, who won a great haul of medals between them during their recent swimming club championships.
Article 15
You have the right to join clubs and meet with friends.
A huge congratulations to Faith (P6), who recently swam at a gala in Deans Community High School for Livingston & District Dolphins. She proudly shows of her gold medal for front crawl and silver for the breast stroke as well as two trophies for participating.
Article 29
We should use our skills to the best of our abilities
From CSI to The Great British Bake-Off in 24 hours…
With money week upon us, Primary 6 thought it would be the perfect opportunity to raise some funds and buy some new books for our classroom.
We began by looking at some Victorian recipes and working out how many we would need to make in order to supply the whole school before deciding the amount of ingredients would be required. It took us a while to compare and cost up the ingredients, using different online shopping websites.
Friday came and it was all hands on deck with 200 victoria sponge cupcakes and 200 empire biscuits to make in just 1 1/2 hours! Success – we managed to sell all items and raised a whopping £120 for each class to spend on valuable reading resources. Well done everyone.
Article 12
We should feel safe and protected at all times
There was shock, horror and sheer disappointment in Primary 6 when they discovered that their classroom museum had been broken into, but with the help of PC Manning we would get to the bottom of it.
The forensic team arrived at the crime scene and all evidence was bagged up, fingerprints were taken and clues investigated further.
Suspects would have to be interviewed… in came Miss Toner, Miss Irvine, Miss King and Mrs Deas for their interrogation! Nerves were evident – hands were sweating, voices were shaky and excuses were plenty. We would have to look to CCTV to confirm a few issues.
After a very long morning, the culprit was found – MISS KING!!! She was duly read her rights, handcuffed and escorted out of the classroom, leaving tearful and angry children and staff behind her.
Thankfully, it was all a staged, real life venture involving lots of learning. Not only did we experience how we would feel if this really did happen to us, but we also learned about the process taken by the police when they arrive on a crime scene, forensics and the law. A huge thanks to all our fantastic actors.
Article 24
We need access to nutritious and health food
MMmmmm, delicious! That was the call of Primary 6 when they tasted their own smoothies on the Lidl Health bus. Whilst one group were blending their creations using the fresh ingredients available with their own apron and name badge to take away in their very own smoothie shaker cup, the other group were learning about the importance of exercise and the resultant effect on their hearts. Every pupil was given a heart rate monitor watch to keep for the duration of this part of the session. they were all be asked their heart rate and told to keep an eye on it throughout the game – solving clues about types of fruit and vegetables and racing to the basket to collect the correct item of fruit or vegetable before returning to read the next clue. At the end of the game everyone were again asked for their heart rate and 2 of the specially trained Health Factor Team will took them through why their heart rate has increased and the importance of exercise. Then, all change round!!!!
Article 28
We have a right to an in-depth education
Primary 6 took a step back in time when they visited New Lanark to learn all about life back in the Victorian era. Led by a costumed teacher, learners experienced school days in Robert Owen’s time. Lessons included drill, hand-writing, arithmetic and dancing. As you can see, everyone had to dress up, write on slates and act and answer appropriately. We also got to explore textile machinery in a mill and find out about home life and shopping 200 years ago!
“I don’t think I’d want to live then because you had to work really long hours for hardly any money.”
“Bed bugs – yuk!”
Article 29
We can share our talents and abilities.
What a truly inspirational start we all have had. The Soweto Melodic Voices, a 30 piece youth choir from South Africa, visited the school to carry out workshops with us. After treating them to our version on Shosholoza, we were split into groups and taught a song using different harmonies as well as some dance moves.
In the afternoon, the whole school were invited to watch an absolutely amazing performance by the choir – they even asked us onto the stage to perform with them in front of everyone!
Click on the links below to see some snippets of the singing…
The choir are performing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and have asked if some of us would like to join them during their last show. How lucky do we feel?
What a fantastic day at the St Nicholas 2014 Commonwealth games! Primary 5,6 and 7 came together in an opening ceremony to celebrate their chosen Commonwealth country and preformed some wonderful cultural displays of song and dance from South Africa, Malaysia and Canada.
After a short break, for a BBQ lunch, pupils then took to the courts to display the skills that they had learned in their chosen sports of rugby, netball and hockey. Each country played their final games in a play off format and the winning teams were presented with their medals in the closing ceremony.
Primary 5,6 and 7 would like to say a massive thank you to all the parents, grandparents and friends who turned out to cheer us on and share in our learning today. We would also like to say a huge thank you to James Pegg and everyone at the Albyn Park who helped make today such a success.
Stay tuned for pictures of our teams in their new fabulou
s uniforms!
On Sunday the 15th of June a really exciting event is happening in Broxburn, the Queen’s Baton Relay will be passing through. In order to make the town look really festive Primary 6 have been busy making a staggering 125 Commonwealth flags to be displayed throughout the local community. Some of the flags were really hard to draw and it took loads of time to get them just right, however we all enjoyed the challenge and are looking forward to seeing to finding them in the local community.
After we had finished all our hard work we took some pictures to show off just how many flags we had made. Below are some pictures of our work.
Article 31
You have the right to play and relax by doing things like sport, music and drama
On Saturday 7th June, I did a club championship gymnastics competition. I won two gold medals, one for participating in the competition and the other one for coming 1st in my age group. For the competition I had to do a floor routine and a vault routine. I got a score of 24.5 for both floor and vault. I was quite nervous at first but then I got a bit excited. We had a warm up then a practice on the floor, then on vault. I was against one of my friends called Darcy who came 2nd. I was chosen to do a level 3 routine which is one of the highest levels. It was a bit hard but because I had been practising I found it easier than I would have. I enjoyed it because I love gymnastics. It is one of my favourite sports. I am hoping I do more competitions soon.
Ava McFaulds
Article 29
Our education should help us use and develop our talents and abilities.
Primary 6 have been working on their mental maths skills through lots of different activities. Click the link below to see if you can complete the mental maths mission successfully.
Article 15
You have the right to be with friends and join or set up clubs, unless this breaks the rights of others
Primary 6 would like to say a massive well done to Fraser Morris who competed in the Scottish Schools Primary School Cross Country on Saturday 19th of March. He did extremely well and finished 5th out of 113 P6 boys who were entered for the race. Also Fraser competed 2Km Easter fun run at Beecraigs and won that race! All of Primary 6 are very proud and look forward to hearing about future races.
Primary 6 would also like to say well done to Rachael Brown who passed her Musical theatre dance exam!
Article 17
Adults should make sure that the information we are getting is not harmful and help us to find and understand the information we need.
On Thursday P6A and P6B went to Edinburgh Zoo to learn about different life cycles of animals. We saw loads of different animals, from monkeys and apes to the giant pandas. We visited the education centre where we meet Kirsty who talked to use about the differences between mammals and fish and how they bring up their young. We also talked about the different stages in each animals life cycle.
In the afternoon we got a really treat as we visited giant pandas and to our surprise they were awake and moving about. One of the keepers told us that over 2000 people came to see them every day. We also got to visit the new meerkat enclosure and hiked up the big hills to see the Lions and Zebra.
My highlight of the day was seeing the monkeys and the pandas. In the pandas enclosure there was a TV showing the pandas doing different things, at one point it even showed one of the pandas doing a forward roll. The trip to the zoo was very fun and it was interesting learning about all of the different animals and how they live.
By Mirren
Primary 6 would like to say a massive thank you to all the parents and friends who came along on Friday to see our assembly. For anyone who didn’t mange to get along on the day click the link below to see how we got on.
As promised primary 6 have written some personal accounts of our visit to the Glasgow Science Centre. Below you can read what Caitlin and Ciara got up to when they visited the Science Centre.
Last Thursday me and my class went to the Glasgow Science Centre. The main purpose of the trip was to visit the planetarium as our topic is about Space.
As we arrived, we were told to put our coats and jackets away in the cloakroom. After that we were brought up to the first floor. When I first stepped in I gasped! The whole room was full of different experiments. 
I tried the young to old computer. First you had to take a picture of yourself, and then it turned you old. I got a fright because I looked a lot like my Gran!
Next we went to floor 2.My faverioute thing in floor 2 was the singing bowl. What you had to do was you wet your hands in the water they had put in the brass bowl. Then you rubbed your hands up and down the handle and the bowl played a tune!
Floor 3 was all about the human body and physical health. The best thing for me was the hamster wheel. It was so cool. First you stepped into the wheel. Then you started to run and the wheel would start to move!
Last of all was the planetarium. That was awesome because we stepped into the room and sat down in our seats. I got a fright because the seats were nearly as far back as a bed. That was because the screen was all over the roof. Suddenly the lights dimed and the woman hosting the show started talking about all the different constellations and how there are 88 recognised constellations. Then we went over the order of the planets. The most interesting facts she told us was that no woman has ever been to the moon. The last one was that in the streets with all the bright lights you can only see 300 stars. In the pitch dark countryside you can see over 3,000 stars! Then the lights went on and we all went back to school.
By Ciara.
As we walked through the colossal doorway I started to get extremely excited about our planetarium visit in the afternoon. Slowly we trudged through into the science centre and made our way up to floor 1.
Once we were all upstairs we were allowed to explore. First I looked at big glass box and there were little particles. The particles were made of alcohol. 
It was amazing I didn’t know how they formed! Next I looked at a blurry picture of a calm woman but when you looked at the picture in the mirror the picture looked like an angry man!
Then we moved on to floor 2. First I went and looked in a glass box then turned the knob. The ink moved! Next was my faveroiute activity the plasma ball so if you put your hand on the top then gently touched someone else’s finger you could see a spark! Using two keys it was possible to make thunder and lightning!
Then we went onto floor 3 it was all about the human body. We learnt all about arthritis and different disabilities
Finally what we had all been waiting for, the planetarium. It was amazing because right in the centre was a big metal ball it looked just like a giant disco ball! Once we were all seated the lights dimmed and the woman hosting the talk walked on to the small stage, as we all gazed up the woman explained the different constellations. Then she went on to give us lots of different amazing facts, like no woman has ever to the moon. The time flew by and soon we were on our way back towards school.
By Caitlin Mccafferty
2014 will be a fantastic year for sport in Scotland with the Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow and the Ryder Cup coming to Gleneagles!
Throughout the year we are looking forward to many opportunities to try out different sports and activities at school.
This week golf coach Macrina Crawford visited the school and ran fantastic taster sessions with Primary 5a, Primary 5b and Primary 6b. We were learning all about different types of clubs (putter, driver etc) and when is best to use them. We were playing group games that involved different golf shots and Macrina was very impressed with the promising talent from St Nicholas! Next week Macrina will be visiting primary 6a, 7a and 7b, look out for the photographs!
If you are interested in learning more skills Macrina will be running a 7 week Clubgolf programme for children aged 6-12 at Binny Golf Club, for more information parents can contact macrinacrawfordgtf@hotmail.com
Meet the Primary 7’s from the St. Nicholas Football Team!
So far the team, along with Lewis and James from primary 6, have competed in 2 tournaments at the Albyn Park organised by the Broxburn United Sports Club. We have been playing against Broxburn Primary, Uphall Primary, Kirkhill Primary and Pumperston and Uphall Station Primary.
Our first tournament was on 29th November and we won every game.
Our second tournament was on 21st February and we won 5 of the games we played and lost 1.
On Friday 4th April we will be playing again at Albyn Park at 1.3opm. All are welcome to come and watch! We would love to see some supporters cheering on the school team!
HUGE THANK YOU!
A huge thank you from everyone at St Nicholas to Neil Gorman at Piggy Print for providing us with the fantastic football strips for the team and being our sponsor!
PRIMARY 6 TEAM
We are hoping to recruit a second team to play in tournaments from children in Primary 6! If you are interested in joining the Primary 6 football team please see Miss King or Mr Valentine as soon as possible!
Primary 6 have been completing a homework challenge to design and make a rocket.
Here are some of the pictures of our designs.
On Thursday primary 6 visited the Glasgow Science centre as part of our topic on Space. Have a look at the pictures below to see what wonders we discovered and stay tuned for some personal accounts of what we got up to.
Yesterday Primary 6 were invited along to Broxburn Academy for their annual Science and Technology day. We were all very excited as the hall was packed with loads of children from other local schools and some strange looking experiments and stations.
The first station we visited was called Hovercraft CD. To make these we had to blow up a balloon and attached then to CDs with a closed bottle cap on it. Next we put them on the floor and opened the bottle cap. Since we had opened the bottle cap, the air from the balloon escaped which made the CD slide along the floor.
Next was Outrageous Ooze. First we were asked whether we thought the ooze was a solid or a liquid, we all thought it look like a solid. The third year pupils asked us to make a snowball out of the ooze but as soon as we scooped some up it melted away. Next we were asked to hit the ooze and amazingly it didn’t splash but if we gently put our hands into the ooze they sunk. After trying out different experiments with the ooze we found out that it was a solid and a liquid! This is called a colloid.
The third station was called Fizz Pop Rockets, for this one we were given safety goggles. We had to fill a little tub with water and stick a fizzy tablet with onto the lid. We then placed the tub upside in a tray and started our timers. After a few seconds the tub flew up in the air with a pop! This happened because the tablet dissolved in the water releasing a gas called Carbon Dioxide.
The fourth station was microscopes. First we had to pick out some pond weed and put it on a glass slide. Then we looked through the microscope to see the plant cells. After that we were given another strip with brain cells to have a look at.
The second part of our day was all about CDT (craft, design and technology). We had to design and build a skyscraper. First we all planned out a design and then used the straws and tape to build our structure. It was a competition to see who could build the highest structure. The highest tower was over two metres!
After lunch we had a big quiz. Most of the questions were to do with what we had learned throughout the day. The other questions were to do with science and technology. Sadly, St. Nicholas didn`t win but we had a great day!
By Ciara and Kirsty.
Primary 6 have been busy transforming themselves into space experts.
We have been using our Space topic to cover lots of areas of the curriculum including; mathematics, science, art and design, technology and language skills.
Over the past few weeks Primary 6 have been busy researching our Solar System using computers and information books. We used the information we had gathered to create different posters, make 3d models and design our classroom doors.
To make our 3d models of the Solar System we had to use lots of problem solving skills, maths skills and our knowledge of the planets to ensure our model was accurate. Before we could begin making the planets we had to work out the size of each planet. To do this we learned about the diameter and radius of a circle. We then set a compass to different measurements to draw the circles so that the planets were different sizes, like they are in real life. The next step in making our models of the Solar System was to scrunch up lots of newspaper and stick it onto the circles of cardboard to make it 3d. Then we had to layer our models with mod rock so that they were smooth, but the rocky planets were a bit bumpier than the gas giants. Finally when the mod rock was dry we painted our 3d models which the Janitor helped us to put up on the wall. Once the planets were up we started to make posters to go along with our planets.
When designing our classroom doors we used our math skills to measure the length and the width of our door and then used these measurements to cut our paper. To make our door design we had to draw out our design on a4 paper at home and then we put a bit of different peoples’ ideas together to make our final design. In the end we decided on having an astronaut on the smaller door and on the bigger door we split it into 3 sections. On one section we put the earth and all the phases of the moon around it, on another section we put a comet saying welcome to p6 on it, on the last section of the door we painted the moon then drew famous spacecrafts.
By Mirren and Caitlin
In P.E primary 6b have been learning about Gymnastics. Mrs Smith has been teaching us about different jumps, balances and floor work.
In teams Mrs Smith challenged us to make a routines to show off our learning. These routines had to be original, show creativity and good transition. Over the course of two weeks we used all our knowledge about jumps, balances and transitions to put together our ideas and create our routines.
Now you can view the finished product for yourself!
By Amy and Gregor
Primary 6b have been very busy this week working on their mental maths skills.
Lots of us find mental maths tricky so we wanted to find a fun way to develop our mental strategies. To help with this we worked in groups to practice our fraction, multiplication and division skills. To make this more fun, we worked in small groups to try out some new mental maths puzzles. These included loop cards, tarsia puzzles and jigsaws. We found this fun because we are working together and discussing different ways of solving problems.
Over the next few weeks we will continue practicing these skills and have some fun along the way!
Primary 6 have been working together to learn about our solar system and have become rap stars in the process.
We have been working in groups to research each of the planets and decided that we wanted to show our knowledge of the planets through music. Each of our groups took on the challenge of writing our own rap song about each planet and becoming rap stars.
Please click below to have a sneak peek into what we have come up with.
Stay tuned for the full version coming to a stage near you soon!
Mrs Heather and Miss Watson have set us a challenge to record the phases of the moon.
Each night for the next two weeks, we have to draw or take a photograph of the changing shape of the moon. Remember each night to date your picture and note the time the picture was recorded.
We are looking forward to seeing what phases of the moon we were able to record over the two weeks. Once we have the results we can begin to investigate the patterns arising from the phases of the moon.
Click the link below if you need some help.
Have fun recording!
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