Category Archives: Learning Stories
P1W get technology savy!
Learning intention:
We are learning to experiment and develop our understanding of the tinkering and programming skills when using an Ipad.
Success criteria:
I can use ScratchJr to design a simple sequence of instructions.
I can develop an understanding of appropriate behaviour and digital language.
I can experiment with and identify icons and symbols of ScratchJr.
Last week, P1W worked in small groups to develop their awareness of the tinkering and programming skills while using ScratchJr “Under the Sea” on the Ipads. The children worked as a group to experiment and play about with the different symbols to control the movement of each of the four sea creatures. Each group reported and fed back to the class about what they had discovered about the different symbols and buttons. Then using what they had learned they created a simple sequence of instructions for their chosen character and shared it with the class.
Some of the children were able to work out not only how to move the character but how to make them grow or shrink, disappear and re-appear and change the speed of their movement all by using their tinkering skills! Well done P1W!
Nursery News
Nursery Success
Read the full report here
We have very recently had a visit from the ‘Care Inspectorate’ to our nursery. The inspector spent a day with our nursery team assessing the effectiveness of our nursery provision for ‘Quality of Care’ and ‘Support and Quality of the Environment’. I am extremely happy to let you know that both were graded Very Good with extremely positive comments supporting the evidence the inspector found. The parents who were approached on the day and those who completed questionnaires also supported this evidence by the positive comments they made, especially emphasising the quality of information given in the ‘on line learners journey’ and the friendly greeting they received from nursery staff on a daily basis.
Well done to our nursery team who should be congratulated on the excellent practice that does happen in our nursery setting every day.
P7 News
It’s been a busy couple of weeks in Primary 7! Last week we held our annual Scottish Poetry competition. Well done to Bethan, Cailin and Olivia who were the winners from our class!
We have also been thinking about kindness in P7, linked to our Wonder topic. We created our own portraits in the style of the Wonder illustrations and surrounded them by rays of kindness.
We are continuing our work on our new IDL topic, Japan. We have been comparing Japan and Scotland, looking at similarities and differences and learning more about Japan as a country. Next we will be learning about natural disasters common to Japan. With Ms Brolls we created our own Cherry Blossom pictures.
Float Our Boats – Science Skills in P5A and P5C
We were learning about floating and sinking in P5A. First we investigated whAT THINGS FLOATED AND WHAT THINGS SUNK. We learnt about buoyancy, upthrust and gravity and how the density of the material affected the buoyancy. Afterwards we designed boats thinking about their size and shape. We ran a fair test as we each used the same size of tinfoil. We predicted how many pennies our boats would hold . Then we tested the boat design and recorded how many pennies it held before sinking.
I found out that sometimes it is the shape and size of the boat that effects the buoyancy. Our small boat held 21 pennies but we had predicted that it would hold 10 (Ruari). It was so much fun making and testing our boats (Kai).
Safer Internet Day in P3
To mark Safer Internet Day 2018, Primary 3 took part in lots of activities to help us understand why we should stay safe online. First, we looked at different emojis and suggested adjectives to describe each one. Then we were given a range of different internet themed scenarios and had to stand beside the emoji that represented how we would feel in that situation, sharing why we had chosen that emoji with each other. Next, we looked at different images and had to sort them into ‘safe’ and ‘not safe.’ We quickly discovered that all of the items can be safe, including digital tools, if we use them sensibly and responsibly.
We love using the internet in Primary 3, so we learned about our ‘digital footprint’ and how important it is to make sure we use it in a positive way. For the #ItStartsWithUs campaign, we made a pledge of something kind that we could do to make the internet a better place. We also took part in a Skype session where we learned top tips from 6 different schools from across Scotland.
Internet Safety in P6, P7/6 and P7
This morning, P6, P7 and P7/6 had the opportunity to take part in a live GLOW meet with Police Scotland all about internet safety. This was part of Safer Internet Day 2018. This topic is a core part of the Technologies curriculum:
I can explore online communities demonstrating an understanding of responsible digital behaviour and I’m aware of how to keep myself safe and secure. (TCH 2-03a)
Pupils joined with thousands of others across Scotland to listen to police officers talk about a range of online safety strategies and then opportunity was given for questions to be answered afterwards.
Hopefully all of us have learned a little bit more about staying safe online and about how our own conduct online can affect others.
P7:Term 3 Learning Letter
Learning Letter P7 Term 3 – 2017-18 JR.ER
Dear Parent/Carer,
Welcome to term 3 in Primary 7. Last term, we enjoyed our two IDL contexts, Mid Calder Memories and Wonder, and we have now started learning about Japan. After our focus on reading for enjoyment in term 2, I am pleased to see so many pupils bringing in their own novels to class and choosing to read them whenever they can. Please keep track of all that we are learning this term via the school blog. Mrs Redmond & Mrs Ramsay
P6/7: Term 3 Learning Letters
Learning Letter P7-6 Term 3 – 2017-18
Dear Parent/Carer,
Welcome to term 3 in Primary 7/6. Last term, we enjoyed our two IDL contexts, Mid Calder Memories and Wonder, and we have now started learning all about Japan. After our focus on reading for enjoyment in term 2, I am pleased to see so many pupils bringing in their own novels to class and choosing to read them whenever they can. Please keep track of all that we are learning this term via the school blog. Miss Richmond
P6: Term 3 Learning Letter
Learning Letter P6 Term 3 – 2017-18
Dear Parent/Carer,
Welcome to term 3 in Primary 6. Last term, we enjoyed our two IDL contexts, Mid Calder Memories and Wonder, and we have now started learning all about Japan. After our focus on reading for enjoyment in term 2, I am pleased to see so many pupils bringing in their own novels to class and choosing to read them whenever they can. Please keep track of all that we are learning this term via the school blog.Mr Renshaw
