Club Wild – Why Do Leaves Change Colour?
At Club Wild we have been looking at why leaves change colour and fall off their trees in the Autumn. We learned that the word for this is Senescence and this occurs in mid to late Autumn as different deciduous trees change from green leaf to a variety of colours.
It is funny to think that most of the spectacular colours of Autumn have actually been in the leaves all summer, covered up by the dominant green chlorophyll. As the weather cools and shorter days settle in, the chlorophyll starts to break down, revealing new and varied colour pigments. the brightest colours are seen when late summer is dry and autumn has bright sunny days and cool nights.
We went out to see if we could find and collect leaves with the different pigments. Some trees still had the green chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is responsible for helping trees and plants turn sunlight into food. The red, anthocyanin that we found in some leaves is produced as the chlorophyll is broken down unlike other pigments which always exist in the leaf. The yellow, xanthophyll can be seen throughout the Autumn on trees including birches, elms and oaks. The orange, carotene can be found beautifully on sugar maples. As the name implies, carotenes are also the chemical responsible for giving carrots their colouring.
We used the different coloured leaves to do some autumn art but the best thing to do during Autumn leaf fall or senescence is to run through the huge piles of crunchy, soft coloured leaves 😊🍂🍁
Fun Time Friday Take 2!
Today we had our second Fun Time Friday of the school year. Fun Time Friday is an opportunity for all our children to select an activity that they are interested in and take part in it with peers across different classes. We had a range of activities to choose from which the children brainstormed at Pumphie Pals last session.
Halloween Play at Nursery
Bronze School Sport Award
Congratulations to everyone on reeving this award for our school. A special thanks to Mrs McConville for submitting our application.
Basketball Team
Today our Basketball Team played their first friendly games in the West Lothian Wolves basketball tournament.
Congratulations to our team and thank you to the families who brought along their children, and to Mrs Hamilton for coaching our team.
JRSOs
Today the JRSO junior leadership went for a walk to identify safe and unsafe places to park your car.
They made a video from the school gate to the football ground car park, to show that it is a safe place to park and then walk to school.
https://vimeo.com/296909632
The group also took photos of areas around the school car park which is an unsafe to park.
Selling Our Harvest Crop
As Friday is our Harvest Assembly, our Partner Partner Group have arranged to sell some of our harvest crop gathered by Club Wild. Please feel free to take some items in return for a small donation to school funds.
Almond Pyjama Party
As Almond received the most house points this term they organised a Pyjama Party to celebrate their success.
Jack and Lauren organised a range of party games, dancing and a shopping list of party food.
Congratulations to Almond on their success and to the P7s in Almond for organising and running the party.
Club Wild – Autumn Treasure Hunt
We have been out exploring the grounds around the school looking for clues that mother nature leaves us.. telling us that change is on its way, Autumn is here!
Twigs and leaves, fruits and seeds are all falling to the ground as the stronger winds shake the trees. Birds, squirrels and other animals are busy collecting fruits and nuts to store through the winter. We didn’t see any squirrels but we know they are there. Under the pine trees we found pines cones nibbled by the squirrels as they collect the seeds.
Looking up and down we found all the things on our list. Will you find them too?
Join us for more autumn adventures soon.
Club Wild 🦔🐾🍁🕸
