NETHER CURRIE PRIMARY SCHOOL
June 2016
JUNE
Road Safety Theme: Journey Planning – Independent Travel
Wednesday 01 EPSSA Football Semi Finals
Friends of Muir Wood Park Meeting 6.45pm – some Primary 6 & 7 pupils
Thursday 02 School Open Day - IDL Community Art Event
You are encouraged to visit school to explore all the wonderful learning that has been taking place round the theme of ‘Past, Present, Future’
The sessions will take place between 9.15am – 10.15am or 1.15pm – 2.45 pm
(2.20pm is the latest time for visiting P1 and P2 classes)
PTA will serve refreshments during the afternoon.
Friday 03 Whole school trip - secret venue – all will be revealed!
Saturday 04 School Fair 12 noon to 3pm -
Donations of home baking, tombola prizes and help on the day is needed
Monday 06 Rights Respecting Schools Assessment for Level 1
- can you help with a parent voice at the assessment meeting? Please contact the school office for more information
End of year Achievement Assembly 1.15pm to 2.15pm
Tuesday 07 Area Strings Rehearsal at Currie High School - am – Primary 5 and 6 violinists
Area Strings Concert at Currie High School 7pm – 8.30pm.
Primary 5, 6 and 7 violinists participants should arrive at Currie High School by 6.30pm, wearing school uniform and black shoes.
Entry for audience is by programme, available from the school office, at a cost of £4.00 per adult and £2.00 per concession. Additional audience members may be admitted on the night on payment of entry cost at the door.
School Board Football Semi Final
Wednesday 08 Meeting for parents and carers of Primary 7 pupils at Currie Community
High School 6pm – 9pm. Please note that pupils do not attend this meeting.
Wednesday 15 Sports Day and Whole school picnic
Primary 4-7 Children should each bring a packed lunch to school. Primary 1-3 children will be able to pre-order a school packed lunch, or they may choose to bring their own lunch from home. Children are welcome to bring a picnic blanket and can share with others if they wish. In the event of poor weather we will eat our picnic indoors.
EPSSA Football Finals ~ tbc
Monday - Friday
13- 17 Whole School Health Week – details coming soon
Pupil Progress Reports sent home
Monday 20 P7 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Cluster Transition Day at CCHS
Tuesday-Thursday 21 – 23 P7 CCHS Cluster Transition Days – Details to follow
Wednesday 22 New Primary 1 Transition Event ‘Meet the Teacher’
Changeworks to visit Primary 3 - Paper making workshop
Thursday 23 Primary 3 visit the Museum, Chambers Street – ‘Ancient Egypt’ workshop
Friday 24 Newsletter Group Meeting
PLPs sent home
Tuesday 28 Final P6 and P7 Swimming Lesson at CCHS
Traffic Trails for P1 & P2 pupils (Parent Training 12.45pm and then the trails will start at 1pm)
Wednesday 29 DIY Concert
Thursday 30 End of term Leavers’ assembly (P7 parents and carers invited)
– details to follow
Term ends 12 noon
REMINDER : UNIFORM ORDERS HAVE TO BE PLACED BY 24th JUNE for delivery in the new term – thank you
AUGUST
Monday – Tuesday 15-16 In Service Days – staff only
School uniform orders will be available to collect from the school office
Wednesday 17 Primary 1-7 pupils return to school for the new term.
Primary 1 pupils start school. They attend mornings only until Friday 19 August.
Advance Notice
The School Grounds Group are planning another Mini Mudder and Garden Party which we hope to have the second week of the new term – watch this space for further information.
Dear Parents and Carers
School Open Day Thursday 2nd June 9.15-10.15am, 1.15-3.00pm
You are invited to visit school between 9.15am – 10.15am or 1.15pm – 2.45pm, 2.20pm is the latest time for visiting P1, P2 classes.
We invite you to view displays about children’s learning and observe children as they are actively engaged in learning. There will be activities in the classrooms in which visitors are encouraged to visit.
Members of the PTA committee will serve refreshments during the afternoon.
Health Week, Monday 13th to Friday 17th June
Throughout this week we will be focussing on developing the learners’ knowledge and understanding about the importance of making healthy choices. We will look at maintaining a healthy body and mind through a wider variety of activities. We ask that the children wear clothing suitable for taking part in physical activities. They do not have to wear their school uniform for that week.
Sports Day, Wednesday 15th June
As part of our Health Week, we plan to hold our school sports on the afternoon of Wednesday 15th June. Please ensure that child has a named bottle of drinking water.
You may wish to provide your child with a hat to wear on sports day if the weather is hot and sunny. If you wish to provide sun cream for your child to wear we request that this should be applied either by your child or by yourself.
Note that if the weather or field condition is uncertain a final decision as to whether or not the sports take place may not be taken until 12 noon.
The format for the day will be the competitive races in the morning for the whole school with an inter-House competition in the afternoon. We then invite you to come to the school for a picnic with your child or children, followed by the chance to watch your child take part in the potted sports inter-House competition.
A letter with the specific details and timing will be sent out in advance of Health Week.
School Crossing Riccarton Mains Road
Brian, the school crossing patrol has informed us that he will not be on duty the week beginning 6th of June to 10 June – the Council are trying to get some cover for his post, but this may not happen – please make sure if your children use this crossing that they are extra vigilant during this period.
Summer Reading Challenge
This year’s UK-wide libraries’ summer reading challenge theme is ‘Big Friendly Read’. Children are asked to register at their local library, then to undertake the challenge of reading at least 6 books during the summer. The challenge runs from 30 June – 15 August
On-line games and competitions, book recommendations, information about authors, chat about books and much more is available at http:summerreadingchallenge.org.uk
Personal Learning Plans
Children will be bringing these home on Friday 24 June to share with you. Please take time to look through them together, reflecting on your child’s learning and skills development. Please talk to your child to identify any additional out of school achievements and update the wider achievements page together – such an achievement may be something which resulted in the award of a certificate or it could be a personal achievement such as learning to ride a bike without stabilisers, baking a cake unaided or helping an elderly neighbour with their garden on a weekly basis. It is a great record for you and your child to reflect on over the years.
Bikeability Cycle Training
Primary 6 have undertaken Bikeability cycle training under the guidance of school and Council staff, community police and parent helpers. Initially training took place in the school grounds then it moved to local streets. As a result, children’s confidence and skills in cycling have increased. We encourage them to continue practising so that these increase further. Each pupil will, in due course, receive a certificate of participation which also identifies their next steps.
Walk to School
Now that the better weather is again with us we remind you that we encourage all pupils to walk to and from school each day. If for any reason this is not practical or possible, we ask that parents park a distance away from school so that children can walk part of their route.
JASS – Junior Award Scheme Scotland
Primary 6 and 7 pupils have been working on the JASS programme during the year identifying targets and planning and undertaking wider learning opportunities under the heading of ‘My Interests’, ‘Get Active, Stay Active’, ‘Me and My World’ and ‘Adventure’. We congratulate those pupils who have completed the bronze and silver levels, and encourage others to complete and write up those sections which they have undertaken. A certificate is awarded for each completed section, a badge and certificate is awarded for completion of each award level. Primary 7 children are reminded that they can include participation at school camp for the Adventure section. They will be able to begin work on the gold award when they are in S1 at high school.
Currie Riding of the Marches
Another event earlier in the term saw many Nether Currie families at the start or along the route of the Currie Ride. Just before the Ride, Ensign and her Equerry visited school to tell the children about the ride and announce competition winners. We congratulate Primary 3 pupil, Isla Bruce, the overall winner of the competition to design a horseshoe.
Currie Flower Show (Currie Parish Horticultural and Industrial Society Annual Show)
Currie Flower Show will be held in Balerno Community High School 1.30pm - 4pm on Saturday 27th August. Schedules for the show are now available from our school office or from local shops, price £2.00. Please consider participating and plan to attend. Competitions include fruit, vegetables, flowers, home baking and crafts. Each year Nether Currie pupils enter Junior sections, especially handwriting and art. Primary 6 pupils are each reminded to nurture their begonia plant throughout the summer, ready for their entry into the competition.
We encourage children to enter other sections, too, on an individual basis. Perhaps during the summer children might like to practise or prepare some of the following: a collage card (P1-6), an animal made from fruit or veg (P1-6) a miniature garden (P2-7), 3 chocolate krispies (P7), a floral table decoration (P2-7). Additionally, the novice schedule, in which Nether Currie pupils have enjoyed considerable success in recent years, includes competitions for: 1 pot plant max size 178mm, 1 flower in a 150mm vase, 3 tomatoes of any variety, 2 stalks of rhubarb, 2 potatoes, a painted stone, 4 pieces of tray bake, a decorated egg, a hand-made toy, a computer generated picture.
The Riccarton Trophy Industrial Trophy, on the theme of a cocktail party, will be awarded to any group of 3-5 members (adult or child) who creates an invitation (any crafts), a non-alcoholic cocktail in a glass, 4 assorted canapes, an evening bag (any craft) and a fresh flower corsage.
PTA Spending
Our PTA plays an important role in the life of the school, supporting the school in a number of different ways including
· Arranging and helping with events for pupils.
· Arranging social events for parents and whole families, and regular social activities (badminton club).
· Fund raising, thus helping to provide the ‘extras’ for pupils.
· Organising after school games and activity clubs.
· Ordering and selling items of uniform.
The PTA choose how to spend the funds raised through discussion with the Head Teacher, focussing on the identified priorities for the school. For example, they give a modern language dictionary to each pupil leaving Primary 7 and they help to fund children’s parties, sports day and an end of year event for Primary 7 pupils.
In the past year we have used some of this money to help towards the cost of educational excursions and for the whole school trip to the Traverse Theatre. We have also bought iPads for pupil use and have funded parts of our playground development, our subscription to SumDog used by pupils to raise attainment in maths and numeracy, a new music system and a TV screen for displaying the children’s experiences and achievements.
We thank all parents for their contribution to the life of the school through the work of the PTA. It is lovely to have so many parents involved in helping with our school events. We are always encouraging others to become involved in the work of the PTA. As well as helping the school access the resources and experiences we need, it is a really good way to get to know other parents - it is sociable and fun!
We are still looking for help with the after school gardening club.
Thank you to Julie Morgan-Jones, Dawn Deuchars and Gillian McIntee who have taken on the running of the PTA games clubs from Sandie and Lorraine – once again, thank you for all of your hard work over the past few years.
School Lunches – price increase
The price of a school lunch will increase to £2.05 per meal from the start of the new term in August (Primary 4-7)
Term Dates 2016 -2017 and 2017-2018
A copy of the term dates is attached. Please keep this for future reference, noting that 2016-2017 dates are on one side, those for 2017-2018 are on the reverse.
Medicines and Inhalers
A number of these, which we keep in the school office in case they are needed by children, are nearing the end of their date life. We therefore plan to return all medicines and inhalers to the children on the last day of term, and ask that you provide us with new ones, as appropriate, at the start of the autumn term.