Newsletter Number 18 31st May 2013 Website: www.melroseprimaryschool.org.uk

Local Holiday Reminder - School will be closed on Monday 3rd June 2013.

Summer Extravaganza – Friday 7th June 2013 The event will open at 2.00pm with an exhibition of dance in the main playground. The Melrose Festival Court will officially open the afternoon.  2.00 - 4.00pm pupils will be running the stalls and raffle; money raised will go towards school funds.  Throughout the afternoon to approximately 6.00pm there will be a range of activities including a bouncy castle, face painting, hair plaiting, children’s crafts, music, and more including crepes and chocolate fountain. There will also be a BBQ and food catered by Jack’s Little Catering Company, prices will range from £2.50-£3.50 including filled rolls, burgers, sausages, many vegetarian options etc. Families are being asked to donate for the cake and candy, the bottle stall, the chocolate tombola, the Red stall, and used books/games/toys Raffle tickets have been sent home to every family. Please try to sell as many books as you can and further books are available from the school office. Any unsold tickets along with money/stubs for books sold should be returned to school by Wednesday 5th June, thank you. Further information can be obtained from the school office or Lori Thomson 07950032889.

Health and Safety Foods containing nuts Please ensure that snacks and packed lunch food does not contain nuts (including peanut butter in sandwiches); there are a number of pupils in School that have nut allergies. Head Lice Please regularly check your child/ren’s hair for head lice, we have had reported ‘sightings’! Advice can be sought from Mary Carryer the school nurse on 01896 822945 or from the local chemists. Jewellery and long hair  Earrings – earrings must be removed for PE, pupils who are not able to remove their own earrings must have them covered with tape (e.g. mircopore) before coming to school. Children are not allowed to take part in PE if earrings are not covered; office staff are not permitted to tape earrings.  Longer hair – hair longer than collar length must be tied back for PE, please ensure pupils bring something suitable to tie their own hair back, office staff cannot provide hair bobbles.

Dalguise Residential Outings  Current P6 pupils reminder that the final instalment of £144 must be paid not later than Friday 14th June 2013.  Current P5 pupils reminder that the booking forms and deposit of £40 must be returned to school no later than Friday 14th June.

Staffing A big thank you to Gillian Usher who has been doing long term supply in P3T for a number of weeks. During June Mrs Laura Thomson and Mrs Karen Henderson will be teaching P3T.

School Uniform School uniform can now be ordered direct from http://www.border-embroideries.co.uk with the option of free delivery to the school or for a small charge to an alternative address. Items must be ordered by 10th June 2013 to ensure that it will be delivered free to the school by the end of this session. Orders placed between 10th June and 31st July 2013 will be delivered to the school and available to collect from the school office on Monday 19th August 2013. Orders placed after 31st July will be delivered to school on 28th August. Uniform can still be ordered through the school office, please request an order form.

P7 Performance Parents and family of P7 pupils are invited to attend a musical performance of Burke & Hare on Thursday 13 June 2013 at 2pm. Formal invitations will be sent to each family.

Rag Bag Recycling Please continue to bring your old clothes, linen and shoes for the Rag Bag Recycling scheme. To date we have raised over £220. Mini Olympic athletic competition for P7 This year’s event will take place on Monday 24 June 2013 at Earlston High School starting at 6pm. Some P7 pupils will be selected to represent Melrose Primary School in this competition – the pupils who are selected will be personally informed. Parents are request to transport pupils. All P7 pupils are invited to attend.

Jimmy’s Footsteps The catering manager for Scottish Borders Council, Alistair McIntyre, has set up a new charity ‘Jimmy’s Footsteps’ to raise money for a rare children’s cancer Neuroblastoma. The story behind the charity can be found at www.jimmy’sfootstep.co.uk To support the charity we remind you that every Wednesday the kitchen staff will be selling snacks for 20p, the snack will range from home made ‘goodies’ to fruit. We ask that pupils who would like to support the charity bring 20p and buy snack on Wednesday’s between now and the end of term. They will have the opportunity to purchase a snack to eat at ‘snack time’ which is normally just before morning break. All money raised will go to the charity.

Diary dates Monday 3rd June Local Holiday – school closed Wednesday 5th June Parent Council Meeting Friday 7th June Summer Extravaganza Monday 10th June Meeting for new nursery parents 6pm – 6.30pm Meeting for new P1 parents 7pm Reports to parents Tues 11th & Wed 12th June P7 visit to Earlston High School Thursday 13th June P7 Performance for Parents – 2pm Next session class information to parents Friday 14th June Borders Book Festival children’s day Final Instalment of £144 for Dalguise 2013 due W/C 17th June Melrose Festival Week Monday 17th June Class swap day, visits for new Primary 1’s and taster lunch for new P1’s Tuesday 18th June Alternative Sports Day (if wet on 31st May) Friday 21st June Melrosian Visit Monday 24th June Potted Sports Mini Olympics, P7 pupils, at Earlston High School Thursday 27th June End of year assembly, led by P7 for P4 – P7 and P7 Parents at 2pm Thursday 27th June End of session. School closes at 3pm Tuesday 20th August Autumn term begins at 9am

Forthcoming Events/Activities

Active Schools The Earlston Border Games takes place at Earlston Rugby Club on Saturday 1 st June at 11.30am. Primary 6/7 pupils in the Earlston HS catchment area are invited to take part in the primary school 90m sprint. Registration at 10.30am, entry is free. A great introduction for aspiring athletes. Contact Bruce Scott for further details: 01896848145/bruce@[email protected]

GIBSON PARK PLAYGROUP ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING TUESDAY 11TH JUNE 7.30PM THE TOWNHOUSE HOTEL MELROSE Light refreshments will be served. Enrolment forms for 2013/2014 available. For more information contact Elaine on 07827 159336 Scottish Charity no. SC017075 Pro'sLife Rugby Academy Pro'sLife Rugby Academy has been specifically designed to give children of all abilities the rugby experience of a lifetime. Our carefully constructed programme will give the participants a chance to experience the life of a professional rugby player in a safe environment. Our aim is to educate 10 - 15 year olds on not only the playing side of the game but also on the lifestyle of a modern professional. ProNutrition will be teaming up with leading brands to educate children and parents on the benefits of healthy eating.

Pro'sLife will be run by James King and Steven Turnbull, who are both recently retired professional rugby players with over 12 years professional experience in the game. Both have coaching experience and are enthusiastic about passing on their knowledge to the younger generation.

We will be at Netherdale, Gala R.F.C on the 8th July. For more details contact [email protected] or visit www.proslife.co.uk