Silverwood Primary

SILVERWOOD PRIMARY Newsletter October 2014

Harvest Donations Many thanks for your kind donations for our Harvest Assembly. Our local elderly residents very much appreciated the gifts of fruit and flowers which were delivered by our Primary 7 pupils and staff just before the October break.

Hallowe’en Parade Parents and friends are invited to attend our Hallowe’en Parade on Friday 31 st October 2014 at 1.30 pm in the assembly hall. All the classes will participate in the parade, which allows them to show off their costumes before they return to their classes for more Hallowe’en activities.

Macmillan Coffee Morning Thank you to all who supported our Macmillan Coffee Morning on Friday 26th September 2014. The event was organised by our Primary 7 pupils and staff, ably assisted by some parent volunteers. Your attendance and/or donations of baking meant that we sent a cheque for £320.22 to this worthwhile cause.

Class Open Day Timetable 2014/15

You are invited to see your child working in their class and join in their activities at the following times: Date Class Time Wednesday 29th October Primary 2A 11.15 am to 12.00 noon Wednesday 29th October Primary 1 1.30 pm to 2.15 pm Thursday 30th October Primary 3 9.30 am to 10.15 am Wednesday 12th November Primary 4 1.30 pm to 2.15 pm Thursday 13th November Primary 5 9.30 am to 10.15 am Tuesday 18th November Primary 4/5 9.50 am to 10.35 am Tuesday 18th November Primary 7B 11.15 am to 12.00 noon Thursday 20th November Primary 2B 9.30 am to 10.15 am Thursday 27th November Primary 6 9.30 am to 10.15 am Tuesday 20th January Primary 7A 9.50 am to 10.35 am

Pupil Council 2014/15 Pupil Council elections were held earlier this month and the following children were duly elected to represent the views of their classmates: Class Elected representative Primary 2A Kayla Barnes Primary 2B Emily Lafferty Primary 3 Blake Manson Primary 4 Rhys Deeley Primary 4/5 Alix Lockwood Primary 5 Lucy Adamson Primary 6 Emma Nesbit Primary 7A Kyle Miller Primary 7B Alicia Hunter Good luck to all our new representative and thank you to all the boys and girls who stood for elections.

Junior Road Safety Officers (JRSO) Ami-Louise Howard and Dylan Hunter have been selected to be Silverwood’s Junior Road Safety Officers. In this role they will be looking at road safety initiatives to take forward this aspect of Eco Schools. Their first initiative will take place on Tuesday 28th October when they are having a bring your bike or scooter to school day in a bid to discourage the use of cars to transport pupils to and from school. Any pupil who comes to school via bike or scooter will have the chance to win a prize in the JRSO lucky draw.

Future Events Tuesday 21st October Primary 1, 2A & 2B attend Science Centre, Glasgow Wednesday 22nd October Primary 7 Residential Trip Meeting – 6 pm in GP Hall, New Farm Primary Thursday 23rd October Cross Country event involving selected P6 & P7 pupils Sunday 26th October Ayrshire Swimming Gala Tuesday 28th October JRSOs Scooter/Bike initiative Wednesday 29th October Primary 2A Class Open Day – 11.15 am – 12.00 noon Wednesday 29th October Primary 1 Class Open Day – 1.30 pm - 2.15 pm Thursday 30th October Primary 3 Class Open Day – 9.30 am – 10.15 am Thursday 30th October Hallowe’en Disco Friday 31st October Hallowe’en Parade 1.30 pm Monday 10th November Whole School Immunisation Tuesday 11th November Whole School Immunisation Friday 14th November Primary 7 pupils involved in Family Story Finale at the Dean Park – 2.30 to 4.15 pm Wednesday 19th November Primary 6 involved in Day of Dance

School Priorities 2014/15

Following our visit by Education Scotland in January 2014, an Action Plan was written. Our school priorities for the coming year 2014/2015 will be:

Support for Pupils o To liaise closely with East Ayrshire Support Team (EAST) to enhance and develop understanding around Child Protection and also to review and revise our staged intervention strategies, looking closely at target setting and the involvement of pupils and parents. o To continue to work towards Dyslexia Friendly School Status, developing knowledge and understanding of dyslexia, and improving procedures to assist in diagnosis, all of which will have a positive impact on methodologies used across the school. o To establish nurturing practice across the school, increasing active learning and play opportunities across all stages. Learners’ Experience o Numeracy – review and develop existing practices, revise mental maths and problem solving strategies, alter planning and use ICT to develop aspects of maths. o Staff benefit from opportunities of peer observation in various establishments to further develop teaching and learning approaches. o To continue to develop assessment and moderation techniques to assist in maintaining high standards in attainment, in house and across the Learning Community. Ethos o Have parent workshop to explain about VCOP strategies and to inform parents about our journey to Dyslexia Friendly Schools Status. o Continue to develop PSD programme, encouraging pupils to be more confident and resilient, more able to solve friendship issues. Self Evaluation o Implement East Ayrshire’s Literacy and Numeracy assessments. o Introduce standardised assessment. o Continue to develop robust systems which allow for analysis of data to ensure that our children make appropriate progress.

Parent Council Our next Parent Council meeting is due to take place on Monday 24 th November 2014. This will be the first joint Parent Council meeting involving Silverwood and New Farm Parent Council. It will be held in the GP Hall at New Farm Primary at 7.00 pm. We hope a representative from the authority will be in attendance to update parents/carers on the progress of the new 3-18 Campus. Home and School Committee Future Events: Thursday 30th October - **Hallowe’en Disco – P1 to 3- 6.00 pm to 7.00 pm **Hallowe’en Disco – P4 to 7- 7.30 pm to 9.00 pm Friday 5th December - Christmas Fayre – 6.00 pm to 8.00 pm

(** Please remember that all pupils must be collected by a responsible adult at the end of the discos)

The Home & School Committee would welcome more members to assist at the fundraising events and help supervise at the school discos. If you would like to get involved, please contact the school office staff who will pass on your contact information to the Home & School Committee.

Health Advice – Norovirus: the winter vomiting bug This illness spreads very easily causing vomiting and diarrhoea. Norovirus is unpleasant, but not usually dangerous. There is no cure for it – you have to let it run its own course and avoid contact with other people until you feel better. You can still be infectious up to 48 hours after the symptoms go, so it is best to stay at home to help avoid spreading the norovirus to others.

Where to find out more:

NHS helpline: 0800 22 44 88 or www.nhsinform.co.uk/norovirus

Please remember if you have any concerns or queries do not hesitate to contact me at the school.

Kind regards

Diane Wright Head Teacher