Smithton Primary School

Do remember to join us next Saturday no matter what your fitness levels are. Just come and have fun raising money for MFR Cash for Kids at the same time.

Who is coming to join us singing a song at the local Christmas service? As mentioned before, Smithton has produced a Community ‘Choir’ i.e. parents, grandparents, carers, Brownies, staff, young people and everyone else in between in hte past and it’s always a great time to stand together. Come and sing with us 21st December. Here’s the song we’re singing and there will be a couple of sessions nearer the time so we can get our act together…

Parent Council Windfall!

The Winter Windfall is back for 2022!

Get your tickets to be in with a chance of winning some fantastic prizes:

1^st Prize: £200 vouchers

2^nd Prize: £100 vouchers

3^rd Prize: £50 vouchers 

Bonus Prize: Family Weekend Away

*Vouchers will be winners choice from a selection of options.

Books will be available for collection at the following places:

·       School reception from Monday, 28^th November

·       Jingle Jog on the 3^rd December

·       Toy Drop and Swap on the 8^th December

·       Christmas Shows on the 12^th, 13^th and 14^th December

·       Parent Council members will also be available in the community before/after school throughout December (will update on Facebook when these will take place)

If you need books out with these times, please contact the Parent Council facebook page and we can arrange delivery.

Tickets are £1 each.

The Winter Windfall will be drawn on Wednesday, 21^st December 2022.

All entries, monies, and unsold tickets should be returned to school by Tuesday, 20^th December 2022.

Gymnastics Activity Instructor

This instructor accreditation provides an alternative to the traditional coaching pathway, allowing anyone to upskill and lead delivery of low-level gymnastics skills to recreational participants; supervise others, and support the growing demand for recreational gymnastics activity in clubs, leisure centres or schools. 

This is a 4 day course open to Individuals aged 18+, no previous gymnastics experience is required and costs £399 (This can be fully funded through Highlife, if the participant will be involved in the delivery of Active Schools sessions) therefore a bit of commitment is required by the participant.  More information on this course can be found here: https://www.scottishgymnastics.org/education/coaching-instructing-gymnastics-activity-instructor

Learn to Coach Gymnastics

The Learn to Coach gymnastics course is a 1 day course for Leaders 14yrs + who are interested in supporting gymnastics sessions.  This qualification does not allow participants to lead any gymnastics sessions.  This is aimed at Leaders who are looking for an introduction course to Gymnastics and who may be interested in going down a Gymnastics coaching role in the future.

Please do let me know if you have any staff, volunteers or leaders who would like to attend either of these courses and hopefully we will manage to get this training provided in the new year.

Thanks,

David  

David Shaw – Active Schools Coordinator, Culloden ASG

High Life Highland | Culloden Academy | Keppoch Road | Inverness | IV2 7JZ

M:07795825603 T: 01463 796130

david.shaw@highlifehighland.com

Facebook: Culloden Active Schools

Instagram: @HLHActiveSchools

Twitter: @HLHSport

Almost £400 raised by you all for Children in Need! Well done P3 and P5 for all the organisation. Fantastic Star Award winners this week with a whole range of ways they have evidenced the school values and improved their learning.

Who needs royals or MPs attending COP meetings when you can have P4 CN at Smithton speaking directly to the conference in Egypt. Great wee video here from them.

As the days are turning colder please do ensure your child is well wrapped up and all gloves, hats, scarves and jackets have their names in them…we have a number of jackets in lost property at the moment!

Have a good last in November weekend,

Aileen Mackay, HT

The weather has finally caught up – Christmas is coming. Watch paths and puddles this morning as there is ice everywhere. parents and carers – there’s a great idea coming to you from Parent Council via Dojo later today.

Thanks to Jenna she’s created a family event in two weeks’ time – do come along!

Have a good Monday,

Aileen Mackay, HT

Dear Parents,

Have you ordered your school photos yet? A polite reminder that the closing date for free delivery back to school is Sunday 27th November 2022.  Order through the Tempest website using your unique link or visit www.tempest-orders.co.uk

If you need any assistance in ordering your photos, feel free to contact Tempest on 01736 751555 (option 3).

Many thanks, Tempest Team

The winter bugs are really upon us…here’s hoping we all build up immunity that our bodies have missed out on over the last few years. Please remember to keep your child off for 48 hours even if it looks like a full recovery as often the bug is still in our systems so not only do we pass it on, if we’re not fully clear there’s more chance of it catching us again!

Thank you to P3 and P5 for organising Children in Need today. They will tell you the amount raised next week. Good spotty fun all day today to cheer us up in the rain.

See below for child payments you may be entitled to.

Ms Cunningham is our new Senior Early Years Practitioner. She started on Monday and will be working in all the rooms to get to know everyone for a couple of weeks before settling down to helping us continue to make Smithton ELC the best place it can be to lay the foundations of learning at the school.

Photos tonight are star awards, Paige’s success with collecting, wrapping and handing over shoeboxes to Blythswood, P4 and COP27 speaking to Egypt (more on this next week – we have budding politicians!) mark making in nursery ready for writing, Children in Need and some photos of P7s comparing them to when they were wee and cute…

Have a good weekend.

Aileen Mackay, HT

Please see the letter from Highland Council

🐻Children In Need 2022🐻

Children in Need is coming up this Friday (18^th). P3HB and P5KS have been put in charge of organising children in need this year, and have done an amazing job!

Children should come in wearing their most SPOT-tacular outfit (so wear lots of spots) and bring in any donations they want to make. Activities on the day will include a Pudsey bear hunt, a guess the spots game, and a drawing competition.

Can’t wait to see all the spots!

Love from P3 HB and P5 KS

Sorry for another post this morning but I’ve just been told that the security gate that we were promised from the school build three years ago is about to be put into place. Tomorrow morning staff will not be able to park in the school grounds after 8am so will use the car park opposite the school. Where possible people will car share/find others ways to get here but for many staff this is not practical. I urge you to ‘park and stride’ from the Smithton church car park that they have kindly said we can use at any point. I will be out to make sure that cars don’t park in a way that will be hazardous for children to cross so please leave earlier tomorrow or find another way of getting here. As staff will be teaching all day they may not have time to go and move the cars into the staff car park in the afternoon so please just assume it will be very busy here tomorrow all day.

Ultimately this is for your child’s protection as it will ensure no one can come into the school grounds without a fob so I please ask for your patience tomorrow.

Aileen Mackay, HT

Today and tomorrow for school photos…all these wonderful smiles for posterity!

Here’s some of our own photos from last week..a great learning experience for P1 as both classes went to see what happens at the fire brigade. Now they have seen with their own eyes they can then articulate with a wider vocabulary and therefore enrich their understanding. It’s one of the areas for improving the learning experiences for the young people at Smithton this year and they are responding really well. If you can volunteer your time either for your child’s class or any other class your time would be greatly appreciated and you will have fun, too!

Logan, Lucas and Oliver in P3 were ‘stars’ as the cleaners called them last week. Because of the wind the leaves were everywhere in the school. These three amigos decided to brush up the leaves in the corridor outside their classroom to help!

Last week’s HT summary here.

Have a good Monday!

Aileen Mackay, HT

Basketball starting on Friday night at Culloden Leisure Centre

5pm-6pm

11th November-16th December

7-11 year olds

FREE to HLH Members or £3.40 to non-members

Book online: https://summer.highland.gov.uk/Connect/MRMLogin.aspx

or by calling the centre on 01463 792 794

Also – Thistle Colts Saturdays 9am -10am over on the Smithton park for P6 and P7

It’s traditional at Smithton that we have so many grandparents and relatives who are dropping off, picking up or looking after sick children to allow parents to work so we decided it would be good to have a ‘grandparents’ session. This is for anyone that drops off/picks up and looks after youngsters. Before you go home on Fridays at 9am why not come and join Rose for a cuppa?

As the darkness comes down, please remember if you are driving to look out for the young people on their bikes or them crossing the roads. We are trying to reinforce road safety as well.

Head Teacher’s Learning Summary can be accessed on the tab above or here Apologies for delay – thought I had sent this on Monday! This is where you will find details of dates for your diary for the term as well as what I’m focusing on with your children’s learning and how I am ensuring progression, depth and continuity in learning.

We’re delighted that the extra curricular clubs have started properly now and each week we will feature photos from the groups. (Look out for the art club photos in the slideshow.) Please note that you need to complete the survey so that we have all the details. It has been fine for this week to add names to groups for ease but this must be followed up with adding your child’s name to the survey. For cross country please add the extra app to your phone. Good to see more than 165 young people taking part across teh week!

Survey to all your child to attend after school clubs

Cross country app

Fiona, our Ness Factor singer was delighted with the £360 you raised for her hospice appeal last week…one week to go, Fiona before the big night! Thanks for sending in another few photos. We can’t wait to hear how you get on next Saturday night. Brooke, in P3 made Fiona and the Hospice an amazing poster – echoing all that we have to say about the phenomenal service they give to families. Look out for it in the slideshow.

Some other photos of children using their intiative in school – fantastic problem solving and autonomous learning. It’s easier to ‘do as you’re told and do it this way’ but this means chidlren find it more difficult to think about their learning in other contexts. Expecting problem solving and initiative building creates strong individuals.

Have a good weekend, everyone.

Aileen Mackay, HT

Applications are now open for this year’s Highland Parasport Festival!

Saturday 12th November

Dingwall Leisure Centre

The festival is for school age children and young people with a physical, visual or hearing impairment.

Register using the link below or email Kirsty.ewen@scottishdisabilitysport.com for more information!

https://sds.justgo.com/workbench/public/events?ref=E9910131BCA07A5275383CCC278CD06B099D880D