Primary 1b have been making good use of the wonderful weather recently by completing a shape hunt in the playground. They had to find as many shapes as possible in the playground hidden in objects.

They did a very good job of tracking down circles, squares, rectangles and other shapes hidden in play equipment, benches and wall displays. They had great fun using the outdoor space for their learning.

On Friday 23rd March, all of our pupils from primaries 6 and 7 attended a series of workshops at Abertay designed by the students, geared towards learning about Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.  Here they learned about the principles of friction, surface tension and fluid density through a series of fun and engaging activities.

P1b have been learning all about pirates this term.  They hosted a special gathering to share their learning with others.  They sang many enjoyable songs including A Pirate Went to Sea, A Pirate Ship Sailed on the Allay Allay Oh and The Day I Went to Sea.

Everyone made fancy hats and wore them to the gathering.  Everyone enjoyed it.  All of P1b sang very well and performed the actions to the songs very well, especially Miss Chapman!  Well done P1b.

Primary two have been working hard during their music time with Mr McLean.  We have enjoyed learning lots of new songs and actions.  Lots of us have been working extra hard to always ensure we are listening and concentrating.  Our favourite part is doing lots of different types of voices, for example high, low, slow and fast. 

“I loved playing the parachute when we were singing,” said Rebecca.

“We have been using so, la, mi and ray,” Ethan commented.

Meanwhile, Charlotte said, “ We have liked learning the different pitches.”

Primary 7 pupils are really excited as they begin their preparations for  their move to secondary and embark on the next phase in their education.  Each year, a programme of transition activities is planned to help our young people as they make this important step in their lives, one of which is the Healthy Transitions project, run by Jane Duthie who works at The Corner Youth Centre.

Jane is ably assisted by S2 pupils who talk through health related topics, and are available to answer any questions, or allay any worries, that our P7s might have.  It was certainly nice to see some familiar faces return  to Blackness for a visit.

We would like to give a huge well done to all of our P6 pupils who participated in the Primary Schools Cross Country event at Baxter Park on Wednesday 14th March 2018.  Our Primary 6 girls’ team won a silver medal for their event. Everyone involved gave a great effort and represented Blackness very well.

This term pupils from P4-7 have been working during lunchtimes and after school, as well as practising at home for the Tayside and Angus heats of the Primary School Glee competition 2018.  On Tuesday 27^th February, they performed their songs “Try Everything” and “We Are Young” to an audience of around 500 at the Whitehall Theatre.  Everyone performed exceptionally well, remember the lyrics and choreography and gave it their all, producing a great performance. 

Although we didn’t get through to the next round this time, we have gained a lot of experience if we decide we want to participate in the future.  A huge thanks to Mrs Gaynor Thomson for sorting out the application process, Miss Jenny Edwards for her choral work, and to Mr Ian Cameron for his choreography routines.  Well done to all who performed on the night!

We have been learning about Viking runes.  We made the 1^st letter of our names out of clay.  We have also been learning about Viking longboats.  Vikings travelled this way to raid houses in Britain.  We found out about artefacts and the job an an archaeologist.  In a Viking long house the fire was in the middle.  If it had been at the side their house would burn down! We also learned about Viking clothes.  The men wore long tunics with big leather boots whereas the women wore similar tunics but with a head dress or a hat.  The class enjoyed the opportunity to dress up in Viking clothes!  It has been a really interesting topic! 

By Kirsty Caddick

We would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who attended our Spring Bingo on Wednesday 21st of March.  As always, it was a very well-attended event, with Miss Chapman turning in her usual expert performance as ‘Bingo Caller in residence.’  With lots of fun, and a fair few chocolatey prizes on offer.

P5 and P7 held a bake sale on Thursday the 22^nd March to raise money for the Uphill Trust.  Both classes worked really hard to create posters and advertise the event to the other classes.  Everyone baked or brought something to sell.  They raised around an incredible £560!  They hope that the church collection will add to this impressive amount for this very worthwhile cause!  A big well done to all involved! 

The Uphill Trust supports Uphill Junior School, a private kindergarten/primary school in western Uganda. Many of the children who attend the school are from poor rural families and a significant number of the pupils are orphans or come from single parent homes due to the devastating effect of HIV/Aids in Uganda. Uphill Junior School actively promotes the education of girls as well as boys.