The P6 Literature Circle Journey Begins!

Primary 6 started Literature Circles a few weeks ago and are already acting like Literature Circle professionals! They have learned the first 4 Literature Circle Jobs of Summariser, Illustrator, Word Wizard and Question Writer and prepare for their Literature Circle meeting each week by completing the set section of their reading book and preparing their job to present to their group.  The class are already coming up with fantastically creative ways to present their jobs and are having some very interesting discussions about their group reading books.

Apache Relay Race

Primary 6 ended their “School of Dreams” project with the “Apache Relay” this week.  Over the last few weeks, we have been learning about people from all walks of life who had big dreams and worked hard to make these a reality.  We have been working collaboratively in teams to think about our own dreams and goals, and some of the attributes, like determination and perseverance, that we all need to achieve our dreams.  We have completed a series of tasks and through the process have learnt that “success is 99% failure” and that when things go wrong we can use that and learn from it, as an important part of the journey to success. Our learning culminated in the battle to end all battles between the teams – the Apache Relay.  To complete the relay, each team had to reflect on the different skills each individual member brings to the team and then use these different skills to assign different tasks in the relay to different group members.  Some tasks were number based (sudoku puzzles), some needed fast letter recognition skills (wordsearches), some required good visual awareness (drawing challenges, jigsaws), whereas others relied on a good memory (matching games), and others needed good fine and gross motor skills or physical fitness (lacing a shoe, juggling, press-ups).  For the final task, team members had to work together to build a lego model without seeing a picture or diagram, relying only on their team mates to relay instructions for what to do.  We had a huge amount of fun, and also learned that we are all good at different things, bringing different skills and qualities to the team, and that when we work together and utilise all these different skills, we can achieve even more.

P6 Gallery Visit

As part of the Artists in Residence program leading up to the Colony of Artists Event this weekend, Primary 6 had the opportunity to visit the Talbot Rice Gallery.  We had a private tour of the Alice Neel collection and shared our thoughts and feelings about her work and then were given a masterclass in portrait drawing.  Using a grid system, we thought about where the different features of the face lie in proportion to each other and then practiced our new skills by drawing each other!  Some of our portraits bore a fantastic likeness to our subjects!

Happy Roald Dahl Day

Primary 5 saw witches, fantastic foxes, a Matilda or two and even a golden ticket come into school today to celebrate the life of Roald Dahl, and the learning we have done so far this term.

Today we did lots of Roald Dahl themed activities. Primary 5 brought in revolting treats and we threw a party in the afternoon. As you can see, we all had a scrumdiddlyumptious time!

 

Happy holidays!

It’s hard to believe that we have reached the end of another school year. Looking back, we have had yet another fantastic session where children have learned and progressed through a range of exciting and creative experiences.
We’ve seen the start of the School Streets pilot (September 2015) and had numerous walking buses to promote safe and sustainable travel to school. We’ve visited parliament, Edinburgh Castle, the Museum of Childhood, Holyrood Park, Aberdour beach, Bonaly outdoor centre, Meadowbank, Gambados, Alien Rock, Port Edgar, the Collective Gallery, the Talbot Rice Gallery and many, many more to support and develop our learning. Our Parent Council have grown in strength and numbers with the highlight of the Abbeyhill calendar being without a doubt the Summer Carnival at the beginning of June. We’re already looking forward to the next one! We have hosted volunteers, parent helpers, teaching students and Pirniehall Primary who spent a few months with us while their school was under repair. It is testament to the positive, welcoming environment of Abbeyhill that our staff and children welcomed Pirniehall with open arms and new friendships were forged! Pirniehall joined in with our key events such as our Sports Day and whole school Walk a Mile for Health Week and it was lovely to have them with us.
The end of our year is tinged with sadness as we say goodbye to three members of staff; Miss Jormola, Miss Smith and Miss Stewart. Miss Jormola is going back to Finland, Miss Smith has secured a permanent contract at Juniper Green Primary following completion of her probationary teaching year and Miss Stewart is going to the Royal High Primary to spread her already very skilled and talented teaching wings. We will miss you.
We will also miss our wonderful P7s who have been an absolutely fantastic year group all the way through Abbeyhill, from Nursery to the present day. They are a class that is full of character with genuine affection for each other with a great sense of humour! As they go off to their different high schools we wish them nothing but the very best of luck for their futures and hope they don’t forget us here at Abbeyhill.
From everyone at Abbeyhill, have a wonderful summer and we will see you when school and Nursery resumes on 17th August.

Sally Barker, Head Teacher