Great Day To Make Snowmen At Lochcarron Primary School

With a sudden heavy downpour of snow this Friday morning, the children thought is was time to use their creative skills to make some giant snowmen.

 

Giants Make Their Home At Lochcarron

All of the children from Lochcarron Primary School thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to present their Christmas Pantomime this year – “Jack and the Beanstalk” Not only did all the children from the school take part in the performance, but they were greatly supported by their parents and families who helped with the scenery and costumes, as well as supporting a great raffle held at the end of the evening.

It is great to report that through both a small admission price and raffle donations, the school made a fabulous £595 towards their school fund.

Many thanks to all the children, staff, and parents/carers who mad this years pantomime such a success.

Mr. Gill

 

Being Part Of The NSPCC Speak Out – Stay Safe Programme

At the end of January both Applecross and Lochcarron Primary Schools were visited by John Darcy, the area coordinator the NSPCC Schools Service.

With the help of their friendly mascot, Buddy, John presented age relevant and child friendly and sensitive workshops to all our children looking on how stay safe and who to talk to if they have any concerns.

I was really impressed with the way the workshops really got all the children to think about and contribute on how to stay safe from harm, as it was presented without the need to use scary or adult language. These very important responsibilities fit perfectly into our commitment to develop fully the Health and Wellbeing of all our children, as well as being part of a confident and supportive community.

Well done to all the children and staff involved

Mr Gill.

Parents Leading Learning For Their Children At Lochcarron Primary School

On Thursday 22^nd February we held our first workshop looking at providing hands on advice as to how our parents could support their children’s reading and spelling skills, especially in the early years. This reflected the latest research and strategies presented in Scottish schools, being brilliantly led by the Highland Council’s Literacy Development Officer, Laura McGinlay.

It was really encouraging to see that seven very enthusiastic parents attended this lively session. They all took away with them some great and easy to use resources which are fun, engaging, and build up the vital confidences and success amongst children. On top of this, it proved a supportive and relaxed opportunity for the parents to get together, have a cup of tea and a cake, and share their own experiences of how their children learn new things at home.

We are presenting the same workshop to our parents at Applecross in April. Indeed, this is part of our long term commitment to provide an exciting and relevant family learning programme covering many of the skills and experiences which parents/carers from both schools have identified as important to them.

Details will follow throughout the year, and all parents/carers are most welcome to get involved.

Understanding the Importance of our Values at Lochcarron Primary School

The core values around which we all base our lives upon are the foundations to a successful, productive and happy community.

Therefore, all the children and school staff at Lochcarron have spent valuable time looking at firstly what “values” actually mean to us all, secondly how they shape our behaviour, and thirdly how we arrive at these values.

Through this positive and supportive process the whole School have arrived at 5 very powerful values which we would like to see throughout every example of our daily interactions here at School.

Our 5 agreed core values are, therefore, as follows:

KIND, CONFIDENT, CARING, SUPPORTING, POSITIVE 

Not only do the children believe that these values need to be shown and worked upon on a daily basis here at School, but that they are also really important outside of School and back at home and within the community we all live in. With this in mind, all of the children are being encouraged to discuss, and demonstrate what these values will look like when they include both School and the home setting.

 

The Head Teacher’s Blog – 1/09/2017

We are now three weeks into the new School Year. Our collective theme this week has been based around the idea of GROWING as people

Before the Summer Holidays members of our Gaelic Classroom set about growing their own vegetables in our garden. When they arrived back after the Holidays they were greeted with this awesome sight:

So this acted as a fantastic example to our children that with something as small as seeds, with a little care and attention, some great things can happen.

Mr.  Gill,

Head Teacher,

Lochcarron Primary School

 

 

Welcome Beack To The New School Year

Welcome Back To The New School Year From Applecross and Lochcarron Primary Schools

The start of any new school year provides us all with the opportunity to get really excited about all of the fantastic opportunities we have ahead of us.

Refreshed and raring to go after an important break with family and friends, all our pupils were so positive when they arrived at their Schools this morning. It is especially pleasing to see some new young faces as well as noticing that even in 6 weeks many of our existing pupils had grown considerably.

Time never stands still and the next School year will provide us all with the opportunity to build upon the things we do best by presenting new and engaging learning experiences which have a brilliant impact on all those involved. One of my personal commitments is that I want every pupil from both Lochcarron and Applecross to take part in at least one after-school or community based activity during this year. This will undoubtedly be fully realised when both Schools build on the very positive relationships we already have with the community. So, if you do have any further advice, suggestions, and experience which we can all benefit then please do not hesitate to contact me here at either Schools. Your opinion is always appreciated.

So, please do watch this space as the year unfolds – and please enjoy the ride.

Robert Gill, Head Teacher, Lochcarron and Applecross Primary Schools

Tel – 01520 722445/01520 744325

The Head Teacher’s Blog

I would just like to say an immense thank you to all those from the Lochcarron community who have made me feel so welcome since I started as Head Teacher at the School a couple of weeks ago. Lochcarron Primary School is obviously right at the very heart of all what the community stands for, and this sense of partnership really comes through in the way our pupils value what they contribute to the School and how all the staff involved at the School contribute back. It is a real team effort.

Being a successful lifelong learner relies on our young people gaining a rich, diverse, and well-rounded set of skills which they can develop as they grow in today’s society. My initial reflections on my short time here at Lochcarron is just how positive and creative our pupils are, and how they embrace fully the wide range of opportunities which the School provides them with.

So, my vision is to fully harness this sense of positivity and exploration by further developing the tremendous learning and social discovery opportunities which clearly exist within us all. As I said earlier, I know that the whole community can really contribute to this fantastic journey, and I look especially forward, therefore, to working with you all in fulfilling this potetial.

With this in mind, if you would like to have conversation with me to explore your ideas further then please do not hesitate to contact me directly here at the School.

Our telephone number is (01520) 722445 – I look forward to hearing from you.

Have a great week

Robert Gill,

Head Teacher,

Lochcarron and Applecross Primary Schools

 

 

 

Thank you to Scottish Sea Farms!

Our school trip in May to The Shieling Project near Beauly has been given a huge funding boost with a donation of £500 from Scottish Sea Farms. Thank you very much to Scottish Sea Farms for their generous donation. The school would also like to thank Niall McCallum for his help in securing the donation.

Photo: Niall McCallum and Hayley Eccles presenting the cheque from Scottish Sea Farms to pupils.

Please note:

 

Mr Robert Gill is our new Head Teacher as of Monday 24th April. He will be Head of Applecross and Lochcarron Primaries. We’d like to offer him and his family a warm welcome and we hope Mr Gill will enjoy his new role with us.