Dear  Parents    I   hope   you   all   had   a   good   holiday  period   and   are   settling   back   into   your  routines.        Thank   you   so   much   for   the   gifts   and  cards   I   received   from   you   and   your  children.       They   should   have   brought  you  home  a  thank  you  card  from  me.    Mr  McEwan    Bike  ability    Your   child   should   have   been   given  information   about   Bikeability,   which  starts   on   Tuesday   20th   January   and  runs  for  9  weeks  (weather  permitting).      Please   note   that   your   child’s   bike  should   be   in   a   roadworthy   condition  and  he  or  she  should  wear  a  helmet  and  suitable  warm  clothing.    A  Copy  of   the  letter  is  on  the  Class  Blog.    Topics    We   have   started   a   new   Topic   ‘The  Jacobites’   and   this   will   be   our   main  Topic  Focus  this  term.    On  Fridays  we   are   going   to  be   looking  at  a  number  of  issues  of  Personal  Safety  Issues  for  Health  including:    

• Safety  in  the  House,    • Out  and  About    • Looking  at  How  Others  Feel  

       

               I   am   also   hoping   to   do   some   ‘Finance  Lessons’  and  start  to  look  at  Renewable  Energy  before  Easter.    Language    Our   Writing   will   be   creating  information   leaflets,   poems   and   some  Imaginative   Writing.   Our   main  Grammar   Focus   is   using   the  apostrophe  for  ownership  (Bob’s  book)  and  contractions  (e.g.  didn’t)    Silent  Absorbed  Reading      We   discussed   how   this   is   going   as   a  class  and  made  the  following  decisions:    1.  Novels  should  be  read  a  MINIMUM  of  3  nights  a  week  between  Mon  and  Thu.      In   theory,   this   gives   the   children   a  ‘night   off’   for   any   club   activities   and  other  homework.  

 2.   It   would   be   helpful   if   you   could  encourage  your  child  to:    

• Read   for   at   least   3   nights   and  record   the  Title,   Pages  Read   and  a  comment.    The  comment  could  be   about   the   Plot,   Characters,  something   your   child   liked   or  how  they  felt  about  the  book.  

 • Discuss/read  to  you  once  a  week  (Please   can   you   note   that   you  hake  done  this?).  

 Book  Reviews  should  be  written  when  a  book  is  finished  and  your  child  should  

Gullane  Primary  School  Primary  5  

January  –  Easter  2015    

have   a   note   in   their   Reading   Record  about  the  kinds  of  reviews  they  can  do.    Also,   I   have   asked   the   children   if   they  can  note   ‘H’   for  read  at  home  or   ‘S’   for  read  at  school  in  the  Reading  Record.    Maths  &  Number    We   will   be   learning   the   rest   of   our  Tables  and  revising  them  in  school  and  continuing   to   use   Rock   Star   Tables   to  support  this  at  home.    As   we   are   continuing   to   work   on  Multiplication  and  Division,  it  would  be  helpful  if  your  child  could  try  their  best  to  commit  their  tables  to  memory    We   have   also   been   creating,   reading  and  using  different  types  of  graphs  and  tables  in  Maths  and  ICT.    This   term,   we   will   also   be   learning  about:    

• Decimals  • Weight  and  Volume    • Symmetry  

 ICT    This   term   we   will   continue   to   use  Google   Docs   and   Google   Classroom  during   ICT.     As   well   as   doing   simple  Data   Handling   in   Google   Sheets   and  Excel,   we   will   be   looking   at   simple  audio  and  video  creation  techniques.    Usual   Reminders:   School   &   Class  Blog    Have   you   checked   out   the   school   and  Class   Blog   recently?     There   is   lots   of  useful   information   for   parents   about  what   is   happening   in   the   class.        As   well   as   information   about  homework   and   what   is   being   taught,  

the  Slideshows   from  some  of  our  S.A.R  and   I.C.T.   lesson   are   on   the   class   blog,  as   well   as   games   for   extra   Maths  Practice.    Remember  that  if  you  sign  up  for  email  updates   on   the   School   AND   P5   Blog,  you  will   be   told  when   a   new   post   has  been  published.    You   can   also   subscribe   to   the   Google  Calendar   on   the   Main   Blog   for   all  Calendar   Dates   to   Sync   to   your  Calendar.    School  Site:  www.edubuzz.org/gullane    P5  Blog:  www.edubuzz.org/gullanep5        Tissues    As  there  are  so  many  colds  going  about  just   now,   the   school   is   going   through  many  boxes  of   tissues   and  we  want   to  make   sure   we   have   some   when   your  child  needs  them.        If  you  would  like  to  donate   a   box   of   tissues   to   the   class,   it  would  be  appreciated!      Thanks.      Spelling    As   well   as   the   usual   differentiated  Spelling   Work   and   homework   this  term,  we  are  spending  some  time  doing  Common   Spelling   Word   and   Phonics  Assessments.      This  will  help  us   to   see  what   your   child  needs   to  practise,   and  at   times   give   them   the   extra   Spelling  that   they   need.       Every   child   should  have   a   list   in   their   Blue   Bag   with   any  Common  Words   they   need   to   practise  on   them.       Sometimes   they   will   be  asked  to  focus  on  these  words,  and  you  can  use  them  to  ‘test’  your  child  at  any  time.              

Monday  Teacher    Between  now  and   the  February  break,  P5  will  not  have  any  Specialists  during  this   period.         On   a   Monday   from   12  noon  Mrs   Shona   Kerrey  will   be   taking  the   class   to   allow  Mr  McEwan   to   have  his  Reduced  Contact  Time.      Mrs  Kerray  will   usually   be   doing   Reading  Comprehension,   P.E   and   Grammar  work   that   has   been   planned   with   Mr  McEwan,  who  is  in  regular  contact  with  her  and  the  class  during  the  day.    Christmas  Jumper  Day    Thanks   for   all   your   support   with   this  successful   event   that   P4/5   and   P5  organised.       Along  with   Nursery   Show  donations,   we   raised   over   £500   for  Save   the   Children,   which   will   be  matched   by   the   government   giving   a  total  of  over  £1,  000.    Cake  Sale  For  Shelterbox  Charity    The   House   Captains   have   informed   us  that   they  would   like   Lufness   Pupils   to  organise   a   Yellow   Cake   Day   on   Friday  30th  January.      Lufness  Pupils  have  been  asked   to   donate   yellow   cakes   or  cupcakes  and  these  will  be  available  for  pupils  (and  staff  J)  to  purchase  on  that  day.    Daily  Maths  &  Spelling    This   term,  we  are   focussing  on  upping  our   Number   and   Spelling   skills.       The  children   are   doing   a   mixture   of   sums  each   day,   so   they   are   using   all  operations   all   the   time,   not   just   the  main  skill  we  are  focussing  on.      We  are  also   doing   extra   daily   Spelling.       Both  are  short  10-­‐15  minutes  blocks  of  time.            

Diary  Dates    20th   January   2015   for   9   Weeks   –  Bikeability  Mon   30th     March   6-­‐8.30   pm   &   Tues   31st  430-­‐7.30  pm  –  Parental  Consultations  27th   March   -­‐   John   Muir   Drama   in   School  (Rest  of  John  Muir  Project  after  Easter)    Helping  Your  Child    One  of  the  questions  I  am  often  asked,  as  a  teacher  is  “How  can  I  help  my  child?”    The   main   thing   you   can   do   this   year   is  make   sure   they   are   doing   their   Spelling,  Rockstars   and   S.A.R.   Reading   homework.    Also,   giving   them   time   to   log   on   to   their  EduBuzz   account   and   use   it   means   they  are   able   to   do   this  more   quickly   in   class.      It   is   amazing   how   much   quicker   those  children  who   log  on  at  home  can   log   into  their  accounts,  and  how  much   time   it   can  take  others  to  do  this.    Remember  there  are  sites  on  the  Class  and  School  Blog   that  can  help  with  Maths  and  Number,   and   you   can   also   use   the  Common   Words   Spelling   Lists   to   ‘test’  your  child.    Also,   if  your  child  has  access  to  their  own  Tablet   or   Phone   the   following   Apps   may  be  available:    Google  Drive,  Docs,  Sheets  and  Slides.    If   these   are   available,   they   can   be  downloaded   and   used   with   their   Google  Apps/EduBuzz  account.    Thanks   for   all   the   support   you   give   us   at  home.    Gullane’s   Got   Talent   –   Friday   20th  March    The  children  have  been  told  that  they  can  sign  up   for  auditions,  and   these  are  being  held   between   2   and   9th   of   February   (not  4th).      The  rules  and  more  information  are  in  the  Class  and  will  be  on  the  School  and  Class  Blogs.