St Cuthbert's RC Primary School

St. Cuthbert’s RC Primary School

Newsletter 7 – Friday 25th September 2020

St Cuthbert’s CARES We are: Creative Active Respectful Equal Supported

Good afternoon.

Thanks for your support again this week. Please continue to contact us by telephone (0131 443 2621) or via our admin mailbox (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk) if you have any questions about the school’s response to the Covid situation or anything else that you would like to ask. I hope you find the detailed information below both informative and useful.

School Lunches – Post October Holiday

The menu for school lunches post-October holidays should be live on the Parent Pay system by the end of next week. These menus will offer fully risk assessed warm and cold options each day. Please look out for this menu going live.

Parent/Carer Consultations Update: October to Christmas

Edinburgh schools will not be able to hold in person parents/carers consultations as we would normally do in October this year. What we propose to do instead, is for teachers to share a sign-up link with parents/carers via MS Forms (which will be posted on our secure Learning Journals platform) for them to choose a slot for a 5 minute telephone consultation with their child’s class teacher at some time between October and Christmas. I will be speaking to teachers over the coming weeks about suitable dates and will share this information with you as soon as it is available. We appreciate that this is not the same as having the face to face conversations we would normally have, but hope you appreciate that we are trying to be proactive and ensure that you are kept informed of your children’s progress under challenging circumstances.

Resumption of Homework

Homework has been organised for all classes this week via MS Teams. Going forward, it will be given out on a Friday, in order to give pupils and families both weekend and week night time for its completion. We will give all pupils reminders of their user names and passwords to ensure that they can access this work. These will go home with pupils today, Friday 25th September, please check that these details have been brought home safely and ensure that they are kept in a safe space. If any passwords are lost, please let us know and we will re-set

them next week. Please contact us if you have any questions re these plans or have difficulty in accessing homework digitally.

Flu Immunisation – Wednesday September 30th 2020

Please be reminded that flu immunisation will take place in the school on the above date for those pupils whose parents/carers completed and returned the necessary permission forms.

Digital Learning in St Cuthbert’s

Twitter (@stcuthbertsrcp)

Thank you for your positive response to our tweets sharing learning again this week. See reminder below of days on which classes will be tweeting:

Monday P1/P2 Tuesday P7/LCC1/2 Wednesday P4/P6 Thursday P3/P5

We will also share photos of Star Learners and Pupils of the Week, as of this Friday. The initial plan was to do a collage of all winners but due to Covid constraints this will now start with P1 and progress through classes weekly. This week’s featured class will be P2. Please note that only pupils, whose parents have given permission will be featured in tweets and no names will be displayed.

MS Teams

We have now setup new class Teams for 2020-21 and these will be used to share homework from week commencing 21st September. If anyone requires a device to access homework through this medium, please let me know via the admin mailbox: admin@st-cuthbert’s.edin.sch.uk

Nursery Applications – Please See New Link Below

We are continuing to make excellent progress with preparing our nursery for opening, hopefully in late October (depending on final confirmation from City of Edinburgh Council). Our two nursery seniors have been taking part in recruitment interviews throughout this week and things are really starting to take shape. You can use the new link below to access an application form to apply for a place when the nursery opens, please select St Cuthbert’s as your first choice if you wish a place

https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/downloads/download/12890/apply-for-nursery

If you are interested in applying to St Cuthbert’s only, you do not need to accept a temporary place elsewhere. Temporary places can however be secured by entering a 2nd and 3rd choice on the online form. Pupils can then be transferred when St Cuthbert’s opens. However please be aware that a place at St Cuthbert’s is not guaranteed and places are allocated using the admissions criteria.

Please hand or post in any completed forms to our office and please feel very welcome to ask if you have any questions.

October Break – Scottish Government Advice

Please remember that the Scottish Government have advised against ALL overseas travel during the October holidays. If you must travel for essential reasons please be aware that the list of exempt countries may change at short notice, on public health grounds. This means you may have to isolate for fourteen days on your return.

First Reconciliations – Current P4 Pupils Only Update

Parents/Carers of pupils who were in P3 last year and should have celebrated their First Reconciliation in March 2020, will have the opportunity to celebrate the sacrament in December: between the dates of Saturday 5th and Saturday 12th December. Parents/carers can select either a Saturday or weeknight slot by contacting Fr Duffy on 0131 443 1317 or staned@stcuthbertschurch.com to arrange a time for this sacrament to be celebrated.

Thank you to those who have been in touch with Father already. If you haven’t had a chance to do so, please try to in the coming weeks. Fr will be in school next week to speak to the pupils in this class about the Sacrament.

*Please note that any pupil wishing to celebrate their First Holy Communion in 2021 must have also made their First Reconciliation.

Reporting Absence (Particularly with Reference to Possible Covid Symptoms)

Thank you for the sensible approach you are taking to gauging when children are not well enough to attend school. In the current circumstances of an ongoing pandemic, we need to remain cautious and follow appropriate guidelines. We very much appreciate that our parents and carers are doing this.

If you are calling us to report absence, please be specific in reporting reasons for absence. In cases where you are reporting any of the following symptoms relating to Covid-19:

· High Temperature

· New and continuous cough

· Loss of, or change in, the senses of taste and smell

please be advised that pupils with any of these symptoms must be tested and evidence of test result e-mailed to our admin account (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk).

If a test is positive, pupils must have isolated for 10 days before returning to school 48 hours after symptoms have ceased. Siblings and families must isolate for 14 days.

If test result is negative, pupils should return to school once they have had 48 hours without any of the above symptoms.

Breakfast Club: Booking for Week Commencing 5th October is Now Open!

Breakfast Club is open daily from 8 am until pupils’ respective start times. I would appreciate it if you could email admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk if you wish to reserve a place for week beginning 5th October. Cost will be £1.50 per day for the first child and £1 per day for any additional children. If your child has free school meal entitlement, there is no charge. You still need to reserve a place via the admin mailbox. Once your child’s place is confirmed, money should be handed into the office on the Monday of each week in a sealed envelope marked with pupil names and amount of money enclosed.

Our Learning This Week in St Cuthbert’s Primary School

Please see this week’s learning below. I hope you enjoy reading it. Please also check out our school Twitter Account @stcuthbertsRCP

P1 – In Literacy we are learning to recognise and write n and p and we have started spelling 3 letter words. In Maths we went on a 2D shape hunt in the playground and are learning to double numbers. Play: a lot of us have discovered the pleasure of developing our fine motor skills by drawing with some lovely results

P2 – In Maths , we have been partitioning numbers as well as naming and using shapes to create 2D pictures. In health and wellbeing we have continued to work on positive behaviour choices through using zones of regulation.

P3 – In Literacy we have been learning to identify speech in a story and use predictive skills to develop and extension to an existing story. In Modern Languages we have learnt to identify numbers in Spanish. In Mathematics we have been learning to make 3 dimensional shapes using 2 dimensional shapes.

P4 – In Primary 4 we have been working together to identify patterns in times tables. In literacy this week we have been working on using the prefixes dis, un and in. Also in our

Ocean topic this week we have been learning about the moon and it’s pull on the waters of the earth.

P5 – In Literacy, Primary 5 have been learning to use descriptive language to write an acrostic poem about Autumn. In Numeracy, we continued to practise our times tables facts and we are using these to create new facts which involve multiples of 10 and 100. We have been learning about proportion in Art and using this to draw each other’s portraits.

P6 – In Maths we learned about the properties of 3D objects with Mr. Vilanova. In RME we have been learning about the life of Moses, and how God chose to communicate with him.

In Spelling we have been learning about Homophones.

P7 – We have been learning about Edinburgh Castle and how it was built on a volcanic plug.

We have been learning the tious (shus) sound in spelling and in STEM we have learnt about the layers of the Earth.

LCC1 -This week LCC1 have been revising initial sounds s, a, t, p, i, n. We have been word building cvc words using shaving foam, lentils, sand and play doh. We are continuing to add 2 numbers to make 5 and are working on correct number formation. Mr Villanova continued our Spanish topic and the children can name 4 cities in Spain. We read the Very Helpful Hedgehog, collected leaves and made 3D pictures of hedgehogs

LCC2 – Have been learning about endangered animals, why they are endangered and are beginning to investigate what can be done to protect them. We are also learning how to measure and calculate the perimeter of a shape. The class have also been learning about shading and practised this when drawing a Panda.

Head Teacher Availability

As above, please continue to feel very welcome at any time to contact me by phone or to e-mail our admin mailbox for my attention and I will respond as quickly as I can.

Mass Times at our local Parish – St. Cuthbert’s, Slateford

Fr Duffy passes on his best wishes to all of our families on their return to school. Attendance at Mass can now be secured by booking online. Please see details on the parish website. http://www.stcuthbertschurch.com

Saturday 6pm – Vigil Mass

Sunday 10am – Parish Mass

Sunday 5pm – Additional Mass

Finally

Thanks again for your support in these challenging times. I hope that you and your families enjoy the long weekend.

Kind regards.

Mr P Brack, Head Teacher

St. Cuthbert’s RC Primary School

Newsletter 6 – Friday 18th September 2020

St Cuthbert’s CARES We are: Creative Active Respectful Equal Supported

Good afternoon.

We have now reached the first milestone in the school year: The September weekend. It seems like a long time since our return to school but it has been great to be back. We thank you for your support in ensuring that this return has gone well. Please continue to contact us by telephone (0131 443 2621) or via our admin mailbox (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk) however, if you have any questions about the school’s response to the Covid situation or anything else that you would like to ask. I hope you find the detailed information below informative and useful.

Parent/Carer Consultations: Arrangements for Term 1

Edinburgh schools will not be able to hold, in person parents/carers consultations as we would normally do in October this year. What we propose to do instead, is for teachers to share a sign-up link with parents/carers via doodle poll, MS Forms or some other secure method to secure a 5 minute telephone consultation with their child’s class teacher at some time between now and Christmas. We appreciate that this is not the same as having the face to face conversations we would normally have, but hope you appreciate that we are trying to be proactive and ensure that you are kept informed of your children’s progress under challenging circumstances. More information on this subject will follow next week. Thanks for your patience.

St Augustine’s High School – Open Evening Information

Usually, a representative from St Augustine’s would attend our school in term 1, to provide an overview of their school to prospective parents. Again, this is something we are regrettably unable to do this year. St Augustine’s, have however provided us with a narrated information power-point that can be accessed via the link below.

https://staugustinesrchs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Information-Evening-2020.pptx

Homework – Resumes Week Commencing 21st September 2020

Homework will recommence next week in all classes (see note below re MS Teams). It will be given out on a Friday, in order to give pupils and families both weekend and week night time for its completion. Please contact us, if you have any questions re these plans or have difficulty in accessing homework digitally.

Digital Learning in St Cuthbert’s

Twitter

Thank you for your positive response to our tweets sharing learning this week. See reminder below of days on which classes will be tweeting:

Monday P1/P2 Tuesday P7/LCC1/2 Wednesday P4/P6 Thursday P3/P5

We will also share photos of Star Learners and Pupils of the Week, as of this Friday. The initial plan was to do a collage of all winners but due to Covid constraints this will now start with P1 and progress through classes weekly. Please note that only pupils, whose parents have given permission will be featured in tweets and no names will be displayed.

MS Teams

We are also in the process of setting up new class Teams for 2020-21 and these will be used to share homework from week commencing 21st September. If anyone is unable to access homework through this medium, please let me know via the admin mailbox: admin@st-cuthbert’s.edin.sch.uk

Nursery Applications – Please See New Link Below

We are continuing to make excellent progress with preparing our nursery for opening, hopefully in late October (depending on final confirmation from City of Edinburgh Council). You can use the new link below to access an application form to apply for a place when the nursery opens, please select St Cuthbert’s as your first choice if you wish a place

https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/downloads/download/12890/apply-for-nursery

If you are interested in applying to St Cuthbert’s only, you do not need to accept a temporary place elsewhere. Temporary places can however be secured by entering a 2nd and 3rd choice

on the online form. Pupils can then be transferred when St Cuthbert’s opens. However please be aware that a place at St Cuthbert’s is not guaranteed and places are allocated using the admissions criteria.

Please hand or post in any completed forms to our office and please feel very welcome to ask if you have any questions.

First Holy Communions Update – Current P5 Pupils Only

Letters confirming details of the celebration have now been sent out to all candidates who both Fr Duffy and the school are aware of. If you have not received a letter and are expecting your child to make the sacrament, please contact Fr Duffy on 0131 443 1317 or staned@stcuthbertschurch.com

First Reconciliations – Current P4 Pupils Only Update

Parents/Carers of pupils who were in P3 last year and should have celebrated their First Reconciliation in March 2020, will have the opportunity to celebrate the sacrament in December: between the dates of Saturday 5th and Saturday 12th December. Parents/carers can select either a Saturday or weeknight slot by contacting Fr Duffy on 0131 443 1317 or staned@stcuthbertschurch.com to arrange a time for this sacrament to be celebrated.

Thank you to those who have been in touch with Father already.

*Please note that any pupil wishing to celebrate their First Holy Communion in 2021 must have also made their First Reconciliation.

Staggered Timings Update

We are aware that staggered timings at the start and end of each day are inconvenient and present extra challenges to your morning routines. Thank you for being so cooperative in adhering to these timings and arrangements and ensuring that pupils do not arrive late and miss any of their key learning time. At present there is no indication of when these arrangements are likely to end, but we will of course let you know.

P1’s current start date of 8.45am is earlier than normal and thank you for adapting to this change. If, however, you find that you are late at any time please do not approach the classroom but instead bring your child round to the main entrance where our office staff will greet you and take your child through to their classroom. Thank you.

Finally, please be aware that pupils from P1-3 must be collected by an adult.

Return of Data Capture/KIC and Photographic Forms

Our Admin staff report that some Data Capture/KIC/Photographic forms have not been returned as yet. The information required is extremely important for your child’s school record so please return these as soon as possible. If you DO NOT return the KIC form, it means that your child will NOT be able to take part in any excursions from now until June 2021, if these become possible later in the year.

Flu Immunisation – Wednesday September 30th 2020

Please be reminded that flu immunisation will take place in the school on the above date.

Reporting Absence

Thank you for the sensible approach you are taking to gauging when children are not well enough to attend school. In the current circumstances of an ongoing pandemic, we need to remain cautious and follow appropriate guidelines. We very much appreciate that our parents and carers are doing this.

If you are calling us to report absence, please be specific in reporting reasons for absence. In cases where you are reporting any of the following symptoms relating to Covid-19:

· High Temperature

· New and continuous cough

· Loss of, or change in, the senses of taste and smell

please be advised that pupils with any of these symptoms must be tested and evidence of test result e-mailed to our admin account (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk).

If a test is positive, pupils must have isolated for 10 days before returning to school 48 hours after symptoms have ceased. Siblings and families must isolate for 14 days.

If test result is negative, pupils should return to school once they have had 48 hours without any of the above symptoms.

Breakfast Club: Booking for Week Commencing 28th September is Now Open!

Please be advised that Monday 21st September, is the Edinburgh September weekend holiday and the school week starts on Tuesday 22nd. Breakfast Club will be in operation from 8 am until pupils’ respective start times. I would appreciate if you could email admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk if you wish to reserve a place for week beginning 28th September. Cost will be £1.50 per day for the first child and £1 per day for any additional children. If

your child has free school meal entitlement, there is no charge. You still need to reserve a place via the admin mailbox. Once your child’s place is confirmed, money should be handed into the office on the Monday of each week in a sealed envelope marked with pupil names and amount of money enclosed.

Our Learning This Week in St Cuthbert’s Primary School

Please see this week’s learning below. I hope you enjoy reading it.

P1 – We have been learning to recognise and write t and i We are learning to add doubles to 10 in Maths. We are also learning to sort different materials and know some of their properties

P2 – In Maths , we have been counting backwards and forwards and grouping numbers. In Literacy, we have been learning to build sentences. In health and wellbeing

P3 – In Literacy we have been looking at Fantastic Mr. Fox and learning to create simple settings and plots for stories. In R.E we have been learning to consider ways in which the Catholic/Christian community works together to show care for the word and for the needs of all people.

P4 – We have been learning to estimate by rounding up 3 digit numbers to the nearest 100 to complete subtraction and addition sums. This week, we have enjoyed writing imaginative story and we have been learning to develop our feedback skills when commenting on each others written work.

P5 – This week in P5 we have been learning about Haiku poems and writing our own poems using the Haiku pattern of 5-7-5 syllables. In Numeracy, we have been learning to recall our times tables facts quickly to help us in multiplication and division problems. We were also learning about life in the past, and comparing the lives of children at the time of Mary Queen of Scots with children today.

P6 – In Numeracy, we have been learning how to estimate using money. In Literacy, we have been learning how to write a newspaper article. In Religious Education, we have been learning about the story of the Passover and how it is celebrated.

P7 – In Maths, we were learning how to round 4 digit numbers and adjust the totals. In Science, we were learning about erosion and why this happens. We have also learnt about endangered animals as part of our learning surrounding creation in R.E.

LCC1 – have been adding 2 amounts to equal 5, using concrete materials and interactive smart board games. They have been retelling the story of the Gingerbread in their own words. They have also enjoyed learning Spanish phrases with Mr Villanova

LCC2 – LCC2 have learnt about place value for 5 and 6 digit numbers. We have been investigating the Loch Ness Monster and drew pictures of the monster. In Science, we were learning about mixing different liquids, what happens and made a coloured liquid which we used to make bubble pictures.

Head Teacher Availability

As above, please continue to feel very welcome at any time to contact me by phone or to e-mail our admin mailbox for my attention and I will respond as quickly as I can.

Mass Times at our local Parish – St. Cuthbert’s, Slateford

Fr Duffy passes on his best wishes to all of our families on their return to school. Attendance at Mass can now be secured by booking online. Please see details on the parish website. http://www.stcuthbertschurch.com

Saturday 6pm – Vigil Mass

Sunday 10am – Parish Mass

Sunday 5pm – Additional Mass

Finally

Thanks again for your support in these challenging times. I hope that you and your families enjoy the long weekend.

Kind regards.

Mr P Brack, Head Teacher

St. Cuthbert’s RC Primary School

                           Newsletter 5– Friday 11^th September 2020

                                   St Cuthbert’s CARES We are: Creative Active Respectful Equal Supported

Good afternoon.

Thanks for your ongoing support, please continue to contact us by telephone (0131 443 2621) or via our admin mailbox (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk) if you have any questions about the school’s response to the Covid situation or anything else that you would like to ask. I hope you find the information below informative and useful.

Digital Learning in St Cuthbert’s – Twitter and Teams

Lockdown was a watershed moment for education in Scotland. Digital Learning and the benefits it brings, has become apparent to all schools. To this end, from week commencing 14^th September, staff will be tweeting weekly examples of learning from their classes on the following days:

Monday  P1/P2
Tuesday  P7/LCC1/2
Wednesday  P4/P6
Thursday  P3/P5
Friday – A photo collage of Star Learners/Pupils of the Week.

Please note that only pupils, whose parents have given permission will be featured in tweets and no names will be displayed.

We are also in the process of setting  up new class Teams for 2020-21 and these will be used to share homework from week commencing 21^st September.

Nursery Applications – Please See New Link Below

We are continuing to make excellent progress with preparing our nursery for opening, hopefully in late October (depending on final confirmation from City of Edinburgh Council). You can use the new link below to access an application form to apply for a place when the nursery opens, please select St Cuthbert’s as your first choice if you wish a place

https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/downloads/download/12890/apply-for-nursery

If you are interested in applying to St Cuthbert’s only, you do not need to accept a temporary place elsewhere. Temporary places can however be secured by entering a 2^nd and 3^rd choice on the online form. Pupils can then be transferred when St Cuthbert’s opens. However please be aware that a place at St Cuthbert’s is not guaranteed and places are allocated using the admissions criteria.  See attached admissions policy. 

Please hand or post in any completed forms to our office and please feel very welcome to ask if you have any questions.

First Holy Communions Update  – Current P5 Pupils Only

Letters were sent out last week to families, of pupils who Fr Duffy currently has registered for the celebration of First Holy Communion. Please note that at this point, this refers only to those pupils who should have made their first communions in June but were prevented from doing so by lockdown. We will communicate with you re current P4 communions after Christmas.

Please note that all candidates for First Holy Communion must be baptised Catholics and should have made their First Reconciliation (Confession). If your child has not and wishes to make their First Holy Communion with us, please contact Fr Duffy on 0131 443 1317 or staned@stcuthbertschurch.com  to arrange a time for this sacrament to be celebrated.

Please also contact Fr Duffy, if you expect your child to make their first communion this year but have had not had a letter confirming a date from us this week. He will discuss registration with you. We have now given out registration forms to all those who have previously expressed an interest in their child receiving this sacrament previously.

First Reconciliations – Current P4 Pupils Only Update

Parents/Carers of pupils who were in P3 last year and should have celebrated their First Reconciliation in March 2020, will have the opportunity to celebrate the sacrament in December: between the dates of Saturday 5^th and Saturday 12^th December. Parents/carers can select either a Saturday or weeknight slot by contacting Fr Duffy on on 0131 443 1317 or staned@stcuthbertschurch.com  to arrange a time for this sacrament to be celebrated.

Please be advised that any pupil wishing to celebrate their First Holy Communion in 2021 must have also made their First Reconciliation.

Reporting Absence

Thank you for the sensible approach you are taking to gauging when children are not well enough to attend school. In the current circumstances of an ongoing pandemic, we need to remain cautious and follow appropriate guidelines. We very much appreciate that our parents and carers are doing this.

If you are calling us to report absence, please be specific in reporting reasons for absence. In cases where you are reporting any of the following symptoms relating to Covid-19:

High Temperature

New and continuous cough

Loss of, or change in, the senses of taste and smell

please be advised that pupils with any of these symptoms must be tested and evidence of test result e-mailed to our admin account (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk).

If a test is positive, pupils must have isolated for 10 days before returning to school 48 hours after symptoms have ceased. Siblings and families must isolate for 14 days.

If test result is negative, pupils should return to school once they have had 48 hours without any of the above symptoms. Please see accompanying letter from Director of Public Health and Health Policy, Scotland. We would ask that you follow the guidance in this letter with one caveat; that instead of showing the teacher any test result, that you follow the procedure outlined above.

Covid19 – School Cleaning Update

As well as our regular, thorough daily cleaning regime, City of Edinburgh Council has also authorised a monthly, deep clean; known as fogging or electro-static cleaning. The next round of this will be completed over the coming weekend.

Staffing Update

Congratulations to Miss Donnelly on the birth of her daughter, earlier this week. We are all really happy for her. Mum and Baby are both doing well.

Car Parking Outside School Gates

The school has been made aware that there now seems to be more cars double parking and parking / stopping on the yellow zig zags outside the school. We totally appreciate the inconvenience that our new staggered timings can cause families with children starting at different times. We would however ask that you remain mindful of the safety of our whole community in this regard. Thanks very much.

School Meals

Please remember that the deadline for ordering school lunches is a Wednesday at 12 midnight for the following Monday (eg. Wednesday 16^th  September is deadline for lunches w/c Monday 21st  September).

Breakfast Club: Booking for Week Commencing 22^nd September is Now Open!

Please be advised that Monday 21^st September, is the Edinburgh September weekend holiday and the school week starts on Tuesday 22^nd. Breakfast Club will be in operation from 8 am until pupils’ respective start times.  I would appreciate if you could email admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk if you wish to use this service for week beginning 21^st  September. Cost will be £1.50 per day for the first child and £1 per day for any additional children. If your child has free school meal entitlement, there is no charge. You still need to reserve a place via the admin mailbox. Once your child’s place is confirmed, money should be handed into the office on the Monday of each week in a sealed envelope marked with pupil names and amount of money enclosed. These costs may change in the future.  Thank you.

After School Club Update from Gingerbread

Please note that our after-school care provider/partner Gingerbread are now able to offer their services again. Gingerbread After School Care have spaces available in their club.  If you are interested in further information please contact Carole Anne/Janice or Andy on 0131-478-1391/07825925846 or e-mail us here at gingerbread12@outlook.com

Our Learning This Week in St Cuthbert’s Primary School

Please see this week’s learning attached.

P1 –  Have been learning to write the letters s and d. In Maths, we are learning to continue a pattern and in HWB that life has its ups and downs and that is ok.

P2 – Have learnt the ar sound in Literacy. In Maths they have been grouping numbers in 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s. In P.E. they have been learning fitness skills.

P3 –  In Art, we learned about creating tints and shades by experimenting adding a certain amount of white or black paint to another colour. In Maths, we have learned how to recognise and name common 3D objects by the description of their properties. Finally, in Health and wellbeing, P3 have been developing and practising jumping and running skills through energetic play.

P4 – P4 have been enjoying learning about coral reefs and the animals that live there. Ask your child to tell you about some interesting facts they have learned about The Great Barrier Reef in Australia. We also had fun learning dive instructions and through the medium of drama we made up some imagined underwater conversations and the rest of the class had to tell the story as it was happening.

P5 –  In Numeracy, we are learning to use our knowledge of number bonds to create new facts involving multiples of 10 and 100. We were learning to organise historical facts in time order for a timeline of the life of Mary Queen of Scots. We were learning about the importance of keeping active through Mile a Day and PE activities.

P6 –  In Numeracy, we learned how to estimate using our skills of rounding to 10, 100 and 1,000. In Social Studies we learned about the experience of passengers on board the Titanic. In Spanish with Mr.Vilanova, we learned how to count to 100, classroom vocabulary and colours. 

P7 – Have been learning to round 5/6 digit numbers to the nearest 10, 100 and 1000. We enjoyed playing “That’s my multiple!” We have been learning about rocks; we know that there are three different types of rock – Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic. We wrote fact files in our writing lesson. We have been furthering our understanding of the Holy Spirit through the Pope Francis Award. We looked at our future vocations and how we might help people through our jobs.

LCC1 – Have been using visual supports to learn their friends names and take turns.

We have been recognising number patterns to 10 using Numicon

We have read the Rainbow fish and Tiddler and are making a class aquarium.

LCC2 – Have been learning how to find the area of a shape, making stained glass windows and making and using Newton discs. 

Head Teacher Availability

As above, please continue to feel very welcome at any time to contact me by phone or arrange an appointment with me in person if you have any questions or if I can help in any other way.

Mass Times at our local Parish – St. Cuthbert’s, Slateford

Fr Duffy passes on his best wishes to all of our families on their return to school. Attendance at Mass can now be secured by booking online. Please see details on the parish website.

www.stcuthbertschurch.com

Saturday 6pm – Vigil Mass

Sunday 10am – Parish Mass

Sunday 5pm – Additional Mass

Finally

Thanks again for your support in these challenging times. I hope that you and your families have a great weekend!

Kind regards.

Mr P Brack, Head Teacher

St. Cuthbert’s RC Primary School

Newsletter 4 – Friday 4th September 2020

St Cuthbert’s CARES We are: Creative Active Respectful Equal Supported

Good afternoon.

It’s hard to believe it’s September already. Thanks for your ongoing support. As a parent/carer body you have been brilliant at assimilating all of the changes we have made as a consequence of the pandemic. As always, we will continue to communicate with you as clearly and frequently as possible. Please do however contact us by telephone (0131 443 2621) or via our admin mailbox (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk) if you have any questions.

Nursery Update

We are continuing to make excellent progress with preparing our nursery for opening, hopefully in late October (depending on final confirmation from City of Edinburgh Council). You can use the link below to apply for a place when the nursery opens, please select St Cuthbert’s as your first choice if you wish a place with us.

earlyyears@edinburgh.gov.uk

If you are only interested in applying to St Cuthbert’s, you do not need to accept a temporary place elsewhere. Temporary places can however be secured by entering a 2nd and 3rd choice on the online form. Pupils can then be transferred when St Cuthbert’s opens. However please be aware that a place at St Cuthbert’s is not guaranteed and places are allocated using the admissions criteria. See attached admissions policy.

Please feel very welcome to ask if you have any questions.

First Holy Communion Update

Fr Duffy and I met to finalise plans this week to enable those pupils who were scheduled to make the sacrament of First Holy Communion last year to make it this year. The plans are as follows:

· First Communions will take place on 3 consecutive Saturdays in November (14th, 21st and 28th).

· They will be celebrated within the context of 10 o’clock Mass on each of these dates.

· Pupils will be allocated one of the above dates based on alphabetical ordering of candidates.

· Pupils may be supported by up to 5 family members.

· Written communication confirming the date of your child’s celebration will be issued next week.

Please note that all candidates should have made their First Reconciliation (Confession). If your child has not and wishes to make their First Holy Communion with us, please contact Fr Duffy on 0131 443 1317 to arrange a time for this sacrament to be celebrated.

Reporting Absence

Thank you for the sensible approach you are taking to gauging when children are not well enough to attend school. In the current circumstances of an ongoing pandemic, we need to remain cautious and follow appropriate guidelines. We very much appreciate that our parents and carers are doing this.

If you are calling us to report absence, please be specific in reporting reasons for absence. In cases where you are reporting any of the following symptoms relating to Covid-19:

· High Temperature

· New and continuous cough

· Loss of, or change in, the senses of taste and smell

please be advised that pupils with any of these symptoms must be tested and evidence of test result e-mailed to our admin account (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk).

If a test is positive, pupils must have isolated for 10 days before returning to school 48 hours after symptoms have ceased. Siblings and families must isolate for 14 days.

If test result is negative, pupils should return to school once they have had 48 hours without any of the above symptoms. Please see accompanying letter from Director of Public Health and Health Policy, Scotland. We would ask that you follow the guidance in this letter with one caveat; that instead of showing the teacher any test result, that you follow the procedure outlined above.

Staffing Update

We record our sincere thanks and best wishes to Miss Donnelly (LCC1), who leaves us today. She has been a great teacher and member of our community: her hard work and skill will be missed. Going forward Mrs Holden, our DHT, will teach LCC1 from Monday-Wednesday and Mr Vilanova Diaz will teach the class on Thursdays and Fridays.

School Meals

Please remember that the deadline for ordering school lunches is a Wednesday at 12 midnight for the following Monday (eg. Wednesday 9th September is deadline for lunches w/c Monday 14th September).

Breakfast Club: Booking for Week Commencing 14th September is Now Open!

Breakfast Club re-opened this week. Attendees have been informed that their places have been reserved. In keeping with the City of Edinburgh Council’s guidance, the club complies with Covid 19 risk assessments and clear records and registers are kept, to allow for effective tracing through Test and Protect. Although we are keeping class bubbles separate within the school day, blended placements to support families for childcare are permitted when necessary and where risk is mitigated. If numbers remain at 30 or under we can keep the pupils in one group. Over 30 and we will be required to split groups and spaces used. Pupils within a group of 30 or fewer children are not required to attend every day and can attend on those days that suit parents. We will seek to maximise the use of the designated space outside the breakfast club for outdoor play wherever possible too. In terms of access, the main door will be open from 8am and all pupils attending should be dropped at main school entry gate by parents/carers. The exception being, parents/carers of pupils in P1-3, who may enter the playground and drop pupils at the front door. Breakfast Club will be in operation from 8 am until pupils’ respective start times. I would appreciate if you could email admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk if you wish to use this service for week beginning 14th September. Cost will be £1.50 per day for the first child and £1 per day for any additional children. Once your child’s place is confirmed, money should be handed into the office on the Monday of each week in a sealed envelope marked with pupil names and amount of money enclosed. These costs may change in the future. Thank you.

After School Club Update from Gingerbread

Please note that our after-school care provider/partner Gingerbread are now able to offer their services again. Gingerbread After School Care have spaces available in their club. If you are interested in further information please contact Carole Anne/Janice or Andy on 0131-478-1391/07825925846 or e-mail us here at gingerbread12@outlook.com

Our Learning This Week in St Cuthbert’s Primary School

One of the enjoyable things about writing the newsletters last year was sharing details of the pupils learning. I am delighted to be able to start doing this again as of today. Please see details below:

P1 – Have been learning to recognise m and write a. They have also been learning to recognise domino number patterns. Finally in art, P1 have been learning to mix paint colours when painting our portraits

P2 – Have learnt the oo sound, in Maths they have been counting to 100 in decades. They have also been learning about countries around the world; focusing this week on China.

P3 – Have focused on developing their handwriting skills, using the outdoor learning context to learn problem solving skills and naming and describing a range of 2D and 3D shapes.

P4 – P4 have been enjoying learning about the 5 oceans of the world, listing them from biggest to smallest and finding out where they are and the creatures that live beneath them. In our reading we have learned about different types of dolphin and how they hunt for food differently from each other. In our writing this week, they have created fact booklets based on all that they have learned so far.

P5 – in Numeracy, Primary 5 have been learning to use what they know about place value to read, write, order and partition numbers. They have been learning about family trees in the context of the Stuarts and Mary Queen of Scots. In Literacy, they have been using drama to develop their understanding of a character’s thoughts and feelings.

P6 – Have been learning to write imagined personal responses in diary form, using the context of their class novel based on the story of the Titanic. They have also been learning to round 4 and 5 digit numbers to the nearest 100 and creating a class charter of rights and responsibilities.

P7 – Have been learning to use slogans, verbs and hooks to create advertisements. In Maths, they have learnt to use BODMAS to solve equations and in RERC have been learning about St Augustine and his calling to the priesthood.

LCC1 – Have enjoyed listening to Jack and the Beanstalk. They are learning to take turns, work together in a small group and in Maths are continuing to learn 1:1 correspondence through touch counting.

LCC2 – have enjoyed making and writing cards, they have continued to use their knowledge of capillary action to do some chromatography and they have also looked at place value to thousands.

Head Teacher Availability

As above, please continue to feel very welcome at any time to contact me by phone or arrange an appointment with me in person if you have any questions or if I can help in any other way.

Mass Times at our local Parish – St. Cuthbert’s, Slateford

Fr Duffy passes on his best wishes to all of our families on their return to school. Attendance at Mass can now be secured by booking online. Please see details on the parish website. http://www.stcuthbertschurch.com

Saturday 6pm – Vigil Mass

Sunday 10am – Parish Mass

Sunday 5pm – Additional Mass

Finally

Thanks again for your support in these challenging times. I hope that you and your families have a great weekend!

Kind regards.

Mr P Brack, Head Teacher

Dear Parents and Carers

There has been some understandable confusion relating to the issue for parents/carers of deciding: when children are displaying symptoms that require a Covid Test, as opposed to symptoms of a common cold.  Jason Leitch, National Clinical Director, has written to parents/carers to clarify answers to both of these questions. I hope the contents of this letter will be of help to you. Please see letter attached.

Coronavirus – Jason Leitch Letter on testing and common colds – 31 August 2020

Kind Regards

Pat Brack, Head Teacher

St. Cuthbert’s RC Primary School

Newsletter 3 – Friday 28th August 2020

St Cuthbert’s CARES We are: Creative Active Respectful Equal Supported

Good afternoon everyone, it is hard to believe that we are at the end of our third week of term already. Thank you for adapting so quickly to the ‘new normal’. There is, as always, a lot of information in this week’s newsletter, I hope you can spare the time to read through it. Please ask if anything is unclear.

Reporting Absence

Thank you for the sensible approach you are taking to gauging when children are not well enough to attend school. In the current circumstances of an ongoing pandemic, we need to remain cautious and follow appropriate guidelines. We very much appreciate that our parents and carers are doing this.

parents and carers letter good practice schools

If you are calling us to report absence, please be specific in reporting reasons for absence. In cases where you are reporting any of the following symptoms relating to Covid-19:

· High Temperature

· New and continuous cough

· Loss of or change in the senses of taste and smell

please be advised that pupils with any of these symptoms must be tested and evidence of test result e-mailed to our admin account (admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk).

If a test is positive pupils must have isolated for 10 days before returning to school 48 hours after symptoms have ceased. Siblings and families must isolate for 14 days.

If test result is negative, pupils should return to school once they have had 48 hours without any of the above symptoms. Please see accompanying letter from Director of Public Health and Health Policy, Scotland. We would ask that you follow the guidance in this letter with one caveat; that instead of showing the teacher any test result, that you follow the procedure outlined above.

School Meals

Please remember that the deadline for ordering school lunches is a Wednesday at 12 midnight for the following Monday (eg. Wednesday 2nd September is deadline for lunches w/c Monday 7th September).

Breakfast Club Re-opening Date – 31st August 2020

Breakfast Club will re-open on Monday 31st August 2020. Attendees have been informed that their places have been reserved. In keeping with the City of Edinburgh Council’s guidance, the club will comply with Covid 19 risk assessments and clear records and registers will be kept, to allow for effective tracing through Test and Protect. Although we are keeping class bubbles separate within the school day, blended placements to support families for childcare are permitted when necessary and where risk is mitigated. If numbers remain at 30 or under we can keep the pupils in one group. Over 30 and we will be required to split groups and spaces used. Pupils within a group of 30 or fewer children are not required to attend every day and can attend on those days that suit parents. We will seek to maximise the use of the designated space outside the breakfast club for outdoor play wherever possible too. In terms of access, the main door will be open from 8am and all pupils attending should be dropped at main school entry gate by parents/carers. The exception being, parents/carers of pupils in P1-3, who may enter the playground and drop pupils at the front door. Breakfast Club will be in operation from 8 am until pupils’ respective start times. I would appreciate if you could email admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk if you wish to use this service for week beginning 7th September. Cost will be £1.50 per day for the first child and £1 per day for any additional children. Once your child’s place is confirmed, money should be handed into the office on the Monday of each week in a sealed envelope marked with pupil names and amount of money enclosed. These costs may change in the future. Thank you.

After School Club Update from Gingerbread

Please note that our after-school care provider/partner Gingerbread are now able to offer their services again. Gingerbread After School Care have spaces available in their club. If you are interested in further information please contact Carole Anne/Janice or Andy on 0131-478-1391/07825925846 or e-mail us here at gingerbread12@outlook.com

Flu Vaccination Letters

A reminder that the flu vaccination consent forms sent out this week are due back by Monday 31st August. These vaccinations are always important but particularly so in the current situation we find ourselves in. Thank you for your support with this.

Data Capture Forms

Please return the completed data capture, KIC and photographic permission forms which were issued on Monday 24th August by Friday 4th September.

Social Distancing Outside the Playground/Gates

Thanks for support with this, I really appreciate the efforts adults are making to support the school community by following the guidelines.

Pupil Medicines

If your child requires medication whilst at school this year, please ensure that you contact our office and complete the necessary paperwork and procedures.

Our Learning This Week in St Cuthbert’s Primary School

One of the enjoyable things about writing the newsletters last year was sharing details of the pupils learning. I am delighted to be able to start doing this again as of today. Please see details below:

P1 – Were learning to sequence and count from 1-10, in phonics, they learnt the – a sound and cursive writing. Finally, in R.E. they have been learning our school prayers

P2 – Have learnt the ow sound this week. They have also been counting up to 100. In science they have been learning about night and day and the earth’s relationship to the sun.

P3 – Have been learning about: the effect of plastic on the environment, characterisation in stories and how to sing and keep time.

P4 – Have been learning reading superpowers such as recalling, understanding and explaining what they have read. They have also been revising fractions and times-tables. They have been learning fitness drills in P.E.

P5 – In Art, P5 have been learning to use a range of media to create the effect of stained glass windows. They have also worked together to choose a history topic that they wished to study this term and have chosen that of: Mary Queen of Scots. P5 have also been practising their numeracy skills using Countdown number games where they are learning to discuss the strategies they are using to reach the target number.

P6 – In Maths, the class learned about where we might find negative numbers in daily life : (temperature; playing golf; elevators; tides). In Social Studies, they learned about the timeline of the Titanic story and created a visual timeline for our classroom. In Literacy have been learning how to write a diary entry from the perspective of a character in our class novel ‘Titanic: Death on the Water’.

P7 – have been learning to add and subtract negative numbers. They furthered their understanding of persuasive language in preparation for the P7 jobs/house captain applications. Finally, they have created a piece of art based on the book Winder; where they picked ten positive things about themselves

LCC1 – The children are learning to give their reasoned opinion on whether or not they liked a story and why, through their reading of the Goldilocks and the 3 Bears fairy-tale. They are learning to sequence the order of a story and are learning to retell stories in their own words using visuals to support. They had fun practising their role play skills yesterday after setting up the classroom as the three bears’ house. In numeracy the children are learning to name 2D shapes. They used common 2D shapes to create a chair or bed. In expressive arts the children are learning to follow step by step instructions to draw.

LCC2 – In Maths, we are learning to make nets of 3D shapes. In science, we are learning about capillary action. In topic we are learning about Scotland’s history and its landscape.

Head Teacher Availability

As above, please continue to feel very welcome at any time to contact me by phone or arrange an appointment with me in person if you have any questions or if I can help in any other way.

A Message from our local Parish – St. Cuthbert’s, Slateford/Sacraments Update

Fr Duffy passes on his best wishes to all of our families on their return to school. Attendance at Mass can now be secured by booking online. Please see details on the parish website. http://www.stcuthbertschurch.com

Saturday 6pm – Vigil Mass

Sunday 10am – Parish Mass

Sunday 5pm – Additional Mass

Fr Duffy and myself have been discussing plans for celebrating the sacraments of First Holy Communion. Following on from communication from the Archbishop on 26th August, we have been informed that First Holy Communions for last year’s P4 (current P5) can be celebrated between Autumn and Christmas 2020. Plans are still being finalised but it is likely that celebrations will take place over a number of Saturday dates with limited numbers of places for family and friends. We will share final details of these plans are soon as they are available.

We will also look to share information with you – as soon as it becomes available – re plans for the celebration of First Reconciliations, for this year’s P4 class, who were scheduled to make the sacrament in March of last year as P3.

Finally

Thanks again for your support in these challenging times. I hope that you and your families have a great weekend!

Kind regards.

Mr P Brack, Head Teacher

St. Cuthbert’s RC Primary School

Newsletter 2 – Friday 21st August 2020

St Cuthbert’s CARES We are: Creative Active Respectful Equal Supported

Good afternoon everyone, it has been another quick and positive week, and pupils and staff at St Cuthbert’s are making real progress in accommodating themselves to the ‘new normal’. There is a lot of information in this week’s newsletter, I hope you can spare the time to read through it. Thanks once again for your continued support!

After School Club Update

Please note that our after-school care provider partner Gingerbread are now able to offer their services again as of this week. If you are interested in accessing after school care with them, please contact Gingerbread directly.

e-mail: gingerbread12@outlook.com

telephone: 0131 478 1391 or 07825925846 website: http://www.gingerbreadchildcare.org.uk

Breakfast Club: Re-opening Update

We are hoping to reopen the Breakfast Club on Monday 31st August 2020. In keeping with the City of Edinburgh Council’s guidance, the breakfast club will comply with Covid 19 risk assessments and clear records and registers will be kept to allow for effective tracing through Test and Protect. Although we are keeping class bubbles separate within the school day, blended placements to support families for childcare are permitted when necessary and where risk is mitigated. If numbers remain at 30 or under we can keep the pupils in one group. Over 30 and we will be required to split groups and spaces used. Pupils within a group of 30 or fewer children are not required to attend every day and can attend on those days that suit parents. We will seek to maximise the use of the designated space outside the breakfast club for outdoor play wherever possible too. In terms of access, the main door will be open from 8am and all pupils attending should be dropped at main school entry gate by parents/carers. The exception being, parents/carers of pupils in P1-3, who may enter the playground and drop pupils at the front door. Breakfast Club will be in operation from 8 am until pupils’ respective start times. I would appreciate if you could email admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk if you wish to use this service for week beginning 31st August. The school will then send a form home with identified pupils and we would appreciate if you could return this by Wednesday 26th August 2020. The charge will be £1.50 per day for the

first child and £1 per day for any additional children. These costs may change in the future. Thank you.

Flu Vaccination Letters

A reminder that the flu vaccination consent forms sent out this week are due back by 31st August. These vaccinations are always important but particularly so in the current situation we find ourselves in. Thank you for your support with this.

Ordering School Milk

A letter enabling parents/carers to order milk for the year was shared this week. Please return any reservations to our school office by 26th August 2020.

Data Capture Forms

Please return the completed data capture, KIC and photographic permission forms which will be issued on Monday 24th August by Friday 4th September.

Social Distancing Outside the Playground/Gates

Thanks for your patience and cooperation in ensuring that our new routines have been successfully embedded over the last week. Can I please ask that you continue to remain mindful of social distancing at all times. Both the First Minister and National Clinical Director have this week- stressed the importance of maintaining this social distance to our nations’ health. We greatly appreciate the efforts you are making to do so. Thank you.

Pupil Medicines

If your child requires medication whilst at school this year, please ensure that you contact our office and complete the necessary paperwork and procedures.

St Cuthbert’s Nursery

The building within our grounds to the left of the main school building will become our school nursery. Our 2 newly appointed Seniors (Faye Shumba and Laura Maguire) are now in post and preparations for opening are ongoing. The current planned opening date is late October this year (this is dependent on confirmation from City of Edinburgh Council). If you would like your child to attend our nursery, you can send your application form to the Early Years inbox earlyyears@edinburgh.gov.uk . Provided you also select a second and third choice on the application form, City of Edinburgh Council will be able to provide you with an alternative placing until St Cuthbert’s is ready.

Start and End Times (These will apply until further notice)

Our Learning This Week in St Cuthbert’s Primary School

As per City of Edinburgh Council’s advice, as well as our regular curricular work, our learning in all classes this week has continued to focus on:

• Reconnecting relationships – supporting the re-establishment of peer to peer and adult to children/young people relationships

• Acknowledging experiences – being curious, acknowledging feelings and reactions and creating time and space for dialogue

• Creating a nurturing environment

• Supporting our learners to build resilience

Head Teacher Availability

As above, please continue to feel very welcome at any time to contact me by phone or arrange an appointment with me in person if you have any questions or if I can help in any other way.

Class Playground 

Access for      Enter and Exit School By    Start Time     End of Day      End of Day    Parents/Carers

P1 Yes,                  via side entrance gate              8.45am          2.50pm              12.05pm                                             P1 class door

P2 Yes,                   via side entrance                      9am            3.05pm                    12.25pm                                         gate Infant Entrance

P3 Yes,                   via main entrance gate         8.55am         3.20pm                  12.30pm                                              Main Door

P4 No                     Main Door                                    9.05am         3.30pm                 12.40pm

P5 No              Upper School Entrance                   8.55am         3.20pm                12.30pm

P6 No               Upper School Entrance                     9am               3.25pm             12.35pm

P7 No               Upper School Entrance                   9.05am             3.30pm             12.40pm

LCC1 Yes,          via back entrance gate.                8.55am                3.20pm             12.20pm                                         LCC Door

LCC2 Yes,          via back entrance gate.                8.55am                3.20pm             12.20pm                                         LCC Door

A Message from our local Parish – St. Cuthbert’s, Slateford/Sacraments Update

Fr Duffy passes on his best wishes to all of our families on their return to school. Attendance at Mass can now be secured by booking online. Please see details on the parish website. http://www.stcuthbertschurch.com

Saturday 6pm – Vigil Mass

Sunday 10am – Parish Mass

Sunday 5pm – Additional Mass

Now that we are back at school, Fr Duffy and myself will shortly be discussing plans for celebrating the sacraments of First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion. We will share these with you as soon as possible.

Finally

I hope that you and your families have a great weekend!

Kind regards.

Mr P Brack, Head Teacher

                                                 St. Cuthbert’s RC Primary School

                                                Newsletter 1 – Friday 14^th August 2020

                     St Cuthbert’s CARES We are: Creative Active Respectful Equal Supported

Good afternoon everyone, whether you are one of the sizeable number of new families with pupils attending the school or have been with us longer, we would like to welcome you all warmly back to St Cuthbert’s. Please accept sincere thanks from myself and the staff team for your support in ensuring a safe and happy return to school for our pupils. Please see our latest information update below. The newsletter will continue to be published on our website, app and Learning Journals platforms every Friday going forward.

Start and End Times (These will apply until further notice)

Class	Playground Access for Parents/Carers	Enter and Exit School By:	Start Time	End of Day Wed/Thurs	End of Day Friday
P1	Yes, via side entrance gate	P1 class door	8.45am	2.50pm	12.05pm
P2	Yes, via side entrance gate	Infant Entrance (same as last year)	9am	3.05pm	12.25pm
P3	Yes, via main entrance gate	Main Door	8.55am	3.20pm	12.30pm
P4	No	Main Door	9.05am	3.30pm	12.40pm
P5	No	Upper School Entrance	8.55am	3.20pm	12.30pm
P6	No	Upper School Entrance	9am	3.25pm	12.35pm
P7	No	Upper School Entrance	9.05am	3.30pm	12.40pm
LCC1	Yes, via back entrance gate.	LCC Door	8.55am	3.20pm	12.20pm
LCC2	Yes, via back entrance gate.	LCC Door	8.55am	3.20pm	12.20pm

 

Key Messages

• All pupils should attend school full time in whole class groups from today onwards. (please see timings above).
• Thank you for your continued support in ensuring that our pupils arrive as close to their start time as possible.
• Thanks also for ensuring that pupils remain out-with grounds until their allocated time of entry. This ensures our playground is socially distanced for pupil entry to building. Please also note that for the time being unfortunately, only parents/carers from P1-3 can enter the playground.
• We will continue to encourage regular handwashing when children are in school and hand sanitisers will be widely available throughout the building. Enhanced cleaning will take place daily and classrooms will be well ventilated.
• Children will remain in their own class bubbles. They will not mix with other classes at any part of the school day. Lunches are eaten in class bubbles, the playground is zoned in class zones and a one way system operates in the corridors.
• Uniform is optional for the time being, many families may want to wash clothes daily before coming back into school.  Staff will be dressed more causally than normal. Wearing comfortable clothes to school will also reduce the need to change for PE.  Children will be spending a lot of time outdoors so waterproof and warm clothes are required each day, depending on weather conditions.
• Please ensure that your child brings a full water bottle to school, as pupils for safety reasons, do not have access to water fountains to fill them up during the course of the day.
• Unfortunately, as things stand children are not advised to bring anything other than a snack or their lunch with them to school. All stationery and resources will be provided by the school.
• We understand that you will be anxious and have questions about your child’s return to school. Please feel free to call or e-mail at any time and I will seek to respond as promptly as I can. (0131 443 2621, admin@st-cuthberts.edin.sch.uk). If you wish to come into school to discuss any matter in person, please make an appointment via the school office.

Staffing Update

We are delighted to announce that Mrs McLeish, our Support for Learning Teacher has returned from secondment and re-joins our staff team this year.

I would also like to make you aware that Ms Louise Donnelly, our LCC1 Teacher will be leaving us on September 4^th to take up a new career opportunity. We thank her sincerely for her hard work, skilled teaching and the significant contribution to the life of the school during her time with us. Mrs Holden has written separately to our LCC parents, explaining our future plans for staffing in LCC.

Please note that Mrs Barry will continue to teach P4 on a Monday-Wednesday and that Miss Donnelly will teach the class on Thursdays and Fridays. Mr Vilanova-Diaz will then take on the responsibility of the Thursday and Friday when Miss Donnelly goes on maternity leave.

Pupil Medicines

If your child requires medication whilst at school this year, please ensure that you contact our office and complete the necessary paperwork and procedures.

School Meals and Milk

For those parents who are registered on Parent Pay, they should continue to use this system to order meals as normal. Parents of new families, who are not currently registered on Parent Pay, should expect a letter next week containing activation details.

A letter will also come out next week confirming arrangements for milk provision this term.

Flu Vaccinations

Consent packs will be sent home next week for the flu nasal spray vaccinations for all children in our school.  The completed form should be signed and returned no later than Friday 28^th August.   If you do not return this completed form by this deadline, your child will not be given the flu vaccination spray in school.

Flu vaccination is more important than ever in the context of COVIS-19 to decrease pressure on the NHS and improve the baseline health of the most vulnerable.

St Cuthbert’s Nursery

The building within our grounds to the left of the main school building will become our school nursery. The current planned opening date is late October this year (this is dependent on confirmation from City of Edinburgh Council). If you would like your child to attend our nursery, you can send your application form to the Early Years inbox earlyyears@edinburgh.gov.uk . Provided you also select a second and third choice on the application form, City of Edinburgh Council will be able to provide you with an alternative placing until St Cuthbert’s is ready.

Building Works at St Cuthbert’s Primary School

The main work on our building has been completed and it has certainly resulted in a much refreshed school interior (which we look forward to showing off to you, as soon as we are permitted to). There are still a small number of outstanding jobs to be completed but the end is in sight.

Our Learning This Week in St Cuthbert’s Primary School

As per City of Edinburgh Council’s advice, our first week’s learning in all classes has been focused on:

• Reconnecting relationships – supporting the re-establishment of peer to peer and adult to children/young people relationships
• Acknowledging experiences – being curious, acknowledging feelings and reactions and creating time and space for dialogue
• Creating a nurturing environment
• Supporting our learners to build resilience

A Message from our local Parish – St. Cuthbert’s, Slateford.

Fr Duffy passes on his best wishes to all of our families on their return to school. Fr Duffy is considered to be part of our school bubble and will be able to visit 2 classes a day, starting from next week. Attendance at Mass can now be secured by booking online. Please see details on the parish website.

www.stcuthbertschurch.com

Saturday 6pm – Vigil Mass

Sunday 10am – Parish Mass

Sunday 5pm – Additional Mass

Please note that Archbishop Cushley will also be praying for our pupils, families and schools at our Assumption Day Mass on Sunday. See links below to access this Mass. It can be viewed live on Facebook at 9am and thereafter on the archdiocesan website.

 

Facebook

www.facebook.com/EdinburghRCdiocese

 

Website

www.archedinburgh.org/news-events,

Head Teacher Availability

As above, please continue to feel very welcome at any time to contact me by phone or arrange an appointment with me in person if you have any questions or if I can help in any other way.

Finally

I hope that you and your families have a great weekend!

Kind regards.

Mr P Brack, Head Teacher

 

Dear P1 Parents/Carers.

It has been lovely to meet you and your children over the last few days. Please note that as of Monday 17^th August, all P1 pupils (only) should follow the start and end times below:

• Monday-Thursday: Start Time – 8.45am, Finish Time – 2.50pm
• Friday: Start Time – 8.45am, Finish Time 12.05pm

Entry and exit will still be from the same points as this week. Please also look out for our whole school newsletter which will be posted on our school website, app and learning journals tomorrow afternoon. It contains lots of helpful information relating to the school community and is published weekly on a Friday.

Kind Regards

Pat Brack

Head Teacher