Week beginning December 17th 2007…

Christmas Angel Picture December 2007

 

The final school week of the year has arrived but that does not mean an end to the many activities ongoing in the Enhanced Learning Programme…

If anything, there is more to do this week than in the weeks that have gone before – though it has to be said much of it will be full of festive fun! 😉

Monday afternoon sees the S1 Christmas Party take place in the school hall during Period 5 and 6. Pupils should attend classes as normal in the morning, wearing school uniform. There will be the opportunity to change into party wear at lunchtime. Further information can be found elsewhere in the ELP Diaries category, with a more detailed description of the event.

Elsewhere in our week’s work we will be…

ICT

Sending Christmas wishes to our friends in Akron, Ohio!

We have already used Google Earth this term to find the exact location of the school we will be working with in 2008. We have made a short film and a Powerpoint presentation about life at Preston Lodge High School. This week we will simply be sending our very best wishes for the coming festive period by electronic mail – and sending our calendars by snail mail to America!

English

This week in English we will be continuing to work on our writing, spelling and reading using Jolly Phonics, Oxford Reading Tree and Leap Pad. We have some spelling homework this week and will be practising key words at home with our parents in addition to working on them in class.

We will also be reinforcing the work we have been doing re: knowing and writing our addresses. Consolidation of this work can only be achieved by regular repetition of the task. Only a matter of weeks ago the children could not even tell you their address. Now, all of them can orally relay their home address and – with support – most of them can now make a good attempt at writing it down on paper. This is real, tangible (and wonderful!) progress.

Maths

Maths will be curtailed somewhat this week by the Christmas Party happening during scheduled maths periods. However, in the time we do have set aside for this subject, we will be making one final push to finish our 2008 calendars and then enjoy some maths based interactive games as a treat before Christmas! 

PE

In PE this week we will be enjoying stepping on toes and having fun taking part in Social Dance!

Science

In Science this week we will finish off our bird cake, bird fat balls and feeders. We have already placed some in the school garden but intend distributing more feeders in the school grounds. We are interested to find out whether there may be more birds living in one part of the school than any other.

We will also have a chance to work on the interactive fish book so kindly given to us by Dr Voge. We will look at the cold water fish activities and get hands on things to do that will remind us of the lessons we have enjoyed so far in science.

Fish Fingers

We will also be setting aside some time this week to make sure our class fish, Fingers, is clean, comfortable and well fed over the Christmas period. We will give him a clean out for the New Year and add a special holiday fish food tablet to his tank to ensure he gets Christmas Dinner!

Merry Christmas Fingers!

A party apolitical broadcast…

Nothing to do with left, right or centre…and everything to do with fun!

Monday sees Preston Lodge High School host its S1 Christmas Party and our ELP children will be very much at the heart of the festivities. Although the pupils have been issued with a short note from Learning Support about the plans and timings for Monday afternoon, notes sometimes occasionally get lost…

So here is the information any parent or pupil might need about Monday’s party. We look forward to seeing the kids Cha Cha Slide in their glad rags!

S1 CHRISTMAS PARTY

INFORMATION FOR ELP PUPILS AND PARENTS

There will be a Christmas Party for S1 held on the Monday 17th December, from 2.00pm until 3.30pm. 

The arrangements are as follows:

• S1 will be in school uniform on the morning of the event
• Children should have their normal lunch arrangements in place
• Learning Zone staff will assist the ELP children in changing into party clothes during the lunch interval.
• S1 students will attend their Period 5 class at the bell as usual where a register should be taken
• At 2.00pm a bell will sound and teachers will accompany their S1 class to the Assembly Hall

The party will end at 3.30pm, when the S1 will be accompanied back to their Period 6 classrooms for dismissal at 3.45pm

Week beginning December 10th 2007…

This week sees our school Christmas concert and the Senior Citizens’ lunch and concert. It also is the time the school canteen serve up a traditional Christmas lunch – and the Learning Support team intend taking a small group of pupils to enjoy this occasion. The canteen will be providing Christmas Lunches on 12 and 13 December. (The canteen will be providing Christmas Lunches on 12 and 13 December – more information to follow).

Elsewhere this week we will be…

Science

This week in Science we will be taking a look at how animals cope in an East Lothian winter. How do they survive cold weather? What do they do for food? We will be making our very own bird feeders and a bird cake for the Japanese Garden. We will be both chefs and architects – firstly making the cake from raw ingredients and then going on to put it in our DIY bird feeder made from recycled milk cartons.

Extension learning targets will include the use of the terms “hibernation” and “migration” if possible.

Maths

In maths this week our priority is finishing our 2008 calendars. We have nearly completed this enjoyable task and there will soon be a number of brightly coloured gifts winging their way round the school and the community.

<Newsflash> One of our calendars has found its way to Haddington and a certain Mr Ledingham when a young lady in our class decided he “really needs one of our calendars if he is the boss of schools in East Lothian”.

English

This week we have continued with our Jolly Phonics and Oxford Reading Tree programme. In addition, we have had some reading time with our Leap Pads – more fun with Scooby Doo and Shrek!

A new thing we have learned this week is how to use mnemonics to help us spell words. Two of our favourites were…

People eat omlettes people like eggs (people)

Laugh at ugly goats hair (laugh)

Mnemonics are often verbal, something such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember something.

Art

Art continues the Christmas theme this week – more glitter, tinsel and santa!

Cross Curricular project

After Friday’s wonderful trip to the Winter Wonderland in Edinburgh and, in particular, the German Market, we come back to complete our own Christmas enterprise project this week – in time for the big day. We have received a number of orders from staff, pupils and parents for bracelets, necklaces and calendars. The children very much appreciate the support they have been given for this venture. We would remind parents that orders can be despatched home at any time – but only once payment has been sent into school with the pupils. We are sure there will be many happy grannies and wee sisters when they find their lovely hand made gifts on Christmas morning!

French

In French this week we will be continuing to practise our weather phrases through song, repetition and art…perhaps we might be best to concentrate on il fait froid! 😉