Please click here for more information regarding Autism Workshops that Bushvalley Primary School are hosting for staff and parents through Middletown Centre for Autism.
Congratulations to the children pictured below who received certificates for: Being Kind and Caring, Showing Resilience, Accelerated Reader, Reading Eggs and Fast Phonics. Evie and Izabelle shared the Accelerated Reader cup, both who had almost ten times their target. Joy received an award as our first millionaire reader this year.
Pupils performed two plays to a packed audience. Well done to all the pupils who put on a great show. Many thanks to all the staff for their hard work in preparing the children behind the scenes and to Rasharkin Presbyterian Church for the use of their facilities.
We were delighted to be able to host so many grandparents and adults for Christmas lunch, with our pupils in P3-5. Many thanks to Mrs Henry and Mrs Peden who arranged games for everyone to play together and Mrs Logue for all her hard work in the kitchen. It was delightful to be part of the fun and enjoy this opportunity thanks to a grant from Linking Generations NI and the Public Health Agency.
We have been delighted to be able to offer parents the opportunity to drop off their child at school from 8.00am. Children can stay in Breakfast Club until school opens and then join their usual class. Children can have a choice of cereal, toast and eggs. After they have finished their breakfast they can play table top games, or football and table tennis for the more energetic.
We have decided to continue running breakfast club in the New Year, as it has been so enjoyable for the children. To book for Breakfast Club, parents should send money and bookings at least 24hours before (to help plan staffing). Children who come to school on the early bus are also welcome to join Breakfast Club for toast and games (50p).
P3/4 have been working very hard to collect enough gems in their class jar to earn their next treat. Today each child brought in a toy from home to play with alongside their friends.
This morning the children from P5, P6 and P7 went to the Fairhill Shopping Centre to sing on the Radio Cracker Christmas Radio Station. They sang three songs from their “Christmas with the Aliens” musical.
Thanks to the parents who came along to hear us singing.
P6/7 enjoyed Drama, Technology, Home Economics and Science during a taster session at Ballymoney. Many thanks to staff at Ballymoney High for inviting us.
Well done to our football team who, once again, were unbeaten at the tournament on Wednesday.
Primary 1 Applications for school year beginning September 2024 will open on Tuesday 9 January 2024 at 12 noon. Have a look at our flyer here, or the Admissions tab of our website. We would be delighted to welcome visitors to our school on Wednesday 10th January 2024.
P6 and P7 have been taking part in the ‘Shaken’ Programme where they have been thinking about things they can do to help them, if their lives are ‘shaken’.
Having completed the Shaken Programme, the children had a ‘Pizza Party Celebration’. They were reminded that each of them are unique and decorated their own pizzas to illustrate this. All enjoyed freshly cooked pizzas and then were presented with certificates.
Many thanks to a grant from Northern Area, Mental Health & Emotional Wellbeing and Suicide Prevention Model Groups that made this possible.
Thank you to everyone who contributed to the Harvest Offering for ‘MadLug’. We were able to send £150 to Madlug which will go to help fifteen children in care to carry their lives in dignity. Click Link to view letter
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Congratulations to Bethany P5, who was chosen by Keri and Jess from Coaching For Christ, as player of the month for October 2023. Bethany and a pupil from Dunclug were chosen for ‘ showing great attitude and determination throughout their Coaching For Christ Sessions’. Well done Bethany!
Our P1 and P2 children have enjoyed tidying their flower bed. They have now planted different bulbs and are looking forward to see what flowers appear in the springtime.
P1 and P2 have also been taking part in the Beyond Bricks Programme. Details of the Programme are in the Beyond Bricks P3-P5 blog. Here are some pictures of P1 and P2 children during their sessions.
We are delighted that we have received funding which has enabled P1 - P5 children to take part in the Beyond Bricks Lego Based Programme. What is Beyond Bricks?
Beyond Bricks is a legacy programme which sees schools fully equipped to deliver a series of interactive workshops aimed to increase the emotional health and wellbeing of Children.
MindWise will work with schools to support the pupils recover and discover new skills to enable them to overcome challenges in their lives, by focusing on the five key aspects of emotional wellbeing as identified by the Education Authority ‘Emotional Health and Wellbeing Framework.’
Coping
Self-awareness
Motivation
Social resilience
Self-control
Pupils will take part in a 5 week interactive programme in their school with their own teachers co-facilitating the programme with trained Beyond Bricks Associates. Each pupil will leave with a personalised toolkit to help them cope with all five areas of the Emotional Health and Wellbeing Framework to navigate their future with confidence.
During the sessions, there is always a Lego building section. In groups of three, the children work as a group to complete Lego models - one person looks at the instructions and communicates what pieces are needed, the second lifts out the required lego pieces and the third constructs the lego model. It has been great to watch their confidence grow, week on week as they complete these tasks.
Rachel from Beyond Bricks, and the class teachers and classroom assistants have been helping the children complete their Beyond Bricks workbooks. P3 - P5 have been making Coping Jars.
On Friday 17th November as part of ‘Anti-Bullying Week’ we celebrated by having an ‘Odd Sock Day’. Here are P3/4 showing off their odd socks, which we used as important lesson to help us understand that everyone is unique, and we should respect differences.
Other important themes covered included:
- Definition of bullying & types of bullying
- ‘Make a Noise’ about bullying
Tell someone if you or someone you know is being bullied.
- What makes a good friend?
Many congratulations to our football team who recently won all four of their matches, in the local small schools’ tournament.
One of the suggestions that our new School Councillors had proposed, was to start an after school Cookery Club. We are delighted that Mrs Sharleen Calderwood and Mrs Ruth Armstrong have agreed to run this club. Their first session was on 7th November when sixteen P1 - P3 children and twenty three P4 - P7 children enjoyed making ‘Snowballs’. This week they made delicious ‘Fifteens’. Everyone is really loving the new Cookery Club.
Thanks to a grant, from the Northern Locality Mental Health & Emotional Wellbeing and Suicide Prevention team, P6/7 have been able to participate in the ‘Shaken’ programme. This programme is facilitated by ‘The Big House’ and is designed to help children think about things they can do to help them when their life is ‘shaken’.
