Edinburgh Youth Social Action Summit for JGHS Cluster P6 Pupils

We are tremendously excited about an upcoming return visit to Sciennes on Thursday 15th June from WE Movement, again kindly arranged for us by London based Schools Co-ordinators Harriet Morgan and Louis Sherman,

Speakers from WE Movement have visited Sciennes twice to work with current P7 pupils, providing a wealth of opportunities for our children to embrace pupil leadership. Thursday 15th June will mark a return visit from the charity, where Speaker and Facilitators will work with P6 pupils from James Gillespie's High School Cluster: Tollcross Primary, Taobh na Pairce, Preston Street Primary, Royal Mile Primary and 24 representatives from Sciennes P6 classes in an Edinburgh Youth Summit to promote social action.

We are delighted to welcome Jesse Mintz, Senior Writer based in Toronto, who will join us on the day.

P6 pupils will take part in a special assembly at 10am and then split into three groups for workshops.

The format of the workshops fits ideally with our aims to develop pupil-led social action as part of the Junior Award Scheme for Schools  and our participation in Unicef's Rights Respecting Schools programme:

Team Building/Issues Module – exploring prevalent issues in society, and globally to build confidence, identify leadership skills and also get pupils thinking about issues they care about.
Reflective Module - enabling pupils to think how they can use their skills for issues that are important to them.  
Action Planning - putting pen to paper to create a tangible action plan for children to develop and put into practice.

www.we.org/gb 

WE MOVEMENT

WE Movement - From ME to WE -  is an international charity and educational partner that believes in a world where all young people are free to achieve their fullest potential as change-makers. Over the last 20 years, Free The Children has grown into an international movement supporting youth empowerment through educational service-learning initiatives in North America and the United Kingdom, and a holistic and sustainable international development model. It is supported by the Queen's Trust, the UN, Virgin Atlantic and has many international supporters -  Malala, Desmond Tutu, Prince Harry, Oprah will give a flavour. Their model is 'children helping children' and they promote pupil leadership and taking action, here and abroad. The scheme began in Canada, initiated  by one of the CEOs when he was 12, and is a social enterprise endeavour. 

For more information about WE Movement visit their website.

The 'WE Movement' programme fits extremely well with our well established Junior Awards Scheme Scotland (JASS) programme in P6 and P7 where pupils are asked to take their own action to achieve a 'Me and My World' element. JASS is a children's version of The Duke of Edinburgh Award, and the idea for it actually came from Sciennes! It is now adopted throughout Edinburgh and beyond so has been retitled Junior Award Scheme for Schools.

The Junior Award Scheme Schools (JASS) is an accredited learning programme, celebrating wider achievement, for young people (P6-S2). Sciennes and Tollcross Primary Schools have been implementing this scheme since we piloted it in 2009.
The concept emerged from a discussion during a Sciennes P7 visit to Lagganlia between Alice Brown, Gael Logan and Barry Hewitt who came up with the idea to set up a 'Duke of Edinburgh' style award scheme for upper primary pupils. The scheme has since been developed from a city wide, to UK wide to international programme.

There are three levels (bronze, silver and gold), each requiring a higher degree of commitment. Each level also includes four sections to be completed:

• My interest - a hobby or interest
• Get Active, Stay Active - involvement in a sport or physical activity
• Me and My World - a community or environmental project
• Adventure - a teamwork challenge through involvement in an outdoor activity (e.g Benmore and Lagganlia)

http://jassawardsciennes.blogspot.co.uk/

Sciennes helped develop an online version - eJASS.


WE Movement also fits well with our Unicef Rights Respecting Schools programme. We achieved Level One in May 2016 and our next steps are to continue to extend knowledge of UNCRC and to expand global citizenship. The WE Movement programme assists us with that. We have highlighted the relevance of the Global Goals for Sustainable Development since their launch in September 2015 and the programme also supports this extremely well.

Mental Health Week Assembly and Swimathon Medals 12.5.17

Sciennes P4-7 Mental Health Assembly 12.5.17 from Sciennes Primary School

Celebrating a week of Mental Health awareness at Sciennes

On Friday 12th May we celebrated a week of Mental Health awareness and activities led by DHT Carolyn Anstruther, PSAs Mrs Helen Anderson and Mrs Sarah Sheehan, Staff Health and Wellbeing Working Group and Parent Council HWB Group which included some new as well as some firmly embedded strategies: Relax Kids sessions, yoga, Mindfulness, outdoor learning, Sensory Room, Seasons for Growth led by Mrs Fiona Barker and Mrs Helen Anderson, Social Thinking sessions, Nurture Groups, Emotion Talks, Happiness Is... posters, journalling and a whole school display of happiness bands. There were events for families, too, including world renowned author Nicola Morgan who gave an outstanding and very well-atttended talk "Blame My Brain" and our very own Alison Outred who gave an inspirational presentation on "The Introverted Child'. Staff enjoyed massage sessions and undertook anonymous Random Acts of Kindness with colleagues, in memory of Mark Hewitt, who introduced the project to P5 earlier in the year.

We watched a video created by parent Jimmy Chow which shows just how much work and dedication is involved in preparing our weekly fruit platters by Sciennes' Parent Council Fruit Group and explored a variety of things we can all do to maintain our mental health.



We watched a Kid President video "Life Is Like a Comic" to reflect on how things might not always be 'awesome' but our response can be. Everyone got to their feet to sing along with and do actions to Fischy Music's "Stronger" song.



James and James gave a presentation on Sciennes After School Care Club (SASCS) Holiday and Sports Camps.

James and James SASCS Summer Camps presentation

Our P7 Captains celebrated pupil achievements and Mr Neil Scott, SSO, assisted by our Sports Captains, presented this year's Swimathon medals. Thank you to Fiona Denvir and Bethan McEwan, Parent Council Health and Wellbeing Group Leads, for providing the medals and organising the event with Ms Christie. Thank you very much to all families who supported poolside and by sponsoring and encouraging.

P7 Sports Captains celebrated recent pupil achievements

Mr Neil Scott presented this year's Swimathon medals

Mental Health Foundation Survey

8th-12th May is Sciennes' Mental Health Week, led by DHT Carolyn Anstruther, Parent Council HWB Group and Staff HWB Working Group.

Sciennes' Parent Council HWB Group wishes to encourage parents and carers to complete the Mental Health Foundation's survey below:
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/your-mental-health/good-mental-health-survey

The Mental Health Foundation is a UK charity that relies on public donations and grant funding to deliver and campaign for good mental health for all.

It’s the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Week today! Ambitious as ever and hoping for an impact on a broader scale - we are looking at the state of the UK’s mental health for Mental Health Awareness Week 2017. We are now asking: are we Surviving or Thriving?
We all have the ability to thrive and having good mental health is an asset to thriving in all parts of our lives. Our new report Surviving or Thriving? - The state of the UK's mental health states that only 13% of people are living with high levels of good mental health, and two in three adults face mental health problems in their lifetime. It is time to address this nationwide problem. 

Our survey uses the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing scale to measure your general level of mental health and wellbeing. Answering the seven questions gives you a score you can compare against the national average.  The survey does not reveal whether you have a mental health problem, but your ability to cope with the everyday stresses of life. On completion we outline a number of ways you can protect and sustain good mental health. 

Mental Health House Assembly 5.5.17

 
House Assembly Mental Health 5.5.17 from Sciennes Primary School

On Friday 5th May we held Assemblies for each of our four Houses: Tantallon (Mrs Noble, Grange (Ms Anstruther), Sienna (Mr McKenna) and Lauder (Ms Gallagher) to introduce everyone to our Mental Health Week, beginning next week.

House and Sports Captains asked everyone what they thought being healthy meant and we explored not only what physical health but also what mental health means.

We sang Hopscotch Theatre's SHANARRI song and explored how we use these health and wellbeing indicators (Safe, Healthy, Achieving, Active, Respected, Responsible, Included) to help us discuss and support everyone's health at school.




We watched a video where children described their own experiences of dealing with different emotions and some strategies that can help.




We also watched Pixar's short animation "Boundin'" to help us think about having a positive mental attitude in dealing with lifes ups and downs.

We loved singing Fischy Music's "Stronger" song and doing the actions!


The winning House will have a Fun and Frolics session on the Meadows at the end of term so everyone was encouraged to keep earning House points.

World Renowned Author Nicola Morgan at Sciennes Monday 8th May 7pm

Sciennes Mental Health Focus Week 

^{Monday 8th May 7pm}

As part of our Mental Health week, we have managed to book Nicola Morgan, world-famous author of “Blame My Brain”. Many parents and teachers who have heard Nicola speak have said, “I wish had heard that years ago!” Some reviews are given below.

Nicola Morgan is an engaging speaker. Her talk would be most suitable for parents of children of all ages, not just for those approaching the teenage years, but for those interested in the child development and parenting in general. This is an exciting opportunity to hear an international speaker. Numbers are restricted, so book early to avoid disappointment.

Signed copies of her book will be available at the end of her talk.

Date: Monday 8^th May 7pm

Venue: Sciennes School Hall

Cost: £3 per ticket via Parent Pay

Some reviews

British Medical Journal, Lesley Morrison, GP: “Written for teenagers but invaluable reading for those coping with them – parents, doctors, and teachers – Blame My Brain, a guide to the biology behind teenage behaviour, is informative, accessible, interactive, and fun.”

“Although she states clearly that she is not a scientist, she is well qualified to communicate scientific material about “the amazing teenage brain.” Her message to teenagers is subtle but clear: “You might even decide to respect your brain and treat it a bit better, once you know what’s going on inside it.”

“Blame My Brain is pro-teenager without being anti-adult, sympathetic without being sentimental, sensitive and funny.”

“It is very rare that an author succeeds in writing a book for teenagers which is also a “must read” for their parents and teachers. Nicola Morgan has done just that with her Blame My Brain. It does not seek to excuse anti-social teenage behaviour, but it certainly goes a long way to explaining it. There is no adequate text book for parents and their children, but this one fills an important gap, and Morgan deals with all the issues with good humour. … she ends on an optimistic note, emphasising that the brain is indeed a wonderful thing, and that while a small number of teenagers do suffer greatly during their teenage years, the vast majority come through relatively unscathed. Blame My Brain can only help them do that.”

Nicola Morgan recommends parents read the three documents below, ahead of attending.

Carolyn Anstruther | Depute Headteacher
  

P5 Growth Mindset Workshops Postponed

Hopscotch Theatre Company contacted this morning to make us aware that regrettably they have to reschedule the P5 Growth Mindset workshops (due to take place tomorrow Monday 27th February) as a result of unforeseeable circumstances outwith their control. We look forward to welcoming the team later in the year.

The Breadwinner Bakery at P4-7 Assembly 4.11.16

Sciennes Breadwinner Bakery P4-7 Assembly 4.11.16 from Sciennes Primary School

Mrs Noble thanks The Breadwinner Bakery and Scotmid Co-operative

Mrs Noble welcomed back to Sciennes the family behind long established local artisan business "The Breadwinner Baker"  - Sean McVey, wife Lesley and son Kris  - to thank them for the extraordinary opportunity they provided for current P5B class last year.

Scotmid Co-operative and The Breadwinner Bakery generously donate proceeds of £607.50 to Sciennes

The McVeys and their team, generously supported and sponsored by Scotmid Co-operative, helped our pupils learn so much about baking and breadmaking, create their own loaves and muffins, advertise them then they actually sold winning team recipes in our local Scotmid Co-operative, with all proceeds to school!

The family returned to Sciennes on Friday 4th November and generously donated an incredible £607.50 to school! Thank you to all the Sciennes' families who supported the project in buying produce. Such an exciting, memorable and commendable project and Mrs Noble thanked all involved wholeheartedly on behalf of the school. Former teacher Lesley and pupil Nina Peden spoke to all the children about the project and Lesley noted that from a range of options each team of pupils had elected to use wholemeal flour in their own recipes.

Nina tells everyone about the amazing Breadwinner Bakery project

Lesley McVey from The Breadwinner Bakery

This is what The McVeys say about their company:

At The Breadwinner Bakery we’re passionate about baking. Since 1973 our master craftsmen bakers have been baking in Edinburgh – kneading and shaping dough by hand. We prefer to use traditional, simple methods and allow time to naturally enhance our products, rather than adding anything that would change the quality or flavour of our breads. We’re proud of our heritage – and work hard to supply breads, cakes and pastries that are locally made, freshly baked and full of flavour.

Sciennes' Muffins and Loaves went on sale on International Picnic Day and provided the perfect produce for Eco Schools' One Planet Picnic campaign.

You can read more about this extraordinary project partnership with The Breadwinner Bakery on the P5 Class Page of our website:

Breadwinner Loaves and Muffins on sale!
http://2012sciennes.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/buying-bread.html
Breadwinner Bakery Session One
http://2012sciennes.blogspot.co.uk/2016/04/breadwinners-bakery.html
Breadwinner Bakery Session Two
http://2012sciennes.blogspot.co.uk/2016/05/breadwinners-bakery-day-2.html

Mr Howie gave a presentation on forthcoming Remembrance Day and explained reasons why and how poppies are used as well as commenting on recent controversy around wearing poppies. P7 pupils will again be accepting donations for poppies this week until next Friday.

Mr Howie talks about Remembrance

P4 pupils Joseph, Molly, Scarlet, Cara and Rosie performed a dance they have choreographed themselves, extremely admirably given that an oversight led it to being without music! Well done to them all for carrying on and they will perform it again - this time with musical accompaniment! - at our next Assembly on Friday 25th November.

More P4 stars - Elsie, Suzanna, Cara and Petra - performed a clapping routine (for added danger, with eyes closed). We congratulated P6 pupil Arwen on achieving a gold medal in a recent Diving competition.

Messages from the Lothian Fire and Police Services about bonfire and fireworks safety were explained. Our P6 Junior Road Safety Officers (JRSOs) - Amelia, Declan and Josh - will take the lead at our next Assembly on 25th November.

GIRFEC P4-7 Assembly 26.8.16

Sciennes GIRFEC P4-7 Assembly 25.8.16 from Sciennes Primary School


On Friday 26th August at the P4-7 Assembly, we reminded children how all the adults at Sciennes aim to 'Get It Right' for their health and wellbeing using SHANARRI. We talked about ways to remember what the letters SHANARRI stand for - Safe, Healthy, Achieving, Nurtured, Active, Respected, Responsible and Included and tested some of the teachers! Some pupils prefer to write or to draw pictures or to repeat aloud to memorise things and one method we used was to sing Hopscotch's song about SHANARRI.

Mr Tom Scott, Active Schools Co-ordinator for James Gillespie's High School Cluster, gave a presentation to the children about the benefits of taking part in sport and told us about all the amazing sporting clubs that are now available for booking online:

ACTIVE SCHOOLS CLUBS AT SCIENNES
https://www.joininedinburgh.org/venue/332

ACTIVE SCHOOLS CLUBS AT JAMES GILLESPIE'S HIGH SCHOOL
https://www.joininedinburgh.org/venue/271  (Click on Active Schools activities)

Ms French encouraged everyone to complete the Tesco Summer Reading Challenge at their local library by Saturday 3rd September and to let Mrs Noble know who manages to complete the challenge to read six books from their local library.

We also revisited Sciennes School Rules and how they help keep us safe. As a health promoting school, we welcome parental support in not sending in sweet treats to celebrate birthdays, partly because some of our children have allergies but also to reduce sugar intake.

Next week, we are really fortunate to have a very special visitor joining us at both P1-3 and P4-7 Assemblies. Tam Baillie, Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People, is coming to Sciennes to speak to all the children on Friday 2nd September and we are very much looking forward to welcoming him.

Article 24

You have the right to the best health possible and to medical care and information.

Victor Hugo Delicatessen Sponsors 'Food Focus' Book

"Food Focus" book in collaboration with local business

"Every child and young person is entitled to develop skills for learning, skills for life and skills for work, with a continuous focus on literacy and numeracy and health and wellbeing."

Curriculum for Excellence: Building the Curriculum 3


Primary Four pupils marked the book launch of "Food Focus" - a collaborative venture between local business Victor Hugo Delicatessen and Cafe and each class at Sciennes - on Wednesday 29th June at the Meadows.

Twenty-two classes, from P1-P7, contributed selected highlights from our annual whole school 'Food Focus Fortnight." Each page promotes and celebrates healthy eating and an appreciation of cuisine from different cultures, which marries extremely well with Victor Hugo Delicatessen's business ideals.

Victor Hugo, Continental Delicatessen and Cafe

Sincere thanks to the tremendous generosity of Victor Hugo Delicatessen owner, Karol Rzepkowski, who sponsored the creation of the book and additionally provided a free copy to each of our 99 P4 pupils. Karol is an inspirational former Sciennes' pupil and the "Food Focus" book details the history of Victor Hugo's, established by his father Zdzislaw (Jackie) Rzepkowski. Karol's father's story is also an inspiration:

Zdzislaw (Jackie) Rzepkowski

In 1957 the business was started in Edinburgh, with a first shop in Spittal Street, by Karol’s father Zdzislaw Rzepkowski. Zdzislaw found it hard for anyone to say his name so was more commonly known in Edinburgh as ‘Jackie’. Jackie was born in Poland and was only 16 years old when the Germans invaded. He escaped a firing squad but was taken to Auschwitz, and then a munitions factory in an Austrian labour camp before escaping over the Alps to Italy. He then made his way south until he met the allies and from there to the UK and finally Scotland. He joined the Polish division of the British Army and fought in the Woijtek Division. This was the division most famous for the bear mascot rescued as a cub in 1943 and who carried their shells into battle, ‘Woijtek the Soldier Bear’. Karol even has a photograph of his father and maternal grandfather both standing with Woijtek the bear. After the war Woijek retired and went to live out the rest of his days at Edinburgh Zoo. Jackie was demobbed and went to work.

Zdzislaw (Jackie) Rzepkowski and Karol's maternal grandfather with Woijtek the bear

Karol said, “Our first concern is that Victor Hugo’s business contributes in some way to the local community. We want to attract customers from outside but the vast majority of our clientele are locals. In a deli people can buy and eat straight away – it is the ultimate fast food! No-one ever comes into our shop and asks for a ‘pie’. Food has also been our first and longest lasting introduction to Europe. We celebrate our cultural differences through food and it allows us to embrace our European culture. We want to engage with local people and the local youngsters too because they are our future market. Sugar seems to be the
drug of choice at the moment and getting kids passionate about food is so important. We want children to get passionate and enthusiastic about good food so that they can in turn pass it onto their own children.

This is why we wanted to get involved in this book project with Sciennes Primary School. It was my school and I really enjoyed my time there so giving this opportunity back to the current students really feels like coming full circle.” 

Very well done to P4 pupils Natalia, William and Hannah who gave speeches explaining how their classmates contributed to the book. Our Principal Teacher, Ms Shona Pearmain (currently on maternity leave), took the lead in co-ordinating classes' contributions and will be very proud - of the children as well as the finished result. Sciennes School has been filled with delicious aromas since 'Food Focus' was first established by Ms Pearmain in October 2013, after the launch of our new kitchen (partly funded by Sciennes' Parent Council). The kitchen is regularly used by all classes throughout the year to create delicious healthy food.

Thank you very much to the parents who attended the "Food Focus" book launch, including Hannah's father Mr Jimmy Chow, who provided such excellent photographs of the event. Grateful thanks to Georgiana's mum, Ivana Summerton, and Pupil Support Assistants Mrs Helen Robertson, Mrs Sally Nowell and Mrs Aliya Tariq who kindly laid out the books and cut up the special cakes for the children. Thank you to Janitor Mr Reid for helping with the gazebo, tables and chairs and to Class Teachers Mrs Susan Mackay and Mrs Katherine Clark. So typical of the Sciennes' Family that everyone kindly pitched in to support. Thank you!

Grateful thanks to published author and Sciennes' parent Mary Turner Thomson for giving the children the opportunity to see their work in print through her company Whitewater Publishing. This is the sixth book that Mary has published for Sciennes in six years and provides an extraordinary opportunity for our pupils.

It was wonderful to welcome back Karol to Sciennes earlier this year and give him a tour of his former school. We look forward to strengthening the links between Sciennes Primary and Karol's neighbouring business Victor Hugo Delicatessen and Cafe; such a prominent and fondly regarded feature of the local community - and frequently frequented!

More photographs on the P4 Class Page.

"Food Focus" in print!

Ready for their speeches!

Natalia

William

Hannah

Karol and Mary

Victor Hugo Delicatessen owner, Karol Rzepkowski. Karol's delicatessen and cafe can be seen in the background of this photograph.

Sciennes' parent Mary Turner Thomson

Thank you to Class Teachers Mrs Katherine Clark, Mrs Susan Mackay, Mrs Emma Kidd, Mrs Joanne Hogan and Ms Shona Pearmain

Hannah's page - lovely handwriting, Hannah!

Mrs Susan Mackay shows the children the special cakes

Thank you Mrs Summerton, Mrs Robertson and Mrs Tariq!

Not so healthy, but celebratory!

Thank you, Karol!

Back at school, everyone immediately engrossed in "Food Focus" books

"Food Focus" is a big hit with us!

Great to pass on Karol and his father's stories to Sciennes children.