Today in assembly, we all got the chance to sing a lovely new song called ‘Everything I am’. Thanks to Flora, Emma and Hana from P4 for volunteering to sing part of the song on their own.
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‘Storm Ali’ gave P1s and P2s the perfect opportunity to gather some leaves at break time. Have a look at some of the fantastic pictures they made using the leaves.
P1 have only been in school for a couple of weeks but they have already settled into the school routines. In numeracy they have been following their ‘Numeracy Taskboard’. They have been -
playing with numbers
developing hand strength by rolling play dough
learning to share and take turns during numeracy games
P4 and P5 were given a STEM challenge. In groups, they had to build a paper tower construction that would be able to stand on its own. They were given twelve sheets of paper and masking tape and were not allowed to use any other materials. They looked at towers from around the world for design inspiration. Some of the towers were very tall but the winning tower was the group whose tower was able to stand unaided. Heidi, James, Tom, Emma and Ethan had the winning design. It was 60 cms high. A few children from P6 and P7 gave them a helping hand to finish off their towers.
On Friday P3 and P4 were very excited to see if the potatoes that had been planted earlier this year, had grown. They were not disappointed! They had great fun pulling the tops and gathering the potatoes. They had quite a crop.
At the beginning of each new school year, all our children get a chance to write a lunchtime prayer. The winning prayer is then said every day, before lunch is taken. We had some excellent prayers from the different classes. The overall winner was Stephen in P7. Wiktor P3, Ethan P4, Lucy P5, Annie P5 and Alexander P7 also received prizes for their prayers.
Learning in the outdoors is a wonderful way for children to experience their environment and to use all their senses as they play. P1 and P2 had their first outdoor session this week. They made stew in the outdoor mud kitchen, drew some lovely pictures, enjoyed the bikes and made some great constructions.
Back in May our P1 and P2 children planted some carrot seeds. There was great excitement when the children harvested their carrots last week. Some carrots had grown quite a bit and others were a bit small. This was a great introduction to the P1 and P2 topic for this half term - Five-a Day.
Following on from the success of last year's green and red choices, we have decided to continue with them this year. Children are encouraged to make good behaviour choices every day in school - green choices. Red choices are things that would make school be an unhappy, unsafe place for children to be in: e.g. running in the corridor, leaving people out, bullying At the beginning of this term everyone got the opportunity to think about 'green and red choices'. They drew pictures and wrote about what they had drawn. In assembly everyone agreed to try to make green choices every day, and stay away from red behaviour choices.
Welcome to our new P1's. We have eleven pupils in P1, 4 girls and seven boys. They have all already settled into the routine of school and are now looking forward to staying until 1pm from Monday 10th September.
Today we had an end of term treat when many of our children took part in the Rasharkin's Got Talent Competition. We had singing, dancing, football, skipping, comedy, violins, piano and gymnastics. Our winners this year were Lucy and Lily with a fantastic gymnastic routine. Thanks to Mr George and Hannah for judging the competition. Click here for video
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Today, our P3 and P4 children and P4 children from St Patrick's Primary School went on their end of year trip to Glenariff Forest Park. Liz, who is the Forest Education Officer told the children all about the forest animals before taking them on a riverside walk. As we walked along we used our senses to enjoy various aspects of the forest. We also did the Grufallo trail before enjoying our picnic and games, overlooking the spectacular Glenariff Glen.
Today, Sam and Alexander from P6 took part in the K'Nex final at Jordanstown University. They had to design and build an electric powered jeep, which could go up a ramp that they had also had to make. From the photos you can see they made a really impressive car. Well done Sam and Alexander.
Congratulations to Hannah P5 and Emma P3 who were the winners of the Danske Bank Colouring Competition. Hannah and Emma received their prizes from Robert in Danske Bank Ballymena. They also got a guided tour of the Bank and even got to see all the money in the safe.
Thanks to Derek and Des from Ambassadors Football for organising a football tournament for children from our school and Carnalbanagh Primary School. This was held at Ballymena Show Grounds. The children were in four teams and played a mini 'World Cup Tournament'. The winning team received a medal each, and Tyler was named ' player of the match'. The children all enjoyed the tournament and were challenged to respect each other and encourage each other as they participated in the matches.
Congratulations to the children who received certificates for June 2018. The certificates were awarded for - 'Being Helpful in Class', 'Good Organisation', 'Good Interest in the WAU Topic'. and 'Excellent Class Presentation Skills.
Congratulations to Isaac in P5 who was the winner of the Accelerated Reading Cup for this half term.
Today 20th June, was Prize Day for 2018 where we celebrated the many successes of our pupils throughout the year. Our guest speaker for today was Mr Brian Poots from Forest Schools Association. He has been working alongside Mrs Calderwood and the P1 and P2 children, as part of the Shared Education Project, to introduce and encourage outdoor learning. We are delighted that Rasharkin Primary School is now an official Forest School. Congratulations to Mrs Calderwood who has achieved the Open College Network NI Level 3 Award in Leadership in Forest Schools. We were also delighted to announce that Lucy's design has been chosen for our new school sign which will hopefully be on display later this year. Well done to everyone who took part in singing, playing instruments and saying a poem. Click here for Video Thanks also to the parents who served refreshments and to Mullins who provided ice cream for all of our children.
On Thursday 14th June, P1 and P2 visited Coastal Zone in Portrush. Their topic in World Around Us has been 'The Seaside', so this trip enabled the children to experience many of the things they have been looking at first hand. At Coastal Zone, they watched feeding time at the rock pool and the tank. The children got a chance to try on the diving equipment. They also looked at whale bones and saw thornback rays, starfish, lobsters, and sea urchins in the tank. From the observation area the children saw lots of different seabirds.
On Wednesday 13th June, P6 and P7 attended a 'Taster Day' at Cambridge House Grammar School. They participated in lots of activities from learning colours in Spanish, to making fruit kebabs in Home Economics. Many thanks to Cambridge House for a really enjoyable day.
