Hopefully all families have seen the parent pay email requesting that certain resources are returned to school this week and also regarding pickup of personal items.

Resources

This is just a reminder that we need all reading books, textbooks and other literature to be returned to the school this week so that we can redistribute them to the new classes in August.

If you have had a specific resource allocated to your family to support particular learning needs do also check your email for messages regarding return of these.

If you are unsure please either ask your class teacher on twitter or email admin@dalry.edin.sch.uk

Personal Belongings

Again this is hopefully a reminder that personal belongings of the children that were left in school are ready for collection. You should have been contacted if there is something for you.

Any uncollected items will need to be disposed of at the end of this week.

Collection and Drop Off

The school is open during normal hours this week for collection of belongings and drop off of resources only. Please follow all general social distancing guidelines from the Scottish government on the day and all specific instructions on site. If it is busy you may need to queue for a few minutes.

We have had the below statement to staff by the CEC Equalities Steering group (education). We thought you would share it directly as you will no doubt be interested to hear of the work going on to react positively to the challenges put forward in the wake of recent events.

Black Lives Matter

Recent events in the US, in particular the shocking death of George Floyd, and the global response are shining a light again on the harmful and persistent issue of institutionalised racism.  We fully recognise that it is no less an issue in the UK and Scotland.  We have a list of similar deaths of black citizens, and we have witnessed the disproportionate effect of COVID-19 on people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

We are heartened by the concern and support expressed by pupils, parents and staff from across our learning communities in recent days.  We are all rightly asking what more we can and should do to support our Black, Asian and minority ethnic pupils and colleagues.

We re-affirm and strengthen our commitment to confronting and addressing racism and discrimination in all its forms through strong anti-racist leadership, teaching and youth work.  Our recent engagement with BAME young people and partner organisations has shown that there is much more that we can do and we will continue to listen and learn.  We have started by implementing a revised anti-bullying procedure supported by training for senior leaders and pupil Equalities groups and we are working to ensure that Black history and its role in our city is a core part of a decolonised and inclusive curriculum.  We will increase training for all school staff and have set up a working group as part of a national commitment to increasing diversity in the teaching workforce.

We believe that our schools have a vital role to play in tackling racism and creating a city where all are treated with dignity and respect.  We want all our children and young people to thrive and lead in a diverse and complex world.  We do not underestimate the challenge of this deep-rooted problem.  We are fully committed to making a difference, harnessing the compassion, energy and creativity of our children, young people, families and staff to make Edinburgh a city where there is no place for discrimination or injustice.

On behalf of,

The City of Edinburgh Council Equalities Steering Group (Education)

The National Parent Forum of Scotland are holding an online Q&A for parent with the deputy First Minister regarding the return to schools in August.

Full details on their website here https://www.npfs.org.uk/2020/06/10/parent-qa-with-deputy-first-minister-john-swinney/

The Latest issue of Families magazine has been released as online only .

Due to the COVID-19 restrictions our uniform supplier, Border Embroideries, have sent out this flyer to explain their easy online ordering service.

Please have a look if you are joining us for P1 in August or haven’t used the service before.

Here is a letter from Mrs Honeyman detailing how to access information on Tynecastle P7-S1 transition as it arrives in the coming weeks. Please click the link below.

P7 Tynecastle Transition Information

With the recent hot weather, and the holidays approaching, a nice swim at the beach or a pool would normally be something a lot of the Dalry Primary family would be enjoying, especially as these activities are allowed under current guidelines.

But with no lifeguards on duty, pools closed and no recent swimming lessons there are a lot more risks to where and how children (and grown ups) are going swimming.

Here are some links to learn about water safety while you are at home:

Click here to access lots and lots of information about all aspects of water safety on the website of The Royal Lifesaving Society

The RNLI has a range of fun interactive learning resources if you click here.

They have resources aimed a schools that you could choose to use at home. These are split by age group.

RNLI 3-7 year olds

RNLI 7-11 year olds

RNLI 11-14 Year olds

Dalry Primary is very near to the Union Canal, and quite near the Water of Leith, so canal water and river safety is very important. The Canal and River Trust have lots of child friendly activites and resources available by clicking this link

Lastly this Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents quiz is aimed at older children but the danger and warning signs in it are ones worth discussing even with younger children.

Have fun and be safe!