Latest News

January 2021:

• More Home Learning: The start of term hasn’t gone quite according to plan, with all schools back to home learning for now. The school remains open for children whose parents work in Category 1 or 2 and who are unable to work at home, plus children who may be vulnerable. All other pupils will do home learning. We look forward to seeing everyone’s happy faces through google meet and hope it won’t be too long before the school re-opens for everyone.

December 2020:

• Christmas Party: The pupils all enjoyed an entertaining party on the last day of term with lots of fun and games, finishing with a fantastic line up for ‘Strip the Willow’. Santa was even able to deliver presents for all the children to Mrs Middleton, who found a note from him in the wildlife garden!
• Whole School Performance: The whole school put together a short performance of ‘The Night Before Christmas’. They did a super job learning their lines and the younger class were fantastic as reindeer, plus there was a very jolly santa!

• Christmas Jumper Day: What a lot of colourful jumpers there were in school today! As well as wearing their festive jumpers, the children also enjoyed a delicious christmas lunch, accompanied by crackers and music. The afternoon was spent making festive treats for the wildlife and then drinking warm, spiced apple juice while sitting around the firepit in the outdoor learning area.

November 2020:

• Enterprise: As part of our Citizenship responsibilities, the school has decided to raise funds for the Northsound ‘Cash for Kids’ appeal this year.  To do this we have launched a whole-school enterprise topic where groups are given a £10 start-up capital investment and will create tasteful Christmas ornaments, decorations and crafts to sell to the local community.  We will hopefully have a catalogue of gifts for you to peruse available soon (think Etsy/Not on the Highstreet) and will be taking orders.  All profits will go to the Christmas appeal.  There’s a really positive buzz in the school about this, so make sure you ask your children plenty of questions about their roles in their business!
• Seesaw: Unfortunately, Aberdeenshire Council have informed schools not to use Seesaw anymore so we will not be renewing our subscription this year. For the time being, any information to and from parents will be sent via the school email.

October 2020:

• Pumpkin Carving Competition: We had 21 fantastic entries in our pumpkin carving competition.  All the pupils and staff voted for their favourite pumpkin – well done to the winners!
•  Chocolate Spiders: The P1-3 class had a fun morning making chocolate crispy spiders.  They mixed all the ingredients together, put the mixture into cake cases, then decorated them with white chocolate drops for eyes and strawberry laces for legs.  Then they ate them!
• Well done to the Wildcats for winning the most house points this term!

September 2020:

• School Mural – work has started in creating a lovely mural for the wall by the main entrance to school.  Mrs Robertson has done an amazing design and all the pupils are going to be involved in painting it.  We can’t wait to see the finished result!

August 2020:

• It is so lovely to see the pupils back at school after nearly 5 months of lockdown.  We would like to say a special welcome to our four new pupils in the P1-4 class.

April – July 2020:

• School closed due to Covid-19.  Teaching continued online with staff setting daily work for all the pupils.

March 2020:

• P7 Residential Trip – the P7s had a fantastic time at Cromdale Outdoor Centre where they had a go at canoeing, gorge walking, biking and more.
• Judo Taster Sessions – Both classes had a go at judo with one of the instructors from the Alford Judo Club.
• Mad March Science Festival– both classes had a good time at the science workshops provided by Cromar Future Group.
• ‘Draw Your Mum’ – Our P1-4 pupils have taken part in the Evening Express ‘Draw your Mum’ event.  Pictures will be in the Evening Express on Friday 20th March.
• World Book Day – We held a fantastic World Book Day.  Everyone came to school dressed as an adjective and brought in photos of them reading in strange places for our ‘Extreme Reading Competition’.  We drew pictures of book characters to decorate the inside of our classroom doors, with clues as to who they were to put on the outside of the doors.  In the afternoon we held a Literacy Open Afternoon and parents visited the school to find out all about how we learn literacy at Craigievar School.  We were also selling our own book which we have written and illustrated called ‘The Found Words of Craigievar’.  It is very popular!

February 2020:

• Rotary Primary School Quiz – Well done to our two P7 teams who did really well in this year’s Rotary Primary School Quiz.
• Rugby Festival – The pupils in P4-7 had a fantastic morning at Huntly, taking part in a Rugby Festival organised by the Huntly Rugby Club.  Craigievar had two teams and, following on from their rugby training sessions, there were some great performances on the rugby pitch.
• Rotakids – On 11th February the P3-7s had a visit from the Rotary who told them all about what they do and what it means to be a Rotakid.  The pupils in the citizenship group then took the Rotakids pledge to become members of the Rotakids.

January 2020:

• Sooyang-do Taster Session – The whole school took part in a taster session for this exciting martial art.  Sooyang-do is a system of martial arts training which is designed to enable the practitioner to enhance all aspects of physical fitness – speed, stamina, strength and flexibility and to acquire self-defence skills in a safe and friendly environment.  It was enjoyed by all!
• Pupil Groups – We have re-established our Pupil Groups and look forward to working hard in each area.  The Environment group are working towards another Green Flag award and developing our wildlife garden; the Citizenship group are looking at fundraising ideas and charities to support; the Curriculum group are focused on enhancing our Library and making it more usable for everyone.
• Registration Week for Primary 1 is 13th – 17th January.  All children who reach their fifth birthday by 28th February 2021 are invited to register for Primary 1 for admissions in August 2020.  Parents are asked to visit the school, bringing a copy of their child’s birth certificate and proof of address.  An information pack will be issued to you, with details on how to apply.

December 2019:

• The Stars Come Out for Christmas – The whole school did a fantastic Christmas production which was performed at Craigievar Hall to an audience of over 90 parents, family & friends.  The singing was wonderful and the pupils really enjoyed the songs, one of the favourites being ‘Boogie, Woogie, Santa’.
• Cash for Kids – The pupils held a Christmas Jumper Day, with donations of £1 to wear your jumper going to Northsound 1’s Cash for Kids.  We also held a raffle at the school play, and in total the school raised a fantastic £212.00 for this charity.
• SSPCA Visit – We had a very interesting visit from the SSPCA.  They explained some of what they do and also told us ways to look after our animals and wildlife in the winter.

November 2019:

• Name the Gritter – Everyone got involved in Aberdeenshire Council’s competition to name the 32 gritters that keep our roads clear in the winter months.  ‘Snow Slayer’ was the winning name chosen by the school, and it’s great to see that one of the gritters in our area now has that name!
• Rugby Taster Sessions – The P4-7s really enjoyed their first Rugby Taster Session, organised by Active Schools and led by Huntly Rugby Club.  We are looking forward to the next session and the Rugby Festival next year.
• Rotary Shoeboxes – Once again we took part in the Rotary Shoebox Scheme, filling up special boxes which are sent abroad to people in need.

October 2019:

• Forest School – The whole school had a great morning up in the Forest.  Pupils chose a name associated with the Forest as the word for their ‘Lost Word’ project which they will be working on during the term.  Some of the pupils saw a deer in the Forest, and we also made spiders and broomsticks.
• Macmillan Coffee Morning – We had a fantastic coffee morning and raised over £100 for Macmillan.  There was ‘Guess the Weight of the Cake’, ‘Dunk your biscuit in the Cuppa’ and our Brilliant Biscuit Beetledrive!  Pupils came to school in home clothes, but had to try and wear purple or green if possible!
• Rotakids – Our Rotakids gave a fantastic presentation at the Rotary Club Evening. They talked about our Environment Day, our links with the Craigievar Castle Kitchen Garden, our work with Oor Wullie, plus the Ride the North Cycle Event.

September 2019:

• Theatre in Schools – Both classes had a great experience going to the Theatre in Alford Community Campus.  The P1-4s saw a play called ‘Cloud Man’ which was all about a scientist searching for Cloud Men in the sky and the P5-7s saw a play called ‘Mikey and Addie’.

August 2019:

• Ride the North Cycle Event – On Sunday 25th August, Craigievar School welcomed over 800 cyclists to our playground.  We were a refreshment stop for the Ride the North Cycle Event and our P5-7 class made lots of delicious homebakes for the cyclists to eat.
• Welcome back! We hope you have all had a fantastic summer holiday and we particularly want to welcome all our new pupils to the school.

July 2019:

• End of Term – We would like to wish everyone a very happy summer holiday and look forward to seeing you back at school on Wednesday 21st August.
• House Point Extravaganza:  As a prize for winning the House Cup, all the pupils in Pine Martens had a morning making pizzas, cooking them in a pizza oven, and finishing off the occasion with chocolate cake!
• End of Term Assembly:  We can’t believe that another year has finished and we sadly say goodbye not only to our P7 pupil, but also to Mrs Dennison who has taught at Craigievar School for 10 years.  We wish them both a very happy future.  The End of Term Assembly is also where the House Cup Winners are revealed and this year the team with the most House Points is … the Pine Martens – well done!

June 2019:

• Inter-house Football & Netball Tournaments:  All pupils competed in games of football and netball for their house team, with staff team leaders joining in with the P4-7 netball tournament.  The winning teams were:  Netball – Wildcats,   Football – Pine Martens
• Sports Day: Another fantastic Sports Day was held at Craigievar School.  The day started with Potted Sports with pupils competing in house teams, then moved on to the individual races, then the team relays and finally our new event – the Tug of War.  Everyone showed great enthusiasm and sportsmanship.  Well done to the winning team for the Sports Cup – the Wildcats!
• P1 Induction:  We enjoyed meeting our three new P1s and are very much looking forward to them starting at Craigievar School in August.
• Zoolabs:  The P1-3 class had a fantastic visit from Zoolabs.  They saw, and held, lots of exciting creatures such as a tortoise, a giant millipede, a giant African land snail, a corn snake, a leopard gecko and a tarantula!
• Gardening Club: The school has set up an After School Gardening Club which we are very lucky to hold in the Craigievar Castle Kitchen Garden.  With almost the whole school being part of this club and lots of support and help from the parents, we have managed to do plenty of weeding and sowing.  We hope to have a Harvest Feast using our own produce!
• Environment Day: The school held their own Environment Day on 12th June.  Pupils made bird boxes, did some gardening in the school beds, made pledges against plastic and did some fact-finding to make wildlife posters.
• School Library: Our Curriculum Group are busy promoting the use of the school library and have lots of ideas to help pupils choose books that are suitable for them.  They have worked very hard and have all been rewarded with smart new Librarian Badges.
• Caterpillars: As part of our minibeasts topic, the P1-3 class had some caterpillars in the classroom.  When they arrived they were really tiny, but they grew very quickly and then each one turned into a chrysalis.  After a little while longer they turned into beautiful ‘painted lady’ butterflies.  We let them go on a lovely sunny afternoon and they now live in our wildlife garden.

May 2019:

• Minibeasts: The P1-3 class had a fantastic day at Castle Fraser looking for minibeasts.  They had great fun doing some pond dipping and exploring the area for insects.
• Football Teams:  Our newly formed Junior Football Team had their first outing at the Midmar Tournament. They played really well and gained confidence with each match.  Our senior football team showed excellent sportsmanship throughout the tournament and were thrilled to win their final match 4-0 – Well Done to all our players!
• Oor Wullie’s Big Bucket Trail: We are taking part in the Archie’s Campaign, ‘Oor Wullie’s Big Bucket Trail’. This involves painting a sculpture of Oor Wullie and then it will be displayed somewhere locally over the summer before returning to school.
• Orienteering Festival: The P4-7s took part in the Active Schools Orienteering Festival. It was a great morning and we had to use our map reading skills to find different checkpoints. We had 45 minutes to find as many checkpoints as we could.

April 2019:

• Passover: Simon Crouch, the School Chaplain, came and told us all about the Last Supper and Passover. We learnt how they welcomed travellers to their meal and would wash their hands and feet. We had a go at washing each other’s hands and we tasted a matzo which is unleavened bread
• P1-3 Class Drawing Skills: The P1-3 class have been learning how to do observational drawing and painting.  They were drawing daffodils and made sure that they looked at the shape and colour of the stem, petals and trumpet.  They drew some lovely paintings which made a beautiful display in the corridor.

March 2019:

• Assembly:  It was lovely to see so many parents at our End of Term Assembly.  The usual Book Prizes were awarded and the House Points added up to reveal the winning house for this term – the Pine Martens! The three pupil groups (Environment, Citizenship & Curriculum Group) also gave a short presentation to the parents on what they have been doing this term and what they are planning for next term.
• Hand bells: We had a very musical visit from the Cushnie Hand Bell Group who showed the pupils how to play the Hand Bells.  They also learnt how to play the chimes and the bell plates.
• Golf: The P4-7s have had three taster sessions of Golf run by Alford Golf Club.  We definitely have some young talent at the school!
• World Book Day: All the pupils came to school dressed as an adjective. They brought their favourite book in to read while eating toast and drinking hot chocolate.  The afternoon was spent decorating the doors in the school to look like book covers.
• Pancake Day: The P1-5s made some delicious pancakes.  First they followed the recipe, measured out the ingredients and then cooked the pancakes, even managing to flip them.  The reward was delicious pancakes covered in their favourite toppings.
• Mad March Science Festival: Both classes worked with electric circuits and had fun connecting wires to make lights work and buzzers to go off.
• Residential Trip: Our P6/7 pupils had a fantastic residential trip at Alltnacriche.  During their stay they participated in an exploration walk, a whole group game of Land Grab, had a go at the climbing wall, zip line and ropes course and did some woodcraft carving.  All this was followed by a trip to the RZSS Highland Wildlife Park.

February 2019:

• Rotary Quiz: Craigievar School took part in the annual Rotary Primary School Quiz at Alford Community Campus.  This year we entered two teams with pupils from P6 and P7 and both teams did very well.  Congratulations to everyone who took part.

January 2019:

• Registration Week for Primary 1 is 14th – 18th January.  All children who reach their fifth birthday by 29th February 2020 are invited to register for Primary 1 for admissions in August 2019.  Application forms are available from the school office.  If you would like to come and visit the school please contact us to arrange a suitable date and time.

December 2018:

• Shows: The whole school had great fun putting on a couple of performances for family and friends.  The P5-7 class gave a super presentation about World War One and the P1-4 class put on a fantastic performance of ‘The Egyptians’.
• All the children enjoyed making edible decorations for the wildlife.  They made tasty pinecones, raisin icicles and bird seed baubles.  The P1-3s hung theirs on trees in the wildlife garden and the P4-7s went up to our Forest School and chose a beautiful fir tree to decorate.

November 2018:

• We have some exciting master classes happening this term.  On a Friday afternoon, children take part in either baking, mindfulness drawing, lego building or woodland skills.
• The P5-7s took part in a Remembrance Service at the War Memorial in Tough along with pupils from Tough School and the minister, Simon Crouch.
• As part of Remembrance, the whole school were involved in making crafts, organised by Tough/Cushnie Church.  The P1-3s made some lovely remembrance sticks, and the P4-7s made some poppies.
• We had a visit from Quality Meat Scotland and took part in a fantastic cookery demonstration.  We helped to prepare lamb fajitas and discussed what makes Scottish produce the best in the world.