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A Busy and Successful First Term at Blackness Primary School

What a fantastic first term it has been as the new head teacher at Blackness! It has been a real pleasure getting to know our pupils, staff, parents, and wider community. Together, we’ve celebrated so many moments of learning and fun, including class gatherings sharing pupil achievements, Parents’ Evening, Water Day, World Book Day, House Afternoon, the Friends of Blackness Ceilidh and our FOB school Bingo night. I now truly feel part of the Blackness family!

Our focus on school improvement continues, with developments in learning, teaching, and assessments, digital learning, our approach to inclusion and promoting attendance. We’ve also focused on creating welcoming and engaging learning environments.

This term we opened our new nurture therapeutic space, The Den, tidied and organised shared areas, revamped classrooms and with support from the Blackness Gardening Club began growing our school garden.  Our pupils have played a key role in these developments; pupil voice is something we truly value here at Blackness.

We are also proud of our pupils’ achievements and attainment this term. Academically, our Standardised National Assessment results in P1, P4, and P7 show good progress in literacy and numeracy and our overall school attainment predictions for this session are good.

As we look ahead to the new term, we are excited to build on this momentum with even more inspiring learning experiences, engaging events and opportunities for every pupil to shine. There is so much to look forward to in the months ahead!

Enjoy a lovely two week break and we look forward to seeing you in the new term.

Miss Taylor

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Mrs Sarah McCowan

After an incredible 30 years of service. Mrs Sarah McCowan has announced her retirement from teaching at the end of this term. Mrs McCowan first worked in Blackness Primary in 1996, before leaving in 2005 to support learners in other Dundee schools. She returned to Blackness in 2012 where she has been an invaluable asset to our team.

Mrs McCowan is well known for her willingness to go the extra mile, meticulous attention to detail, hard work and dedication to her pupils.

While we will miss her greatly at Blackness Primary, we would like to take this opportunity to wish her all the best in her next chapter - working as a literacy champion, supporting children's love of reading, lots of volunteering in the community and possibly some traveling!

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Click on the picture above to see our Mission H2O slideshow.

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My highlight of the term has got to be the house challenge obstacle course. We spent the day racing back and forth with bowls of water on our head, trying to carry as much water as possible from one bucket to the other without spilling it. Every trip became a balance of speed and precision as we navigated obstacles and tried to keep our buckets steady. By the end, it turned into a fun mix of strategy, teamwork, and friendly competition to see which house could save the most water over the course of the day (some did not manage to stay as dry as others).

The winning house was Bluebell who earned 100 points!

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In term 3, Blackness Primary School has made impressive strides in promoting active travel, thanks to a collaborative effort between pupils, staff, and the wider community. A key element has been the continued success of the twice-weekly Walking Bus, which has remained a popular and positive start to the school day. Led by dedicated Active Travel employees, the Walking Bus not only encourages pupils to choose healthier, more sustainable travel options but also helps build confidence, independence, and social connection along the way.

In addition, the school recently delivered Mission H20, a week-long effort to decrease water use. The Active Travel team were able to source 5 rowers from Active Dundee facilities for a Rowing Challenge, with the goal of rowing the length of the River Tay! This initiative gave pupils a fun and engaging way to boost physical activity levels, while also linking movement with teamwork and friendly competition. It has served as an excellent example of how local partnerships can enrich school life and inspire pupils to think creatively about staying active.

Supporting all of this is the school’s Active Travel Club, which meets fortnightly and brings together pupil representatives from the upper school. These meetings provide a valuable platform for young people to share ideas, discuss ongoing initiatives, and shape the future of active travel at Blackness Primary.

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Primary 6a and 6b were excited to be part of the St. Andrew's University Sleep Study alongside two other primary schools in Dundee. The children enjoyed all the experiments which showed the effects of tiredness on the body and learned a lot about the importance of good sleep hygiene.

This linked well with all the work we have been doing in ICT to reduce screen time and increase cyber security. The children particularly enjoyed using the VR headsets to explore Victorian London - it was quite an experience.

The two classes are involved in the Guildry Enterprise project and learned how to brainstorm ideas with large sheets of paper on the walls and no idea too silly or outlandish. It has produced some interesting ideas for our enterprise project which we will be completing in the final term.

We can't say enough about P6's involvement in the greater school community. From house vice captains to buddies, from attending clubs to representing the school at football and cross country. Finally, we can't wait to see the choir and the dancers in the school show. We were very intrigued by a small group of actors in Primary 6 playing the parts of 'Scotland fans' and can't wait to find out what they are doing.

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Primary 1a have been busy becoming mini coders! We’ve been giving and following simple commands to move ourselves, our friends and Beebots, making predictions about what might happen, and fixing any mistakes along the way. Lots of great thinking, teamwork and problem-solving on show!

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Martin from Save by the Bell came into visit P2b. They are going to be experts at saving.

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P3 were lucky enough to take part in a creative writing workshop with Fiona from Blackness Library and visiting author, Anna Stewart. We thought about the way stories are written and Anna shared with us her love of books and how she gets inspiration. We played some drama games, and the children were given the opportunity to ask Anna some questions. The following week we enjoyed listening to Anna’s audio story all about a boy from Lochee having a day out with his dad.

“A Day oot wi Dad” - www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0hl8308

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P7 have had a very busy week putting together their outfits for their Trashion show. They’ve been learning to sew, manipulate fabrics, design and create in collaboration with each other and members of the V&A team!

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P4 were preparing, cooking and ultimately eating a popular Korean childhood snack called Hotteuk, which is a chewy pancake filled with cinnamon sugar.  Pupils had to follow a recipe and measure and mix all the ingredients in teams before dividing their dough and filling and cooking their individual pancakes in class. We hope to enjoy further cooking and culture lessons next term too.

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P1b have been learning to write and follow step by step instructions. They did a great job writing and following instructions to make toast, pancakes and porridge this term.

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Thank you to all who attended Friends of Blackness Ceilidh. It was a really lovely community event.

Our Scottish poetry winners bravely took to the stage to recite learned poems, doing a fantastic job and thoroughly entertaining those in the audience. Followed by music, dancing and fun!

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Great fun was had with P2a at Dundee Science Centre! We had fun in all exploring the different areas with our host Jennifer. The favourite area being the water! We also enjoyed the walk to and from in the sunshine ☀️

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Ice Skating

P3/4 have really enjoyed a block of ice skating at the Dundee Ice Arena. They developed their balance and co-ordination whilst learning to move safely on the ice. Our coaches Aleks and Becca taught us how to skate, how to stop and how to get back up safely when we fall down. Many of our learners were very anxious about how slippery the ice was, however, they have shown a growth mindset and really tried their very best!

Classroom Crime Scene

P3/4’s explanation writing skills were really put to the test this term with a cake catastrophe. When we entered our classroom on the 19th February, we discovered that someone had helped themselves to our cake. P3/4 put their detective skills to the test, analysing footprints, handwriting and witness statements. We questioned suspects and completed a written newspaper report with our findings.

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P5a celebrated tremendous learning at their Gathering  this month! They demonstrated excellent presentation skills, including characterisation, eye contact, volume and memorisation of lines, as they performed the play, ‘Oor Wullie’s Tour of Dundee’.  They shared about Scottish culture, inventors, cities and the Top 5 traditional Industries: Whaling, Shipbuilding, Coal Mining, Farming, Fishing, Jute and Textiles. They have explored the importance, connection and impact these industries had on society. They predicted, collaborated, communicated, and used critical thinking skills to determine the rise, dangers and decline of these industries. To conclude this topic we embarked on a field trip to both the Verdant Works and The Discovery Museum where their learning became relevant and most evident listening to all their questions and insight. Well done P5a on your excellent work this term.

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P7A have had a busy and exciting term filled with creativity and learning. During our visit to the V&A and creating an exhibition and producing a catwalk show!

The pupils were inspired to write their own imaginative fairytales, showcasing fantastic storytelling skills, which we have collaborated with P1B. In maths, we have been building confidence in fractions and percentages through a range of practical activities. The class also took part in whole school events, including UNCRC Water Day and World Book Day, embracing both with enthusiasm.

We have been developing our growing skills by planting pea seedlings, which we transferred into our school garden. A highlight was our trip to the Caird Hall for the Literacy Festival, where we enjoyed meeting author Simon Lamb. Another exciting outing was to the DCA, where pupils created their own stop-motion animations—an experience everyone thoroughly enjoyed. Well done, P7A, for your continued hard work and positive attitude!

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During the P5 school trip we visited the Verdant works and the Discovery point. We learned lots about Jute and how to weave fabric, as well as having a tour of the museum where we learned about the Jute machine processes. At the Discovery we learned lots about Antarctica and the differences between there and Scotland. We also had the opportunity to dress up as the scientists that were on the Discovery and see what their living conditions were like.

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The Blackness Football Team have carried their excellent form from last year straight into this season. Their teamwork, passing, and enthusiasm have been outstanding, making them a joy to watch.

Impressive victories over Glebelands, St Joseph's, Craigowl, St Mary's and Birkhill have put us top of our league section, and we’re still competing strongly in both cup competitions.

There is plenty of hard work still ahead, but the players have given themselves a fantastic opportunity to challenge for silverware this season. We couldn’t be prouder of their effort and commitment!

Games played in Primary School League

Glebelands 2 - 13 Blackness

Birkhill 0 - 9 Blackness

St Joseph's 1 - 5 Blackness

St Mary's 1 - 7 Blackness

Craigowl 0 - 8 Blackness

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P6 have been working in groups, researching famous bridges around the world. They are using this research to write an information report.

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The P6 and P7 Enterprise group created their own café business this term. They have created a brand, undertaken consumer research, produced marketing materials, made their products, namely lemonade and hot chocolate, and sold their wares to all classes, over a four week period. All profits will be given to the Danny Hashim Autism Awareness charity who recently funded the development of our sensory space. They also wrote letters to local businesses that could donate any of the ingredients for their drinks. A big thanks to Fraser’s Fruit and Veg and the Family Shopper for supporting us! The pupils have all enjoyed the experience and they have developed a range of Meta skills doing so! I am really proud of what they achieved! (Mrs Nivison, Supporting Learners)

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Click the picture above to view our World Book Day slideshow

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Click on the picture above to see our house afternoon slideshow

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P2b had a wonderful trip to the science centre.

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Miss Leslie and the boys and girls in P1 & P2 have had lots of fun making Playdough and using the diggers and cutters to make interesting shapes.

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P1a finding out about where everyone in their class is from.

Article 7

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Click on the picture to see our UNCRC slideshow.

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The Blackness Choir meet on a Monday with Heather Miranda, our music specialist volunteer, and Debbie Stewart. We've learned canon singing, what a 'phrase' is all whilst blowing bubbles, bouncing on a mini trampoline, throwing and catch objects and lots more! We have learned a few songs, our favourite is of African origin. We're looking forward to practising drum percussion accompaniment to compliment our well rehearsed body percussion routine! We're building up to an audience performance! Further information to come next term!

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A great night was had by all who attended the family bingo night on Thursday 19th March.

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2a – Rowan Trezise

2b – Erin Collins

P3 – Hannah Dalton

P3/4 – Sol Henderson Dailly and Vibha Gayathri Kulathu

P4 – Thomas Clelland

P5a – Aine Aykelenboom

P5b – Ben Sundaramoorthy-Bandau

P6a – James King

P6b – Nesma Sia

P7a – Seth Dailly

P7b Noah McNaught

Congratulations to all who took part in the Scottish poetry competition, you all did an amazing job.

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After a break over the Winter the Botanics group were keen to restart their outdoor learning and learning in an interdisciplinary way. We have enjoyed learning about different trees, the variation in their leaves and that some have medicinal purposes! We also visited the last remaining of nine wells in the West end that led to our local hospitals name!

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Our newly developed Nurture space has welcomed Miss Brown, ably assisted by her two P7 ambassadors, taking a bucket time group. This is a great way to develop pupil's talking, listening and social skills as they discuss  the various items that are in the bucket!

Miss Leslie has been using the Den to host Kit bag sessions. These provide opportunities for pupils to discuss their emotions and their self regulation tools they use to support themselves. It also allows pupils to use their voice to positively represent themselves and others.

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Congratulations to Seth Dailly! Seth won silver in the Primary 7 boys individual championship.

Congratulations to our P7 boys team who won silver in the Primary 7 boys team championship.

Very well done to all who took part on a challenging course around Baxter Park.

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Primary 2 took part in the RSPB Big Schools Birdwatch 2026. They had great fun and spotted lots of birds.

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The Blackness Dance Group led by Lauren Lewis one of our parents performed to a full audience at the Harris Cluster Dance Show. They were fantastic! Well done to all!

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Update from Blackness PS Gardening Club:

A huge thank you for all the energy, ideas and kindness you’ve brought to the school garden so far – it’s been wonderful to see the garden beginning to take shape, and to watch the children’s curiosity, creativity and care grow alongside it.

Over the past weeks, the children have been right at the heart of shaping the space — designing what the garden could become, introducing worms to help the soil thrive, making clay creatures to protect the garden, playing with natural materials, and creating handmade signs. It’s been a joy to see their ideas come to life in such imaginative and thoughtful ways.

Together, we’ve planted a rich mix of fruits, vegetables and flowers: raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and gooseberries, carrot and parsnip seeds, and peas that many of the children have been growing on their windowsills. We’ve also added herbs, mint, lavender, roses, daffodils, daisies, and winter jasmine, as well as the school houses’ flowers — Thistle, Heather, Primrose and Bluebell. It’s already beginning to feel like a shared, living space!

Our weekly Friday Gardening Club will continue from school pick-up time (with a break during the Easter holidays) and we’d love you to keep coming along. These sessions are a relaxed space to spend time together, get hands in the soil, try out ideas, and let the children lead the way.

We’re always open to new ideas — from what to plant next to how we use the space — so please keep sharing your thoughts. And if you have any spare plants, cuttings or seeds at home, we’d be very grateful for donations to help the garden keep growing.

We’re also starting to look ahead to the Summer holidays, and would love to hear from anyone who might be interested in helping out during those times. Whether it’s watering, tidying, or simply spending some time together in the garden, every small contribution makes a difference. Please just let us know via email: blacknessgarden@gmail.com

This is very much an ongoing, shared project — and we’re excited to see what continues to grow here: not just plants, but minds, nature and hope.

Watch this space: https://sites.google.com/view/blackness-gardening-club  🌱

With thanks and warm wishes,
The Garden Crew

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P5 have enjoyed music and singing with RNSO and David McLean from Dundee Instrumental Schools Service. They had fun sharing and performing for some of the classes in school. They sounded fantastic!

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We were making 20cm and 30cm perimeter 2D shapes using rulers and string. We had to measure the string with a ruler to create the perimeter and used this to create lots of different shapes. We were also inspired by the artist Henri Matisse to create some art alongside our maths learning!

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We have had 2 P6 groups working with Ancrum outdoors this term. The went for a four week block and enjoyed taking part in a variety of activities as you can see in the photos!

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We've watched the careful planning, seen the collaboration of staff and pupils, witnessed the creativity bringing ideas to life, and now we're all looking forward to seeing the culmination of everyone's hard work on Tuesday 31st March and Wednesday 1st April.

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Girls from P5–7 took part in a Girls Football Tournament at DISC. The girls were fantastic, demonstrating excellent teamwork, enthusiasm and determination throughout. For their first time playing together as a team, they performed brilliantly and remained unbeaten across the entire tournament.

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Dear parents/carers,

Here is some useful information from Occupational Therapy.

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Angus and Dundee Child Health Occupational Therapy

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We aim to enable children to be as independent as possible in their day to day occupations. Occupation is our fancy word for the activities you want to do, need to do and are expected to do.

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If you a query/ question please phone or email our school office on

01382 435939

blacknessprimary@dundeeschools.scot

When emailing please included the intended recipient in the subject line.

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Tuesday 31st March - School Show

Wednesday 1st April - School Show

Thursday 2nd April - Kanzen Karate in school

Thursday 2 April - Term ends 3:15pm

Summer Term

Monday 20 April - All resume

Tuesday 21 April - P7 Healthy Transition Day

Tuesday 28 April - P5 Dr Me Workshop in school

Tuesday 28 April - P7a Harris Maths Challenge

Wednesday 29 April -Thistle House Lunch

Monday 4 May - May Day, school closed

Wednesday 6 May - P7b Harris Maths Challenge

Wednesday 6 May - Bluebell House Lunch

Thursday 7 May - School closed to pupils, polling station

Wednesday 13 May - Heather House Lunch

Tuesday 19 May - P7a Passport to Europe at Harris Academy

Wednesday 20 May -P7b Passport to Europe at Harris Academy

Wednesday 20 May - Primrose House Lunch

Friday 22 May - In service day, school closed

Monday 25 May - Victoria Day, school closed

Wednesday 27 May - House Afternoon

Monday 1 June - P1 Sports Day in school

Tuesday 2 June - P2 Sports Day in school

Wednesday 3 June - P3 Sports Day in school

Friday 5 June - BBQ Lunch in school

Friday 5 June - P4 -7 Sports Day at Magdalen Green

Wednesday 24 June - P7 Disco TBC

Thursday 2 July - P7 Leavers Gathering

Friday 3 July - Term ends at 12 noon

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https://app.seesaw.me/

Please use the link above to connect with your child's class.

To access your child's homework you must login using a pupil login.

To comment on learning journey please login using a family member login.

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Head lice are tiny insects that live in hair. Nits are the empty egg cases attached to hair that head lice hatch from.

Head lice are a common problem, particularly in school children aged 4 to 11.

They're largely harmless, but can live in the hair for a long time if not treated and can be irritating and frustrating to deal with.

Signs of head lice

Head lice can be difficult to spot, even when the head is closely inspected.

They're very small whitish or grey-brown insects that range from the size of a pinhead to the size of a sesame seed.

Less reliable signs of head lice include:

small white eggs or nits (egg cases) in the hair behind the ears or at the back of the neck

an itchy scalp

a rash on the back of the neck

feeling as though something is moving in the hair

How to spot head lice

The only way to be sure someone has head lice is to find a live louse by combing their hair with a special fine-toothed comb. This is called detection combing.

You can buy detection combs from your local pharmacy, supermarket or online. Combs with flat-faced teeth spaced 0.2 to 0.3mm apart are best for removing head lice, although combs with smaller gaps can be used to remove eggs and nits (egg cases) after treatment.

Detection combing can be carried out on dry or wet hair. Dry combing takes less time, but wet combing is more accurate because washing with conditioner stops head lice from moving.

How to get rid of head lice and nits

Treatments to get rid of head lice are available to buy from pharmacies, supermarkets and online.

The main treatments are:

Everyone with head lice in your household should be treated on the same day.

If a treatment doesn't work the first time, you can:

try it again

try a different treatment

get advice from your school nurse, health visitor, pharmacist or GP

Lotions and sprays for head lice and nits

There are several different products that can be applied to the scalp and hair to kill head lice, including:

dimeticone 4% lotion or lotion spray - applied and left for 8 hours (usually overnight)

dimeticone 4% spray gel - applied and left for 15 minutes

mineral oil and dimeticone spray - applied and left for 15 minutes

isopropyl myristate and cyclomethicone solution - applied and left for 5-10 minutes

Some treatments need to be done twice - 7 days apart. This makes sure that any newly-hatched lice are killed.

Detection combing should usually be done 2 or 3 days after finishing treatment, and again another 7 days after that, to check for any live head lice.

Always check the pack or leaflet to see if a product is suitable for you, particularly if:

you're pregnant

you're breastfeeding

your child has head lice and is less than 2 years of age

Your pharmacist can recommend a suitable treatment and advise you on how to use it correctly if necessary.

When to get professional advice

Your pharmacist can advise you about treatments for head lice and nits if you're not sure which is best for you or your child.

Make sure you carefully follow the instructions that come with the treatment you choose.

Find your nearest pharmacy

You can get advice and treatment on head lice and nits directly from a pharmacy.

How head lice are spread

Head lice are spread by direct head to head contact. They climb from one person's hair to another's.

Head lice:

can't fly, jump or swim

are very unlikely to be spread by objects like hats, combs and pillows

don't have a preference for dirty, clean, short or long hair

only affect people

can't be caught from animals

Once detached from the hair, head lice will usually die within 12 to 24 hours.

Preventing head lice

It's very difficult to prevent head lice.

You may want to consider regular detection combing if you're concerned about your children or yourself. For example, on a weekly basis.

Lotions and sprays don't prevent head lice and should only be used if a live louse has been found in your or your child's hair.

Staying off work or school and washing clothing and bedding on a hot wash is unnecessary, as it's unlikely to help prevent the spread of head lice.

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Information on the signs of head lice and nits, how to spot them and what can be done to treat head lice

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Final Transition Events Poster Blackness2026