Welcome to our P7 page!!

There are two P7 classes in Ballykeel Primary in 2024/2025 year.  The P7 teachers are Mr Hughes (P7JH) and Miss Kane (P7LK).  Miss Parker is the assistant in P7JH and Mrs Wilson is the assistant in P7LK.

We hope that this page will give you a flavour of life in P7.

We're sure that you can't believe that your child is in their final year at Ballykeel Primary School.  Over the course of the year, they will participate in lots of activities and routines to develop an independence for their own learning and preparations for school.  We trust that you would also encourage greater responsibility at home, too.

November-December

This term has been a busy one for some of our children as they prepare to sit Transfer Tests. We wish them all the best in this and are proud of how hard they have worked, no matter what happens. 

POST PRIMARY OPEN MORNING/EVENINGS: 

Dunclug College

Wed 8 Jan and Thur 9th Jan 2025 at 7.00 p.m. to 9.30 p.m.  Principal's address at 7.00 p.m.  Seats can be booked via the college website (www.dunclug-college.co.uk).

Ballymena Academy

Wed 8 Jan and Thur 9th Jan 2025 at 7.00 p.m. to 9.30 p.m.

Cambridge House Grammar School

Sat 18th Jan 2025 at 9:15 a.m. to 1.00 p.m.; Principal's address at 9:15 a.m. & 10:45 a.m.

Cullybackey College

Mon 13 Jan & Tue 14 Jan 2025 at 7.30 p.m. to 9.00 p.m.

Slemish Integrated College

Wed 22nd Jan and Thur 23rd Jan 2025 at 6.30 p.m.

We will add further details as they become available, but in the meantime, it would be useful for you to have a look at each school's website to get a feel for what the school is like.  Admissions criteria for every school can be found by accessing the link here

Topics this term:

We are finding out more about Space this term, from planets and stars to the space race and moon landings.  If you have anything at home related to our topic, please send it in with your child for our display.

In creative writing, we will produce an Infograph based on the Apollo 11 Moon landing; alongside this, we will write some Winter poetry. In maths we will be looking at problem solving strategies and applying these to solve number and weight problems. We will also be looking at fractions, decimals and percentages, ratio & proportion, and 2D & 3D shapes.

Please take time to revise table facts and number bonds with your child, to help benefit their number recall. 

We have been working on a Growth Mindset in class and encouraging the children to think more positively about their learning.  This term we have been focusing on 'The Power of Yet'.  

Remember that your child has access to a Homework Help website via Google Classroom.  This website if full of helpful information for our Literacy and Numeracy topics, as well as links to videos and games to help them to develop their skills. 

School Supplies & Information

Your child should have the following items with them in school.  These will stay in school throughout the year. 

• HB Pencils
• Rubber
• Sharpener
• 30cm ruler
• Pritt stick (not coloured)
• Biro pens for marking (blue, black, red or green) – no gel pens please
• Set of colouring pencils

Homework

Homework is an important part of your child’s development and helps to reinforce the learning that has taken place during the school day.  

Each night your child will receive reading, spellings and mental maths / table facts.  Along with this, your child will also receive a written literacy homework on Monday night and a written numeracy homework on Wednesday night.  This written work will cover aspects of literacy or numeracy covered in class during the day, or revisit learning that has already taken place in the earlier part of the week.  Those sitting the Transfer Test will receive additional written homework aimed at increasing their knowledge ahead of the test. 

How can I help my child with homework?

Helping your child with their homework is an important factor in helping with their learning as it will serve to motivate and encourage them to continue to work at their best, both in school and at home.  There are a number of ways that this can be done; here are some suggestions:

• Listen to them read / ask them some questions about their reading book
• Ask them their spellings
• Go over their maths and tables facts
• Ask them some questions about what they learned today
• Check that their homework is completed and signed

Google Classroom is introduced in Primary 7.  This is a super resource which can be accessed both in school and at home.  Your child can log in using their C2K username and password.  We use Google Classroom for aspects of literacy, mathematics and World Around Us.  Within Google Classroom, there are websites created by the P7 teachers relating to the P7 literacy and numeracy curriculum, as well as the World Around Us topics which will be covered this year.

You can help your child to revise topics at home by using online games and websites.  We recommend that you download the Overdrive App from Libraries NI so that you can ‘borrow’ e-books and audio books.  They have a great selection. 

The BBC Bitesize Website is also great for revising, and YouTube has lots of helpful videos.  Just search for the topic you are after. 

Keep revising table facts and number bonds, as this will improve speed of recall.

Whilst these are simple things, they will make all the difference to your child’s learning.

Hopefully this page will you a greater insight into P7 life.  We hope you have enjoyed looking through it.  Come back soon and see what else we have been getting up to as the term continues.

Miss Kane & Mr Hughes