Our KS2 classes have had a wonderful morning out at Queen's University Belfast. They learnt some invaluable first aid and lifesaving skills and graduated with flying colours from the Future Nurses Programme. A massive thank you to one of our parents, Elizabeth, for involving our school in this project. Our boys and girls have thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience! 

#smallschoolbigheart #queensuniversitybelfast #STEMEducation

🏑Today we wrapped up our hockey club for the year. The pupils thoroughly enjoyed the skills and drills, all brought to life through fun games led by Sarah. It’s been fantastic to see how much each child has developed their hockey abilities over the course of the club.

A huge thank you to Sarah for volunteering her time, energy and expertise—it has helped enhance our pupils’ experiences.
Each child was awarded a certificate for their participation and a keepsake hockey pencil to remind them of their time at hockey club.
#smallschoolbigheart

Our P3-7 classes were delighted to welcome Buddy and Trish from NSPCC into their rooms today for workshops full of really useful and important information on how to Speak Out and Stay Safe! The pupils listened well and made valuable contributions. 

#smallschoolbigheart #NSPCC

On Wednesday, we were delighted to welcome Councillor Callum Bowsie to our school, accompanied by Rev. Dr. Heather Walker from First Kilmore (Rademon) Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church. They were joined by Eric and Toni, who were visiting from the United States.

Eric and Toni are descendants of Rev. Neilson of Rademon Church, who founded Crossgar Primary School in 1826. Our P5/6 class has been learning about the history of Crossgar, and Councillor Bowsie had previously shared his knowledge about the very first school in the area during a visit to speak with the pupils.

It was a pleasure to meet the descendants of the man who established the first primary school in Crossgar and to bring history to life for our pupils.
#smallschoolbigheart
 

Our P1–P7 pupils had a brilliant day today expanding their coding skills with Danny from Nerve Centre💻✨

Everyone got fully involved and came away having developed their coding skills. It was wonderful to see such enthusiasm, creativity, and problem-solving in action. Well done to all our pupils for their hard work using Scratch Junior and MakeCode Arcade and a big thank you to Danny for delivering these sessions for us.
#smallschoolbigheart
 

Today we welcomed Noel Lyons from Arc21 and Shauna from Newry, Mourne and Down Council to deliver recycling workshops for the children. Everyone had great fun learning about recycling and sustainability, and we were all able to repurpose materials to create something new. It was a fantastic, hands‑on learning experience for everyone involved.
#smallschoolbigheart

Following our wee country’s success at the Masters at the weekend, we were delighted to welcome Eimear from Golf Ireland to Glasswater for our first session of our Golf Club today. The boys and girls had lots of fun practising their putting and chipping skills and were encouraged to develop the skill of positive reflection to help them improve their performance and encourage each other. 

There may be some potential members for Crossgar Golf Club amongst our Glasswater golfers today! Great job boys and girls. 

#smallschoolbigheart #golfireland

📱 Teamwork Makes the Dream Work!
Today, each class took part in an engaging coding workshop with Danny from Nerve Belfast Creative Learning Centre, as part of our partnership programme this year.
P1–P4 pupils explored different aspects of coding using Scratch Junior, linking their learning to their World Around Us topic. Meanwhile, P5–P7 pupils developed their coding skills using Microsoft MakeCode Arcade.
It was fantastic to see the children working collaboratively, problem‑solving and developing new digital skills on the iPads. We are really looking forward to welcoming Danny back next week to continue developing our coding projects.
#smallschoolbigheart
#nervebelfast

🏃🏽‍♂️Running club🏃🏽‍♂️

Today, our running club got underway! 
The big build up to our Glasswater 1k and 5k on Friday 8th May.

Despite the weather, the children showed great determination and enthusiasm as they took part in running skills and drills through games, shuttles and relays in the hall.
There were lots of red faces and we even had to get the hall windows open as the condensation from the body heat stated to build up. 
We discussed the importance of warming up properly and fuelling our bodies so we have enough energy to complete a 5k course. 

The session also focused on running technique, helping the children understand the need to pace themselves and find a steady rhythm.

We explored different strategies to improve running performance, including engaging the arms and core, and thinking carefully about foot placement. It was a positive and energetic start to the club, and we’re looking forward to building on these skills in future sessions.

#smallschoolbigheart