Dinghy makes waves with Cullen Primary pupils
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A SLICE of life on the ocean wave has come to Cullen Primary thanks to local boatbuilders.
The team at Cullen Sea School have donated a mirror dinghy which now has pride of place in the playground.
To say ‘thank you’, boatbuilders from the sea school were invited along by pupils to enjoy a cuppa and a bit of cake.
Cullen Primary headteacher Carene Hay said: “We are surrounded by a caring community in Cullen, with people who are keen to help.
“This has been seen recently in our work with the Seafield Estate, which resulted in a natural log obstacle course and balance area, which is very well used by the children.
“Along with this, the focus for the last couple of years has been enriching the children’s outdoor learning and play opportunities. With this in mind, because of our seaside location and having a number of fishing families within the community, we decided to look for a wee boat to add to the infant playground. The Cullen Sea School came to the rescue and very kindly and generously donated a beautiful mirror dinghy.
“The boat was fixed to the ground and is now safely embedded in its new home. Some of our Primary 3 children wrote to the boat builders to invite them for a ‘flycup and a fancy piece’, so that they could see for themselves where their dinghy now lives. Their visit took place on a sunny Thursday morning with children thanking them for their boat in the playground.
“It has been a real privilege to work with the boatbuilders to realise another part of our playground plan. The sole purpose of it all is to bring the children joy in their play as we stimulate imaginary and co-operative play opportunities outdoors.
“I am looking forward to continued partnership with the Cullen Sea School and the rest of our caring Cullen community.”
One of those popping along to see the primary kids was Cullen Sea school Chairman Prof Ashley Mowat.
He said: “As a Cullen-based charity, Cullen Sea School (The Three Harbours Association) is delighted to work closely with the pupils and staff at Cullen Primary School.
“Over the past year we have welcomed pupils to the sea school for water safety talks, learn about boatbuilding and to get on the water kayaking and paddle boarding. We were delighted to be approached by Mrs Hay to see if we had an old boat we could donate for the infants playground.
“Our boatbuilders were delighted to visit the school to see the boat in place and being used and played on by the pupils. The pupils were delighted to tell us tales of the fun they have been having on the boat.”
Find out more about Cullen Sea school by visiting their Facebook page or website at https://cullenseaschool.co.uk/
