Speaker - Ms Nancy Rule - Rotakids

On Thursday 15th October, President Kate Gibb welcomed speaker Nancy Rule, past president of Polmont Rotary Club, to the Rotary Club of South Queensferry. Nancy's subject was RotaKids - a Rotary initiative aimed at school children between 7 and 12 years of age. With the assistance of local Rotary clubs and the active co-operation of head teachers and teachers, RotaKids clubs have been established in many primary schools. They offer an exciting way for children to have fun, make friends and become involved in important activities like improving the environment, raising money for charity, helping the elderly or helping children in another country. The sky's the limit and RotaKids themselves choose which projects to support and devise ways of getting results. RotaKids are the youngest members of the Rotary family and they provide a unique opportunity for Rotarians, schools and young people to work together. The programme can include a range of speakers and visits to local places of interest. The scheme also meets the citizenship criterion in the new Curriculum for Excellence and offers schools  the opportunity to engage with pupils and parents in projects which will benefit the community. Nancy Rule is District RotaKids Convener. She cited several inspiring examples of successful RotaKids clubs in schools in the Polmont and Falkirk areas. In one example, the entire Wallacestone School joined in their school's RotaKids project, raising an amazing £1,200 for charity.

Queensferry Rotary Club already supports an active and successful Interact Club for senior pupils at Queensferry High School. Nancy's talk about how Rotary can also inspire pupils at primary level gave much food for thought.

Nancy was introduced by Liz Mackenzie.