Please wait...March 2017 Newsletter
Confirmation: The children of 6th class received the Sacrament of Confirmation on Tuesday, March 14th, with children from Suncroft and Ballyshannon schools. Bishop Denis Nulty was the chief celebrant of the sacrament. It was a beautiful day and the boys and girls looked lovely. Please keep these young people in your prayers now that they have taken this significant step in their faith.
Thank you to everyone who supported the children in preparation for Confirmation: their teacher Mrs Barbara Collins, the Parish Sacramental Co-ordinator Mrs Ann Madden, Fr Larkin, the parents who ran the Confirmation preparation programme, the parents who organised the albs and the Parent Teacher Association who organised the reception following Confirmation along with parents from the other schools. Thanks to the children of 6th class for their careful preparations and respect for the sacrament.
Seachtain na Gaeilge: Tá Seachtain na Gaeilge ar siúl anois ar scoil. We are having such a good time celebrating this. We had a musician, Patricia Clarke, visit the school this week. She held workshops with every class. She played her fiddle and guitar for the children, she taught them songs “as Gaeilge” and dances too. All the teachers taught their classes two dances, Ionsaí na hInse and An Damhsa Mór and we had a Céilí Mór all together on the yard today! It was fantastic! At Assembly this week, every class performed a song or a poem as Gaeilge. A Seanfhocail competition was held in each class in which the children designed a picture to illustrate their Seanfhocail (old saying) and prizes were given to the best in each class. We will have a Lá Glas tomorrow when everyone can wear something green to school. To finish off Seachtain na Gaeilge, we will have a Circus Performer visit the school next week and his tricks and performances will be as Gaeilge. Keep an eye on our web-site for photos! Thanks to all the teachers for their work for Seachtain na Gaeilge, but especially to Mrs Ciara Roche and Ms Clíodhna Byrne for organising events.
Book Week was celebrated in school from February 27th to March 3rd and we had lots of fun with books. Buddy reading took place between the older and younger children, giant table quizzes were held, book covers and book marks were designed and a Book Character Parade was held! The school was full on that day of Harry Potters, Hermione Grangers, Red Riding Hoods, Matildas and the likes!
Green Schools News: Heritage experts came to the school to help develop our knowledge and understanding of native animals and plants. Juanita Browne, Zoologist and Author, visited Junior and Senior infants and 1st & 2nd class and brought them in so many interesting items including stags’ antlers and even bats! Dale Treadwell from Naturally Wild visited 1st to 6th classes. Dale showed how to identify trees from their buds and, with the help of 1st class, he planted an oak and a hazel tree on our grounds.
The Green Team and all the members of the school community were delighted to receive a letter telling us we will be awarded our 5th Green Flag in May. This flag will be awarded for all the work that has been done in all classes on Biodiversity.
Aistear: Junior and Senior Infants have been developing their language, mathematical and social skills through the setting of a Post Office. On Monday the two classes and teachers visited Newbridge Post Sorting Office to see how it operates in real life! It was a wonderful trip and was enhanced by finishing off in Newbridge Playground!
First Confession: The children of 2nd class will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation (First Confession) on Wednesday 22nd March at 7pm. The children have been preparing carefully for this important occasion and again I ask you to keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
Extra Curricular Activities: School teams have been participating in many events recently – debating, quizzes and basketball. Gaelic football training has begun for boys and girls from Under 10s to Over 10s. Athletics training continues on Thursdays. The TrHeroes Triathlon Programme is continuing. A Duathlon will be held after school on school grounds on Thursday March 30th. The main event, a Triathlon, will be held on the Curragh Camp on Monday 3rd April, beginning at 2 o’clock. This is the first time our school has ever been involved in an event such as this and we are very excited about it.
Sincere thanks to teachers, parents and past pupils who are involved in the development of all these skills with our children.
Board of Management: A meeting of the Board of Management was held on Monday 13th March. A new fire panel has been installed in the school. The Board was pleased that a Whole School Fire Drill was held and that the school was evacuated with everyone accounted for within 5 minutes. The Board is working with Sherpa to ensure the before and after school care is in place, for families who wish to avail of it, from April 24th. The Board was pleased to hear about the Green Flag, the success of the basketball teams and the preparations for the Triathlon on April 3rd. The Board sends its thanks to all parents and teachers involved in preparing for the Confirmation of 6th class students.
Closures: School is closed on Friday 17th March for St Patrick’s Day and also on Monday 20th March. On Wednesday March 29th school will finish early to facilitate In-Service training for teachers. School will finish at 12.45pm on that day for Junior and Senior Infants and at 1pm for all other classes.
Parent Teacher Association: The PTA held two fundraisers recently, a Social Night and a 2nd hand Book Sale. Thanks to all parents who supported these ventures. Thanks again to the PTA who helped organise the lovely reception following Confirmation in Suncroft Community Centre.
November 2016 Newsletter
Theme for November: Each month the school has a theme. The children are encouraged to display signs of this theme at every possible occasion. The theme for November is Kindness.
Witchy Walk. Thank you for supporting our Sponsored Witchy Walk so generously on October 28th, which raised just over €2,000. This is a huge bonus to the school and will be used to supplement learning resources and experiences for all classes. Thank you to those who were able to join us for the Witchy Walk and the parade of costumes in the school hall. It’s a favourite time of the school year for many.
Green Schools News: The Green Team of the school met Mr Dara Wyer from Kildare Co. Council recently to update him on the work being done in school in recycling, energy and water conservation and in biodiversity. He was very pleased with the ongoing progress and he will come back in January to do a final review on the school’s application for the Green Flag in Biodiversity.
Percussion Workshops: Very enjoyable Percussion Workshops were held with the children from 1st to 6th classes on Monday. This was partially funded under the “Artist for a Day” scheme which is run by Kildare Co Council. “Hands on for Fun” was the name of the workshops, facilitated by musician Paul Maher who has lots of experience in sound effects in movies. The children had great fun and did lots of work on rhythm.
Basketball: Basketball training after school has resumed on Tuesdays from this week for 4th, 5th & 6th class children. Both girls’ and boys’ teams played their first matches in the Cumann na mBunscol League last week and were delighted to win the two matches. The teams have their next matches in Kilberry today and we wish them luck!
Team Hope – Christmas Shoebox Appeal: Leaflets have been given to the children about this scheme, in which our school participates each year, due to the generosity of families and the wider community. If you would like to be involved, please send your Christmas Shoebox of gifts back to school by Monday 21st November. Thank you.
Christmas Carol Service: The teachers and children are preparing for a Christmas Carol Service which will be held on Thursday 15th December at 7pm in Suncroft Parish Church. All are welcome!
Sherpa Kids: The school and Board of Management have been approached by Sherpa Kids, which is a company which runs a before and after school care service for children. The service, if it goes ahead, will operate in our school building, but will be administered completely by Sherpa Kids Company, not by the school. Sherpa Kids Company will distribute flyers to all parents towards during the coming weeks to ascertain if there is an interest in their services in this community.
Board of Management Report: The Board of management met on November 7th. Among the matters discussed was the possible introduction of the Sherpa Kids before/after school service. The Board agreed to the distribution of flyers to the parents of the school in order to gauge interest.
If there is sufficient interest, the Board will work with Sherpa Kids to introduce a pilot project in the new year.
The Board considered and ratified the following policies: Policy on the use of the St Brigid’s National School Facebook Page, Policy on Class Allocation and policy on Leave of Absence. All policies can be found on the school’s website www.stbrigidsballysax.com.
Mrs Sheila Byrne, our school secretary, will be on leave from today as she is due to have a back procedure. We wish Mrs Byrne well and hope that she has a full and speedy recovery. The Board of Management has arranged for Ms Denise Murphy to cover the office work while Mrs Byrne is recuperating.
Parent Teacher Meetings will be held today, Wednesday 16th November and on Wednesday 23rd November from 3 to 5.30pm. Appointments for meetings this week have been sent out and appointments for next week will be sent out today. School finishes for children from 1st to 6th classes at 2.45pm on both days to ensure meetings begin promptly at 3pm. Please ensure your children are picked up at that time. Thank you.
Parent- Teacher Meetings are opportunities for you, parents and guardians, to find out how children have adapted and how they are working in their new class. If you are anxious about any aspect of your child’s development, appointments may be made at any time during the year. Please see your child’s teacher if you feel you need clarification on any issue. If you are not completely satisfied, please make an appointment to see me. We will work with you to endeavour to resolve any issues. This is the correct procedure, as outlined in the Complaints Procedure Policy which can be found on the school’s website.
Accidents on yard. If your child has an accident during the day and is hurt, the class teacher or the teacher on yard duty will attend to them. If a child falls and needs First Aid during break-times, the teacher on yard duty will send them to the office for First Aid to be administered. If a member of school staff deems that the injury requires further attention, a call will be made to parents. Teachers will also use Homework Journals to send a message home if they have a concern.
School Grounds The school yard, playing pitch and bench in front of the school are used by the children on a daily basis, weather permitting. The school grounds are not a facility for exercising dogs. Time and time again, dog dirt is found where children are playing. This is not acceptable on Health & Safety grounds. At times, dogs roam on to the school grounds when children are playing at break-times. This is also not acceptable, again for Health & Safety reasons. I would appreciate it if parents and the wider community can help support the school in ensuring it is kept safe for children.
Facebook Page. A Facebook Page has been set up through the school to let people know on a regular basis of school activities. It can be found on Facebook by parents at St. Brigid’s NS Ballysax. This is a public page and does not “request friends”. Thank you for your continued support. If you have any concerns or queries regarding any of the information in this newsletter, or in any aspect of your child’s development in school, please do not hesitate to get in touch. Esther Reddy, Príomhoide 16/11/’16
Be Winter Ready
BeWinterReady-Web.pdf (2190188)
Contact
Fax +353 (0) 45 441829 ballysaxns@gmail.com