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The Friday Bike Bus!
The Friday Bike Bus!
See more details below
Marching into Spring
Marching into Spring
If we thought January was a long month of storms and bad weather, February has flown by, and it's been super busy. There's a lot to get through in this newsletter including the return of the bike bus as well as information on the next few weeks, which are going to be very exciting. So, without further ado....
Keep happy, safe and learning
Simon
Jean's class launched the 6th Class Newspaper!
Friday Bike Bus!
Friday Bike Bus!
Now that we finally have some bright mornings, it’s a great time of year to consider starting cycling to school some days.
You could join the Bike Bus! We ride to school together on Friday mornings, and it’s a lovely way to finish the week / start the weekend.
It’s an informal group, all ages and abilities, the only ‘rule’ is that children must have their own adult with them, and that adult is responsible for that child.
We have two meeting points (see map below) – the pedestrian crossing on the N80 at the Oak Park Road junction (Dr Cullen Park) at 8:35, and the post box at the Frederick Avenue / Athy Road junction at 8:40. We then arrive at school at 8:45.
There’s no sign-up or commitment needed, just turn up any Friday morning and meet whoever else is riding that day.
We do have a Whatsapp group – message Ciara (083 897 0546) if you’d like to be added to it. But you don’t have to join that group, just come along whenever you like!
July Programme
July Programme
The July Programme will be returning this year on a smaller scale. Unfortunately, the government has cut funding for the programme and we will only be able to offer a smaller number of classes. Both our integrated classes will continue the full four week programme. We will also run a limited and targeted two-week programme for children in mainstream classes so we will be in touch with families that qualify under the continuum of support.
Congratulations to our handball teams who had great success!
Staff Learning Trip
Staff Learning Trip
Five of our staff were delighted to have the opportunity to visit two fantastic schools in Norway recently. This is part of our Erasmus+ project to review our Behaviour Policy, which enables us to visit schools to learn about innovative and positive ways to approach behaviour in school. The two schools: Fjellhamar Skole and Rasta Skole are part of the GROM project. This translates as good relations make for better schools and is a project taking place and being researched in Oslo on how to create schools with positive relationships between all members of the community as the backdrop to a better school experience for the children. They have learned that putting time into strengthening the bonds between the teacher and his or her students, so that the students feel supported and the teacher feels empowered to guide the child, results in a decrease in problematic behaviours and an improved feeling of wellbeing for both students and school staff. Oslo's school psychological service supports the school staff with monthly lectures and focus groups on how to deal with a particular challenge. They also provide parent support evenings. They encourage parents to use the same approaches at home in terms of supporting their children deal with the conflicts that can arise in friend groups, in classrooms and between children and staff. We learned a lot from our visit, some of which we hope to feed into our revised Behaviour Policy.
Our school featured on the Claire Byrne show where Clare and Susanne and the children spoke about our outdoor learning programme, which won the National Nature Heroes award.
St. Patrick's Day Parade
St. Patrick's Day Parade
Our school will be represented in the St. Patrick's Day parade this year and our Parents' Association will be in touch in the next few days with information. Thank you to the parents that have been in touch already with offers of help. We're looking forward to seeing as many of you on the afterrnoon of the 17th March!
We've been busy recycling batteries!
Smartphone Focus Group
Smartphone Focus Group
The Smartphone Focus group took place on Friday with lots of very useful feedback. We will be surveying parents, staff and children in the coming week around people's feelings on digital devices and would appreciate your input.
Our school did very well in the Carlow Credit Union table quiz!
Upcoming Events
Upcoming Events
Once January is over, the rest of the year tends to fly by! Where did February go! Would you believe there are only 6 weeks before the spring break? There are so many things coming up in different classes and this is just a sample of them:
Science Blast - 4th Class will be representing our school in Dublin in early March
VISUAL Pirate Exhibition - Lots of classes will be visiting VISUAL over the coming weeks
Soccer Skills for 5th class will be taking place every Wednesday for both classes
Technology and Sustainability workshops in Thurles - children from 4th to 6th class will have 3 workshops in LIT Thurles
International Women's Day takes place on 8th March with a focus on Yayoi Kusami in all classes
Seachtain na Gaeilge takes place from 10th to 14th March
Our St. Patrick's Day Parade is on 17th March
1st and 2nd class are getting workshops on Fundamental Movement Skills from SETU
We'll be welcoming Italian visitors to our school to show them all the amazing work we've been doing in outdoor education
5th and 6th class will be starting their Spanish lessons with Annette
Reminders
Reminders
We aim to ensure that everyone is happy and safe in our school. This includes our pupils and staff. We work extremely hard on relationships between all parties and, in general, we have built a fantastic community and school spirit. It is inevitable that things can go wrong and we treat these experiences as learning opportunities and try to resolve them using restorative and relational practices. This is why we have good policies to ensure that problems are dealt with in a respectful manner. While nobody wants to see their child upset about something in school, it is best to speak directly with the school so that things can be resolved mutually.
We are striving to be a paperless school. It is important to check your emails as most communication comes this way. If you aren't receiving emails, please check with the school to ensure that we have your correct address.
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