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Newsletter

15^th April 2016

Dear parents, carers, staff and friends,

Congratulations!

We are delighted to let you know that a team of 5^th Class children who entered a project in the ‘Scratch’ computer programming competition have been selected as National Finalists!

Andrei, Briana and Emilin spent many hours developing their project using the ‘Scratch’ online tool. With help from Sid in 6^th Class, Pirooz, our volunteer programming expert and Mr. Kerr, the children submitted a very high quality piece of work. We are so proud that this has been recognised as one of the best in the country!

The children will now present their project at a special event in the RDS at the end of the month and we will have our fingers crossed for them!

Events this week

On Tuesday, we met with parents and carers for our new Junior Infants for September. They heard all about the lovely learning that happens in our school and we look forward to welcoming them to our community.

On Thursday, 5^th and 6^th Class visited the Patrick Pearse Museum in Rathfarnham to continue their learning about 1916. They were really impressed with the museum and learnt lots!

Also on Thursday, the Board of Management had their meeting for this half-term. They discussed staffing needs for next year, school finances and approved policies for photography (which we will share with you shortly) and whistleblowing for staff.

Parish Mission

A reminder that the mission team will be working with classes next week. There will be a short morning prayer for parents each day at 9.00 a.m. There will also be a special prayer service on Thursday 21st in the church and family Mass on Sunday 24^th. We look forward to seeing you there.

Attendance and Punctuality

What a super week of attendance! Well done to all classes. Altogether, we have had school attendance of 96.1% which is fantastic. There was fierce competition between classes for the top spot this week, but there was no beating 5^th Class with 98.3% and they hold onto the cup for the second week running.

Dates for your diary

Week of 18^th April – Parish Mission

21^st April – Prayer Service at 7 p.m.

Sunday, 24^th April – Family Mass at 11.45am

2^nd – 6^th May – Mid-Term Break

12^th May – Confirmation at 11.00am

29^th May – First Communion at 11.45am

30^th June – School finishes at 12 noon

Hopefully we’ll see some sunshine this weekend.

Best wishes,

Éadaoin Kelly

Principal

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We are very proud and excited to share a story written by two of our 5th Class children. Inspired by their learning about 1916, they worked together in their own time, to write a story about Tommy, who lived in inner city Dublin at the time of the Easter Rising. Complete with Dublin accents, and written in the form of a diary, the story captures the dramatic scenes at the GPO from Tommy’s viewpoint. Have a read!

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Newsletter

8^th April 2016

Dear parents, carers, staff and friends,

Welcome Back

I hope you all had a restful holiday. The children have come back to school with plenty of energy for the term ahead. Our breakfast club has been busy all week which is great to see. There is plenty of space and plenty of food – so do come along at 8.40 am to start the day with us.

Events this week

On Tuesday, 4^th Class visited the library. They will be going each week for this term and Miss Todd’s Class will join them as reading buddies.

On Wednesday morning, 3^rd Class visited the offices of the Ombudsman for Children where they took part in a workshop on children’s rights. The team working with them were so impressed and tweeted us “a big THANK YOU for visiting, your great energy and kindness made our day!”. What lovely feedback – well done 3^rd Class.

Also on Wednesday, 6^th Class had their final rock-climbing session at Larkin College. Our thanks to the team there for offering this great opportunity.

Today, Miss Brophy’s Junior Infants visited the pet shop as part of their learning about animals this term. They were very excited!

Parish Mission

St. Joseph’s Parish will be hosting a mission over the next fortnight. The school will be involved in the second week (18^th April). We will have visitors from the mission team working with classes throughout the week. There will be a special prayer service on the Thursday evening in the church and the usual family Mass on Sunday 24^th April. I will send more details home next week. In the meantime, please keep the dates free if you’d like to join us.

Census Day

We have been asked to remind families that it is Census Day in Ireland on Sunday, 24^th April. Look out for the form which will be delivered to your home. If you need any help completing it, do come and ask us.

Attendance and Punctuality

Best attendance this week was 5^th Class with 96.7% – well done!

Dates for your diary

12^th April – Meeting for new parents for Junior Infants in September 2016 at 1.45

14^th April – 5^th/6^th Class to Pearse Museum

Week of 18^th April – Parish Mission

21^st April – Prayer Service at 7 p.m.

Sunday, 24^th April – Family Mass at 11.45am

2^nd – 6^th May – Mid-Term Break

12^th May – Confirmation at 11.00am

29^th May – First Communion at 11.45am

30^th June – School finishes at 12 noon

School Meals

A reminder to return the menu forms we sent out before the holidays. If your child wants to change their meal, please complete the form and return it to us as soon as possible.

Have a lovely weekend!

Éadaoin Kelly – Principal

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Our 5th Class took on the task of writing a new version of the Proclamation for our 1916 commemorations. The children learnt all about children’s rights and the United Nations Convention for the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in the autumn term and used their knowledge to inform their decisions on what to include in their new proclamations.

At four minutes past noon on Easter Monday, April 24th 1916, Padraig Pearse read the Proclamation of the Republic outside the GPO on Dublin’s Sackville Street, now O’Connell Street. This was a pivotal moment in our history which still resonates strongly today.

As part of our 2016 programme, all schools were asked to take the opportunity to step into the shoes of Patrick Pearse and write their own version, which reflects the values, ideals and hopes of the generation of 2016.

The 5th Class children shared their proclamations with the whole school at our Proclamation Day ceremony and are displayed in our school. You can read them here:

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We had a wonderful day today celebrating ‘Proclamation Day’. Along with every school in the country, we came together for a special ceremony this morning.

We began with a rousing ‘Something Inside So Strong’ sung by our school choir. Nathan from 2nd Class then began with an introduction and overview of events of 1916.

5th Class then read the original Proclamation, followed by singing from 1st Class who sang ‘Óró, sé do bheatha ‘bhaile’, 2nd Class who sang ‘The Foggy Dew’ and 3rd and 4th Class who sang ‘Grace’.

5th Class then shared their new versions of the Proclamation and 6th Class performed a wonderful four-hand reel, an Irish dance. The choir then sang ‘Power in Me’ which encourages everyone to be empowered and take action to help others and stand up for their rights.

The final section saw Josh from 6th Class, our Citizen of the Year, tell us about the origins of the Irish flag before he and Miss Kelly placed the flag on our new flagpole to thunderous applause. We all stood and sang ‘Amhran na bhFiann’ the Irish national anthem together. It was a fantastic occasion – our thanks to all of the children and teachers who worked so hard to prepare for the day.

Have a look at photos from the ceremony below and some of the art work from 5th Class and project work from 6th Class too:

Newsletter

11^th March 2016

Dear parents, carers, staff and friends,

Breakfast Club

What a success our first week of breakfast club has been! Thank you to all of the children who have come along and particularly to Miss Brophy, Amy, Audrey, Dolores, Megan and Mr. Connolly who have worked miracles to feed so many children in such a short space of time. Breakfast club continues next week from 8.40 – 8.50 a.m. each day – give it a try!

School Meals

You will receive a new and updated menu for your child’s school meal next week. Please talk to your child and decide what they would like and return the form to us as soon as possible.

Events this week

On Tuesday, some 2^nd Class children made their First Penance in the Church. Thank you to the parents who came along to support them and the choir who sang beautifully.

Thursday was a busy day for visits. 1^st, 3^rd and 4^th Classes went into the city centre for walking tours around the GPO and Moore Street to learn more about the 1916 Rising.

World Book Day vouchers

Lots of classes will be visiting Chapters bookshop over the next few days to use their ‘World Book Day’ vouchers. It is lovely to see so many children enjoying books.

Active Schools Programme

We were delighted to host teachers from a number of Dublin schools on Thursday for an ‘Active Schools’ session. Thanks to Ms. O’Callaghan for organising – we are on a mission to be more active! As the weather gets nicer – please take every opportunity to get outside with your children and be active.

Attendance and Punctuality

Very good attendance again this week. We’re currently meeting our target with attendance of 95% across the school. Best attendance this week was 2^nd Class with 97.4%, closely followed by 5^th Class with 97.3%!

Dates for your diary

Sunday, 13^th March – Family Mass at 11.45am

15^th March – Flag Raising & Proclamation Day

16^th March – Annual Céilí

16^th March – School closes at 12 for Easter

4^th April – Back to school

And finally….Congratulations to Mr. Kerr who has been elected onto the Irish Teaching Council this week. Mr. Kerr takes one of the 16 places for elected teachers on the Council. It is a very important role and we are very proud – well done Mr. Kerr!

Best wishes for a lovely weekend,

Éadaoin Kelly – Principal

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Read this week’s newsletter here:

Newsletter

 4^th March 2016

Dear parents, carers, staff and friends,

Breakfast Club

I hope you have all received the flyer to let you know that we are starting a brand new breakfast club in school next week. Breakfast will be available for any child who would like it, from 8.40 – 8.50 a.m. each day. The club is funded through our School Meals funding so it is free for all children. Please do come along and enjoy!

Visits this week

It was Senior Infants and 1^st Class’s turn to visit the GPO on O’Connell Street to see the flag raising on Thursday. The children really enjoyed seeing the soldiers. As always, there are some lovely photos on our Twitter account @stmarysdorsetst or on our website.

Time to Read on World Book Day

All children have received a €1.50 book voucher to celebrate World Book Day on Thursday. This can be spent in any bookshop to buy a free book or reduce the cost of a more expensive book. Happy reading!

Our 2^nd Class children who have been working with volunteers from ‘Business in the Community’ had a special visit to their offices on O’Connell Street on Thursday. They had a wonderful time and were even treated to pizza! The volunteers told us that they ‘were an absolute pleasure and created a great buzz around the office’. Well done children! And thanks to Ms. Oppermann who has been coordinating the programme and who accompanied the children on their visit.

 Active Schools Programme

We have introduced the Active Schools programme at St. Mary’s this year to help us get active and move more. Already, there have been big changes in the yard, with lots more games and activities to keep children moving, including skipping, hula hoops, dodgeball and dance!

The active team are looking for even more ideas though – can you help? Adults, Ms. O’Callaghan would love to hear from you, and children, let the Active team know if you have a suggestion to keep us moving.

Attendance and Punctuality

Super attendance from everyone this week. We’re currently meeting our target with attendance of 95% across the school. Well done to all of the families to work hard to make sure they are in school on time every single day.

A particular well done to 3^rd Class with the best attendance for the second week in a row, a marvellous 98.1%. 2^nd and 6^th weren’t far behind on 97% and 1^st Class had 96%!

Dates for your diary

8^th March – 2^nd Class First Penance

Sunday, 13^th March – Family Mass at 11.45am

15^th March – Flag Raising & Proclamation Day

16^th March – Annual Céilí

16^th March – School closes at 12 for Easter

4^th April – Back to school

Wrap up warm – it’s going to be a cold weekend!

Éadaoin Kelly – Principal

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Miss Haren and Miss Todd’s Classes visited the General Post Office (GPO) on O’Connell Street in Dublin city centre on Thursday to watch the daily flag raising as part of their learning about 1916.