January Newsletter
Welcome back to school. We trust everyone enjoyed their Christmas holiday and had a fun family time. We hope you are all rejuvenated for the New Year.
Upcoming Events and Activities:
• The P.T.A. are hosting a Pyjama Movie Night in the school this Thursday evening at 6.30. Children may bring in their own snacks, non-spill juice bottles and duvets.
• The photographer will be in school on Tuesday 5th February.
• PE will be on Thursdays until the Mid-Term break when the GAA coaches will be teaching ball handling skills to the children. PE clothes and runners should be worn by all on Thursdays only. ( A gum shield should be worn by Senior room pupils)
• Our Shared Learning activities with St. Mochua’s Derrynoose will be taking place this term. The junior room pupils will be involved in Outdoor play activities on the following Tuesdays-
29th January, 12th February, 26th February, 12th March, 26th March and 9th April.
Juniors – It is essential that pupils wear warm coats and warm jogging bottoms on these days. They will also be supplied with waterproof leggings in school.
Junior pupils will also need a pair of wellington boots that they can leave in school. They should both be labelled with the child’s name. The children may take them home at the end of the school year.
The senior Enterprise Project Days will be held in Derrynoose on Monday 21st January, Monday 4th February, Monday 11th February, Thursday 21st March and Thursday 11th April.
• As part of our participation in the Peace IV LEGO Mindstorms project, we will be offering a number of LEGO Afterschool workshops as part of our preparation for the Peace IV FIRST LEGO League Jr. Showcase (FLL Jr.). FLL Jr. is an exciting Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) programme for primary school students. Each year a theme relevant to the world around them is chosen as a focus for the children’s work with this year’s theme being ‘Mission Moon’. The teams research the topic, displaying their ideas on a Show Me poster and they also build a coded & motorised LEGO® model. FLL Jr. rapidly develops teamwork, design, programming and communication skills, but the most important thing is that it is great fun and aids the children’s enjoyment STEM subjects.
These afterschool workshops will take place in Clontibret NS on the following times/dates:
• Tuesday 15th January – 3.00pm to 5.00pm
• Tuesday 22nd January – 3.00pm to 5.00pm
• Tuesday 29th January – 3.00pm to 5.00pm
• Tuesday 5th February – 3.00pm to 5.00pm
• Lego showcase 9th March
These workshops are not compulsory; students are free to attend if they wish.
This project is aimed at 5th and 6th Class pupils.
• For safety reasons it has been suggested that pupils who go home by car should be collected by their parents from the classrooms. We will try this on a trial basis during the month of January. Pupils should not run out to cars or play in the area in front of the school. A teacher will escort pupils to the bus.
• We hope to set up new Outdoor play activities in the playground and we would be grateful if parents could give us any of the following items that you may no longer need at home: old large Tractor tyres, old car tyres, crates, plastic bottles, washed out plastic milk containers , drain pipes, guttering-without sharp edges, plastic/cardboard tubing, flexible tubing, old kitchen pots, pans, baking trays, wooden spoons, metal spoons, old large electric wire spools, old go cart tyres, broom handles, old but not broken toy dumper trucks/ tractors/ diggers, dress up clothes, old catering buckets ( without holes !).
Look up Outdoor play ideas on Pinterest and you will see what we are looking for!
• Post Office Savings and After School for Infants will continue as usual.
• We hope to have a Clothes Collection to raise funds for the school. Please leave bags in before 23rd January.
Dates for your Diary
Open Day for new pupils………Tuesday 19th February 2-3.30pm
Mid-term break………………Thursday/Friday 21st/22nd February
St. Patrick’s Day……………Monday 18th March