Dear Parents Issue: 12 May 9th, 2022
Confirmation:
- Congratulations to all the girls in 6th class who made their confirmation at the weekend.
- The Parents council have very kindly financed a party for the girls today to celebrate this very special occasion.
- Sincere thanks to Mrs Monson, Mr Kelly & Mrs Devally for all the help in getting the girls ready for their special day.
Staff Meeting:
- School will close at 1.15pm on Thursday of this week (May 12th) to facilitate a staff meeting. All children will go home at 1.15pm.
Best Attendance:
- Congratulations to Mr Hanley’s 1st class who had the best attendance for the month of April.
Swimming:
- The aquatics strand of our PE Curriculum (swimming) takes place when a pupil is in 3rd class.
- The current 4th and 5th class girls have not yet had the chance to avail of this opportunity, because of the different lockdowns over the last two years
- Swimming lessons for the girls will take place over the next 3 weeks. Each of the classes will be brought to the Raheen Woods hotel for 4 days of lessons at a cost of €20 per pupil.
- Payment can be made via Aladdin
- May 9th to 12th: 5th class girls
- May 16th to 19th: 4th class girls
- May 23rd to 26th: 3rd class girls
Standardised Tests:
- Tests will be administered to children from 1st class up to 6th class between Mon May 16th and Fri May 27th. Please ensure that your child is present during this 2 week period.
Healthy Eating week:
- This week is National Healthy Eating week
- As healthy eating ties in with our Green School theme of “Food and Biodiversity” we are asking parents to make healthier lunch box choices for your children this week.
- Teachers will be doing a quick “lunchbox check” and pupils who made an extra effort to have a wholesome lunch will be praised.
Bike Week:
- Saturday May 14th to Sunday May 22nd is National Bike week
- Children are encouraged to cycle to school, if this is possible for them.
- The Athenry Cyclefest will take place on Saturday May 14th from 1pm to 4pm at Athenry Town Park. The Cyclefest will involve; WEE-Wheelers cycle loop / Bike to Basics Cycle Health check / Face painting / Photo booth / Goodies / Bike decorating / prizes
- The Annual Athenry Pedal Parade will take place on the same day at Athenry Town Park at 3pm. This year’s theme is “Super bikes for Super Heros”.
- Check out “The Wheels of Athenry” facebook page for more information
Green School:
- The Green School committee are going to Monivea woods tomorrow (Tues May 10th) to take part in a Woodland workshop where they will be identifying various trees, plants and biodiversity in the woods. This is all linked in with our current Green Schools theme of “Biodiversity and Food”.
School Calendar 2022 / 2023:
- Please find school calendar for next school year attached
- School will re-open on Thursday September 1st for all pupils
- Note: the school has deliberately decided to close for a full week in May, so that families who wish to take their holidays can do so without their children having to miss days at school. We hope that this opportunity will be availed of, if required, and more importantly we hope that it will help to improve attendance in 2022 / 2023, most especially in term 3.
Junior Infants 2022 / 2023:
- Later this week parents will be emailed with (a) details about Scoil Chroí Naofa, (b) information about the Junior Infants curriculum and (c) some tips on how to prepare your child for starting school.
- A video message for the children from the school will also issue.
- In June you will receive your child’s booklist
- Next year’s Junior Infants are invited to come into the school on Wednesday August 31st from 8.50am to 9.50am to meet their teacher and their new classmates.
- The Junior Infants do not need to wear the school uniform nor do they need to bring a school bag, for this hour. Parents are invited to gather in the school hall for this hour, where they can meet one another and have a chat with myself
School Year 2022 / 2023:
- Parents should note that every child in SCN will probably have to be placed in a combined class setting at least once in their primary school cycle. This is true of most primary schools in the West of Ireland.
- Teachers have not been assigned to their new classes for next year yet.
- Parents are advised that the makeup of a class rarely stays the same from year to year. Please be assured that a lot of thought and deliberation goes into this process each year and we would ask parents to please trust the professional decisions that are made, for the benefit of all the children.
- Under no circumstances will pupils be moved from a class once they have been placed in it and it has been communicated to parents.
School Uniform:
- In recent weeks I have had discussions about our school uniform with the Board of Management, the Parents Council and staff in general
- When we amalgamate with the Boys school we will have to agree on a new school uniform
- In the meantime it has been agreed that we will introduce a School Tracksuit / PE uniform, in addition to the current school uniform
- This new addition will take effect from Sept 2023 (i.e. 16 months time)
- When it comes into force, the tracksuit will be worn at least once a week on your child’s PE day. It would also be worn for things like Sports week, Sports club days, Big Dig days, School Tours, Bus trips, School walks etc.
- It will be compulsory
- A final design, pricing and payment plan options with the National School Wear centre is being worked on at the moment, and as soon as I have further info I will share it with you.
- A mannequin with the new tracksuit will be placed in the foyer for all to view in September.
Parents Council:
- There will be a bake sale in June. It will be run by the 6th class girls and the proceeds will go towards the Parents Council funds, which are used to fund workshops, buses and treats for the children
- A sponsored walk is also being planned for June 10th. Further details will follow closer to the time.
Current Afterschool Clubs:
- Basketball Club for 5th & 6th class: 2 weeks left: May 10th & May 17th.
- Basketball Club for 3rd & 4th class: 2 weeks left: May 11th & May 18th.
- Chlub Gaeilge for Jun & Sen Infants: 1 week left: May 11th
- Science Club for 1st class: 1 week left: May 11th
- Coding Club for 2nd class: 3 weeks left: May 9th, May 16th & May 23rd
- Art Club for 3rd & 4th class: 3 weeks left: May 10th, May 17th & May 24th
- Chlub Gaeilge for 1st & 2nd class starting Tues May 10th from 2.30-3.30pm and running for 5 weeks
- Science club for Junior Infants starting Wed May 18th from 2.30-3.30pm and running for 5 weeks
- Chlub Gaeilge for 3rd & 4th class starting Wed May 25th from 2.30-3.30pm and running for 5 weeks
- Art Club for 1st & 2nd class starting on Wed May 25th from 2.30-3.30pm and running for 5 weeks
SCN Summer Fun Camp 2022:
- Miss Feeney & Miss Dolan will be running the SCN Summer Fun Camp this year.
- It will run from Mon July 4th to Fri July 8th from 10am to 2pm.
- The camp is for Junior & Senior Infants children
- Cost is €65
- If your child is interested in attending camp, please complete the form & return with payment in full to the office in a labelled envelope to secure your place.
- Places are on a first come, first served, basis.
- If you decide to cancel last minute, €50 will be refunded, but €15 will have to be retained to cover costs of insurance and materials.
Lunch Bag:
- Menu Changes: “The Summer Berry pot” is back and “Italian Breadsticks” is a new item which has been added
- The Lunch bag have launched a facility where parents can donate a school lunch to help welcome any Ukrainian children into Irish schools
- Price increase: due to the increasing costs of produce and transport, The Lunch Bag will be raising their prices with effect from May 7th. Their 3 piece lunches will now cost €2.50, with individual items priced accordingly.
- Price Guarantee: There will be no increase in prices for the coming academic year 2022/2023
- Loyalty card Coming Soon: Lunch Bag are launching a loyalty card system in the coming weeks with a “buy 5, get 1 free” incentive.
Information Technology:
- The school recently received a grant from the Department of Education, to be spent on Information Technology
- We have invested these funds in Chrome books and charging stations. These devices will be used by the Senior classes (4th, 5th & 6th) in the coming school year.
- Each pupil in these classes will have the use of a Chrome book all to themselves for the full duration of the school day!
- The girls will be taught typing and will have access to a suit of apps and infinite cloud storage (Google Classroom). We are all very excited about this new development!!
- This will free up the iPads for use by the middle & junior classes
Dates for Diary & School Closures:
- Thursday May 12th: Staff meeting (Term 3). All children go home at 1.15pm
- Saturday May 28th: First Communion
- Thursday June 16th: Staff Training (PLC webinar) (Term 3). All children go home at 1.15pm
School Tours:
- Below is a summary of where each class will be going on their school tour.
- The charge for each of the school tours has been put up on Aladdin. Parents have until the day of the school tour to pay this charge:
| Date | Class Teacher | Venue | Cost |
| Wednesday May 25th | Mr Kelly (5th & 6th class) Miss Murray (5th class) Mrs Monson (6th class) | Tayto Park Ashbourne Co. Meath | €35 |
| Friday May 27th | Miss Feeney (3rd class) Ms Alani (3rd class) Mrs Greally (4th class) | Wildlands Moycullen Co. Galway | €45 |
| Tuesday May 31st | Miss Dolan (1st class) Mr Hanley (1st class) Mrs McSpadden (1st & 2nd class) Ms O’Byrne (2nd class) | Let’s Go! Kingfisher NUIG Galway | €34 |
| Wednesday June 1st | Mr McDonald (Senior Infants) Mrs Murray (Senior Infants) | Turoe Pet Farm | €23 |
| Thursday June 2nd | Ms Tyrrell (Junior Infants) Mrs Duffy (Junior Infants) | Turoe Pet Farm | €23 |
Fundraiser for Athenry Playground:
- Before the Easter holidays we held a “no-uniform” day in aid of Athenry Playground
- Sincere thanks to everyone who contributed – we raised €455.
- We received the following thank you email from the Athenry Community Playground group:
“On behalf of the committee, I would like to sincerely thank you and the staff, the parents, and the fabulous children of Scoil Chroí Naofa for donating the proceeds of no uniform day to Athenry’s Community Playground.
As you know, our playground is not a local authority playground, it is run and funded by volunteers and voluntary contributions from the public. It requires constant upkeep and the money raised today will go toward the maintenance of our beloved playground in the grounds of Athenry Park.
Please convey my sincere thanks and appreciation to all, once again.
Kind regards
Michelle Herterich-Quinn”
Community Links:
- Well done to all the Scoil Chroí Naofa Parents and Pupils who took part in Athenry’s very first “Darkness into Light” event. Congratulations to all the organisers! It was an amazing success.
- Girls’s Rugby “Canterbury Give it a Try” event at Monivea RFC. Rugby is a sport that suits all ages and abilities. Rugby is non-contact up to the age of 9 and thereafter we have the choice of contact or non-contact (Tag) rugby for the girls. We would like to invite the girls in SCN (aged between 8 and 18) to come along for some fun rugby drills at Monivea RFC. Come along and meet our wonderful coaches; Dara, Mike and Vince. If you have any questions or would like more information, you can call them on 085 2676950 or email [email protected]
- Venue Monivea RFC, Castlegrounds, Monivea, Co Galway. H65 XA56
- Date Tuesday, 10th May 2022, and every Tuesday for 7 weeks.
- Time 7pm to 8pm
- Participants are asked to register for the event at this address: https://sportsmanager.ie/sportlomo/registration/event-registration/index/2352
- The 133rd Athenry Agricultural Show will take place on Sunday May 22nd on the grounds of Teagasc Mellows College Campus. This is a big community event and is a free, fun, family day out. There are many events that the children can take part in. Please encourage your child to participate.
- Athenry Community Games Art competition is being held to select children to represent Athenry Parish in the County Community Games finals. The competitions are for both boys and girls. The age categories are over 6 and under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 (participants must be under age on 1st August 2022). The entry requirements are as follows;
- Theme: drawings / painting must have a Community Games Theme
- Competitors must live in the Athenry Parish area
- A4 or A3 paper size to be used
- Competitors must clearly write their Name, Address, Age, Date of Birth and School details on the back of their drawing / painting
- Any entries bearing incomplete details will not be considered
- The drawings / paintings may be in paint, crayon or pencil on a blank sheet of paper i.e. cut outs or pre-designed sheets are not allowed
- Closing date: Friday May 27th 2022
- Drop off point for entries will be advised before the closing date
- The Children’s Liturgy team are currently looking for volunteers. You do not need to be a teacher or have children attending the liturgy, you just need to be 18 years old (for vetting), willing to give a few hours every few months and have the desire to share your faith with the young children of the parish. All training is provided. If you are new to the parish, the liturgy is for children aged 5-8 years old and will be held in the Pastoral Centre during the 11am Sunday mass. Volunteers will be on rota a few Sundays per year. Ring / text Deirdre at 087 0984379 for more information.
Le meas
Fergal Naughton
Príomhoide
