The Principal’s Desk

Thanks to all the parents who came out for our Parents Association AGM and Board of Management finance information last night. It was great to see up to 50 families represented there and I hope I’m right in saying that the mood was very positive and hopeful at the end of the night. We have a tough challenge ahead of us in trying to raise the required funding to keep delivering the best we can for your children. I have no doubt we can achieve it if we can mobilise the energy, ideas and enthusiasm of the hugely supportive parents we have.

Tomorrow you will get a letter explaining the Board’s new approach to raising funds. Hopefully you will take the time to read it, think about it and perhaps you’ll even comment on it here. I look forward to hearing from you and getting your feedback and ideas on how best to achieve our goal.

A big thank you to all parents who came along to our Parent Information Evening last night. We hope it was useful for you and will help you assist your child’s learning. You are the primary educators of your children and our role is to support you as best we can. Last night was an example of that support and we hope to provide you with other opportunities throughout the year. I am very grateful to all the staff for putting in the extra time and effort to assist you and ultimately the children in this way.

A vital factor in providing the children with the best educational opportunities we can is ensuring that the classes are well equipped with all the necessary materials, technologies and educational resources. However these cost money and the grants provided by the government will not cover these costs. Therefore if we want our school to maintain our high standards we need to raise the money to do it.

The Board of Management will be holding a Finance Information Evening on Tuesday October 13^th. On the evening the board will provide information on funding, outline a revised plan for voluntary contributions and host a discussion on fundraising. It is very important that each family is represented at this meeting.

Simply put, without your support we will find it very difficult to support you and your children to the level we would like. This can be seen as an opportunity to galvanise the great energy and spirit we see every day in the families of our school community. Your children deserve the best, let’s work together to ensure they get it.

Remember Tuesday October 13^th! Put it in your calendar now.

Dear Parents/Guardians,

As another busy school year draws to a close I would like to take a moment to thank all the people who make our school the special place it is. The Parents Association for their constant support for the children of the school. Never once have they said no to anything asked of them. Tree planting, fundraising, the Fifth Class cycling safety, the school garden and Book Fair are only a few examples of the way they helped out in the school this year. From a personal point of view I think the greatest support comes in the interest and enthusiasm they actively show, providing a broad range of educational experiences and opportunities for our children. Next year it would be great to see more parents getting involved and giving some of their time to develop our school community.

The Board of Management continues to put in a huge amount of work behind the scenes. Developing school policies, managing the finances, employing teachers and other staff, educating themselves on relevant legislation and planning for the future of the school are only a few of the onerous tasks these volunteers take on on your behalf. A big part of next year’s plan is to allow the school community to see more of the work of the Board through more communication and consultation. I am also hoping we can reduce the length of meetings to less than 3 hours!

I would also like to thank the staff of the school for all their hard work, dedication and professionalism. I feel very privileged each day coming to work with such a fantastic group of people. The sense of working as a team is strong. Colleagues helping and encouraging one another, supporting each other on the tough days, exchanging new ideas and good practice is all the normal daily routine here. All of our teachers and classroom assistants strive to put the needs of the children first and work extremely hard to ensure they get the best start, both academically and personally, to their school lives. Well done and thank you to you all.

A big thank-you to our school secretary, Ester. She has done a super job in her first year. It was no easy task replacing the much-loved Clare but she has handled it with great sureness, good humour and grace. Thanks also to our cleaners, Caitriona and Josephine and also Caroline who assists bringing some of our children to school.

I would also like to pay tribute and say thanks to all the other people who help out in a myriad of other ways. From listening to children read, assisting with art lessons, coaching soccer, using their private businesses to raise money for the school, helping in the office, minding the garden and the bird-feeders, painting murals and much, much more these quiet heroes teach by example the ideals of selflessness, dedication and giving for the greater good to us all. I cannot name them all but we owe you all a debt of gratitude.

Finally, I wish to say thanks to the children. Somedays school ain’t easy! Sums are too hard, there’s too much homework, learning letter sounds is worse than having a tooth pulled, our friends don’t act like friends and the principal is grumpy! Yet every morning I see smiles and laughter, helping hands and kind words. I see a face light up with joy when suddenly they “get it”. Learning is at the centre of all school life and our children are living it to the full.

Have a great Summer and I look forward to seeing you all safe and sound for another super year in September.

John.

While circumstances may change over the summer, the proposed teaching arrangements for next year are:

Teachers Educational Support
JI – Eimear Costello Deirbhile Ní Scolaí
SI – Linda Howley Noelle Hunt
1st Class – Petrina Kearney Krista Olson
2nd Class – Sinéad Ní Bhradaigh Martina Johnston
3rd Class – Fiona Napthine
4th Class – Sara Falvey Language Support
5th Class – Barry McGuire Sinéad Carroll
6th Class – Marina Hughes Orlaith McCabe

Educational Support
Deirbhile Ní Scolaí
Noelle Hunt
Krista Olson
Martina Johnston

Language Support
Sinéad Carroll
Orlaith McCabe

Hello all and welcome to life at the Principals Desk. I am hoping to be able to use this blog to give you an insight into the “goings-on” at our school and to answer any general queries you might have about school life, policies etc.

I’m hoping it will be a useful tool for parents and guardians as well as any other interested people who might like to know more about us, what we do and how we do it.

As those of you who are familiar with our school will know, we are a very busy place with lots happening not only at the teaching and learning end of things but in celebrating the life of the school community, its diversity, its energy and commitment to improving the lives of the children that attend here and the wider world also.

A tall order but one we relish!

I’m hoping it will be a mixture of information and stories. Entertaining as well as informative. Provocative and disarming. Serious on occassion but amusing more often.

Please let me know how this tool will best serve your needs and help improve life at our school.

I’ve also been told that blogs that are too long-winded lose the interest of readers so I’ll try very hard to curb my natural tendency to use 10 words where 2 would do!

Thanks for taking the time to read this and hopefully you’ll come back again.

Til next time,

John.

ps. To Shamie who lost a tooth today- Let’s hope the Tooth Fairy hasn’t been hit too hard by the recession! I’ll be asking tomorrow.