Dear Parents,
Gold Award – Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)
We are delighted to announce that our school achieved a Science Foundation Ireland Curious Minds Award. The judges evaluated our Log of Evidence and were satisfied that we have met all the criteria for the Gold Award. Our school has provided evidence of children's engagement with STEM in the following areas:
- Science
- Technology
- Engineering
- Maths
- STEM Showcase
Here is some feedback on our Log of Evidence:
A very busy STEM school, great to see the link up with the "Tidy Town" , under "Enviroment Awareness and Care. Looks like Space week was great fun, amazing work with all your 1st class astronauts and the 3rd class rocketeers. Great use of video recording book reviews and S-cool News.
SFI have also introduced a logo for successful schools which we plan to upload on our website. Samples of our Log of Evidence is presented as a slideshow on the screen inside the main reception door of our school. Well done to all the boys and teachers who submitted samples and photos of their experiments. I have to give a special word of thanks to Ms. Whitney for co-ordinating all the work and submitting our application.
First Holy Communion
Best of luck to our second class boys who will make their First Holy Communion this Saturday in St. Mary’s Church at 12pm. Thanks to Ms. Staunton, Mr. Walsh and Mr. Shannon for all their hard work preparing the boys for their big day. We are very grateful to our choir for all the practice they have put in over the past few weeks with Aideen Cooney, Ms. Hunston and Mr. McHugh. Many thanks to our Parents’ Association who are providing teas, coffees and light refreshments in our school after the ceremony.
Utility Bill for 2024/2025
Each year families in St. Mary’s BNS and Scoil Mhuire GNS are asked to pay a utility bill which covers the cost of Aladdin, printing, stationary and arts & crafts. This year the utility bill will be €70 for boys in Junior and Senior Infants and €65 for boys from first to sixth class. There is an extra charge of €5 for infant classes to cover the cost of extra resources for our Aistear programme (play-based programme). Our school secretary will send out a payment link via Aladdin next week.
Fifth Class tour of Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel and day trip to Lucan Harriers Athletic Club (AC)
Our fifth class boys visited Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel yesterday. Baldonnel is the headquarters of the Irish Air Corps. Thanks to Ms. Murray, Mr. Keegan, Ms. Joyce and Corinne Bagnall for organising this trip. We are very grateful to Denis Kelly for co-ordinating this event as part of Engineers Week.
Our fifth class walked to Lucan Harriers AC today to gain some experience running on the track. The boys were very impressed with their facilities.
Donnacha Bolger – World Open Ballroom Dancing Championship Finalist
Congrats to Donnacha Bolger who reached the final of the World Open Ballroom Dancing Competition Final in Blackpool last week.
School Hurling
Well done to our Junior C hurling team who beat Pius X last week in Terenure. Best of luck to our Junior B and Junior C hurlers who play St. Laurence’s BNS in Stillorgan today and to our Junior A team who play Pius X on our school pitch. Many thanks to Mr. Clandillon, Mr. Keegan, Ms. Ryan, Mr. Walsh and Mr. McHugh for giving up so much of their time to train the teams and bring them to their matches.
St Mary’s BNS and Scoil Mhuire GNS Sports Day – Sunday 9th June at 2pm
Save the date: Our School Sports Day 2024 is taking place in the school grounds on Sunday 9th June. It’s always a great community event with lots of fun for everyone attending and this year should be no different.
We’ll be keeping the entry price the same this year at €15 per family attending and closer to the time you can pay in advance via Aladdin or by cash at the gate on the day. There’ll be all the usual races for each class group, parents and tiny tots races and lots of fun games and inflatables to keep everyone entertained all afternoon.
The continued growth and success of the Sports Day relies heavily on our parent community volunteering their time for a short period on the day. We’re appealing to parents who are able to give 30-minutes of their time during the day to manage a station. You can sign up here on Sign Up Genius where you will see all the volunteer stations listed You will be given the opportunity to choose your own station and time slot.
Westmanstown Gaels u15 Hurling Féile winners
Well done to the Westmanstown Gaels u15 hurling team who recently won their division of Hurling Féile. It is great to see so many of our past pupils still playing hurling.
GAA Summer Camps
Lucan Sarsfields:
Registration is open for the Lucan Sarsfields summer camps. There are 4 club camps, all of which are multisport (camogie, football, hurling, ladies football and bringing in relevant exercises/skills from other sports to supplement). They are open to children starting school in September all the way up to those who will finish primary school in June. Previous experience is not needed and camps are open to everyone whether members of a GAA club or just interested in trying it out. The coaches are all Garda vetted and have safeguarding (child protection) and a coaching qualification done. The camp from 5th-9th August includes a trip to Croke Park and this is selling out fast so do book quickly as spaces are limited. The Cúl Camp is already sold out. Registration is now open via https://lucansarsfields.clubzap.com/categories/camp/products or scan the QR code on the attached poster.
Westmanstown Gaels:
Their first camp of the summer is their Cúl Camp which runs from 8th-12th July, 9.30am-1.30pm for all children aged between 5-13 years old. Please click on the following link for more information:
https://www.kelloggsculcamps.gaa.ie/booking/?county=Dublin%20North&venue=&week=&page=2
Their second camp is their club camp which runs from 12th-16th August, 9.30am - 1.30pm, for all children aged 5-13 years old. Please click on the following link for more information:
https://gardawestmanstowngaels.com/products/18981/purchases/new
Le dea-ghuí,
Dara Burke, Principal.