Educate Together News
Newsletters September 2009
Date posted: 25-07-2009
********** 4TH SEPTEMBER 2009 **********
Swimming.
Swimming will be on Thursday and Red Group (Senior Infants, Second Class and 5th & 6th class) will be going. The cost of swimming this term is €15 for the Blue Group and €20 for the Red Group, you can pay weekly €5 this includes the cost of the bus to and from the school. We encourage all children to take part in the swimming lessons. Parents of the Infant classes should be at the pool to help the children dress and undress. Swimming lessons take place between 1.00pm-1.40pm. Junior Infants will not start swimming lessons until Thursday 1st October. If you are going to the pool to help your child please tell your child’s teacher as the pool have introduced a new Policy for allowing access to the changing rooms, all parents have to sign in and a teacher from the school must acknowledge the “right” of the parent to enter. A list of the dates for swimming are printed on the back of this newsletter, please keep it in a safe place for further reference. Swimming lessons must be paid for even if your child is sick or out of school on a swimming day. The cost to the school remains the same regardless of the number of children attending.
Swine Flu.
Thank you to all who have sent in tissues with your children to help reduce the risk of picking up the Swine Flu Virus. If your child has been diagnosed with Swine Flu please keep him/her home for 7 days and inform the school immediately. If your child has an underlying condition and you have not informed the school please do so immediately.
E-Mail.
Please send in your e-mail address to the school so that you can receive our weekly newsletter electronically. This will help keep the school’s running costs down. There is also the certainty that you will get the newsletter and not find it in the bottom of your child’s schoolbag weeks later.
Green Project.
We are aiming to complete the first stage of our Green Project and get our first Green Flag. The first Green Flag involves Reducing, Re-using and recycling. Much of the work has been done in previous years and this year we hope to set up a Green Committee of children who will work and oversee the project under the direction of one of the teachers. We hope to raise funds for the Green Project through our Green Tuck shops. We may have ongoing sales from our garden and some pupils may sell produce from the garden in the morning before school to get the full benefit from the produce when it is at its freshest.
Kid’s Club.
During the Summer a kitchen was installed for the staff and it will enable the children to have cookery lessons. We have a cooker but we need an electrician to install it. If you are in a position to help please let John or Eilish know. Kid’s Club forms were sent to all children in Junior and Senior Infants. Kid’s Club is run by parents for parents of infant classes that either have older siblings in the school or take the school bus. Places are limited so please return the forms as soon as possible. Any extra places can then be offered to other children.
The school will be closed tomorrow (Friday 4th Sept 2009) for a Staff Planning Day.
********** 11TH SEPTEMBER 2009 **********
Swine Flu.
A big thank you to all who have helped to put measures in place to help prevent the spread of Swine Flu. It is very important to keep this up. Please make sure that your child has a packet of tissues and talk to them again over the weekend about how to use them. We have alcohol hand washing facilities at the front entrance and the entrance to the infant classes. We request all adults who come to collect children in the classrooms to use them.
East/ West Project.
Our major project for 2009/10 is the East West Project involving Barrow Hall Lane Community School and Warrington & Cockshutt Primary in Shropshire . Eva and Oonagh will be working and co-ordinating it and it will involve visits to all three schools over the year. The Project will also include the creating of a piece on legends from all three areas. We will keep you up-dated on this Project and the visits.
Pride of Place.
We will participate in the Pride of Place Competition again this year. This means we have to weed and replant our gardens with bulbs and flowers for the Spring. We hope to get as many parents as possible out tomorrow week to weed and replant. We hope each group will then with their children maintain the garden until judging in late May or early June 2010. We have a proud record to live up to, so please come along and lend a hand.
Teddies Project.
Greta ( Denis and Kamile’s mum) will continue the Teddies for Peace Project when she returns from Lithuania and we hope to launch the Project next February when all the Teddies are finished. Greta will begin with 2nd class and work her way down to Junior Infants. She will purchase more materials and needles in Lithuania and we ask parents to join her when the work begins with the children enabling them to do as much as they can themselves.
Green Flag.
Josephine will set up our Green Team and we aim to get our first Green Flag in this school year. The first year involves Reducing, Re-using and Recycling and involves the reduction and management of litter. We have systems in place already but we need to further raise awareness and reduce waste in all areas and activities in the school. The children in the Green Team will drive the project and will explain all they have done to the judges, which will hopefully mean we will have done enough to be our awarded the first Green Flag. If you can help please contact Josephine.
Music.
Following our Planning Day we hope to develop our music programme further by introducing a new instrument to the school. We are in the process of working out how we will manage this and we will let you know of our plans as they develop. It will require quite a large amount of investment in purchasing the instruments. We are in a position to go to the next phase due to the hard work of the children, the leaders of the music groups and the support of the parents who encourage the children when they are practicing at home. The fact that the children could bring their instruments home was a further factor. Here are some ways you can help us with the costs: buy a tin whistle for your child, make sure your child takes care of the tin whistle. If it is broken, please replace as soon as you can.
Art/ Craft & Photocoping Fee.
Thank you to all the parents who have already paid, if you have not paid please do so as soon as possible (this can be paid in instalments). It is vital that all families pay this fee as every fee not paid puts extra pressure on the school finances. This also applies to swimming fees.
New Treasurer.
We want to welcome Ann Doherty, our new treasurer on the Board of Management and wish her well in the position. Ann is the Mum of Stephen in Junior Infants. At this point we want to thank Sharon McCarthy for all her work as BOM Treasurer over the last few years.
Donation.
For the past number of years a small number of parents and others have donated €250 or more per year. This is done as a one off payment or you can pay in instalments by standing order over the course of the year. This money allows us to buy extra resources for the school. This is a very efficient way of raising funds for the school. If you pay tax at the higher rate the school can claim an extra €102.50 back in a tax refund. If we could increase the number of people making this donation it would go a long way to paying for our new musical instruments. The BOM will be in touch with you soon about this and other issues.
********** 18TH SEPTEMBER 2009 **********
Gardening.
We hope to get our gardens back in shape over the coming weeks. We hope each group will design, plant and maintain our various gardens- Polish, Lithuanian, English etc and that each community will look after their own gardens. We hope to have a wonderful display of blooms for Spring as we plant bulbs to suit each garden. We would also like a group to look after the vegetable garden. The lawn and the area beside it will also need some attention.
Green Team Committee
The Green Team Committee has now been set up. Please look out for our Green Wall outside the PE/ Assembly Hall for more information in the near future.
Thank you.
Thank you to the parents who donated an Argos Voucher to the Kid’s Club to buy more toys. Kid’s Club have put it to good use and the children are now playing with their new toys.
Cookery Equipment Needed.
The parents who help the children with their cookery lessons are in need of some extra equipment – pots, pans, big serving spoons, ladles, plastic containers etc. Please give what you can.
A.G.M. Parents Association.
The parents association is holding its AGM on Wednesday the 30th of September at 7.30pm - 8.30pm in the school. To enable as many parents as possible to come we will provide some supervised activities for children in one of the class rooms. The AGM is held so that the committee can report back to the rest of the parents about activities held, funds raised/spent and generally how parents are active in the school. You may also want to bring questions, suggestions or consider going yourself forward for this year's committee, ALL WELCOME. An agenda will be posted at a later date and if you feel you have something to put on the agenda than please contact the office before the AGM. Annette Smyth, chairperson, NETNS parents association.
School Bus Service.
The bus driver (Joe) has informed us that it is against the law to park or wait at a bus stop, it is a pick up point only. We ask all parents to be at the bus stop at least 5 minutes before the bus is due as the bus is only allowed to stop for as long as it takes for all children to get on board. Thank you for your co-operation in this matter.
Clothes Collection for “The Friends of St, Luke’s Hospital”.
We will be sending home a plastic bag with each child in the school, if you have any unwanted clean Ladies, gents, children’s clothing, shoes, bed linen and towels, please put them in the bag and leave them in the front hall of the school by Thursday next. Umbra the company co- coordinating the collection will reward the school financially and it will also raise much needed funds for the Cure- Control-Care of Cancer. For further details please see posters located around the school.
Swimming, Art& Crafts and Book Rental
Thank you to all the parents who have paid so far. I would like to remind the remaining parents to pay as soon as possible. The school cannot fund all these activities with out the help and support of all families. Please send payment in an envelope with your child’s name and class – and give it to Eilish in the office or to your child’s teacher.
********** 25TH SEPTEMBER 2009 **********
Thank You.
Thank you to the parents who have donated kitchen equipment to the school, some of it is brand new. We will put it to good use and maybe we will discover a budding Jamie Oliver or Rachael Allen!!!
Kid’s Club
There are a number of places still available for children in the Kid’s Club. If you are interested in availing of this service please let your child’s class teacher know.
Swimming.
The children from Junior Infants will start swimming lessons next week. We ask parents to be at the pool to help dress and undress the children. The children will leave the school at 12.40pm, swimming lessons start at 1.00pm and finish at 1.40pm. The children from the Infant classes can go home straight from the pool (please let your child’s teacher know if you are taking them home from the pool). If the children come back to the school by bus they should arrive back at 2.20pm, please be at the school to collect them. Thank you to all the parents who have already paid for swimming, if you have not done so please pay as soon as possible.
Junior Infant Parents.
The Parents of Junior Infants are invited to a meeting on Friday 2nd October@ 1.15pm with Josephine. This meeting will explain homework and the CAPER Project. Please let Josephine know if you will be able to attend.
Art/ Craft & Photocoping Fee.
Thank you to all the parents who have already paid, if you have not paid please do so as soon as possible (this can be paid in instalments). It is vital that all families pay this fee as every fee not paid puts extra pressure on the school finances. This also applies to swimming fees and the Book Rental Scheme.
Gardening.
We will have our big planting, weeding and clean up day on Saturday 9th of October. We would like as many people as possible to attend, a good turn out would mean we could get the garden put to bed for Winter and ready for a beautiful show of colour in the Spring. Thank you to the parents who have already made a start. If you have some spare time on your hands please feel free to come to the school any day and work on the gardens. We hope that the parents and children who created gardens for the Pride of Place Competition early this year will maintain/ develop their gardens. Looking forward to seeing you all Saturday week.
Pride of Place Tour.
The Pride of Place Competition Prize consisted of €1000 towards our garden and also a trip for 30 children and 5 adults. The trip is to Clearsky Adventure Centre in Downpatrick, Co Down. This trip will take place on Wednesday 30th September. The bus will leave the school at 7.30am and will return to the school at 18.30pm. This promises to be a great day out for all. The children should bring a large packed lunch, a change of clothes, swimwear, old runners and a towel. They will take part in 3 activities – canoeing, rock climbing and orienteering. If there is enough time they will also take part in Team Games.
The Parents Association AGM has been moved from this Wednesday to Wednesday 7th October @ 7.30pm.
