April 2018 Newsletter
NEWSLETTER – April 2018
Upcoming School Closings:
Closing: Friday, May 4th at 12 noon to facilitate staff in-service
Closed: Monday, May 7th to Friday, May 11th – Mid-term
Closed: Friday, May 25th – Referendum
Closed: Monday, June 4th – Public Holiday
Closing: Thursday, June 28th at 12 noon – Summer Holidays
Full calendar for the school year 2018/19 to be included with Summer Newsletter.
Traffic Management:
Many thanks once again to all those who co-operate with our set down and collection procedures, traffic warden signals and school bus clearways.
Unfortunately, a number of parents are regularly using the staff car park as a set down and collection area. We are very concerned that parents using the staff car park may be the cause of a serious accident.
We would also like to draw your attention to new traffic calming measures, which have been completed in Railway Road in recent weeks. Please reduce your speed as you approach the new ramp located at the pedestrian crossing outside the school.
We would like to thank Kerry County Council for completing the works and hope that the measure will enhance the safety of our pupils and school community.
Appointment System:
Please be reminded that an Appointment System is in place for parents who wish to meet with a teacher. This appointment must be made at the school office. All items to be delivered to pupils should also be done through the school office. Please keep delivery of items to pupils to a minimum so that classes are not interrupted on a regular basis.
Sacrament of Confirmation:
Thirty-one girls and boys in 6th class received the Sacrament of Confirmation on Tuesday, February 27th in Holy Cross Church, Kenmare. The pupils took part in a four-week parish programme called “You Shall Be My Witness” in conjunction with their classroom preparation. Many thanks to the class teachers,
Mr. James Devane and Mr. Ronan Hussey, for all their hard work in preparing the candidates. Huge thanks also to the School Choir made up of pupils from senior classes, director Ms. Órnait Ní Loingsigh and organist Ms. Peggy Healy for enhancing the ceremony with wonderful singing and music.
Sacrament of First Holy Communion and Reconciliation:
Congratulations to the girls and boys in Second Class who received the Sacrament of First Reconciliation on Tuesday,
March 13th. These pupils are now preparing for the Sacrament of First Holy Communion with their parents and teachers. The pupils have been taking part in the ‘Do this in Memory of Me’ parish programme since October 2017. The First Holy Communion Ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 5th at 10.30a.m. in Holy Cross Church.
Our School Playground:
Our new school playground has been up and running since October and has been a huge hit with the children! The playground, which is used primarily by the school’s ASD Class, is also timetabled for use by other classes to ensure maximum enjoyment by all the children. This year, we hope to extend the playground by finishing off the unused space with tarmacadam and creating a flowerbed and sensory area. The playground is an invaluable asset to our school and we are again so grateful to the community for your continued support. Thank you.
Erasmus+ Project:
In March 2018, 22 students and 13 teachers from England, Poland, Germany, Greece and Spain came to visit our
school as part of an Erasmus+ Project. This Project entitled ‘Eurotrading, Young Entrepreneurs on the Move’ is a two year programme which aims to explore entrepreneurship, creativity and connections between a variety of European countries. The visitors became part of our school for the week and learned about our customs and traditions. They viewed the beautiful landscape of Kenmare and the surrounding areas and saw performances from our many talented students at our school concert. There are a lot of people we would like to thank for making the week such a success. These include Local Entrepreneurs Margaret McCarthy and Benoit Lorge for their wonderful workshops, Local Historian Dónal Sleator for his informative tour of Kenmare, Bernie O’Sullivan, Joanne Cashman, Peggy Healy and Maria Laffey for their work in organising both concerts, Vinnie and Mo at Wild Derrynane for their amazing tour and Kenmare Marketing and Events Group, Romi Curran for her Art Workshop, Deputy Mayor of Killarney John Joe Culloty for his tour of the Killarney area and the staff and students of St. Johns for organising events and hosting students in their classrooms. Finally, we would most especially like to thank the parents and students who took the children in for the week. We really appreciate the effort you went to in doing so. The children were all so happy and well looked after all week and we are truly grateful for your kindness!
This May, we will continue the project by travelling to the next host country, Spain. The students chosen to represent Ireland are Nicole Cooney, Rachel O’Sullivan, Conor Adams and Gerald McCarthy. We know they will do a remarkable job in representing our school and we wish them all the best on this excursion!
New and Used Clothes Collection:
New and used Clothes Collection will take place on Thursday, May 24th. Bags should be dropped in to school by 
Wednesday, May 23rd.
Time to do that Spring clear out! Funds from bag collection are used to contribute to payment for transport to school events and matches.
Acceptable Items: Men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, household textiles i.e. curtains, towels, shoes, handbags, belts.
Cannot Accept: Mobile phones, laptops, dirty or wet clothing, duvets, pillows, mats, carpets, books.
We appreciate all your support.
Parents Association Fundraising Events:
The school would like to thank the Parents Association for all their support and fundraising initiatives throughout the year and look forward to their continued support and to working with them again in the next school year.
In the past couple of weeks, all children in the school have had an opportunity to participate in a series of Lego Learning workshops, which were funded through initiatives organised by the Parents Association. These workshops are a fantastic way of engaging children in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) activities.
The Parents Association will help to support the schools ‘Wet Day Playboxes’ initiative. The school has recently purchased extra games and equipment for all classes to ensure that all children are engaged in fun and education activities in the classroom during lunchtimes when it is too wet to play outside. The Parents Association are asking all parents to donate any unwanted toys or games that your children have outgrown to the school so that our wet day play boxes will continue to be well resourced.
Any donations will be greatly appreciated and can be dropped to the school any morning of the week commencing May 14th. A reminder will be issued closer to the date.
Finally, the Parents Association will host their annual fundraising Monster Raffle and Coffee morning in the school in June (date to be confirmed). They are grateful to all the local prize sponsors in the past and look forward to their continued support and generosity for this year’s coming raffle. We hope all parents will support this fundraising event by attending the coffee morning and purchasing tickets. Any monies raised will continue to fund and support a variety of activities and purchases in the school.
Denis Courtney
Principal.