Dear Parent / Guardian / Colleague / Board Member,

Some highlights of the past week include;

• Soccer finals on Monday.
• Annual trip to the Nire lakes on Tuesday.
• Junior side of school Teddy Bear Picnic also on Tuesday.
• GAA coaches visiting on Wednesday.
• Rg 6 Graduation Mass with Fr Michael also on Wednesday.
• Visit of Olympian Phil Healy on Thursday.
• Our rescheduled races from Sports Day.

(Thanks to Jason Maunsell for sponsoring a set of sacks for the school.)

Please see our social media page for further details on all of the above.

It takes a community to raise a child. Thanks to one and all for their efforts both inside and outside of our school. So, thanks to Fr Micheal our chaplain, Michael and our Board of Management, Aoife and our PA, our teachers, our SNA’s, our secretary, cleaners, supervisor, caretaker. Furthermore, our coaches, our bus drivers, our local sacristans, our colleagues at the attached Before and After School Club and many others who help in the education and wellbeing of our children.

I’d especially like to thank Fiona O’Grady our SNA for her 18 years of sterling work at our school as she moves on to pastures new and I’d also like to acknowledge Miss Kelly, Miss Boyce and Miss Hanrahan’s time with us as they progress their own teaching careers. We welcomed back Ms Dunlea and Mrs McGrath earlier this month.

Booklists.

The items required by pupils for each individual class have been uploaded onto our website. Please pay particular attention to the list if your child is part of a split class i.e. Miss O’Keeffe. You will also find a provisional calendar for the 2024/25 academic year. https://www.ballymacns.com/parent-info/

Reminder.

Both ourselves and Ballymacarbry Breakfast Club and After School Service will reopen on Wednesday 28^th August 2024. Let’s hope that we get a good summer and that all will return safe and refreshed by late August.

Le gach dea ghuí

Michael J. O’ Ryan – Principal.

Dear Parent / Guardian / Colleague / Board Member,

Recap of Our Exciting Active Week!

We are delighted to share with you a recap of our incredible Active Week at school! The children had an amazing time participating in a variety of activities that promoted fitness, fun, and camaraderie. Here’s a brief overview of our week:

Monday: We kicked off the week with “Keep Fit with Stephanie Byrne,” who volunteered her services. With her, the children engaged in fun games and movements. The music was lively, the sun was shining, and everyone had a blast! Later, we moved into the big hall where Ms. Walsh showcased her excellent gymnastics skills, teaching the children some impressive poses and holds. Miss O’Keeffe’s Rang 1 participated in a GAA blitz in Cappoquin.

Tuesday: The children embarked on a great adventure up Curraheenavoher. They enjoyed nature walks, took in the breathtaking sights, and indulged in a well-deserved picnic. It was a day filled with exploration and appreciation of the beautiful outdoors.

Wednesday: We had plenty of visitors! The children were put through their paces by Richie, the Fitness Freak with functional movements and a lot of fun games. They also enjoyed bouncy castles and a visit from the ice cream truck, making it a day to remember. Our Rang 6 pupils participated in an in-dept work-shop on emotional intelligence and general well-being. This is so important and ties in seamlessly with activity and the promotion of mental health and well-being. Thanks to Motus Learning for accommodating us, at no cost to the school or our parent body.

Thursday: Despite the weather, the fun continued. The junior half of the school had a lively dance party while the senior students participated in the Deirdre O’Ryan Memorial Cup at the Community Centre. We are proud to announce that our girls’ football team won the cup! Mrs Coffey’s Rang 3 met their ‘pen pals’ from the local Thursday Social Club at the Community Centre. They had been corresponding via letter / card during the year and finished up with a physical visit, which turned into a mini seisiún.

Friday: The sun came out for a while for our traditional Sports Day. The children participated in a wide variety of games and activities throughout the day, bringing a fantastic week to a close. We are sure everyone will sleep well tonight after such an action-packed week!

Thank you for your continued support in making our Active Week a success. Thanks to all who made it possible; the visitors / instructors, all the staff, pupils Aoife, Caroline, Katryn and Kate – members of the P.A who attended on Wednesday, organising and indeed sponsoring the Bouncy Castles, Fitness Freak and the Ice Cream Van on the day. Thanks to our past pupils who wrote, offering their help during the week. They were very helpful and hopefully enjoyed their time back with us. Thanks to Jim for maintaining our grounds and for the extra work in advance of Active week and Tina and Majella for their work both inside and outside the school respectively. Also, a special mention to Enya, Conal, Olan and their dad Jim for organising two pet lambs to our school this morning. If we had PPS numbers, we could try enrolling them for next year!! Please check our social media for photos from the week.

Food Dudes.

It was great to participate in this programme on Active Week. Throughout the week, children got to sample fruits such as; apples, blueberries, tomatoes, bananas, oranges and vegetables such as; cucumber, carrots and peppers for their lunch. Hopefully it will encourage more children to choose such items for next week and the upcoming school year.

Solar Energy.

Our 15 solar panels have been installed and are operational from today. Once the final works have been completed, the entire school community will be able to see what KWS are being generated, are utilised in-house and the amount exported to the national grid, from a screen near the principal’s office This should reduce our electricity bills into the future.

Open Afternoon.

We had our Open Day on Wednesday last and all the boys and girls enjoyed their day especially the added bonus of it being active week and having the ice cream van and bouncy castles on site. Parents please note that our new junior infants are encouraged to wear full uniform on their first day back at school – Wednesday 28^th August, (even though Wednesday is one of our PE uniform days.)

School Reports.

The reports have been compiled, printed and posted and post families should have received them today. Hopefully the remainder will be delivered on Monday next. Thanks to all who played their part in the process, all teachers and our Secretary Rose. Any concerns can be relayed through the school or via teacher email outside of direct class time. Please contact the school if you haven’t received the reports by Tuesday next.

Booklists.

Booklists have been finalised and books ordered. The items required by pupils for each individual class will be uploaded onto our website before the end of June. Please pay particular attention to the list if your child is part of a split class i.e. Miss O’Keeffe or Mrs Coffey.

Next Week.

Rg 6 will have a final excursion to the Nire Lakes on Tuesday next, weather permitting and the following day we will have our Graduation mass for the Class of 2024. It will take place at 7 pm in FMW Church and refreshments will be served immediately afterwards in the school hall. We will have a GAA skills Day next Wednesday. So, we ask all children to bring in a hurley, helmet and gum shields please.

Reminder.

School will close for summer holidays on Friday next 21/6 at 12:30pm. Please be aware that the Breakfast Club and After School Service will remain open until 3:30 pm on the day.

Is mise. –  Michael J. O’ Ryan – Principal.

Dear Parent / Guardian / Colleague / Board Member,

School Tours

We had three school tours since Tuesday last, two of which took place today. Rg 1 & 2 have returned just before home time from their excursion to Waterford City, while Rg 3 & 4 are expected back from Kilkenny circa 3:30 pm (Community Centre). For the record, Juniors and Seniors went to Parson’s Green on Tuesday last. Thanks to all who helped in any way with the staging of these school tours; including all staff, bus companies and their drivers, parents, guardians and pupils. By all accounts the pupils their tours very much.

Visitors to School.

We had many visitors to our school this week. They included Conor Prendergast our GAA Coach.

Parent and First Responder, Alan Walsh gave a talk to our Rang 6 on First Aid and basic CPR earlier this week. The children had a hands-on role in learning how to perform compressions on the accompanying mannequins. He impressed upon them the importance of time and seeking help promptly using the emergency services and availing of defibrillator units such as the one attached to the school

Thanks to Sergeant Mick Dempsey and Garda Joe for calling to us on Thursday to speak to infant classes. The children loved to see and try on a bullet proof vest, hold a baton, try on the Garda hat and even make a radio call to Tramore Garda station. The highlight of the visit was definitely going inside the Garda van to transport prisoners / criminals or the “Paddy wagon” and hearing the sirens.

Heritage specialist, Tony Glavin visited this week and told us all of his exhibitions to the Artic and his love of exploring and following in the footsteps of fellow Irishmen, Tom Crean and Ernest Shackleton. He is a renowned storyteller and used many props to show the number of layers needed to traverse the ice at the poles. This was all done with pupil engagement and participation and ties in with the subjects of history, geography and science and even Green Flag-biodiversity.

Edel Burke, herself an SPHE teacher, called to Rg 6 today to provide them with information around Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) prior to their departure from primary school. Thanks to parents / guardians for their help with paperwork in this regard. I was glad to hear Ms Burke speaking very complimentary of the class and their maturity in our brief meeting with afterwards.

Next week at school

Much is also planned for next week in that it is our annual ‘Active Week’ There will be plenty of activities throughout the week, with each day focusing on a different aspect; such as keep-fit, walks, games, inflatables, well-being, and perhaps a surprise or two along the way. The week will finish off with Sports Day on Friday, weather permitting. Thanks to all the staff and our Parents’ Association for their help in promoting and staging this important week. More about this next week.

Furthermore, the school will participate in Food Dudes, where fruit and vegetables will be provided to pupils throughout the week.

We will also participate in the Deirdre O’Ryan tournament at Newcastle NS and our Rg 2 will travel to Cappoquin on Monday.

On Wednesday, we will welcome new junior infants and their families to our school between the hours of 12:45 – 2:45 pm for Open Afternoon.

Also, on Wednesday our 6^th Class will receive training on wellbeing and emotional intelligence from Motus Learning. We applied to avail of this workshop and have thankfully been selected at no cost to the school or our families. By way of email later this evening, I will forward information from the provider to parents of Rg 6 pupils. For further information you can contact the school early next week.

Reminder School will close for the summer on Friday 21^st June 2024 at 12:30 pm.

Is mise. –

Michael J. O’ Ryan – Principal.

Dear Parent / Guardian / Colleague / Board Member,

First Communion.

Our communions are now over for another year. Well done to our boys and girls who received the sacrament and performed so well over the two weekends. Thanks to all who helped in any way, especially Fr Toomey and class teacher, Miss O’Keeffe; to Miss Kelly and members of the Banna Ceoil, Brendan and Nora our sacristans and indeed all who helped at the school including Rose and SNAs Patsy & Kay, not forgetting altar servers, photographers and parents assisting with the liturgies.

Camogie.

Our girls team participated in a Blitz at Dungarvan GAA grounds on Wednesday last. In the quarter final they came up short to eventual winners, St. Mary’s Dungarvan. Miss Denmead, herself a camogie player, was very happy with their performance and progression to date. Conor Prendergast called on Wednesday to coach our boys and girls and will again next Wednesday. Hurleys and helmets at the ready again please.

Díolacháin Cáca.

Miss Kelly and her Rang 5 organised our Annual Bake Sale today with the proceeds going to the local Panda Playground Committee. A final total of €1,300 was raised, thanks to the efforts of the pupils and their families in baking for this worthwhile event. Thanks to those who also bought tickets. Congratulations to our raffle winners, Conn, Orla, Johnny, Jack and Koa.

School Tours.

The first of our school tours commenced today and all tours will be completed by this day week. We estimate an ETA of somewhere between 7:30-8:30 pm this evening. Our Junior & Senior Infant School Tour will take place on Tuesday next. (Day after Bank Holiday) The following are the details; Buses will depart the school at 9:20 am for Parson’s Green. We expect a return time of between 2-3pm. More details to be found in an email from relevant teachers this evening.

P.E. Uniforms.

From Tuesday next pupils will be permitted to wear their P.E. uniform each day for the month of June. Navy shorts are permitted in place of the tracksuit. Please label all belongings especially jumpers as they can be discarded in the school environs during warmer weather.

Standardised Tests.

These annual tests are all but completed. They will be integral in formulating the individual school reports and planning for September and beyond.

School Reports.

These are being compiled by teachers as we speak. We will post to families later in June, prior to end of term.

Booklists.

These are also being compiled and being sent to book shops / companies for quotes. These will not be posted home along with the end of year reports, but will be available for all to see from our website at end of term. We will detail those outstanding items, which parents must acquire for their children, outside of the book grant.

Bus Tickets.

The Bus Éireann family portal is now open to accept payments. The closing date for is Friday June 7th, 2024. Bus Eireann Payment Link

Final Month at School.

June is a busy time of year for all staff and pupils, most especially those in Rang 6. To this end, a letter will issue to parents of Rg 6 pupils next week detailing remaining events / activities for the class prior to their summer holidays and graduating from primary school.

Neighbouring School Success.

Maith sibh to Mrs Houlihan, the staff and all the pupils of St Mary’s N.S. Touraneena on their success in ‘Ireland’s Fittest School’ last weekend. We have a great working relationship with Touraneena NS, most noticeably at sacramental preparation time. We congratulate them on this achievement and wish them well into the future.

Summer Stars.

Waterford Library Service will run the Summer Stars Reading Adventure in all library branches during the summer from the 4th of June to the 31^st of August 2024. We endorse this programme as it will enhance the reading capabilities of our pupils over the holidays. Please see our social media page for further information.

Food Dudes.

As a school, we will be participating again in the food dudes from for the week commencing Monday 10^th June 2024.

Bank Holiday / School Tour.

School will be closed on Monday next 3^rd June. Enjoy the Bank Holiday Weekend. Reminder. The Junior/Senior Infant school tour will take place on Tuesday. Please check your inbox later for email later in relation to this tour.

Is mise. –

Michael J. O’ Ryan – Principal.

Dear Parent / Guardian / Colleague / Board Member,

First Communion.

Best wishes to Miss O’Keeffe and her Rang 2 pupils from the Nire who will make their First Communion on Sunday at 11 am. Families are asked to be at the church by 10:45pm at latest. Last weekend their colleagues from FMW received the sacrament at a very enjoyable ceremony, officiated by Fr Michael. The mass was offered for classmate Danny. The pupils were very well prepared and performed exceptionally. The weather held up on the day and hopefully will do again for Sunday’s ceremony and family events afterwards.

GAA Final.

Hard luck to our boys who contested the Cuman na mBunscol Plate Final against Cappoquin on Wednesday night last in Dungarvan. The boys fought to the end, coming up short by only 4 points after enjoying a far better second half. This experience will stand to them for next year’s competition. Thanks to Mrs Byrne and their club coaches for enhancing their skill levels throughout the competition.

BMC LGFC Visit.

The management and team of the victorious U-16 Ballymacarbry Lady footballers called to our school on Thursday morning to parade two recent competition wins; the Aisling Kennedy Trophy and secondly the U-16 County Final Cup. It was nice to see so many past pupils back including members of the management team. Mentors and captains spoke to our staff and pupils and reminisced about their friend Aisling K. We congratulate the girls and wish them well in sport as well as in upcoming exams and schooling in general.

Science Award.

Miss Denmead’s Rg 4 Class have received a reward for their efforts in the STEM area. The following is an excerpt from the award allocation. ‘Congratulations to Ballymacarbry National School on achieving the SFI Curious Minds Gold Award. You presented a log of evidence of a high standard. It is clear that the learners in the school have been introduced to a wide range of hands-on student-based STEM activities calculated to deepen their understanding of STEM subjects, and develop their critical thinking skills. There is a great range and variety of activities shown, from minibeast hunts and making bird feeders to coding, circuit making and building marshmallow towers! The enthusiasm and participation of the pupils is very clear. We particularly loved seeing the creative playground models the learners made. Well done to all the learners, teachers and all the members of the school community on a successful application.’

School Tour Monies.

The first of our school tours commences this day week and all tours will be completed by this day fortnight. Thanks to those who have paid or continue to pay in instalments. Further correspondence will issue closer to each date.

Díolacháin Cáca.

As previously stated, our Bake Sale will take place on Thursday 30^th May next in the school and will be hosted by Miss Kelly’s Rang 5. Families are kindly asked to bake for the occasion. Please see our social media for the advertisement of the event. Proceeds this year will go to the development of the local Panda Playground.

Confirmation Wrap-Up

I include a video message from our patron, Bishop Cullinane for those families who had sons /daughters receive the Sacrament of Confirmation this Spring. Bishop Phonsie – Post confirmation Message.

Consultation on Primary School Curriculum.

As you may be aware, the primary curriculum is changing. This is the most significant change to primary education in 25 years. You can have your say by completing the online questionnaire for parent/guardians. Links to the questionnaire and written submissions can be found at the NCCA consultation webpage: See here. NCCA Consultation  The consultation closes on Friday 7th June at 5pm.

Is mise.

Michael J. O’ Ryan – Principal.