NEWSLETTER JUNE 2010
The school year has almost concluded so we would like to wish all parents and pupils a very safe and happy summer holiday.
School closes at 11.50am on Tuesday 29th June.
School Re-opening: Tuesday, 31st August at 8.40 a.m. for 3rd/4th/5th & 6th class pupils.
New 2nd class pupils should arrive from 8.50 a.m.-9.15a.m. and go to their new classrooms.
Other New pupils can report to office from 9.15 a.m onwards.
Staff Meeting.
Wednesday, 1st September 2010 . Pupils will go home at 12.20 p.m.
School Maintenance..
The Board of Management would like to thank you most sincerely for your generous contribution of € 37,901 this year. Most of you will be aware that the school does not receive sufficient money from the Government to cover the school’s running costs so we are very grateful to the parents who have given their support. We are very aware of the current climate and the difficult position that some families may find themselves in. However, we invite people to make the contribution that suits best i.e. the full contribution or a part contribution would be very much appreciated.
This year the following work has been completed thanks to grants & your support.
· Upgrading of all toilets in school.
· Installation of a new heating system in old building.
· The whole school building insulated to current standards.
· Painting of various parts of building.
· Upgrading of all IT equipment and computer room.
· New kitchen and equipment installed in old building.
We have recently heard that the school will be receiving 2 grants this summer. The fence around the play area is being replaced after 30 years. All the floors in the old building are being damp proofed, recarpeted and all walls painted. This will necessitate all furniture and fittings being removed to the new building for the summer holidays. Therefore if any parents are free the week before we open to help with furniture moving or cleaning please let us know.
We are very privileged to have such a fine school and we will continue to strive with your support to maintain the building & grounds to the highest standards possible.
A Fond Farewell.
Farewell and Good Luck to Ms. Alannah Kelly, Mrs.Ciara McCarthy & Ms. Alison Moore who are leaving our teaching staff this year. Thank you most sincerely for your contribution to this school.
Sixth Class Pupils.
Another type of conclusion has been reached by our sixth class pupils – they are leaving us for pastures new – go n’éirí an bóthar libh.
The 6th class Prayer Service led by Fr. Frank Reburn & Graduation will take place on 24th June in Sacred Heart Church, Seabury at 7.30 p.m. The reception will take place afterwards in the school hall. The yearbook presentation & graduation reception is organised by the Parents’ Council. A huge amount of work and effort goes into this night and the production of the yearbook – so thank you to all in the Parents Council, it is very much appreciated.
You will be sadly missed by everyone in John Paul’s and we wish you all the best in your new schools.
The level of participation of so many of our pupils in various activities has been so encouraging. A special words of thanks to all our pupils who willingly helped out around the school. A special thank you to sixth class pupils who delivered so many notices to classrooms, helped at Induction Night and also at our Green Flag Raising Ceremony. Your dedication & hard work have been an inspiration to the whole school. Many of our parents have also given of their time and expertise very willingly throughout the year – Míle Buíochas.
Primary Science & Maths Award of Excellence.
We are delighted to announce that Pope John Paul’s has received a Primary Award for Science and Maths Excellence for 2009-2010 for some fantastic Science and Maths work which has been taking place in the school throughout the year. A record of all this great work was submitted and our award is proudly displayed in the school foyer. We hope to build on this achievement from year to year and will be applying for the award again next year. A big thank you to Ms. Droney for all her hard work in co-ordinating this project.
Capture the Power Schools’ Photography Competition-Bord Gas.
Congratulations to Eimear Farrelly Rm. 14 whose photo was one of 20 shortlisted in her age category. This was a great achievement as this is an All Ireland Competition.
Cooking in Pope John Paul’s.
Since the amazing renovation of the old kitchen, classes throughout the school have been enjoying lots of cooking experiences using the free cooking equipment the school received from collecting Flora Cooking with Schools tokens. Pupils have been busy cooking pizzas, garlic bread, cookies, brownies, jam tarts, gingerbreadmen, rocky roads, flapjacks, rice crispie buns and smoothies.
Parents’ Council.
Once again we would like to express our thanks to the Parents’ Council. They give freely of their time and they support the school energetically and enthusiastically in all its activities.
There was a huge entry for Colour the Poster competition at Christmas.
‘The Variety Show’ held on the 2nd/3rd & 4th
December proved to be a great success. It was packed with music, dance, song and drama. The hall was packed each night.
A Monster Raffle was held in conjunction with the show. Numerous prizes were donated by many companies and individuals, for which we are very grateful.
The receptions in the hall after 1st Holy Communion & Confirmation were greatly appreciated by the parents and pupils.
In April the Parents’ Council organised a Giant Easter Raffle, Easter Card Competition & Cake Sale.
The Parents’ Council also compiles the Yearbook which is given to each sixth class pupil on their Graduation and is a memento of their years in Pope John Pauls.
A second hand book sale & uniform sale being organised by Parents Council will take place at 7.00 p.m. on Tuesday 29th June in School foyer, due to furniture storage in hall.
Finally, we say farewell to those members of the committee who are retiring this year. Your endless commitment to the school never ceases to amaze the whole school community.
First Holy Communion .
On Saturday 15th May over 120 children made their 1st Holy Communion. This was a most enjoyable day for all and once again we were blessed with good weather. The boys and girls looked angelic and congratulations to each one of them on how well they participated in the ceremony. The quality of the school choir was greatly praised and a special thank you the pupils who gave up their Saturday morning to sing at the masses.
Special thanks to: Ms.Costello, Ms.Creavin, Ms.Goulding, Ms. Ireland who prepared the children throughout the year for 1st Confessions and Communion. This they did with an enthusiasm and energy that gave the children a deep understanding of the sacraments. We thank Mrs. O’Donoghue who trained the children in the choir and Mrs. McManus who once again played the organ in Church. This year Fr. Frank in conjunction with a number of parents organised the ‘Do This in Memory Programme’. Many parents have commented positively on the value of this preparation for the children and their families. Well done and thanks. Fr. Frank the altar servers, Bridie the sacristan all deserve our thanks and appreciation. The Parents’ Council once again provided a welcome reception in the hall for which we are very grateful. Thanks to all who helped in any way.
Green Flag
We raised our third Green Flag on Thursday 3rd of June. To mark this occasion we had a visit from two members of the Garda Mounted Unit and their beautiful horses, Cumhaill and Dumhach. The flag was raised by Councillor Peter Coyle,deputising for the Mayor of Fingal, to the sounds of a piper from Malahide Pipe Band, Con O’Sullivan. The pupils of 2nd & 3rd class had the opportunity to meet the horses in ‘person’, pat them and say hello to Garda Andy & Garda Claire. Ms. Dolan and Ms. Vaugh’s 4th class entertained us with a song ‘An Brat Glas’. Pupils from the Green Committee stole the show with their speeches about Water Conservation. Thanks to Niall Rushe, Orla Kavanagh, Jack O’Brien, John Burke and Sarah Whalley
A big thank you to all on the Green Schools Committee, Ms. Farrell & Ms.Twomey and all the staff for their support.
Next year’s theme is Transport so get ready to walk to school!!
Good Luck to Julie McCarthy -2010 U.S.Kids Golf World Championship.
Everybody in John Pauls sends our good wishes to Julie who is competing at the above event in August at Pinehurst Resort, North Carolina, the home of American Golf. The U.S. Kids Golf World Championship is the largest and most prestigious event in the world for players 12 and under. This three-day tournament attracks over 1,200 participants from more than 30 countries. Julie qualified for the World Championships by finishing 2nd in the European Championships at St. Andrews, Scotland.
Sharing with Others.
Goal Cake Sale for Haiti organised by 4th classes - €2,521 was raised.
Christmas Vincent de Paul Hampers – numerous hampers were collected from each class and distributed to needy families.
Ballymun After School Project – Colourful wrapped presents were donated by our First Communion Pupils. A mini bus collected 12 large sacks full of your presents shortly after First Communion Day
Casa- (Break House Malahide) - received €1055 from our Confirmation pupils.
Trocaire: was delighted with the € 3,832.21 we gave them on your behalf. This will support long-term development programmes among some vulnerable communities in Africa, Asia & Latin America.
The Hope Foundation.
Delicious Butlers chocolate bars have been on sale in our school for the past two weeks. Mr. Colbert’s class were excellent salespeople. Well done to all involved as the proceeds are going to fund a school in the slums of Calcutta. Mrs. Fogarty is co-ordinating the sales. Latest figure raised….€1,100 WELL DONE EVERYONE.
HB Ice Cream Funday in aid of Down Syndrome Ireland.
Pope John Paul’s is currently supporting HB Ice Cream’s Annual Funday Campaign for Down Syndrome Ireland. All classes in the school had an ice-cream party in their class during the month of June. Each pupil has been asked to donate €2 and all proceeds will go towards helping people with Down Syndrome reach their full potential. We would like to thank all families for their support towards such a great cause. Over €1,000 has been raised so far.
Rainbows.
This was the 8th year of the school’s Rainbows programme for children whose parents have separated or who have experienced the death of a family member. Rainbows helps by providing a safe setting in which children can talk through feelings with other children who are experiencing similar situations. They are helped to articulate their feelings by an adult facilitator or listener. Thank you to the four members of staff who participated in the programme.
5th Class Community Garda Programme.
A big thank you to Garda Des & Garda Aidan for another very successful and interesting programme, which they delivered to our current 5th class pupils.
5th Class Cycling Safety & Skills School.
We were delighted to be one of the schools to be selected by Fingal Co.Council to participate in the above scheme again, which proved to be very successful
Sponsored Sports Challenge..
Once again our annual jog was a great success. Parents, families, friends and neighbours gave very generously and the total raised this year was just over € 11,500. This money goes directly towards educational materials and equipment for the school. This year thanks to the money raised and computer grant we are hoping to install interactive whiteboards in all the remaining classrooms.
FAI Futsal North East Dublin Competition.
Pope John Paul 11 School competed in the North East Dublin FAI Futsal Competition in November. They narrowly missed out reaching the final, having lost by 1 goal in the penalty shoot out in the semi-final.
The members of the squad were:
Sean Daly, Mikey Dowling, Joe Kelly, Evan Millerick, Jack Dowling, Arran Lynch, Julien
Yanou & Cian Daly.
A big thank you to Mr.Colbert for his coaching, Mr. Denis Hyland FAI Community Development Officer, and to all the parents for your support and transport.
Athletics.
On Wednesday, June 2nd the athletics team headed off to Morton Stadium,Santry to participate in the Cumann na mBunscoil competition. All of our athletes ran superbly with Emma Lynch reaching the sprint final. Well done to all the boys and girls who competed on the day, and a big thank you to those who took part in the trials. Thanks to Ms. Creavin, Ms. Goulding & Mr. Colbert for all the coaching. Thanks to all the parents who came to support the team on the day.
Special Olympic Champion.
Pope John Pauls were celebrating another victory when our very own Darren Breen swooped up 3 medals at the Special Olympics held in June in Limerick. Darren, well known to everyone in the school for his contagious personality and beaming smile, did the school and his family proud. He was awarded a gold medal for the vault, a second gold medal for the high bar and a silver medal for floor exercises. Well done Darren!
Taking the Plunge!
Swimming forms part of the Aquatics in our P.E. programme. This year the school decided again to offer swimming classes to the pupils in 3rd & 4th classes on a pilot basis. They were held in Westwood, Clontarf and ran for 10 weeks. We were delighted with their huge success.
The swimming coaches graded the classes into three levels of ability and the children became much more confident and really enjoyed the whole experience. We plan to continue the programme next year for the 3rd & 4th classes.
Malahide Yacht Club ‘A Taste of Sailing Course’.
Malahide Yacht Club were delighted to host the above event for our current four 6th classes. It was a fantastic opportunity to try a new activity with fully qualified instructors. Each class spent two days on the Estuary – (September & June). Hopefully it has encouraged them to take up this sport.
Cricket.
Our pupils have really enjoyed weekly coaching sessions provided by Mr. Fintan McAlister– Malahide Cricket Club. The school wishes to thank the club for providing our pupils with an opportunity to learn the fundamental skills and hopefully some may join the youth section of the local club.
On May 25th twelve Students from 4th class took part in a cricket blitz in Malahide Cricket Club. Full of enthusiasm and under the guidance of Ms. Dolan the pupils had a brilliant day. All of the pupils on the team played very well and enjoyed ice-creams after to cool down!
The players were:
Mikey Power, Eoin O’Brien, Hannah O’Donoghue, Matthew Kavanagh, Cian Riordan, Margaret Richardson, Sam Murphy, Aisling Fennell, Mhairi O’Connell, Sam Bannon, Rachel Gorry, Ali Duff.
National Spring Clean.
Estuary Clean Up.
Well done to Mr. Colbert’s class who picked up loads of litter along the estuary. The school takes part in National Spring Clean every year.
They were a highly visible group with their bibs, orange buckets and pickers. Well done everyone – your hard work was much appreciated.
Incredible Edibles.
Ms. Droney’s class are participating in “The Incredible Edibles Growing Challenge”. This is an Agri-Aware initiative which aims to increase Children’s consumption of fresh produce and highlights the role of the “grower” in producing quality Irish Food. The class enjoyed planting strawberries, potatoes, cabbages, lettuces, scallions and herbs in the school vegetable garden and glasshouse.
Basketball.
Weekly coaching sessions were provided for 4th, 5th & 6th classes.
This is the 5th year both girls & boys teams were entered into the North Dublin Primary league. We had 7 teams competing.
Congratulations again to the Junior A girls team who reached the Junior Final (5th year in a row) against St. Oliver Plunkett’s. It was a nail biting final which had everyone on the edge of their seats. There were two periods of extra time and eventually St. Oliver Plunketts won by 3 points. Well done girls you put up a great effort.
Our Junior A Boys did extremely well and got to the semi-finals and played last year’s winners Scoil Assam from Raheny. In the last quarter and despite some great shooting & lay-ups Scoil Assam pulled away and beat us 28 22.
A big thank you to Malahide Basketball Club, especially Helen, Fiona & Aine and to all the parents for your support.
Chess:
The standard of chess has really improved among our players under the expert guidance of our chess coach Mr. Tom Fitzpatrick. This year saw a large number of younger players take part. The weekly lessons will continue again next year.
Girls Gaelic.
The girls Gaelic team reached the Cumann na m-Bunscol finals in December in Croke Park. This was a huge achievement for the girls as this was the first time they had participated in this competition. The girls were narrowly defeated by St. Cronans N.S. on the day but they did both themselves and the school proud.
A reception was held for them in the school afterwards.
They also received a sports hoodie and a DVD (photos) as a memento of the day.
Well done girls!
Congratulations to Anna Brennan who has been selected to play during the interval on the day of the All Ireland Football Final in Croke Park. We wish her all the best, a fantastic achievement.
Girls Soccer.
The girls participated in Division 1 of the F.A.I. Schools Soccer Cup. They did their best but were unfortunate not to reach the final.
A big thank you to Ms. Goulding & Ms. Costello for the coaching and to all our parents for the support they gave to both teams.
Boys G.A.A.
2009-2010 saw our Boys’ Junior & Senior Football teams compete in the Cumann na mBunscoil and Fingal Leagues.
This year was a year of rebuilding, and indeed some of our pupils in 4th class played on the senior teams. We would like to thank all the boys for their commitment and effort throughout the year. They showed great character and always represented the school to the highest standards.
We would particularly like to thank the parents who drove, often times long distances, to away matches and who continue to give so generously of their time. Without your help we would be unable to compete in these leagues which the pupils enjoy so much.
Finally, our thanks to Padraig McCarthy,
St. Sylvester’s G.A.A. coach who coaches the boys and girls in Pope John Paul 11 every Tuesday and attends all our matches. Enjoy your summer break and we look forward to a more successful campaign in 2010/11.
A special word of thanks to Mr. Stephen Prendergast for all his hard work in coaching the boys teams.
Garden Squad.
Great credit is due to all the pupils who help to maintain our very large gardens.
Thank you for all your hard work and also we wish to thank most sincerely Margaret Kelly & Debbie Quinn (parents) who have spent hours maintaining the garden during the year. Their effort has been made much easier by the Trojan work carried out by Mr. Gregorz Stefanski.
Our School Crest