Chess Tournament

As today was the final session with Seamus, he organised a tournament for all the pupils. Each pupil played 6 rounds, playing a new opponent each time. The pairings were worked out on a computerised system used for all competitions. The pupils had a great time and every pupil won at least one game. Seamus provided trophies for 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize and for best female competitor (in order to encourage more girls to take up chess as a sport). The top 10 received medals and everyone got a milseán for taking part. We were very proud of all the pupils taking part today, who have embraced chess, be it for the first time or as an improver. It has proven to be one of the most enjoyabe extra curricular activities we have done in the school, and as teachers, we could see the learning benefits as the pupils progressed, as well as a self esteem boost for some  pupils. Seamus has been an excellent teacher and has sparked a great interest in all the pupils in chess, and they have learned alot of skills in 7 weeks. We hope to have him back in the school again, and we will be keeping up the practice, so were ready for any competitions that might come our way. Look below to see photos of all the action!

BBKR Information

The future of BBKR community games.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

In this week’s edition of the Wicklow people there was a great write up on the medals night presentation that is held annually to celebrate the community games achievements in our area. This is a night that many children look forward to and is a fun way of rounding up the games.

We hold our AGM after this night to help start the planning for the year ahead. An important role in this is that of Area secretary. This role involves liaising between the local committee and the county committee. It means attending a monthly meeting and being able to keep in contact with activity leaders and admin duties.  We are very lucky that we live in an area that has community games already established and activity leaders assigned to organise events for our children.

Currently we have no secretary and an area that has no secretary is not able to participate in community games. Unless we have someone who can take this on we will not be running the BBKR games for 2018. If you live in the Barndarrig, Kilbride, Brittas Bay, RedCross area and you feel that you would like to help out in this role we would like to hear from you. There will be people to help you in the role and support you throughout the year.

Many thanks for taking the time to read this as we appreciate that there are so many demands on people’s lives. Please have a think about it and if you would welcome the opportunity to find out more about community games this is the role for you. Contact Fiona on 087-24092321 for any information by Thursday the 19th of October.

Peace Proms Information

As both Ms Nuzum and Ms Greene's classes now embark on learning the songs required for the Peace Proms, below is some practical information for parents:

Dates for the Diary: 

Workshop - January 9th , Wed 10th and Thurs 11th in the National Sports Arena, Dublin.

(We will be notified as to which of these workshops we must attend nearer to the time)

Concert - February 3rd and 4th Simmonscourt Arena RDS, Dublin. 

Costs:

There are no costs involved in the process except for transport to and from the venues.

Tickets for Parents and Family Members:

These usually go on sale on November 1st www.peaceproms.com

Dress Code:

Choir Members will wear their school uniform to the workshop. All pupils must wear a plain white t-shirt/blouse/shirt (no logos) and dark bottoms e.g. uniform trousers/skirt and tights on the day of the concert. 

Further practical information for the days of the workshopand the concert will be posted nearer to the dates. 

September Activities in the Middle Room

The children settled back to school very smoothly and were eager to start learning. Here is a sample of some work/activities that was covered in the middle room; the children had tobring a book and discuss, write up a book review, The Clown in me (Art), GAA, Chess, restorative classes, station teaching and team teaching.

  Click on photo for more photos.......

Restorative Practice

The Clown in Me

Middle Room - First, Second & Third Class

Peace Proms RDS Dublin 2018

As part of our music curriculum this year, Scoil San Eoin are excited to take part in the annual musical education programme called Peace Proms. This was established not only to enrich pupils lives through exceptional musical experiences and performances but also to promote  peace, unity and tolerance through music.  Peace Proms is a free initiative which engages children and young people in music and enriches their lives through exceptional musical experiences and performances.

• Peace Proms celebrates culture and diversity and promotes peace, unity and tolerance through music.
•  There is no restriction on the number of children who can participate from each schools. Places are filled on a first come first served basis.
• Peace Proms is for everyone. Whether your choir is established or starting out, Peace Proms gives your choir the once in a lifetime opportunity to:
• Sing with a choir of up to 3,000 children
• Perform with a full symphony youth orchestra
• Work with one of the UK’s leading professional conductors – Greg Beardsell
• Perform at top venues e.g. the Echo Arena Liverpool, the RDS Dublin, the SSE Arena Belfast, the Hub Kilkenny and the Kingfisher Hall Galway.
• Develop vocal technique, presentation and performance
• Experience a variety of musical styles and genres
• The musical programme is tailor made to ensure it is fun and engaging for children, fulfils important educational requirements, is very rewarding to teach, and the end performance is an inspirational and thrilling experience for choirs, teachers, parents and audiences alike!

Peace Proms Involves
IN SCHOOL LEARNING: With their teachers, children learn up to 8 songs or medleys in different genres. Schools are provided with choir packs, and a rehearsal CD
REGIONAL WORKSHOPS: Each school participates in ONE regional workshop which usually takes place in December/January during school hours and is given by renowned conductor Greg Beardsell.
PEACE PROMS CONCERT: All schools perform with the Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland and a host of top soloists in ONE concert which will take place in Spring 2018

Parental Consent Forms will be sent home with each child in the next day or so and these need to be returned to the office by Monday 25th. We urge parents to send them back, signed, asap as we must forward them onto the Peace Proms office to be checked. If they are late, we may loose our place in the initiative!

Chess Programme/Lessons

Dear Parents/Guardians,

The middle and senior classes will take part in a Chess programme by a chess coach Seamus Duffy. He has taught in Primary schools throughout the country and has won Primary school competitions. He has also represented Ireland in the European Club Championships.

Chess has many educational benefits for the children - It helps to develop children’s critical thinking and reasoning, encourages them to plan ahead and teaches them that their actions have consequences. It also encourages problem-solving, sportsmanship and self-esteem, often allowing quieter children to shine and is great for concentration and patience.Our hope at the end of the programme is that we can organise a tournament and the children can partake in this, and that chess will become part of our wet-breaks with inter-class tournaments. 

As we are unable to take part in some of the usual activities this year, due to not having an extra classroom. we are looking at activities that can be done as a whole class where the tutor can come into the pupils classroom to complete the lessons. We would like all pupils to take part in this, as they have all the above mentioned workshops, and many more. We strive at Scoil San Eoin, to expose pupils to a variety of intra-curricular activities, to  reinforce curricular learning and give them a holistic education. 

The programme will be a 7 week program which commences on 14th/Sept/2017 and ends at Halloween.

The Middle Class (1st/2nd and 3rd) will be completing a time slot of 9.50-10.50 am each week and the Senior Class will be completing a time slot of 11.15-12.15 weekly.

The total cost of the programme is €25.00 per pupil. This can be paid in full to the class teacher or by epayment, or on a weekly basis (3.50) The school will supply the chess boards required.

We know that, like all the other workshops the pupils have been involved in, it will be of great benefit to them, and they will thoroughly enjoy it!

New school year!

As the summer holidays draw to a close, I would like to wish all our past pupils the best in starting in their new schools. Our 6th class pupils are starting on the next stage of their educational journey and I'm sure they are very excited!! 

Scoil San Eoin opens back up on Thursday 31st August at 9.20.

We have two new teachers on staff this year. Ms Brennan who will be taking Junior and Senior Infants and Ms Fitzgerald who will be our Special Education Support teacher. We welcome them both to the school. 

We ask that all parents/guardians drop their children off at the gate or walk them to the line as usual. We ask parents/guardians not to enter the classroom in the morning as this is disruptive to both pupils and teachers and can make the transition back to school more difficult. If a parent/guardian wishes to speak to a teacher, we ask that they make an appointment through Mary in the office. 

Looking forward to seeing all the pupils on Thursday morning!!