Congratulations to our 2020-2021 Wellbeing Committee and to our teachers Ms. Daly and Ms. Raymond on achieving 2nd place in the Schools Environmental Competition. Their Wellbeing Garden project turned out to be a huge success and it has been a valuable addition to our school campus. The prize was collected at the Cathaoirleach Awards on Friday May 6th at a civil ceremony in Belvedere House and Gardens.
Well done to all the First Year students who participated in the Green-Schools poster competition titled ‘Groundwater Our Hidden Treasure’. The students were presented with a reusable draw-string bag and some goodies.
Back row: Ava McDonnell, Alison Murray, Aine Bracken, John Tehan, Lily McLavin, Peter Daly, Feras Abdo, Zuzanna Gierak, Ciara Relph
Front row: Emma Tandy, Aimee Slevin, Carol-Anne Finn, Anna Mullen, Lucy O’Sullivan, Lorna Noreigan Grehan, Lena Clarke, Emily O’Neill
Missing from photo: Marie Coyne
Congratulations to Transition Year student Keith Gavigan, who submitted a poster in the EST Solar Competition which is run throughout Europe. Keith completed an excellent poster illustrating the Carrington Effect and he received a certificate for his efforts.
A bake sale was held in our school on Friday April 8th in aid of the Children's Health Foundation. It was a massive success, raising €280. Well done to the TY students involved in running the event, the student council, and to the students in our school who baked goodies for the sale.
Our students, staff and TY Mentors had a fantastic day exploring the sights and sounds of Dublin Zoo on April 5th. The weather was extremely kind and made the day even more enjoyable. A special mention must go out to our TY Mentors who continually demonstrate great maturity and leadership. They are a credit to our school.
Pictured below are our two Transition Year student groups who are participated in the Certified Irish Angus Beef Competition in Croke Park on April 1st.
Group 1: Martha Egan, Rachel Maxwell and Ríona Egan (not pictured). Group 2: Mary Ellen Colton, Sinead Bracken, Chloe McDermott and Trasa Bracken.
Well done girls.
SciFest 2022
Eagraíodh go leor imeachtaí an tseachtain seo chun ár dteanga náisiúnta a cheiliúradh. Bhí tráth na gceist, maidin chaife, tóraíocht taisce. comórtas na gcontaetha agus fiú comórtas na bpeataí! Bhain gach duine an-taitneamh as na himeachtaí go léir agus bhí go leor Gaeilge le cloisteáil timpeall na scoile. Maith sibh agus leanaigí ort!
The momentum in the first half was with Newpark as they scored the opening try to put them 0-5 ahead at the ten minute mark. Minutes later Newpark extended their lead as they charged over the line for another try. It was looking quite bleak for our lads as we approached half time but a try from Eoin Robinson raised the spirits of the team as he barged his way over the line to get our first score of the match. Neale Pierson scored the subsequent conversion just before the half time whistle to make it 7-10 at the break.
As the second half of the game got underway Newpark got off to a flying start with a third try. This didn’t stop our boys as Darragh O’Brien made a brilliant run down the left hand side of the field, crossing the try line to cut the deficit to a 3 points again. Shortly after, Newpark replied with their fourth try to extend their lead once more. Eoin Robinson gave us hope and kept us in the running as he scored his second try of the game. This was converted by Neale Pierson to make it 19-20 with only five minutes left on the clock.
Our forwards were very strong in tackles and put great pressure on Newpark in the closing moments. With seconds left on the clock, Robinson made a line break and was tackled just before the try line. He reached out to score the winning try but it was heartbreakingly disallowed for double movement. Moments later the full time whistle was blown and it finished 19-20 in favour of Newpark Comprehensive School. Our boys never gave up throughout the game and played very well from start to end. Stand tall boys!
Ukraine: we stand with you.
Thank you to all,
The Student Council.
Our Transition Year mini company students visited Golden Island Shopping Centre, Athlone on March 10th for the local Student Enterprise Awards. A huge congratulations to Lauren O'Reilly and Summer Feery who won first place for their company "Framed it", and to Isabelle Hayden who achieved third place for her company "Shambalm". The girls were supported on the day by their mini company tutors Mr. Dunne and Mr. O'Meara, and by their Transition Year colleague Tristan Seery. Finally, our school was awarded the title of the 'most enterprising school in Westmeath'. Well done to all.
We got off to a flying start in the second half with Eoin Robinson opening the scoring with a try following an impressive
scrum from our forwards. Neale Pierson went on to score yet another try to extend the lead. Eoin Robinson
charged over the line in the final minutes of the game for a second time and this was converted by Neale Pierson once more. Tremendous pressure and defending by our boys kept Raheny scoreless throughout the entire game. The game finished 43-0 in our favour. The lads now head to Dublin for the Leinster Final next week. Best of luck lads! - By Shane King
Well done to all 50 players from First and Second Year who braved very tough weather conditions to play two U14 Girls Football games on the week ending Friday February 18th. We recorded a victory against Moate C.S. on what was a ferociously windy day and we were then gracious in defeat against Our Lady's Bower, Athlone. It is great to see so many girls from First and Second Year playing Gaelic Football in our school.
On February 15th our Transition Year students went on a Physical Education trip where they walked from Bray to Greystones via the spectacular cliff walk. Our students also visited Jump Zone Sandyford for some trampolining. Between the two activities our students were given some time to explore Dundrum Town Centre. The weather was perfect for the occasion and each student really enjoyed their activity-filled day out.
Photo gallery from our recent North Leinster Final success.
We recently introduced the students to Ceiliúradh CEIST in our Religion classes, and the significance of CEIST in our school community was highlighted. As a consequence of our discussions in classes, the students themselves suggested two places in particular that they believed to be of significance within our school that reflect the core values of CEIST. See the video below...
Our Transition Year students attended a wonderful production of the iconic musical Les Misérables in the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre on February 10th.
Congratulations to our two Transition Year student groups who will be participating in the Certified Irish Angus Beef Competition in Croke Park on April 1st. Group 1: Martha Egan, Rachel Maxwell and Ríona Egan. Group 2: Mary Ellen Colton, Sinead Bracken, Chloe McDermott and Trasa Bracken
Pictured below are Transition Year students Mary, Julia and Isabell with their cake for Marian Hostel Tullamore. Consider It Cake makes birthday treats for people living in direct provision. Well done to the girls for getting involved.
Our Junior Girls Football Team are through to the Leinster Final after beating St Wolstan's Celbridge on February 3rd in Durrow. The final score was 8-17 to 5-03. Well done to Miss. Daly, Miss. Shortall and the girls.
Well done to our Athletics Team who participated in the North Leinster Cross Country Championships on January 28th. A special mention must go to our Intermediate Girls Team who finished 2nd overall.
Our Senior Boys Rugby Team played an excellent quarter final match on Thursday 27th January against Dundalk. The match was held in Navan. We started off very strong with the first try of the game being scored by our captain Tadhg Dowdall. Tadhg then followed this up with his second try soon after. Daire Early and Peter Pierson put more points on the board for us with the respected conversions for both. We then pushed on and excelled for the remainder of the first half, keeping our opponents scoreless. At half time the score was 37-0 in our favour. Several changes were made during the second half as we were able to utilise our squad. Mark Devine and Daire Early scored two amazing stand-out tries in the second period, but scorers were spread throughout the team. The game ended 67-12. Now on to a semi-final!!
Congratulations to our Senior Boys Hurling squad and the management team of Mr. Doyle, Mr. Minnock and Tristan Seery, after their fantastic North Leinster Final win on January 25th. Our lads won away to Castlepollard C.C. in what was a tight encounter. The final score was 2-15 to 1-15. We march on!
Congratulations to our past and current students who received John Paul II Awards on Saturday January 22nd.
- Papal Cross Award: Brian Walsh, Kevin Walsh
- Gold Award: Geri Louise O'Brien, Katie Coffey, Aoibhe Cusack
Well to our TY students Isabell Hayden and Martha Egan who got 'highly commended' for their project "Does Makeup Effect You Skin?" at BT Young Scientist 2022. The event was held from January 12th to 14th. You can find their exhibit on https://btyoungscientist.com/. Their stand number was 3547.
There was great excitement in the Home Economics room on Thursday December 16th as our Second Year students modelled their upcycled Christmas jumpers. This project was part of their CBA1-Creative Textiles. Many new sewing and embroidery skills were developed along the way. Well done to all on a super effort
Our school Orchestra visited Golden Island Shopping Centre in Athlone on December 16th for some carolling. They raised €490 for the Peter McVerry Trust and Lib Multicultural Counselling and Support Programme. Well done everyone!
On the week beginning Monday December 12th, our Third Year Home Economics students tackled the very technical choux pastry in order to make profiteroles. Pastry made, baked and decorated all in one hour! Well done Third Years.
All Second Year students visited Birr Castle this month in order to learn about the history of the Greatest Telescope which was once the world's largest telescope. They also viewed the i-Lofar telescope which is based on the Castle grounds. They then participated in an interactive workshop based on the moon and the phases of the moon. This workshop relates to the 'Earth and Space' strand on the Junior Cycle Science syllabus. Thanks to all from the Birr Scientific and Heritage Foundation, especially Áine who hosted each of our Second Year groups.
This week, Third Year French students learned about the Festival of Lights which takes place on December 8th every year in Lyon. As part of the lesson, each student designed and painted their own jar of light to take home. Our French Language Assistant, Clémence, was a fountain of knowledge on this celebration as it takes place in her home city.
German students celebrated the German and Austrian festival Nikolaustag on the 6th of December. Traditionally children receive sweets and goodies in their shoes from Nikolaus. Our students learned about the traditions of Saint Nikolaus, Krampus parades in Austria and Knecht Ruprecht in Germany.
Board Games Club takes place every Tuesday and Wednesday in Room 39 at 1:10. Enjoy board games, good company and make new friends. All are welcome. A special thanks to Catherine Nowak and Weronika Siembida, who are helping to run the club.
Friday 26th of November saw our First Year students take part in Movember in our school as they created their own moustaches. They were given a talk on the Movember charity by our teachers, which detailed all the great work the charity does in creating awareness around men's physical and mental health. A great effort was put in by all for a very worthy cause. A special mention to Mr. Dunne for all his Movember-related work behind the scenes.
On Tuesday, November 23rd some of our students got the opportunity to work with trainer Con Dunne and his dogs Pip and Jake. Our students got to experience first hand, the work and dedication that goes into training animals to perform a variety of functions in society, while also having fun with two lively and friendly canines. Their visit won't soon be forgotten.
On Monday 22nd November, our Transition Year students celebrated the annual ‘Think Languages’ event, organised by the Post Primary Languages Institute and Languages Connect. The event promotes the importance of learning languages and the joy of learning about other cultures. Our students completed a workshop on Chinese calligraphy, which was provided by the Confucius Institute in UCD. They also learned Capoeira, which is a Brazilian martial art. Their instructor was Sansão Maia. Our French Language assistant taught students about the ‘Fête des Lumières’ and students decorated their own glass jar to light up on 8th December to celebrate the Festival of Lights. Students also learned some Irish Sign Language, Arabic, Polish and even did some belly dancing. Traditional food from various countries was enjoyed at lunch time and students took part in a languages quiz in the afternoon. It was a great success and students learned to value different languages and cultures present within our school community.
Our Second Year students are busy upcycling and creating Christmas jumpers as part of their CBA 1. Lots of new skills and different embroidery stiches are being developed. Well done to everyone on their creative designs.
Stand Up Awareness Week is celebrated in all Irish post-primary schools to spread awareness and take a stand against LGBTI+ related bullying. Our Wellbeing Committee decorated the Wellbeing notice board to create awareness among the school community and some of our classes have been actively engaging in the BeLonGTo.org activities. We stand together so our school remains a safe place for all.
On Tuesday November 16th, all Transition Year students were given the opportunity to partake in a Drumming Workshop. The workshop provided our Transition Year students with an experience which they seemed to thoroughly enjoy.
Well done to our Junior Boys hurling team who beat Tullamore College in their first outing on Friday November 12th.
Our Senior Boys Football Team wrapped up their Senior B league campaign with an excellent win over Boyne Community School, Trim. The lads put in an excellent team performance with a wide range of scorers on the day. This was an excellent response to our opening game against Cnoc Mhuire Granard, who edged the tie in the last ten minutes in what was a tight encounter. We now look forward to the Senior Championship which begins in two weeks with a game against Ballymahon Vocational School at home.
On November 1st and 2nd all TY students participated in a Segway workshop. This was a new experience for almost all of our students and the company that came to our school and provided both fun-filled and informative sessions. Our TY students are now equipped with the knowledge to avail of this eco-friendly mode of transport in the future.
Students in Mr. Stobie’s Third Year science class created a video about space, which has been entered into the 'Reel Life Science Competition'. The students have an opportunity to win €1000 for the school, should their video be selected as a winner at this year’s Galway Science and Technology Festival. The video was shot and composed by Shane King, the schools very own up and coming cinematographer. Everyone in the class was involved either in front of the camera or behind the scenes. The students thoroughly enjoyed creating the three-minute video and learned a lot in the process. Best of luck to all involved.
Our students got involved in various activities for ‘Maths Week’ 2021. First year students were outdoors investigating goal scoring based on shooting from different angles and lengths, calculating probabilities and also solving numeracy puzzles. Our Second Year students completed ‘Maths Eyes’ whereby students explored the importance of mathematics in their everyday lives outside of the classroom. Second and Third Year students completed a ‘Drop Everything and Calculate’ quiz, while we had Junior Cycle students partake in the ‘Maths Week 2021 Olympiad’ competition. We also had great numbers from all year groups participate in our Junior and Senior Maths 'Problem of the Day'.
Wednesday 20th October 2021 marked a momentous day on the Dublin Road out of Kilbeggan for the whole school community of Mercy Secondary School Kilbeggan.The machines and staff of Stewart Construction landed on-site to a huge welcome from students and school staff alike, as the process of building the new state of art 650 pupil secondary school commenced. This has been a long wait for everyone in the school community, who are now looking forward to the new school being ready for the start of the 2023/2024 academic year.
On the 16th of October, Andrew Grehan, Seamus Grehan, Gavin Moran and Mark Green took part in a 24-hour cycle challenge around the Mondello Park racetrack. One person kept cycling at all times from the start of the event at 12.00am on Saturday the 16th, until the finish of the event at 12.00am on Sunday the 17th. Andrew, after becoming aware of the fleet of bikes we have in our school which we use for student cycling trips, decided to take on this challenge with the assistance of friends in order to raise some funds to assist with their maintenance. Andrew explains that "cycling is an amazing activity to help support wellbeing and mental health, and a school having such a resource available is fantastic for students". Andrew, Seamus, Gavin and Mark managed to cover 593k completing 179 laps of the track. We would like to express our gratitude to Andrew and crew for such generosity. A very considerable amount of money has been raised so far, which will be put to great use in order to keep our wheels rolling! The donation page will remain open for a few more days and any donation is greatly appreciated via the following link: https://gofund.me/
Well done to 1 Green who won our First Year Litter Pick Competition. The class were presented with some goodies for their great work collecting litter around our school for Climate Action Week. They are pictured with our TY Green Schools members who ran the competition.
Our Senior Camogie Team had a successful first outing on October 15th, beating St. Joseph's of Navan 3-6 to 2-2. It was a great team performance. Well done girls.
On October 14th all TY students travelled to Lough Boora Parklands on a Physical Education trip. The weather was perfect for occasion and each student engaged in Cycling, Orienteering, and Photography. Students cycled two laps of the 4.9 km 'Sculpture in the Parklands Route' and engaged in both 'Selfie Orienteering' and Photography within Lough Boora Grounds. A great day was had by all. Thanks to Niall Dillon for his assistance on the day.
On Tuesday October 12th, our TY Students carved pumpkins as a creative activity within their Wellbeing module.
A number of our students took part in the Inter-schools Showjumping competition in Mullingar Equestrian Centre on Sunday last, 10th October. A fantastic day was had by all. Congratulations to the students who won rosettes on the day in their classes and well done to everyone for taking part. It was a very enjoyable day. We are looking forward to our next competition.
On Thursday, October 7th our Third Year students set out on the Bray to Greystones cliff walk accompanied by their class tutors Mr. Duffy, Ms. Bhreatnach, Ms. Conmy, Ms. Henry (who stood in for Ms. McCardle) and Year head Mr. Donnelly. Afterward the group enjoyed a session in JumpZone Sandyford completing what was a fantastic day out.
Our Sixth Year Agricultural Science students enjoyed a trip to Little Buds Farm on October 7th. GD Young gave them a very informative tour of his dairy farm. This trip brought what they learn about in class to life and will complement their studies. A huge thanks to GD Young for giving up his time.
On Wednesday October 6th all Second Year students, accompanied by their Class Tutors and Year Head Mr. Corrigan, visited Lilliput Adventure Centre for an Outdoor Adventure bonding day. Each student was given the opportunity to partake in Orienteering, Kayaking, Bog Hopping, Rock Climbing and Capture the Flag. A thoroughly enjoyable day was had by all in spite of the inclement weather.
Friendship and Kindness are two of the fundamental principles that guide the daily workings of our school and indeed the interactions between all those in our wider community.
Acknowledging the importance of these ideals - now more than ever, in October 2021, T.Y students at our school have re-launched our mentoring programme for this academic year, wherein they work with younger students to help guide their development while building lasting friendships along the way.
The ‘Cairdeas agus Cinéaltas’ programme recognises that students learn a great deal simply by observing and interacting with their peers and that the impact of a great mentor can be lifelong.
To this end, students and mentors meet across the week, throughout the academic year to enjoy mutual hobbies /interests, help one another in their studies and learn many new skills along the way.
The initiative is already having a hugely positive impact on all those involved and it will only continue to prosper.
‘Friendship is not a big thing…..it’s a million little things’