October 2007 - Newsletter
Dear Parents,
Now that we have settled into the new school year, I would like to send you some news, reminders and dates for your diaries.
Our first "WOW" day or "Walk to School on Wednesday" will take place on Wednesday October 17th. October is International Walk to School Month. Our walk to school initiative will support our application to renew our "Green Flag" status.
We would ask that all girls and their parents would make a big effort to walk to school on the 17th - plan a route, and the time needed, in advance. The older girls might like to meet with a few friends for the walk. If you live too far away to walk the entire route, think about trying to "park and stride" - park a little distance away and walk from there. Our WOW days have been extremely successful so far. Let us make another big effort next week.
We are holding a fundraising event on Friday 26th October (the Friday before our Halloween break). We invite the girls to wear a sports jersey (GAA, Rugby, Soccer or Basketball jersey welcome!) on the day and make a donation of at least €2 to our nominated charity - The St. James' Hospital Foundation. Mrs. Toomey, (mum of Holly - 4th class) is taking part in the New York Marathon in an effort to raise money for the oncology unit in St. James Hospital. All our donations will go directly to support the work in St. James Hospital.
If you have a girl due to start school in September 2008, please make sure that her name is on our application list, if you haven't already done so. We already have a very large number of applications and will begin the process of issuing application forms in November 2007, with the first round offers of places generally issues just before Christmas. Details of applicants may be given any day, in writing, or by telephone to Mrs. Toomey, Secretary. All applications should be submitted to the school before Friday 26th October.
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A reminder to parents regarding parking. Please do not park on double yellow lines or the zig-zag lines outside the main school gate, or use them as a set down area. This area should be kept clear at all times in the interest of health and safety of the children and the free-flow of traffic. It is illegal to park on double yellow zig-zag lines
Mrs. O'Connell and representatives of our green schools committee went to Dun Laoghaire Town Hall on Wednesday October 10th to collect a "Tidy Schools in the Community" award for St. Brigid's Girls School - the fourth we have received since the project began. Congratulations to all the girls and especially the green school committee.
The Drug Awareness Programme for 5th and 6th class, which runs for six weeks, began on Friday October 12th. It is an excellent programme. Parents might take the opportunity to ask their daughters about the topics being covered and discuss any issues that arise at home.
Our 6th class have been invited by Minister Mary Hannafin to visit the Dáil on November 15th 2007. The sixth class girls will also visit the Yeats Exhibition in the National Library in the near future.
Thanks to fund raising by the Parents Association, all the girls in the school will be going to see the Christmas Show "Santa and The Present Pirates" in The Mill Theatre, Dundrum, on Monday 17th December. We have block-booked the theatre for 3 shows during the day, so all the girls will be accommodated. Coaches, with seat belts, will take the children to and from the Theatre on the 17th.
Congratulations to the GAA team and coach Ms. Darcy. The team is doing really well and in the Cumann na mBunscoil league this year. They are, as yet, undefeated! Long may that continue!
The days of blackboard and chalk may be numbered in St. Brigid's Girls School. The Board of Management has provided two interactive whiteboards for the school this year. They have been placed in a 3rd and 2nd class, in two different areas of the school. Training for their use will be provided for the teachers in the block where they are situated. We hope that each class in that block will have access to the whiteboard at some stage during the school year. We hope to be able to provide more interactive whiteboards in the coming years.
The date for our in-service day this year has been set by the School Development Planning office. It will take place on Monday 3rd March 2008. School will be closed to pupils on this day. Please make a note of this date, as it was not available for inclusion on our school diary. This is our only in-service day this year.
If you wish to meet a teacher please make an appointment at the office or through a note in your daughters homework journal. It is unfair to turn up to the classroom door, especially when the class is present, to try to discuss an issue. All matters are best dealt with when the teacher can allocate time and a quite space to address any issues or concerns a parent might have.
Our school web-site is up and running at last. We launched on the World Wide Web on Friday 28th September. Special thanks to Ms. Heather Ward, who put a lot of work into developing the website. While we are in the early days yet with a lot of work still needed, we are very pleased with the website. You can visit us on http://www.scoilbride.ie or http://www.stbrigidsgirlsschool.com.
Please note that the school opens at 8:45 a.m. and finished at 2:25 p.m. (1:25 p.m. for Junior Infants). The school can only accept responsibility for the children during these times. No supervision is provided before 8:45 a.m. No arrangements exist for the supervision of children who arrive to school before the official opening time, or who remain after school hours.
We have been approached, on occasion, by parents taking children on holiday during term time, with requests to assign work to be completed during the holiday and to correct work on the child's return. Please note that it is not school policy to do this. This does not apply to children who miss school due to illness. Teachers will be happy to assist in the case of absence due to illness.