Newsletter January 2013

Mercy Primary School Newsletter

January 2013

It’s hard to believe we are at the end of the first month of 2013 already! The year has started with a bang here in Mercy Primary School and we are very busy as always.

We are delighted that the Parents’ Association have started selling Sammy Stamps – Credit Union saving stamps. It’s great to introduce the girls to saving at a young age.

Gymnastics has started for all classes and will last for 6 weeks. Mrs. Emer Feehan is our gymnastics teacher and it’s wonderful to see how flexible the girls are during classes.

Maths for Fun took place in 4^th class. Thanks to Ms. Treacy, HSCL teacher for organising it and thanks to the mammies who took part.

Ms. Treacy and Ms. McDonnell have started a school choir on Monday afternoons. We have had a great turnout with over 80 girls attending. Huge thanks to the 2 teachers who are giving up their time for this.

On Monday 21^stJanuary we had an energy day in school and all classes carried out lessons around energy. We arebecoming very aware of our energy consumption as we are working on our 2^nd Green Flag.

Knitting has started in 4^th class. Thanks to Ms. Treacy for organising this and to those who are helping out.

All parents are encouraged to take part in the Patronage survey on the Department of Education and Skills website, www.education.ie . It is very important to let the Department know that we are happy with our school patronage and wish for it to continue as is.

Lots of different activities have been happening over the last month in the classrooms:

Junior Infants have been really enjoying their gymnastics lessons and also had great fun on Energy Day.

Senior Infants have started their Reading Initiative in the library. They are enjoying reading with their mammies and are making great use of our wonderful library facilities. They are also really enjoying gymnastics.

1^st classloved learning about how to save energy at home and at school. They made beautiful stained glass windows. When the light shone through thewindow they could see all the colours of the rainbow. They have been making a great effort to speak Irish in the yard. They have been learning about shapes and have used various objects to print different shapes and patterns and to produce some abstract art. They have been looking out for garden birds and will go on a walk soon to see if they can spot any in the park.

2^nd class learned the importance of being safe and being seen when walking or cycling at night. Each child received a “Hi Glo Silver” armband and a “Hi Glo Silver Champion” certificate. They also entered an art competition where the children had to create a poster that glows in the dark! They learned lots about the energy being used in our school each day. They came up with great ideas of how to save energy and created excellent posters with some practical, energy-saving ideas. They are preparing for First Penance this term and are learning prayers, songs and stories.

3^rd classdid a project on American Indians. They had lovely dream catchers hanging in the windows. They also made tee-pees and drew fabulous horses. They went on a winter nature walk in the park and looked out for signs of winter. They are really enjoying gymnastics and doing the “Granny Knot” with Mrs. Feehan. Ms. Hogan has taught them the “Granny Rap!” We would like to wish Ms. Hogan the very best of luck in her new job.

4^th class enjoyed Maths for Fun and having their mammies there to help out. 4^th are also learning about the oceans of the world. Check out the website to see their amazing art. They are also taking part in the library reading challenge.

5^th are busy experimenting with heat. They are investigating conduction and insulation and find it very interesting!

6th class are learning all about World War 2. They are also preparing for Grandparents’ Day and are creating some amazing portraits for it.

So as you can see, a lot of different activities are happening all over the school.

Ms. Richelle Treacy has been working as Home School Liaison teacher since September. She is now returning to class and Mrs. Margaret Fitzgerald will be back as Home School Liaison teacher. Ms. Treacy has done an excellent job in HSCL and we thank her for all the hard work she has put in.

Dates for your diary:

Thursday 7^th February  –     County Photos

Wednesday 13^th February  –  Denim Day!

Thurs 14 and Fri 15^th February  –  Mid-term break