Muff Newsletter November 2023

Aladdin Connect: Gillian has been in contact with each family regarding the move to Aladdin Connect. It is important that a guardian / parent is signed up as going forward this will form the primary communication from the school to the child’s home.  Our contract for text messaging will expire on Friday 17^th November and we will no longer be able to send text messages. If you are not signed up to Aladdin Connect by then you run the risk of not receiving valuable information from the school.  If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact the school office.

If any parent needs to speak to a member of staff, note that this is to be done by contacting the office and an appointment will be made.

Sacramental Classes:  There was a Preparation Mass for our Holy Communion class last Saturday.  Thank you to all who attended. This Saturday, November 18^th is Preparation Mass for the Confirmation students. This will also take place in Muff Church at 7:30pm. It is important that every effort is made by each family to support the children in attending these Masses as they form a vital part of the child’s experience in preparing for the sacraments.

GOAL Jersey Day: We had a lovely colourful day on Friday October 13th.  Well done to everyone who participated and donated €2.00.  We raised a total of €265.00 for GOAL. Unfortunately, there weren’t too many Monaghan jerseys worn, maybe next year!!!!

Sport

Handball Leagues: Mr. Kiernan’s handball league continues each day that the weather permits. All children are showing great competitiveness and sportsmanship. Well done to all involved.

GAA Coaching: Benny will be continuing to visit the school each Wednesday. He will now be coaching Ms. Carolan’s 5^th class and Ms. Campbells 1^st and 2^nd class. The children really look forward to this every week and the coaching sessions are of the highest quality.

Soccer league: Preparations are ongoing for a court soccer league to take place over the next 5 weeks during lunchtime. This will involve both boys and girls from 4^th to 6^th class.

Cross Country Running: We had a lot to celebrate at the recent Cross-Country Championships in Killinkere on Wednesday October 11th. Please see our website for pictures of the medal winners and team members.

A big thank you to all the children to participated in the trials and those who trained with the team. It was a real school effort. It must also be highlighted how well behaved and mannered the children of Muff were at the competition. They represented both their school and families with great distinction.

All of this would not be possible without the help and support of school staff. Thank you to Gillian, Mr. Kiernan and Alison for training and assisting with the team.

Bike Green: Our 6^th class started a 6 week programme in “cycling safety”.  The cost of the course is supported by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, the Road Safety Authority and Cycling Ireland.

Drama: The West-Midlands Theatre Group visited the school last Friday November 10^th with their wonderful performance of “Sinbad the Sailor” .

Student Council Art Competition

A big thank you to Miss Swinburne and the student council for organising the Halloween Art competition for the children. It was a major success and the standard was extremely high.

The winners can be viewed on the website.

Coláiste Dún an Rí Musical: On October 25^th, the 5^th and 6^th class children were invited to Coláiste Dún an Rí to watch the performance of Grease the Musical. It was a fabulous show and all the children really enjoyed it. It was great for them to see both past pupils of Muff NS and siblings performing so well on stage. A big thank you to both parents and staff who helped drive the children there and back. Thank you to Coláiste Dún an Rí for the invitation.

Primary Maths Curriculum:  School will be closed on Tuesday November 21st. This is to facilitate staff training for the new Primary Maths Curriculum.

Halloween Fancy Dress: Friday 27^th of October saw some spooky and imaginative costumes in school. All the children had fun and we will have pictures of many of them on the school website shortly.

Board of Management: Preparations are ongoing to finalise a Board of Management for Muff NS for the next 4-year term. The new board will take up its term from the 1^st of December 2023.  Thursday October 26^th saw the election of both the mother and father nominees. Deirdre Burns and Damien Barry will be the parent representatives on the next Board. I would like to thank them for taking on this voluntary role.

Cash for Clothes Fundraiser:   There was a wonderful take up on the Parents Association fundraiser. This proves very popular every year and a big thank you to both the Parents Association for organising it and for the families for supporting it.

School Calendar:   Please note that the school will be closed next Tuesday November 21^st to allow staff to attend training in the Primary Maths Curriculum. Below is a list of school closures for the remainder of the school year. Please note that some days may be subject to change.

Staff training day – School closing Tuesday November 21^st

Christmas Holidays – Finish Friday December 22^nd 12:30 – Re-open Monday Jan 8^th 2024

February Bank Holiday – Closed Monday February 5th

February Mid-Term – Closed Thursday February 15th and Friday February 16th

St. Patrick’s Day – Closed Monday March 18th 

Easter Holidays – Finish Friday March 22^nd at 12:30 – Re-open Monday April 8th

May Bank Holiday – Closed Friday May 3^rd and Monday May 6th

June Bank Holiday – Closed Friday May 31^st and Monday June 3rd     

Summer Holidays – Finish Tuesday June 25^th, 2024, at 12pm

5th Class Maths week with buddies

We had a lovely colourful day on Friday October 13th.  Well done to everyone who participated and donated €2.00.  We raised a total of €265.00 for GOAL Jersey Day.

 

We had plenty of success in the Cavan Cross Country Championships held in Killinkere, on Wednesday October 11th.  

 

Muff NS Newsletter June 2023

Communion:   Well done to all the boys and girls from 2^nd Class who made their First Holy Communion in May. It was a fabulous occasion for all involved and it was great to have such a large turnout at the reception afterwards. Many thanks to all the 1^st Class parents who helped out with all the tea and goodies and also all those who helped to have the school looking so well. Thanks to Fr. Gerry for conducting such a pleasant and meaningful service and finally a huge thank you to Ms. Campbell for all the time and effort put into preparing the boys and girls for this important faith occasion.

Fr. Gerry has distributed notes for parents of those pupils who will be making their Confirmation and Communion next year.

School Tours:   Our 2^nd and 3^rd Class were in the Armagh Planetarium today. Next week all the rest of our classes will be going on tour. Please ensure that you read the note carefully which details times/items to bring etc. The Parents Association have paid a subsidy of €1000 towards the cost of all these tours.

Standardised Testing:   These tests will be carrying on next week. Parents of pupils in 2^nd, 4^th and 6^th will be given the Sten Scores in Maths and Literacy in their end of year reports as required.

End of Year Reports:   These will be posted on Friday the 23^rd of June to all families. Please ensure that you contact the school if you do not receive them.

RSE/Stay Safe:   The final elements of these programs will be completed this month. One aspect that we look at in Stay Safe is the whole area of Road, Water and Farm Safety, particularly as they head into the summer months. It is great to see many pupils back cycling to school again. We would of course insist that they wear a helmet and follow the rules of the road at all times. We would also ask road users to exercise extreme caution on the roads in and around the school.

Books/Copies:   The government is now providing a grant for schools to purchase all books and copies for pupils for next year. The only item that parents will have to buy is stationery. We will send out the various requirements via email at the end of the year.

Schools are faced, like all families and businesses, with extra costs at the moment. We have not looked for costs towards photocopying etc. before but we are faced with the fact that the money we receive does not cover the costs incurred. The vast majority of schools have a charge for photocopying and we are going to be introducing one from September. It will be €30 per child with a cap of €40 total per family. While this won’t fully cover the cost of photocopying, it will certainly be of some help. We will send out a link online to pay through the Aladdin system or you can pay directly to the school.

Parents Association:   We had a hugely successful 2^nd Annual Family Fun Walk on the top of Lough an Lae last Sunday. The turnout was fantastic and the glorious weather added to the occasion. Thanks to all involved for organising such a memorable school event. The planning and detail that went into the event was clear to see in every aspect of the walk.

There will be a Clothes Collection on next Tuesday and Wednesday, the 6^th and 7^th of June.

The P.A. have also organised a lovely event for our 6^th class whereby past pupils from 1^st year will come in to have a chat with them about their experiences of Secondary School and answer any questions that they may have.

Muff Afterschool: Muff Afterschool finishes on Wednesday, June 28th and reopens on August 30th.

The after school will run as per usual: Monday – Friday 2-3pm/ 2-6pm.

Cost: €5 per hr/ €15 per afternoon.

Spaces are becoming more limited so if you would like to avail of the service, please contact Caroline directly 087-176-2628

Email: muffafterschool@gmail.com

Muff Summer Camp: Caroline from Afterschool will be running a week of camp this year. It will be a week of sports, games, arts & crafts and good old-fashioned fun!

Dates: July 17- 21…9-1pm daily.

Ages: 5-13

Cost: €75 per child – €5 discount for additional family members

Sports Day: The school Sports day will take place on Thursday June 15^th. Parents are invited to watch children participating in Fun Races. Parents from J.I. to 2^nd class can come from 9:45-10:15 and parents from 3^rd to 6^th can come from 10:15-10:45a.m.

Attendance:   Attendance levels have, as expected, improved significantly this year. This makes such a positive impact on a child’s progression during the school year. We still would state that if a child is sick, they obviously don’t come to school.

Graduation Mass:   The 6^th class will have their Graduation Mass on Saturday June 24^th at 7:30pm in Muff Church.

School Calendar:   The school is closed tomorrow and Monday for the June Bank Holiday. We finish for the year on Thursday June 29^th at 12pm.  Please find below a provisional calendar for the school year 2023/24.

School Calendar 2023/24

• School reopens on Wednesday the 30^th of August.
• Mid – term October 30^th – November 4^th.
• Christmas Dec 22^nd – Jan 8^th.
• St Brigid’s Day – Monday 5^th of February.
• Feb Mid – term Thursday and Friday 15^th and 16^th.
• St Patrick’s Day Monday March 18^th.
• Easter Break – March 25^th – April 6^th.
• Friday 3^rd and Monday 6^th of May.
• Friday 31^st and Monday 3^rd of June.
• School closes Tuesday 25^th

Congrtulations to the 2 Under 12 girls teams who were medalists in the recent football league.  We had plenty of representatives on the teams.

 

 

Congratulations to Rosaleen O’Reilly & Hannah McKenna who were winners in the recent Kingspan Planet Passionate Art Competition.  They are pictured here, with their framed winning entries,  at the awards night in IKON on May 18th 2023.