Laragh Muff NS

Muff NS Newsletter March 2023

Sacramental Classes:   Our Confirmation class had their last Preparation Mass on Saturday before Confirmation. They also completed their Retreat which looked at the whole issue of alcohol and drugs. Confirmation takes place on Sunday the 26^th of March at 1:30 in Kingscourt Church. Please be aware that there will be a couple of preparatory sessions in Kingscourt Church the week leading up to Confirmation. We will be in touch with more details closer to the time.

Our Communion class completed their First Penance in February and have their last Preparation Mass on Saturday the 22^nd of April in Muff Church. First Holy Communion takes place on Saturday the 20^th of May at 11:00.

Seachtain na Gaeilge:   Seachtain na Gaeilge begins this week in school. It is an opportunity for children to emphasise their talent and abilities as Gaeilge. We would encourage you to try to use cúpla focail with them over the next number of days. We will be conducting our annual Seó sa Halla next week where the pupils will demonstrate their musical and dramatic talents in Irish. We will also be carrying out a number of fun activities in the class.

Green Schools:   We are receiving a visitor from An Taisce to update us on our progress with regard to the Green Flag that we are seeking in relation to Biodiversity in the school. We have completed a huge amount of work over the previous 18 months or so including the planting of new flowers, the setting up of the school garden and the examination of all types of wildlife in the environment around us. Many of these activities are available to look at on the school website.

Sponsored Walk:   We plan to hold our annual Sponsored Walk on Friday the 31^st of March. This is the one fundraiser run directly by the school and has always provided us with much needed funds for items such as art equipment, buses for sporting events etc. We will be giving out the cards after St. Patrick’s Day and your support is once again very much appreciated.

Information Meeting for Parents of New Infants:   Each year we meet the parents of the incoming Junior Infants to give them information for the coming year. This meeting will take place on Wednesday the 10^th of May at 2:10 in the school hall. Parents involved will receive further notification in the coming days.

School Tours:   School tours have been booked for all the various classes. Kingspan Innovation Centre have also invited our 4^th, 5^th and 6^th class in to see their new state of the art Research and Development Centre on Monday the 27^th of March. More details about that special trip will be given out in the near future. Here are the other tours booked:

Junior Infants/Senior Infants/1^st Class: The Crystal Maze – Friday June 9th

2^nd/3^rd class: Armagh Planetarium – Thursday June 1st

4^th class: Tanagh – Tuesday June 6^th

5^th/6^th: National Museum/National Art Gallery/Aquatic Centre Blanchardstown – Thursday June 8^th

Parents Association:   I have met with members of the Parents Association in the last couple of weeks when we discussed a wide range of issues. Here are a number of events that they have asked to bring to your attention:

Cake Sale – Saturday evening April 22^nd.

Clothes Collection – June exact date TBC

Family Fun Walk on Lough an Lae – Sunday May 28^th

School Standardised Tests:   These tests will take place over the two week period from May 29^th to June 8^th.

Swimming:   Swimming will start this week for all pupils from 1^st to 6^th class. Aquatics is an integral part of the P.E. curriculum and the coaches help develop confidence and an incredibly important life skill in a comfortable, familiar and safe environment. All information relating to swimming can be found on the swimming note that has been sent out to families. If you have any queries, please contact the school office. We would like to thank the P.A. who have contributed €2,000.00 to the cost of the buses which comes in at a total of €4,800.00.

Sport:   Well done to Mr. Kiernan who participated in the Collegiate Handball Championships in Arizona. He did both himself and the school proud. Meanwhile the Handball Competition in the school is carrying on each lunch break under his guidance.

Our 5 a side squads have been picked for the upcoming Cavan Soccer Tournament this month. The focus for these is very much participation and enjoyment. Squad members will be commencing training this week and there will be a note going out as well with all the relevant information.

In GAA, Benny is continuing his coaching sessions. The Cumann na mBunscol games will be starting after Easter and we will be starting training for both boys and girls shortly.

Quizzes:   We had three teams competing in the Cavan Cumann na mBunscol Quiz this month. There were 125 tables competing altogether and our Under 12 team had outstanding success coming in 2^nd, only missing out on the winners’ trophy on a tie-break. Nevertheless, they have qualified to represent Cavan in the Ulster Championship later this month. The two senior teams performed very respectably as well. The teams were the following:

Under 12’s – Eimear Byrne, Nadine McKenna, Jack Taylor & Odhrán Byrne.

Team B – Dylan Gogarty, Senan McCormack, James Farrelly & Laila McKenna.

Team C – Aimee Reilly, Niamh Reilly, Cillian Kierans & Emma Tierney.

School Calendar:   Please find below the list of school closures for the remainder of the year. Please note the date of the School Planning Day for staff with regard to the new Primary Language Curriculum.

St. Patrick’s Day – Closed Thursday March 16th & Friday March 17th

Easter Holidays – Finish Friday March 31st at 12:30 – Re-open Monday April 17th

May Bank Holiday – Closed Friday April 28th and Monday May 1st

School Planning Day – Closed Friday May 26^th

Standardised Testing – (1^st-6^th class only) Week 1 – May 29^th – June 1st

Week 2 – June 6^th – 9^th

June Bank Holiday – Closed Friday June 2nd and Monday June 5th

Summer Holidays – Finish Thursday June 29th, 2023, at 12pm

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