Junior School
It is always with a certain sadness that we come to the end of another academic year. We once again say good-bye to the children until September, but we say a more permanent farewell to our students in Standard 6 as they head for pastures new in the Senior School. This year’s Standard 6 were a fantastic, talented, co-operative yeargroup – full of fun and also enthusiastic about all aspects of school life, from games and drama to their daily classroom work. We wish them blessings in abundance in the Senior School. With Easter falling so early this year, our final term was long, sunny……..and busy! Three sacraments were celebrated over the last months – Confirmation, First Reconciliation and First Communion. As always, they were most moving occasions and the children’s sense of reverence and respect was inspiring and heart-warming. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Fr. Larry Behan, the moderator for the Bray parishes, and Sr. Patricia from our local parish of St. Peter’s, for helping to make all of our ceremonies so special. I would also like to thank our In-House Committee who, following Communion and Confirmation, organise a school reception for the children, their parents and relations, which helps to make our celebration of the sacraments truly family and community occasions. This year we also commemorated the events of 1916. We had an inspiring visit from two members of the Irish army – who read the Proclamation and spoke about army life to an enrapt Junior School audience. We received a copy of the Proclamation and an Irish flag – which we proudly raised on March 15th, as did every school throughout the country. It was a memorable moment indeed to hear our Junior School read their proclamation for 2016 and to hear them proudly singing our National Anthem. It seems that not a week went by since Christmas but that a class was off on a school tour! Of course the highlight was the Standard 6 ski trip to Lavarone in Italy which was a wonderful success – enjoyed by staff and pupils alike. All of the children skied amazingly well and we also had a day trip to Venice. In May, Standards 4 and 5 headed off to the University of Limerick Outdoor Education Centre for an overnight trip where they had a super time enjoying water sports, team games and a trip to Bunratty Castle. And our younger students visited Wooly Wards Farm, Wells House and Garden, and Greenan Maze. Once again this year, Sports and Prize Day was a great success and was enjoyed all the more by the children for having to run from the thunderous rain! However, it certainly didn’t dampen their spirits and thankfully they were back on the track in glorious sunshine after a short break. Our Junior School Family Tennis evening was also a huge success and is such a lovely part of the St. Gerard’s school tradition. Sincere thanks to our parents who bar-b-qued for us all and kept us well fed with burgers and hotdogs!
The term also included many sporting highlights – which you will read about inside this Newsletter, along with Green School and Book Club activities, the Science Fair and the newly established Digital Video Club’s inaugural screening! The term ended with a wonderful production of – “Battle of the Musicals” – which saw our Std. 6 pupils take to stage and perform extracts from Annie, Oliver and Grease. What a show, what talent, what fun! A very big thank you to Ms. Eithne Carney and Ms. Jackie Olohan for their expert production and musical direction. Sincere thanks also to all of the parents who helped with costumes and make-up – amazing! And well worth the long hours spent designing, shopping and sewing! Indeed, this is an opportunity to thank all of our wonderful Junior School parents for your support of all of our endeavours – from our superb Horticultural and Library teams to our parents who brew coffee on Winter sidelines and run uniform sales. Thank you so much for your interest, enthusiasm and kindness. As always, my heartfelt thanks to our Junior School staff team. When visitors walk through our school, they see children learning, working, smiling and laughing. That is because of our fantastic staff and their dedication and commitment to each and every child. They are simply outstanding! I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our outgoing Chairman of the Board of Governors, Mr. Marcus Magnier, who has over the past 6 years as Chair always had a willing ear for the needs of the Junior School and has supported all initiatives to promote excellence in education. Finally, I thank you the pupils who are the life blood of our school and who make each day an absolute joy. Remember to take a moment during the holidays to thank your Mum and Dad for all they have done for you, to willingly and happily help out at home, and to read, read, read every day during the holidays (and a little IXL also!) And so – I bid a fond farewell for the holidays. It is truly a joy to work in such a happy and motivated school community but now it is time for us all to down tools for a while, to relax and to re-charge the batteries. I wish you all a very happy and safe holiday time. I hope you enjoy happy days with your wonderful children and that you cherish each precious moment.
2016
I rish Arm y V i s i t
On Thursday 4th February, we welcomed Lt. Lee and Private O’Callaghan of Óglaigh na hÉireann to the Junior School for the 1916 Commemoration. The whole Junior School community came together in the Junior School Hall where we heard all about the 1916 rising. Hugh Beashel and Isabelle Lynch then read the Irish Proclamation before being presented with the National Irish Flag and a copy of the Proclamation. After some questions, the students went back to their classrooms where they were visited by Lt. Lee and Private O’Callaghan for some more discussions about life in the army and to take some photographs. It was a very memorable experience that we will value for years to come.
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Ella Begley
St . Ge rard’s J u n i o r S c h o ol
Ir is h Arm y Visit
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Se nior I n f an t s & Ju n io r In fa n ts ~ Summer Tours
On the Junior and Senior Infants School tour this year, they went to Wooly Ward’s Farm. When they arrived they were split into 2 teams – blue and red. They went to a petting zoo and got to pet a giant snake and a turtle. They also saw a scorpion! They then were introduced to “Scary Mary” who showed them how to cook and make edible worms. There was also a train ride around the farm. When I asked the students what was the best part of the school tour, they definitely favoured the bouncy castle, pony riding and a duck named Donald!
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Standar d 1 & Standar d 2 ~ Summer Tours
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El l a B eg l ey Standards 1 and 2 took off to Wells House and Garden in Wexford this year. There was a fairy hunt to find magical fairies and a petting zoo where they met animals such as “Noodles the Pig” and “Mick the Ferret”. After an action packed morning, they relaxed for lunch and then went to the playground for some more fun. The children thought it was very exciting and magical. It sounds like a fantastic day was had by all!
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Standard 3 ~ School Tour to Greenan Maze Standard 3 went to Greenan Maze in the hills of Wicklow. On their tour they did activities such as throw the wellie, wheel barrow team races and visited the the farm museum where they learned all about the history of farms and how churns work. After the day’s activities they had a picnic and then a fun sing-a-long on the bus back to school!
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H u gh B e a s he l
A special “go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir” from Dr. Farrell to all who make our Junior School into the happy and caring community which it is: • Thank you to Edwin and Jessie who clean our school to such an amazingly high standard day in and day out. •
Thank you to Ger, Gerry, Brendan, John and Sean who are endlessly patient and who ensure that each maintenance task – big or small – is done to the highest professional standard – and is also done with a smile!
• A big thank you to Brien and all the Catering Team who look after us all so well in the Dining Hall with food fit for a king! •
Lights Camera Action! This year Mr. Dwyer started up a new club in the Junior School - The Digital Video Club! Thanks to the Doodle for Google win last year (well done again Harry Kane!), the school was able to purchase some cool cameras and equipment. Pupils from Std 4, 5 and 6 have had great fun making films and learning about editing and the filming process. We all got to make a 2 minute film and then had our Movie Premier at assembly in front of the whole school. We have also made a short 5 minute movie with Junior and Senior Infants called “The Nursery Crime” which will be entered into the Fis Film Competition for Schools. It’s a great club – make sure to join up next year!!!
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My sincere thanks to Stephanie who quite simply ensures that the Junior School runs smoothly and seamlessly and who, even more importantly, ensures that children, parents and visitors feel welcomed - with no question ever being too small and no task too large. And finally thank you to our super Standard 6 Newsletter team! Under Stephanie’s guidance, they have attended early morning meetings and have produced this Newsletter filled with interesting articles, news and photographs. Thank you to Ella Begley, Hugh Beashel, Amelia Dolan, Matthew Donnelly, Amelia Flynn, Patrick Harrington, Ciara Moroney, Dylan Sheehan and Murray Sheehan. You all went the extra mile and wow was it worth it. Well done!
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SCIEN CE FAIR
STANDARD 6 Science Fair Every student probably agrees that the Standard 6 Science Fair was a great day. The Standard 6 students showed a diverse range of stalls which included projects on gravity, bacteria, sound and so much more. We were very excited preparing to show our projects and despite a very busy term with Confirmation, graduation and our end of year production, we managed to pull it out of the bag once again and show some incredible work
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SC IENCE FAIR
All of the junior school pupils came to view our projects and gathered lots of knowledge and information – and they got the odd sweet too! After a lot of observation and discussions, Mr. Reidy chose two very deserving overall winners - Evan Dargan Hayes and Sean Treacy. At the end of the day there were smiles all round and we were very proud of what we produced at the Standard 6 Science Fair. reporter
Murray Sheehan
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SP ELLI N G BEE & Literacy
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Hugh B eashel
The annual Spelling Bee is both educational and great fun. There was a hugh buzz of excitement around the hall when the Spelling Bee started and it continued to heat up as the excitement mounted. The infants went first showing off their spelling academic ability. Then came Stds 1-3 which really started to increase the intensity. Next was Std 5-6 which was very intense and exciting. The 2016 Spelling Bee Winners were David O’Kane Clarke from Std 3 & Sean Treacy from Std 6.
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MO N TESSORI ~ Louise & Rachel
Louise and Rachel have been very busy this year preparing our Montessori children for their big move across the hall to Junior Infants. They have learned all about Our World, Our Universe, sounds of the alphabet, plenty of arts and crafts and lots, lots more! Montessori are on the move all the time.......this year they had a trip to the Puppet Show, the Chocolate Factory, their Summer school tour was to Wooly Wards Farm & they also had their first School Sports Day. In the afternoons, they pop on their wellies and head out with Louise for a little adventure in the school grounds. This is sometimes just as much fun!
We get a lot of visitors to the Montessori classroom each year – the Garda, the Dentist and the Fire Service to name a few. This year, I think the most special visit of all was from Óglaigh na hÉireann who came in to tell us all about being in the Irish Army.
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STANDAR D 6 ~ Ski Trip
At 6.00am on the 6th February Std 6 set off on their journey to Lavarone in Italy for Ski Trip 2016. With their luggage on the plane and their boarding passes in hand, Std 6 were ready to do some skiing! As they boarded the plane the students were greeted by Captain Treacy who was going to be flying the plane. After a 3 hour flight we finally landed in Milan Airport. Everyone was jumping with joy, that was until we found out about the 3.5 hour bus journey ahead of us! When we arrived we unpacked and then went for our skis helmets and boots before settling in for the night. The next day we skied for the day and then went bowling at night. I think Mr. Mc managed a few strikes!!! The other evening activities we did were swimming, tobogganing, table quiz and a disco. We were in Italy so pizza and pasta was plentiful as far as food goes! Pag e 12
St . Ge rard ’s J u n i or S c h oo l
STAN D ARD 6 ~ Ski Trip On Tuesday we took to a water taxi and headed to Venice where we saw San Marco Campanile, St. Mark’s Bascilica and Rialto Bridge. We had lunch and went shopping for a couple of hours afterwards. Then we headed back to the watertaxi and back to the hotel. It was now Thursday and our last full day in Italy. At this stage everyone’s skiing was really improving. We had our last day race competition on the hill and the winners were Sean Treacy, Amy Ward, Ronan Byrne, Cuan Riodan and Analise Brennan. At 5.30am the next morning we reboarded our bus and headed for the airport bound for Ireland for a well needed rest! And that was SKI TRIP 2016.....what a trip!
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Patr ick Harrington
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F IRST H OLY Communion
S t. G e r a r d ’ s S c h o o l
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On May 7th 2016, all of the Std 2 pupils and 2 pupils from Std 3 made their first Holy Communion. The service started at 11am in St. Peter’s Church. The Junior School Choir sang beautifully at the service accompanied by Ms. Olohan and the church and school looked beautiful with thanks to the In House Committee, Mrs. Murphy and Ms. Rodgers. But most special on the day were the boys and girls who looked wonderful in their beautiful dresses and handsome blazers. All the boys and girls had a special job in the Communion - they sang, read and carried gifts, and did these jobs perfectly. After the service, all the students came back to the Junior School Hall with their families for a reception. They had lunch and cake and after the reception went for a wonderful day with family and friends. The weather didn’t hold up too well but that certainly didn’t dampen any spirits on such a wonderful day.
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FIRST H OLY Communion
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End o f Year Produc ti o n
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Am elia Fly nn
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End o f Y e a r P r odu ction
This year, our end of year production was “The Battle of the Musicals” by Ms. Carney. The setting was Enniskerry Drama Club where the boys and girls were quarrelling about possible shows to perform. The girls wanted Annie, the boys wanted Oliver! And the result.....a showdown of the best bits from both Annie and Oliver with a finale of music from Grease at the end. We had great fun doing our auditions and when all the roles were given out we all worked like crazy to learn our lines and songs. We had a dress rehearsal for the Junior School and then had our show on Thursday, 2nd June for all of our families. A special thanks to Ms. Carney and Ms. Olohan, our teachers Ms. Byrne and Mr. McPhillips, and our incredible mums who created our fantastic costumes and make-up. All in all, it was an amazing experience and such a great end to Std 6. I can’t wait for our next big production in the Senior School! Su m mer Ne w s 2 0 1 6
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spo rt s day
This year Sports day took place on 22nd of May. Everyone arrived at 11.30am and stood in their assigned places. The BBQs were set up and the band was playing. The day began with Montessori, Junior & Senior Infants and Std 1 taking part in their sprint and ball and cone races. After taking shelter from a short (but heavy!) rain shower we then moved on to Std 2 – 6. There was a great selection of races to view – sprints, three-legged, egg and spoon, sack race and the relay. When the sports came to an end, we all went for a burger and icecream, and then Std 6 went to change for Prize Giving. The sports hall looked great and all the trophys and plaques were set up on the stage with all of the Std 6 students hoping to receive a prize. Overall, Sports and Prize Day was an amazing day to hang out with our family and friends with no homework in sight! Pag e 18
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s po r ts day
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Ciara Mo roney
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STA NDAR D 4 & 5 ~ O vernight Trip
Early on the morning of 24th May, Std 4 and 5 set out on their journey to Killaloe, Co Clare for their overnight school tour. On day one they did lots of fun water activities and then headed back to their hotel for dinner and settled in for movie night. The next day they visited Bunratty Heritage Park where they learned lots of interesting facts. Finally they got back on the bus for the journey home where their parents were waiting patiently with smiles on their faces. Everyone had a great time and can’t wait for their next trip in 2017!
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y Murra n a h e e h S
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STAN D ARD 4 & 5 ~ Talent Show
Standard 4 & Standard 5 Talent Show
On Febraury 25th, Ms. Carney and Ms. Olohan put on an amazing Talent Show with Mrs. Murphy & Std 4 and Ms. Gleeson & Std 5. Every pupil put on a great act. We had singing, dancing, acting and musical instruments. After everybody had shown off their wonderful talent, both classes then combined to do one final performance - a medley of Abba songs. It was absolutely brilliant and it was clear for everybody to see that a huge amount of effort had gone into the show. It was a well and truly marvellous night and all the Std 4 and 5 parents were beaming with pride!
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A m e li a D o la n St . Ge ra rd’s J uni o r S c ho o l
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STAND ARD 4 RDS
In keeping with the Junior School’s strong drive on recycling and all things Green, Std 4 decided to take this theme through to the RDS Young Scientist in January. After some research, Std 4 realised that the majority of waste in St. Gerard’s was through paper towels as these cannot be recycled. The school generates 6 cubic meters each year! So during the summer holidays and into September Std 4 set about to see how they could reduce paper towel usage in the Junior School. They carried out experiments to see how we could best dispose of paper towels and also got to thinking about how to reduce usage in the first instance. This is where “Joe Smith’s Shake n Fold” method came into effect in Std 4 - you have to shake your hands 12 times before you dry and dry by folding the paper towel instead of scrunching! Next was to figure out how to dispose of them and Std 4 came up with ingenious ideas indeed! They composted some as they are made from natural material and also recycled some into firelogs! Std 4 learned a lot from this project and have carried the knowledge through to the day to day recycling in the Junior School.
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STA N D ARD 5 Rob otics
Ameli a Dolan
Standard 5 Robotics Once again this year Std 5 participated in the Lego Robotics Competition. They travelled down to the Radisson Hotel in Galway where the competition takes place each year. They competed against 30 other schools - mainly secondary schools, with their project on Waste Management and Paper Towel Recyclying. Each team had to present their project to judges and programme their robots to carry out different tasks in the robotics arena. Std 5 did a brilliant job, everyone worked really hard in the build up to the day and all throughout the day in Galway and had a great time! At the end of the day, Std 5 were thrilled to be the winners of the Strategy and Innovation Award – a just reward for all their very hard work!
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Writ e a Book
Every year we get the opportunity to create our own book and enter the Write a Book Competition which shows off a lot of emerging talent in the Junior School. This year we had all kinds of books including fiction, fact, cookery and so many more. The winners attended a very special prize giving ceremony where they were awarded medals and certificates for their amazing work. The winners then read an extract from their winning books at a special assembly in front of the entire Junior School.
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Hug h B eas hel
St . Ge rard ’s J u n i or S c h oo l
W r ite a Book
The winners of this years’ Write a Book Competition were: Junior Infants - Grace Atherfold, Christopher Cheung, Bobby Farrar, Daisy Jolly, Miles MacGreevy and Tilly O’Connor. Joey Costigan from Senior Infants, Finn Jolly Std 1, Robert Prestage Std 2, Oscar Bradshaw Std 3, Cian Geraghty Std 4 (in English and Irish!), Ava Stanley Std 5, Amelia Opperman & Ella Begley Std 6. Highly Commended this year were Std 1 Pearl Connolly, Matthew Naughton & Jack Williams. Std 1 - Hannah Duffy, Toby Lennon & Lucy Curran. Std 3 - Maya O’Brien, Harry O’Leary & Muireann O’Keeffe. Std 4 - Rayyan Tareen, Kate Freney & Lucy Egan. Std 4 as Gaeilge – Laura Cullen, Lily Curley & Ciara Carroll. Std 5 - Adah Lynch Peter Catterson and All Finnegan Quirke. Mr. McPhillips Std 6 - James Cardiff, Hannah Carney and Ciara Moroney. Ms. Byrne’s Std 6 - Finn Gilmore, Larina Yu, Sean Treacy. Summer Ne w s 2 0 1 5
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Art C o m petition • E aster E g g Co m p eti ti o n • P l a n e t G r o u p s
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Dy l a n an S he e h
Parent’s Association Art Competition Eash year the Parent’s Association sponsor the Junior School Art Competition where each child in the Junior School creates a piece of art. The theme this year was ‘Our Irish Heritage’ which was a very fitting theme as 2016 is the centenary of the 1916 Rising – one of our most important events in Irish History. There was a winner and runner up from each class who has their winning artwork framed and the winners also received a plaque.
Winners of the PA Art Competition
Easter Egg Competition Each year, students from Junior Infants to Std 6 enter our annual Easter Egg Competition. This year, through the generousity of our Junior School parentls, we raised E1200 which will go towards louise’s work with the Hincisti Orphanage in Moldova this summer. Louise uses the funds to buy items that we normally take for granted like a fridge, clothes, blankets and toys.
winners of the easter egg competition
Junior School Planet Groups
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STAN D ARD 6 ~ Ms. Byrne & Mr. McPhillips
2016 has been a great year with many fun events ranging from the AIJS Table Quiz to our School Trip to Glasnevin. Our teachers and all of the St. Gerard’s Staff have been superb and very helpful helping in us settle in and find our way through the year. Our Service of Light and Confirmation were great experiences for all with Fr. Larry and Sr. Patricia being supportive along the journey. We want to say a big thank you to the Junior School Choir who sang beautifully at the Confirmation Mass. We recently had our Science Fair, Ski Trip, End of Year Production and Sports & Prizegiving which you will come across in the Newsletter also. I think I speak for all of my classmates when I say we have had a fantastic year and have been very lucky to have had Ms. Byrne and Mr. McPhillips guide us through.
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Game s
What a busy term it has been for Games. Rugby and Hockey season finished on a high with the Std 6 girls winning the Leinster Primary and Junior School Hockey League and the Std 6 boys winning the AIJS Rugby 7’s. All teams had a great season and should be very proud of their progress.
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P a t r ic k Harringto n
The Summer term saw the introduction of all our favourite Summer sports - rounders, tennis, athletics, tag rugby, golf and cricket. We had great success in the Irishtown Athletics Competition winning a grand total of 20 medals for our school. Std 3, 4 & 5 students enjoyed a very competitive swimming gala in Castlepark and the Std 5 boys entered the Leprechaun Cricket League and got a taste for what it’s like to play long competitive matches in the sun. Lots of new skills were learned and a lot of fun was had! The St. Gerard’s tennis team entered the Leinster League and the AIJS Tennis Competition where Tom McGovern came 2nd in the singles event.
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Gam es
The Standard 6 boys and girls entered two golf competitions – both coming 2nd in the AIJS Cup and the boys winning overall in the very prestigious Delgany Schools Cup which brought to an end a very successful Summer sporting term!
The Teachers vs Students Rounders Match was held on the 23rd May. It was an amazing match to watch and quite funny too! Std 3 – 5 were in the stand supporting and the excitement was rife! In the end it was the students who narrowly clinched the victory for the first time. Well done to the Student Council for organising such a fun event and a great day overall. Next year the Teachers are looking to get their “Reigning Rounders Champion” title back. Yikes.....good luck next year Std 5! Su mmer Ne w s 2 0 1 6
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Ciara Moroney
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GREEN SCHOOLS • ME DAL O F MERIT
This year has certainly been a busy one for the Green Schools Committee. They have organised all kinds of competitions to help save our planet like the Recycled Christmas Tree Decoration competition and recycled Fashion Show. This year’s theme (as you probably know) is Biodiversity. The Green School Committee is working hard to raise awareness of all the wonderful wildlife throughout our school and the wider community. What an outstanding job by this year’s Greenschools Committee! The Greenschool Committee Members are Hannah Carney, Amy Ward, Fred Himmer, Evan Dargan Hayes, Indie O’Donohoe, Adah Lynch, Jodie Cassidy, Murray Sheehan, Ally Finnegan Quirke, Finn O’Connell, Clara Higgins, Simon Williams, Oscar Bradshaw, Mia McGonnell, Hannah Duffy, Matthew Naughton, Hugo Wyse and Ben Malone.
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Murr ay Sheeh an
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