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Halloween 2012 Newsletter
Newsletters
Principal's Note
It's almost Halloween and the children are getting excited, talking about costumes and scary masks. Meanwhile, the school is anxiously awaiting news of planning permission, and looking at ways of raising money for the new extension. We're going to publish a school calendar with pictures of the classes, and hope that it might be a relatively painless way of raising money. The school is very conscious of the financial difficulties that many parents face and very appreciative of the sacrifices that parents are making to support the school. Go raibh maith agaibh.
School Website
The school website (www.oylegatens.scoilnet.ie) has been updated with some new pages and pictures.
It contains lots of information pertaining to the school, including the school calendar.
We have also added a roll of honour page for the children's sporting achievements. We are missing some information from the page, so we would be grateful if you could furnish us with the correct details and some pictures if you have them.
There are pictures from the girls' District Final win on the website too.
New Recycling
The school is now recycling batteries, newspapers and mobile phones. Ms. Sidney is doing great work with the Green Committee in the area of energy conservation. The boys and girls of the committee are making great strides in reducing our energy wastage. They check to make sure that electrical items are turned off at break time, and reward the children for their efforts. Well done to all of them.
Calendar Sponsorship
Many thanks to the following for their kind sponsorship of the school calendar:
" Paul Maher Hurleys
" Sweetness Bakery (The Pierce Family)
" Ferrycarraig Hotel
" Southeast Carpets
" Model County Hygiene
" Glen Fuels
" Freemans' Shop and Post Office
" Oylegate United Soccer Club
" And more to come ...
We are currently taking pictures for the calendar and hope to have it ready for purchase in November. It will cost €10 and it's the perfect Christmas present for 2013!
Oylegate Abú!
Congratulations to the hurlers and footballers of Oylegate who won the county junior and intermediate titles recently. They were fantastic and, by all accounts, the hurling final and replay were brilliant games to watch.
Michael and MJ and some other members of the panel (Seán looks young enough to be on the panel!) were kind enough to come in with the cups, and we were delighted to see them. They're an inspiration to our Rackard League teams, and gave a great boost to the school. Well done to Peadar O'Mahony, who was a member of both teams, and who just finished his teaching practice with us.
Gaeilge do Thuismitheoirí
Parents sometimes struggle with obair bhaile, especially as Gaeilge. Things have changed a lot regarding Gaeilge as a subject. There is a renewed emphasis on oral Irish, and teachers tend to spend a lot of time on conversation.
Here are some frásaí that you could try using at home to improve children's oral Irish:
" Bain triail as - Try it.
" Níl a fhios agam - I don't know.
" Tá brón orm - I'm sorry!
" Ceart go leor - OK!
Monster Xmas Raffle
The Parents' Association will be holding a Monster Christmas Raffle in the coming months. There will lots of great prizes, including hampers etc. Many thanks to the Parents' Association for their on-going support and kindness.
Parent/Teacher Meetings
Just a reminder that the parent/teacher meetings take place on Wednesday 21st and Thursday 22nd of November. This year there will be two days of meetings to facilitate parents for whom a single day might not suit, and to allow enough time for meetings. Teachers found that they did not have enough time in one day and were having to arrange meetings for the mornings. This impacted on their preparation for classwork, and we'll try and avoid morning meetings as a result.
School Building Project
The school has received initial planning permission for our new extension but there are some issues regarding our sewage that need to be addressed. The Board of Management is working hard on these issues, and hopes to make progress on them in the near future.
Rackard League
Congratulations to the boys and girls on the Rackard League football teams. They did really well in reaching both District Finals, and they're a credit to their coaches: Mr. Gilbane, Eamonn, Oonagh and Caroline.
The coaches give so freely of their time each week, training the children up in the pitch when they have so many commitments already and could be spending their time in other ways. The school is very grateful and appreciative for all their hard work.
Many thanks also to the parents for all their support with lifts, etc.
The 3rd and 4th Class Blitzes went really well. They were held in Oylegate pitch and Crossabeg and Glenbrien were invited to participate also. Scores weren't counted, and the emphasis was on taking part and having fun.
Finally, congratulations to the girls on their fine win in the District Final where they defeated St. Senan's by 2-5 to 0-0. They were brilliant: tackling and blocking, displaying all the skills of the game.
Pictures of the girls' match are on the website, and well worth having a look. Google "Oylegate ns" and it will bring you to the website. Pictures of the day when the cups came in are also there under Oylegate Abú.