Category: Newsletters

Newsletter 15^th September 2023

Ploughing Championships: The National Ploughing Championships will take place in Ratheniska next week. Garda Traffic Management advises us that there will be a noticeable increase in traffic through Ballylinan. The school will open and close at the usual times. However please note that there are likely to be delays on the mornings of Tuesday 19^th, Wednesday 20^th and Thursday 21^st. We will be understanding and ask that you be patient; there is no need to rush to avoid being late.

Halloween Hike:  We plan to dress up for Halloween again this this year on the morning of Friday October 27th. Like last year, we plan to ‘hike’ from the school down to the village and will be issuing sponsorship cards soon. Details to follow.

Athy College: Parents and prospective students are invited to an open evening on Thursday 28^th September between 6pm and 8pm. Sixth class will also visit the school for their open day on the morning of Friday 29^th September.

St. Mary’s Knockbeg College: Open evening takes place on Friday September 29^th from 3:30 to 6:30. All interested students in 5^th or 6^th class are welcome to visit with their parents/guardians.

Parking:  Please remember that the drop-off area is only for that purpose in the mornings; if you wish to walk your child to their line, please park in a designated spot. Thank you for your cooperation.

Calendar: The 2023 / 2024 school calendar is available to view on the school website.

Work experience: We are thrilled to see that so many of our past pupils are interested in pursuing a career in education / childcare. We have had an unprecedented number of requests for transition year work experience. Unfortunately, we have not been able to accommodate all requests this year. Please bear in mind that students must be 16 years old and have Garda vetting to complete work experience in a primary school.

HSE: The HSE will visit the school on Monday and Tuesday 18^th & 19^th September to conduct eye sight and hearing tests for Junior and Senior infants. Please ensure that you have retuned your consent form. If you have any concerns about your child’s eyesight or hearing (and you child is not in junior or senior infants) please contact the school immediately and we can arrange to have your child included.

Cumann na mBunscol: Our teams began their 2023 Cumann na mBunscol journey in Abbeyleix on Tuesday. Both teams played with great spirit and represented themselves and our school very well. Winning was a bonus! Due to the heavy rainfall over night and a forecast for further rain, today’s matches have been postponed.

School Tracksuits: Tracksuits ordered during the summer are now available. Tracksuits will be given directly to your child as payments are received through Aladdin.

Mobile Phones: Mobile phones are not necessary for children during the day. In exceptional circumstances if they need to be brought for use after school, they must be turned off and handed to the class teacher in the morning.

Swimming:  Swimming begins next week. The schedule for the year is as follows. More details from class teachers in due course.

September / October: Ms Goff’s classes

November / December: Ms Lacey’s & Mr Sweeney’s classes

January / February: Ms Rainsford’s & Mr Curry’s classes

February / March: Ms Cunningham’s & Ms Maher’s classes

April / May: Ms Twomey’s & Mrs Donnelly’s classes

First Communion
Well done to the pupils of 2nd Class and a big thank you to everyone who played a part in preparing them and for making the ceremony a special occasion. We hope that everyone had a lovely family day.

Don’t be Mean Behind Your Screen
Was the title of an internet safety talk for parents held in the school recently. It certainly gave everyone who attended plenty to think about. Please be aware of how your child is active online. If you weren’t able to make it, we hope to hold further information sessions in the future.

Presentation
Marie Kelly on behalf of Tesco Portlaoise recently presented the school with a cheque for €578 from their community fund. A big thank you to those involved.

Preschool Places
Contact Classy Kidz at 089 2161320 or email annblake@outlook.ie if you have any queries.

Easter Raffle
The total collected for our Easter Raffle & Cake Sale was €2205.38. Thank you all for your wonderful support as always.

Cumann na mBunscol Quiz Team
Well done to Orla, Devin, Zach and Liam for making it through against stiff competition to represent the school at the annual table quiz in Portlaoise this week. They enjoyed themselves and got to show off their considerable general knowledge. If you see them, ask them a question!

Incoming Junior Infants
Our new pupils (with their parents) will be visiting us on the afternoon of Tuesday, 30th May for an introduction to the school.

Calendar 2023/24
School will reopen for all pupils after the summer holidays on Wednesday, 30th August.

New Principal Appointed
The Board of Management has confirmed that Mrs. Aileen Hurley has been appointed as incoming principal. Mrs. Hurley is currently deputy principal and has been teaching in Ballylinan since 2005. She will officially take over at the beginning of the coming school year.

Upcoming Closures
Please note that school will close at 2 p.m. for all pupils on Monday, 29th May so that staff can receive first aid training.  Further staff training for the Primary Language Curriculum will now take place on Friday, 2nd June so school will be closed for pupils on that day.

Confirmation
Well done to the pupils of 6th Class on making their Confirmation last Saturday. A big thank you to everyone who played a part in preparing them and for making the ceremony a special occasion.

Quiz Teams
Well done to our four quiz teams who made it through to the final of the St. Abban’s Quiz. They may not know all the answers but they obviously know lots of them!

Uniform Matters
We’re all proud of our school and our uniform and we have been making an extra effort this week to ask the pupils to wear theirs. There has been a big improvement so well done and thank you all.

If you have a genuine reason why your child can’t wear their uniform on a particular day, just let their teacher know and we will be understanding if it is an exception.

A reminder that our uniform is as follows:
Green jumper/cardigan, white shirt, grey trousers/skirt/pinafore.

Our tracksuit is available through the school and is to be worn with a white polo shirt on P.E. days only. Replacement navy legs (plain only) may be purchased in any shop. In warm weather, plain navy shorts of an appropriate (knee) length may be worn. Grey, tailored knee-length shorts with the main uniform are also acceptable. Football shorts etc. are not acceptable. We recommend practical footwear, preferably in a dark colour.

The use of hair dye is not permitted during term time and we encourage pupils to tie up their hair. Earrings should be neat (no large loops etc.) and fake nails or nail extensions are not permitted. We discourage the wearing of other jewellery for health and safety reasons and because it can get lost or damaged.

Here are examples:

Standard Uniform:

Tracksuit:

Warm Weather:

Standardised Tests
These will take place in the last term for pupils in 1st – 6th classes. It is important to note that they are not exams; they help us to track your child’s progress and to inform us how the children in our school are progressing generally. Teachers gather information about your child’s learning all the time and these tests are part of that process.

Spelling Bee Champion!
Congratulations to Devin McEvoy on winning the Laois section of the Spelling Bee Competition. He will represent Laois in the Leinster final which will take place in May. The best of luck Devin!

Super Stars Summer Camp
As in previous years, our fun-filled activity camp (run by teachers) will take place from Thursday 29th June – Wednesday 5th July. Details to follow.

Seachtain na Gaeilge
Bhaineamar taitneamh as na gníomhaíochtaí éagsúla a bhí againn i rith Seachtain na Gaeilge. Féach ar Instagram: ballylinanns

Inside Out Day
The Amber Flag initiative is run by Pieta House which recognises the efforts of schools (and other organisations) to create healthy, inclusive environments that support mental wellbeing. Inside Out Day aims to raise awareness of children’s mental health and to remind us that how someone looks on the outside doesn’t always reflect how they are truly feeling on the inside. We are asking our pupils to wear something inside out this Friday.

Cake Sale
We will be holding our Cake Sale tomorrow, Thursday 30th March, in the school. All proceeds will go to UNICEF and Pieta House. See separate notice on Aladdin for more details.

Easter
We will close for the Easter holidays this Friday, 31st March at 12:15 for Infants and 12:30 for all others. We reopen after Easter on Monday, 17th April.

Enrolments 2023/24
The window for enrolment for the coming school year has now closed. Applications from now on will be treated as late applications. Please contact the school immediately if you are aware of any other possible enrolments for the coming year.

School Calendar
These are now sold out – thank you for your support as always.

Wellbeing Week
All pupils were involved recently in activities to promote wellbeing in our school and in our lives generally. Keep an eye out for photos on our Instagram account. The handle is ballylinanns .

School Tours
These will take place in the summer term as usual. We are doing our best to keep costs down, though we are reminding you now so that you can budget well in advance for the expense.

Offer a Home Programme
The ‘Offer a Home’ programme is being managed by local authorities on behalf of Government to support use of properties that are not currently in use to those fleeing war in Ukraine who need a safe and secure place to stay. Tap here for more information .

Change of Phone or Address?
IMPORTANT: If your contact details have changed recently, please contact the school immediately. Thank you.

Retirement
You may have heard that I will be retiring at the end of this school year. I have many people to thank for a very happy time in Ballylinan and will have a chance to do so between now and the end of June.

Upcoming Dates
School closed next week on Thursday 16th and Friday 17th March (we close at the normal times on Wednesday 15th). Confirmation will be on Saturday, 25th March. We will close for the Easter holidays at 12:15 for Infants and 12:30 for all others on Friday, 31st March. Reopening after Easter on Monday, 17th April.

St. Patrick’s Day
On Wednesday next week pupils may wear something green if they wish to mark St. Patrick’s Day.

Thank you for your support as always,

John Threadgold
Principal