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Newsletter: 9th October 2024


 

Admission to Junior Infants September 2025

The process for admission to Junior Infants 2025 opened on Monday 30th September and will remain open until Friday 25th October. 


The following are the dates applicable for admission to Junior Infants 2025/2026:

The school will commence accepting applications for admission on 

30th September 2024

 

The school shall cease accepting applications for admission on 

25th October 2024

@ 3:00pm

 

The date by which applicants will be notified of the decision on their application is    

15th November 2024

The period within which applicants must confirm acceptance of an offer of admission is*

29th November 2024

@ 3:00pm

All details including relevant dates/forms/policy etc are now available on www.hollyparkgns.ie.


Applications may be posted to the school or delivered by hand. As original documents supporting the application must be included, applications cannot be made by email.


 

Key Dates: Term One

GOAL Jersey Day

Friday 11th October

Whole school

STEM Week

Week beg Monday 14th October

Whole School

Hallowe'en Dress Up Day

Friday 25th October

Whole school

Midterm break

28th October - 1st November inclusive

Whole School

PT Meetings

Week beginning Monday 18th November

Senior Infants - 6th Class

Weaving Wellbeing Fiona Forman: Talk for parents

Monday 18th November

All parents (GNS & BNS) welcome

Christmas Play

Wednesday 11th December

Junior Infants

Christmas Play

Thursday 12th December

Senior Infants

Last day of Term One (early finish)

Friday 20th December

Whole school

First day of Term Two

Monday 6th January

Whole school

PT Meetings

Week beginning 27th January 2025

Junior Infants


School Calendar 2024/2025

The 2024/2025 calendar is available on www.hollyparkgns.ie


 

Voluntary Contribution


The Board of Management has today sent home a letter re this year’s Voluntary Contribution.


Last year 323 (72%) of our families made Voluntary Contributions to our school. In addition to ensuring that we could pay all of our bills, this enabled us to continue with the refurbishment of our school, enhancing the learning environment for our girls. During the summer, classrooms on the Green Corridor were fitted with new bathrooms, floors were replaced and the classrooms and corridors were painted. New noticeboards are on their way!




Thank you to our presenters Maya & Robyn!


Next summer with your Voluntary Contributions, and with the support of our PA who are working very hard to fundraise, we hope to complete this refurbishment by replacing our pupils' chairs and freshening up our hall and adjacent visitor bathrooms. We would also like to create a Sensory Room for our pupils with additional needs.

Your Voluntary Contribution makes a real difference to your girls' learning environment. Thank You.

If you would like to help in any additional way with these improvements (time, skillset, sponsorship) please let us know.


 

PA Hallowe'en Costumes/Jersey Swap & Sale

Thank you to our PA for their very successful and useful Hallowe'en Costume/Jersey Swap & Sale. In addition to being a truly sustainable event, the PA raised €597.00! This money will be used to further replenish school resources and improve the girls' learning environment as outlined above.


 

An Author in our Midst!

Alex Byrne, 3rd Class: Author of I Belong in a Beautiful World

My name is Alex and I am in 3rd Class, Ms McGovern.

I wrote this book when I was 6 years old.

My Dad inspired me to write it and helped me to get it published.

I hope this inspires you to write your own book!


 

GOAL Jersey Day: Friday 11th October

Wear your sports jersey (with your school tracksuit) to school this Friday and donate to this worthwhile cause.

This will be a Bucket Collection, so please bring in cash/coins. Thank you!


 

Frásaí na Seachtaine

"Cén aois thú?  Tá mé ………bliana d’aois."

Labhair Gaeilge linn!


 

Microsoft Dream Space Ambassadors



Well done to the 11 students in 5th class who have been chosen as Hollypark's Dream Space Ambassadors. The Dream Space Ambassador Program is a flagship Dream Space Student Leadership and training program, supported by the Microsoft Dream Space Team in Dublin and Belfast. This program is open to students who have a passion for learning and a desire to support, train, and mentor others in STEM education. 


During the academic year, our ambassadors will participate in virtual training sessions delivered by the Microsoft Dream Space team. Each training session will focus on a different topic related to STEM education. After completing the virtual training, our Dream Space Ambassadors will become pioneers of the Dream Space STEM experience in our school. They will support, train, and mentor other students, teachers, and others in their community helping to bring the benefits of STEM education to all. 


Our girls completed their first training session yesterday where they learned about micro:bit 101.


Our Dream Space Ambassadors 2024/2025

Aibhlínn 
Amaya 
Amelia
Anna 
Anna G 
Aoibhinn 
Ellie 
Eloise 
Eva 
Isabella 
Keira 

Have a read below about how they got on!

The Dream Space Ambassador Program is a leadership and coding programme. One Tuesday every month, we go to the computer room and learn how to code. Then we go back and teach others what we learnt. It is a great programme and teaches us loads. We love it!

Anna Gleeson and Eva Skomorokha

On Tuesday, we and the other Dream Space Ambassadors went down to the computer room for our first coding lesson. The Microsoft team taught us how to code over a Microsoft Teams call. The lesson was from 9:30 until 11:30 and we had lots of fun coding on the Microsoft Make Code website. Thank you, Microsoft, for teaching us how to code!
 
Isabella Heraghty and Amaya Naidoo


 

STEM Week: 14th- 18th October


Next week, we’re thrilled to celebrate STEM Week in Hollypark!

This event coincides with last year's launch of the new Primary Maths Curriculum by the Department of Education. This curriculum, the first major change since 1999, aims to show our children the importance and practicality of maths in their everyday lives. Over the next two years, schools will participate in Continuous Professional Development (CPD) to prepare for full implementation in September 2025. 


Our Junior and Senior Infants have started the new Busy at Maths programme, an engaging and interactive maths curriculum designed to inspire young learners. This programme encourages children to explore maths in a hands-on and stimulating way, making learning both fun and meaningful. Through a variety of activities and resources, students will have the opportunity to develop their mathematical skills while discovering the world of maths around them. We can't wait to see how our youngest learners embrace this new approach to maths! 


STEM Week in Hollypark will run from 14th October - 18th October. We have a week full of exciting activities planned:


  • Lego Robotics: We are especially excited to welcome back Arati for engaging Lego Workshops tailored for our 4th Classes. These 10 sessions will provide our students with the opportunity to delve into science and engineering in a fun and interactive environment, moving beyond their regular classroom activities. Each Lego workshop will combine theoretical knowledge with practical application in STEM subjects using K’nex® and Lego® bricks, incorporating stories, experiments, and demonstrations for a multi-sensory learning experience.



  • Jelly Jar Estimation: All students will use their estimation skills to guess how many jellies are in the jar—a fun way to apply maths to everyday situations!


  • Daily 'Principal's Problems': Tune in over the intercom for daily challenges from Ms. Gunning that will test our students' problem-solving skills.


  • Tables Queen Competition: A friendly competition for our 1st to 6th classes to crown the Tables Queen!


  • Coding with Microsoft Dream Space: Our 5th class girls will dive into the world of coding with this exciting programme led by our 11 Dream Space Ambassadors. 


  • 6th Class Science Exhibition: Every class will visit the 6th class Science Exhibition in the hall, showcasing the amazing projects and experiments our students have been working on.


  • Maths Trails: All classes will be using their MATHS EYES to embark on maths trails around the school grounds, discovering the maths hidden in our environment.


  • STEM Challenges: Students will have the opportunity to participate in a hands-on STEM challenge that encourages experimentation and creativity. They will be tasked with solving a problem by designing and building a solution using everyday materials. This challenge will foster critical thinking and collaboration as students work in teams to brainstorm ideas, test their designs, and refine their approaches based on trial and error. Through this process, they will learn the importance of resilience and adaptability in problem-solving, all while having fun exploring the principles of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics!


  • Maths Week Live Quizzes on Maths Week Ireland TV


We would like to extend a big thank you to our students in 6th class on the STEM Committee for all their help in preparing for STEM Week. Your hard work and dedication are greatly appreciated!


Throughout the week, we can’t wait to engage in lots of MATHS CHAT! We encourage all students to participate actively in this wonderful opportunity to explore and enjoy STEM learning. Let’s make this STEM Week a memorable and enriching experience for everyone in Hollypark!

 

HSE - MMR, Flu

Flu Vaccine

Whole School

17th October

Links to consent forms have been issued to all classes.


 

NPC: Supporting Your Child's Move from Primary to Post Primary


To support you and your child as you prepare to transition from Primary School to Post Primary School, the National Parents Council (NPC) is offering free online sessions, providing valuable insights and guidance.

 

Session Details:

  • Dates: Monday 7th Oct to Friday 11th Oct 2024

  • Platform: Zoom

 

Schedule:

  • Monday-Thursday: 10am and 7:30pm

  • Friday:  10am

 


Session Topics: The sessions will cover a range of topics including:

  1. Choosing a school for your child

  2. Preparing your child for post-primary school

  3. Subject choice

  4. School policies

  5. Home-school communication.

  6. People you might meet in post-primary school.

  7. Parent/Teacher meetings

 

Who Can Attend: These sessions are open to all parents of primary school children, and are particularly suited to parents of children in 5th and 6th class. We encourage you to share this information with anyone who may be interested. We believe that these sessions will provide valuable insights and support as you navigate this significant transition with your child. We look forward to your active participation in making this journey smoother for both you and your child.


 

Traffic Safety

Morning & evening one-way system:

Reminders:

  • Please use the church car park at drop off and collection times and walk the last 6 minutes with your child. 

  • 80% of our pupils live within 2 kilometres of our school. Please encourage your older children to walk with their pals to and from school. 

  • Please work with our PA to action the Walking Bus initiative as soon as possible

  • Please ensure that younger children are held by the hand when walking with them to and from school. 

  • Please do not block the driveways of local residents when parking. Many of our residents – often elderly - are virtual prisoners in their own homes at drop off and collection times. And when they speak up are often subject to abuse.

  • In the event of an emergency, when cars are parked illegally, it is unlikely that a fire tender or ambulance would be able to access the schools, or any homes in the vicinity.

 

Hallowe'en Soccer Camp @ Hollypark


 

Birthdays this week in Hollypark!



Alannah Molloy

Brooke Lilly Crawford

Sophie Keenan

Carla McGrane

Kristina Shashkova

Lucy Kennedy

Andriya Alphonse Sobin

Grace O'Hagan

Chloe Walshe

Dara Brady

Sophia Ó Faoláin


 

Advertising on our school newsletter

If you would like to place an ad on our school newsletter, please email Suzanne at the office hollyparkgns@gmail.com for further details.


 

HPGNS

United in Friendship, Together We Strive!

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