Newsletter: Wednesday 18th February 2026

School Calendar 2025/2026

The 2025/2026 calendar is available on www.hollyparkgns.ie

Key Dates: Term Two

Midterm Break	School closed Thursday 19th & Friday 20th February	All classes
6th Class Movie Night	Friday 6th March	6th Class
Féile na dTeangacha	An Luan 9ú - An Aoine 13ú Márta	Gach rang
Book Fair	Monday 9th March - Thursday 12th March	All classes
St Patrick's Day School Closure	Monday 16th March & Tuesday 17th March	All classes
PA Table Quiz	Friday 20th March	All parents
Live Art Exhibition: Celebrating 60 Years!	Wednesday 25th March	All classes
60th Celebration Day	Thursday 26th March	All classes
Last Day Term Two	Friday 27th March	All classes
First Day of Term Three	Monday 13th April	All classes
Staff Inservice School Closure	Wednesday 13th May	All classes

Knowing if your child is well enough to go to school

Use this page

https://www2.hse.ie/babies-children/parenting-advice/caring-for-a-child/knowing-if-your-child-is-well-enough-to-go-to-school-or-childcare/

to find out:

• When it's OK to send your child to school or childcare

• When to keep your child at home from school or childcare

  
  

Please note these key points to keep our school (and wider) community safe and well:

High temperature

If your child has a high temperature, keep them off school or childcare until their temperature:

• goes back to normal

• stays that way without taking paracetamol and ibuprofen

In children, any temperature of 38 degrees Celsius or above is considered high.

Vomiting and diarrhoea

• Children with diarrhoea or vomiting should stay away from school or childcare until they have not been sick or had diarrhoea for at least 48 hours.

Follow advice from your GP 

If your child has been diagnosed with an infection such as:

• impetigo

• measles

• mumps

• scarlet fever

• slapped cheek syndrome

• chicken pox

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Pancake Tuesday in 1st Class!

We were very busy making and cooking pancakes in 1st class this Tuesday. We definitely have a few budding chefs amongst us! They were deee-licious!

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Supporting Trócaire

Every Lent our school supports Trócaire's Lemten Campaign. Climate change is one of the biggest threats facing humanity today. Often it is those who have contributed least to the crisis that bear the brunt of its most devastating effects. By dropping your loose change into your Trócaire Box you can make a difference.

Boxes can be returned to the school after the Easter break.

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Well Done!

Well done Connie!

Congratulations to Connie from Third Class who won first place in the Royal County Irish Dancing Féis recently. Well done Connie - a great achievement!

Well done Allsún!

Allsún from 3rd Class was recently awarded a Certificate of Achievement and a medal for taking part in the MS Readathon which encourages children to read as many books as they can, while raising funds to support people living with multiple sclerosis. Well done Allsún and keep up the great reading!

Well done Amaira!

Congratulations to Amaira in 1st Class, on winning a gold medal in a Spring poetry festival at Miss Ali's stage school. Well done!

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Live Art Exhibition: Celebrating 60 Years

Wednesday 25th March

As part of our 60th Celebrations we will be inviting our parents to our annual Live Art Exhibition on Wednesday 25th March. More details to follow!

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Féile na dTeangacha 9ú - 13ú Márta

Lots of exciting events to look forward to during Féile na dTeangacha, our celebration of languages, incorporating Seachtain na Gaeilge!

Nuacht an Lae - gach lá

Ceilí leis na buachaillí

Cluichí ar an Astro

Seó Faisin

Lá Mór Glas

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School Choir: Córfhéile

Our School Choir are looking forward to performing at Córfhéile na Scoileanna on Wednesday 4th March @ 7:30pm.

All parents and families are very welcome to attend. Admission to Córfhéile is €10 for adults, accompanying children are free. (Girls who are singing in the Córfhéile do not pay admission).

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Library News

Following on from the success of Marita Conlon McKenna as our guest speaker last year, this year will see Sinead Moriarty visiting 4th, 5th and 6th classes at Hollypark GNS on Friday 6th March.

This will be a lovely lead into our Book Fair which commences 9th March.

We will have more of Sinead Moriarty’s books on the shelves shortly, giving the girls a chance to read more of her books before she visits.

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Voluntary Contributions 2025- 2026

Sincere thanks to the 163 families (that is 41% of all our families) who have already made a Voluntary Contribution to the school for 2025-26.

It may interest our families to know that you can choose to make frequent small payments to your Voluntary Contribution via Aladdin at any time during the school year, up to and including 31st August 2026.

Any and all contributions are very much appreciated and make a real difference to your daughter's learning environment.

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PA Update

60th Anniversary Celebrations: Ladies Lunch Raffle!

We had a truly lovely afternoon last Friday at the PA Ladies Lunch in the Fitzpatrick Castle Hotel, Killiney. The sense of community was wonderful—matched only by the fabulous style on show! It was also a fantastic fundraising success. In total, €9663.00 was raised, and these funds will go towards installing a canopy connecting the Purple Building and Sensory Room to the main school building.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who supported the event, our many parents, sponsors and of course special guests Lorraine Keane, Andrea Mara and Stephanie Roche. We hope it will become a much-loved annual tradition. And a very special thanks to our PA for all their hard work in creating such an enjoyable and memorable day for us all.

PA Table Quiz Fundraiser

We are looking forward to another fun fundraising event on Friday 20th March when our quizzing skills will be put to the test. Thank you again to our hardworking PA for organising this fun event.

The continued fundraising efforts of the PA—supported by your generous voluntary contributions and Department funding—are already making a meaningful impact. We are currently working with suppliers to add new painted games to the yard surface, and we have ordered picnic tables to enhance our Outdoor Learning Space.

We are also pleased to share that this year’s IT grant has been received, enabling us to purchase an additional 15 ThinkPads for use across our classrooms.

These resources will make a real difference to our girls’ learning experiences. Thank you!!

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Summer Art Camp

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Health & Safety

From time to time, vapes have been found on the school yard.

Please note that under legislation,

Smoking/Vaping is prohibited on school grounds.

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Traffic Safety

Please note:

It is illegal to park in a way which interferes with traffic flow or obstructs or endangers other road users, for example:

• Opposite a continuous white line.

• On a footpath (either partly or wholly).

• Within 5 metres of a junction.

• Within 15 metres on the approach side or 5 metres on the other side of a pedestrian crossing or traffic lights.

• At a school entrance.

• Obstructing any entrance for vehicles except with the occupier’s consent.

• On a grass margin or median strip.

[Dublin Street Parking Services]

Once again I am reminding our parents/guardians/minders to drive and park with consideration for our children and our neighbours - many of whom are elderly and vulnerable.

One Way Traffic System

Traffic Safety

• 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 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.

• Please park legally and with care.

• As things stand, in the event of an emergency, it is unlikely that a fire tender or ambulance would be able to access the schools, or any homes in the vicinity, at drop off and collection times.

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Birthdays this week in Hollypark!

Mysha Rajput

Rosalie Toole

Youfu Zhao

Fatiha Derkaoui

Robyn O'Connor

Ella Waters

Nina Drummond

Eva Sycheva

Theodora Dempsey Walsh

Alana McCann

Alice Doyle

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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 and pricing.

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HPGNS

United in Friendship, Together We Strive!