New School Year: September 2022

Welcome back to school, everyone!

We are delighted to be back to school, to meet friends, to play outside and in the classroom, to learn new things and to try new activities.

The school Gaelic Football team is already in action this month. Best of luck to the girls in their fixtures, to Mrs Walshe and Mrs C. Kenny for training them.

5th and 6th class are enjoying cycling lessons each Friday.

Music Generation classes have resumed in middle and senior classes.

School meals have started this month, and pupils are enjoying the selection.

Our current staff are

Mrs M Jacob Learning Support

Ms. O. Maher Junior & Senior Infants

Ms. R Tyrrell Senior & First class

Mrs. M Kenny 2nd, 3rd & 4th class

Mrs L. Walshe 5th & 6th class

Ms. A McGrath Shared Learning Support

Ms. S Shelley Shared Learning Support

Mrs. Carmel Kenny is newly appointed shared Home School Community

Liaison co-ordinator (HSCL). She will be available to help parents and

families with any school related difficulties. If you have a query or

difficulty, she will be in the yard every morning and can also be

contacted by emailed on ckenny@presentationcastlecomer.com or by

phone on 083 1145499 during school hours.

See some photos of indoor and outdoor activities, below.

Ms McGrath planted these beautiful flowers outside the school, perfect to welcome us all back to work and play!

Playing games to get chatting together, to take turns and have fun.

Constructing pyramids!

Games in the yard with Cora, GAA instructor.

Senior Infants and First Class show their painting and cutting skills here!

Artwork from Junior Infants brightens the corridor.

5th and 6th class create unique and eye-catching information brochures for heritage sites of Ireland.

Sunflowers are blooming!

Challenge to Change 2022

As a Presentation School, we take part in the Challenge to Change development education project. This is run by the Presentation Education Office.

The theme of Challenge to Change stems from the Presentation ethos, e.g. justice, fairness and equality, global and local issues, care for the earth.

There was a general focus this year on Climate Change.

The title for our project was Castlecomer's Climate Mission.

All classes took part in some way. From tree-planting, to classroom lessons on developing countries, a photo competition to art/ design work, the activities varied from class to class but the message was the same - each of us CAN make small changes to make a difference to help our environment.

As a Green School, we are accustomed to recycling, saving energy, keeping our school grounds and local area litter-free, thinking about biodiversity and global citizenship. Due to Covid-closures, the Green School message needed to be revived, so Challenge to Change gave all classes a boost.

The Energy Eagle and Waste Watchdog made a comeback!

We were also delighted to take part in Picker Pals and the Tidy Towns initiative. All of these actions help our school, our neighbours and the wider world.

While younger classes got on board with the Energy Eagle and Waste Watchdog, focused on recycling, saving energy and cutting out littering, and also worked on tree -planting and gardening (sowing tomatoes etc), older classes also planted flowers and fruit/ veg, sowed wildflowers to encourage bees to visit our school garden, championed Picker Pals in the local area, learned about developing countries and how climate change affects them acutely, made board games on the theme of climate change, took part in surveys. All classes entered into a photo competition: 'Comer Goes Green.

Thank you to parents for helping with the photo competition, Picker Pals and more.

You can see our project, as well as those of other Presentation schools, on the Challenge to Change website: https://www.challengetochangeproject.com/

Thank you to Sr Margaret Mary from the Presentation Education Office for all of her support this year. It is wonderful to be part of this project, looking at the positive changes pupils and our school communities can make.

Sacraments Celebrated in the Summer Term

This year, First Holy Communion was celebrated in Castlecomer on Sunday, 19th June.

Confirmation was celebrated on Saturday, May 14th.

Thank you to Mons. Ryan and Fr. Doyle.

Congratulations to all the children and young people who took part in these celebrations.