Educating in a joyful, positive and secure setting 

Killavullen NewSletter  Cuairt Chór Addictio

On Friday May 10th , we were lucky to host the Addictio choir from Finland, in St. Nicholas’ Church, in Killavullen Church. It was a pleasure to welcome these talented singers and their conductor, who performed and competed in the 2019 Cork International Choral Festival. Pupils, staff and members of the local community were enraptured by the beautiful harmonies sung in Estonian, Swedish and Finnish. Their music celebrated nature in particular, beginning with slower melodies and finishing with more robust, ’allegro’ numbers. It was a

unique opportunity to showcase the power of the human voice as the choir sang a cappella and it should encourage some of our students to get involved with choirs at some stage of their lives.

After their performance, the choir adjourned to the school hall and were treated to music and instrumental pieces from 5th and 6th classes. It was obvious that the visitors were very impressed. They were fascinated by the hurling demonstration in the astroturf

and many of them ‘gave it their best shot’. Others tried their hand at tin whistle playing. Overall it was a fantastic experience, one we hope to repeat again next year.

Comaoineach don Chéad Uair The sun shone brightly as 18 children from Ms. O’ Keeffe’s class, receiving Communion for the First Time, and their families entered St Nicholas’ Church. The day itself was made all the more special by the support of the choir, who sang beautifully. The communicants themselves sang throughout the Mass. Congratulations to all the children who received their First Holy Communion. Huge thanks goes to Ms.O’ Keeffe for all her hard work, effort and time in preparing the children for this important occasion in their lives. A special thank you to Mrs Angland for preparing the choir and orchestra and to Fr. Condon for holding an information session for parents and for celebrating the ceremonies. Thank you also to the Parents’ Association and parents of First Class who catered for a large crowd in the Halla after the ceremony.

Please note the date for next year’s Communion is SATURDAY 25TH APRIL 2020.

Killavullen  

N.S. 

Open Night We are extremely proud of our state-of-the-art Sensory Room, our Leabharlann/Seomra Ceoil (Multi-Purpose Room), our newly renovated classroom and upgraded kitchen in the Halla. We held an Open Night on Tuesday May 7th to showcase these to past, existing and prospective parents. A copy of our newly published Prospectus was given to each family on the night. A big thank you to our trad group, Molly Bartley, Elizabeth Palmer and Katie Turner who provided music for the night and also to our 6th class pupils, Owen Magner, Eoghan Forde, Tomás Fennell, Rachel O’ Sullivan, Caoimhe Griffin and Ava Hanrahan who led groups around the school in a most professional manner. As ever, our Parents’ Association were on hand to serve up refreshments (and provide reassurance to our new parents!)

Standardised Tests Pupils have taken the mandatory standardised tests, over the past two weeks. This year, a revised Drumcondra Primary Reading test has been administered to all pupils from 1st- 6th class. The standardised tests are being revised in an effort to realign scores nationally, so as to fit into the bell shaped curve. The consensus from teacher forums, is that children’s scores are lower than on previous years, as a result. Reports will be posted in mid June. Should you have any concerns re your child, please make an appointment to discuss with his/her class teacher, after this date.

Science Blast

“Tuesday, the 21st of May 2019 was the day

that we had been preparing for for quite some

time. It was the day of the ESB Science Blast.

So we went on the bus to Mary Immaculate

College in Limerick. When we arrived we got

set up and sorted. We also got a wristband

and a badge which we had to wear, to let the adults and organisers

know that we were involved in the Science Blast.

Our project was entitled “How does shop bought milk differ

from milk straight from a cow?”. So our answer was that shop

bought milk is pasteurised while raw milk isn’t. Pasteurisation means ,

the heat treatment process that kills all of the pathogenic

microorganisms in certain drinks and foods.

For our project we made mozzarella cheese using skimmed, UHT,

Full fat, 1% Fat and raw milks. We did the “Magic Milk” experiment, we

also plated the 5 milks into three different types of agar plates, some for

48 hours at 4oC and the rest for 48 hours at room temperature. We had

all this information and all of the results for these in our project , and we

also had a section on “Louis Pasteur” and on “The Cow”

At Science Blast there were also workshops that lasted for an hour

each. One of the workshops was “ The African Drum Circle “ , which was great fun. We really enjoyed our day

and we received an award from the judges for taking part. - Tuairisc ó Rachel O’ Sullivan

Food Dudes Tara from ‘Food Dudes’, presents members of the Food Dude committee, with a certificate for participating in this year’s Food Dude programme. This initiative will continue with a further week of fruit and vegetables next year. Well done to all our healthy lunch eaters

and thanks to Mrs Cremin for leading this initiative.

Killavullen  

N.S. 

Turas go Dairygold A field trip to Dairygold was organised to show 6th class exactly how pasteurisation takes place, to appreciate the many steps and procedures involved and to show the opportunities for employment that exist in a company like Dairygold.

We wish to thank, Mícheál Hennessey, for allowing us to visit the Dairygold plant and all those who gave of their time and expertise, especially Michelle O’ Driscoll, Health and Safety Manager who organised and led the tour. We really appreciate all the work she undertook to facilitate it . She pulled out all the stops to make it a very successful visit. Many thanks also to Niamh Healy, Deirdre Watkins and the very knowledgeable dairy plant operators. The children were fascinated by the size, layout and complexity of the operation and looked particularly at home in the Boardroom! One of the highlights of the visit was meeting their sporting hero, Mark Coleman and of course

the refreshments served after the tour. They will treasure the memories of their trip for a long time to come, as outlined in the children’s reporting below.

On Friday the 17th of May 2019, we, Mrs Angland’s 6th Class went

on a field trip to Dairygold in Mallow as part of our investigation on

“How Does Shop Bought Milk Differ from Milk Straight from a Cow?”

for the ESB Science Blast in Mary Immaculate College. We were the

first school ever to visit the Dairygold plant in Mallow.

We carpooled from school to Dairygold and once we entered

Reception there were members of staff including Greg Fennell

(Tomás’ dad) to answer our complex and compelling questions.

Next we were led upstairs to the meeting room where we were given free hi-visibility jackets, safety glasses,

pen and paper (for taking notes) and a leaflet on safety which Michelle explained to us. Here we were shown a

powerpoint presentation on the process of pasteurisation by “Dairygold’s finest” Niamh and Deirdre.

They then brought us back down the stairs, outside and along the outdoor shelter where there was a flow

chart explaining to us what happens at Dairygold.

After that they showed us the silos and all the pipes and tubes that are used to transfer the milk from the

lorries to the silos.

Next we went into the control room where Maurice and Patrick

were waiting us. They explained the complex use of all the pipes

and tanks that were in the pasteurisation room. We took a few

pictures with them and went back to the meeting room.

When we re-entered the meeting room, there was a magnificent

stack of well deserved red velvet cupcakes waiting for us. Once we

started eating our cupcakes, a familiar face walked into the room.

It was Mark Coleman! We asked and he answered questions and

we took a couple of pictures with him.

We said goodbye to the team and then we left. The icing on the

cupcake for us was learning so much from the team about

Dairygold and of course, meeting Cork Senior Hurler Mark Coleman.

Tuairisc ó Elizabeth Palmer and Rachel O'Sullivan

Killavullen  

N.S. 

Comórtas Snámha na Scoile Mallow Schools’ Gala took place on May 15th. Sixteen children from Killavullen N.S. took place in individual events and relays. Our swimmers gave it their all and competition was extremely keen, with some of our contestants only narrowly missing out on places in the finals. Heartiest congratulations to Daithí Murphy who took the gold in the 3rd/4th backstroke category.

Naonáin Shóisearacha An Information Evening for parents of all infants starting next September will be held Wed. June 19th at 7.30pm in the Halla in school. The Junior Infants themselves will get a chance to come in a week later to see their new classroom and meet their new teacher on Wed 26th June from 10am - 12pm.

Treodóireacht The All Ireland Orienteering Championship took place in Doneraile park in May. Three teams won bronze medals

5th class boys: Seán Taylor, Ryan Roche, Niall Fitzgerald and Jack Stafford 5th class girls: Sarah Taylor, Silín Murphy, Geri Buckley and Ella Lombard 6th class girls: Elizabeth Palmer, Rachel O’ Sullivan and Ava Hanrahan.

We just missed out on individual medals; Sarah Taylor came fourth by one minute and Seán Taylor by an incredible two seconds!! Other Top 10 individual finishers were Elizabeth Palmer, Silín Murphy and Owen Magner. Outstanding orienteering all!! Maith sibh a pháistí!!

Coiste Tuistí Please find attached a letter from our Parents’ Association outlining the absolutely amazing work they have done this year. The figures raised are staggering and we are so, so grateful for their efforts, and for the support received from the parent-body and wider community. Ní neart go cur le chéile!!

Dates for your Diary (Please note school closure)

● Thursday 30th May - Cork City Sports

● Friday 31st May - Sciath na Scol Boys Hurling

● Tuesday June 4th - Primary Language Day - SCHOOL CLOSED

● Wednesday June 5th - 5th/ 6th Girls’ Football Blitz, Glantane

- Sciath na Scol Boys Hurling, Carrigoon - After the matches a visiting drama group perform Treasure Island (€2 per child/€3 per family)

● Friday June 14th - 6th class trip to U.C.C.

● Friday June 14th- Infant/1st class tour

● Monday June 17th - 5th/6th class tour

● Tuesday June 18th - 2nd/3rd/4th tour

● Wednesday June 19th - Infant information night

● Tuesday June 25th - Graduation ceremony for 6th class

● Wednesday 26th - Infant morning 10am - 12pm.