Now Enrolling for Academic School Year 2014 –2015

Maths Week Ireland is an All Ireland celebration

of Maths. It promotes awareness, appreciation

and understanding of mathematics through a vari-

ety of activities. Maths Week took place from 12th

to 19st of October this year. All students partici-

pated in a variety of maths activities which in-

cluded ‘Who wants to be a millionaire maths

quiz’, numeric crosswords, word searches, maths

eyes posters and Sudoku puzzles. Students en-

joyed taking part and competed in the various

maths challenges posed by the maths teachers in

the school. The week raised the profile of maths

within the school by showing pupils that maths

can be fun and is relevant to real life. Liz Cos-

grave, Maths Teacher

Telephone: 066-7141178 Fax: 066-7141128

www.presentationcastleisland.ie

Presentation Secondary School,

Castleisland, Co. Kerry. Volume 3

Transition Yr students learning some Chess moves during Maths Week!

Principal’s Address Welcome to our Christmas 2013 Newsletter. Our theme for the academic year 2013/14 is ‘ Living Life and Loving Learning’.

We have endeavoured this term to inspire our students to embrace this concept.

The results of the parent, staff and students surveys conducted last year indicate that we are a positive, caring and progressive

school that looks after its students very well. Following on from feedback in the surveys, our School Improvement Plan 2013 -

2014 will focus on the use of the school journal, teacher use of Information Technology and homework issues.

Our Focus for School Self Evaluation this year is Numeracy. The school is involved in a Learning School Project and a DES

Leadership Project, both based on Numeracy. Plans are well under way for the New Junior Cycle. Again this year we are run-

ning short courses for first years in conjunction with St. Patrick’s Secondary School.

The Board of Management recently ratified the Review of the Behaviour Code, the Anti-Bullying Policy and the Attendance

and Punctuality Policy following consultation with the Parents’ Association, Staff and Student Council.

The Educational Partnership with St. Patrick’s Secondary School continues to thrive. The joint TY programme is working very

well thanks to our dedicated coordinators Ms. Annette Leen and Mr. Tim Long.

The students have been engaged in lots of activities this term as you will see in this newsletter. The musical ,‘The Sound of Mu-sic’ , was a fantastic production. Over 800 primary school students attended the two matinee shows. Both night shows were

sold out. I am are very grateful to the staff and students who produced the show. We have a wonderful staff in Presentation

Secondary School who are committed to our students. Teachers are incredibly generous with their time and efforts. Their en-

thusiasm and willingness to embrace the educational changes ahead is to be commended. The Parents’ Association is impor-

tant partners in our school community. I encourage more parents to get involved in the Association.

Finally, the energy, enthusiasm and optimism of our students is to be admired. My wish for 2014 is that they continue to enjoy

life and embrace learning in Presentation Secondary School.

May God bless you all.

Eileen Kennelly,

Principal

We have a very pro-active Parents' Association which liaises closely with the school in relation to supporting the School Community, fundraising and most recently in consultations involving the Review of the Behaviour Code and the Anti-Bullying policy.

There are two main fundraising events held during the year. A bag packing day in Garveys was held on Sat. 21st Dec. We will also have

a Flag Day in March 2014. Many thanks to our students and parents who have helped with these events in the past. This support is vital in order for these highly organised events to be successful. After Christmas the Parents’ Association will assist with the ‘One Direction’ raffle. The PA has also helped the 6th year girls in organising a pre-Debs party in the hall last October. The feedback on this enjoyable gather-

ing was very positive from both parents and students. We hope to continue this tradition in the future. Parents’ Association

Spanish Week was held in the school from 18th to 22nd of November. On Tuesday Ms. Dario and her 5th year students and Belen(our visit-ing Spanish student) cooked a selection of delicious Spanish

tapas and desserts which were enjoyed by all staff and stu-dents in the Senior Social Activity area at break time. On Wednesday 1st, 2nd and 3rd year students watched the movie "Los Sees Signs De La Luz" which was really inter-

esting and exciting and en-joyed by all. On Thursday, 5th and 6th year students watched a Spanish film called "El Cuero", a psy-chological thriller with a great twist at the end. Students thor-oughly enjoyed this and spent

time afterwards discussing the ins and outs of the film. We finished Spanish Week on Friday with a lively rendition of "La Vida Local", sung by 1st year students at break

time.

Martina Dairo,

Spanish Teacher

L.C.V.P. The L.C.V.P. students have been very busy so far this year. The 5th Year students have com-pleted a week of Work Experience in the local area in November. The students found the week very beneficial especially as it helps them greatly when making career choices. They are cur-

rently preparing to further research various careers. The 6th Year students have been on a visit to Walsh Colour Print as part of “Enterprise Educa-tion”. They were taken on a tour of the facility by Mr. Tony Walsh and received the opportu-nity to ask questions about the business. Mrs. Breda Kerin from Enable Ireland visited the class. Students presented her with a cheque for €200. The money was raised by organising a table quiz. Many more activities are planned, including mock interviews and fundraising enterprising ac-tivities.

Annette Leen, L.C.V.P. Co-ordinator

6th Year L.C.V.P. group presenting a cheque to Breda Kerin of Enable Ireland

Presentation Secondary School offers a supervised

study period from 4.00 pm to 6.00 pm on Tuesday,

Wednesday and Thursdays. This will recommence

next term.

Tuck Shop, Upgraded, Convenient Kiosk

As always the new academic year brought new expectations, aspirations and new suggestions. One such initia-

tive for 2012 was the opening of our Tuck shop to promote a non profit Healthy Eating regime. With

students and staff alike, being so busy, the healthy choice is not always the easiest. The shop was stocked with

healthy options such as popcorn and a variety of healthy bar alternatives as well as water and fruit juices. We

are so grateful for the support the student body has shown, not only in their monetary assistance but with suggestions on improvements and

alternatives coming from all quarters.

The purpose was to support the students in looking after themselves as part of their daily routine. Not only are they benefit ing from the high

protein, slow release foods but the new healthy habit has allowed for any profit from the shop to fund a Healthy Breakfast Initiative. With the

support of North and East Kerry Development, we are very fortunate to be able to supply healthy breakfasts to the student body to "kick start

their day the healthy way!" Monies from the tuck shop are now paying for the breakfast milk in an effort to nourish both body and mind.

Senior students are to be commended for their good example in helping out in the shop. The enterprise has shown the capability and potential

of our young adults in their communication skills, economic aptitude and ability to strive for better. With the New Year ahead, we can only

anticipate that this initiative will improve and increase in strength into 2014.

Veronica Ross-Dowd,

All senior cycle students are registered with Reach+, which allows them access to a vast variety of careers resources. All Leaving Certificate

students have availed of individual guidance interviews and they also had a number of information sessions on the CAO application system. Students had the opportunity to practise on the demo application facility before applying to the CAO. Leaving Cert students attended open days in the University of Limerick, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick Institute of Technology and In-stitute of Technology Tralee. Leaving Certificate students also attended the Career’s Fair in Tralee. A guest speaker from UCC also met the students. An email correspondence system has been established between the 6th year students and the Guidance Office so that careers informa-tion can be forwarded directly to them. 5th year students sat the CAT3 aptitude tests. The results are communicated to parents at the Parent-Teacher meetings. The Guidance Counsellor assisted the Transition Year students with their careers investigations in preparation for mock interviews next term.

The Guidance Counsellor has been available to assist individual students with personal, educational and career issues during the term.

Maria Kennelly, Career Guidance

Team Hope/Shoe Box Ap-

peal: Thank you to the first years who collected over 35 shoe boxes which were distrib-

uted to disadvantaged chil-dren around the world. These children cannot even afford basic necessities like school books, pens, copy books or chalk. For chil-dren in poorer countries who have nothing, it has been the

highlight of their year. Your generosity and effort is much appreciated. Well

done to you all.

1500 students participated in the

first heat of this competition na-

tionally. 130 succeeded in reach-

ing the semi-finals in The National

Library Dublin, on Friday 22nd

November 2013. Ciara Murphy

(TY) and Grace Murphy (2nd

Year) were among the 130 who

reached the semi-finals. They did

themselves and their school proud

at this event.

Joan McElligott, English Teacher

1st Years organising The Shoe Box Appeal

Grace Murphy, 2nd Year & Ciara Murphy, T.Y.

Now Enrolling for Academic School Year 2014 –2015

We started the term in Home Economics with the underlying theme “Shine a light on the issue”. The idea is to help prevent obesity and diabetes. 5th year students prepared a range of resources to help draw attention to the problems of obesity and diabetes in our society. The winner of our poster competition was Norette Prendergast.

This theme informed the choice of dishes prepared in practical classes with an emphasis on high fibre, low sugar, and low salt foods. 1st year students con-

centrated on practical work and they undertook practical cookery exams at the end of of term where they demonstrated excellent culinary skills. Moya Sheehan, Cao-imhe Roche and Aisling Teehan won the 1st year muffin making competition.

Some 2nd students entered a National Dairy Council advertising competition enti-tled “Milk It”. This competition emphasises the importance of calcium in the teen-age diet. Students were asked to promote milk products to their peers. 2nd year students also produced posters to encourage their fellow students to be aware of their calcium intakes. 3rd years students went on a field trip as apart of the technology section of their course. They visited a local electrical shop and a lighting shop where they investi-gated modern electrical appliances and modern lighting fixtures.

To celebrate the end of term, our American and German students prepared and presented a range of traditional American and German Christ-

mas cookies for all fifth year students. They sourced traditional family recipes from their respective homes. These recipes have been used for

many generations. The Irish students had a wonderful opportunity to observe the authentic method of creating these classic cookies.

Maria Kennelly, Home Economics Teacher

Exploring Enterprise

Entrepreneurship has never been more important to the Irish economy.

Once again this year, County & City Enterprise Boards provide mentoring

to our 5th yr business students who are learning how to be innovative and

are experiencing entrepreneurship in practice by means of practical pro-

jects and activities. This programme/ competition encourages students to

think about entrepreneurship and self employment as a career choice. It

enhances the teaching and learning of business in the school by combining

class room learning with real life experiences.

Liz Cosgrave, Business Teacher

Budding 5th Year Entrepreneurs Above l to r: Laura Lane, Christine McMahon, Sharon Breen & Victo-ria Cotter Right: Déarbhla Hennessy & Caprice Lyne

NEW SCHOOL WEB SITE WILL BE AVAILABLE ON-LINE IN JANUARY 2014

www.presentationcastleisland.ie

Every year we and our fellow students eagerly anticipate our school tour and this year’s event did not disappoint!!! On Thursday 3rd October, we travelled by bus to Killarney. Unfortu-nately, the weather was not in our favour but nothing could dampen our

mood. Our activity for the day was the high ropes. On our arrival at the venue, An Oige Hostel, our instructors were ready and waiting for us. After donning our safety hats and harnesses, they explained the whole course in detail to us. Throughout our 2 hours of

rope climbing, they were most helpful. On the odd occasion when one of the group was overcome by nerves, they managed to calm us down and so get us moving again.

Although we urged Ms. Prendiville and Ms. O’Shea to participate, they were reluctant and, therefore, remained on terra firma. As it had rained, the course was quite slippery and required good team-work. The purpose of the trip was bonding and this exercise certainly achieved this end. Everyone encouraged one another and enjoyed the ex-perience immensely. The zip line forced us to be brave, but we all took the big leap. In order to fund this trip, both the bus and the activity itself, the 3rd Year

students held a bake sale, which was most successful. The Principal very kindly donated the rest of the cost. Many thanks to her and to Ms. O’Shea and Ms. Prendiville for a great day out! Elizabeth O’Connor & Eimear

Horgan 3rd Year Students.

3rd Years’ Activity Day

The Presentation School Cadet team has enjoyed great success in the last few months, beating The Crescent, Limerick, Castleisland Community College, Rathmore and Mercy Mounthawk. The Cadets were runners up in the SW final in Mounthawk on Thurs., 12th

December and are now into the next round of the All-Ireland qualifiers which will be held in The Community Centre on Saturday 18th Janu-ary. Presentation Secondary School was successful in its application to host the games at home and we look forward to meeting players from Cavan, Cork and Thurles for what will prove to be a thrilling competition. Congratulations to the first year team, coached by Mr. Enright, who were runners-up in the Marguerite Coakley Basketball Tournament in December last.

Monica Murphy, Basketball Coach Assistant

Learning School Project is funded by Teacher Education Section of the Department of Education and Skills. It is an Action Research project which seeks to

Develop an increased awareness of what constitutes a Learning School

Support school-based activities promoting the on – going development of the Learning School

Enhance the capacity of individual teachers to contribute to the Learning School

Nurture teacher leadership in schools

This year, the focus of our project is Numeracy in First Year. We hope to develop a positive attitude to Mathematics among our first year stu-dents while, at the same time, improving their mathematical skills. The project will focus on integrating numeracy in a range of subjects across the first year curriculum, for example, Science, French and Home-

Economics, as well as incorporating and enhancing the first year Maths programme.

Liz Cosgrave, Numeracy Link Teacher/Maths Teacher,

Veronica Ross Dowd., Maths Teacher

A group of 42 First Year students who took part in the 2013 MS Readathon, with their English teacher ,Ms. Joan McElligott, and Principal, Ms. Eileen Kennelly are pictured below. By taking part, the students were encouraged to read as much as possible for one month, while getting sponsored. One of the most important lessons the students learned by participating in the MS Readathon was the value of helping others. They learned how small actions and contributions

can help to achieve great things for people with Multiple Sclerosis all across Ireland. €897.04 was collected. All proceeds will go to MS Ireland.

Joan McElligott, English Teacher

1st Year Group

So far this year, our Student Council has been involved in many projects such as the Stu-dent Council Theme Week “Respect People, Support Each Other”, the Spanish Week and Maths Week. The Council has liaised with the HSE, parents, staff and management to register the school as a Health Promoting School recently.

The “Respect People, Support Each Other” theme week was to promote positive thinking amongst students in connection with the school’s review of our Anti-Bullying Policy. The

Council has had a number of meetings in recent weeks about the anti-bullying policy. During this theme week the Student Council held a non-uniform day to raise funds for the Council to go towards other projects during the course of the school year. This proved to be a successful theme week as all years got involved. Also in this term the Spanish, Maths and Health weeks, organised by the Council, Spanish and Maths Teachers, were very successful. During Spanish Week, movies were shown to all years. Spanish food was provided by the fifth years along with Spanish singing provided by the first years. During Maths Week all years were faced with Maths Challenges as part of showing a fun and different side to Maths.

As part of this year’s Health Week, breakfast was available to students two mornings during the school week. These theme weeks were greatly enjoyed by both staff and pupils. Next term will start with Catholic School Week and French Theme Week. Also next term, we will see the development of the Council’s aim towards the Health Promoting Schools Programme which covers all sides of health, mental and physical well being. Eileen Devitt, the NEPS Psychologist attended a Student Council meeting in October to assist us. Mi-chelle Foley, Health Promotion Officer with the HSE, assisted the students with the planning of the Respect Theme Week. Melissa O’Connell,

5th Year Student. Deputy Head Girl.

Most individuals would agree that no single method, material or strategy will consistently guarantee that students will improve their word knowledge. Therefore, it seems advantageous for teachers to select a variety of approaches.

All first and second year students have a Keyword Journal into which new vocabulary is written.

The Semantic Map (aka visual verbal square) is used to pre-teach concepts that are integral to the topic in hand.

Peer teaching, group work and pair work are often used in classes.

Various modelling strategies are used for comprehensions.

Think-Pair-Share is a common strategy used by teachers.

Reading is encouraged throughout the school. The 1st and 2nd years have one class per week dedicated to reading. Newspapers are often placed in the Junior and Senior Recreation areas.

There is a literacy notice board in the school, where different homophones are put up each week.

First Years took part in MS Readathon. This encouraged students to read more books for enjoyment. It also generated €897.04 for MS Ireland.

2nd, TY and 5th Year students took part in the ‘Poetry Aloud’ Competition. The regional heats took place in Killarney Two students reached the national semi-finals in the National Library in Dublin.

The film-maker in residence at Kerry County Council will be visiting the school in January for a 6-7 week film-making course for the TY students.

Some TY students submitted their own poetry for the ‘Cuisle’ Young Poet of the Year Competition.

5th Years will travel to ‘The Lime Tree’ theatre in Mary Immaculate College in Limerick, on Wednesday 22nd January, to view

‘Othello’.

PowerPoint displays on monitors are used to aid in understanding nouns, verbs, adjectives etc.

Joan McElligott, Literacy Link Teacher

Students from Presentation Secondary School and St. Patrick's Boys Secondary School participated in a wonderful produc-tion of The Sound of Music from the 3rd to the 5th of December last. Over sixty stu-

dents were involved in total from First to Fifth Year. The Transition Year students were members of the Production Team and learned about all aspects of production as part of their Transition Year programme. The stars of the show were Orla O'Connor from Scartaglen who played Maria and Paddy Flynn from Cordal who played Cap-

tain Von Trapp. Both played their parts

fantastically well and performed to the highest standards. Mary O'Connor (Louisa), Art O'Mahony (Max), Jack Walsh (Ralph) and Katie Flynn (Liesel) also deserve a special mention for their fantastic acting and singing

abilities. This year the Production Team decided to invite students from the local Primary Schools to participate in the musical as the youngest Von Trapp children. Four children in all were selected - two girls and two boys and each child performed in one matinee and one night show Two students from Nohoval N.S. were

successful - Niamh Rahilly and Mikey

McCarthy. Emily Murphy from Knocka-clarig N.S. and Daire Murphy from the Boy’s N.S., Castleisland. Each of the four worked extremely hard and performed bril-liantly on the night.

The cast and crew put on four shows in all - two matinees which over eight hundred Primary School children attended, and two night shows which sold out both nights. The show was a fantastic success. All the hard work since September paid off . The cast and crew are now looking forward to a well deserved rest.

Ailish O’Connor, Musical Director

Some of the marvellous cast from ‘The Sound of Music’

Transition Year - A Different Year

The Joint Transition Year class has been working very hard since September. Students have engaged in many activities, both academic and extra curricular .

The year started with a very enjoyable teambuilding day in Cappanalea Outdoor Education centre. The students organised events such as an Athletics Day

and a Tag Rugby tournament, both of which involved students from Presentation and St. Patricks Secondary Schools. This developed their organisation, team-

work and communication skills.

The theme the class have chosen as their Young Social Innovators Theme is “Positive Mental Health” They organised a coffee morning in aid of Pieta House.

and raised €640 . They also took part in the “Walk in my Shoes “ campaign and raised €380 for St. Patrick’s Mental Health Foundation. Students are assisting

the Second Chance charity shop which is the information hub for the Kerry Mental Health Association, by collecting donations. Every Thursday at lunchtime

they run a fitness club for students to promote healthy minds and bodies.

Many trips have been enjoyed by the students including Cappanalea, a walk in Torc in Killarney, a trip to the I.T. in Tralee for a business taster module. Stu-

dents also visited Kerry Airport. There have also been quite a few visitors to the classroom to speak to the students on many topics. The Garda Road Safety

Talk was a very shocking but worthwhile presentation. A representative from Enable Ireland spoke to the class about their work, to name but a few.

Students have also learned about the importance of community work and volunteering. Students attend community placements in the Castleisland area on

Wednesdays which takes a lot of different forms such as paired reading with pupils in local primary schools, engaging with the elderly in our community and

helping in charity shops. A highlight for many students was volunteering at the Indoor Market in aid of the Kerry Parents and friends in November. Students

are also liaising with Castleisland Tidy Towns, collecting litter on Wednesdays and creating posters about water conservation.

Work Experience takes place on Wednesdays, the students have completed four placements since September. The feedback they have received from the place-

ments has been excellent and some students have been offered part time work as a result of their work experience. Work Experience is a valuable method of

career investigation for students.

In business/enterprise class the TY’s decided to make Christmas table centre pieces to sell at the Firies Christmas Market. After using much gold spray, glitter

and glue it has been a great success with demand completely outstripping supply.

Four groups have entered the F1 in Schools competition, where they design a formula 1 car. Students have recently received word that they are through to the

next round. TY’s have also completed a First Aid course with the order of Malta.

TY students received a fantastic insight into all aspects of the musical production with ‘The Sound of Music’, including set design, props, backstage, onstage

roles and running the raffle. This experience will be invaluable to them in the future.

Other skills the students are working on include: public speaking , Cookery and I.T. Next term one of the highlights will involve film making, students will

work with Mr. Michael Kelly, Kerry Film Maker in Residence for seven afternoons to learn about film making.

This initiative between Presentation Secondary School and St. Patrick’s is proving very successful. Thanks to staff and students in both schools.

.

Annette Leen,

T.Y. Co-ordinator