SCOIL COLM NEWSLETTERVolume 3, Issue 2October 17th 2012

Principal: Ms C Ní ChianáinDeputy Principal: Mr O’Donnell

The school year is going by very quickly and it’s hard to believe that we are approaching the first mid-term break. I look forward to welcoming parents, grandparents and friends to the school on Friday, 26th October for our annual coffee morning. This has been very popular with our pupils for the past two years, so we are very much looking forward to a fun day before we close for the Halloween break. You may have heard that we are collecting clear plastic two-litre bottles. This is for a project which has started in conjunction with Walk With You. The plan is to build a greenhouse which is made entirely of plastic bottles. We have large green bins around the school, into which the pupils can place their bottles from home. So far, the pupils have already filled four large bins, so we are well on our way!In sports news, our junior and senior GAA teams have been playing well. Our junior team have won two of their three matches so far. Our senior team have won both of their matches so far. If they are successful in their match on Thursday of this week, they will be in the semi-finals. Our thanks to the teachers involved in training the teams and the parents who give their support at matches. Finally, my sincere thanks to Ms Caulfield, the Parents’ Association, teachers and parents who gave their time to support the bag-packing fundraiser in Dunnes Stores, Ashleaf. A total of €767.88 was raised. Wishing you all a safe and happy Halloween. Claire Ní Chianáin

Halloween Coffee Morning, Friday 26th of OctoberWho? Parents, guardians, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends of Scoil Colm.

Bring as many people as you can!Time: From 8.50 am to 10.30am. Venue: The PE hall in Scoil Colm. We would be delighted if you & your son can bring some buns or cakes to share.Cost: €3 tea/specialty teas or coffee. Free refills.

The cost is €3.00 per person and includes Halloween fancy dress for pupils.Raffle tickets: 50c for a strip of five, €1 for three strips. Tickets are available from

classroom teachers and at the coffee morning. The raffle will be held at 10.15am at the Coffee Morning.

Your support is greatly appreciated.

School Closures: School will close at 2.30pm on Friday, 26th October and re-open at 8.50am on Monday, 5th November.

Parent-Teacher Meetings: Meetings will take place on Tuesday, 20th November and Wednesday, 21st November between 2.30 and 4.30. You will receive notice of your appointment time in the weeks following the mid-term break.

Dublin Fire Brigade will launch Fire Safety Week on Monday, 22nd October 2012.

Reminder: If your contact details (mobile number, address, etc.) have changed, please notify the school office as soon as possible. Thank you.

Page 2 of 4 Students’ Page Scoil Colm Newsletter

Star Of The Week By: Matthew, Room 1My name is Matthew. On Friday 19th October I won Star Of The Week. I won it because I did good work and my behaviour was very good. I listened very well. My prize was sweets and a tiger rubber. I also got a certificate. For this whole week I wear the class star. I like being Star Of The Week.

My Exciting Week By Eugene, Room 1My name is Eugene. Last Monday we went swimming. We walked to Crumlin Swimming Pool. It took about three minutes. We jumped in the water. We have two swimming teachers. They teach us to swim and to float. I love swimming. On Friday I got a new baby brother! His name is Dwayne Noah. He is only a few days old. I am now a big brother!

‘Walk With You’ bottle house. Eoghan, R4In the school we are collecting 2 litre bottles to make a Green House. Collect bottles!

Pacman report By Eric, Room 6Pacman is a very fascinating and old video game. It has been played for generations and it is probably the oldest video game in history.Pacman is a yellow circle that eats all types of fruit, coins and anything that stands in his way and says maka! maka! maka! maka!.Pacman has hundreds of levels and games. You can play it in arcades and it has been played all over the world.If you keep playing this game it will stay in arcades and shops.

Recycling at Scoil Colm Report By Lee F, Room 6We can recycle paper, plastic, cardboard and bottles at school. Recycling is when we reuse something instead of dumping it.We do it to keep our environment clean, so there’s no rubbish floating about and so we don’t run out of oil (plastic is made from oil).Mr. Mooney and his helpers separate the rubbish into different bins and Panda Collection collects it for recycling. Mr. Mooney’s helpers and Ms. Watkins take care of the school’s recycling. Recycling is good and we do it at Scoil Colm. We won a Green Flag!

Musical Composition 4th Class By Devin, Room 4.Ms Clarke told us the story of Hansel and Gretel.We drew pictures for the musical composition.We played with musical instruments for the picturesThen we practiced the tempo and dynamics of the pictures with instruments.We practiced before we did the real thing.We needed a person to talk before we played the music. It was exciting before we did it.Ms Clarke was the recorder

4th Class Granny project. By Carl J, Room 4. Around the 10th of September 4th class (Ms.Clarke) started a History project. It was about the life of our grandparents when they were kids. It was great fun. First we thought about the questions we would ask. Then we did our interview. We typed our questions and answers and printed them. Then we put them on a piece of paper or in a scrapbook. We then printed pictures and stuck them on (or in). It was great fun

The Octopus By Jamie, Room 5An octopus is a mollusc. It has eight arms with suckers on each arm. It has a large brain. It has a soft body.The octopus lives in warm water seas. The octopus eats shellfish. It hides on the sea floor and kills shell fish with a poisonous bite. If in danger, it squirts black ink and swims backwards.

The Ladybird By Kyle, Room 5The Ladybird is an insect. It is red with black spots. It has wings hidden beneath its shell. It has six legs.They live in gardens. They eat aphids, such as greenfly. Gardeners like ladybirds because they control pests.

Pitch and putt By Craig Room 8We went on a little trip up to the golf course up the road. It was funny. We won money. It was great fun so I can’t wait for next week. Miss Coady is playing with us so I can’t wait. Miss Coady is a class golfer.

Page 3 of 4 Students’ Page Scoil Colm Newsletter

Halloween Kevin , Room 7I can’t wait for Halloween. I am dressing up as a clown. Our school has all of our Halloween decorations up. School is the best thing in your life. In our school, Ms. Ní Chianáin organises the school fun run. I want to say a big thanks, especially to Ms. Murray, my teacher, for helping us since the start of September until now in October.

Religion Visit Aaron J, Room 7Last Thursday, Sonia, the religion inspector came in to our class before break. We talked about Jeremiah and Elijah. It was fun. Then we talked about the woman who was bent over. Last but not least, Sonia turned off the lights and we closed our eyes. She lit a candle. She told us what we should think of. She told us to think of the woman who was bent over and Jesus. I saw everything that she told us to think of. It was awesome.

I’m making a movie! Aaron D, Room 7In two weeks, my class and I will be making a movie. It is probably going to be a horror! I can’t wait for it but we do not know what the title is yet. We will be doing it with Mr. Donoghue and Ms. Murray.

Halloween Mark, Room 7Last Friday, a lady from Dublin Bus came in. She was talking about being safe at Halloween. She told us to stay away from bangers. Dublin Bus is bringing us over to St. Agnes to talk about Fire Safety Week. It will be great fun. The best class will go to the DSCPA.

My Guardian Angel Jarid, Room 7Why oh why do I have to cryBecause I lost my blue eyed boy?I sit in the dark all alone without mybeautiful brother’s moan.So please God, show me the light soI can see my brother one night.So I’ll stop crying and you canFly away and I’ll just call it a day.And thank you God for showing methe way.And you too bro, oh yeah and tellNanny, I said hello.

The Religion Inspector Karl J, Room 7On Thursday, the religion inspector (Sonia) came to Scoil Colm. We did a meditation. We had to put our feet on the ground and put our hands on our laps. Sonia told us to close our eyes. She told us a religion story. It was really relaxing. She turned off the lights and lit a candle. Afterwards, Sonia told Ms. Murray that we were a very well behaved class. We said ‘thank you Sonia’ and then she went to Room 9.

Religion Inspector Robert, Room 7Last Thursday, the religion inspector came in. She was very nice. She came in before little break. When she came in, she was great. We were singing ‘Do not be afraid, for I am with you’. She spoke to us. She told us to relax, put our hands on our laps and to close our eyes. She put on very quiet music and she said ‘Pretend you are in the synagogue with the woman who was bent over, and God said ‘you are free’. So she lifted her back and jumped up and down with delight’. It was a really good experience.

Gaelic Football By Morgan Room 8We have a great Gaelic team we haven’t lost a match yet we only played 2 games. We have a good team and we are going to play a good team next week it is St. James street. If we win that match we go into the semi final and we will be top of the league. If we all work hard enough we could win the league again. All the teachers say that we have a good and strong enough team to win the league again. My team out side of school we are close to win our hurling league and then we go into division 4 and in school we will go into higher division and we will play harder and better teams. But I won’t be in the school next year but the 5 class could win senior hurling and Gaelic league next year. I like doing new stuff with my school and my club.

Pitch and Putt By CianEvery Wednesday we go to the golf course in O’Toole park to play pitch and putt.It was only 6 euro for three weeks. Two men called Steven and Jim, help us and show us how to play pitch and putt. Steven has about 50 golf clubs in his car and about 40 golf balls and tee’s. Both of the classes do it our class (room 8) and Ms.Watkins class (room 9) Both the classes really enjoy it.

Page 4 of 4 Parents’ Page Scoil Colm Newsletter

Courses and Classes 2012/2013Monday 9.00 – 10.30am - Level 3 Computers – Scoil Colm Computer Room

9.00 – 10.30am – Introduction to Computers and Internet Skills – St Agnes’ School 10.30am – 12.30pm – Everyday Maths – Scoil Colm Parents’ Room

Tuesday 9.00 – 10.30am – Angels Class – Rosary College10.00am – 12.00pm – Art Class – Scoil Colm Parents’ Room9.15 – 10.15am – Fun Fitness – Scoil Colm Hall – November 6th – December 11th

Wednesday 9.30 – 10.45am – Child Development and Play – St Agnes’ SchoolThursday 9.15 – 11.00am – Knitting and crochet – St Agnes’ SchoolFriday 9.00 – 11.00am – Cookery and food and healthy choices – Rosary College

If you need any information on the above courses or would like to join, contact Therese at Scoil Colm or on 086 3013632

The Parents’ Association of Scoil Colm are holding their Annual General Meeting on November 8 th at 6.45pm in the Parents room. All parents are entitled to attend this meeting where a new committee will be formed. Please ensure that you attend this important meeting and become involved in the greater school community for the good of your sons. Scoil Colm Parents’ Association.

Out in the Polytunnel By Jake, R4On Friday, the 12th October, Devin, Carl, Eoghan and I went out to the Polytunnel to shout THANK YOU to the camera. While we were waiting they gave us soup bread and brack. There was a donkey called Billy pulling the vegetable cart. I gave him hugs and fed him and when it was time we went over to the camera, the sun was in our eyes but that didn’t stop us from shouting THANK YOU.

Dissecting a Sheep’s Heart Owen , Room 7In September, we were learning about the heart. Ms. Murray said ‘On Tuesday, we are going to see a sheep’s heart’. We could not wait. When it was Tuesday, Ms. Murray brought the heart in. She called four good boys up. The first four boys were Owen, Séan, Johnaton and Ryan. We had to wear gloves. After we were finished, the other boys had to come up and see the sheep’s heart. We had great fun looking at it and dissecting it.

Dissection Johnaton , Room 7In September, we got to see a sheep’s heart. It was disgusting. We got to see the blood vessels, the arteries and the veins. Our Ms. got the hearts in an abattoir. It was about the same size as our heart which is the same size as your fist. We had to wear gloves if we wanted to touch it. THANK GOD we could wear gloves!!