News

All Ireland Champions !!

Westmeath made their first visit to Croke Park one to remember as they claimed their maiden All-Ireland Premier Junior title.

St. Mary’s was honoured to have the Kay Mills Cup visit us along with some of the winning team Captain Fiona Leavy, Muireann Scally, Meabh Scally and Shelia McGrath. Loud cheers and applause were particularly loud and clear for Ms Keating who was goalie for the winning team. Ms Keating regaled us on all of the behind the scene nerves and excitement of such a momentous win over Dublin.

Congratulations to all involved!

 

 

County Champions !!

Our school football team recently became county champions. The following is a report of the enthralling final (written by Tom Dorr).

 

 

St. Mary’s Are Champions!!!

 

On the 25^th of May, St. Mary’s played Gaeilscoil an Mhuileann in the Cumann na mBunscoil Division 1B Final in Cusack Park. Mary’s had been practising hard and they were determined to win. It was an extremely hot day in Cusack Park but that didn’t stop the lads from playing their best. Joined captains Tom Dorr and Camron Crichton led the team onto the pitch and after a few drills, the game began. The crowds were cheering from both ends.

The game was very tight right from the start. Jamie Rooney scored the opening point after 90 seconds with a perfectly placed free kick, but Gaeilscoil responded with Ryan Kelly scoring a point from a free kick. For the rest of the first half, it was point after point from both teams until Matthew Rooney scored a beauty of a goal created by the two captains. The half time score was 1-4 to 0-4. Mary’s were in the lead.

In the second half, Gaeilscoil started off by scoring two points. After 5 minutes, Mary’s get a 45’ and Jamie Rooney steps up to it.

Camron received the ball off Jamie and he tries for a point but it is deflected into the back of the net. Mary’s were winning 2-4 to 0-6. Enda then scored another goal. Ryan Kelly and number 12 for the Gaeilscoil then scored a goal each. Jonathan Byrne scored a goal and Jamie Rooney with another pont. Tom Dorr finished the game off with scoring a goal and the whistle went. The game finished 5-6 to 2-6 and St. Mary’s were champions!

Lineup

                                           Billy Darby

Martin Scally      Jakub Wyszomirski            Brandon K.

Daniel Shaw              Daniel Conway             Leon Doyle 

                    Camron Crichton  Aaron Russell

Enda Keating              Tom Dorr        Elvinas Meckauskas

Corey Farrell           Matthew Rooney       Jamie Rooney

 

 

          

             

                    

 

 

 

Plenty to BEE proud of !!

 

Our very own Tom Dorr recently represented his county (Westmeath) in the Leinster final of the Spelling Bee competition. He put in an incredible performance, and came in second place. This is an amazing achievement that Tom, his family, his county and the school can be extremely proud of.

Well Done Tom.                                                                                               

                           

 

 

Seachtain na Gaeilge 

 

St Mary’s National School had a very successful festival of events for ‘Seachtain na Gaeilge’. Week one started with a poster competition with many elaborate entries and colourful combations of green, white and gold to display around the school building. Stickers were provided which encouraged the use of spoken Irish within the school environs and especially on yard breaks. This was also to highlight ‘Gaeilgeoir na Seachtaine’ within each classroom, which would be a coveted prize at the end of week two.

 

Week two began with sporting and dance activites. The school was fortunate with good weather to facilitate a ‘poc fada’ competition and a game of rounders all through Irish. While indoor events took place in the hall over two days. A dance class through Irish included traditional Irish dance and even a ‘Cha-Cha’ as gaeilge! Following on from this, a successful day of Yoga was held through Irish. Children really enjoyed learning some new techniques while being immersed in the language.

 

Finally, a ‘Lá glas’ was held on March 16th to mark our national day of celebration for St. Patrick. The ceremony through Irish was assisted by the pupils who performed on the day. Each class gave an excellent display of singing, dancing and poetry. There was a ‘sea of green’ in the hall as everybody made an exceptional effort to dress up in green. We had green wigs, face paints, hula skirts and some very funky green glasses on display. This was a special event and all staff were very proud to be part of the celebration for ‘Lá Fhéile Pádraig.’ Funds were also raised for a charity donation to children in Kenya, Africa. Well done to the pupils. Maith sibh! ‘Seachtain na Gaeilge’ was a great social event in which students could talk to one another informally through Irish.

 

    

 

 

 

 

SPELLbinding display from Tom Dorr

Congratulations to our very own Tom Dorr, who competed in and won the regional ‘Spelling Bee’ competition today. Tom is now Westmeath’s ‘Spelling Bee’ champion and will represent the county as he progresses in the competition. It is a fantastic achievement and everyone in St. Mary’s Primary School is extremely proud.

Go n-éirí go geal leat as seo amach.

OH SIT DOWN !!!

Third and Fifth Class performed their own rendition of the 1991 classic ‘Sit Down’ by James. So sit down, click the box below and have a listen

 OPEN DAY 2017

The open day for St. Mary’s Primary School will take place on Saturday 14th of January from 11a.m-1p.m. You are very welcome to come along, to wander the halls and see what St Mary’s Primary School has to offer. Complementary refreshments and snacks will be available. We look forward to welcoming you to our school

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sixth Class performed ‘Heyday’ by Mic Cristopher this week. The performance was a tribute for the 15th anniversary of his passing. Please click the link below to see their performance.

6th-Heyday

€230 Raised from ‘Ice Cream Fun Day’ in Aid of Down Syndrome Ireland 

230 euro was raised from our recent Ice Cream Fun Day in Aid of Down Syndrome Ireland. Thanks and well done to all involved!!

SPORTS DAY 

Sports Day went off without a hitch this week. The children really enjoyed the day and it was the school’s main activity for Active Schools Week.

HURLING BLITZ

We recently won a hurling blitz in loreto gym. There were two teams from St.Colmans and a team from Ardnagrath N.S. Our lads came out with a perfect record of 3 out of 3 to win the blitz.

 OPEN DAY 2016

The open day for St. Mary’s Primary School will take place on Saturday 16th of January from 11a.m-1p.m. You are very welcome to come along, to wander the halls and see what St Mary’s Primary School has to offer. Complementary refreshments and snacks will be available. We look forward to welcoming you to our school

 

Sponsored Shave

On Friday, four of the members of staff had their facial hair shaved off during assembly. The children really seemed to enjoy their teachers going through some pain. Many thanks to all who sponsored the shave. It was a great success.

Online Safety 

Sixth class received a talk today regarding the importance of privacy and the care needed when posting things online. They discussed how the content of material put on the internet leaves a lifelong fingerprint, and therefor great care must be taken when posting. They also discussed the importance of personally knowing anybody you contact online.

                                

 

 

 

 

  

Homework Evening is on Tuesday 15th September at 6.30 p.m.  for all boys and girls  ( and their parents)  from 1st class to 6th class.

Come along!   Meet your child’s teacher.

 

Find out how to help your child with homework throughout the year.           

Application forms for Homework Club will be available on the night.

Looking forward to meeting you on Tuesday!

 

Mini 7s Hurling

Our hurlers did us proud at the mini 7s in St.Lomans last week. Having come out of our group including Multyfarnham and Whitehall we progressed to play local rivals St.Colmans in the semi final with Tomass Turks, Daithí Ó Máirtín and Tyrone Donoghoe particularly impressive. We then faced Multyfarnham in the final and came out on top after a tight game with Kheelan Poynton and Daniel Conway doing 4th class proud with excellent performances.
After winning out blitz we then faced a very strong Raharney side in the county final where we put up a good fight but fell just short. Well done to all involved on a great day for our school.
Panel: Kheelan Poynton, Daniel Conway, Matthew Rooney (4th)
Tomass Turks, Ruairí Woods, Daithí Ó Máirtín, Caoimhín Duncan, Tyrone Donoghoe, Niall Doonan, Daniel Rooney-Cooke. (5th)
Gianluca Hasset (6th)

 

 

Junior/Senior Infants Sports Day

 

Today (13th May 2015) we held a sports day for junior and senior infants. The children were grouped into 8 teams, and  participated in many activities – relay races/ javelin/ obstacle courses/ egg-n-spoon race/ beanbags/ parachute/ penalty kicks/ tag hunt.

Huge help was given by sixth class students, in both the setup and running of the day’s activities. Many thanks to all the children,  teachers and S.N.As that helped ensure the day was an enjoyable and memorable success

 

 

 

 

All Ireland Draughts Success

 

 

Our two draughts teams did St Mary’s Primary School extremely proud in the recent All-Ireland Draughts Competition in Limerick. Every player, on both teams, showed great determination and skill in cementing an impressive 3rd and 4th place finish.

Well done to all involved

 

 

 

Hurling Blitz

The school sent two teams to take part in a hurling blitz in Loreto College  on Thursday 5th February. A great day was had by all. One of the teams managed to win the competition. Well done to all involved!!

Click on the link below for a student report on the blitz.

hurling blitz report

 

 

 

 

Christmas Draw

€1134.53 was raised from the schools’ recent Christmas Draw which was sponsored by the Parents Council

Donations this term from the Parents Council were used for

- sports equipment

- a school trip to the pantomime ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’

- a coach to bring the school choir to the Peace Proms

The winners of the Christmas Draw were as follows:

1st:  Richard McLaughlin

2nd: Murie Hissins

3rd: Bernie Kiernan

4th: Jason Dinnegan

5th: Harry McAuley

Congratulations to all the winners and many thanks to all who took part.

4th class recently took part in a soccer blitz in Loreto College. Both our boys and girls teams had a great day, and the boys took home 1st prize!!!!

   All Ireland Final Draught’s

On Friday 4^th April we had an All – Ireland draughts final in CO. Limerick.  It was our first time ever in a draughts final.  Out of 16 teams we came 6^th, 10^th & 11^th which was a magnificent achievement as the competition was a very high standard.  There were 3 groups of 4 players each. Our champions were Ugne Sipaviciute, Marino Hrihor, Aridas Strelkauskas, Refaat Arafa, James Kirk, Jake Sweeney, Benjamin Nanu, Luke Wheeler, Jordan Byrne, Ruairi Fagan, Rohail Ramesh and Sebastian Stromidlo. There were five rounds and we had many victorious players.  All participants represented the school really well.  We had a great time there .We hope to go again in the future and have fun.  Well done to all.

By Rohail Ramesh & Cathal Woods

Soccer blitz

Yesterday sixth class went to a soccer blitz. There was two teams of 8 from our school the A and the B. The two teams were even on points before they met. The matches were six minutes a half. The B team bet the A team by one lucky. The B team got into the semi-finals but did not play as well as the opponents and lost to a strong Kinnegad team who won the final 3-0 against Educate together. Kinnegad were the best team by far. Thanks to Mr.O`Máirtin and Mr.Whitney for their great management.

A TEAM                                                          B TEAM

Max Hahajev                                                Bradley Mee

James Kirk                                                    Cathal Woods

Cian.Farrel                                                   Ryan.Clarke

Barry Nwokeiwu                                         Cian.Mcbride

Gideon Amaechi                                         Harry Mccormack

Ryan. Mccormack                                       Jordan Byrne

Jordan Scally                                                Evan Battle

Refaat Arafa                                                Matthew siode

Mr. Scally’s Class set up their own blog. Room 14 were busy doing  their  homework online on a website called Kigblog.Here’s a link to  see  their work.

http://kidblog.org/MrScallysclass/

In Mr Scally’s 6th class we made Lava Lamps!!

This is how ………

1.Fill a quarter of a clear plastic bottle with water

2.Then fill three quarters or more of the bottle with oil (The more oil the better the effect)

3.Put in some food coloring  (just enough until you can see the water changing color)

4.Drop in a tablet that fizzes such as an alka-seltzer and watch it come to life (remember to put the cap on)

Confirmation tiles

Room 14 were busy making  tiles for their Confirmation and they look wonderful.

CONFIRMATION TILES

Seachtain na Gaeilge

Lá Fhéile Pádraig sona daoibh go léir. We all had a blast performing as Gaeilge for our ceolchoirm this week. Everyone was making a special effort this week to use as much Gaeilge as possible and a special child from each class was selected as Gaeilgeoir na Seachtaine.

Bhí Seachtain na Gaeilge ar siúl sa scoil an seachtain seo chaite.Bhí ceolchoirm,poc fada agus Lá glas againn.Bhí spraoí agus craic againn go léir.Is aoibheann linn an Ghaeilge i St.Mary’s.

Have a look at some of the pictures:

World book Day 2014

We had lots of fun dressing up as our favourite characters for world book day. Have a look:

           

ST.BRIGID’S CROSSES.

Room 14 made ST.Brigid’s crosses of ST.Brigid’s Day.

The Wizard of Oz

On Tuesday the 3^rd of February St .Mary’s went to the Art Center to watch a theater production of The Wizard of Oz which was produced by M&M productions an English Theater company. The Arts Center looked amazing with the colorful set, stage and lighting. As the lights dimmed,  everyone fell silent and we were transported to Oz.

The characters included Dorothy, Dorothy’s brother and uncle, the Tin man, a Scarecrow, a lion, a Wicked Witch of the West, Wicked Witch of the East, Glinda the good witch, the Wizard of Oz and Bock! The costumes were colorful and suited the characters.

The plot followed the regular storyline of the movie, but the music mix enhanced the portrayal of the story. We knew the songs but they added their own lyrics. It was the Best Song Ever and we were going One Way or Another on the Yellow Brick Road. The Scarecrow wondered” what does the fox say” while we knew that lion was “crazy” but that Dorothy and Scarecrow were true “Gangnam Style”. The Junior Infants really enjoyed the performance and were very engaged with the characters in the play. The actors were very entertaining and invited us to participate. The 6^th class weren’t too sure

if they would like the play but we asked them and they loved it and the music too!

It was a fast paced performance that had the audience yelling for more.

We are very happy to be in St. Mary’s as we are so spoiled ……..but we earn it.

special thanks to Ms.Mc veigh for taking us to this wonderful play

written by:

joseph fox

Jack Hand

Erica Lengheli

Keith Dalton:)

OPEN DAY 2014

A great day was had by all at the St. Mary’s Primary School open day 2014. We certainly enjoyed it. Take a look at some photos of  the fun activities we had on offer.

World War 2  Spit fire’s planes .

Mr Scally’s  class learning about World War 2. We made our own RAF Spitfire planes. watch the power point to find how !

MAKE YOUR OWN SPITFIRE

Stirring up a Storm in 4th Class

In class we created our very own rainstorm when we were learning about clouds. The three cloud types we looked at were cumulous, stratus and cirrus. We recorded the cloud type every day for a week in our copy and we predicted the temperature in Mullingar, Oslo (Norway) and Sydney (Australia)

We created a rainstorm to see how rain falls from the sky. We made some clouds using shaving foam. We made the rain using blue and red food colouring.

We added the rain using a dropper. When we first added the food colouring, nothing happened. This is just like clouds in real life. The water builds up in clouds and when the cloud gets too heavy it starts to rain. After more food colouring was added the rain began to fall from the clouds and we could see it in the bowl!

Then we decided to add lots of food colouring and we created a rain storm where the rain covered the bowl and came down really fast as the cloud couldn’t hold it any more.

We were all really excited watching this experiment. We predicted what might happen first and then we wrote about what happened in our copies.

We had fun making our winter art!

 GETTING READY FOR OUR CHRISTMAS FUNDRAISER.

        We have been ever so busy for the last few weeks. We have been painting, sewing and assembling Christmas decorations. We are proud of our creations. Some of us learned to sew for the very first time! These decorations are going on sale in the Greville Arms on Wed Dec 4th. We hope you like them and we also hope you might purchase some for your homes.

St. Mary’s Primary present Christmas Food Fair & Cookery Demonstration

We are holding our very own Christmas Food fair & Cookery Demonstration on Wed Dec 4th in the Greville Arms. This a major fundraiser for our school with all the proceeds going towards a new Autism Sensory Garden. This will be a huge asset to the school.

On the night there will be several food and craft stalls with a Christmas theme. It might just kick off your Christmas shopping list! We are having a raffle with lots of fabulous prizes and of course we are having Máire Dufficy form Bord Bia to demonstrate some delicious Christmas dishes.

We are prevailing on parents to help us out by purchasing one ticket if possible. Tickets are available from Linda in the office, the Greville Arms Hotel or Miss Burke in Rm 5 (on the infant’s corridor).They cost €12 each or 2 for €20. We would be extremely grateful if  parents would support us with this very worthy venture.

WORLD DIABETES DAY NOV 14TH 2013

You might have wondered why so many of us are wearing blue today……. Well the reason is we are showing our support for people who have diabetes. In fact many famous buildings in different countries are lit up in blue for the day also.

CHRISTMAS SHOEBOX APPEAL

Between all the classes our school filled a whopping 46 shoeboxes with lots of toys, hats, scarves, colouring books and plenty of other lovely items. We  hope this will brighten some boy or girls Christmas. We know it made us feel really good when we were doing something nice for people that are not us lucky as ourselves.

SCARY TIMES!

Check out all the ‘spooooooky’ costumes. Which is your personal favourite?? Junior and Senior Infants gave us a really big fright! 6th class could not be recognised. Some of the boys were spotted with wigs and dresses!

HALLOWEEN AT ST.MARYS

Every class in the school got the opportunity to make chocolate apples for Halloween. We dipped them in sprinkles and they were all wrapped up for us to take home for Halloween. They were scrumptious!

                                                      

                                                            

                                                                 

Preparing for Halloween at St. Marys

The excitement is rising!!!!!!! ………..The witch is stirring up her spells……….. the black cat is watching………. Dracula has made an appearance at the office………..Halloween Art and decorations are to be seen in the corridors………..St.Mary’s pupils are preparing their costumes for Friday aaaaaaaaaaaaaand………….there may be a very SPECIAL TREAT for the whole school as well.

S

Maths Day in DIT

Yesterday the 6th class went to Dublin for a maths show in DIT. When we got to Dublin we went into the cafeteria to eat our lunch. After that we went into the main hall to play some maths games. There were puzzles, quizzes and cool math games. There were games like Connect Four, Roblox and Who Wants to be a Mathionaire. After that a man who wrote Murderous Maths talked to us. He was very funny and the things he showed us were amazing. When he finished we went home. It was a great day.

By James Kirk and Cáthal Woods

Goal Jersey Day 2013

Last Friday Oct 11th we had a great day for Goal Jersey Day. In fact it was that great we managed to collect €360.67  for Goal. We are so proud of ourselves.

Plunketts supporters turned up with their jersies and stole the show! Keep a look out for the papers this week, we may just feature ……

Check out a few of our very colourful pupils! One pupil, Jordan Byrne managed to wear eight, yes eight jersies) at the one time!.

€360.67 raised for GOAL

Check out our Junior Infant Bumble Bees and Caterpillars……..

We’re making our mark on St.Marys!

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Miss Hallinan’s Junior Infants love the swirling twirling leaves.

6th Class Trip to Library

On Wednesday 6th class went to the library for an exhibition and talk from local photographer John McCauley who visited Tanzania for some charity work. The boys really enjoyed the trip and asked some very interesting questions.

Belvedere Athletics 18/09/’13

On the 18th of September the St.Mary’s Primary Cross Country team went to Belvedere. It was a cloudy day at Belvedere with a little bit of rain. We had a bit of time to get warmed up before the 3rd class boys race started. The 3rd class must have been used to being around girls as they went with the girls in the 3rd class girls race! We won five medals in that race with Tom Dorr coming in 5th. In the 4th class race we only won one but that is still better then nothing. Johnny Joyce picked up a medal for 11th place.  Ruairí Fagan came in 5th in the 5th class race and then the final race came, the 6th class boy’s race. It was a great race with Ryan Kelly winning a medal after coming in 14th. We didn’t get back to school until 2:30pm so the boys were very happy with that as well! Mr.ó Mairtín and Miss Burke came with us but they didn’t do any running … Well done to all the boys who entered and you all did very well. Congratulations!

                                                                                            By James Kirk

Coffee Morning 19/09/’13   

      This Thursday  September 19th we are inviting our parents to come into the school for a coffee morning in aid of our local hospice. It is a very worthy cause and also an opportunity to meet and mingle with other parents over a nice cup of coffee and maybe even a treat to go along with it! So make a date in that diary for 10.45 am this Thursday and bring along your two euro. We will be delighted to welcome you in.

Homework Evening Update 11/09/’13

On Wenesday evening September 11th we had our annual Homework Evening. This evening provided parents with the opportunity to meet with teachers and get some guidelines on how to help and advise their children in relation to homework. We had a great turnout of enthusiastic pupils and even more enthusiastic parents! Now that parents are well informed on what exactly has to be done we won’t be hearing any ‘my dog ate the homework’ excuses from the pupils! Homework is a very important part of schoolwork that consolidates what has been learned during the day in class.

Great to see so many parents and pupils working together!

Homework Evening

This Wednesday evening Sept 11th, we will hold our annual Homework Evening in the school. Parents of first, second and third classes are invited to come along at 6.30pm and afterwards at 7.30pm, fourth, fifth and sixth class parents are welcome.

As parents you will get the opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher and gain an insight into how you can support them at home in relation to homework. It is a really worthwhile evening where you can address any concerns you may have in relation to homework. It is important that you bring your child along with you on Wednesday evening as this makes the experience more fruitful. Your child can bring along the homework that she/he has been assigned  that evening and you will be shown how to improve the experience and perhaps lessen the anxieties that often accompany homework in the home.

We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday and we hope the children will come along in big numbers , full of questions and enthusiasm!

 Our Beloved Miss Whelehan

On September 5th our beloved Miss Whelehan passed away after a short illness. She was our deputy principal, our teacher, our colleague and most of all she was the rock of our school. She loved St Marys with all her heart and there was nothing she wouldn’t do for our school. We will miss her terribly and think of her every day but we know she will be looking down on us with pride and watching every move we make as we journey into the future. Ní bheidh a leithéid ann arís.

We’ve done it ……. we’ve made history!!! 30/08/’13

Today for the very first time we have welcomed not only infants and first class into our school but we have also welcomed girls. Our lives will be changed forever! We had such an exciting day. The junior infants arrival was greeted with a huge welcome by staff and after a fun-filled half day they set off for home with a lovely personalised cup cake with their own name iced on it. They were also armed with a very special certificate to say that they were the first junior infants ever at St. Marys. Indeed senior infants, first class and all the girls throughout the school received this very special certificate.

The Clever Caterpillar Class wave hello 

 

The Busy Bee Class are so very buzzzzzzy

                                     Girl Power in the Busy Bee Class

We also welcomed new pupils into our ‘Sunflower’ Preschool class. They thoroughly enjoyed the day. They got to sample the delights of the new Aistear Room while the finishing touches were put to their own room. The small world station got plenty of use today and the teddy bears became great friends! Pictures to follow when we get cosy in our new room.

Our New Aistear Room 30/08/’13

 

Check out our brand new Aistear Room. The word ‘Aistear’ is the Irish word for journey.  It has been chosen because early childhood is the beginning of childrens’ lifelong learning  journeys. This room has been developed to encourage good quality play experiences for our infants. As you can see it is very colourful with lots of exciting work stations for the children to explore. I’m sure our senior boys and girls would loved to have had this as infants!

                                                                                                                   Come and play with us!

 

Oh what fun we will have at our role play station ..you won’t recognise us!

Our Small World Station….we’ll be on the move!

Our Sand Station is the cream of the crop!

This is where the writers of the future will make a start …..

History in the Making! 30/8/’13

September 2013 is bringing great changes to St. Marys. Never before in the history of the school have we had infants or girls. St. Marys’ boys better beware as as they will have some stiff competition with the arrival of the girls! We are also thrilled to see the advent of the infant classes and of course first class. It will certainly be a busy but exciting year. Keep in touch with school activities by visiting this page regularly. You are sure to see a lot of  new changes  as we set off on our  historic journey.

 

YE-HA! 25/6/13

Today St Mary’s was taken over by the wild, wild west as 6th class treated us to a performance of their eagerly anticipated musical “Ye-ha”! Catchy tunes, punchy script and capital choreography all had their audience roaring with laughter, joining in the singing and looking for more… The 6th Class musical has become an annual tradition in St. Mary’s and the class of 2012 – 2013 certainly kept the show on the road and lived up to the standard set by their predecessors. Previous performances include “Hoodwinked”, “Robin Hood” and “Go for Gold”. The boys will perform for their family members tomorrow afternoon. Congratulations to Mr. O Mairtin, Ms. O Grady and their classes. Many thanks to all those who helped with costumes, staging and props.

DUATHLON 21/6/13

Well done to all the students who took part in the duathlon today. We’re very proud of you all.

FIFTH CLASS SPORTS EXTRAVAGANZA 20/6/13

Fifth Class enjoyed a day of sports today. They had the opportunity to play basketball, rounders, tag rugby, unihoc, soccer, hurling and dodgeball. They also competed in the 400 metres race, hurdles, javelin, discus and penalty shots. A great (and tiring) day was had by all.

NATIONAL CYCLE TO SCHOOL DAY 19/6/13

Here at St Mary’s, we have many enthusiastic cyclists. These are  boys cycle to school regularly. Wednesday was National Cycle to School Day. 27 of our pupils cycled to school using their usual route and 5 joined in the cycle organised by Westmeath County Council. This makes a grand total of 32 cyclists. Well done everybody.

SPORTS DAY 19/6/13

Sports Day for 2nd, 3rd and 4th class was held today. Our boys were split into four teams: red, blue, green and white. The aim of the day was to work as a team and earn points for your house colour. The boys had team sports, track events and individual challenges. All points earned were submitted to Mr O Mairtin for counting. Now we have to wait until WEDNESDAY’s Awards Assembly to find out which team has won the school cup for 2013… We had a lot of fun. Many thanks to the Sixth Classes who organised the events, set up equipment and acted as mentors and guides for the day.

SPONSORED WALK – A RUNAWAY SUCCESS 18/6/13

Our highly anticipated sponsored walk took place today and was, thanks to pupils, staff , volunteers and gardai, a huge success. We had glorious weather, assistance from the gardai and highly motivated and enthusiastic participants. All safety advice was followed and the rules of the road adhered to. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed their picnic lunches in both the Harbour Field and Oliver Plunketts hurling grounds. When we arrived back at the school, we were greeted with ice cold ice-cream and wafers, ideal on a such a sunny summer’s day. Not only have we completed a project as part of work for the Travel Flag for Green Schools, we have raised a staggering €2400 in the process. Many thanks to all those who contributed so generously to our school. We are very appreciative of people’s generosity and goodwill.

SPONSORED WALK 17/6/13

Tomorrow, Tuesday, we will have a Sponsored Walk. This walk has a dual focus: we are completing it as part of our work on the Travel Flag for Green Schools and it is also an opportunity to raise funds to buy resources for our school. Our Juniors will complete a 3km route and our Seniors a 5km route. Juniors will stop off for a picnic lunch and games in the Harbour Field and the Seniors in St Oliver Plunketts hurling grounds. Who knows what something nice lies in store when we return to St Mary’s? We aim to start tomorrow morning at 11a.m. If you see us, wave at us. We’d love to have your support. Well done to all the boys (and their parents) who have returned their sponsorship cards.

OPEN NIGHT 11/6/13

Tomorrow night, Wednesday 12th June, we welcome our incoming pupils back to St Mary’s. There will be an introductory talk for our new boys and girls and their parents given  by our principal;  a chance for the pupils to meet their new teachers;  an opportunity to purchase next year’s textbooks at our “pop up bookshop”;  some time to have an amble around the building and of course, enjoy a few goodies. We’re looking forward to meeting you all….AGAIN! We hope that your years at St. Mary’s will be very happy ones.

SCHOOL CONCERT 10/6/13

Our 24th School Choir Concert was held last Friday night in Mullingar Arts Centre. It featured debut performances by our newly formed Junior Choir and Junior Recorder Ensemble. The Senior Choir gave excellent performances of a wide range of music and one little audience member was so engaged, he joined in the singing! The lively audience clapped, tapped and cheered on the young performers. Big celebrations are expected next year when the Senior Choir celebrates reaching 25 years, a quarter of a century in existence…

BASKETBALL CHAMPS 7/6/13

Some boys from Sixth Class headed to Streete today to take part in a Basketball Blitz and boy, did they perform a serious blitz on their opponents. We are delighted to announce that St Mary’s emerged VICTORIOUS at the end of the day  and were the overall winners. Well done to Christian who was named the Player of the Tournament.

A WELL DESERVED PARTY 29/5/13

Our Second Classes arrived at school resplendent in their First Communion finery. They enjoyed a pizza party and a dvd in the afternoon. That morning they had attended mass in the Cathedral with their class teachers. Congratulations to everyone who worked so hard in preparation for the big day: teachers, pupils and parents.

SUMMER SOCCER LEAGUE 28/5/13

Fifth Classes are currently slogging it out to be champions of the St. Mary’s League. Many thanks to Mr O Mairtin who organises the tournament during lunch times.

3D DELIRIUM

Armed with straws and play dough, these boys from third class set about constructing cuboids, pyramids, cubes and triangular prisms. They had a lot of fun.

FIRST COMMUNION DAY NEARLY HERE 24/5/13

The boys of second class are growing more and more excited as the long anticipated First Communion day draws closer. Their prayers and responses have been perfected and their copies reflect the preparation that has gone into getting ready for this very special day. We wish them and their families every blessing on Sunday and we hope they have a really lovely day, one which will live on in their memories for a very long time. Well done to their teachers, Ms Hallinan and Ms Murrin, for all their hard work and many thanks to Father McMahon who will celebrate the Mass. The boys put together a display which will be mounted in the Cathedral for their First Communion mass.

HOMEWORK CLUB ENDS 23/5/13

Our three Homework Clubs finished their term today.  Homework Club staff agreed that the members of all three clubs were a pleasure to work and that they looked forward to working with them again next year. As a reward, we held a surprise party in one of the classrooms. Everyone enjoyed the goodies and the break from work!

INCREDIBLE EDIBLES 22/5/13

This is one of our mini “greenhouses”.. It is located in front of the school in a nice, sunny spot. Third classes have been busy sowing potatoes, turnips, carrots and lettuce. We’re looking forward to a bumper crop.

WELL DONE, LADS 21/5/13

Today our school was an even busier hive of activity as final preparations got under way for the Cumann na mBunscol hurling final. This was our first time back in the final after 15 years. Senior classes made headbands and wristbands for everyone in the school to wear to the match in Cusack Park . The bunting was tweaked, flags painted, encouraging posters displayed, banners prepared and support chants rehearsed. The school jerseys were laid out with care and hurls and sliotars closely checked. The water bottles were filled, the first aid kit restocked and the team speech delivered. Then it was off to Cusack Park where a fantastic crowd of supporters, staff, parents and fellow pupils, cheered loyally for our team. Sadly, despite leading for most of the game, victory was not ours today and the final score was 2-06 to 2-09. It was a great game played with grit, guts and heart and we at St Mary’s are very proud of our valiant boys, Mr Scally (trainer) and Mr O Mairtin (mentor). Thanks for a truly memorable day.

FOOTBALL TRAINING BEGINS 20/5/13

Football training for third, fourth and fifth class began this week under the watchful eye of Mr O Mairtin. Rumour has it he’s looking for players for the school squad. Eyes on the ball, lads!

NATIONAL RECORD 15/5/13

National Walk to School Day took place on Wed, 15th May. St Mary’s Primary and Presentation Junior and Senior Schools collaborated on a Park and Stride from Penneys carpark, Students who usually walk or cycle to school using alternative routes were encouraged to do so.  Our results in St Mary’s were staggering: 100 pupils walked all the way to school, 61 took part in Park and Stride and 32 cycled. That’s a total of  193 boys coming to school the eco and health friendly way. Well done, everyone. We’re very proud and are in the process of sending our results to An Taisce.

BIG NEWS ALERT! 22/3/13

Department approval granted for pre-school unit and class unit for children with autism…

St Mary’s has just received official news that it has been sanctioned to have a Unit for Autistic Children attached to the school. We have been approved to offer BOTH  a pre-school facility AND a class facility to children with autism. We are really excited by the news and are looking forward to many happy years of learning with and from our prospective pupils. Anyone interested in having their child’s name put forward for a place in either the pre-school or the class facility is asked to contact us at 044-9341517 to make an appointment to meet with the principal. She will be delighted to answer any questions you may have. Alternatively you can e-mail us at stmarysmullingar@gmail.com.