Dear Parents / Guardians,

We hope you are all well. Our news is as follows:

• Mercy Day: We will celebrate Mercy Day on Tuesday 24^th September. As Bunscoil Bhríde is a Mercy school, Mercy Day is a very important day in the calendar of our school. We are proud of our strong Mercy tradition and ethos. Children in all classes will learn about Catherine McAuley, the founder of the Mercy order and will hear of how the Mercy Sisters brought education to Rathangan. A mass will be celebrated for the children of Second to Sixth Class to mark Mercy Day at 10am on Tuesday and we invite you all to attend. The children will sing on our choir, directed by Ms. Rowley, Ms. de Faoite and Lisa Byrne. We might even get the night off homework to celebrate!

• New Caretaker: I want to welcome our new caretaker, Gerry Dowling to our staff. We all wish Gerry the best of luck as he joins the Bunscoil Bhríde school community.

• 24-hour Accident Insurance: Tomorrow is the final day for receipt of payment for Allianz Pupil Personal Accident Insurance. This is an optional fee of €10 and provides 24-hour cover for accidents occurring at home or at school. We would strongly recommend that all parents pay this insurance. Many of our parents have benefitted from having the policy in the past. If you ever incur any fees in relation to an accident e.g. fee for a trip to A & E, let us know and we will provide you with the necessary forms to recoup all expenses. Payment can be made via the e-payments system on the Aladdin app (this is a safe and secure means of payment). Let us know today if you are having trouble accessing the e-payments via the app.

• Football & Camogie: Our U-11 Football League kicks off next week, with our girls taking on Monasterevin in a home game on Wednesday next at 11am. The Senior Camogie League commences next week also, with our camogie team taking on Gaelscoil Chill Dara in Rathangan GAA pitch on Friday. We wish the girls the very best of luck in both matches. We would like to encourage as many girls as possible to come along to training after school on Tuesdays from 2.30pm-3.15pm where the girls can try both Gaelic football and Camogie. Thank you to Ms. Marrinan and Ms. Brogan for their time and effort in running after school training.

• CPA workshop: Katie Carpenter has kindly volunteered to engage Ms. Ryan’s Second Class girls in a stage school workshop, to include singing and dancing here at the school on Thursday 26^th September.

• Whole-school Assembly: Ms. Ruttledge’s Junior Infants and Ms. de Faoite’s Sixth Class will lead our first whole-school assembly of the year on Thursday 26^th September in the hall. Each class will get the opportunity to lead our assemblies this year, which take place during the last week of each month.

• Homework Journals: All children from First to Sixth Class have homework journals this year. Please ensure that you check your daughter’s homework every evening and sign her homework journal. It is only by home and school working together that we can ensure the very best outcomes for all of our pupils.

• Uniform: Please ensure your daughter wears the correct school uniform. Our Uniform Policy can be found on our school website at www.bunscoilbhride.ie .

• Code of Behaviour: Our Code of Behaviour is available to view at www.bunscoilbhride.ie . I wish to remind you all that, as stated in our Code, jewellery is not permitted at school (with the exception of small stud earrings at the bottom of each ear and a watch). Children should not come to school wearing hoop earrings / dangly earrings / earrings that are larger than a small stud, which are in breach of the code and pose a health and safety risk. Please ensure that children are wearing the correct uniform and that long hair is tied up. Your cooperation in the implementation of our Code of Behaviour is very much appreciated.

• Party Invitations: As it may not always be possible to invite all children from your child’s class to birthday parties, we would ask that all children refrain from handing out invitations in school. This can instead be done outside of the school, in order to avoid upset to children not invited.

• Student Council: This year’s Student Council is up and running. The first official meeting will be held next week.  We look forward to the Council’s valuable contribution throughout the school year.

• Dates for the Diary: Please check out the calendar tab on the Aladdin app. A number of new dates for this term have been added, and more will be added next week. Please continue to keep an eye on the Calendar over the coming weeks and months, as all new dates will be added as new events are confirmed.

Kind regards,

Maria Rogerson

Dear Parents / Guardians,

We hope you all had a fabulous summer. Our news is as follows:

• Welcome: Welcome back to all our existing parents. We look forward to meeting with you and working closely with you again during the year ahead. We would like to extend a very warm welcome to our new parents who are joining the Bunscoil Bhríde school community for the first time. We look forward to getting to know you and your child.

• Aladdin Connect: All new parents have been sent the link to download the Aladdin Connect app. Please ensure you have downloaded the app to your device. Please note that it is possible for both parents to download the app (where applicable). All communication from the school will be sent via the app. We ask that all parents check the information recorded about your child on the app and make any necessary changes. Please ensure that there are at least two emergency contacts listed for your child. Please phone the office immediately if you are having any issues downloading or accessing the Aladdin Connect app.

• New Junior Infants: We were delighted to welcome our fabulous twenty-three Junior Infant girls to our school yesterday. They are a super group and have settled in so well in the two days they have been with us. We’re really excited to get to know them and see them grow and develop.

• School Photographs: ‘County Photos’ (school photographers) have been booked to take individual / family photos of all of the children in the school and class group photos of our Junior Infants and of our Sixth Class girls on Thursday 12^th September. There is no obligation for parents to make any purchase. Please see the flyer attached from County Photos for more details.

• Home-School Partnership: We strongly value thesupport of parents inhelping us to realise the potential of each and every child in our care. In order for us to achieve this goal, it is vital that parents work alongside the teachers and help to support the work being done at school. Checking and signing your child’s homework journal, regularly listening to reading, checking sounds/tables etc. and most importantly, speaking positively to your child about school and its importance will be of enormous benefit to your child. We recommend that you take a look at the “Help My Kid Learn” website www.helpmykidlearn.ie, developed by the National Adult Literacy Agency for parents of children aged 0 – 12 years. The purpose of the website is to provide fun activities that parents can do with their children, to develop their literacy and numeracy skills. In an effort to get to know your child, all teachers will be distributing a short questionnaire about your child in an effort to gain a head-start in getting to know her. Should you have any queries about your child’s progress or any concern or query during the year, please do not hesitate to contact the school to arrange an appointment with your child’s teacher. We look forward to developing a strong partnership in your child’s education.   

• Late Arrivals/Early Departures: For health and safety reasons, should a child need to leave the school building during the day for any reason, e.g. dentist, medical appointments, etc., or should a child arrive late to school, this must be recorded on Aladdin. It is possible for parents to inform us on the Aladdin app that your child will be arriving late to school / picked up early from school. Our secretary, Catríona will be recording late arrivals / early departures on Aladdin. The reason for the late arrival / early departure must also be recorded – please inform Catríona when you phone the school. We would ask that children are only taken out of school early if absolutely necessary. We appreciate your cooperation in this matter.

• Absences: Under the Education Welfare Act 2000, where a child is absent from school on a school day, the child’s parents must notify the school of the reasons for such absence. We require parents to record the reason for the absence on the Aladdin app. You will receive a push notification when your child is marked absent at school. You will then be prompted to input the reason for the absence. We are required under the Act to notify Túsla of any child being absent for 20 days or more. Our student administration system (Aladdin) automatically sends texts to parents reminding them of this when a child reaches both 10 and 15 days of cumulative absences.

• Coming to school: Our school starts at 8.50am. You are asked to drop your child(ren) to school as close to 8.50am as possible. We will open the school gate and provide supervision for children at 8.40am. The church carpark is a public place and it is not safe to drop children off out there before the school gate is opened at 8.40am.

• Medicines: No medicinesare allowed at school. If your child has a medical condition for which medicine/inhaler etc. must be administered, please contact the school, as Board of Management approval must be granted for this. Please see our administration of medication policy at www.bunscoilbhride.ie for more information.

• Cuts: We will routinely apply plasters to cuts. It is the responsibility of parents to notify the school in writing (for the attention of the Principal) if they do not wish for plasters to be applied to their child (e.g. if the child is allergic to plasters).

• Correct Footwear: Please ensure your child comes to school wearing footwear that is suitable for running. Converse / canvas shoes are not permitted at school.

• NUT ALLERGIES: We have a number of children in the school with severe nut allergies. Children are therefore not allowed to bring nuts or any products containing nuts into the school. This includes peanut butter, chocolate spreads etc. We ask parents to be vigilant in this regard, as any contact with nuts for these children can be potentially lethal.

• Infant Induction Meeting: Our Junior Infant teacher, Ms. Ruttledge will hold a short meeting with parents of the new Junior Infants on Tuesday 10th September at 11am in the school. The purpose of the meeting is to inform parents of the teaching approaches that will be used and the content that will be taught in Junior Infants. This will give parents the opportunity to meet with Ms. Ryan, voice any questions they may have and get some ideas as to how they can support their child’s learning at home. We strongly encourage all parents to attend the meeting if at all possible, or to have some member of the child’s family attend. Home-time forJunior Infant pupils willmove to the permanent time of 1.30pm from the following day; Wednesday 11^th September.

• Parents of Infant children: As you can imagine, teachers have to be extremely cautious at the gate when releasing children into the care of adults. If your child is being collected at 12pm / 1.30pm by another adult that is not you, or by an after-school provider, please send a message to your child’s teacher (this can be done by clicking ‘Send Notice’ on the Aladdin app).

• New staff: I would like to take this opportunity to welcome our new staff members; Ms. Ciara Choudhury (Senior Infant Teacher), Ms. Orla Brogan (4^th Class Teacher) and Mandy Kelly (Special Needs Assistant). We are also delighted to welcome back Rosemary Greally (Special Education Teacher) and Ms. Eimear Ryan (2^nd Class Teacher), who return to our staff for this school year. Our full staff list can be found on our school website www.bunscoilbhride.ie

• Allianz 24-hour Pupil Personal Accident Insurance: On Monday next all children will bring home a sheet detailing the optional 24-hour pupil insurance scheme. This insurance provides cover for any medical or dental costs arising from an accident in or out of school during the year e.g. in the event of your child having to attend A&E due to an accident, the attendance fee is fully covered (24 hours a day, 365 days a year) – please phone the office for the claim form. Please note that if you wish to avail of the Allianz 24-hour Pupil Personal Accident Insurance, you must complete and return the slip at the bottom of the sheet that the children will bring home on Monday (one sheet must be completed for each child) and the €10 fee per child must be paid via the Aladdin Connect app (or link that will be sent to all parents on Monday) by Friday ^th September.

• Headlice: Please check your child(ren)’s hair on a regular basis for headlice, treat where necessary and please inform the school if you have found headlice in your child’s hair so that we can inform the parents of the other children in the class. Long hair must be fully tied up in school. With all parents following the regular checking routine, we will hopefully minimise the chance of children in the school getting headlice.

• Tin Whistle classes: All children from Third to Sixth Class will begin tin whistles lessons next week. Please ensure your daughter has her D tin whistle at school every day. We would ask you to encourage your child to practise regularly at home.

• Football & Camogie: Football training for our Fifth and Sixth Class pupils will commence on Tuesday next from 2.30pm to 3.15pm. A permission request has been sent to the parents of all children in Fifth and Sixth Class. Children must have permission to attend (via the Aladdin Connect app) and must have gun-shields. I would liks to thank Ms. Frawley, Ms. Marrinan and Ms. Brogan, who have very generously offered to volunteer their time to coach the girls after school.

• Permissions on Aladdin: All parents have been sent a permission request on Aladdin Connect for trips outside the school. Please click on the Permissions tab in the Aladdin Connect app to view what permissions pertain to your child. Please let us know if you have any difficulty with this.

• Oral Language: The theme for the month of September is ‘Sentence Structure and Tenses’. All classes will be focusing on this theme for the month and we would ask that you support us at home, by encouraging and modelling use of full sentences and correct tenses.

• Google Suite for Education: All our senior children (third to sixth class) use Google Suite for Education (Google Classroom / Drive / Docs / Slides etc.). While our existing fourth to sixth class pupils and most of our third class pupils already have their login details, our third class and children who have just joined fourth to sixth class will be given login details in the coming days, following the granting of consent by parents on the Aladdin app (only for pupils who have not yet been assigned Google logins).  Please ensure that you have ticked any permissions pertaining to your child on the Aladdin app (under ‘Permissions’).

• Parking: I am aware that there are lots of new parents using the church carpark to drop-off / collect children. Please see the plan of the church carpark attached which highlights the rules for the safe use of the carpark at school drop-off / pick-up times. Please share this information with anyone who drops off / collects your child. Parents are asked not to park in the yellow boxes, in the wheelchair parking spaces or between the wheelchair parking spaces. Parking is in a single row alongside the Noone Engineering wall and in THREE ROWS along the middle white lines. There should be absolutely NO DRIVING AROUND THE CHURCH. Let’s keep everyone safe!

Also, let’s all remember we are a Green School (with eleven Green Flags!). If at all possible, we would encourage as many families as possible to leave the car at home and children to walk or cycle to school.

• School website: Please check out our school website www.bunscoilbhride.ie. It contains lots of information about what’s going on at Bunscoil Bhríde and lots of photos of the events that take place. Photos of the new classes will be added shortly. Teachers will also shortly begin updating their class blogs (located under the ‘Our Classes’ tab on the homepage).

• After-School Providers: Currently, two after-school providers hire facilities in our school for the purpose of providing after-school activities for children; Creative Keyboards (keyboard lessons) and Linda Grogan Art Classes. All afterschool providers are private businesses and, as such, are separate entities to the school. Children attending such afterschool activities are in the care of the individual proprietor, while in attendance at such activities. All communication in relation to pupils’ participation in these afterschool activities such be directly to the specific provider and not through the school.

• Use of social media: Please be advised that social media or messaging apps such as Tiktok, Roblox and Snapchat have a minimum user age of 13 and are wholly unsuitable for children in primary school. We are aware of a number of children using these apps and can only assume parents are unaware of the dangers they present and the harm they can cause to children. Children at primary school level are emotionally and socially ill-equipped to deal with social media and we would urge all parents to exercise parental responsibility and to ensure children who are online at home are fully supervised at all times. The fallout from children using social media at home impacts upon school, taking up teaching time and affecting all children as a result. We would ask all parents to exercise parental responsibility in ensuring their children are not exposed to the risks that come with social media use. Please check out www.webwise.ie and inform yourselves of the dangers of the apps your children may be using and please take steps to address this usage.

• Dates for the Diary: We look forward to a very busy, productive and exciting year at Bunscoil Bhríde. Please keep an eye on the Calendar tab on Aladdin over the coming weeks as we will be adding important upcoming events.

Kind regards,

Maria Rogerson

We were delighted to extend a warm welcome back to our school on Tuesday 7th June to our four past pupils who were recently crowned Kildare All-Ireland U-14 Football Champions. Aoibheann Mahon, Amy Jones, Caoimhe Mahon and Emily Conlan visited the school with their cups on Tuesday and they were greeted with lots of fanfare. We are so very proud of the girls. They are wonderful role models for all of our pupils, who aspire to excel in the area of sport and in particular Gaelic football. Well done ladies! May we have many more such celebrations ahead of us!

Dear Parents / Guardians,

I hope you and your families are all well at this time. Please find attached a really important document – our Bunscoil Bhríde Covid-19 Response Plan. It is vital that all parents / guardians read this document and familiarise themselves with its content. This plan maps out how we will safely return to school and what daily life in our school will look like.

A tremendous amount of work has gone in to this document and has involved input from the staff, Parents’ Association and Board of Management, all of whom I wish to thank.

I am acutely aware of the fact that parents have lots of questions / concerns at this time and I hope that this document will provide clarity to you all. I know parents may be particularly anxious about the formation of our class pods. I want to assure you all that teachers will make every effort to keep children with their friends. While all classes will be seated in pods within their classrooms, they will be treated as a class bubble and will be able to play together on the yard as a whole class. In addition to this, there will contacts between pupils outside of school, that as a school, we can’t control e.g. child-minders, the creche, cousins, the bus children, neighbours etc. We can only control for contact within the school. As such, individual requests for who children are seated with or placed with within pods cannot be facilitated. 

As you will see from the document, there is a lot of specific detail within the Plan and a lot of new procedures, which we are asking you to adhere to. There will be some aspects of the Plan that may not suit every family. This is the price we are asking you all, staff included, to pay for the safe re-opening of our school. Our collective goal is to get the school opened and to keep it opened, and to keep our entire school community safe in the process. We are all in this fight together. We must protect each other. We are asking you to be flexible and patient with us as we try to implement all aspects of the Plan to the best of our ability. We cannot do this without your support and cooperation. 

The entire staff and I are so looking forward to the school re-opening and having children learning in their classrooms with their friends again.

I hope you all enjoy the rest of the summer holidays.

Le gach dea-ghuí,

Maria Rogerson