Dear Parents / Guardians,
We hope you are all well. Our news is as follows:
- Twelfth Green Flag: We will hold a Day of Celebration in the school on Wednesday next, 17th June, at which our newest 12th Green Flag will be raised by Vanessa Mack of Rathangan Tidy Towns. To celebrate, we will hold a whole-school picnic at school following the raising of the flag and children are invited to bring along a teddy and a small treat (and a picnic blanket if they wish). I want to thank our wonderful Parents’ Association, who are funding an ice-cream van to come to the school. If your child has an allergy to ice-cream or cannot have ice-cream, please send a message to her teacher before Tuesday next via Aladdin Connect so an alternative can be provided.
- School Tours: We are in the midst of school tour season, with a busy schedule of school tours taking place over the next fortnight. Dates and venues of our school tours can be found on the Aladdin app calendar. Photographs will be available to view on each class blog at www.bunscoilbhride.ie .
- Camogie: Congratulations to our fantastic camogie team on reaching the semi-final of the Cumann na mBunscol Cill Dara competition. The girls have shown tremendous skill, teamwork, determination and commitment throughout the year, and their hard work has been rewarded with a place in the semi-final. They will take on Crookstown National School this Friday at 11.00 a.m. in St. Laurence’s GAA pitch. We wish the team the very best of luck as they continue their exciting journey in the competition.
- Reminder: No medicinesare allowed at school or on school tours, unless authorised by the Board of Management. 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.
- Non-uniform Days: To facilitate the Uniform Swap Day being organised by the Parents’ Association on the day of the holidays (details to follow), Thursday 25th and Friday 26th June will be non-uniform days. This will give parents the opportunity to get the uniforms ready for the Swap Day. We will be looking for donations of good quality uniforms that no longer fit your child. These can be dropped to the school on either Thursday (25th) or on Friday morning (26th). We would encourage all parents to come in on the Friday and take a second-hand uniform for their daughter(s) for next year.
- Schoolbook Scheme Book Collection: All schoolbooks will be collected from children on Friday 19th June. Please ensure your child’s books are in good condition and ready for inspection on that day. There should be no marks on these books as they are the property of the school.
- Library Books: All library books should be returned to our school library by Wednesday 17th June. Charges will be imposed in the case of damaged / missing books.
- Assembly: Our whole-school assembly for the month of June will take place on Tuesday 23rd June and will be led by Ms. Coughlan’s and Ms. Marinan’s Sixth Class girls.
- Sixth Class Graduation: The End of Year Mass and Graduation Ceremony for our Sixth Class girls will take place at 10am on Wednesday 24th June in the church, followed by a celebration for our Sixth Class girls in our school hall. They have been an amazing group of pupils, who have been motivated and eager to give of their best and who, most importantly, have emanated our school ethos and have displayed kindness to the younger members of our school community. We are very proud to have had the pleasure of teaching this group of girls over the past eight years and we wish them the very best of luck as they transition to secondary school. I would like to thank the parents from our current fifth class, who have volunteered to bake for the event and to serve tea/coffee. I also want to thank Mr. Murphy from Ardscoil Rath Iomgháin for kindly donating us a giant graduation picture arch and a beautiful graduation banner for our ceremony.
- End-of-Year Reports: End-of-year reports will be released to parents on the Aladdin app later today. Results of the Drumcondra Primary Reading Test, the Drumcondra Primary Mathematics Test and the Drumcondra Spelling Test (for first to sixth classes only) will be included in the report card (as Standard Scores). It is important that specific results are not shared or discussed with children. I have attached an explanation sheet to this newsletter explaining the standardised tests and what the results mean. It is important that all parents read this information sheet.
- Free Schoolbook Scheme: The Free Primary School Book Scheme will continue in September, with all books, workbooks and copies provided for all children, removing the cost from families of funding school books for children enrolled in primary schools, as there is no charge to parents/guardians for this. The schoolbooks and workbooks will be on loan to the children. They must be returned at the end of the school year, or if the child leaves the school. It is important that books are kept in good condition so they can be reused. Please help make sure your child/children keep the school books safe and take care of them, so they can be used again by another child.
- Stationery Lists and Photocopying and Art Fee: The Stationery List for each class will be issued at the end of next week via Aladdin Connect and can be viewed at a later stage on the Parent Notice Board within the Aladdin Connect app. You will just need to purchase the items of stationery from this list. A payment link will be sent in the coming days for the €40 fee for Photocopying and Art Supplies (max €80 per family). This can be paid in instalments up to and including 27th August 2026.
- Rathangan Tennis Club: We would like to say a sincere thank you to the wonderful Gary Beresford, of Rathangan Tennis Club, who gave his time so freely to give each class in the school a tennis lesson during Active School Week. The lessons took place at the local tennis club which is located beside the GAA pitch. He demonstrated the basic skills of tennis to the girls and they had ample time using their own racquets to try each skill. They even got an opportunity to serve and rally with their partners across the net! Gary runs weekly lessons and summer camps at the club, please see the posters attached.
- After-School Activities: This year saw a number of different after-school activities take place for the children in the school. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank all of the teachers who were involved in the after-school programme of activities. These teachers voluntarily gave up their free time to organise and run the activities and we are very fortunate to have such a dedicated staff, who are willing to take on this task with such great enthusiasm.
- Thank you: As this is our final Fortnightly Bulletin of the year, I would like to take the opportunity to thank all the teachers, SNAs, Catríona, Gerry and Nataliia for all their hard work and dedication in what has been another busy and exciting year for the school. We are really blessed to have such a fantastic staff. I would also like to thank our Parents’ Association who have shown such generosity of time and energy and are a true credit to the school. Our Board of Management also deserves our praise and thanks. All members of the Board work quietly behind the scenes in a voluntary capacity to ensure the smooth running of our school. Their generosity of time and dedication to the school cannot be overstated and we all owe them a debt of gratitude. Finally, I would like to thank all the pupils and parents of our school, who have made my job as Principal a pleasure and who make Bunscoil Bhríde the wonderful school that it is.
- Summer Holidays: School will close at 11.45am on Friday 26th June. Medicines and inhalers will be sent home with all relevant children on that Friday. Our school will reopen for the new school year at 8.50am on Thursday 27th August. I look forward to meeting and working with you all in the next school year. The calendar for the 2026/27 school year is available on our school website at the following link: https://www.bunscoilbhride.ie/school-calendar-2026-27/
Kind regards,
Maria Rogerson