The following workshop is taking place in the library during the month of October:

The much loved Scholastic bookfair is due to arrive at Piercestown N.S. this coming Friday October 3rd. The catalogues have gone home with the children today for them to browse through and see what their book of choice may be. Times for the bookfair will be posted on the website and via text a parent in the coming days.

In the words of Dr. Seuss “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go!”

 A huge thank you to all who supported our bookfair over the last week. Thank you to the Parents’ Association who worked tirelessly to ensure that the bookfair was open at times to suit all families. It is greatly appreciated!

With coaching and Rackard league in full flight it is clear to see that Piercestown N.S. are a very active school.

Therefore, we deserve some recognition for our efforts.

About the Active School Flag

The Department of Education and Skills wishes to recognise schools that strive to achieve a physical educated and physically active school community by awarding them the Active School Flag (ASF). The initiative is open to primary and post primary schools, special schools and Youthreach centres to apply.

The Active School Flag will be awarded to schools that:

• Adhere to DES guidelines regarding PE timetable provision for all students
• Teach a broad and balanced PE curriculum
• Inform and invite the whole school community to participate in the ASF process
• Self-evaluate current provision in terms of PE, Physical Activity and Partnerships
•  Plan, implement and monitor improvements for each of the aforementioned areas
  
• Organise an ‘Active School Week’ as part of the annual school calendar

Watch this space over the coming months as we form an active committee, set up an active noticeboard and aim to get Piercestown N.S. on the map as an Active School.

For more information go to http://www.activeschoolflag.ie

Rounders training has kicked off with great gusto and enthusiasm already. Friday 5th September saw the first training session of the year, being hosted by Mrs. Aoife Caldicott and shadowed closely by Ms. Laura Walsh as she up skills herself to ensure that the success and enjoyment of all at Piercestown N.S. in the game of rounders continues. It was a gorgeous afternoon for it and the girls showed great enthusiasm and excitement already! Well done girls- roll on next Friday. Rounders training will take place every Friday, unless there is a downpour. In the winter season, be sure to wear suitable footwear.

It was with great delight that Piercestown N.S. re-opened its doors to the boys and girls on Thursday 28th August. A particular special welcome is extended to our new Junior Infants and boys and girls that have joined Piercestown N.S. for the very first time. We hope that they have a very fruitful and enjoyable experience here and we look forward to getting to know each and every one of them over the coming days, weeks, months and years.

As newly appointed principal of Piercestown N.S., I wish to extend a Céad Míle Fáilte to all members of Piercestown N.S. and community and I look forward to getting to know you all over the coming months. My door is always open, so if you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to make an appointment and I would be happy to meet with you. I would also like to thank Fr. O Reilly, Mr. Eamonn Barrett and the staff of Piercestown N.S. for making my transition so pleasant.

Mr Eamonn Barrett cuts the yellow ribbon to officially open the mural at Piercestown NS

IMPORTANT DATES

Thurs, 28th August, 2014: School re-opens for all pupils @ 9.20 am
Sat, 2nd May 2015: First Holy Communion @ 11 am
Thurs, 28th May 2015: Confirmation @ 11 am

SCHOOL REOPENS for all pupils at 9.20 am on Thursday, 28th August. We hope that everybody had a relaxing and enjoyable summer holiday. Every good wish is extended to Ms Laura Walsh as she takes up her position as school principal when school reopens.

Members of Piercestown Parents Committee have painted some lovely playground markings on the school yard during the summer holidays. The children will surely enjoy playing on them when they come back to school.

Overall SCHOOL ATTENDANCE during the school year ending on 30th June 2014 was 96%. Well done to all pupils, parents and families. A special word of congratulations to the TWENTY pupils, ten boys and ten girls, who had a full attendance last year. 

Special thanks to the past pupils who completed a brand new MURAL in the central courtyard in school before the summer holidays. It is really beautiful. Why not pop in and take a look the next time you’re in school?

All parents should now have received the ANNUAL SCHOOL REPORT for their child. Please contact the school office if you did not yet receive a report.

Well done to the rounders players from Piercestown who won both RACKARD LEAGUE ROUNDERS FINALS on Friday, 20th June 2014 in Taghmon GAA pitch. Piercestown boys beat Murrintown 10-3 in a close, skillful game while our girls had a good 38-10 victory over Poulfur in the girls final. Congratulations all round!

Congratulations to the boys and girls from Piercestown who won a wonderful RACKARD LEAGUE double this week. On Monday, 16th June the girls defeated Rathnure 3-3 to 1-1 while the boys overcame Craanford on the following evening by 7-10 to 0-8. Both finals were played in perfect summer conditions in Wexford Park. Refreshemts provided by St Martin’s GAA Club in Whitford House Hotel after both games were very much appreciated. An historic double!

A very sincere thanks to all the parents who supported the LEARNING in DEPTH presentations in school recently. Pupils from Fifth Class and Sixth Class presented some really interesting projects in the PE Hall. Well done to all concerned!

Our ANNUAL ART EXHIBITION  was opened by local artist, Helen Gaynor on Tuesday, 17th June. The Parents’ Association provided refreshments on the night and there was an excellent attendance who enjoyed looking at the lovely art created by the pupils. The exhibition was organised by Mrs Teresa Corrigan.

Thanks to the volunteers who are helping out with PAIRED READING in Junior Infants every morning at 9.30 am. Helping young readers in this way is most beneficial for them.

We are delighted to announce that Piercestown NS has just been awarded GREEN FLAG NUMBER 4 (TRAVEL). Wereceived our flag at a ceremony in Kilkenny on Wednesday, 21st May. Well done to Mrs Barrett, the Green School Committee and to everybody concerned with this great achievement. Mr Barrett raised the flag at the end of the fun sports on Tuesday, 17th June.

Piercestown NS, like every other school in the country, is required to develop , publish and implement an ANTI-BULLYING POLICY before Easter 2014. Our policy was recently approved by the Board of Management and a copy may be found under the POLICIES menu. All parents are invited to read it carefully.

Parents and guardians are invited to visit our newly up-loaded page on CYBERSAFETY  which can be found under the PARENT menu on our school blog page. This page contains tips and advice on this important topic which will be of interest to all parents. It might be a good idea to read through this page with your child so that they can learn about keeping themselves safe online. Thank you for your co-operation!.

“Come to School a Green Way
Make Pollution go Away”

Come to School a Green Way
Make Pollution Go Away

GREEN SCHOOL SLOGAN: Many thanks to all the boys and girls for their efforts in composing a slogan for our Travel Theme Green Flag No. Four. The winning slogan is at the top of this page.

At the turn of the millennium in December 1999 we put together a TIME CAPSULE in our school. Every class and every pupil put in one item. Some classes put in a handprint of each pupil; others a piece of writing; others took photographs of ‘One Day in School’, and suchlike. It has now been buried under the doorstep of our school extension. Who knows when it will be discovered?

We are always delighted to receive donations of children’s books for our class libraries. We currently have over 16,000 books in our libraries and they are a vital resource for learning to read.

FRUIT is available each day in school for all pupils and always proves very popular. This healthy eating programme is supported by the School Completion Programme.

 HEAD LICE: Parents are reminded to regularly check their child’s hair for lice. If necessary, please treat the hair as per the chemist’s instructions. Lice prefer clean hair and thrive when heads are in close proximity, as in a classroom. Thank you for your vigilance!

BOOKS WANTED!: We are always pleased to receive children’s books for our class libraries once you are sure that you are finished with them at home. A very sincere thanks to all who donated books last year. Our class libraries now contain over 16,000 books! Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir!

We look forward to the completion of our school extension on 28th Feb 2013

BUILDING PROJECT: Our architect continues to work hard with the builder to get the school extension completed. Work is now going full steam ahead and the completion date of 28th February will see it largely finished. Recent very wet weather may delay the landscaping around the new extension slightly, but not for too long, we hope!

The school Board of Management applied to the Department of Education and Skills for en-suite toilets to be built for all our existing classrooms under the SUMMER WORKS SCHEME 2014. Unfortunately our application has not been successful. The Department of Education classified our project as “desirable but not essential.” The Board of Management will apply for the same project next year.

“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairytales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairytales.” (Albert Einstein)

NEWSPAPER RECYCLING  is available in the recycling area beside the church. Please put your used newspapers in the bin. The newspapers are weighed regularly and the school then receives a donation. The most recent donation was €98.19. Your co-operation with this project is appreciated.