St. Laurence's News

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have come to the end of a very busy week here in St. Laurence’s. It was lovely to see you all over the last few days for the Parent Teacher meetings. These meetings play a vital role in building the relationship between home and school, which in turn supports each child’s learning journey. I want to sincerely thank our teachers for their time, energy and dedication in preparing for these meetings. Our teachers’ commitment to the children’s wellbeing and educational success is at the core of everything they do.

Please see below some important updates. Our newsletter will resume next week, where the children will update you all with the exciting events of school life.

School Choir – Our school choir are looking forward to singing at the turning on of the Christmas lights in Greystones tomorrow. They will be on the stage at approximately 5pm and we look forward to seeing as many of you as possible there. A big thank you to Ms. Coleman and Mrs. Ryan for giving the children this wonderful opportunity.

Christmas Plays and Carol Service – We are beginning to hear the Christmas play songs around the school and the excitement is building. I know we previously sent the timetable for the plays and the Carol Service but the details are available here again.

Christmas fundraisers – Our annual Christmas Jumper Day will take place on Friday, 6 December (the same day as the toy show!). Our chosen charity this year is Reading with Dogs. As you are aware some of the children in the school benefit greatly from this charity as they read with Molly, our very own reading dog each week. We will also be raising money for the St. Vincent de Paul this year, through an online collection. More details will follow next week.

Fob System and Gates – We are delighted that our fencing and gates are finally up and that all our external doors are fobbed. This has greatly enhanced the safety and security of the whole school. Just a reminder all school gates and side doors will be closed at 9:05am. After this time all entry is via the front door. 

AGM- Just a reminder that the Annual General Meeting of the Board of Management will take place on Wednesday, 20 November at 7:30pm in the Halla. Tea and coffee will be served from 7pm. Following the meeting there will be information sessions for parent(s)/guardian(s). I sent details of this earlier in the week.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend ahead.

Kind regards,

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

The final Raidió Scoil Lorcáin Naofa episode of the 2023/24 school year is available to listen to here. Well done to the 3rd and 4th class teachers and pupils for their wonderful contributions to the latest episode. 

Tá siúl againn go mbainfidh sibh taithneamh as!

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have reached the middle of June with only two weeks of the school year left. This morning we had our last school assembly of the year where we celebrated all our wonderful achievements and events. The school year has been full to the brim and the children have had so many fantastic opportunities to participate in such a varied range of activities. They have loved them all and as I always say your children are simply the best. We are so lucky to have them here with us in their most formative years.

I am hugely grateful to all the staff who work tirelessly to ensure the children have the best of what education should be. Their enthusiasm, dedication and commitment is inspiring.

Please see below some updates from school life.

School Tours – Most of our classes have now had their school tours. The arrival of the double decker buses was a huge hit with the infants this year and it was so lovely to see their excited faces as they headed to Glenroe Farm and Kia Ora Farm. We have had trips to the EPIC museum in Dublin, Shoreline and Causey Farm too. Next week our 2nd classes and 4th classes will head off on their school tours.

Scríobhleabhar – A huge well done to all our budding authors who received their awards on Monday evening in Fitzpatrick Hotel Killiney. The winners of these awards wrote their books in Irish, an amazing achievement. A special míle buíochas to Mrs. Berney for organising this opportunity for the children.

Sport- Once again there have been so many sporting events over the last few weeks. We had children represent us at GAA, basketball, athletics and soccer events. Medals galore filled the school once more. I want to mention one event in particular, TAG RUGBY. All children from 3rd to 6th class had the opportunity to participate in a wonderful day of Tag Rugby which they thoroughly enjoyed. A huge thank you to all the parents who made this day possible. The children simply loved it. It wouldn’t have happened without the time and efforts of all the parents involved. Thank you again – we are very grateful.

6th classes – We will very soon say goodbye to our 6th class students. They are currently busy preparing for their end of year plays and their graduation. It is always a sad but exciting time and we know they are ready to face the next stage of their education journey in Secondary School. We will miss them but we are so proud of the fine young people they are.

Incoming Junior Infants – Our new Junior Infants will visit the school on Tuesday, 25 June to meet their teachers and see their classrooms. A very exciting day for them and us.

German Students – We currently have eight German students visiting us. They are here as part of their teacher training. They are loving school life in St. Laurence’s and we are delighted to have them here.

Sports Days – Our annual sports days will take place over the next two weeks. This year Mark, our gymnastics coach, has offered to organise these days for us. Thank you Mark and we know the children will have a great day. 

Uniform Sale -A reminder of our uniform sale on Tuesday, 18 May at 1:15pm. This is a great opportunity to buy some uniforms/tracksuits for September. Thank you to the PA for organising this.

Feet on Friday – Our last FEET ON FRIDAY will take place on Friday, 21 June. We would encourage as many families as possible to participate in this. The PA plan to use this day as a sponsored walk. An Aladdin donation link will be set up and we are asking people to make a small donation on the day. The monies collected will be used to buy more yard equipment for the children in September. A special thank you to Yvonne on the PA for all her work setting up Feet on Friday and for keeping us walking this year!

I will be in touch before we finish the school year with an update. I will once again be recruiting new staff for our school and I will let parents/guardians know in August who their child/children’s teacher(s) will be for the school year 2024/2025.

Finally I wish you all a lovely weekend. We are beginning to see tired little faces at the gates in the morning but we know the next two weeks will be full of fun and happy times!

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

It is hard to believe that we are approaching the end of May. The children have worked so hard this month and I know they are looking forward to some fun events during the last five weeks of school. It has been an extremely busy few weeks with so many events and activities taking place.

Please see below some updates from school life.

Sport- there have been so many sporting events over the last few weeks. Medals and trophies have been proudly worn and showcased around the school. Our boys football team reached the Leinster Finals of the All Ireland 5 Aside Football Tournament. They were narrowly beaten on the day, right at the last minute of their final game. While they were bitterly disappointed, they arrived to school the next day with their beautiful medals, full of pride for all they had accomplished. A huge thank you to Mr. Meaney and Mr Dunne who prepared and looked after the team so well. They have just about recovered! Huge congratulations to the 5th and 6th class pupils who represented the school in the Delgany Schools' Golf Cup in Delgany Golf Club on Monday, 13th May. Seven of our pupils took part in the annual competition with the St. Laurence's girls team taking 1st place and the St. Laurence's boys coming in 2nd place in their competition. Well done to the St. Laurence's golfers! At our annual fundraiser last week two golf teams represented the school on the day and played so well. Our girls camogie team and boys hurling team had two great days in Ballinakill. The girls were narrowly beaten on the day and once again brought lots of medals to the school. Our athletes took part in an athletics event on the Shoreline Track. They participated in so many events on the day, again collecting an array of medals. Our hockey team have also been playing matches and our basketball team played a match today. Well done to all who took part in the above events and the teachers who organised and supported the children.

First Holy Communions – On Sunday our 2nd class children will make their First Holy Communion in St. Anthony’s Church, Kilcoole. They are really looking forward to their day and everyone in 2nd class is invited to the party in the school after the ceremony. Just a reminder for donations of sandwiches and baked treats which can be brought to the school from 9am on Sunday. I would like to say a special thank you to all the parents on the First Communion Committee for their organisation of the party. They have worked so hard to ensure the children and their families have a great day.

Parents' Association Meeting – The PA held their last meeting of the school year on 8 May. There was a great turn out and thank you to all the class reps who turned up on the night. It was a great meeting and lots of ideas were discussed. The PA play such an integral role in school life here in St. Laurence’s and offer the children so many wonderful opportunities.

Droichead Day – Our 6th class students had a great day on Monday in Éire Óg GAA club. All 6th class children from the local primary schools were there and they spent the day getting to know each other through a variety of sporting activities

Incoming Junior Infants- On Wednesday, 15 May, we welcomed our incoming Junior Infant parents to the school to an information evening. It was lovely to see so many here. The Student Council did a fantastic job on the night. They spoke to all the parents about their work in the school and how they represent the views and ideas of all the children. They also gave tours of the school on the night. The parents commented on how wonderful the children were. They represented the school so well on the night.

School Motto – During the last school year the Student Council liaised with all the classes and the staff to work on creating our school motto. This motto has now been painted, on a beautiful mural, on the back wall of the school hall. A huge thank you to this year’s Student Council who designed the school mural and to Ms. Cullen who worked with the children to paint it on the wall. Please visit the hall and take a look during our next Fáilte Friday.

Earth Day – Earth Day took place a few weeks ago and lots of children created such beautiful art work to celebrate. This art work is currently on display on the corridors.

Free Book Scheme – Just to make you aware that all children will, once again, receive free books and copybooks in September. More details will be sent to parents over the next couple of weeks.

Fáilte Friday – Our last Fáilte Friday of this school year takes place on Friday, 7 June.

Bank Holiday Weekend- The school will be closed on Monday, 3 June for the Bank Holiday.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend and I look forward to seeing our wonderful 2nd classes on Sunday for a great day of celebration.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have just finished our first two weeks of term 3 and they have been jam packed with so many lovely events for the children. The children have been in great form and full of enthusiasm for all that school life brings. This is always a very busy term and we look forward to all the exciting days and events ahead.

Please see below an update from school life.

Cake Sale – Our wonderful 6th class students and teachers ran their cake sale on 10 April. €2,150 was raised and on behalf of everyone here, especially the 6th class students, we want to say a míle buíochas for all your kindness and generosity. This money will be shared between Bray Lakers and Loreto Rumbek in South Sudan. The money will be put to very good use. I know the money for Loreto Rumbek will be used to sponsor children’s primary education.

The Big Sing – Our After School Choir participated in The Big Sing on Monday Night in the National Stadium in Dublin. We had a great night and the children sang and danced throughout the whole show. A big thank you to Ms. Coleman and Mrs. Ryan for giving the children this wonderful opportunity.

STEAM Academy and Robotics – Ms. Malone, Assistant Principal II for Science, organised for the STEAM Academy to present a Robotics Workshop to our children in Senior Infants and children from 2nd to 6th class. It was a huge success and the children loved it. Thank you to Ms. Malone for allowing the children to have this opportunity.

Diocesan Advisors – Yesterday Sr. Maureen, Religious Advisor with the Dublin Diocese, visited the school to talk to the children in 5th class about the Grow in Love Programme. She was very complimentary about the children, their teachers and the school. She said the children were so respectful and kind and that she felt very welcomed by everyone.

GAA –Congratulations to the 5th and 6th class girls who participated in Day 2 of the Girls’ Football Wicklow Times Shield held in Bray Emmets on Thursday, 18 April 2024. They had a great day. Thank you to Mr. Dunne for organising it for them.

Safe Cycling – Our 5th class students are participating in a 6 week safe cycling workshop. This is part funded by An Taisce. This programme allows the children the opportunity to learn all about cycling safely and stresses the need to always wear a helmet.

Forest School – Our 2nd classes continue to participate in Forest School. They are simply loving it. Thank you to the parents who help out with this every week.

Marine Biology – Ms. Malone’s 4th class students have participated in a marine biology project. They had a two hour workshop in their classrooms, followed by a field trip to the beach. This is part of the Explorers Education Programme – Seashore Safari.

Solar Panels – Solar Panels have been installed on the roof. As a Green School we are delighted to share this news. Funding for this was provided by the Department of Education. I would like to thank our Deputy Principal, Karen Ferguson, who oversaw this project when I was absent.

School Self Evaluation - The School Self Evaluation (SSE) process invites schools to reflect on what is going well in the school and to identify areas for development. As part of our School Self- Evaluation process, we have identified wellbeing, digital learning, and Literacy as key areas for development in our school. In St Laurence’s we aim to reflect the standards of highly effective practice as outlined in Looking at Our School 2022: A Quality Framework for Primary schools. Please read below for further information about how we are developing these areas in St Laurence's.

Wellbeing: The aspect of wellbeing that we are focusing on is School Culture and Environment, as identified from the Wellbeing Framework for Practice. We are currently in the process of gathering data from staff and children. You may remember last year we sent you all a survey regarding the effects of Covid on your children. The results of this survey will also be taken into account.

Digital learning: Last year, we identified digital learning as a focus, in alignment with our implementation of the national Digital Learning Strategy. We gathered information via surveys and analysed the data. The key findings were collated, and the actions included in our digital learning programme

Literacy: We have revised our approach to teaching reading in alignment with research based on the teaching of reading. The current practices in our school were reviewed, and a new approach was adopted, incorporating the use of highly regarded literacy programmes, UFLI and Heggerty. School staff are engaging with ongoing extensive professional development related to language acquisition and literacy skills.

Annual Fundraising Event – Our annual fundraising event will take place on the Friday, 17 May. I know you have received an email from the fundraising committee in relation to this. I want to express huge gratitude to the committee who are working every day to ensure our whole school community have a great day.

Summer Camps – Krafty Kickers are not running their summer camp this year. However, we are hoping there will be two other camps running. More details will follow next week.

I know that last week has caused worry again for people in relation to the two serious incidents. Please be assured that we will continue to be vigilant over the coming weeks and I will continue to liaise with the Gardaí. I would like to express my gratitude to the Gardaí for all their advice and support and for linking in with the school on a daily basis.

Finally, I wish you all a lovely weekend and hopefully the sun will shine for us all.

Kind regards,

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

The 6th class children are holding a Cake Sale on Wednesday, 10 April 2024. The proceeds from the sale will be donated to two charities, Loreto Rumbek in South Sudan and Bray Lakers.

One of our chosen charities for this year's cake sale is Loreto Rumbek in South Sudan. This charity aims to provide what each child desperately needs to succeed in school by providing nutritious meals, access to water and sanitation facilities, health support and protection from war.

Our second chosen charity is Bray Lakers, who support adults and children with intellectual disabilities in our community.

The children will have the opportunity to purchase cakes during the school day on the 10 April. If the children wish to buy cakes, they may bring €2 to school on the day in support of these worthy charities. The children can give the money to their class teachers.

An online donation link will also be set up on Aladdin for any parents who wish to make a contribution. This link will open on the morning of Tuesday, 10 April 2024 and will remain open for a period of 24 hours.

Finally, we would greatly appreciate any help you can give by baking something for the cake sale. These cakes can be dropped into the school hall by your child on the morning of Wednesday, 10 April or brought by parents to the collection point at the front door of the school. We would kindly request all cakes to be cut into individual portions for ease of distribution. Also, please ensure any containers used to transport the cakes are clearly labelled with your child’s name and room number.

If your child has a food allergy or a specific dietary requirement, please inform his/her class teacher. If you wish to send in an alternative treat for your child please bring it, clearly labelled with your child’s name and room number, to the office.

Thank you in advance for your support

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

What a start to March! The children are all enthralled with the snow and can’t wait to get out into it. They are all hoping it will still be there when they get home but I'm afraid they may be disappointed! Below is a flavour of what has been going on over the last 2 weeks.

Addams Family: Our 6th classes went to the preview of the St. David’s musical, The Addams Family. They had a wonderful time and were delighted to see past pupils treading the boards. 

Coughlan Cup: Our boys' GAA team took part in the first round of the Coughlan Cup. They represented the school brilliantly and had a great day out at Bray Emmets. A huge thank you to Mr Dunne for organising the trip and to Ms Lyons for helping him out on the day.

Dalkey Castle: Our 4th classes were on a history outing to Dalkey Castle. They took part in the Living History Experience there and it was a wonderful opportunity for them to link their learning in the classroom to the real deal. A huge thank you to their teachers for organising the trip and especially to Ms Malone and Ms O Callaghan for navigating the bad weather today!

We would like to acknowledge the hospitality of Loreto Abbey Secondary School, Dalkey, and their Principal Mr Robert Dunne who accommodated our 2 classes that were stranded in Dalkey today. They were treated like royalty while they waited for a bus to rescue them. It really was an unexpected adventure!

St. Patrick’s Day Parade: The Google form for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade is available in the Update from St. Laurence's email. If you and your child(ren) wish to walk with us in the parade, please let us know via the form before next Monday.

Special Education Needs Officer (SENO): The SENO visited the school this week. She oversees all aspects of leading, coordinating, and supporting inclusive education for children with special educational needs (SENs) within the school context. She visited our Special Classes and was full of praise for our work here in St. Laurence’s in creating an inclusive environment for all our children, particularly children with additional needs.

Sacrament of Reconciliation: The second class children will be making their First Confession on Tuesday 5 March at 5:30 pm in St. Anthony’s Church in Kilcoole. I know they have been preparing with their teachers and we send God’s blessings to them on this day.

Just a reminder to the 6th classes that Wednesday, 6 March is the last Reconciliation service for the Confirmation candidates and their family in St. Anthony’s Church in Kilcoole. This service is a general service for the confirmation candidate and their families. There are no individual confessions at this service.

Calendar 2024/2025: Please click here the school calendar for the next academic year 2024/2025.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

Kind regards,

Karen Ferguson, Deputy Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have just finished our first two full weeks after the Christmas holidays. The children are in great form and they have been enjoying all that school life brings.

It has been a very busy two weeks here in St. Laurence’s. Please see below some updates from school life.

Sound Therapy – Our 6th classes are enjoying sound therapy again this year. It is always so popular. It provides a great way for children to relax and unwind in their very busy lives.

Gymnastics – Last year we had a gymnastics coach visit the school for certain year groups. This year Mark is back again and is providing gymnastics coaching to Senior Infants and our 6th classes. The focus is on fundamental movement skills. The development of these skills supports children’s overall development especially their co-ordination and physical dexterity. As part of our regular Physical Education classes the teachers also focus on these very important skills.

Write a book/Scríobhleabhar – 2nd, 3rd and 6th classes are participating in this wonderful project. The children are writing their own storybooks in both English and Irish. We have some budding authors in the making!

Hurling – Our boys participated in a hurling blitz yesterday in Greystone's Community National School.  A great time was had by all. Thank you to Mr. Dunne for organising this.

Peace Proms – Our 5th class students and their teachers have been busy preparing for this wonderful concert which will take place on Saturday, 3 February in the RDS.  The children had a rehearsal the other day in the hall and their singing and dancing was superb. We are so excited for this event. What a fantastic opportunity to be able to sing with the Cross Border Orchestra!

Board of Management – Our new Board of Management held their first meeting on Tuesday evening here in the school. I am really looking forward to working with the Board and we are currently putting our vision together for the next four years. A report from each meeting will be made available to all our school community. The first report will be on the website next week.

Catholic Schools Week – Catholic Schools Week will take place all next week. The theme this year is Community of Service. There is a theme for each day of the week:

Monday:Service in Our Community of Friends

Tuesday:Service in Our School Community

Wednesday:Service in Our Family Community

Thursday:Service in Our Local Community

Friday:Service in Our Faith Community

Each day the children will focus on the different themes and the importance of the role we all play in the community.

Grandparents Day – On Wednesday, 24 January we will celebrate Grandparents Day as part of our Family Community. In my email during the week I mentioned that Grandparents are very welcome to visit the school any time from 9:30am to 11:30am. There will be time to visit the classrooms, our Sacred Space and time for the ever important tea, biscuits and chat.

Parent’s Association – I met with the PA this week and the plans have begun for the important days ahead. I know the PA will be looking for volunteers for the First Holy Communion committee and the Confirmation committee. These days are always so special for the children and lovely memories are created. We rely so much on the generosity of parents to make these days extra special. The PA are also looking for volunteers to help out with tea and coffee on Grandparents Day.  A suggestion was also made that if anyone had spare tins of biscuits left over from Christmas they could be donated to the school for this day. These can be brought directly to the office before Wednesday. I know some people have already dropped these in. Thank you all.

Parking Etiquette – As the new term begins just a reminder of parking etiquette. Please park in the designated areas only and avoid footpaths and double parking. It is so important that we are cognisant of this as so many children enter and leave the school everyday. Their safety is our number one priority.

Finally I wish you all a lovely weekend. January is flying by and Spring is on the way. In the meantime, stay cosy and warm.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have come to the end of a very busy but fantastic week here in school. The Christmas plays and the Carol Service last night were all simply outstanding. We are so proud of all the children and I know they have given everyone the gift of joy this Christmas - memories to be cherished forever. I would like to say a huge thank you to the staff here for all their work and dedication in preparing the children. They go above and beyond, not just at Christmas time, but everyday to ensure the children have the best educational experience. We have one more play next week- Ms. Dawson's Junior Infant class. The children are super excited for Tuesday.

Please see below some updates from school life.

St Vincent de Paul Annual Collection - The collection this year raised over €4,000. This was a huge collection and we are so grateful to you all for you kindness and generosity. This money will help so many vulnerable families that are struggling at this time of year.

Jumper Day- Tuesday, 19 December is Christmas Jumper Day. As I mentioned before our chosen charity this year is Dogs for the Disabled. We would be very grateful if the children could bring a coin on the day. The children may wear Christmas hats, jumpers, hairbands all next week if they would like to.

Carol Singing - Some of our 5th class children visited the library today and sang some lovely Christmas songs and carols for all to hear.

Christmas Holidays - School will finish at 12pm on Friday, 22 December. I know everyone is really looking forward to the break.

Sickness - This time of the year sickness can be a worry for lots of people. If your child is unwell please keep them at home for a day or two and see how they are. If a child has a temperature they should not come to school. If a child has a vomiting bug the advice is to stay home for 48 hours. Thank you for your understanding.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend and enjoy the excitement as we all now await for the arrival of Santa Claus!

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have reached December and the Christmas magic is in the air. The children have started rehearsing for their Christmas plays and the excitement is certainly building. School life is extra special this time of the year.

Please see below some updates from school life.

• Assembly – This morning we had an assembly in the hall for the beginning of Advent. A big thank you to Ms. Durkan and her lovely 3rd class for the beautiful prayer service. After the prayer service the Student Council spoke to all the students about the wonderful new yard equipment they have purchased with the money from our recent Jersey Day. We are so grateful to the Student Council who have worked so hard with Mr. Conlon and Mrs. Uí Bhroin to purchase this equipment.

• Dental Hygienist – Yesterday all the children had a visit from the dental hygienist from South Beach Clinic. They spoke to the children about good dental hygiene and how important it is. Each child will receive a pack with an information leaflet about brushing technique, a couple of disclosing tablets to check their effectiveness at home, and a tracking form to tick twice daily for 2 weeks when they brush their teeth. The class teacher will collect the tracking forms after 2 weeks and we will drop them down to the practice. South Beach Clinic will sponsor every child that returns their form. The money will go towards the ongoing improvements to our school library resources.

• St. Vincent de Paul Annual Appeal – Yesterday I sent an email about our annual St. Vincent de Paul Appeal. We would be grateful if everyone could read it carefully and donate what they can to this very worthy charity.

• Annual Christmas Jumper Day – Our Annual Christmas Jumper Day will take place on Tuesday, 19 December. Our chosen charity this year is Dogs for the Disabled. Dogs for the Disabled is a unique charity founded in 2007 to improve the lives of children and adults living with physical disabilities in Ireland. Some of our students have really benefitted from this charity and we are delighted to be able to support the wonderful work they do. We would ask that all children bring a coin on the day.

• Picker Pals – Ms O’Neill’s and Ms O’Regan’s class has just finished Picker Pals around the school. This is a litter picking initiative and all infant classes and their buddy classes will have a chance to take part over the school year. It is a great way for us to keep our school and local area clean. Thank you to Ms. Ryan for organising this.

• Morning Punctuality - A number of children are meeting in the morning before school to play football on the Green Astro behind the school. We would ask you to please remind your child to be in school on time, once the bell goes at 8:50am. The class teachers have also spoken to the children about this.

• Parking Etiquette - Just another reminder to please be mindful when parking at drop off and collection time. Cars should not obscure the zebra crossing at the front of the school as this is dangerous and affects the visibility of children crossing the road. No cars should be stopping to drop off or park along this road. We would appreciate your cooperation in this matter.

• Christmas Plays and Carol Service – A reminder that our Christmas Plays and Carol Service will start the week commencing 11 December. I know details of dates and times have already been sent to you all. The details are also available in the Parents section on the school website. We look forward to welcoming you all to the plays and carol service so you can all experience a little bit of the true spirit of Christmas.

• Board of Management – Our new Board of Management will commence today. I would just like to express my sincere gratitude to the outgoing Board for their time, commitment and dedication to the school. I am looking forward to working with the new Board over the next four years.

• Sports – Our girls football team and our hockey team both had matches recently. It is wonderful to see so many of our children participating in so many different sports.

• Transition Year Students - Over the past two weeks we have a number of past pupils join us as part of their TY work experience. It has been lovely to have them back and I know they really enjoyed their time in the classrooms.

Finally, I wish you all a lovely weekend and I hope you all enjoy the build up to Christmas.

Kindest regards,

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Our four talented 5th classes have created their very own Seó Bréagán for the latest episode of Raidió Scoil Lorcáin Naofa! The episode is packed full of wonderful toy reviews, book reviews and festive music.

Well done to all the 5th classes and their teachers. You can listen to the podcast here. 

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have reached the middle of November and the last two weeks have been filled to the brim with school work and numerous activities. We are beginning to feel a little of the Christmas Spirit here as the singing of the Christmas play songs has begun.

Please see below some short updates from school life over the past two weeks:

• Visit from Minister Simon Harris – Today we welcomed Minister Simon Harris, along with researchers form the Science Foundation of Ireland. The visit coincided with Science Week and Minister Harris visited some of our classrooms where the children showcased some of their science experiments. They spoke to him about what they learn in science and why they love it. Minister Harris was so impressed by the children and said they were real scientists! Photos will be on the website next week. Thank you to the Student Council for welcoming Minister Harris to the school. 

• School Choir – Our school choir have been busy rehearsing for the turning on of the Christmas lights in Greystones, which takes place tomorrow. We would love to see as many of you as possible in the town to listen to the choir and of course to see Santa Claus himself. The choir will be on stage from 5:00pm.

• Sporting Activities – there have been numerous GAA blitzes and a football Blitz over the last two weeks. Girls and boys from 3rd to 6th classes represented the school so well at all events and they thoroughly enjoyed themselves. A huge thank you to Mr. Dunne, Mr. Meaney and Ms Maher for organising all the matches and to the parents who helped out. A big thank you to Anto and Margaret for washing all the jerseys and having them ready and clean for the next matches.

• Peter Donnelly - Author – Our First Class children had a visit today from Peter Donnelly. He read his new book “Little Wolf” to them. Peter has written other books, including the President’s Glasses. All of our first classes were given a signed copy of his book for their class libraries.

• School Inspector – We had a visit from the school inspector on Wednesday, 8 November. She spent the day with us. She visited 3 classrooms and spent time talking to the children about their learning in school. Before she left, she said it was clear to see that St. Laurence’s is a very happy school and that the children were so engaged in their learning.

• Parent Teacher Meetings – It was great to see everyone for the PT meetings this week. Anyone I met left with big smiles on their faces. I’m sure it was lovely to hear how wonderful your children are doing in school.

• Parking Etiquette – Just a reminder to please refrain from parking in the bus laybys in the morning. The crèche buses need to park here so the children can dismount carefully.

• Fáilte Friday – Our next Fáilte Friday will take place on Friday, 1 December.

I wish you all a lovely weekend. I might see some of you tomorrow at the turning on of the Christmas lights. I’m hoping we get to see the main man himself – Santa Claus!

Kindest regards,

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

What a day we had today! The children and staff were transformed into all things Halloween and a spookiness filled the school. The children enjoyed a day of Halloween games, Halloween stories, songs and dance. They also enjoyed Halloween parties and the smell of sugar filled the air! What a great way to end the first half of this school term. I’m sure there will lots of very tired faces at home this evening.

Please see below some short updates from school life over the past two weeks:

• Garda Visit – Our 6th classes had a visit from the Community Gardaí. They spoke to them about Halloween safety.

• Amber Flag – Today we launched our Amber Flag. We were delighted to welcome Bressie and Councillor Mark Barry to celebrate the launching of the flag with us. A huge well done to the Amber Flag Committee. The children worked so hard to achieve this and they have inspired us all with their energy and enthusiasm. Thank you also to the staff here who worked with the children – Ms. Dawson, Ms. Mc Loughlin, Ms. O’ Brien, Ms. Murphy and Linda Bradshaw. We are so proud as a school to have this flag which shows we are committed to looking after the wellbeing of our school community.

• AGM Board of Management – Thank you to everyone who came to the AGM of the Board of Management. On the night the parents elected as the Board nominees were Rachel Kennedy and William O’ Dwyer. I would like to thank them for volunteering to work on the new Board and I look forward to working with them.

• Parent Teacher Meetings – A reminder that slots have now been released to parents for the PT meetings. These slots will close on Wednesday, 1 November.

• Open Day – We had a wonderful afternoon on Wednesday at our Open Day for prospective parents. Our Student Council represented the school so well on the day and spoke eloquently about St. Laurence’s. They also showed parents around the school.

• Parking Etiquette – Just a reminder about mindful driving and parking. A number of the residents in Eastmount have expressed concern over parking in the estate. Please refrain from parking across peoples driveways. When driving around the car park of the school please drive slowly and carefully. We have lots of little people leaving the school at the end of the day and as adults it is our responsibility to keep their safety as our number one priority.

• Feet on Friday – Feet on Friday is a huge success and well done to everyone who is taking part. Feet on Friday will return on Friday, 10 November. Everyone is welcome.

• Fáilte Friday – As we will be on mid term the first Friday in November, Fáilte Friday will take place on Friday, 10 November instead.

Finally, thank you all for your support and kindness this term. As I always say your children are the best and they have achieved so much this term. We are so proud of them all.

Have a lovely mid term and we look forward to seeing everyone on Monday, 6 November.

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have reached the middle of October and the classrooms and corridors have been taken over by ghosts and ghouls and all things Halloween! The excitement for dress-up-day on 27 October is building. It has been a very busy two weeks here in school and the next two weeks before midterm will be even busier.

Please see below some updates from school life:

AGM and election of new Board of Management – Reminder of our AGM of the Board of Management which will take place on Wednesday, 18 October at 7:30pm. The two parent nominees, one father and one mother, for the new Board of Management will be elected on the night. Tea and coffee will be served from 7pm – all welcome for a little get together before the meeting. I would encourage as many parent(s)/guardian(s) to attend this very important meeting.

Parent Teacher Meetings – Our PT meetings will take place on 14th, 15th and 16th November. A more detailed email will be sent next week.

Maths Week – Maths week will take place next week. A huge thank you to Ms. Alison Murphy, Acting Assistant Principal I, for all her work organising this week. I know you have already received an email about Maths Week. There are lots of activities taking place in the school. We would love as many children as possible to participate in our Maths Eyes Competition and Lego Maths Competition.

Recycling Week – Recycling Week is next week and the children will spend some time learning about recycling with a particular focus on hunting for items that are incorrectly going in the rubbish bin and returning them to their rightful place. Ms. Louise Ryan, Acting Assistant Principal II, has lots of lovely activities planned for this week. The Student Council will hold an assembly in the hall for all class levels. If you would like to talk to your children about this at home you can find some information here. We will be using some of these resources in school too.

Amber Flag – Last June we received our first Amber Flag for Wellbeing. This flag will be launched on Friday, 27 October by our Amber Flag Committee. We are delighted that Bressie and Mark Barry, Cathaoirleach of Greystones Municipal District, will also join us to launch the flag. We are very proud of the Amber Flag Committee for achieving this and for looking after all our wellbeing here in the school.

Feet on Friday - Today we had our first FEET ON FRIDAY. Over 100 children walked from the three different locations – Centra in Delgany, LIDL, and Tesco. It was fantastic to see so many join in and what a wonderful way to start the school day. A huge thank to Yvonne O’ Neill for setting this up and for making sure we all had great fun. Thank you also to Maeve and Kate for leading the way from Delgany and LIDL. FEET ON FRIDAY will take place every Friday and everyone is welcome.

Instagram Page - A huge thank you to the PA for setting up an instagram page for the school st_laurences_ns. Definitely give them a follow if you are on instagram.

Costume Sale – Reminder our Halloween costume sale/swop will take place on Tuesday, 17 October at 1:45pm outside the main school entrance.

Jersey Day - Jersey Day has been a great success. We are busy counting the money here and the Student Council will update everyone on Monday when the money is counted. Thank you to everyone for their generous donations. 

GAA - a huge well done to our boys and girls who took part in recent hurling and football blitzes. Everyone had a great time and our GAA teams always represent the school so well

School Choir- Our school choir have been invited to sing at the turning on of the Christmas lights in Greystones this year on 18 November. More details to follow nearer the time. The choir are really looking forward to this and filling the town with the Christmas spirit.

Library Visits - Our Autism Class and our 5th classes recently visited the library. They really enjoyed their time there. Encouraging a love of reading is something we all focus on here in the school. The library is a fantastic local facility for us.

Explorers Education Programme - Mr. Conlon’s class and Ms. O’ Callaghan’s class have been accepted by The Marine Institute to their Explorers Education Programme. This will involve a classroom workshop and a Seashore Safari on South Beach in Greystones. Given our close proximity to the sea this is a wonderful opportunity to engage with a Marine Biologist and learn more about sea life that is on our doorstep.

Reading with Dogs – Just a reminder that this initiative will feature tonight on RTÉ One's Nationwide programme at 7pm. Something for us all to enjoy on a Friday evening.

As you can see school life is extremely busy. As a school we are so proud of all we can offer the children. We hope all the different activities and initiatives will offer them a broad view of education. As a staff we are constantly learning too and the enthusiasm here is something that never wanes.

I wish you and your families a lovely weekend.

Kind regards,

Ann-Marie

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have reached the end of September and while we are seeing some tired little faces around, the children are happy, settled and enjoying all of school life. I have had many visits to the office from children showcasing their wonderful work. Their enthusiasm is fantastic to see. A huge well done to everyone!

Please see below some updates from school life.

• Special Olympics – This week we had a very special visit from Kevin O’ Connor. Kevin represented Ireland in the Special Olympics with the equestrian team and also on the golf team. He won silver and bronze medals at the equestrian events. Kevin spoke to Ms. Nolan’s First Class and to all our Fifth Class students. The children and staff were inspired by Kevin’s speech and he spoke about the importance of team work, family and friends. This event was made all the more special as Kevin has a niece in First Class and a nephew and Godson in 5th class. It was a wonderful occasion for the children and staff and we are very grateful to Kevin for coming in and sharing his many achievements with us. In fact, Kevin has agreed to come back again and speak to more classes and we look forward to this with great excitement. Please check out our website for photos and a video of this event early next week.

• Fáilte Friday – Fáilte Friday returns next Friday, 6 October. All parents are welcome to visit their child/children’s classrooms and see some of the wonderful work that is going on.

• Student Council – Our new Student Council had their first meeting today. The Student Council play a very active, central part in school life. They met regularly and represent the student voice. In truth, they are the real bosses of the school! A huge thank you to Sinéad Uí Bhroin and Donal Conlon who support and work with the student council.

• Buddies – All our Junior Infants have now met their 5th class buddies. This is such a lovely part of our school life and they will have lots of fun times together over the school year.

• GAA - On Thursday, 21 September our 5th and 6th class girls took part in a participation blitz in Bray Emmets. Over 40 girls took part and they had a great day. Thank you to the Mr. Dunne for organising this.

• Local history trip – Our 4th classes had a wonderful history trip to the Old School House in Delgany. History was brought to life for them all.

• Lá Gaeilge – Bhí Lá Gaeilge againn inniu, our first Lá Gaeilge of the year. The children enjoyed games, conversation and songs as Gaeilge. We will have our first podcast soon and we will let you know when it is available.

• Board of Management – Our Annual General Meeting of the Board of Management will take place in the school hall on Wednesday, 18 October at 7:30pm. We would like to invite you all to attend this, as it is an important meeting which outlines the work of the Board and what has been accomplished in the last year. At this meeting we will also elect two parent nominees for the new Board of Management. I will send more details about this in an email early next week.

• Child Protection – We have updated our Child Safeguarding Statement and Risk assessment to include the new guidelines “Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools (revised 2023)”. I have attached the new updated policy below if you wish to read it. It is also available on our website.

Finally, I wish you all a lovely weekend with your wonderful children. October begins soon and we look forward to all the autumn and Halloween fun it will bring.

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have just finished our first full two weeks in school and the children have settled so well in their new classrooms. Our new Junior Infants are simply loving life and enjoying every school day.

Please see below some updates from school life in St. Laurence’s.

• Teaching and learning is in full flow in all the classrooms. It has been wonderful to have children visit me in the office and show off their fantastic work. We are so proud of every one of our students.

• Assembly – All class levels had their own assemblies with myself and Mrs. Ferguson in the school hall. At these assemblies we spoke about Buckets of Happiness and how we should all fill our buckets of happiness everyday and also help to fill other peoples buckets of happiness. The children came up with some wonderful ideas of what could be in their buckets. We encouraged them to think about their bucket of happiness every night before going to bed. We will continue to talk about this in school and encourage the children about it at home too. They may even like to tell you about the bucket dippers!

• Junior Infants – Our Junior Infants have all had a tour of the school and visited myself and Mrs. Ferguson in the office as part of the tour. We loved having a chat to them all and they were so engaged. They sang songs for us and spoke Irish. One class even got to teach Fran some Irish too!

• Tin Whistle - Children from 1st to 3rd classes have begun their tin whistle lessons. This is thanks to Tim and Music Generation and duel funded by the school. This initiative ensures that every child has the opportunity to play an instrument and enjoy the love of music. 4th,5th and 6th classes are continuing the tin whistle with their class teachers.

• Peace Proms - We are delighted to announce that our 5th class students will partake in Peace Proms this year. Peace Proms celebrates culture and peace and promotes unity through music. This programme will require the children to learn a variety of songs and dances. As part of the programme, the children have the opportunity to preform in the RDS in Dublin, in a choir of 3,000 members, alongside the Cross Border orchestra of Ireland. This is a wonderful opportunity for them.

• Library Visit - Our 3rd class children visited the library in Greystones last Friday. They had a great day out. The library is a fantastic local community facility and instilling a love of reading is so important to us here in the school.

• Parking – I would ask that everyone is cognisant of the importance of parking etiquette. We are so lucky to have the car park we have. I have been made aware by a number of parents that some people have been driving their cars down the footpath and that people are parking on both sides on the road near the entrance to the car park. It is essential that people do not drive on the footpath or park their cars on both sides of the road as this causes an obstacle for exiting cars. We would also ask that people watch their speed limits around this area. The safety of our children is of paramount importance to us all. Many thanks for your cooperation.

• Parents Association – Yesterday I met with the four Parent’s Association Officers. A huge thank you to Vicky, Meave, Laura and Yvonne for taking on these roles. There are lots of exciting plans ahead. I also want to thank the Class Reps for volunteering to take on this role. The support and help from parents is something we really value here in the school.

Finally, I just want to thank you all for the tremendous support you give the school. I also want to thank our amazing, hardworking staff who go above and beyond every day to make sure the children are so well looked after and cared for. We have had a great start to the school year and we know there will be great times ahead.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

Life has been full to the brim here in St. Laurence’s over the past two weeks. The children have been busy inside the classroom and outdoors. They are enjoying all the different activities that the summer term brings.

Please see below some updates from school life.

• Annual Fundraiser – Our annual fundraising event takes place next Friday 26, May. The excitement is building and I know the committee have been working day and night to ensure we all have a lovely day. In school on the day we will have JERSEY DAY. All children and staff are encouraged to wear a jersey and to donate a coin to help raise money for the school. There will be coffee and treats on the morning in The Grove Bar, the golfers will be teeing off early and the dinner dance will take place that evening in Delgany Golf Club. It will be a jammed packed day full of excitement and fun and we are really looking forward to it.

• Delgany Schools Cup - Huge congratulations to the 5th and 6th class pupils who represented the school in the Delgany Schools' Golf Cup in Delgany Golf Club on Monday, 15th May. Eight of our pupils took part in the annual competition with the St. Laurence's boys team taking 1st place in the nine hole scramble and the the St. Laurence's girls coming in 2nd place in their competition. We are so proud of them all.

• Horse Riding – Our Autism class have started horse riding in Equisteps, Spruce Lodge near Redcross. They are really loving the experience and spending time with the horses. This is a wonderful opportunity for the children.

• Girls 5-A-Side football – Our girls football team had a great day at the Leinster Final. Things didn’t go their way on the day but they played brilliantly and we are very proud of them.

• First Holy Communion – Last Sunday our Second Classes had their First Holy Communion. They had a super day and the party back at the school was really special. All second class children were invited and it was lovely to see parents, grandparents and extended families celebrating together. I want to say huge thank you to the Communion Committee who organised the party in the school. We really appreciate all their work to make it such a special day for everyone.

• Confirmation - Tomorrow our 6th class children will make their Confirmation. All 6th class children and their families are invited back to the school for a party after the ceremonies. The Confirmation committee have been working so hard for this event tomorrow. Thank you to all of them.

• Smart Phone - Voluntary Code – The local primary schools are working with their Parents Associations to develop a “No Smartphone Voluntary Code”. We are all aware of the power of social media and how it can affect our children. I am meeting with a group of parents next Thursday morning to discuss this and how we want this voluntary code to look for our school. If anyone is interested in coming to the meeting please email: stlaurencesnspa@gmail.com

• Gymnastics – The gymnastics proved to be such a success that we decided to offer it to other classes in the school. Currently our Senior Infants and 4th class children are enjoying gymnastics classes with Mark and their teachers in the hall.

• Ms. Coleman’s 5th class – On Monday Ms. Coleman’s 5th class had a visit from RTE for World Bee Day. They have done amazing work for this. RTE were really impressed and the class will be on News2day on RTE 2 at 4:20pm this afternoon. Well done to them.

• Droichead – Our 6th class children will join other local schools in the area on Monday in Eire Óg for a day of fun filled activities. They will have the opportunity to meet with other students who will be going to the same secondary school as them. We wish them a great day.

• Kindlestown House - Following a fire last week at Kindlestown House(the big house adjacent to the school), it has been brought to our attention that the house poses a health and safety risk. Some of our children use it as a short cut home and have been seen entering the house. We would ask that parents talk to their children and encourage them to walk home via the correct school exit at the top of the car park yard. 

Finally, just a reminder if anyone would like to drop some treats for the Confirmation party they can be brought to the school tomorrow between 9am and 10am. Thanking you in advance for your support for this.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Congratulations to the 6th class girls who participated in the LEINSTER FINAL of the SPAR FAI five-a-side competition on Wednesday, 10 May in Navan, Co. Meath. 

Click here to read all about the St. Laurence’s girls' journey to the Leinster Finals.

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We were delighted to see so many of you this morning for our Fáilte Friday. The children were super excited to be able to show some of the amazing work that they are doing. Our next Fáilte Friday will be Friday, 2 June. This will be our last Fáilte Friday of this school year. The time is flying by.

Please see below some updates from school life.

• Girls Football Team – We are thrilled to let you know that our girls 5 Aside Football Team won the South Leinster Championship yesterday and they are now through to the Leinster final in Navan next Wednesday, 10 May. We wish them and their coaches, Mr. Meaney and Mr. Dunne every success. If the girls win they will be in the All Ireland Final and the match will be played in the Aviva Stadium. The excitement is building!

• Student Council – Our Student Council have been working so hard with Mrs. Uí Bhroin, Mr. Conlon and Jonathon to develop a plan for the students’ vision for the school. I met with them yesterday and they presented their thoughts and ideas to me. I can honestly say that I was super impressed with all the work they have done. They spoke so eloquently and their love of the school shone through, which was so lovely to see. They have so many wonderful ideas on how we can continue to make St. Laurence’s the best school for every child that walks in the door. I will ask the Student Council to write an email to all the parents/guardians and explain their plans. They created some amazing art work for this too. Well done to all involved.

• School Vision – As you are all aware we are working on our school vision for the next five years. It is very important that parents have their voices heard too. I emailed a survey to you on 27 April. Thank you to all those who responded and for all your lovely kind words and suggestions. If you wish to complete the survey you can click this link https://forms.gle/N1rKdrWxYL8PD2xY7. The survey will close on Monday, 8 May at 3:30pm. Once we collate all the information we will provide feedback.

• Junior Infant Information Evening – on Tuesday, 9 May we are looking forward to welcoming our incoming Junior Infant parent(s)/guardian(s) to the school. On the night our Student Council will also be there to represent the student voice in the school. This is always a very special evening for us.

• Annual Fundraising Day – Our annual fundraising day is fast approaching and the fundraising committee are working day and night to ensure we all have a great day. A huge thank you to them. All families in the school have received raffle tickets and we would be grateful if you could return them to the school as soon as possible.

• French Day – Our 4th classes have been celebrating all things French today following their in-depth study of France. The children arrived to school today in the French colours and are enjoying sampling some lovely French cuisine, as well as embracing the French culture.

• World Bee Day – Ms. Coleman’s 5th class will be learning all about the lives and importance of bees in our community to celebrate World Bee Day. As a result of this wonderful initiative RTÉ children’s news program “News2Day” will be sending a film crew out on Monday, 15th May to film the children. It will be a very engaging and exciting experience for the children. We will let you all know when the programme will be aired.

• Mrs. Quinn’s 3rd class – All classes in the school had assembly this morning. At the assembly Mrs. Quinn’s 3rd class delivered a beautiful prayer service reminding us that May is the month of Mary, a month when we also remember that summer is coming.

• Free School Books – As you are aware all primary school children will receive free school books for September 2023. We are currently finalising our book lists and all books and copies will be ordered to the school. We will be in touch with more details about this shortly. Parents/guardians will be asked to provide their children with a pencil case and stationery for September.

• First Holy Communion – Next weekend on Sunday, 14 May our second class children will be making their First Holy Communion. This is a very exciting time for them. Some children may not be making their Holy Communion but they are very welcome to come to the church on the day and/or the party back in the school after. A huge thank you to the Communion committee of parents who are working hard to make the party in the school a special occasion for the children and their families.

• Summer months - As the weather gets warmer the children love to take off their school jumpers! We would be grateful if the children's names could be written on their jumpers so we can return the correct jumper to the correct child. We would also be grateful if the children could bring an extra beaker of water to school on the hot days that we hope are ahead!

Finally I wish you all a lovely weekend. Let’s hope we get some nice summer sunshine.

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Earth Day was celebrated in the school last Friday, 21 April. Congratulations and well done to our Earth Day competition winners. Click here for a photo.

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have just finished our first week of the third term and the sunshine has brought a summer feel to all of us here in St. Laurence’s. The children have been enjoying the chance to wear their shorts, sunglasses and sunhats! 

It has been a busy week here in school. Please find below some updates from school life.

• We are thrilled to let you know that our girls 6th class football team have qualified for the FAI 5-A-Side South Leinster final following a great victory this week which made them Wicklow Champions. They will be heading to Bunclody on 4 May 2023 and we wish them, their teachers and coaches, Mr. Meaney and Mr. Dunne every success. It really is a wonderful achievement.

• Our 5th classes have had a busy week of singing, preparing for their big concert on Sunday. They will sing as part of the National Children’s Choir in the Basketball Arena and will be accompanied by a live orchestra. Over 4,000 children from all over Ireland are taking part in this wonderful event. This will truly be a magnificent evening and we hope to share some videos on the website next week.  Their teachers are so proud of them all. They have learned a repertoire of 15 songs with a combination of soprano and alto parts for each song. 

• Our 5th classes also began their cycling workshop today. Over the next few weeks they will have the opportunity to learn all about safe cycling and children will also have the chance to learn how to cycle if they need to. 

• This week our 6th class received their Class of 2023 hoodies and they are all loving the opportunity to wear them in school.  

• Thank you to everyone who completed the survey on the effects of Covid. The main two areas of concern highlighted were an increase in anxiety in children and concern over children’s social skills. I have been working with all the local primary school principals in relation to this and looking at how we can support the children going forward in this area. The hope is that the Department of Education will consider funding a Play Therapist to support the children in the local schools. With this in mind we have been asked to gather data from our school community in relation to a new initiative called “It takes a Village - Community Movement”.  I would be grateful if you could take five minutes to complete this survey by clicking here.

• SCHOOL CLOSURE – Just a reminder that due to staff training there will no school for the children next Friday, 28 April 2023.

• One of the parents mentioned to me that some of our girls are playing in the U10 football competition on Sunday in the Aviva Stadium. We wish them all the best. 

Wishing you all a lovely weekend and I look forward to seeing our 5th class students and their families in the Basketball Arena, Tallaght, on Sunday. 

Kind regards, 

Ann-Marie Martin

Principal 

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have just finished our first full week after mid-term and Spring is most definitely in the air. Lots of exciting things are happening in St. Laurence’s. Please see below some updates from school life.

Fencing Ireland – Our 4th and 5th classes have had a visit from Fencing Ireland. They will have a five week long course with weekly 40 minute sessions, during which they will get to grips both with the basic technical elements of fencing and tactical application. The children will have the opportunity to fence some matches against their classmates.

Microsoft Hour of Code – During the week one of our parents and a work colleague of his, both of whom work for Microsoft, provided an hour of coding for the 4th class children. The children got to create their own retro arcade games. As you can imagine this was extremely well received by the classes and provided the children with a new learning experience. We are very grateful to Microsoft for facilitating this. It is fantastic to open the children’s eyes to the wider world around them and to make them aware of companies such as Microsoft.

Fire Safety – During the week our 3rd class children had a visit from two firemen who spoke to them about fire safety.

National Children’s Choir – Our 5th classes visited Ravenswell School in Bray on Tuesday for their second rehearsal for their upcoming concert in the Basketball Arena. This concert will take place in April where nearly 1,000 children from Wicklow will sing a beautiful repertoire of songs.

French Lessons – Our 5th class children began their French lessons yesterday with Transition Year students from St.David’s Secondary School. We are very grateful to the students for providing this opportunity for our pupils.

HSE – Our Junior Infants had their vision and hearing checks with the HSE this week. The nurses spoke about how wonderful the children were and how happy they are. Well done to all our Junior Infant classes. They simply love school life.

Sporting Updates – Our hockey team played a match on Bray on Wednesday and they had a great victory in the Leinster League. Yesterday some of our footballers played a friendly game in St. Cronan’s in Bray. Next week the Coughlan Cup will take place and I know all our GAA players are looking forward to this.

World Book Day – World Book Day will take place on Thursday 2 March. Mrs. Uí Bhroin sent an email to all parents/guardians yesterday. The children will participate in lots of activities on the day, with a huge focus on developing a love of reading. We are all looking forward to a great day.

Fáilte Friday- Our next Fáilte Friday will take place on 3rd March. All parents/guardians are welcome to visit the classrooms from 8:50am to 9:00am. Please take the time to look at the wonderful art and written work on the corridors. I know the children are so proud of their amazing displays.

Annual Fundraising Day – Just a reminder that this will take place on Friday 26 May. Please save the date! More details will follow shortly from the fundraising committee.

Finally, I wish you all a lovely weekend. Let’s hope the sun keeps shining.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin

Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have arrived at the beginning of Spring and we are all looking forward to the bank holiday weekend ahead. The last two weeks have been busy here and we have lots more events to look forward to. Please find below some updates from school life.

Fáilte Friday – We had our first Fáilte Friday today and the children were so excited to bring their parents/guardians to school! I know some parents were worried they would have to sit a Friday test! There was a lovely atmosphere around the school and we are looking forward to our next Fáilte Friday on 3 March.

Internet Safety Day – This will take place on Tuesday, 7 February. This day helps to create awareness about staying safe online. I know Mrs. Berney previously sent an email in relation to this. Communication between the school and parents is key here, as we all try to educate the children and keep them safe in an ever changing online world.

Kindness Day – This will take place on Wednesday, 8 February. The word KINDNESS is at the centre of everything we do here in St. Laurence’s. On this day we will celebrate this kindness through activities, a prayer service and song. The Amber Flag Committee, along with Ms. Dawson, Ms. O’ Brien and Ms. Mc Loughlin have been busy preparing for this day. We are all looking forward to it.

Podcast as Gaeilge – Ms. Casey and her 5th class have done a fantastic job of creating the latest episode of our 'Raidió Scoil Lorcáin Naofa' podcast, a huge well done to them all! A very big thank you also to Ms. Mc Cormack and Ms. Brophy, and their 1st class for their wonderful contribution to this month's episode. Thank you and well done to the buddies in Ms. Dawson’s Junior Infant class who also made an appearance in the latest podcast! This is well worth listening to when you have a spare few minutes. The standard of Irish is simply brilliant. You can access the podcast here.

Sound Therapy – The 6th class children are enjoying Sound Therapy sessions with Denise Hill. Sound Therapy uses sound, music and specialist instruments played in therapeutic ways, combined with deep self-reflection techniques to improve health and wellbeing. The 6th class children really benefit from this.

Grandparents’ Day – Thank you to Mrs. Ferguson for recording our Grandparents’ Day. The links to these videos were sent earlier in the week. To date over 540 people have viewed them. We have received an enormous amount of thank you cards and beautiful kind words from so many grandparents. Please can you pass on our huge thanks to them all, not just for the cards but for the wonderful love they showed their grandchildren and all of us on the day.

I hope you all have a lovely bank holiday weekend and enjoy the extra day off.

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin

Today we celebrated Grandparents' Day and over 400 people attended. It was a wonderful, joyous occasion where we celebrated and remembered all our Grandparents. Fr. Gerard attended one of the prayer services and showed a picture of his own grandmother who lived to be one hundred and one!

We are so proud of the children. The kindness and love they gave to all our visitors was greatly appreciated by all who were there. Our Student Council and our 5th and 6th class children all played a huge part throughout the busy morning. They are wonderful ambassadors for our school. 

I also want to thank our amazing staff for all they did in their classrooms to welcome our visitors. A huge thank you is also due to Margaret Martin, our outstanding caretaker Anto and the parents who so kindly gave of their time to provide refreshments this morning.

In what was truly a very emotional and joyous experience for everyone, we can certainly say Grandparents hold a very special place in all our hearts.

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have arrived at our Christmas holidays and the children are super excited and can’t wait for Santa Claus to arrive. The elves in their classrooms have been up to all kinds of mischief and the children have had great fun checking on them every day.

The last two weeks have been filled with Christmas cheer and fun. The children were outstandingly brilliant in their Christmas plays and we are so proud of them all. Their talents shone through and they gave us all a true sense of the spirit of Christmas. Our Carol Service was a huge success. Our 6th class children and school choir sang some of our favourite Christmas Carols and reminded us all of the real meaning of Christmas. The church was full to capacity and it was so lovely to be back in St. Kilian’s Church again. We were delighted on the night to be joined by Fr. Gerard on the guitar and our very own Ms. Coleman on the flute.

Please find below some further updates from school life.

Christmas Decoration Competition – Well done to everyone who made a recycled decoration for our Christmas tree. The creativity was fantastic and the winners were announced today.

Christmas Kindness – Our Amber Flag committee did a fantastic job encouraging Christmas kindness and lots of boys and girls were praised for being so kind.

School Closure – Reminder school closes tomorrow at 12 midday for the Christmas holidays. We reopen on Thursday, 5 January 2023.

Finally, I would like to thank you all for the tremendous support you give the school. We greatly appreciate it. Your children are simply the best and they bring us so much joy and happiness each and every day. I want to sincerely thank the wonderful staff here in the school. Every one of them work so hard to make St. Laurence’s the fantastic school it is. As I finish my first year as Principal, I feel so lucky to work with such a wonderful school community. Míle buíochas.

I wish you all a very happy Christmas with your families and friends.

We also remember those who have lost loved ones in our school this year. Our thoughts and prayers will be with them.

May 2023 bring us all happiness, love and joy.

Warmest regards,

Ann-Marie Martin

Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

I hope you are all well and have defrosted after the cold start this morning! Christmas fever has taken over St. Laurence’s and the children and staff are super excited for all the fun and Christmas cheer ahead. The crib and decorations are up, thanks to the wonderful staff at the school, and if I say so myself, the place is looking truly magical. 

Please find below some updates from school life.

Christmas Plays – Next week our Christmas Plays will take place. The children have been practising so hard over the past few weeks. We are looking forward to welcoming you all to the plays. The schedule of plays is available on the school website. If you are taking your child home after the play please sign your child out on the sign out sheet which will be available in the classroom. If you intend taking siblings home please come to the school office, via the front door, where a staff member will collect your child for you. You can then sign them out at the office. 

Carol Service- Our Carol Service will take place on Wednesday, 14 December at 7pm in St. Kilian’s Church, Blacklion. Our 6th class children and our school choir are looking forward to singing on the night.

St. Vincent de Paul Appeal – Many thanks to everyone for their very generous donations for this worthy cause. We raised the huge sum of €4,215. This money will help support those most in need at this time of the year.

Annual Golf Classic – At our recent AGM the fundraising committee presented a cheque for a massive €28,192 to the school. We are so grateful to the committee and the whole school community for this. It is a huge amount of money and the children will benefit greatly from it. Please click here to read more. 

Uniform Survey – Next week all children, staff and parents will receive a survey about the school uniform. The Student Council have been working very hard to put some questions together for this. They will also go around and talk to the younger classes in the school about our school uniform so that their views can also be included.

Christmas Jumper Day – It was lovely to see all the children and staff wearing Christmas jumpers today. Thank you to everyone for donating to the Gavin Glynn Foundation. We raised the sum of €932

Christmas Jumpers – The children may wear their Christmas jumpers over their school tracksuit/uniform from now until the holidays if they wish. 

Pyjama Day – We will have a pyjama day here in the school on Monday 19, December. The children may wear their pyjamas to school on the day if they wish.

Finally, I hope you all have a  lovely weekend and enjoy the build up to Christmas over the next few weeks.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin

Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

I hope you are all well. We had lots of very excited children and staff here today in anticipation of the Toy Show tonight! We are already beginning the preparation for the Christmas plays and it has been lovely to hear the wonderful singing throughout the school. Please find below some updates from school life and important information for the weeks ahead.

• Science Week took place early in November and we definitely have many budding scientists in the school. The children engaged in fun experiments and our 3rd classes had an interactive workshop from Little Einsteins.

• Anti-Bullying Week also took place and our Student Council did a wonderful job talking to all the classes about this. Our 6th class children made super posters. We will revisit this whole area again in February with a particular focus on kindness and friendship.

• GAA Blitz – 5th and 6th class girls took part in a GAA blitz on 10th November. They had a super time and it was wonderful to see such enthusiasm and excitement.

• National Children’s Choir – Our 5th classes have had their first rehearsal for the National Children’s Choir concert, which will take place in April. They visited the Educate Together School, here in Greystones, and sang their hearts out on the day.

• Parent Teacher Meetings – We had our first in-school PT meetings since Covid and it was lovely to see parents coming to hear all about the amazing work the children are doing.

• AGM - Please remember our Annual General Meeting of the Board of Management will take place on Wednesday 30 November at 7:30pm in the school hall. Tea and coffee will be provided from 7pm onwards. We would be delighted to see you all there. 

• Christmas Jumper Day – We will have a Christmas jumper day on Friday, 9 December in aid of the Gavin Glynn Foundation. All children and staff may wear a Christmas jumper on the day and bring a coin for this very worthy cause, if they wish.

• St. Vincent de Paul – I sent an email during the week in relation to our annual St. Vincent de Paul collection. Please remember the following dates: Wednesday, 30 November and Thursday, 1 December for the gate collection in the mornings. Donations can also be made via Aladdin.

• Service of light – Our 6th class children will have their Service of Light on Tuesday, 6 December in St. Anthony’s Church Kilcoole. This is in preparation for their Confirmation.

Finally, I hope you all have a lovely weekend and enjoy the Toy Show tonight.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

Please find below some important dates for the weeks ahead.

• Parent Teacher Meetings - 15th, 16th and 17th  November. As a result of this AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES are CANCELLED on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday next week.

• Annual General Meeting of the Board of Management - Wednesday, 30th November 2022 at 7:30pm in the school hall. All welcome.

• Early school closure - Friday, 25th November at 12pm to facilitate teacher training in the Primary Language Curriculum.

• Carol Service for 6th class children and the school choir - Wednesday, 14th  December at 7pm in Holy Rosary Church, Greystones.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We have reached mid-term and the school today was filled with Halloween fun and games. The excitement was tangible and the children all had a fantastic day. Before we finish up for the week ahead please find some updates below.

• Maths Week – Last week we had Maths Week and our budding mathematicians had a great week enjoying maths trails, games, puzzles and other various activities. The entries for our Maths Eyes Competition were fantastic and we are very proud of them all.

• Gaeilge – Mrs. Berney’s 6th class have recorded a wonderful podcast all in Irish. We would love if you would take a few minutes to listen to it.  Congratulations to all the children involved in this. The link is below:

 https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/I2Rrf43qqub

Every Friday we have Lá Gaeilge here in the school. The children are encouraged to speak Irish throughout the day and prizes are given to the best Gaeilgeoir each week.

• GAA Blitz – A large number of our 3rd and 4th class boys and girls took part in GAA blitzes over the last two weeks. These were all about participation and having fun and the children had a great time.

• Prefabs – Due to continuing anti-social behaviour the prefabs have been delayed by two weeks. While this is disappointing we are excited that the prefabs will be arriving next week for installation. Once the services are connected our 5th class children will move in to their new classrooms.

• Enrolment - Enrolment for Junior Infants opens on Monday 7th November. Applications will be accepted from 7th – 25th November. The Admissions Notice and Admissions Policy are available to view on our school website.

• School Closure – All teachers will avail of training in the Primary Language Curriculum on Friday, 25 November. As a result, the school will close at 12pm that day.

Finally, I wish you all a lovely mid-term break. We are very proud of all the children have achieved since September and we look forward to seeing everyone again on Monday, 7 November.

Happy Halloween from everyone in St. Laurence’s.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

It is hard to believe that there are only two weeks left until the midterm break and the Halloween season has definitely arrived in St. Laurence’s with spooky displays on the corridors and classrooms decorated with all kinds of ghosts and ghouls. It has been a very busy two weeks with lots of exciting things happening and lots more to come.

Please find below some updates from school life and also some important dates for the diaries!

• Christmas Plays – Everyone should have received an email with the dates for the Christmas Plays in December. We are delighted that the plays will return this year as they have always filled us with the Christmas spirit. The timetable for the plays is also available on the school website. The date for the Christmas Carol Service will be arranged next week. Our wonderful school choir and 6th class children will sing at this event.

• Parent Teacher Meetings – Parent Teacher Meetings will be held in the school this year, with a full return to face-to-face meetings. The dates for these meetings are 15th, 16th, and 17th November. A more detailed email will follow next week in relation to this.

• AGM – The Annual General Meeting of the Board of Management will take place on 30th November in the school.

• Maths Week – Maths Week will take place all next week and there are lots of activities planned for this. Please encourage your child/children to participate in “Maths Eyes Competition”. The details of this were sent to you yesterday. A huge thank you to Ms. Alison Murphy and Mrs. Jennifer Berney for all their hard work for Maths Week. We know the children will enjoy all the activities.

• GAA – Our 3rd and 4th class girls will participate in a Cumann na mBunscol blitz next week and the boys will have a blitz the following week. It has been super to see the large number of children looking to partake in these. I’m sure everyone will have a great day.

• EU Code Week started this week and runs until the 23rd October. The children will all have the chance to try some coding using chromebooks and Ipads.

• Library Visit – Next week all our 3rd class children will visit the library. They are really looking forward to this trip and I’m sure they will get to read and enjoy lots of lovely books.

• Historical walk – Today two of our 3rd classes went on a history trail to Kindlestown Castle. The other 3rd classes will go next week. Our 5th class children are heading on a history trail around Greystones next week too and they will visit the beach as part of their geography programme.

• Halloween costume swop/Uniform sale – A huge thank you to the six parents who very kindly gave of their time to facilitate these events. They were a huge success and all monies raised will be added to our Vincent de Paul Christmas fund raising.

• Prefab Update –The groundworks are progressing well. However, works were suspended for a day due to anti-social behaviour which occurred over a number of evenings. I have notified the Gardaí of damage to the machinery and fencing. They have said they will monitor the situation over the weekend. This is incredibly disappointing and frustrating for us as a school to have to deal with.

• Halloween dress up – All children and staff can dress up for Halloween on 28th October. We would be grateful if children did not wear scary clown costumes as some children are frightened of these. The 28th October is a full school day with lots of Halloween fun planned.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

Kind regards

Ann-Marie Martin

Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

I hope you are all well. As September comes to a close we can definitely say that we are all well settled back to school. The children are working so hard and achieving great things across all areas of the curriculum. As we head into October we have lots of exciting things planned.

Please find below some important updates from school life:

• Junior Infant Buddies – Our Junior Infants have met with their buddies in the senior classes. This is always a special time for the Junior Infants and the 5th class children. Throughout the year they will do lots of exciting things together and create special memories.

• Reading with Dogs- We are delighted to have Paula and her lovely dog Molly back in the school for Reading with Dogs. The aim of this programme is to improve the literacy and communication skills of children. Each week a number of children meet with Molly on an individual basis and read a book to her. Molly enjoys every story.

• Library Visits – all of our 4th class children have now visited the library. Our 3rd class children will be next to make the trip down and they are really looking forward to it.

• Write a Book/Scríobhleabhar Project – A number of classes will once again participate in this project. It gives children the chance to become novelists in English or Irish and create the most wonderful books. This Project is run by the Blackrock Education Centre and a winner will be selected from every class.

• Hockey Blitz – 5th and 6th After School Hockey had a fantastic time at the blitz on Monday. Ms. Horgan and Ms. Quinn said the children were super and they are now looking forward to participating in the Leinster Hockey League.

• Friends for Life – All 4th class children will participate in this programme throughout the year. It runs for ten weeks and will help the children build resilience and help to reduce anxiety. ‘Friends for Life’ is the only programme of its kind which has been recognised by the World Health Organisation and it has proven extremely effective when implemented in Irish primary schools. Mrs. Durkan and Mrs. Uí Bhroin will run this programme in the school.

• Parent’s Association – On Wednesday evening the PA had their first meeting of the year. Myself and Mrs. Ferguson were delighted to attend and meet with the Chairperson, Karl Lawless, Deputy Chairperson, Louise Hatton and the class reps. It was fantastic to see so many class reps there. Karl and Louise, together with the class reps have fantastic ideas for the year ahead and we look forward to offering the children lots of different experiences with the help of the PA and the class reps. I would just like to take the opportunity to thank Karl, Louise and all the class reps for taking on these roles and I look forward to working with them throughout the year. I have attached the guidelines for class reps for you all to read when you have a spare minute.

• Uniform Sale – At the PA meeting a number of the class reps asked if we could have another uniform sale. The plan is to hold this sale at the front of the school on Thursday 6 October at 1:45pm. If anyone has any uniforms or tracksuits they would like to donate they can bring them to the school office. On the day we ask that people make a small donation in exchange for the uniform. All monies collected will go to the Vincent de Paul.

• Halloween Costume Exchange/Sale – Another class rep mentioned an idea from their class in relation to Halloween costumes. It was asked if we could do a costume exchange/or sale to help reduce the cost of buying Halloween costumes, which can be expensive. The plan is to hold this event again at the front of the school on Thursday 13th October from 1:45pm to 2:30pm. You can donate a costume at the school office for resale or you can bring a costume with you and exchange it for a different one. This is a fantastic idea as it not only saves money but also recycles costumes, which is kinder to the environment.

• Prefabs/SNU Build – Our prefabs are nearly ready to go. Equipment will arrive in the school today and site works begin on Monday. The time frame is still the same and the 5th class children will move into their new rooms after the mid term. The design team for the Special Needs Unit Build has been appointed and we will have our first meeting with the team next week. We are so excited about this project as it will be a wonderful facility for the school.

• International Teachers Day – International Teacher’s Day will take place on Wednesday 5 October. To celebrate our wonderful teachers, the children will have a night off homework!

Finally I wish you all a lovely weekend. Thank you again for all your support.

Míle buíochas

Ann-Marie Martin, Principal

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

It has been a very busy two weeks here in St. Laurence’s. The children have settled so well back in their classrooms and our new Junior Infants have simply been outstanding. They have taken to school life with great enthusiasm and it is so lovely to see them all bouncing into school every morning.

Teaching and learning is in full flow in all the classrooms. It has been wonderful to have children visit me in the office and show off their fantastic work. We are so proud of everyone of our students.

Please find below a few updates from school life.

Last Friday, 9 September, our 3rd and 4th classes took part in a drumming workshop which they all enjoyed and benefited from.

Children from 1st to 3rd classes have begun their tin whistle lessons. This is thanks to Niall and Music Generation and duel funded by the school. This initiative ensures that every child has the opportunity to play an instrument and enjoy the love of music. 4th,5th and 6th classes are continuing the tin whistle with their class teachers

We are delighted to announce that our 5th class students will partake in the National Children’s Choir again this year. The children learn a repertoire of songs and every 5th class child will have the opportunity to sing these songs with other schools from Wicklow. There will be a big concert towards the end of April/early May which parent(s)/guardian(s) will be invited to attend. Venue has yet to be decided. The children will sing with a full orchestra. 

Our 4th class children are visiting the library in Greystones. Today Ms. Horgan’s class and Mrs. Durkan’s enjoyed reading time in the library. Next week Mr. Conlon’s class will have their visit.

Our vast choice of After School Activities have all commenced and so many children are partaking in these. I would just like to thank so many of our wonderful staff who give of their time to ensure the children can avail of these activities.

Just a reminder to 2nd and 6th class parents that registration for First Holy Communion and Confirmation is now open via the links I previously sent or via the Parish website www.gkpastoralarea.ie

Work is due to commence for our new prefabs on Wednesday 21 September. These prefabs will consist of four full sized classrooms. After the Halloween mid term our 5th class students will move into these rooms. They will be located at the back of the black astro and will be fitted out with standard classroom resources such as interactive whiteboards, toilets and heating.

We will shortly commence the design phase for our new Special Needs Build. This will consist of three Special Needs classrooms, with a sensory room, gym and designated play area. This will be a fantastic facility for our school and also for the whole Greystones community. Going forward we will be able to offer more places to children with additional needs.

I met with the Chairperson, Karl Lawless and the Deputy Chairperson, Louise Hatton of the Parent’s Association today. Together we hope to organise lots of activities and events for the children to enjoy. We will have a PA meeting in the school soon where all class reps will be invited to attend. A huge thank you to Karl and Louise for all their work on the PA.

I just want to say a very big thank you to the boys and girls for adapting so well to the new changes to arrival time this week. The school corridors are calm and quiet and the children settle so quickly and happily to their work. If a parent is dropping more than one child to an area in the morning they may bring their children in the most convenient gate. Just a reminder that if it’s after 9am please bring your child to the office door and we will ensure they get safely to their classroom.

Finally, I just want to thank you all for the tremendous support you give the school. I also want to thank our amazing staff who go above and beyond every day to make sure the children are so well looked after and cared for. Your children are simply the best and we look forward to the weeks and months ahead.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Kindest regards

Ann-Marie Martin

Principal