10th January 2020
Dear school community
Welcome back after the holidays, I hope you enjoyed a restful break.
The end of term concert was a lovely event and congratulations to all of the pupils for their wonderful performances. Many thanks to the staff who supported the children in the preparation and to all those who attended on the day.
Particular thanks to the PTA committee, led by Niamh O’Toole, who organised last term’s events. These include the bake sale at Halloween, the very successful Winter Fair, a beautiful school calendar and refreshments at the concert. These are an important part of the school’s fundraising initiatives as well as special community activities greatly appreciated by all.
Assemblies will continue this term for the pupils. There is a weekly senior assembly (3rd-6th) and a monthly junior assembly. Certificates of achievement are presented each week at senior assembly. There is a monthly theme for our assemblies and for this term they are: January – Happiness, February- Love, March – Freedom. These themes are explored and presented by pupils and staff at the final assembly of the month.
We look forward to culture week and Lá na Gaeilge which is planned this year for the week beginning 2nd March.
I would like to congratulate teachers Fiona Willis on the birth of her daughter Rebecca and Maeve Doyle on the birth of her son Frederick. Also congratulations to teacher Kate Cahiill on her marriage over the holidays.
Finally, I hope that all of the pupils continue to enjoy your learning this term and to thank all staff and parents for your continued support to the pupils and your commitment to the school.
My best regards
Sinéad
Sundries, Book Rental, Swimming, Forest School – A reminder to those families who have not yet paid the sundries, book rental, swimming or forest school fees to please ensure they are paid in full by the end of January. The Aladdin payment link was sent out today to all those with a balance outstanding.
Swimming at Coral Leisure will be for Kate & Alan’s 4th classes this term on Thursdays during the school day starting on Thursday 23rd January 2020. Parents of pupils who are unable to swim because of medical difficulties should contact the Principal immediately. On swimming days please make sure that your child has their swimming togs, hat and towel coming to school and dresses in clothes that are easy to manage. T-shirts, long/denim type shorts are not allowed in the pool. Please remember no hat – no swim!
Transition Meeting for 5th & 6th Class Thursday 30th January – Parents of 5th and 6th class pupils are invited to a Transition Meeting on Thursday 30th January at 7.30pm in the main hall here at the school. This meeting will be chaired by Graham Richmond. The meeting is to provide advice and support to parents as they prepare their children for the move to secondary school.
Rocky Road Parking Following on from a communication from Wicklow County Council, it is our understanding that residents on the Rocky Road have complained about cars causing blockages and obstructions during school drop off and pick up times.
This has resulted in an Garda Siochana being notified. Unfortunately, as this is a public road, WETNS has no control over it. However, we would ask that in order to reduce the risk of upsetting our neighbours in the area that driveways and lines of sight are kept clear and unobstructed and there is no parking on or near corners.
Reading in the Senior Infant Classes – Senior Infant classes are currently working to coordinate a plan that will see every child have their reading heard every day. Needless to say, this will require lots of bodies to help out! 😊 If you have half an hour to spare at drop off each morning, or indeed any morning, and would like to volunteer, please contact Eileen on [email protected]. All volunteers will need Garda clearance prior to commencing reading with the children. Thank you to all the wonderful parents/guardians who are coming in to help. This is a really positive experience for the children and we are seeing a significant improvement in their reading as a result.
Set Down Volunteers needed – Can you spare 10 minutes a month? If you can volunteer to help at set down for one morning a month, you choose which day suits you, please email: [email protected].
Aftercare Staff Vacancy – We are currently recruiting for an Aftercare Assistant – To work as part of our team of aftercare assistants in our school aftercare facility. Applicants must have minimum FETAC level 5 qualification. Working hours 1pm – 6pm Monday to Friday on a shift rota. Letter of Application and Curriculum Vitae to [email protected].
Healthy Eating – As the school encourages healthy eating we ask that children do not bring fizzy drinks, chewing gum or crisps to school. Pupils can bring in a small treat on a Friday if they wish. We ask that pupils bring home their own lunch waste. In support of reducing the amount of plastic throughout the school we ask that each child has a refillable bottle / container for their drink that they bring to school each day. No single use plastic bottles thank you. Please note, our healthy eating policy also applies to our aftercare facility.
Admissions Junior Infants 2024 – Please note the following important information regarding admissions for Junior Infants 2024.
Due to planned commencement of the Education (Admission to Schools) Act, 2018, Wicklow Educate Together National School will not accept pre-enrolment application forms for September 2024. A new Admission Policy will be approved with an annual admissions process for this intake group.
Homework Club – reminder to all parents/guardians that our homework club finishes promptly at 3.30pm each day. Please ensure children are collected on time.
Extra-Curricular – Term 2 of our extra-curricular programme will begin in February. Term 2 dates and fees will communicated at the end of January. Irish Dancing Term 2 starts this week to allow time to prepare for the various competitions coming up. There are a number of places available in Irish Dancing for both the 1.30pm and 2.30pm classes. Please book on easy payments.
Aftercare – A reminder to please ensure all aftercare/homework club bookings are completed before 11am each day and where possible please book for the correct number of hours you wish your child to attend. From Monday 13th January an administration fee of €0.50 will be charged for all manual charges and refunds processed daily due to late bookings or early collections/cancellations.
Aftercare Snack – If your child is attending aftercare please ensure they have sufficient food to cover their aftercare snack time. This can be left in the schoolbag or dropped to the school office to be stored in the fridge. Please note our schools healthy eating policy applies during aftercare hours.
Chess Team – Wicklow Educate Together Chess Team played their first match of the year against a strong St Laurence’s Greystones team before Christmas. Congratulations to Damien, Bob, Fionn, Danny and Harris who all played their first game for the school and to Aaron, Kyle and Naoise who played on the top 3 boards for the first time. Looking forward to our next match at home to Gorey Educate Together.
6th Class Visit to Senior Citizens Centre – On Monday December 16th, 6th Class went to the Senior Citizens Centre. We sang a couple of well-known Christmassy songs, accompanied by Alison on guitar. We gave out some marshmallows and handmade Christmas cards, which they were delighted with. After singing, we went around talking to them and enjoyed listening to their stories of what Christmas was like when they were our age. Both 6th Classes had a lot of fun and really enjoyed chatting with the Seniors – we think it is such a nice tradition that our school does each year! Deirdre & Sophie 6th Class Blue
Student Council – We are all very pleased to announce that the Student Council 2020 has been elected. They are:
| Class | Representatives |
| 2nd Paul | Summer, Luke |
| 2nd Eamonn/Michelle | Callum, Kate |
| 3rd Gina | Anna, Lucas |
| 3rd Emily | Evie, Sophie G |
| 4th Alan | Aurelia, Charlie |
| 4th Kate | George, Aislinn |
| 5th Rory | Anton, Rosie |
| 5th Caoimhe | Siofradh, Naoise |
| 6th Louise | Sofia, Tommy Lee |
| 6th Laura | Oscar, Ava |
| Cathy | Stephen |
The Student Council play a very important role in our school life. They provide good communication between the student body and staff, and are an essential element in the organisation of events throughout the year. All children on the Student Council were elected as part of a fair and democratic process which saw all candidates make an election speech. Across all classes, these speeches were inspiring and well thought out and all children/candidates are to be commended on their efforts!
This year the Student Council have chosen Wicklow First Responders as our schools chosen charity to support and we look forward to organising a fundraising event on their behalf later in the term. Please keep an eye out in the school newsletter for details of our ongoing work!
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Please keep up to date with information from Wicklow Educate Together NS which is available through weekly newsletter, texts to parents, school wide notices, notes in bags, homework diaries & school website wicklowetns.com. Wicklow Educate Together N.S. is not on Facebook, Twitter or any other social media. For any queries, questions or feedback please approach your child’s class teacher in the first instance or the school office Lisa (0404 62786) email [email protected] Please contact Sinead school principal for any further clarification or information on [email protected] Please note that we will only promote school sanctioned events or those that benefit a registered charity in our newsletter.
We would like to remind all parents/guardians that our enrolment policy is on a first come first served basis and would ask that you complete pre- enrolment forms for all younger siblings as early as possible. Our pre- enrolment form is available on our school website https://wicklowetns.com/
Please click on the Pre-Enrol tab and complete the Enrol Now form and submit.