End of Year News

N.B. School will close for the summer holidays @ 12 noon tomorrow, Wednesday 23^rd June.  Buses will run at this time.

As we come to the end of what has been an extraordinary year I want to thank each and every one of you for your tremendous and unwavering support. I thank you sincerely for helping us to keep Scoil Éánna safe ALL year.  Through your vigilance in acting on what sometimes may have seemed like COVID-19 symptoms among the children we managed to keep the virus at bay.  It has been a stressful and difficult year in so many ways.  Our whole school community has had to adapt and change to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.  Firstly, in dealing with the extensive protocols and restrictions in returning to school in September and the sheer uncertainty of COVID-19, followed by how we had to reinvent our Christmas festivities to bring a little bit of Christmas to you at home, the swift move to distance learning in January and the very uncertain return before Easter, the cancelling of sacraments and finally the lack of traditional school tours in term 3 and alternatives to open night and graduation.  Staff had to upskill faster than we ever thought possible and transition from in person to distance learning with little or no notice, I thank the entire teaching staff of Scoil Éanna for meeting every challenge with creativity and for the constant enthusiasm and effort they made to ensure children were engaged with their learning.  I thank Gráinne, Patricia, Peter and our dedicated SNAs for the way in which they have adapted to the new normal and have taken everything including their increased workload in their stride. It is this true sense of teamwork that makes me proud to be part of Scoil Éanna.

The children have been remarkable in how they have adapted to the changes…. pods, handwashing and open doors on freezing days! We are so very proud of what you have achieved this year!  While we as adults continue to worry about the lasting effects of the pandemic the children still skip up the steps each morning with smiling faces.  After a tough year, play will be how children reconnect with their family, friends and their communities and recover from the impact of the pandemic. We need to ensure that children get outside, play and have fun this summer.

The Parents’ Association have continued to work quietly in the background and have supported us on a number of occasions throughout the year…. gifting Christmas stockings, organising outdoor breakfast dining and sponsoring Scoil Éanna ag rith prizes to name but a few. We are sincerely grateful for all you do to support the school staff and children. We say a special thank you to those who will not be around to support the school further as their children will all have moved to post-primary – we are sorry that we could not do this in person, but we know that our loss will be another’s gain. We appreciate sincerely your generous support over the years you’ve been associated with Scoil Éanna and we wish you every blessing as you move on.  It would be remiss of me at his point not to remember the tremendous work Sharon Caraher did for our school community, a long standing member of our Parents’ Association, who sadly passed away earlier this year. May her gentle soul rest in peace.

As a school community we are blessed to have Canon Owen Joe as our pastoral advisor over this last number of years. He has thoughtfully engaged with all classes throughout the year and assisted with preparations for the sacrament of Reconciliation, First Holy Communion and Confirmation and has gone above and beyond in his recognition of the sadness for all at missing the ‘traditional’ special day. We are sincerely grateful for his input and we look forward to the celebration of Confirmation in the parish on 9^th July followed by the remaining sacraments in September.

I thank also the very dedicated members of our Board of Management who have been a great support to me in my first year as principal of Scoil Éanna.  They give so generously of their time to support our school and they too had to upskill in their use of technology this year when our meetings moved to the zoom platform.

Our Scoil Éanna ag Rith was a huge success and I thank all of the families who supported us by taking part in the run and donating to the gofundme page or directly to the school office.  I thank all of the staff members who donated so generously in support of the school, it is most certainly a testament to their commitment to Scoil Éanna.  I thank our very dedicated Student Council who with the support of Mrs Mc Anespie worked diligently to promote our fund raiser. Your energy and enthusiasm was wonderful – Thank you!  The final figure collected is €4,440 and with this money we hope to make many improvements for the children in the next school year.

As we approach the last day of school it has been noted in the office that there are still a number of book bills outstanding for 2020/21.  Unfortunately, this will result in the delayed delivery of books to some pupils in the new school term, payments can still be made on outstanding monies.

As in previous years, the school will organise a Book Rental scheme. The fee for this scheme is €90 per child. This also covers Art and Craft, photocopying, school diaries (for 1^st – 6^th) and Pupil Personal Accident Insurance for ALL CHILDREN.

• All requisites for Infants to 2^nd class are included on the scheme – copies, folders etc.
• 3^rd to 6^th class will receive all their books but copies need to be purchased by parents. The list of copies/sundries to be bought by each senior class is available on the school website.
• All children will have access to all the reading materials and other books they require for the various schemes of work over the course of the year.

Again this year you will be welcome to pay the fees as follows:

• Payment of fees online
• Fees may be paid in full, or by instalments
• If paying by instalments all fees must be paid by the end of December 2021
• If you wish to negotiate an alternative payment method, please do not hesitate to make contact
• Payments may also be made by cheque and posted to the school address during the school holidays

For the school year 2021/22 the class allocation will be as follows:

Junior Infants  –  to be appointed

Senior Infants  –  Ms McDonald

1^st Class  –  Ms Mc Kenna

2^nd Class  –  Ms McDermott

3^rd Class  –  Mrs Milne

4^th Class  –  Mr Atkinson

5^th Class  – Mr Duffy and Ms McHugh

6^th Class  –  to be appointed

SET  (Special Education Teachers) –  Mrs Woods, Mrs Flood, Mrs Brennan, Mrs Mc Anespie/Ms Tinnelly (job share)

June has been a very busy month for each and every one of us and the feedback from the children has been very positive with regard to the alternative arrangements for end of year fun.  Over the last number of days, the tiredness has crept in and I feel everyone is ready for their summer break and the opportunity to switch off and recharge their batteries with the prospect of some holiday fun. The summer should provide children, parents and families with an opportunity to rest, recuperate and recharge after a gruelling year.

School will reopen for pupils on Tuesday 31^st August @ 9am and this may take on a staggered entry system similar to last year.  At this point we are unsure of the Department of Education protocols around reopening but we will contact you ahead of the return to school with full details.

As our wonderful 6^th class pupils graduate today I wish them continued success as they move to post-primary. What an exemplary group of boys and girls you have turned out to be!  You have been a pleasure! I will continue to follow your journey from afar.  As you leave us with the world at your feet I hope that you continue to choose your paths wisely.

Finally, I want to wish Mrs Duffy a long and happy retirement and to thank her for her stalwart commitment to the education of the children of Scoil Éanna over the last 18 years.

On behalf of all the staff of Scoil Éanna I would like to wish you and your families a very healthy, happy and enjoyable summer break and I look forward with a sense of hope to a return to regular schooling for the next school year 2021/22.