On Friday last representatives of the Scoil Ursula Parents Association attended our November Assembly to present a very generous cheque for €2,500 to the school. This fantastic contribution is the proceeds of the many fundraising ventures that the PA undertook last year. The money has been targetted at resources for the Reading Workshops that have proven such a success in our Literacy Strategy. It will also help upgrade our classroom libraries as well as kit out our two new classrooms. Current Chairperson, Ian Duggan, paid tribute to his predecessors, Susan Cox & Marie Kilfeather, for all their work in organising these events and he outlined some of the planned ventures for the coming year. We are extremely fortunate to have such an active and supportive PA and are very grateful to them for their continued support of our school's activities.

It was with an open door and big smiles that Scoil Ursula’s Student Council officially welcomed Bishop Christopher Jones and An Taoiseach Enda Kenny, along with many other dignitaries and invited guests our school on Monday the 7th of October 2013. There were a lot of important people in the school that day to witness the official opening and blessing of our two room extension including, Canon Tom Hever, Board of Management Members including the Chairperson Marian Moore, Mayor of Sligo, Marcella Mc Garry, Senators Marc Mc Sharry, Michael Comiskey, Imelda Henry and Susan O’Keeffe. There were also TD’s and Councillors there including Minister John Perry, Tony Mc Loughlin, Michael Colreavy, Matt Lyons, David Cawley and Rosaleen O’Grady. There were members of the Parents Association, former Principals and Deputy Principal of Scoil Ursula, Principals and a President of neighbouring schools and colleges and of course the whole staff and pupils of the school.

It was all of these very important people that the whole of the Scoil Ursula Family welcomed with open arms on Monday. Flowers festooned the steps to the school and the children’s work was displayed in the Hall for all to see and admire.

The school Principal, Mr. Gallagher, welcomed everyone to the Hall for the auspicious occasion and thanked all of the staff, parents and pupils for their hard work and dedication in helping to bring about the extension. Thanks was also expressed to the Department of Education and Skills for funding the project, Rhatigan and Co.  for their work as project planners and managers and to Castlelough Corporation Construction Company. 

Mr. Gallagher spoke of the many changes that have taken place in education over the past number of years including the many initiatives, curriculum changes and other progressive improvements in primary education. While acknowledging all of these as positives he also urged An Taoiseach to use his influence to prevent a rise in class sizes in primary education and the loss of one or more teachers in Scoil Ursula along with a loss of services for children with special educational needs. The principal spoke highly of his predecessors, past staff and indeed the founders of the Ursuline order and committed, in St. Angela’s words to:

He then invited the Mayor of Sligo to speak to the crowd. Marcella Mc Garry spoke of the high regard that Scoil Ursula is held by the people of Sligo and its achievements in sport, academics, culture and community project. Scoil Ursula, she said, had a reputation for excellence in education locally and that the extension to the school was to be welcomed in helping to place this education in modern classrooms.

In his address Bishop Jones praised the work of the Ursuline Order in founding Scoil Ursula and the staff and principals, both Sisters and lay people, down through the years that kept up the Ursuline ethos of holistic child centred education that always aimed for excellence. He also reminded all those present that while the building the school is in is important, it is the people inside that make a school what it is. Bishop Christy also spoke of how much school life has changed since he was young and of his delight to see happiness being at the centre of what takes place in school nowadays.

The Chairperson of the Board of Management also spoke welcoming and thanking all for their presence. While extolling the virtues of an Ursuline school committed to linking with the community and the wider world and the excellence in education that it provides, Mrs. Moore also compared the new modern extension to the older buildings of the school. These, she said, addressing the Taoiseach, are falling into disrepair and need proper maintenance with the finances to go along with it. She asked that

In his speech to the assembled crowd An Taoiseach thanked the school for the invitation and spoke of his pleasure being invited to perform the opening of the extension to the school. Mr. Kenny revealed how his own mother had been taught in an Ursuline School. The then echoed the views of the Mayor, speaking of the excellent work being done in the school and the long list of awards and achievement we have won and the projects we have taken part in, including our fifth Green Flag, Golden Pen Awards, singing with the National Children’s Choir, Cumann na mBunscoil trophies, the Golden Spider Award and many Cathaoirleach’s Awards too.

An Taoiseach went on to respond to the Chairperson’s speech with the hope that soon there would be some more flexibility in future budgets for school building and maintenance projects like the one outlined by Mrs. Moore for Scoil Ursula. He also noted that there was €13 billion to be spent on capital projects nationally between now and 2015 and that had to be split up between various departments. He also stated that both he and the Department of Education would work with school management to improve the buildings. He asked the Chairperson to keep in contact so that they could plot the progress together.

After this the school choir sang beautifully for all to hear. There followed an address by Bishop Jones asking God’s Blessing on the school and in particular on the extension. Children came to read Prayers of the Faithful asking God to bless the work of the school, their teachers and parents. Prayers were also said for national and world leaders and for the sick and the poor.

Following this the assembled guests were led out to the new extension where An Taoiseach officially opened it and Bishop Christy prayed for God’s Blessing on it. They were joined there by the pupils from Ms. Cogan and Ms. Mitchell’s who have their classes in the new rooms. Both An Taoiseach and the Bishop were presented with gifts and cards by the children.

It was a wonderful day for our school and we are so happy to share it with the whole school community. Thanks are due to so many people for their help and support throughout the project and in the lead up to the official opening. So to one and all we say Thanks!

We hope that this will be a stepping stone to further upgrades, improvements and successes for the school and the boys and girls of Scoil Ursula.

There was some local and national media coverage of the opening including (Click the links below)

• Ocean FM: An Taoiseach to Visit Sligo Today (including an interview with the Principal Mr. Gallagher)
  
• Sligo Today: Taoiseach for Sligo Visit Today
  
• Irish Independent: Enda Back to School After Lesson from Voters
• Sligo Champion (see below)
  
  

Well done to everybody who took part in our Multi-Cultural Day yesterday. It was a wonderful celebration of diversity, where all our pupils got an opportunity to sample a variety of aspects of life in different countries. One-fifth of Scoil Ursula's pupil population have origins in different nations and the children displayed fantastic projects incorporating aspects of culture such as language, history, faith, fashion, music, sport and off course the ever-popular food-tasting. 

A big thank you to our Multi-Cultural Co-ordinator, Mrs Mc Moreland, for organising this event and preparing the wonderful 'Where we are From - Map of the World ' backdrop to the display (above) and also to our Language Support Teacher, Ms Branley, for her input into the day. Thanks also to the parents who cooked long into the night preparing the delicious food we all enjoyed sampling on the day. 

Enjoy a snapshot of the event in pictures below:

Here are some of the many children who took part in multicultural day with their own stall showcasing their culture!

Scoil Ursula Parents' Association organised an Easter Egg Hunt & Bake Sale on Sunday last. There was a wonderful turn-out and everybody had a great time. A big thank you to all the organising committee and to everybody who supported this event and to our special guest, the Easter Bunny!!
Happy Easter to all!!!

A brilliant new website developed  by the Department of Education and Skills as part of the National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011 — 2020. It's packed full of ideas that will help children learn every day!

As a parent, you are your child’s first teacher. Your home is a place where lots of learning is happening every day. Your most important job when it comes to your child’s learning is to show interest and get involved. You make a difference every day when you talk to and listen to your child.  This is what helps your child the most.

This website highlights the way people of all ages learn as part of their everyday lives and especially the positive things that children learn at home from their families.

By speaking and listening to your child, by talking and reading to him or her, by pointing out words and notices at home or out and about, you have introduced your child to the world of language – spoken and written.

Through playing with your child, he or she learns new words, and learns to think and to talk about his or her thoughts or feelings. For example, pretending to be a nurse or doctor, a shopkeeper or looking at and talking about picture books, all help your child to speak, to listen, to read or to write. When your child starts school, you continue to have a key role in helping him or her.

This website is for the parents of children aged 0 – 12 years, from birth to the end of primary school. To keep the website easy, when we use the word ‘parent’, we mean to include parents, guardians, family members and childminders. The website is about how you and your family can enjoy learning together. It is designed to support parents with fun activities and tips according to their child’s age. And each age group has lots of ideas for helping children with talking, playing, reading, writing and using numbers.

Since your child was born you have been teaching him or her to learn about the world. We hope that you enjoy the tips, activities and links provided by this website and we would welcome your feedback so that we can keep making improvements that help you, help your kid learn.

Our Annual Pancake Tuesday took place in the Cookery Room today. A big thank you to the Parents' Association for organising this popular event in the Scoil Ursula Calendar. See the chocolatey faces of our Junior Infants enjoying their first Pancake Tuesday below.