Dear Dads, Mams, Pupils and Staff,
Thanks to the efforts of everyone in Waterford, it seems that the number of Covid-19 cases in the county is dropping. Now that the whole country has moved to Level 3 of the Government’s Plan for Living with Covid-19, please be particularly careful when you are dropping off or picking up children. This is to keep yourself, the children and our staff safe so that we can keep our school open.
Our drive through system works so please stay in your cars, and a staff member will bring your child to you. Try not to arrive too early for the 2 o’clock (Sen. Infant) or 3 o’clock (3rd to 6th) pick up as this means that the driving through area fills up very quickly. If you are walking, please wait at the top of the path. Spots are clearly marked around Madonna House gate to help you with social distancing. You are strongly advised to wear a face covering if you are standing waiting to collect your child.
We have been very lucky with the weather until now, but as the winter months arrive, it is likely that we will have colder and wetter days. The girls will be brought outside to the path as usual on rainy days, so it is important that they have warm coats and hats. No one likes standing in the rain, but we do ask you to have patience and let us get the children back safely to you.
As always, we are very grateful for your support and co-operation and we look forward to making it through together to the mid-term break.
Yours sincerely,
C. O’Reilly – Principal
Time to Say Farewell
At the end of the month we will say ‘Farewell’ to our wonderful Ms. Finucane, who is retiring on 30th October. Ms. Finucane wants to leave us quietly, with no fuss or ceremony. She has been such an important part of the Good Counsel teaching and management team for many years and we will miss her very much. Thank you for your kindness, care and concern for all the girls you have taught Ms. Finucane, and for being such a good friend to all your colleagues. Slán go fóill.
Homework
As you know the girls did not have any homework for the month of September. We are making a slow start to Homework for October and we are asking all the girls and their families to focus on reading. Have a look at the Class Blog on www.goodcounselgns.ie and you will see what they are being asked to do.
We are taking this opportunity to think a little bit about Homework, the reasons we set Homework, and the type of Homework that we set. In the next week or so, Mams and Dads will be asked to complete a short survey so that we can hear what parents have to say. We will also talk to the girls and get their opinions. When we gather all our information, we can make an informed decision about where to go from here.
Seesaw
In the next couple of weeks, teachers will begin using the Seesaw App for online learning with the children. Only those children whose parents have given their consent will be included. If you haven’t already done so, please contact your child’s teacher right away.
Peace Proms
When so many of our ususal activities have been cancelled or postponed, it was great to hear that the Peace Proms will go ahead as an online event during this school year. Once again, our school has been accepted to take part, and Mrs. Burke’s Fifth Class will represent us. Consent Forms have been sent to Mams and Dads, so please retrun them to Mrs. Burke by Monday next.
A big ‘Well Done’ to all our cyclists and scooters! Remember to wear your helmets and hig-vis vests.
A Message From the HSE
The HSE acknowledge all families and school staff have an essential role in stopping the spread of COVID-19, by making sure if anyone is displaying any symptoms (high temperature, a dry cough, shortness of breath, loss of sense of smell or taste), they stay at home and contact their GP – see www2.hse.ie/coronavirus/ and www.hpsc.ie/ for further information.
Epilepsy Ireland
Rose Week 2020 takes place from October 12th – 19th. It is Epilepsy Ireland’s national fundraising week. 40,000 people in Ireland have epilepsy and 10,000 of them are children. Epilepsy is a neurolgical condition . Anyone with a diagnosis of Epilepsy may experience seizures. There are many different types of seizures that can last seconds or minutes. These seizures are happening in the brain which is the computer of the body. It has millions of nerves that send out messages by passing electrical signals. These signals tell us how to walk, how to lift our arms, allow us to taste chocolate, to hear music and all the other things that we can do.
When a person has epilepsy, sometimes the brain produces a wrong signal and the messages get mixed up. The person can have a seizure. An ‘absence seizure’ is just one type that lasts seconds, where the person will stop what they are doing, pause and when the seizure is over will continue what they were doing.
Reminder
To keep all of our girls safe, our school is a ‘Nut Free Zone’. Please do not give your child any products containing nuts such as cereal bars, Nutella, etc.
Mental Helath Awareness Week
This year has been a difficult one for many people for all sorts of reasons. Paying attention to mental helath is important and the message this year is about kindness. Check out this 1 minute video https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/campaigns/mental-health-awareness-week
Miss O’Reilly noticed a lovely act of kindness in the last week – one of our Dads jumped out his car on a rainy afternoon and gave an umbrella to a Granny who was waiting to collect a child. You know who you are Dad – well done!
As par tof Mental Health Awareness Week, the very first National Traveller Mental Health Day (8th Ocotber 2020) is being organised to raise awareness and take action about the mental health crisis being experienced by Travellers. Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin will celebrate Mass at 12.30 today, President Michael D. Higgins will have a tree presentation ceremony, and members of the Traveller community are asked to to plant, make, draw or decorate a tree with messages of hope, prayers for those who have died or wishes for the future throughout the day.
Given the current crisis, this last activity is something that the entire community might get involved in.
Welcome
A big ‘Welcome Back’ to Miss Cunniffe who returned to school on Monday. The girls in First Class enjoyed their time having Mr. Taylor as their teacher and we say ‘Thank you’ to him for his hard work during September.
We are also happy to welcome Miss Clodagh Whelan to our school for her final placement as a student teacher. It is always exciting for us to have one of our past pupils here as a teacher and we hope that Miss Whelan enjoys her time with us too.
An October Blessing
New month, new day, new life.
May this month bring you happiness, love, peace, an abundance of blessings and satisfaction.
May God fill your life with happimness beyond material possessions and may all the desires of your heart be granted.
May God bless you, your family and your loved ones all the days of your of your life.
Kelly’s Treehouse
Under 12 C Country final Winners!
A huge congratulations to our Ferrybank GAA Camogie girls in 5th & 6th Class and their mentors. They beat Dungarvan last weekend to become the Under 12 C Champions. The final result was 1-02 to 1-00. Well done Girls, we are all very proud of you, your mentors, the Club and your supporters. Here’s to more wins in the coming years. Don’t stop believing!
Miss Kelly
World Teachers’ Day
Monday, 5th of October was World Teachers’ day. We are so lucky in Our Lady of Good Counsel School to have such wonderful and caring teachers and SNAs to guide, inspire and mind us. We want to say a big thank you to all our teachers, SNAs and Miss O’Reilly for making our school a safe, happy and wonderful place to grow, learn and play. Thank you all!
Isabelle – 6th Class
