Dear Parents, Pupils, Guardians and Friends of the school,
The girls have been working hard and enjoying some fun activities since the last School Bell update. Parents received a note home last week to keep them updated on some of the happenings here in Good Counsel. Please see a general update below.
Fundraiser – Cake Sale
The Parents Association have been very busy this year organising different fundraisers which have raised important funds for the school and for the education of all of the girls here. Their final fundraiser will take place on Friday June 21st where the Parents Association will hold a Cake Sale between 9am and 11.30am in the school. All donations to the Cake Sale are welcome and can be dropped to the school on the morning. You might even take time out to bake a few buns or a cake with your child and send them to the school to raise some money! We will send out a reminder to everyone nearer to the time.
Thank you to all parents for your generosity and good will throughout the year in the fundraisers already held. It is very much appreciated by all here in Good Counsel.
Sports Day
We plan to have Sports Day for the girls on Thursday June 20th. This will entail the usual activities set out by the teachers and it is always a popular day here. Sports day is for the girls only – parents are not invited into the school. We will be depending on dry weather to have Sports Day so hopefully the sun will shine!
School Reports
School reports will be sent out to parents in the post on the week starting Monday, June 17th. In your daughters report you will receive;
- Your daughter’s school report card,
- A School Calendar for 2024/2025
- Booklist including class teacher for the coming year (please remember that all books/copies will be provided by the school)
- Login details for the Hot Meals Scheme for September
If you do not receive a report card by Friday June 21st, please contact Tracey in the office.
Class Teachers for next year
The arrangements for class teachers will be communicated to parents in the school reports above. There will be some changes to our staff in the coming year as Ms. Cunniffe will be taking a career break and Ms. Walsh will be on maternity leave during the year. We wish both teachers the best for the coming school year and will look forward to welcoming them back when the time comes. The positions will be filled during the summer months and we will inform parents of the new teachers in due course.
School Tours
Almost all of the classes have been on their school tour. Only 1st and 2nd have yet to go but will be on the road to Ardmore Farm in the final week of term. Juniors and Senior Infants had a lovely day out in Nore Valley Park yesterday while 3rd and 4th enjoyed Rothe house and the Dunmore Caves in Kilkenny in late May. Last week, 5th and 6th class had a busy day in Kilkenny Adventure Centre and Dunmore caves also. Thank you to all of the staff here in Good Counsel for their efforts in organising tours and accompanying classes on the respective days. We hope that all of the girls enjoyed their day out!
Garda visit
The school is a hive of activity at the moment with all classes enjoying new experiences and getting the opportunity to do different things. We had Gardaí Brendan and Joanna from the Ferrybank Garda station in on Tuesday to deliver talks and a tour of their garda car to all classes. The visit highlighted to the girls that the gardaí are here to help people in the community in their role as the ‘Keepers of the Peace’. Thanks to Brendan and Joanna for taking the time out to visit us.
Camogie
Since the last School Bell update, we are delighted to say that we had a little bit of success in both the U-11 and U-13 camogie competitions. On Wednesday May 29th, the U-13 girls played Seafield/Knockmahon N.S. in the final of the Roinn D camogie in Walsh Park. The girls were really excellent on the day and managed to come away victorious. It is worth noting that this is the first title ever won by the school in camogie which is a great achievement for the team. Please see below a short report on the game written by Eve, Ella, Sophie and Natalia which was to be published in the Munster Express!
Our Lady of Good Counsel GNS Ferrybank vs Seafield/Knockmahon NS
Roinn D Camogie County Final
Walsh Park Wednesday May 29th, 2024
The final whistle blew, 30 minutes of hard work and pure dedication pays off. For the first time ever, Our Lady of Good Counsel has won a camogie final.
We arrived in Walsh Park, nerves and excitement filled our stomachs. We were playing the U-13 camogie final. This was it – we either win or lose!
The sliotar has been thrown in and it was time to get our heads in the game. Once we got our first goal, our confidence had risen but the score could change at any minute. At half time we walked to the sideline with the score 3-3 to 0.1 in Good Counsels favour.
The second half was tight and Seafield/Knockmahon NS never gave up. When the final whistle blew, we realised we had won. Everyone was so delighted. Thank you to all of the teachers for their hard work in preparing the teams and thank you to Seafield/Knockmahon NS for the sporting games during the year.
U-11 Camogie
On the following day, we sent a group of 26 girls to Kill GAA grounds to play an U-11 camogie blitz. Again, the girls were great on the day and managed to win all of their games and were the outright winners of the blitz ensuring that a second piece of silverware arrived in the school in as many days. All of their hard work is paying off!
Thank you to Mrs. Shanahan and Mrs. Foley for their work in preparing the teams and bringing the girls to the games. Thank you to the parents who took the time out to attend the games and support the teams. Finally, a big thanks to all in Ferrybank Camogie club who are doing a huge amount of work in promoting the games and we, here in Good Counsel are only happy to help with your work. Well done everyone!
Infant Induction
We look forward to welcoming our new junior infants girls this month for their first visit into our school. Junior Infant Induction takes place on Tuesday, June 18th and all parent(s)/guardian(s) concerned have been informed of the arrangements. We hope all of the girls coming to us will enjoy many happy years here in Good Counsel.
6th Class Graduation
We look forward to welcoming the parents of the 6th class girls on Tuesday, June 25th for their graduation. Information has been sent home to the parents concerned and we look forward to seeing you all on the day.
Work During the Summer
We will see some big changes to the front of the school in the next few weeks. Large scale works are planned at the front of the school and all going well we will have a new, larger drop off and collection area and a new school yard come September! The works are planned to begin the week after we close for the summer so thankfully it will not affect us between now and the summer holidays.
Incredible Edibles 2024
Our school participated in the Incredible Edibles programme this year. A big thank you to the
pupils in First, Fifth and Sixth classes and their teachers, Miss Cunniffe, Miss Walsh and Mrs.
Burke.
The pupils had fun working on the project and learning loads about the food we eat
and its origin. They had hands-on-practical experience of sowing, planting, transplanting,
observing growth, recording and tasting good quality fruit and vegetables.
Here are some photos of the things the pupils and teachers engaged with during the year.
The Incredible Edibles Programme has helped us to work together, communicate
scientifically and take care of our environment. We are looking forward to tasting our school
grown potatoes, carrots, strawberries and herbs in the coming weeks.
We hope to continue our association with this programme in our school and learn more in the
coming years. Miss Kelly
Africa Day Friday 24th of May
Thank you to the parents who visited our school for Africa Day and for sharing stories and
songs with the pupils.
Trocaire 2024
A big thank you to all who contributed to our Trocaire 2024 campaign this year. We raised 90 euro within the school and presented our funds to the parish office. I would also like to say a massive ‘thank you’ to two young ladies in sixth class, who have been spearheading the Trocaire Campaign since they were in second class. Even through the Covid – years, they managed away around it, continuing to keep Trocaire alive in the run up to Easter of those years. Well done Lia and Amira. You both represent all the qualities that Our Lady of Good Counsel School pupils stand for – taking on responsibilities, leadership and courage, trustworthy, fairness for all, caring for others, patience and respect. Thank you both and I hope you will carry those qualities and skills with you, as you embark on the next phase of you educational journey. Miss Kelly
Amber Flag
Huge congratulations to everyone on our Amber Flag renewal. The Pieta Amber Flag Initiative recognises the efforts to create healthy, inclusive environments that support the mental well-being of schools and other organisations. A huge thank you to Mrs Power and her Wellbeing Warriors who did trojan work promoting the initiative throughout the year. They entered a very comprehensive application detailing all the fantastic work carried out during the year. A huge thank you to parents who supported our fundraiser day for Amnesty International. We look forward to raising our new Amber flag in the in the near future.
Important Dates
Friday, June 28th – School closed for summer holidays (Half day)
Closing times; Junior and Senior Infants – 12.10pm
1st and 2nd class – 12.15pm
3rd to 6th class – 12.20pm
I will be in touch again before we finish for the summer break.
Your sincerely,
J. Nagle
Principal
