Our tours for parents got off to a great start this morning, as a group of parents visited Tallaght library for a tour of the facilities as well as a tour of their 1916 Exhibition. By all accounts, it was an interesting and enjoyable morning.
Watch this space for information about further parent trips!

Today was Proclamation Day, and saw the culmination of months of preparations at our school. Back in December, a flag was presented to our school by members of the Defence Forces and today was the day we officially raised the flag for the first time.
The flag raising ceremony was preceded by the reading of a short portion of the Proclamation of Independence that was written and signed by seven members of the Provisional Government of the Irish Republic, as they rebelled against British rule in Ireland.

The children in First, Second and Third Classes have been learning all about the 1916 Rising over the past number of weeks. They have consulted the Proclamation and also considered the items they would prioritise in a new Proclamation for Ireland in the 21st Century.
​Representatives from each class read passages of our new Proclamation today.

(Full text of our Proclamation:
​CITYWEST EDUCATE TOGETHER
TO THE PEOPLE OF OUR COMMUNITY

OUR PROCLAMATION

We believe that we should treat others the way we would like to be treated. This can be done by showing respect, being kind and helpful. This will hopefully get rid of crime, poverty and cruelty. It would also end bullying, which is not something that we want in our school or in our country. We want to show racism the red card and to make sure that everyone has equal opportunities regardless of their skin colour, age, gender or religion.

Education should be available to everyone – children and adults. We would like equal opportunities for all and everyone should be encouraged to do jobs that interest them, whether they are male or female. No one should be told they can’t do something just because of who they are. There should be more Educate Together primary and secondary schools which should teach computer coding, cooking and more languages to children.

Ireland is for everyone, but we recognise that people might have backgrounds in other countries. We would like everyone to learn about Irish culture and history, but also cultures and history from other places.

This is the vision that the pupils and teachers of Citywest Educate Together National School have for now and for the future. We declare this our Proclamation today, the 15th March 2016.

Signed:
Mary Treasa’s First Class           Orla’s First Class
Ciara’s Second Class                   Mary’s Third Class

Finally, the flag was raised as we sang Amhrán na bhFiann. 

Aisling said she thought her heart might have turned green while we were singing it. We all felt so proud, I think we all felt a little bit green!