Last Thursday night's talk for parents was a great success! It followed on from a Digital Citizenship day at the senior end of the school, where children from 3rd to 6th classes participated in workshops with John Wills from schoolsupports.com.
Later, it was the turn of a room full of parents. John's comprehensive talk covered the topics listed below and answered parents' questions, too. 

• Understanding what apps are being used by children and how they work
• What steps can be taken to keep children safe online
• Managing Challenging online content
• Cyber Bullying
• Setting boundaries around the internet
• Working with the school if a problem arises
• How to tackle Cyberbullying

We are delighted to see parents in our community taking their role in raising good digital citizens seriously, and to be able to help facilitate this by providing workshops like these.
Check out John's website; https://www.schoolsupports.com/cyber; for useful links and some of the resources John directed us to during his talk.

We are delighted to announce that we will have a guest speaker at the school on January 31st, speaking about the topic of Cyber Safety. John will be speaking to pupils in the Senior Classes (3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th) during the school day, and will then give a talk for parents from 7.00-8.30pm that evening.

We strongly encourage parents, particularly those with children at the Senior end of the school and those parents who engage with social media themselves, to make an effort to attend this talk, as social media has become such a normal part of many children's lives and of our own lives. As well as educating ourselves on the possible dangers of our own behaviour online, it is crucial that parents inform themselves regarding the apps and platforms that their children are engaging with, and to be aware of the steps that can be taken to prevent children exposing themselves to unnecessary risk. 
The talk will address some of the following issues, all of which are relevant for adults as well as for children:

• Cyber bullying
• Technophobia
• E-safety culture
• Digital footprint
• Applications  (Apps)
• Sexting
• Online gaming
• Discussing cyber bullying, including with your child
• Parents' responsibilities with regards children’s online activity

John will also be happy to answer any specific questions you may have around this topic. We hope to see a great turnout on the night. 

We are delighted to announce that we will have a guest speaker at the school this Wednesday, 22 November, speaking about the topic of Cyber Safety. John will be speaking to pupils in the Senior Classes (3rd, 4th, 5th) during the school day, and will then give a talk for parents from 7.00-8.30pm on Wednesday evening.
The talk will address some of the following issues:

• Cyber bullying
• Technophobia
• E-safety culture
• Digital footprint
• Applications  (Apps)
• Sexting
• Online gaming
• Discussing cyber bullying with your child
• Parents' responsibilities with regards children’s online activity

We would encourage all parents to make an effort to attend this talk and hope to see a great turnout on the night.

Did you see that we have another trip for adults planned? Book your place on the trip here!

Jacob Miller is currently running a course for parents at Trinity College, Dublin, entitled - 

"Learn to teach your children chess"

Why should my child learn chess?

Chess develops critical thinking, life skills and learning discipline.

The following articles emphasizes the many benefits of chess.
Why kids should learn to play chess
Playing Smart - The Benefits of Chess for Kids

Why should I learn chess?

Apart from all the reasons listed above, you will be able to teach your children chess!! That's wonderful. 
While there are chess programs in many Dublin schools, it can be difficult for children to learn a game like chess in a group setting. Nothing compares to 1 on 1 teaching, especially between child and parent.
Finally, its an opportunity for you! A chance to get out of the house, to socialize, to meet new people and to learn something new! You might find you fall in love with the game like so many others.

Why is this a great course for me?

• The course is fun, dynamic and designed specifically for parents. 
• The first few lessons of the course are designed to teach parents the basics of chess.  
• You don't need to be a great chess player to be a great chess teacher!!!
• We will then cover methods for introducing young children to chess.
• The most important thing is that your child is interested. We will show you a few little tricks to help your child fall in love with the game!!
• We'll then cover how to improve at chess and when to start going to a chess club.
• We'll help you find a chess club near you and get you set up and ready to go. 
• Lessons are fun, entertaining and always a good night out. 

If you are interested or have any questions please email me at millerjr@tcd.ie. 


Best wishes,
Jacob Miller

We've recently come across an initiative called Fáilte Isteach - "a community based project where older volunteers welcome migrants to the community through conversational English classes."
This sounds like exactly the kind of initiative we would love to facilitate at our school! - it's a way for us to connect more with our local community, and to build relationships between the diverse members of our community.

Read lots more about Fáilte Isteach on their website, below

If you know of anybody who you think could lead this exciting and rewarding project, please encourage them to follow the plan laid out on the Fáilte Isteach website - and ask them to get in touch with us to let us know! ​

We are MOST excited to announce that our parent education, engagement and fun programme continues to grow! On 6th April, Nicola Sherwood, who lives locally to the school, will start a Bokwa Fitness class for adults in our PE hall! The class will run from 8pm to 9pm each Wednesday evening. Watch this space for more details!

Following on from the success of our first 6 week series of Irish classes for parents, a second series will be kicking off tomorrow morning. Parents who have attended the classes to date have given very positive feedback, saying that the classes are enjoyable and interesting.

But for those of you who are not available in the morning time, we are delighted to announce that a series of evening classes will be kicking off this Tuesday evening. Classes take place in the Meeting Room, 7.30-8.30p.m. 

These are relaxed lessons for beginners with an emphasis on conversational Irish. They are suitable for anybody in our school community - whether you have learned Irish before or not. You will gain a basic grasp of Irish vocabulary and sentence structure. Your confidence with the language will grow, helping you support your child's learning of Irish.

As Seachtain na Gaeilge approaches, this is the perfect time to brush up your Irish or pick up your first cúpla focal (couple of words).

If you would be interested in attending Irish classes, at a cost of €3 per class, on Monday mornings (8.45am) or Tuesday evenings (7.30pm), and you have not previously contacted us, please fill in the form below.

KEEP CALM AND LEARN IRISH

Where: Meeting room (New wing)
When: Mondays, 8.45-9.30
What: Relaxed lessons for beginners with an emphasis on conversational Irish. These lessons are suitable for anybody in our school community - whether you have learned Irish before or not. You will gain a basic grasp of Irish vocabulary and sentence structure. Your confidence with the language will grow, helping you support your child's learning of Irish.
How much: €3 per week

We would like to gauge the interest in these lessons. If you would be interested in attending, please complete the form below. We will be in touch with you in the new year to confirm a start date.