Dear Parents/Guardians,

We hope you are keeping well. Our news this week is as follows

• It has been full steam ahead all this week as every class is busy rehearsing their play. We are all looking forward to performing them next week for the school and family.  Due to limited space in the hall we ask that you only attend your own child’s class performance.  The performances will take place in the hall on Wednesday 20^th December at the times below

• Our school band went to Skycourt Shopping Centre yesterday to perform their Christmas medley. They were absolutely brilliant and did themselves proud.  We collected €320 which will be used to purchase instruments for the band. The new owner of the Town centre heard their performance and bought a big bag of sweets for every member of the band! Today the school band will perform at Shannon Old Folk’s Christmas party in Wolfe Tones GAA club. We wish them well.
• Pupils from 2^nd 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th and 6^th classes visited Mary immaculate Church last Tuesday as part of our advent preparations. It was lovely for the pupils to meet Fr. Tom who made them feel very welcome in the church. Fr. Tom hopes to visit the school and meet the pupils after Christmas.
• Pupils from our Solas and Aoibhneas classes are off to the airport for a visit today. They will get to see departures and will get to spend time in the sensory room in the airport. We hope they have a lovely time.
• Pupils from Senior and Junior Infants are learning all about the Post Office and sending letters and parcels at the moment. To tie in with this theme they are going to visit the sorting office in Shannon Post office in Smithstown tomorrow. They will travel there by bus. I know they will have lots of questions for the post office staff. We are very grateful to Shannon Post Office for facilitating this visit at this busy time for them.
• A big thank you to Analog Devices Community Award and Charitable Donations program who awarded €1500 to St Tolas. This money will be spent on Physical Education equipment. We need to replace and add to our P.E equipment and every pupil will get to use it. Thank you to Geraldine Frost who nominated the school for this award.
• The Parents’ Association have organised a class raffle for each class. Tickets cost €2 for one strip and three for €5. Tickets are on sale until next Friday 22^nd December when the raffle takes place. There is a prize of a Christmas hamper per class. We thank the Parents’ Association for organising this raffle.
• The school will close to all pupils and staff next Friday 22^nd December at 12p.m. We hope you all have a healthy and Happy Christmas. St Tolas will re-open to pupils and staff on Monday 8^th January at 9a.m.

Kind regards, Mary Dunlea Fitzgerald, School Principal

Dear Parents/Guardians,

We hope you are well and enjoying the start of December. Our news this week is as follows

• It’s that time of year when lines are being learnt, costumes are being sorted and excitement is mounting as we prepare for our annual Christmas performance. Due to limited space in the hall we ask that you only  attend your own child’s class performance .  The performances will take place in the hall on Wednesday 20^th December at the times below

• A big thank you to two parents Caoimhghin Phelan and Jim McCormack who came into the school last Friday evening to help our caretaker to assemble the school stage. Also, a massive Míle Buíochas to Jack in 5^th class who helped put up the stage with his Dad and did a brilliant job.  We couldn’t have managed without him! It is greatly appreciated.
• Tomorrow Friday 8^th December we are having a Christmas Jumper day in aid of LauraLynn Children’s Hospice. Pupils may wear a Christmas jumper or colours -red or green. We are asking for a small donation of  €2  or less per child which will all be donated to this worthwhile charity.  If pupils do not wish to take part or make a contribution that is not a problem.
• Thank you to the pupils in 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd classes who made beautiful Christmas cards for our Senior Citizens here in Shannon. These were collected today by Shannon Gardai who will distribute them along with a treat box for our older friends.
• Our School Band will perform in Skycourt Town Centre next Wednesday 13^th December at 12.30p.m. to 2p.m. If you are around we would love if you could come along and support the pupils.  The school band have also been invited to perform at the Shannon Old Folks Christmas party on Thursday next in Wolfe Tones GAA. We thank all the pupils and the teachers involved for all their hard work in relation to the band particularly over the past few weeks.
• Please see attached flyer on information for kids fitness classes taking place in Shannon.

Kind regards,

Mary Dunlea Fitzgerald

Dear Parents/Guardians,

We hope you are well this week even though the weather has got quite cold. Our news this week is as follows

• Next Friday is 8^th December and we are holding a fundraiser in aid of LauraLynn Children’s Hospice. This charity provides support and care for children facing a terminal illness and their families. If pupils wish to take part they can wear a Christmas jumper or Christmas colours (red /green). We would ask for a small donation from pupils (e.g. no more than €2). We will sing a Christmas song at Cruinniu. You can find out more details on this fundraiser on the school’s Instagram page. If pupils do not wish to take part that is fine also.
• Please see flyer attached re a FREE webinar next Tuesday 5^th Dec at 7p.m. entitled Let’s talk Kids and Online Gaming safety.
• Pupils in 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd classes are making Christmas cards this week to be distributed to older members of the community by Shannon Gardai. We are very grateful to the pupils for taking part in this project. Well done!
• It’s the time of year when illnesses are very common. If your child has a temperature /fever or is vomiting or has diarrhoea they need to be kept at home until they are better. If your child is absent due to illness please inform the school the reason for the absence.
• As the weather has got colder this week it is important that each pupil comes to school with a coat. If it is dry we will be going outside for breaks but a coat is necessary.
• The school band will be performing in Skycourt, Shannon Town centre on 13^th December (time to be finalised next week). They are busy rehearsing at the moment and I know lots of practise happening at home too. Thank you to Ms Hansbury and Ms Flynn who are giving up their lunchtimes to work with the band.
• First class recently finished learning all about Antarctica. They learnt about the weather, penguins and other marine life that live there. They made lovely fact sheets which are displayed in the hall for all to see.
• Our new Student Council are working hard. They recently surveyed pupils in 2^nd to 6^th classes in relation to their attitude to Student of the Week. They are going to collate this information and present it to the teachers when completed. We are looking forward to seeing the pupils’ views on this topic.
• All classes are busy with practising for their Christmas performance. It is lovely to hear all the rehearsals taking place in the hall each day. We will be performing for parents/guardians on Wednesday 20^th December with times finalised soon.

Kind regards, Mary Dunlea Fitzgerald, School Principal

Dear Parents/Guardians,

We hope you are keeping well. Our news this week is as follows

• Parent/teacher meetings for pupils from 3^rd to 6^th class took place yesterday evening and more are scheduled for this evening here in the school. Thank you to the parents/guardians who came yesterday and we look forward to meeting more parents/guardians today. Parent/teacher meetings for Juniors to 2^nd class will take place in January. We will send out times and dates via text early in the New Year.
• All classes have started preparing for their Christmas performance over the past few days. There is great excitement about the upcoming shows and we are looking forward to lots of fun preparing over the next few weeks.
• 4^th class had Clare Kelly from Marine Explorers in to visit the class recently. Clare works in the Galway Aquarium and she is keen to educate pupils on the wonder of marine life.  This was her second visit to 4^th class and she taught the class a lot of facts about marine life. The pupils had worked on presentations for her in pairs. They did presentations on the blob fish, the viper fish, the Orange Roughy and the Goblin fish to name a few! Some pairs made their own fish or sea creature and there was even a video presentation. Clare was very impressed with the standard of the presentations from 4^th class. Well done 4^th!!!
• All the pupils from Solas and a number from our Aoibhneas class travelled to Ennis last Monday to take part in Gymnastics class. They travelled with pupils from Special classes in St Senans and Ballycar N.S. The pupils loved the class and will attend every Monday for three more weeks.
• We are now accepting enrolments for Junior Infants for September 2024. If you have a child to enrol or you know a family that wish to enrol their child please contact the school office for an application to enrol form.
• As the days are darker and the weather is not great can we please ask that parents/guardians using the car park take due care and caution. Please enter and exit the car park slowly as it can be difficult to see small children. Please be mindful of other drivers and do not cause an obstruction. If you need to accompany your child into the school please ensure that you are not blocking someone in. the Gardai have told us it is ok to park on the road as long as you are not causing an obstruction to neighbours. Some parents are parking in the surrounding parks – please make sure that you are not blocking any neighbour from getting out of their house. We thank you for your co-operation in this matter.

Kind regards,

Mary Dunlea Fitzgerald, School Principal

Dear parents/Guardians,

We hope you are keeping well this week. Our news is as follows

• Parent/teacher meetings for pupils in 3^rd to 6^th classes will take place next Wednesday and Thursday evenings after school. The school will close a little early to all pupils on Wednesday ONLY at 2.25p.m. to facilitate the meetings. Parent/teacher meetings for Juniors to 2^nd class will take place in January. Please note that you can meet with your child’s teacher at any stage if you have a worry or concern. It is a good idea to make an appointment through the school office so that the teacher will be available to meet with you at a mutually convenient time.
• Congratulations to Dylan in 6^th class who came 3^rd place in the Clare Primary Schools Cross Country competition last Tuesday. Congratulations also to Jordan in 4^th class who came 8^th in his age group in the Clare Primary Schools Cross Country competition held in Lee’s Road. What a fantastic achievement for both boys who represented the school so well.
• It is the time of year when Christmas Annuals go on sale. Pupil may purchase an annual if they wish but there is no requirement to do so.  There are four options 1) Carnival- Juniors and Seniors, 2) Fairground- 1^st and 2^nd classes, 3) Parade – 3^rd and 4^th classes, 4) Festival 5^th and 6^th classes. The cost is €2.50. Payment can be made online or pupils can bring in the money. Payment must be made before or on next Friday 24^th November as the order must be placed then to guarantee delivery in a timely manner.
• Please see flyer attached from Wolfe Tones GAA re Fundamental Movement Skills classes for U6 boys starting next week.
• On behalf of everyone in our St. Tolas school community I would like to extend our sympathies to the family of Peggy Coyne who died earlier this week. For many years Peggy volunteered here in St Tolas and provided drama classes for the pupils. These drama classes were filled with fun and included all pupils. Peggy was a lovely, gentle lady who had a great sense of fun and related well to children of all ages. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam dilís.

Kind regards,

Mary Dunlea Fitzgerald, School Principal