|  |  | News and Photos for the School Year 2011 - 2012
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FUNDRAISINIG FOR NEW TECHNOLOGY
Photographed above are students from the ASD unit in St Pauls Community College Waterford who collected old mobile phones for technology through IAA (Irish Autism Action).
Big thanks to everyone who helped us reach our target!
DEEPEST SYMPATHIES
Everyone in St. Paul’s was deeply saddened by the recent tragic loss of Michael Hayes, brother of staff member Sr. Anne Hayes. Over the last three weeks Sr. Anne and her family were in the thoughts and prayers of the entire school community and this concern was reflected in the very generous response from staff, students and their families to our appeal for funds to aid the ongoing search and recovery mission mounted in Union Hall. Ar dheis De do raibh a anam dilis.
CAR SAFETY
All Transition Year students participated in a Car Safety Workshop last week. The aim of this one day course was to raise awareness in the minds of drivers and would-be drivers of the limitations and frailties of a motor vehicle and to dispel the myth that the driver is invincible behind the wheel. The students learned about braking systems, steering systems, dashboard symbols, the correct way to change a wheel etc. This hands-on interactive workshop was of great practical value to all our future young drivers.
PUBLIC ACCESS TO LAW COURSE
As part of their Public Access to Law course a group of Transition Year students took part in a one day introductory courses in Irish Legal Studies on Wednesday last. The programme was facilitated by Galway based Barrister Mr. James Fahy. During the morning session the students learned a great deal about all different aspects of the Irish legal system, the different courts and how they operate, the law itself and the details of some well known court cases. In the afternoon the students enacted a Mock Trial- each student was allocated a specific role- judge, defendant, jury member etc. The whole course was a very valuable learning experience for the students who will now go on to sit their Public Access to Law exam next week. As their interest in the law continues to grow they are looking forward to visiting the Four Courts in Dublin later in the year.
SHAVE OR DYE FUNDRAISER
St. Paul’s was certainly a brighter place to be this last week when a number of our senior students took part in the Today FM Shave or Dye fundraising campaign for the Irish Cancer Society. Over forty boys and girls signed up to change their images with a variety of shades of hair, all in a good cause. They hope to raise a significant amount in sponsorship for their efforts. The students involved would like to thank the management and staff of A Cut Above Hairdressing Salon in Lismore Park for their very generous sponsorship of the event.
ENGINEERING CLASSES OUT AND ABOUT
PLC & Fifth Year Engineering students recently visited both ELC Laser Group and the Engineering Department in WIT. ELC Laser Group is a local engineering company with contracts worldwide that specialises in laser cutting technology. Mr. Con Hurley, a former pupil of St. Paul’s, took the students on a tour of the facility so they could observe and experience the technology for themselves.
The same group of students enjoyed a very insightful visit to the Mechanical Engineering Department of WIT, when Mr Paul Allen organised a comprehensive tour of the department as well as outlining details of courses of study and career opportunities in the Mechanical Engineering.
Many thanks to Con and Paul for providing St Pauls’ Engineering Classes with two excellent and enjoyable field trips.
Pictured below are Leaving Cert Engineering students K. Jacob and L. Carroll
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Maths for Fun
Class 1S have are enjoying the Maths for Fun programme which started recently and are busy improving their maths skills and knowledge through games, quizzes, demonstrations and computers. Below are some pictures of Class 1S taken during last weeks double class. | | | |
Sixth Year Parent Teacher Meeting.
On Thursday last the Sixth Year Parent Teacher meeting was held in the school. The teachers of our Leaving Cert students were delighted with the huge turnout of parents, who, accompanied by the students themselves, had a valuable opportunity to discuss the results of the Christmas examinations. The next Parent Teacher meeting is for Third Years next week.
Dean Finn Darts Champion.
Congratulations to Second Year student Dean Finn (pictured above left) on his great success recently in establishing himself as the number one ranked darts youth player in Ireland.
In Tramore last weekend Dean won both the youth competitions as well as one of the adult competitions. He was narrowly beaten in the Men's Final at the Players Championship Round 3.
Dean is a member of the school darts club and always helps and encourages the other students. Well done Dean and good luck for Round 4 in Cork on March 3rd.
An Seó Bóthair (Irish roadshow)
Ar maidin Dé Céadaoin, 18ú Eanair, bhí "An Seó Bóthair don Ghaeilge" beo agus ag ciceáil sa scoil. D’fhreastail grúpa ón séú, an cúigiú agus an Idirbhliain air, is d'éirigh go geal leis. Bhuaigh daltaí Naomh Pól duaiseanna iontacha agus fuair muid ‘Gaelchárta’ an duine agus greamáin as Gaeilge. Bhí an chraic ar fheabhas!!!!! Rinne muid díospóireacht ghluaiste agus muid ag plé ceisteanna faoin nGaeilge. D’aontaigh muid uilig go bhfuil an Ghaeilge tábhachtach cé go mbíonn muid ag gearán fúithi go minic! Ba mhaith linn buíochas a ghlacadh le hAodhán agus Aoibh as ucht a gcuid oibre. Is leatsa an Ghaeilge! Labhair í! :)
An Seó Bóthair (Irish roadshow) was alive and kicking in the school on Wednesday the 18th of January (pictured above right). Students from Sixth, Fifth and Transition Year attended and it was a big success. Students won great prizes and everyone received an Irish discount card ‘an gaelchárta’. The craic was mighty!!!! We had a lively debate about the Irish language. We all agreed that Gaeilge was pretty important to us even if we do complain about it sometimes! We would like to say ‘Go raibh míle maith agaibh’ to Aodhán and Aoibh for visiting St Paul's. Is leatsa an Ghaeilge! Labhair í! :)
One Book One Community Launch – “War Horse”
This years One Book Project initiative to promote reading in schools and homes will be launched on Thursday 23rd February in St. Paul’s Community College. The literacy initiative is titled “One Book One Community” and is the work of the home school community liaison scheme’s Local Committee including local HSCL teachers, parents, JCSP school library and Waterford City Library. The book chosen for the initiative is War Horse by author Michael Morpurgo, the film of which has just been released. His Worship the Mayor of Waterford Cllr. Pat Hayes will launch the initiative in the presence of invited students and guests in the school.
Science for Fun and Maths for Fun
The Science and Maths for Fun programmes have begun with our first and second year classes in the school. Parents interested in helping out on these programmes or in any other areas are asked to contact the school.
| MERIT TREAT
All First Second and Third Years who had excellent merit records for the term were rewarded last Wednesday with a visit to Waterford on Ice. This will be remembered as one of the great Treat Days, the students had a wonderful time, from the novices holding on to the railings for dear life to the more experienced skaters showing off their fantastic skills on the ice. The skating skills of some of the braver teachers surprised many of the students too! After working up a hearty appetite the First Years enjoyed their food in McDonalds afterwards. Many thanks to the Transition Year Mentors for their help.
OPEN DAY AT W.I.T. AND W.C.F.E.
All our Sixth Years and Fifth Years attended W.I.T and W.C.F.E Open Days on Tuesday of last week.
TRANSITION YEAR
Factory Visit
TY students had a very informative and enjoyable visit to Waterford Crystal on Friday last. Thanks to Mr. O’Grady and Ms Whelan for organising this.
History Project
All transition Year students are busy researching and organising the presentation of their Biography Projects which are due in by the third week of January.
CHRISTMAS EXAMS
We wish all St. Paul’s students every success this week as they sit their Christmas exams this week.
HAPPY CHRISTMAS!
At the end of what has been a very busy term we wish everyone in St. Paul’s, staff and students alike, a very Happy Christmas .
CIMA Schools Quiz
"Third Year students from St Pauls CC taking part in the CIMA Schools Quiz held in WIT recently" are pictured below.
Picture no.1: (from left to right) - Lee Clarke; Martin Costello; Lee Sullivan; Adam Flynn
Picture no.2: (from left to right) - Judita Bazykolova; Matthew Grant; Conor Rochford; Adam Power.
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Fishing Club - see notes below |  |  | | St Paul's Fishing Club - "gone fishing"...see report below. |
FLAHAVANS DAY IN ST. PAUL’S
Starting Your Day the Right Way at St. Pauls Community College
In Association with Flahavans
On Friday last 25th November St Paul’s in association with Flahavan’s organised a learning activity day for 6th class pupils from both Ballyduff National School and St. Saviours.Flavahans is one of Ireland’s best known brands, and is right on our doorstep in Kilmacthomas, Co. Waterford and we in St. Paul’s are once again this year delighted to work with them in organising Flahavan’s Day. The purpose of the event is to allow primary school students an opportunity to sample some second level subjects, especially science, business and home economics and to enjoy them in a fun manner through games, experiments, practical demonstrations and cooking.
Business Studies
The business activities class gave the students an understanding of the relationship between costs, sales and profits. This was done in a fun learning environment which involved the pupils being formed into teams/production companies and competing against each other to make the most profit by selling Flahavan’s flapjacks. There were prizes galore for the winners.
Science Experiments
In the science class the studentsgained an understanding of how a food product is tested. They learned how a laboratory runs and the students tested Flahavan’s food products for protein, sugars, fats and starch.
Home Economics
In this class the students learned how to make oat cookies and flapjacks and conducted their very own taste test to see which tasted better. They also learned about the ingredients used and the nutritional benefits of each.
The day was a wonderful success for everyone and we are very grateful to Flahavan’s for their continued support. We would like to thank the participating St. Paul’s teachers, Ms Brennan, Mr. Murphy and Ms Raher for all their hard work and effort .Well done to a great group of our Transition Year students who helped out in all the activities of what was a very busy day.
ST PAULS FISHING CLUB
New Ross was the venue for the 2011 Munster Coarse Angling Competition and our club was
well represented in the u18 and novice grades. The fishing was extremely slow due to the low
temperatures and the time of year . This was a four hour competition with the best young
anglers of the province taking part. Luke O`Brien had a great win in the novice section and
fished really well all day. In the u.18 section Brian Mullins put in a tremendous display to come second against some very difficult opposition.
Well done to all the members and especially to our prize winners. Photos above show Channing Doherty and Brian Mullins in action on the day.
Soccer
Munster Minor Cup: St Pauls 7 - Col dun Iascaigh (Cahir) 1
St. Pauls U-15 Soccer team recorded a fantastic win over Col. dun Iascaigh of Cahir 7-1 in the first round of the Munster Minor Cup RSC on Tuesday last. This win sets up a stern test against De La Salle College in the last 16. Well done to all the squad and the management team of Mr. Cummins and Johnny Browne
Munster Senior Cup
Our Senior Soccer squad play Rochestown College of Cork in the last 12 of the Munster Senior Cup on Thursday 1st December in the RSC at 11:30. This is a huge game with the winners securing a place in the last 8 of this prestigious competition. After topping the group we were unlucky not to get a bye through to the second knock out stage but we did receive a home draw. Best of luck to Mr. Cummins, Tommy Griffin and all the squad.
Staff Movember
Several members of staff are taking part in Movember. This is an international charity event where participants grow a moustache for the month of November. The aim of this event is to help raise awareness and funds for Men’s Health and the various charities associated with Men’s Health, such as the Irish Cancer Society. Our staff are currently collecting money from the students and staff of the school, along with their families and friends. If anyone wishes to sponsor our staff, for this very worthy cause, they can do so on the movember website http://ie.movember.com and donate to our team St Pauls Waterford.
Home School Community Liaison
Parents are busily engaged in the Christmas Decorations course and hope to produce some useful items in advance of the on-coming Christmas celebration season. Sally is busy with our English classes on Wednesday mornings for our International parents and we hope to present certificates soon to those parents who completed the First Aid Course. Planning for the first year Maths for Fun and second year Science for Fun programmes is continuing. Our Local Committee meets on Monday 28th November in St. Paul’s BNS to discuss how best to move forward with this years literacy projects. We hope to continue the successful One Book One Community Project this year. Thanks to all the parents and families who turned up last Monday evening for our Open Night. If anyone missed this and requires an information pack or application form, please contact Mr Lohan in the school or call 051-355816.
St Paul’s is getting in a spin with new handheld PC
St. Pauls recognises the way in which students learn is changing and the use of ICT across the curriculum is vital in their learning and future. Fizzbooks will transform the experience in the classroom from a traditional book-based system to one where each pupil has their own device and access to the internet. St. Pauls will run a pilot study which will examine the benefits and effectiveness of e-texts and using technology in the classroom. The laptops have been installed with some of the Junior Cert Curriculum text books which the students will have access to over the coming months. This study will be closely monitored by students and staff with possibly a view to moving towards etexts in the future.
The computers were financed through the JCSP Demonstration Library Project. The Fizzbooks were supplied by local business MJ Technologies http://www.mjtechnologies.ie.
Fizzbooks are a robust laptop designed for secondary students — they encompasses netbook, e-reader and touch screen, and are equipped with word processing, spreadsheet, maths software and SMART Classroom Management Suite. This software supports one-to-one learning which is internationally recognised as best practice.
| 5th YEAR VISIT TO DE LA SALLE STEPHEN’S ST
A group of our 5th Year students, accompanied by their Engineering teacher, Mr. Williams, paid a visit last week to Stephen’s St National School. The Fifth Years were delighted to be involved in presenting the younger students with Certificates of Achievement. These were awarded in recognition of the great work the boys from Stephen St had done in the metal and wood workshops when they visited St. Pauls recently to participate in our Technology Day.
SCIENCE WEEK
Science week was a very busy and active week for all students in St. Pauls. A wide variety of events took place in the school and many students went to events organised by WIT.
Our second year students have spent the last three weeks working on science projects which will be displayed in the library in a Science Expo on Friday. All students enjoyed this experience and it was excellent practice for their Junior Certificate coursework project next year.
On Wednesday we had a much anticipated visit from the Reptile Farm in Gowran. They brought a variety of reptiles including a monitor lizard, a crocodile and scorpion to name just a few.
Students attended a variety of events at WIT, including a talk on Robert Boyle, the famous Waterford Scientist and learned all about his work on pressure and volume.
First Years and Transition Years went to a pop musical "From Amoeba to Zebra" which was highly entertaining and very educational. This was held in the Forum.
Our school library is currently very colourful with science posters created by our First and Second Year students.
We also had a visit from Educate Together Primary School Waterford on Wednesday. This gave 5th and 6th class pupils a chance to experience science in a secondary school and see what a school lab looks like. The pupils participated in a number of activities, from making magic milk to testing various foods and many other exciting, fun and educational experiments. We would like to thank the teachers in Educate Together for their participation.
It was a hectic week which highlighted in a fun way the importance of science in all our lives. We would like to thank all staff who helped us out during the week.
SENIOR HURLING
St Pauls CC 1-7 Borriseleigh 2-9
A heroic display from our lads ultimately ended in defeat on Thursday last at New Inn Co Tipp. We got off to the worst possible start when we conceded a soft goal after 2 mins which was followed up with a point by Borriseleigh. However St Pauls responded with tremendous resolve and commitment, taking the game to the opposition. After 20 mins we came right back into it with a goal from full forward Sean Whitty following a quick delivery from Geoff Tebay. At half-time the score was 1-3 to 1-4 in favour of Borris. On the restart our lads forged into a two point lead with some great scores from Cein Chester and Geoff Tebay. With Tony O Brien, Shane Donovan and Jason English holding firm at the back and repelling every attack from the opposition we pushed on but were caught on the break and conceded a goal after 20mins of the 2nd half to put us one point down. Our lads kept trying with fantastic effort especially from Alex O Mahony, Cian Chester, Charlie Chester and Ciaran Walsh. At the end with our lads out on their feet Borriseleigh tacked on a couple of points but it was a brilliant disciplined performance from St Pauls CC. Man of the match Shane Donovan. Thanks to Mr Lohan for looking after the lads.
FIRST YEAR HURLING
Our First Year hurlers took part in a fun hurling blitz before the mid-term break held in our school pitch. We invited Butlerstown, De La Salle, and St Pauls primary schools into the blitz while our 1st years played on their former primary school teams. Stephen Costello led the Butlerstown team, Jack and Kieran O Donoghue led the DLS team, while Daragh Corcoran and Tagh Myler led the St Pauls teams. Each team played 2 games and all had great fun with all the games very close. After the event the teams returned to our assembly hall for a well earned lunch. Thanks to the Transition years Tony O Brien, Ryan Coady, Ben Wilmott, Brian Sweeney, and Jack Flavin for organising this event and having the field in great condition.
Below are some photos of the match against Borriseleigh including Coach Mr Murphy delivering the half-time talk to a bunch of spirited players.
|  |  |  | | The Reptile Zoo visit. See report below. |  | | |  | | Technology Day in St. Paul's. See report below. | | |  | | Open Day. See report below. |
STORYTELLING
Last week all our First Years had a real treat when they attended Niall De Burca's storytelling workshop in the Library. There's always great excitement when Niall visits, as his range of stories and his ability to entertain are themselves now the stuff of legends in St.Pauls! Thanks again this year to Niall and to Hilary Cantwell, school Librarian who organised his visit.
FIRST YEAR WELCOME SERVICE
On Thursday last the school officially welcomed all our First Year students to the school community with a very dignified and moving prayer service, attended by students and family members. Many thanks to Fr. Pat Fitzgerald of St.Paul’s who welcomed everybody to the school and congratulated the students on their great start in First Year. Many thanks to all the students who participated so well, to Religion and Music teachers, the school choir and the Transition Year mentors all of whose efforts helped make the occasion so special.
CHEERIOS CHILDLINE BREAKFAST MORNING
Well done to all involved in a very successful fund raiser recently, when our Transition Year Home Economics students with the help of organizer Ms Dunne, hosted the Cheerios Childline Breakfast Morning for all our First Years. In return for a donation to Childline, the students enjoyed a delicious and healthy breakfast of Cheerios, fresh fruit, tea and toast, prepared for them by the TY students and teachers.
JACK AND JILL FOUNDATION
Last week the Transition year students who are studying their Business Module, attended a talk given by Melanie from The Jack and Jill Foundation. Melanie explained the origins of the charity and the work it undertakes on behalf of seriously ill children and their families. The TY students are in the process of setting up a mini company in the school, with its focus on recycling old mobile phones and computer games for the Foundation They would like to remind all students, their families as well as members of the public to find those old phones and games and donate them to this very worthy cause.
TECHNOLOGY DAY
On Wednesday last our annual Technology Day took place, when a group of students from Stephen Street National School visited St. Pauls. The day was packed with activities for our visitors, who attended a Metalwork workshop, where they made masks and keyrings and a Woodwork workshop, where they made noteholders. They took in a Hurling Blitz with our First Years before finishing off the day with a quick visit to the School Library where they saw all kinds of strange and wonderful animals from the the Reptile Zoo.
OPEN DAYS
A large group of Sixth Years went to University of Limerick recently for their Open Day.
This week Senior Cycle and PLC Engineering students attended an Open Day at the National Marine Institute in Ringaskiddy, Cork. The students were really interested in the fascinating tour of the college, particularly as a number of them intend to pursue third level studies there next year.
GUIDE DOGS
As part of her studies in Social Education, Leaving Cert Applied student Hayley Morrissey is examining a range of Disability issues, with a particular emphasis on the difficulties experienced by people living with Visual Impairments. To raise awareness, Hayley organised a visit to the school by three representatives of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind who addressed all our First Year students. Jill McElroy, chief fundraiser for the organisation, explained the different stages in the dog training process, while another of the speakers gave a personal account of her own difficulties and how her guide dog has changed her life. This was a most interesting visit and congratulations are due to Hayley for her work in organising it.
REPTILE ZOO
The Science Department, in conjunction with Librarian Hilary Cantwell, this week organised a very different experience for the senior Biology students when they got a visit from the Reptile Zoo, which is based in Gowran. The School Library was the location for the event, and in keeping with the pre Halloween week that was in it, the students were introduced to some of the scariest animals in existence- these included a twelve foot long Burmeses Python, corn snakes, an Indian scorpion , a tarantula and a vicious snapping turtle. Transition Years and the visiting students from St Paul’s National School were delighted to get the opportunity to attend this fascinating, if terrifying, event The Science Department is busy organizing events for Science Week which is coming up after Mid Term.
| GERMAN DAY AT ST. PAULS
St. Paul's Community College celebrated German Unity Day on Monday, 3rd October with the festivities continuing throughout the week.
The libary and communal areas were decked out with flags, banners and posters. To further student awareness of all things German hot dogs and strudel were served to staff and students at break and lunch time.
Students learned fun and interesting facts about all things German and researched the top 40 German inventions. Viel Spass was had by all!
SIGN LANGUAGE COURSE
Big congratulations to all teachers, special needs assistants and parents who sucessfully completed Level 1 Sign Language course. The group have been meeting in the school every Wednesday since March and sat their exam in September. Well done Maria Dalton, Anne Murphy, Georgina Barry, Lucia Cantwell, Christine Cuddihy, Catherine O Connell, Cathal O Neill, Joan Cowman, Marie Browne, Caroline Corcaran and Narrell Byrne. Many thanks to Waterford VEC for funding the course and to teacher Linda Mc Loughlin.
GAISCE - THE PRESIDENT’S AWARD
As part of their Bronze Medal Gaisce programme, all participating students must undertake to learn a new personal skill. With this in mind various activities have been organised over the next few weeks for our TY students
This year all our Transition Year students are participating in Gaisce and are already working on the challenges they will set themselves for their Bronze Award. We wish them every successs in their endeavours.
One group of twenty are going to St.Pauls primary school next week to begin a thirteen week programme of paired reading.
On Tuesday afternoons a group of fifteen TY students will take part in a Sign Language course, while another eighteen students have taken up guitar lessons.
Mentors
Our Transition Year mentors are busy completing their training course as well as getting to know the First year students in their groups. They have been involved in helping to organise the First Year Prayer service which takes place on Wednesday 19th October at 2.45 as well as helping out with the First year Merit Award soccer tournament on Thursday 20th. The mentors meet with school Chaplain Ms Whelan once a week to discuss progress and suggest future activities.
HURLING
Our hurlers played WIT Freshers "A" team during the past fortnight under lights in Carriganore in our first ever match at this fantastic facility. Our lads were soundly beaten by the the more experienced WIT side on the night. St Pauls did put in a very spirited display with some excellent performances from Ciaran Walsh, Tony O Brien and Thomas Lane. Man of the match was Alex O Mahony who wouldnt have looked out of place on the WIT team.
Senior Colleges Munster Championship Hurling
On Weds 12th October our seniors travelled to New Inn Co Tipperary to play Colaiste Clement from Limerick city. St Pauls CC came out on top eventually, on the scoreline of 2-11 to 1-6. This was a bruising and tough encounter played on a heavy sodden pitch with no quarter asked or given from either side. Some excellent displays from Charlie Chester, Ciaran Walsh and Tony O Brien in the backs while Geoff Tebay always looked dangerous in the forwards belying his stature and carrying the game to the opponents. However Alex O Mahony was again man-of-the-match with tireless work rate and economical use of the ball. We are now through to the Munster Quarter final on the 9th November against either Borriseleigh(Co. Tipp) / Mounthawk (Tralee) / Carraig na Fhear (Cork). Any supporters who wish to travel to this match please contact P Murphy in the school to travel on bus.
U14 Hurling
Our 1st and 2nd year hurling team continue to train every Weds after school and have had some usefull challenge games this year. Most recently they played a 2 game blitz in Brickeys GAA field in Dungarvan. On the day we played both St Augustines College and Dungarvan CBS. This was a great day out for our youngest crop who acquitted themselves very well, winning one game and losing to Dungarvan in a tight finish. Best over the two games were Martin Houlihan, Dale Hayes, Tagh Myler, Kieran and Jack O Donohue, Daragh Corcoran, and Derry Farrell. Our lads play again this Thursday in a challenge match against Kilkenny outfit St Kierans College.
| Prize Night 2011
Below are some photographs taken at our Prize Night ceremony last May. Also incuded is a photo of students awarded certificates for excellent attendance in the school. Well done to all.
|  | | |  |  |  |  | Mr Eamonn Flynn, EWO, presents attendance certificates to our students.
|  | Pictured above is Kevin Barry who is on a soccer scholarship to the US. See report below.
PLOUGHING CHAMPIONSHIPS
On Tuesday last our Transition Year students headed off in brilliant sunshine for the first day of the National Ploughing Championships in Athy, Co. Kildare where they spent a busy day completing their assigned tasks on different aspects of Agriculture, Cottage Industries, Careers and Politics . This is always a valuable as well as enjoyable day out for our city based students who were both surprised and impressed by the huge crowds in attendance and the high level of interest in the event.
GAISCE
All our Ty students will participate in Gaisce- the President’s Award this year. By way of introduction they attended a talk in the school library by Mr. Stephen Peers who outlined the work and effort required of Bronze Medal participants , who must undertake challenges in community work, personal fitness and learning a new skill.
TY TUESDAYS
The Tuesday afternoon activities for Transition Years are up and running. This year the students are enjoying their participation in bowling, swimming, gym , horseriding and surfing
FIRST AID TRAINING
All Transition Years are taking part in a one day First Aid course in the school on Friday next, organised and delivered by Mr. Maurice Wadding
POBAL PROJECT
Last week Brendan and Denise, representatives of the Pobal Project, spoke to the Transition Year students in the Assembly Hall to introduce and explain this initiative. Organised by Waterford Group Link, this project is a personal development project and includes modules on Team Building, Personal Development, Creative Arts, Sports and Recreation, Social and Community Development and Job Seeking Skills, with the added bonus of a Residential Weekend Away. On successful completion of the course the students will receive a Pobal Certificate. Closing date for receipt of applications is October 14th. Interested students please contact Sr. Anne
MENTORING PROGRAMME
Twelve of our Transition Year students are taking part in the school’s Mentoring Programme this year. After successfully passing the application and interview stages at the end of last year, the Mentors had undertook training to equip them with the skills and knowledge necessary for their work with the younger students. They were actively involved with our new First Years during their Induction Course in early September and continue to build on their relationships with their particular mentor group by visiting them regularly and helping them out in some of their practical classes.
BREAKFAST AND LUNCH
As well as our established Breakfast Club which runs every morning from 8.15 to 8.45 , this year we also have snacks for sale at morning break as welll as a selection of nutritious hot and cold lunches.
SHANE McCONNELL
Everyone in St. Paul’s will be keepin their fingers crossed for Fifth Year student Shane McConnell who has been selected by the Irish Karate Federation to be part of the team which will represent Ireland in the 2011 WUKF Junior Championships . A member of Pat Rockett’s Martial Arts Academy, Shane is looking forward to the event which will take place in Gyor, Hungary in October.
KEVIN BARRY
Congratulations to last year’s Sixth Year, Kevin Barry, who won a Soccer Scholarship to Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pennsylvania, USA. This is a wonderful opportunity for Kevin who will major in Sports Medicine with a minor in Health and Fitness . We wish him every success in his future study and career. (Picture Attached)
Home School Community Liaison
Parents have started courses under the HSCL Scheme in First Aid and English. Parents who are interested in courses but who have not already returned the application form should send it back to Mr Lohan as soon as possible. Planning for the Science for Fun and Maths for Fun programmes is continuing. Parents who would like to help on these programmes are asked to contact Mr Lohan. The Parents Council AGM will take place this month and all parents will be notified. The Local Committee hope to work on a further One Book literacy project this year in conjunction with Waterford City Library services and this is in the planning stage also. The Book Rental Scheme was very successful in the school again this year. Thanks to our Parents Council for coordinating it. Mr Lohan, Home School Community Liaison teacher, is continuing with home visits to first year parents and is contactable in the school at 051-355816.
| Debs Ball
The Debs Ball was held in the Woodlands Hotel on Thursday night, August 25th. A great night was enjoyed by all who attended, including many staff. Congratulations to all the Debutants and well done to all in making its such a successful and enjoyable night. Please see news below photo. |  |
WELCOME
Management and staff would like to extend a warm welcome back to school to all our students after the summer break. Welcome to our new First Years who have settled in so well in their first couple of weeks. We hope they will be very happy and successful in their time in St.Paul‘s.
LEAVING CERT CLASS 2011
Congratulations to the boys and girls from last year’s Sixth Year who were so successful in both the Leaving Certificate and Leaving Certificate Applied examinations this year. We wish them every success as they embark on the next stage of their education at Third Level.
GRADUATION BALL
This year’s Graduation Ball was held in the Woodlands Hotel on Thursday 27th August. The evening was deemed by all to have been a wonderful occasion, with all our students and their partners looking amazing as they celebrated the end of secondary school and the exciting new challenges they are facing into at third level . A large number of staff was also in attendance to celebrate with the students and Year Head Ms Tyers and the class tutors were touched by the beautiful flowers and gifts presented to them by the students as tokens of appreciation for all hard work and support over the years.
STAFF NEWS
Everyone in St.Pauls, students and staff alike, would like to wish a long and happy retirement to German and French teacher Mrs. Ann Kavanagh who retired last week after thirty seven years in the school.
Best wishes to Mr. Derek O’Brien and Ms Sharon Quinlan in their new schools.
POST LEAVING CERTIFICATE
This year again St.Paul’s is offering three different Post Leaving Certificate courses, in Business and Secretarial Studies, Engineering and Information Technology. A limited number of places are still available on these courses, information and application details from the school office.
PARENTS COUNCIL
Once again this year the management and staff would like to pay tribute to our wonderful Parents Council who organise and administer our very successful Book Rental Scheme. In these recessionary times this scheme is more appreciated than ever, but it entails a huge amount of time and effort and couldn’t function so effectively without the tireless efforts of the members of the Council.
AFTER SCHOOL STUDY
Supervised after school study is up and running from 3.50 pm to 5.50 pm. Any interested student please give your name to Ms. Woods.
SCHOOL LUNCHES
A wide variety of school lunches are available in the Assembly Hall every day and orders can be made during the morning break.
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