All reports will be sent out today via An Post. The following letter will accompany them –
Dear girls and boys, parents and guardians,
As we conclude our school year, I hope you are all continuing to keep well. One thing is for sure, this will be a year we will never forget!
In September we faced into the WSE. We welcomed two inspectors into our school who talked to our pupils, teachers and wider school community, they inspected all our classrooms and our policies and procedures. I could not have been happier with our report, which highlighted the positive, friendly and welcoming atmosphere that permeates our school and the hard work and dedication of all our staff from the teachers, to our SNAs and Clare in the office. The inspectors also highlighted the excellent learning outcomes of our children and how our school supports them on their journey through Scoil Naomh Cualán. I wish to thank everyone for their combined efforts that has made our school a very happy place in which to learn and to work. Ní neart go cur le chéíle.
Our whole school community then hit the road following our hurling heroes around Tipperary and further afield. We had the huge honour of welcoming our victorious team back to the school after their County and Munster successes.
Over the Christmas period we were treated to two nights of top-class entertainment in the Marian Hall as well as a beautiful Christmas variety show in the Sacred Heart church. The work and effort that had gone into preparing the children for the shows was clear to see.
On returning to school in January it was a case of all roads leading to Croke Park! Our children participated in our Active School ‘Run to Croker’ and we hosted a TV crew from TG4 who interviewed some staff and pupils and filmed our song ‘Borris All the Way’! The whole experience will live long in the memory. Little did we think as we all sat in Croke Park on the 19th of January that two months later Covid 19 would have forced the closure of our school buildings.
In February we were delighted to welcome the families of our Le Chéile pupils and other special guests for the official opening of our new Le Chéile classrooms, another milestone in the development of our school.
With the onset of the Covid pandemic we are experiencing truly unbelievable times and once again I would like to thank you all for the huge effort to keep in contact with the school and for the fantastic distance learning that has gone on. Our online learning will never replace the face to face interaction of normal school but everyone can hold their head up high and be very proud of their efforts throughout the pandemic.
A huge thank you to our teachers who got to grips with a new online platform, Seesaw, so quickly and who provided high quality content for their pupils. The one to one interactions have been fantastic and brought a different dimension to how we teach.
Also, a huge thank you to our SNAs who provided outstanding support to the children they work with and their families. To have a reassuring voice on the end of the phone or a smiling face on a video call was hugely beneficial to our pupils throughout this extraordinary time.
Thank you also to Clare our secretary for all she does to keep the school running smoothly. Working from home and school her efforts do not go unnoticed.
To our new Board of Management, I would like to thank you for your support throughout the Covid closure. You have taken on an onerous job at the most exceptional of times and I thank you for volunteering to do a very important job.
On Friday last we were expecting definitive guidance from the Dept. of Education on the safe reopening of our school on Monday 31st of August. Unfortunately, the department are taking a ‘wait and see’ approach and we are to receive a further update in July. As soon as we get details of how are school is to be reopened safely, I will update you all straight away.
Parents/Guardians, with this letter you will find your child’s end of year report. If you wish to speak to your child’s teacher regarding the report please contact them via the teacher email you received previously. They can also be found in the news section of our school website scoilnaomhcualan.ie. I would also ask you to hold on to all of your children’s school books, book rental books, workbooks, copies etc. as our teachers will need them in September to revise the work from this summer term.
Our neighbours St. Joseph’s College are upgrading their ASD facilities this summer and they are holding a ‘Go Blue for Autism’ fundraiser. This is a fantastic initiative, so please support in any way that you can. You can find details on their Twitter, Instagram and Facebook pages. All in Scoil Naomh Cualán wish them the very best of luck!
A final word to our sixth-class pupils. I thank you all for your contributions to our school during your time here. It was an absolute pleasure to get to know you and teach you over the years. You are a fantastic group of girls and boys who were excellent role models for the younger children in our school. I wish you all the very best of luck in your new schools and we will miss you. As you move on to secondary school, we are losing some families from our school community, I would like to thank you for your support over the years and wish you well for the future.
To conclude, I would like to wish you all the very best for the summer months and we look forward to seeing you all in the Autumn. Stay safe.
Le meas,
Michael Small and staff