Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in St Colmcille's PS

• Special Thanks you to Creggan Community Association

  Sun 30 May 2021

  We would like to thank the Creggan Community Association for generously donating £1,361.00 to the school's funds. This generous donation was the proceeds of the Drive-In Bingo on Sunday 30^th May. The funds will be used to support our outdoor education activities and the transition arrangements for P7/R7.  

   

• School Closure- Mid term Break

  Fri 30 Apr 2021

  Please note that the school will be closed from Monday 3rd May to Friday 7th May.

• Return of P4-P7 (R4-R7) pupils

  Fri 19 Mar 2021

  We are delighted that P4-P7 (R4-R7) pupils join P1 to P3 (R1-R3) will return to full-time face-to-face teaching from Monday 22^nd March. Staff are looking forward to returning to more normal interactions with their classes, however, we are all mindful of the need for vigilance so that we can finally end this lockdown.

     

   

  Drop-off and Collection arrangements

  • Pupils should not be on the school grounds before 9.00am;
  • If children are travelling by bus, it is recommended that they wear a face mask and sit with family members.
  • If you are taking children by car; to ease congestion, we ask parents to park in the chapel carpark. Please enter the carpark from Rocktown Rd and leave via Creggan Rd from 9.00am and collect the children from the playground from 3.00pm to 3.15pm;

  • On arrival, children walk directly to their classrooms via the Emergency doors;
  • Children wash their hands upon arrival in the classroom;
  • Parents escorting children to classes are asked to follow Social Distancing guidelines and wear masks.
  • Children using Camowen Partnership will be collected by their staff in front playground.
  • Bus children will be escorted to the buses by staff.
  •  

   

  School Meals

  School meals will be available, provided that they have been booked online and paid in advance. If a child’s meal isn’t paid in advance, parents are asked to provide a packed lunch. If you have forgotten to book dinner for a day, please ring the office, notify Fiona and send the money with your child on the day dinner is being taken No arrears on dinners is permitted by the EA.

  • If you have arrears and have been notified about them, these arrears must be paid in full before any further dinners can be booked. In this instance parent should provide their child/ren with a packed lunch.
  • DE advise that All Free School Meals pupils in P/R4- P/R7 MUST bring a Packed Lunch as payment has already been made directly to parent.

   

  Children WHO ARE UNWELL

  Children should not attend school if they display any symptoms of the virus, including a high temperature, a continuous cough and or a loss of taste or smell. If a child is ill in school, he/she will be taken to an isolation zone and parents will be asked to collect them. They must have a Covid test and if negative, stay off school for two days after the symptoms have subsided. If positive, parents must inform the school immediately and we will take the necessary actions. (See details overleaf) 

   

  Regarding ‘tummy bugs’, where a pupil displays gastrointestinal symptoms, such as vomiting or diarrhoea, they should not attend school until after their symptoms have resolved for at least two days (this means they should not have been sick or had diarrhoea for at least two days before they return.

   

  Updated information is on the school website/ Key information /covid-19.

• Carrickmore Youth Centre: Jumping Clay programme

  Fri 05 Mar 2021

  Carrickmore Youth Centre are offering a new 4 week Jumping Clay programme for young people aged 5-8 years old online via zoom.  Over the course of the 4 week programme young people will take part in fun, engaging and creative online sessions where they will enjoy making and moulding  jumping clay figures.
  
  The aim for this programme is to encourage young people to become more creative and to focus on positive well-being and mental health.
  
  There will be two groups for this programme with alternative time slots to choose from. This programme will be starting on Friday 12th March:

   Session one from 5.30 - 6.30 pm and Session two from 7 - 8 pm.
  
  Please note there are limited spaces available for this programme and applicants with be accepted on a first come, first served basis.
  
  If you would like to register your child/young person for this programme, please complete the registration form using the following link;
  
  
  https://ruddye.wufoo.com/forms/carrickmore-youth-centre-jumping-clay-programme/<https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fruddye.wufoo.com%2fforms%2fcarrickmore-youth-centre-jumping-clay-programme%2f&c=E,1,jDqHC04n9dasf-0oCOYiJwrrNJwTJPqIC24jLwP5QmMbkOnuxKXHROqfDWhTdCPpT4vmahUFKg6n3U5DL5WE-RGC0_bKd97NAbA89sxNbAY,&typo=1>

  

• March newsletter available

  Mon 01 Mar 2021

  Please use this link to access the latest newsletter.

   

  https://www.stcolmcillescarrickmore.co.uk/stream/newsletters/full/1/-//

   

• Parents’ Survey: Remote Learning, Key worker support and Engage programme: Summary

  Mon 01 Mar 2021

  A special thank you to all the parents who responded to our second online survey about Remote Learning, Key worker support and Engage programme. As a school, we took stock of the views of different partners during the first lockdown and put revised strategies in place to support the children through remote and connected activities since January. 

  Please see the summary of parents’ responses to the recent survey. We really appreciate the many positive statements about parents’ appreciation for the commitment of staff for remote learning, keyworker support and the Engage programme. The survey represents a very strong endorsement of the:

  • school’s remote learning strategy,
  • targeted nature of individualised programmes of work for children of different abilities,
  • balance between pre-prepared written packs and online guidance and tutorials via Seesaw,
  • high quality communication between teachers and parents,
  • creative strategies used to keep children motivated,
  • support for keyworker families as well as SEN and children with special circumstances,
  • consideration for underachieving children through the engage programme.

  The survey also highlights that:

  • Internet connectivity remains a significant issue for over 27% of our families. This has increased from 12% in the first survey. Perhaps this is because expectations have increased or we are using video links more which exposes the extent of the connection issues locally,
  • access to devices remains an issue for 20% of families, however, this has decreased from 31% in the previous survey,
  • parents report that 63% of children are coping well with the restrictions of the lockdown, this is lower than the previous survey when 79% were coping well with the restrictions.
  • over 50% of parents feel that their children require less help from them during this second lockdown because of the support from teachers,

   

  There was praise also for the quality of teachers’ feedback and different views about the potential for ‘live’ sessions. There is a longing for the return to face-to-face’ teaching by everyone and a number of suggestions about how we can further improve our online learning strategies should the period of remote learning be extended.

   

  There were many supportive comments from parents with the following words used frequently: outstanding, amazing, excellent, fantastic, supportive, well-though out, phenomenal, brilliant and absolute professionalism.’  

  There was praise also for the quality of teachers’ feedback and different views about the potential for ‘live’ sessions, a longing for the return to face-to-face’ teaching, are a number of suggestions should the period of remote learning be extended.

   

  

• Remote learning Packs: Collection Fri 5th February

  Thu 04 Feb 2021

  Dear parents

  Return of completed work and collection of 3^rd pack:  Congratulations to you and your children for completing the second pack of work. Having checked the returned packs and uploaded work, it’s clear that with your help and staff support, the children are progressing really well through their work. We encourage you to continue with this fantastic effort until 5^th March. We ask that you:-

  • Please place the completed worksheets and reading books in your child’s labelled ‘Pack 2’ folder and return to the teacher’s ‘Return box’ on Friday 5^th February and.
  •     Collect the 3^rd set of learning packs. We’d appreciate if you would use the suggested time for collection:

   

  Surnames	Time slots		Surnames	Time slots
  A to F	1.00 pm to 1.45 pm		P to S	3.15 pm to 4.00 pm
  G to L	1.45 pm to 2.30 pm		T to Z	4.00 pm to 4.45 pm
  M to O	2.30 pm to 3.15 pm

  After 4.45 pm, packs will be available in the school's reception hall until 9.00pm.

   

  • Foundation Stage & KS1: Please return and collect packs at the covered area in the playground.
  • Key Stage 2: Children return previous pack and collect the new packs in the child’s classroom using emergency doors, where they can select additional ‘Accelerated Reading’ books. KS2 teachers will send further details via seesaw.

   

  Engage programme: Children participating in the Engage programme have enough work in their packs to keep them busy until after the Mid-term break.  Mrs Corey is supporting this group via Seesaw and small group sessions.

   

  Fitness with a football and Movement and Music: We would like to thank An Charraig Mhor GFC for funding a four-week programme of online PE Classes for P2 - P7 children in the school.

   

  • Children can participate in lessons in "Fitness with a football" on Tuesdays from 9th Feb with Rory Burns.

  P2-P3:- 10.00 am - 10.30 am;  P4-P5:- 10.40 am- 11.10 am and P6-P7:- 11.20 am- 11.50 am.

  • "Movement and Music" on Thursdays from 11th Feb led by Erin Kelly.

  P2-P4:- 10.00 am - 10.45 am and P5-P7:- 11.00 am- 11.45 am.

  • Parents will be informed about the links to the sessions through seesaw on Monday 8^th Feb.

   

  Mid-term Break: Everyone deserves a well-earned Mid-term break from Mon. 15^th to Fri. 19^th Feb, we ask that the children complete Week 1 of their new pack, take a week’s break then recommence remote learning on Mon 22^nd Feb.

   

  Provisional dates for Sacramental Celebrations in St Colmcille’s Church 2021

  Sat. 15th May at 11.00am - First Holy Communion and Sat. 12th June at 1.00pm and 3.00pm – Confirmation.

   

  Post-Primary Admissions: Applications for admissions to Post-Primary can be completed online this year from 1^st to 16^th March. Information is available at https://www.eani.org.uk/parents/admissions/post-primary-admissions-guide

   

  Parents’ Feedback Survey

  I'm seeking parents’ views about remote learning and the keyworker support scheme. I’d particularly like to know what’s going well, what challenges you face and what you'd like to see improved in relation to: Internet connectivity; Access to computer/ iPad etc; Challenges associated with remote learning and the use of Seesaw. You will receive a message with a direct link to the survey. If you have difficulty accessing the link, please contact me and an alternative link will be provided. If you have more than one child in the school, please complete a separate survey for each child.

   

  In the interim, keep safe and thank you for your continued support in these most challenging times. If you would like further clarification on any aspect of the school’s provision, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

   

  Yours sincerely

   

  Peter Cush

  Principal

• Remote learning Packs: Collection Fri 22nd January

  Wed 20 Jan 2021

  Dear parents

  Return of completed work and collection of 2^nd pack:  Congratulations to you and your children for completing the first pack of work. Anecdotal feedback suggests that the vast majority of children are progressing well through their work. Staff are responding terrifically to this model of facilitating learning, supporting children at home remotely and key worker children in the school. We encourage you to continue with this mammoth effort.

   

  We ask that you

  • Please place the completed worksheets and reading books in your child’s labelled ‘Pack 1’ folder and return to the teacher’s ‘Return box’ on Friday 22^nd Jan and.
  • Collect the 2^nd set of learning packs. We’d appreciate if you would use the suggested time for collection:

   

  Surnames	Time slots
  A to F	1.00 pm to 1.45 pm
  G to L	1.45 pm to 2.30 pm
  M to O	2.30 pm to 3.15 pm
  P to S	3.15 pm to 4.00 pm
  T to Z	4.00 pm to 4.45 pm
  After 4.45 pm, packs will be available in the school's reception hall until 9.00 pm.

   

   

  Foundation Stage & KS1:

  Please return and collect packs at the covered area in the playground;

   

  Key Stage 2:

  Children return and collect packs in the child’s classroom using emergency doors, where they can select additional ‘Accelerated Reading’ books. KS2 teachers will send further details via seesaw.

   

  Engage programme:

  We are providing some additional learning opportunities for some children through the ‘Engage’ programme which is supported by Mrs Corey.

   

   Admissions:

  Please remember that the closing date for admissions is Thursday 29 January 2021.

  To apply go online on the Education Authority’s (EA) website: https://www.eani.org.uk/parents/admissions

   

  Catholic Schools’ week:

  The theme of Catholic Schools’ week which begins on Sunday 24th January is ‘Communities of Faith and Resilience’. This lockdown has certainly tested both our faith and resilience. I’d like to thank Mrs Donnelly for organising a special online assembly which will be broadcast on Monday 25^th January. Further details will be sent via Seesaw.

   

  In the interim, keep safe and thank you for your continued support in these most challenging times. If you would like further clarification on any aspect of the school’s provision, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

   

  Yours sincerely

   

  Peter Cush

  Principal

• REMOTE LEARNING

  Wed 06 Jan 2021

   

  6^th January 2021

  Dear parents

  It is with deep regret that we enter the second period of lockdown and acknowledge that this is a stressful time for everyone especially those trying to balance work and caring responsibilities with home-schooling. The guidelines from DE are changing daily but we will provide updates as the circumstances change. We aim to support your children through this period by building on the many positive aspects of the previous period of remote learning. To that end, we will:

   

  • Provide fortnightly printed packs with clearly labelled Literacy and Numeracy work for each day and Nursery children will receive weekly activity suggestions from Miss McElduff;
  • Share Reading books to specific year groups which will be exchanged each fortnight;
  • Post weekly schedules of work and daily instructions on Seesaw;
  • Support children through new concepts using tutorials and video messages, as appropriate;
  • Be available each day from 9.00am to 3.30pm via Seesaw for online support.
  • Respond to children’s work with praise and ideas for further learning.
  • Support keyworker children who have no alternative provision and vulnerable children. These children should bring their learning packs and packed lunches to school every day. School transport for key workers’ children is available at present but this may change.
  • Provide additional learning opportunities for children with Specific Literacy difficulties through the ‘Engage’ programme.

   

   We ask that parents:

  • Collect the first set of learning packs from the school on Friday 8th January from the covered area in the playground. To facilitate social-distancing, we have allocated times for collection:

   

  Surnames	Time slots
  A to F	9.00 am to 10.00 am
  G to L	10.00 am to 11.00 am
  M to O	11.00 am to 12.00 noon
  P to S	1.00 pm to 2.00 pm
  T to Z	2.00 pm to 3.00 pm
  Open session	3.00 pm to 5.00 pm
  After 5.00pm, packs will be available in the school's reception hall until 9.00pm.

   

  • Share your child’s progress at home via photos and videos;
  • Return worksheets and reading books to the school at the end of the two-weekly block when collecting the next work pack;

  • Don’t stress or worry if your child isn’t engaging well with the work sent home or if you feel we are bombarding you with work that you don’t have time to look at.
  • Look after yourselves and minimize stress as much as possible.

   

  In the interim, keep safe and thank you for your continued support in these most challenging times. If you would like further clarification on any aspect of the school’s provision, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

   

  Yours sincerely

   

  Peter Cush

  Principal

• Minister announces revised plans for reopening schools in January

  Thu 31 Dec 2020

  Dear parents

  I hope you and your families had a happy and peaceful Christmas and I wish you a safe, healthy and prosperous new year.

   

  This morning, Thursday 31st December, the Education Minister announced revised plans for the reopening of schools after the Christmas break. As a result of this revision, St Colmcille's arrangements for the new year are as follows.

   

  • Primary 1 - 7 & Rang 1 - 7 pupils will be taught remotely on Thursday 7th and Friday 8th January and will return to school for face-to-face teaching on Monday 11th January.
  • The school's Nursery and Naíscoil Cholmcille will open as usual on Thursday 7th January;
  • We will accommodate vulnerable children and the children of key workers on Thursday 7th & Friday 8th January.

   

  The Department of Education has provided clarification about the definition for key worker and vulnerable children (see lists below this letter) and the level of support provided.

  • A child of a key worker has been defined as a child for whom at least one parent is a key worker.
  • Children who qualify as vulnerable or key workers' children will be in school for 'supervised learning'. This is not face-to-face teaching; this is being supervised and doing the same activities as children who are at home.

   

  If you feel that you or your child falls into either of these categories and you would like to avail of support on Thursday 7th and Friday 8th Jan. please send an email to me at pcush286@c2kni.net before 10.00 am on Monday 4th Jan outlining:

  1. Parent's name/s
  2. Child/children's names and classes
  3. Reason for applying for key worker/vulnerable children support. e.g.

  • Parent is key worker because ......
  • Child has a Statement of SEN.

   

  We aim to ensure that children are supported with minimal disruption to their education while safeguarding our whole school community. Teachers will also be contacting you with specific information about the arrangements for their classes.

  Best wishes

   

  Peter Cush

  Principal

   

  Definition of key workers:

  • Health and Social Care.  This includes doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics, social workers, home carers and staff required to maintain our health and social care sector;
  • Education and childcare.  This includes pre-school and teaching staff, social workers and those specialist education professionals who will remain active during the Covid-19 response;
  • Public safety and national security.  This includes civilians and officers in the police (including key contractors), Fire and Rescue Service, prison service and other national security roles;
  • Transport.  This will include those keeping air, water, road and rail transport modes operating during the Covid-19 response;
  • Utilities, and Communication.  This includes staff needed for oil, gas, electricity and water (including sewage) and primary industry supplies to continue during the Covid-19 response, as well as key staff in telecommunications, post and delivery, banking and waste disposal;
  • Financial Services - This includes staff needed for essential financial services provision (including but not limited to workers in banks, building societies and financial market infrastructure);
  • Food and other necessary goods.  This includes those involved in food production, processing, distribution and sale, as well as those essential to the provision of other key goods (e.g. hygiene, medical, etc.);
  • Retail. This includes those workers who have been working throughout the pandemic in food retail, for example, and will now extend to those working in other retail businesses permitted to operate by the Executive  from June 2020;
  • Other workers essential to delivering key public services such as the National Crime Agency; and
  • Key national and local government including those administrative occupations essential to the effective delivery of the Covid-19 response.

   

  Vulnerable Children:  What is the definition of “vulnerable”?

  The term “vulnerable” encompasses those children who are in need of protection, or in need, as defined by the Children (NI) Order 1995. Children in need may include those:

  • A child who has an assigned social worker because he or she is a child in need, in need of protection (or on the child protection register) or is a looked after child.

  • A child in need includes young carers, children with disabilities, and children living in families where there is domestic abuse, substance abuse, and / or mental health difficulties.

  • A child who is receiving support from, or has been referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).

  • A child who has a statement of Special Educational Needs (SEN), a child who is accessing EOTAS, or a child who normally accesses Education Nurture Units.

  • A child who is ‘on-the-edge’ of receiving support from children’s social services.

  • A child who is in need, including in need of protection, but whose need is not known to statutory services.

  • A child who is not known to statutory or voluntary and community support services but who is vulnerable because their family is under increased pressure due to Covid-19 related circumstances.

  • A child who has been placed for adoption.