Our Term 2 Newsletter is available here! We hope you enjoy reading all about our recent adventures at Brannoxtown CNS! With best wishes to all families for the Spring Break. We look forward to seeing you again when school reopens on Monday, April 17th.

We are currently seeking a cleaner for BCNS. The post is advertised by the KWETB. The post will run annually from August to June, approx 45 weeksper year. Salary€7,021.38. The closing date is 21st April. Click on the links below for more information:

Duties 
Job Application

Sacramental Preparation classes are held on Mondays, from 2:30-3:00pm. Communion Classes are with Múinteoir Deirdre and Confirmation Classes are with Múinteoir Sarah. Children will also continue their preparation with parents at home. This year’s Confirmation includes 5th as well as 6th class. Information on mass celebration dates and venues will be shared as soon as details are finalised.

We are delighted to announce that Suzanne Dowling joins our staff in a full time permanent/SNA capacity, this week, following recent recruitment competition with over 35 applications. Today, we also welcome Aisling Lennon, SET, who joins our staff every Wednesday, to support children across a range of skills, to the end of the school year. 

Our Broadband is being upgraded from FTTC (Fibre to the Cabinet) to FTTH (Fibre To The Home) to improve reliability and speed. Following initial works, the line has been cut for about a week. Unfortunately, during this outage, back-up wifi dongles don’t work. Please use Class Dojo only to flag student absences. Other messages can be communicated on paper (e.g., a note at the back of the Homework Journal) or email to the school: brannoxtowncns@kwetb.ie. 

Free antigen test kits are available for parents to order from the HSE at: https://www.hse.ie/eng/services/schools-antigen-testing/. There are five test kits in each pack. The school roll number required for the order is: 16817P

Parents of children in 2nd, 5^th and 6^th Class class can use the survey at the link below if you wish your child to prepare for and receive the Catholic sacraments of Reconciliation and First Holy Communion and Confirmation.
https://forms.office.com/r/JyfuDk4aEG

We hope you had a lovely break and we look forward to reopening school, Thursday 6th January. We will continue to undertake all actions to keep our school open safely. All staff are Covid-free for school reopening; if this changes, we may need to consider teacher changes/closure, at short notice. Parents, please continue to text any absences to your child’s teacher on Class Dojo. 

Under the terms of the School Transport Scheme, primary school children are eligible for school transport if they live 3.2 kilometres or more from their closest school, ‘having regard to ethos and language’ (i.e., denomination and language of your choice).

The DES is now inviting parents to complete a survey to review the school bus transport scheme. It takes just 2-3 minutes to complete. Part 2 is for parents whose children do not currently avail of the scheme. In the text box at the end, you may wish to note that the two multi-denominational schools you pass on the way to Brannoxtown CNS are full (see bold text above). Completing the survey may improve the odds of our bus route being approved. You’ll find the survey link here:

https://dessurveys.education.gov.ie/surveys/parent-and-guardian-school-transport-survey

Happy Holidays! Sit back, relax and enjoy our Virtual Winter Concert!

Junior Room:

Jingle Bells

Greek Mythology

Senior Room:

Jingle Bell Rock

Greek Mythology

Friday Collages from September to December take centre-stage in our bumper A3 winter newsletter, BCNS News for parents. Look out for Junior Room Aistear themes, visits and visitors and everyday magic moments full of active, joyful learning across the school!

A new SNA post for Brannoxtown CNS has been advertised on Education Posts. Completed Application Forms can be submitted by email (only) to: bcnsrecruitment@kwetb.ie by 5pm on Wednesday 12th January, 2022.

The mobile library will visit our school on the following dates:

07/12/2021 (cancelled due to Storm Barra)

18/01/2022

08/02/2022

08/03/2022

29/03/2022

03/05/2022

24/05/2022

Here, parents can access a copy of:

• the CMO’s Letter to Schools with NPHET’s recommendations on the wearing of face masks for children in third class and above in primary school.
• the DES Guidance for Primary Schools on face masks/ face coverings in primary schools.

These measures are temporary and for review by NPHET mid-February, 2022. On behalf of the Board of Management, we very much appreciate the continued efforts of all families to keep our children safe and well.

A Vacancy has arisen on the school’s Board of Management, following the relocation and resignation of our (Dad) Parent Nominee on the Board of Management (Board). We are inviting expressions of interest to: brannoxtowncns@kwetb.ie by Friday, 26th November. To maintain a gender balance, we are seeking a male nominee. The Board has eight members including two patron nominees, two parent nominees, two community nominees and one school staff nominee and the Principal (Secretary to the Board). You’ll find more information on this Overview Note of the Board’s work. Links to Agreed Reports from meetings are available on the Board Webpage.

All children begin a new five-week Drama Module with Mauricio Quevedo on November 18th, funded by our Creative Schools grant. Children will progress from drama games and improvisations, to stage a short adaptation of a Greek myth. The final piece will be  recorded and shared with parents as part of our ‘Virtual Christmas Concert’. Stay tuned for more information… recording is scheduled for Friday, December 16th!

Parent Teacher Meetings (PTMs) take place over five days from Tuesday, 23rd November to Wednesday, 1st December. Use this link to access booking calendars for PTMs with Múinteoir Deirdre (Junior Room) and for Múinteoir Sarah (Senior Room). The Zoom meeting link will be shared before your meeting.

This evening, government Ministers for Education and Public Health announced additional measures regarding COVID-19 in primary schools, effective from Monday, 29th November or sooner. There are four key messages from today’s announcements regarding COVID-19 in schools, summarised in this note for parents of Brannoxtown CNS. Implications for parents are outlined on page two of the note. Further information is available in today’s Press Release by Ministers Foley and Donnelly.

School photos are scheduled next Thursday, November 18th. Children from 1st to 6th should wear their formal uniform (not tracksuit). This year, there is no ‘return visit’ by County Photos for any children absent on the 18th. Proof cards in a sealed bag will be given to each child and photos can be ordered via the school or online.

The Board of Management meeting  on Tuesday, November 16th was held at Brannoxtown CNS. The Minutes and Agreed Report from the June Meeting were approved. The next meeting of the Board of Management is scheduled for Tuesday, December 14th. Agreed Reports for all Board Meetings are available on the  Board of Management webpage.

To help us set-up our Student Council, our final visit by a public representative was by Senator Vincent Martin on Tuesday, November 9th. Senator Martin answered additional questions about his election to Seanad Éireann and about his Green Party’s policies to protect ourearth. It was a busy morning for Senator Vincent Martin at Brannoxtown CNS before he left our school for Seanad Éireann! Míle buíochas, arís!

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, Team Hope is asking for online donations to their gift-filled shoeboxes again this year. Donations enable the network of local partners in Africa and Eastern Europe to purchase items for shoeboxes for children affected by poverty. Often these shoeboxes are the only gift that a child will receive at Christmas and the joy that they deliver is incredible. Parents can learn more and contribute here. 

Our third Councillor visit was by Peggy O’ Dwyer and we learned so much! Although children had 10 (planned) questions for Peggy, we veered a little off-script when we discovered Peggy’s love of animals! We hope Peggy enjoyed her gifts of a Homework Journal, Homework Pass and Honey and the special Thank You card that children so carefully constructed to say a huge thanks to each and every visitor who shares their expertise and experience with us.

Thank you, Councillor Noel Heavey, for visiting the Senior Room, to talk about your work . Children had 10 (planned) questions for Noel, but we did not expect hi to sing for us (‘My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean’), nor did we expect to sing for him (‘What a Wonderful World’)! We are delighted to hear that Noel’s Homework Pass (awarded by children) is in his back pocket for a special day when he needs to put his feet up and have a cuppa and take some time out from his very busy schedule!

Huge thanks to Pastor Richard Blaney and colleagues for organising our visit to Brannockstown Baptist Church (in separate groups) this week. All children had an opportunity to see what one Church in the Christian faith looks like, inside and out. Children prepared for our visit by sharing what we know already about different places of worship. This is part of our Patron’s Programme, Goodness Me, Goodness You! (GMGY) to support children to develop an understanding and awareness of different values and beliefs. Senior Room children learned about the significance of the Church in the village’s history, as part of local studies.

We were thrilled to have our first Councillor visit to the Senior Room, when Tracey O’ Dwyer came to talk about her work on Tuesday. Children had 10 (planned) questions for Tracey … and many more! We especially appreciated Tracey’s gifts of time and honesty. She also brought physical gifts-pencils and pencil sharpeners with the ‘waste and rubbish management’ reminder: reduce, reuse and recycle!

On Tuesday, October 19th, a very special guest, Cllr. Tracey O’ Dwyer  raised the ‘Litter and Waste Flag’ with Múinteoir Dawn. Múinteoir Deirdre lead us in song (‘What a wonderful World’) on keyboard. Brian Byrne (author and editor) visited Brannoxtown CNS for the very special ceremony to raise our first Green Flag and captured some of the magic in his blog post!

Spaceous play areas, large well-equipped classrooms, high quality care and education, small classes, regular tours and trips outdoors, Afterschool Club and Preschool Care … these are some of the reasons, highlighted on our Admissions Notice, why parents choose our school. Check out our Facebook posts and this website to learn more. Further information including our Enrolment Form are available here. 

Brannoxtown CNS requests your permission to forward the following information to the HSE in relation to your child’s participation in the HSE school dental programme: Name, date of birth, address and contact phone number(s). Can you confirm if you grant permission or not by completing the online form by Wednesday, 8th September. The link to the form is: https://forms.office.com/r/mdY5d4K3Fv

Your child’s teacher has sent you a message, inviting you to join Class Dojo. Please respond via Class Dojo to join your child’s class. Parents use Class Dojo during the year to let class teachers know if your child is/will be absent. This is the fastest way to contact your child’s teacher regarding absences.  Teachers use the Class Dojo to share special learning moments (Class Story) and to complement children’s learning stories (Class Dojo Portfolios). 

Our school reopens for Junior Infants on Wednesday, 1st September and for all children on Thursday, 2nd September. Parents are asked to complete the Covid-19 Return-to-School Form for child(ren) before their return. Our school reopening update (emailed to all parents) is available here. We look forward to welcoming all families ‘back to school’ including ten new families who join us this year.

We are delighted to welcome Sinéad Leydon, the new Afterschool Club Leader at Brannoxtown CNS! Sinéad looks forward to welcoming children to Afterschool Club, from Monday to Thursday, from 1:30/2:30 to 4:30pm. Afterschool Club Forms and additional information are available here. Preschool is scheduled to begin at the school in September 2022. Specific queries can be emailed directly to Sinéad at: sineadleydon@yahoo.co.uk.

The school office closed for the summer holiday on Friday, July 23rd. Liz Kavanagh, Secretary will reopen the office, the week beginning Monday, August 23rd. Queries regarding purchase of school uniform crests/ties or payment of the General Purpose Fee can be made to Liz via the school email: brannoxtowncns@kwetb.ie. Parents will find information for the 2021/2022 school year (calendar, booklists, uniform, etc.) on the school homepage: www.brannoxtowncns.ie. 

Our School Calendar for the next academic year is available here. Junior Infants will begin school on Wednesday 1st September. Senior Infants to Sixth Class will return the following day, Thursday 2nd September.