NEWSLETTER 19.12.2024

MESSAGE FROM DERMOT

We have come to the end of the calendar year, and I’d like to wish everyone a peaceful and relaxing holiday. For those celebrating, Happy Christmas, and either way, try not to spend too long hanging out in your pyjamas.

Thank you for all your support over the past year, attending performances, helping in the parent community, and being here for us. It means a lot.

We remember families in our community who have experienced loss this year. Celebrating and making new traditions without loved ones, is never easy, and we keep you in our hearts over the break.

Have a fab holiday, a Happy New Year, and look forward to welcoming you back in January.

– Dermot

FESTIVAL OF LIGHT

Our Festival of Light was a great success this year with each class’s hard work really shining through. Thanks to you all for your attendance and enthusiastic participation, in particular Jenny Brady for recording it all and putting it on our website for us to watch see gallery page. Also links as follows:

Wednesday’s Perf 11th – Click for Video

Thursday’s Perf 12th – Click for Video

Friday’s Perf 13th – Click for Video

We are delighted to share that we raised €827.65 in cash donations, along with additional contributions via the QR code, all in support of the student council’s chosen charity: UNICEF.

Your generosity will make a meaningful difference—thank you!

SCHOOL CLOSURES

Friday December 20th – school finishes at 12:00 for Winter Break.
Reopening on January 6th at 08:30.
*NEW CLOSURE* January 20th – school closed for the full day for staff curriculum training.

SCHOOL LUNCHES

Thank you to everyone for your support to date. If you have not yet set your child up please do as soon as possible using the code we supplied to you at the beginning of December.

We are allocating 15 minutes for eating hot lunches, giving children more time to enjoy their meals, with 5 minutes of this dedicated to story time. This arrangement will be kept under review. Thank you to the parents who attended the Hot Lunch Information Evening—I truly appreciated the engaging conversations.

FLU VACCINE

Clarion Health will be visiting on January 14th to administer the free nasal flu vaccine to those who wish to receive it. If you would like your child to take part, please sign up here: https://clarius.ie/schools/.

Please note, only children who are registered and have provided consent will receive the vaccine.

THANKS PAC for WONDERFUL QUIZ

A huge thank you to our PAC for organising the online quiz fundraiser a few weeks ago, and to our generous sponsors for their support. We’re thrilled to announce that the quiz raised €2,442!

Check out some behind-the-scenes photos from the control room attached. Thank you to everyone who participated and helped make this event a success.

AFTERSCHOOL ACTIVITIES – Term 2

A new programme of activities will be available for registration on the 9th January and will begin then from Monday 13th January.

https://canalwayetns.org/after-school-activities/

HANDWRITING

We’re proud to share a photo of our students who have made outstanding progress in handwriting! Their hard work is a testament to the success of our school’s self-evaluation in handwriting, and we couldn’t be more pleased with their achievements. Keep it up!

ATTENDANCE STATEMENT PUBLISHED ON WEBSITE

We are pleased to share our ratified Attendance Statement with you. Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on the draft policy; we have considered your responses and have made adjustments to clarify certain points as requested.

We would like to draw your attention to Section 8: “Referring Absenteeism to TUSLA,” as this section raised some questions within our community. To clarify: we take a practical and supportive approach when referring absenteeism to TUSLA. If we are confident that your child’s absences are authentic and you are making every effort to ensure regular attendance, we will continue to support you int he school. We only refer cases to TUSLA when we need additional help from the Education Welfare Officer, in ensuring your child attends school regularly.

On a more general note, we kindly ask that family holidays be scheduled during official holiday periods and outside of school time. We are working to improve attendance at CWETNS, and your support in this specific area is vital for us to achieve a whole school improvement. Thank you for your support.

Attendance Statement Document

24/7 Accident Insurance Cover for your Child.

A reminder that the school has arranged 24/7 accident insurance for your child. While we hope you won’t need it, if any accident-related costs arise, you’re covered. There are all the necessary forms and info docs on our Publications Page on our website.

Please contact Dermot for any support you may need.

Though claims are few, this coverage is invaluable when needed. Please keep this in mind.