We will be having a céilí mór next week where we will be dancing Ionsaí na hInse (The Siege of Ennis) and Ballaí Luimnigh (The Walls of Limerick). Here are some videos so get practising at home too!
Here are some more photographs we took during our cycle from London to Balbriggan. Thank you all so much for the amazing welcome yesterday, it made it all worth while.
Congratulations to the Cycle Together team who made it back to Balbriggan ETNS this morning to a wonderful welcome from the whole school.
Lots of children and their parents or guardians turned up at PJ’s playcentre on a bright but cold morning to support the cyclists in the last final part of their epic journey. They were welcomed at the school by a Samba band performance from Dan’s class and a huge cheer from the school.
We were also honoured by the presence of a paralympic champion cyclist, Catherine Walsh who has recently returned from her success at the London 2012 paralympic games. Local historian Joe Clinton has been telling stories in various classes this morning about our own local hero cyclist, Harry Reynolds.
Together with our friends from Clarendon School in London we are working to develop a unique cycle scheme where we enable children to learn about many aspects of the curriculum through the use of bicycles and cycling.
Children from our link school in London have already visited us this year to share their expertise in bike maintenance and mechanics. They also donated four brand new bikes to our school. We also have a direct link to a school in Zambia, and during the year we plan to make closer links. The older children from Clarendon plan to visit Lubombo school in Zambia with the intention of training their staff in cycle mechanics, building a shelter to house several staff bikes, and indeed to promote the use and benefits of bicycles and cycling.
To raise awareness of the scheme in our local community and indeed further afield, I will be joining Paul Jensen & Laurence Balcombe from Clarendon School, in a cycle ride from London (Clarendon School) to Dublin (Balbriggan ETNS) starting on Friday 12th October and arriving in Dublin on Monday 15th October. We are planning to involve as many students, staff and parents as possible in the final stage of the ride. (From the car park at PJ’s play centre to our school) I will also be inviting our friends from the community guards as well as local celebrities and well know personalities.
This is a great opportunity to showcase our school and to put our kids on a pedestal. They will become pioneers for the exciting new way of looking at cycling and healthy living. Like I said I’d love our kids, their parents, our staff, our board but also the wider community to be energised and proud of what’s going on at our school.
Sheila and the green team are working really hard this year to achieve yet another green flag. This one will be for travel and I think that our ‘cycle together’ will help raise awareness and give this project a helping hand. The journey to school is an ideal way for children to take part in regular physical activity, to interact with their peers, and to develop the road sense children need as pedestrians and cyclists.
I am inviting you all to come and join us for our ‘cycle together’ on Monday 15th October . Let’s stop the traffic for at least 30mins and enjoy a fun, healthy and safe bike ride together.
