Today we were learning all about the different parts of a plant and what it needs to grow. We made these seed frames so children can see the different parts of a plant as it grows.
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In school we want to educate pupils of the importance in looking after the environment. We have created a nature corner in the school where we have our bug hotel, we planted native trees and we are now working on our wildflower garden.  For Engineers Week 2020 students visited Birr Castle for an engineering workshop. They learned the history and science behind a rocket launch, designed and launched their own rockets and had an incredible time doing so. Every year a small selection of schools in Co. Offaly are picked to take part in an Environmental workshop . We were one of the ten schools selected this year. Maura Shannon visited our school and did lots of fun and educational activities with the pupils. It was great to see the children so engaged in the activities and learning the importance of caring for our environment.  With over 300 eye-popping interactive science and STEM experiences, our day at the Explorium was phenomenal! Students visited the amazing Gravity Rooms, the Live Science Show, the G Force, and the Lightening show to name but a few. Students explored the interactive activities which improved understanding of scientific concepts and encouraged curiosity in all students from Juniors up the 5th class. This week all pupils took part in a 'Bricks for Kids' workshop. Pupils followed instruction manuals and built different types of airplanes and attached a motor to make it move. For our second Farm to Fork lesson we used eggs as our main ingredient. Egan's kindly gave us lots of fresh free range eggs to use. In small groups pupils made their own omlettes. We also made scrambled egg and boiled eggs. Pupils enjoyed cooking the omlettes and really enjoyed eating them. This week pupils made their own sandwiches. They were very creative with their fillings and enjoyed eating them. With theses practical activities along with the Food Dudes programme pupils are learning all about the importance of healthy food and how satisfying it is to make their own food. Pupils were very excitied to be making their own Bug Hotels in school. We discussed what types of insects we might attract and why these insects are good for biodiversity. Pupils then used their emaginations to think of different things that could be used to fill up the Bug Hotels to attract lots of bugs.   Pupils visited Multyfarnham Cookery School in Co. Westmeath today. Students learned how to make multi-coloured buns, pipe icing and how to prepare calzone pizza from scratch! The best part was enjoying their food for lunch afterwards. Without a doubt, we have some mini master chefs in St. Kieran’s N.S!
Today we had our first 'Farm to Fork' lesson. All pupils took part in making vegetable soup and brown bread. Feighery's kindly provided us with all the fresh vegetables and pupils followed their own recipe which they wrote to make the delicious soup. You can't beat Feighery's fresh vegetables! The senior room also made solar ovens and different types of insulated containers to see which materials were the best insulators to make flasks. The school held it's annual Christmas show on Thursday the 12th of December at 7pm. We had two shows this year entitled 'The Wriggly Nativity' and 'Is Christmas Cancelled?' It proved to be a great night with all pupils displaying their dramatical and musical talents. The junior room visited Birr library to listen to some Christmas stories. The children were super listeners and really enjoyed the stories. Pupils then attended Birr Theatre to see a show entitled 'Santa’s Fairytale Christmas'. The children had a great day out.  The Junior Room took part in the ‘Living Heritage Competition for Schools 2019’. Three of our pupils represented the school in Laois Education Centre where their project ‘Ireland Past and Present’ was exhibited and judged along with many other schools from Laois, Offaly and Tipperary. The pupils explained our project to the ajudicators and had great discussions about Ireland long ago. We were delighted to be awarded 4th place in the primary schools category. Well done to all the children involved in the project. Pupils got creative making their own fairy house. Pupils used lots of natural materials from our woodlands. The senior room were a great help to the junior pupils during the task. All the fairy houses look great. Sticking to our theme 'Ireland Past and Present' pupils used clay to make old cottages, Mass rocks and a hedge school from long ago. The boys and girls also visited Ferbane Fire Station. Here they learned about fire safety and got the opportunity to experience the life of a fire fighter as they got hands on experience with the equipment used by the Fire Service. Again the experience proved to be an excellent learning opportunity for all the boys and girls. We are most thankful to all those in Ferbane Firestation for this opportunity. The school also wishes to thank our hardworking Board of Management who fully funded both trips. Míle buíochas to all concerned. All pupils attended Athlone IT to participate in a show entitled 'Science Magic'. It was great to see them participating in the experiments. Pupils thoroughly enjoyed the day. Thanks to our BOM for fully funding all costs associated with the day.    On Tuesday the 22nd of October all pupils went out to Feighery’s Pumpkin field. Each pupil picked out his/her own pumpkin and returned to school. They had lots of fun carving out their pumpkins. It was great to see all the older children helping the younger ones. All children were very proud of their finished pumpkins. We are very grateful to Feigherys for supplying each pupil with a pumpkin. We were very busy all week engaging with lots of different programmes associated with Maths Week. The boys and girls attended Birr Theatre and engaged in an entertaining show all about shapes and numbers. It was great to see the children having so much fun with maths. Thanks to the Board of Management who totally funded the trip. On Tuesday the 8th of October, the Junior classes visited Dun na Sí in Moate. This visit was part of their history project ‘Living Long Ago’. The children got to view items which were features of home life and agriculture, long ago. The children made comparisons with these items and pictures of modern day items. It proved to be a really worthwhile educational exercise, and it was clear that the children benefitted greatly from the trip. We wish to thank our Board of Management who paid for the bus and the admission fee. Your support is much appreciated. The boys and girls in Broughall NS were treated to a fantastic learning experience on Friday the 27th of September. Phil McCheyne and his team brought their hot air balloon to Broughall NS. Phil and his team had been participating in the Irish Hot Air Ballooning Championships in Birr Castle and kindly agreed to take time out of their busy schedule and visit us. The children were fascinated as to how the hot air balloon operated. Phil and his team were excellent in how they answered all the children’s questions and they gave the children a great insight into different factors needed for a hot air balloon to fly. We all learned so much about hot air balloons. All pupils got the opportunity to get into the basket, helped with the laying out of the balloon and actively prepare the balloon for take off. The whole experience exposed the children to a whole range of learning opportunities and we are very thankful to Phil Mc Cheyne and his team for making all this possible. |
