In the Senior Room, we've been learning about report writing as our English writing genre. We worked on a cross curricular project (Geography, Science, SPHE and some Green School topics) - Agriculture, Food and Fairtrade. The boys and girls worked really hard on these projects, did their own research and typed up their reports on their chromebooks. Well done boys and girls. 

We placed nine different types of food on brown paper to see if they contained fat. We left them over break time and came back to examine the brown paper. The foods containing fat left grease marks on the paper. 
We had great fun eating our experiment afterwards!

​Every week children in the Senior Room take part in a fun and educational Science experiment. This week the children made butter, which was a great way to introduce children to the science behind food and the process of emulsification. They learnt about the properties of cream and how agitation transforms it into butter. The children enjoyed making the butter but loved eating it with crackers even more. Well done boys
and girls!

 All pupils take part in hurling/camogie coaching with Shane each week. It’s great to see more and more children independently bringing their hurls to school to play hurling/camogie at break times. Children from 2nd class to 6th class also have the opportunity to take part in after school every Monday from 3pm-4pm.

Back in September, the Senior Room placed a variety of materials including tinfoil, a bottle top, a banana skin, an apple core and newspaper in jar with soil. We sprayed the contents with water and left it for six months to investigate what materials would decay / decompose. 
We found that the apple core and banana skin had rotted down (and smelled very bad!) but the bottle cap and tinfoil remained unchanged.

​The boys and girls of Broughall NS are enjoying the opportunity to participate in soccer training with Daniel our soccer coach. Soccer is a fantastic way for young players to develop their fitness, teamwork and have fun. The boys and girls in the Senior Room are looking forward to taking part in the FAI Primary Schools 5 Aside Competition next month.

This year for Green Schools, we are focusing on Litter and Waste. Some of the Green School's committee were out and about picking up litter in the yard. Well done all!

We investigated different ways to preserve an apple. We placed slices of apple into honey water, water with lemon juice, salty water, water containing a dissolved vitamin C tablet, a cup of lemon and lime drink, fizzy water and tap water. We also left two slices of apple untouched, this was our control. We left the apple over break time and then we tasted the apple to decide which mixture preserved the taste, colour and texture of the apple best. We concluded that the vitamin C water preserved the apple best from a colour point of view but that the taste and texture of the untouched apple was best overall. 

The boys and girls have been working hard since our return after mid-term. Their hard work paid off when they got to perform their Christmas Show ‘The Angel Who Nearly Missed It All’ for family, friends and members of the community. It is a great experience for the boys to take part in a Christmas Show each year and it is rewarding to see how much their confidence grows each year. Well done boys and girls!

Children from the junior classes were very excited to visit Birr Theatre to see the show 'Santa and the Three Little Pigs'. They all enjoyed the show and had a great time. Many thanks to the BOM for fully funding this trip.

Four pupils from 5th and 6th class represented our school in the Cumann na mBunscol School Quiz. The boys gave it their all and enjoyed the evening. Well done boys.

In Science, we investigated the properties and characteristics of materials. We placed different liquids (vegetable oil, honey, washing-up liquid and water with food colouring) into a large glass and watched them settle. Then, we dropped various objects (ping-pong ball, bottle cap, dice, blueberry, coin) into the glass to see what would sink / float. Look at the glass and see what we discovered. 

​It was wonderful to have two K/K Legends - Christy Hand and John Leahy join us to present our boys and girls with their Cumann na mBunscol medals. Thanks a million Christy and John.

Our boys and girls from 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th classes competed in the Offaly Interschools Fast Feet Competition, which was held in Rath. Each boy and girl competed in three races, the speed and determination they displayed in these races was brilliant. Well done boys and girls!

Today all pupils worked on creating spooky skeletons. It was lovely to see the older children helping and encouraging the younger children. Well done boys and girls!

A big well done to the boys and girls who won their Cumann na mBunscol final in Birr today. Also a big thank you to all our supporters who turned up to support the boys and girls. Broughall Abú!

The boys and girls were very creative in carving out their pumpkins today. Well done boys and girls!

This week is Fire Safety Week. Three firemen from Ferbane Firestation visited our school today to educate the children on the importance of fire safety. Each pupil received a fire safety pack. Thank you to the two Peters and Stephen for visiting our school.

​Well done to the boys and girls who represented Broughall NS in  the Offaly Schools Cross Country. It was great to see students from 2nd class to 6th class enjoying taking part in the event. Well done boys and girls!

The boys and girls enjoyed our morning walk down to Feighery's vegetable fields. Alan showed the children the different types of vegetables they grow. He educated the children on crop rotation, how they plant their vegetables, harvest their vegetables and how they manage weed control without spraying their vegetables. The children were delighted to see the pumpkin patch and it was a real treat for them to pick out their own pumpkin to bring back to school which we will carve out later in the week.

Did you know that you can make a xylophone with glass jars and water? We learned about sound in science and made our own xylophone. We used food colouring in the water to make it look better and we played some simple tunes!

​On Thursday 10th of October the boys and girls of Broughall NS played their Cumann na mBunscol Blitz in Kilcormac. They recorded victories over Mountbolus NS and Roscomroe NS. They have now qualified for the final which will take place in St. Brendan's Park, Birr. Well done boys and girls!

​In the Junior Room we have been learning all about autumn and what changes it brings to our environment. We learned about hibernation and migration. We took a close look at all the plants around us and how plants produce seeds to disperse. The boys and girls were given a variety of wild flowers which had withered and they set to work to harvest the seeds. They made lovely seed pouches to keep their seeds safe for planting next spring.

​The Senior Room have been learning about France in Geography. Each pupil researched their own topic, typed it up on their chrome books and presented their findings to the class. They also made some fabulous art inspired by the Eiffel Tower. Well done boys and girls!

​All classes enjoyed taking part in Tag Rugby coaching every Wednesday for six weeks.