Dear Parents/Guardians and children,
On behalf of all staff we would like to welcome you back to school. It’s great to see everyone again. We would like to thank parents/guardians in advance for having the children so well prepared for school. The staff appreciate the effort you have put into buying books, getting uniforms ready, labelling items, shopping to ensure children have healthy lunches, getting children up in the morning helping with homework.
Dropping in Lunches
To ensure the smooth running of the school we would ask parents not to enter the school when dropping in lunches, please leave your child’s lunch in the porch area of the main entrance. All lunches are collected before lunch and delivered to the various classrooms. Please ensure lunchboxes are clearly labelled. Please also note that for hygiene purposes the following food items are prohibited
Yogurt Drinks for example Actimel/Yops
Yogurt Tubes/pouch drinks for example Frubes
No Juice boxes for example Capri Sun
No popcorn/crisps
Please remember that there is a complete ban on peanuts or any food item that contains peanuts
If your child is bringing in the above food items on a regular basis the teacher will contact you.
The reason some of these food items are not allowed is due to the fact that they are too difficult for children to open independently and more often than not spillages occur which are costly to clean.
Meeting Teachers
If you wish to speak with a teacher an appointment must be made with Mona. Mornings and afternoons are very busy times in the school and it is disruptive if parents are trying to gain a teacher’s attention on the corridors or are entering the classroom. Teachers are very accommodating when an appointment is made and can then give you their attention and time. For minor issues re collecting children etc write a note in your child’s Homework Diary, or if your child is in an infant class just pop a note into their Homework Folders. Staff are not available to bring messages to children in other classes.
Children Late/Collected Early
From September this year all schools are obliged to record any child who is late for school or collected early. This is recorded on our new electronic system which is up and running and all information recorded is uploaded to the Department of Education regularly.
Policies
All policies are available from the following link including the updated Parent Complaint Procedure. If you do not have internet access the policies are available to view in the office. http://robertstownns.ie/?page_id=87
Electronic Payments
We would like to thank parents for all Arts & Crafts money and voluntary contributions. These contributions add to the existing resources in our school thus benefiting all children. We hope to have an Electronic Payment system in place after the Halloween break once this is sanctioned by the BOM.
Emergency Phone Number
As there is a large number of children in the school now it can be very disruptive for everyone involved if children are being collected early, however, we do appreciate there can be exceptional circumstances and family emergencies can occur. In this event please phone 087 6357856 so that someone will be available outside office hours to open the front door for you.
Phone Numbers
Please ensure that your phone numbers are up to date. We have had the odd case in the past where we are unable to contact a parent in an emergency and as a result we’ve had to contact outside agencies in order to have children cared for. It is absolutely crucial that we are able to contact you.
Homework
If there are any issues regarding homework or homework seems to be an ongoing issue please contact the class teacher for advice.
Medication
If your child has an existing medical condition or issue please inform the class teacher so that a form can be sent out to you. If in receipt of this form please fill it out and return as soon as possible to the class teacher.
Communion/Confirmation Dates
Confirmation Saturday April 9th at 2.30pm in Allenwood Church for Allenwood and Robertstown schools.
Communion Saturday 14th May at 2pm in Allen Church
Uniforms
Full uniform is will be strictly enforced,, black shoes/runners compulsory. No coloured or branded t-shirts or jerseys. Uniforms will be checked regularly by all teachers. School tracksuit on PE days and swimming days. Please check our Uniform Policy on our website for full details. Conventional hairstyles only.
New Build – Safety
The new build will commence after the October Break. There will be construction vehicles and deliveries coming and going. These have been restricted and will not occur at drop off or pick up times. Please be mindful of this. Please refer to the advice and guidance on the Parents Association Newsletter.
Swimming
Swimming will commence from January 2016 for all classes from 2nd to 6th. There will be more detailed information on this after the October break.
Student Council
Just to add that voting for 10 members of a new student council was held last Friday 8th of September. Members of anti-bullying ambassadors remain in place from last year. Ten new anti-bulling ambassadors were voted in, congratulations to
3rd Class – Liam Murphy and Noah Moran
4th Class – Rachel Palmer and Conor Walsh
5th Class – Abbie Dunne and Finn Renehan
6th Class – Amy Dee and Ava Thompson
Our New Student Council, congratulations to
3rd Class – Luke Roche and Christian Mulvanney
4th Class – Daniel Connolly and Dara Cosgrave
5th Class – Kenneth McDermott and Ellen Mongey-Walsh
6th Class – Ruairí Hanlon and Katie Fitzgerald
Please note 2nd Class results not available yet we will let you know these in due course.
We are looking forward to working with the pupils, staff and parents of RNS to make the school a bully free zone, raise awareness about bullying and the Student Council will ensure that the voice of the students and parents are heard.
Football
The U11 footballers started their campaign on a perfect evening for football on Monday the 14th of September. Every Robertstown man played exceptionally well in a fantastic 5 – 0 to 1 – 9 victory with Aidan Gillen, Ross Watson, Niall Donohoe and Conor Walsh creating havoc up front!! The lads play Rathcoffey on Tuesday 22nd. Good luck boys!!
School Choir
The school’s choir will be participating in this year’s Peace Proms concert which will be taking place in the RDS in February. The children will be joining hundreds of other students from all over Leinster to form this Peace Proms choir so it will be a magnificent experience for them all. They will be singing with a full orchestra and will be conducted by one of the top conductors in the country. We’re all very excited to get working on the music for it now! The choir will also be busy preparing the Christmas carols for the Lighting Of The Christmas Tree tradition this December. Date has yet to be decided.
