Dear Parents/Guardians March 19th 2020
The government has closed all schools until March 29th. Our school was due to be closed on March 30th for a PDST course on the new Primary Language Curriculum. This has been cancelled. If the government re-opens schools on March 30th we will have school. With the coronavirus pandemic evolving and escalating by the day I don’t expect schools to re-open until after Easter at the earliest but this could change.
With our movements curtailed significantly by the virus we are spending more time indoors at home and undoubtedly our children are getting bored and probably frustrated. It is difficult to keep them busy and entertained. All families at present have differing situations. Some families have both parents/guardians working outside the home, some are working from home and some, unfortunately, may have lost their jobs. The children need structure and routine to their days. Depending on family situations it may be an idea to have a daily timetable set out for your children to include exercise, playing with siblings, face-time with friends and relatives, playing board games, doing school work, baking etc etc.
All children were given work to be completed while the school is closed. They should do a variety of different subjects daily starting with a different subject each day. We are fortunate that most households have access to Broadband. There are numerous educational websites to keep the children challenged and amused!
johnboyne.com
The Irish writer John Boyne is running a short story competition for children aged 6-18yrs. There are three categories: 6-10, 11-14 and 15-18. All stories must be submitted in word document or pdf format to [email protected] by Wednesday March 25th @ 5pm. The maximum word count is 300 words. Good luck!!
Edco Learning
Edco Learning are giving free access to all ebooks and resources.
scoilnet.ie
This is suitable for all age groups. Just select the class level, subject and then refine the options further. There are numerous worksheets and exercises to be working on.
multiplication.com
This website can be found on the “Links” section of the school website. In the “Auto-Scored Quizzes” section the children can do addition, subtraction, multiplication and division tests. You can have competitions with your child to see who gets the better score and time! Friendly rivalry.
twinkl.ie
This website is offering parents/guardians a one month free membership which allows unlimited access to resources for all curriculum subjects from Juniors to Sixth. Go to www.twinkl.ie/offer and enter the code IRLTWINKLHELPS.
transum.org
This website is on the school website under “Links”. It has games, puzzles and “Starter of the Day” problems!
Sentence Master
A good app for improving English skills is Sentence Master. It has four levels from Beginner to Expert. Why not give it a try?
Please try out these websites and apps with your children. When we eventually return to school we will get feedback from the children and parents/guardians on these websites.
In the meantime please continue to be safe.
Regards,
Seamus Tansley