Open Day!

We were delighted to welcome students from our five local primary schools: Derrylamogue, Castlecuffe, Clonaghadoo, Rosenallis and Scoil Bhríde, Clonaslee, for our Open Day yesterday. 

Our visitors were brought around the school by our brilliant TY leaders and got to take part in a whole range of hands-on activities. They carried out experiments in Science, made Christmas decorations in Construction, learned about a balanced diet in Home Economics and even made their own lunches.In our Robotics room, students travelled to the International Space Station using our VR headsets, explored Minecraft, played coding games and got to interact with our VEX Robotics and LEGO League robots. Some students were trying these technologies for the very first time and did a fantastic job. They also enjoyed using our state of the art podcasting set up, and had loads of ideas brewing for new podcasts. 

Students got a full tour of the school and met with our Junior Year Head, Ms Caplice. They were impressed she recognised quite a few of them from her visits to the primary schools and from our recent Open Night. It was lovely to welcome their teachers too, who are practically famous in our school because we hear so much about them when the First Years arrive. We also had a few reunions, with Ms Kirwan and Ms Doyle delighted to see Conor again who is somehow in TY already! Before heading home, each student received a goodie bag packed with snacks which went down very well after a busy morning.

Huge thanks to Seanie Morris, Laois County Council STEM Engagement Officer, and Terence O’Brien from LOETB who assisted Mr Todd in the Robotics Room. Their enthusiasm was obvious as they told students about some of the exciting STEAM projects our own students have been involved in over the years.

We are very proud of our TYs who did a fantastic job showcasing the school and worked brilliantly with the visiting students. A final word of thanks goes to Mr Madden who organised the day and ensured that every group had an enjoyable visit. We are already looking forward to welcoming our new First Years in September.