March 2026

Dear Parents/Guardians,

As we come to the end of another busy and rewarding month, I would like to take a moment to thank everyone in our school community for their continued support, effort and enthusiasm throughout March.

To our wonderful pupils, thank you for your hard work, positive attitude and the pride you take in all that you do. It has been fantastic to see such engagement across all activities, both in and out of the classroom.

To our dedicated staff, I extend my sincere appreciation for your commitment, energy and passion. Your enthusiasm ensures that our school remains a vibrant, supportive and inspiring place for all.

To our parents and guardians, thank you for your ongoing support and partnership. It plays a vital role in the success and wellbeing of our pupils.

March has been a particularly active month. It has been great to see school sports really taking flight, along with the continued development of our school garden through planting activities. We were delighted to celebrate the Confirmation of our 6th Class pupils and the First Confession of our 2nd Class. We got to celebrate our rich culture during Seachtain na nGaeilge. Pupils also enjoyed a wide range of activities including swimming, Playball and hurling (to name a few), adding to the rich and varied experiences on offer.

As we now look ahead to the Easter break, I would like to wish everyone a happy, restful and enjoyable holiday. We look forward to welcoming all pupils and staff back to school on Monday 13th April. Enjoy a well-deserved break!

Kind regards,

Dominic Tyrrell

Our school email address is office@stannesardclough.ie.

The school office telephone number is: 01-6273367.

March has been a busy month for Cumann na mBunscol in St. Annes! Our boys football team kicked off the season with their blitz in Kill GAA at the start of the month. After defeating Two Mile House NS in their opening game, the boys were unfortunate in their remaining group games against two very strong teams from Kill and Naas. As always, the boys represented our school to the best of their ability and we are very proud of their efforts.

Next up, it was time for our Girls Mini 7s football team to take to the football pitch. The girls travelled to Rathcoffey GAA for their blitz and they had a fantastic. The girls had wonderful victories against xxx, qualifying for the final against a strong Rathcoffey NS. The final was a cracking game of football and the girls gave it their all and were rewarded with the victory in the end. The girls now qualify for the Kildare Mini 7s final which will take place after Easter. We wish them all the best for the final and we thank the girls for representing our school with pride and passion.

Next up, it was time for our Mini 7s Camogie team to take to the field of play. The girls put in a tremendous effort throughout their blitz against some very big schools. The girls gave 100% in each of their matches but were unfortunate not to progress on the day. Well done to the girls for their continued hard work and for representing our school so well. We are very proud of them all!

Our Boys mini 7s team had their regional blitz last Monday on our school pitch. They played some beautiful hurling and really showed off their high level of skill. They had two good victories over Clane and Allenwood and they now progress to the County Finals after the Easter break. We wish the team the best of luck in their finals and we thank them for representing our school with such pride and enthusiasm.

Congratulations to our girls’ and boys’ 5-a-side soccer teams on their fantastic achievements in recent weeks. Both teams showed great skill, teamwork and determination as they competed in their regional blitzes, emerging as winners and securing their places in the FAI 5-a-side county finals. This is a wonderful accomplishment, and we are all very proud of their efforts. We wish them the very best of luck in the finals!

Well done to all the girls and boys who proudly represented our school at the County Cross Country Finals yesterday. The standard of competition was extremely high, and our pupils rose to the challenge, giving their very best in every race. We are very proud of their effort, determination and the way they represented our school so positively. Some super athletes to watch out for in the future!

After an exciting league and play offs, the semi-finals of the Basketball League were held on Tuesday 24th March. In the first semi, the Warriors faced the Bucks. In a very tight first half, the sides finished all-square at 2 points a piece. In the second half the Warriors pulled away with scores from Sam O’Shea and Róise MacGiollaphádraig to win 6 points to 2.

In the second semi-final, the Bulls recovered from the loss of Niall Graham through illness to defeat the Mavericks by 8 points to 4. It was a great team performance with all members of the team contributing points, assists and strong defence.

The final was played on Thursday 26th March and was a very keenly contested affair. Chances were at a minimum as two good teams cancelled each other out. It took until late in the second half before Fionn Phipps scored a beauty to put the Bulls ahead. However, with just 5 seconds left on the clock, Tamas Sylagyi lobbed in the equaliser, sending the final into golden score overtime. Both sides exchanged chances and hit the rim before Tamas struck again, this time with a 3 pointer to win the cup for the Warriors. It was a great performance from both teams to end a fantastic Basketball League for 2026.

Our recent Lá Glas was a fantastic celebration filled with energy, fun and plenty of movement as all classes took part in Irish dancing with Natalie. Pupils had a wonderful time learning and practicing a variety of traditional dances, from the Siege of Ennis to the Walls of Limerick. There was great excitement and laughter throughout the day, with everyone getting involved and enjoying the experience. We've a few videos below that give a flavour of the day!

We are delighted to acknowledge the wonderful work being done by our 3rd and 4th Class pupils in their violin lessons with Maria. It has been fantastic to see the progress they have made in such a short time, with growing confidence, skill and enthusiasm evident in every session. We look forward to seeing their talents continue to develop in the months ahead.

We held a very successful Daffodil Day in aid of the Irish Cancer Society in our school last Friday. We raised over €1000 for this excellent cause. Special thanks to our SNAs, Brendan and Debbie for organising this day for our school and thanks to the boys and girls who purchased daffodils on the day. I've attached a hyperlinked QR Code here if anyone wishes to make a donation.

Congratulations to the boys and girls in 6th class who made their Confirmation last Friday. We are very proud of them all. It was a beautiful ceremony and the children did a fantastic job. Thanks to Fr. Joe and Stephanie (Sacramental Co-ordinator) for their support. Thanks to Ms. O'Connor and Ms. Cassells for their excellent guidance that they gave to the boys and girls and for preparing them so meticulously for this special day. Well to the our wonderful school choir who did a wonderful job throughout both ceremonies. They were absolutely amazing! Thanks to Ms. Keohane and Ms. McCarthy for their great work with the choir.

Please remember that children must wear their full school uniform to school every day. Children may only wear their PE tracksuit to schools on days when they are meant to have PE. Our full school uniform policy can be found on our school website. We ask for your support with this.

As per our school's Acceptable Use Policy (available on our website), children are not permitted to bring mobile phones or smart-watches to school. School staff are not in a position to check if watches are on 'school mode' and for that reason we ask that they are not brought to school. The same rules apply when we are going to matches, school trips etc... as these are all school events. If children are found to have these in school, they will be asked to hand it to the teacher and we will then request that parents collect if from the school office. We ask for your support with this as we want to ensure that we are doing our best to protect your children whilst they are in our care.

School tours for this year have now been booked and dates in the diary. We will be adding permission and payment requests to Aladdin when we return after Easter. Some classes have already received these. Please let us know if your child is unable to attend the tour as they may affect the price of the tour.

At our monthly assemblies we will be presenting the Spirit of St. Anne's award to one child from each of our classes. This award links in nicely with our 'Bí Cineálta (Be Kind)' policy where we are praising our children for showing kindness, compassion and care to themselves and to others around them. The March winners of the Spirit of St. Anne's award are:

Our boys and girls are making a huge effort to improve their handwriting and presentation of their work. Each month we will be awarding the 'Handwriter of the Month' certificate to one boy or girl in each class. This award is for children who are trying their best, at their level, to improve their handwriting and presentation skills. The winners for March are:

Each month, one pupil from every class is honoured with our Creativity Award — celebrating those who shine in the arts! Whether through music, drama, or visual art, these pupils show imagination, passion, and a true love for creative expression. Congratulations to this month’s winners for inspiring us all with their artistic talent and enthusiasm! Keep creating and sharing your wonderful ideas with the world.

After lots of discussion, debating and eventual voting, we have named our new school mascot. We'd like to introduce Tipper to the St. Anne's NS Community. Tipper has already been to lots of matches, has experienced the great Irish weather and has had to endure many a noisy bus trip to and from school events. Keep an eye out for Tipper over the coming newsletters to see what he gets up to!

The PSG would like to say a big thank you to all the volunteers who helped out on the day for the confirmation parties and who baked/made/bought some fabulous treats to hopefully make the day even more special for our children and their families. Thank you!

Check out all the great work that took place in Junior Infants during the month of March.

Here are just a few of the things we have enjoyed this month in Senior Infants Room 3... Meeting Eddie the Vet and Casey the dog, dressing up for Lá Glas, dancing An Dreoilín, making music and performing with Leo from Music Generation, making patterns in Maths, first session of Playball, playing Maths Number Challenge games... the list goes on!

Mrs Malones Senior Infants are working on making patterns, telling the time and the story of 10. We are exploring the Garden Centre. We read 'The Tiny Seed' and we created lovely art work based on plants. We are looking forward to our Easter holidays.

First Class have had a wonderful month full of creativity and learning. They have enjoyed making beautiful Spring and St. Patrick’s Day art and performed An tSeamróg alongside Junior Infants at their Lá Glas Assembly. In maths, they had great fun exploring measurement and going on a metre hunt around the school. They also shared their favourite books with friends during World Book Day and had a fantastic time with 3rd class for paired reading.

Ms. Doyle's class have had another busy month of laughter and learning. Check out what they got up to!

Ms. Walsh's 2nd class have been busy during the month of March. Here's a few of their highlights!

Here's a little look into life in Room 10 during March.

Ms. Hassett's class had a brilliant March in Room 8. Have a look at what they got up to!

We planted Hawthorn trees in the field. We are very proud of our 2 members that made it onto the Cross Country Team. Well done Charlie and Josh! We learned about our teeth in Science and we sketched our mouths with a big grin. Our school got a new mascot, his name is Tipper! We wore all green clothes and had great fun doing some Irish dancing on Lá Glas. We also sang ‘Mo Ghile Mear’. We celebrated Daffodil Day to raise money for the Irish Cancer Society. We sang at both Confirmation ceremonies. It was a wonderful day and we enjoyed playing on the field.

Mr. Behan's class did some fantastic drawing to 'Light the World Green' during the month of March. They also learned about Irish heroes during Seachtain na nGaeilge.

4th Class have had a busy March. We loved the Lá Glas céilí and learning An Dreolín dance in class. We also planted beetroot and it is growing well so far! We celebrated World Book Day and read the book ‘The Lost Thing’. We made clay figures in response to this book. We are learning ‘Moon River’ on the violin.

Another busy month in Room 14. Check out some of our highlights.

Fifth class completed various art tasks during March. Early in the month, they designed and created new covers for the novel “Holes” by Louis Sacher that we are reading currently. These are proudly displayed outside our door.

Later, linked to a History lesson on the Renaissance, the children got to experience a tiny sample of what it was like for Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel while lying on his back for hours on end. They had a lot of messy fun creating their own biblical masterpieces!

In drama, the class created their own role plays based on the theme “At the Restaurant”. Suffice to say, there were quite a few unhappy customers, crazy chefs and serving staff who would rather be anywhere else!

March 2026 was a very special month for Ms Cassells’ sixth class. On the 20th March, we made our Confirmation. The sun came out and we had a wonderful day with our friends and families.

In between all the church practices, we managed to get our spring daffodils fully painted. In SESE, we completed our work on continents, climates and rivers of the world. We then painted the climates of the world for Visual Art.

During the month of March, we continued to read our class novel War Horse by Michael Murpurgo, did some recount writing about life in the trenches during World War 1 and further revised homographs and antonyms.

In PE, we completed the gymnastics strand of the PE curriculum. We started each class with conditioning skills, then we did some stretching and finally broke up into groups to create a routine. Our routines include forward tumbling, cartwheels, crab lifts, pyramid lifts and other gymnastic movements. We have set our routines to music and are looking forward to performing them in full after the Easter break.

Thanks to Ms McCarthy, we started French classes which are very enjoyable, continued playing ukulele with Diarmuid from Music Generation and worked on the topic of ‘An Teilifís’ in Gaeilge.

In room 16 this month, there was a lot of activity both within and outside of the classroom. Many of the children were involved in hurling, football, soccer, cross country as well as preparations for the Scór competition. In addition to this, 6th class danced the Walls of Limerick and the Siege of Ennis as part of Seachtain na Gaeilge.

A significant focus this month was the Confirmation Ceremony on the 20th of March. The children did a wonderful job on the day making them, their families, the parish and the school very proud.

When we weren’t busy with the activities above, 6th class looked more closely at the relationship between fractions, decimals and percentages, connecting this to profit and loss as well as other money related problems. As Gaeilge, we focused on Teilifís as a theme and in reading activities we used context and language features to guess the meaning of unknown Irish words. We had fun in oral language when we used games like “Scenes from a Hat” to use and identify subjective and objective language. In Geography and Science, we studied the Earth’s resources and learned how we impact our environment and in History we compared the lives of Anne Frank and Zlata Filipovic, two children of who experienced life during war.

Ardclough GAA Club and St. Anne's NS collaborate on a weekly lotto draw to raise funds for both organisations. The draw takes place every Friday evening, just after 8pm . Long and short term ticket options are available. Paper tickets can be purchased in the clubhouse and tickets are also available online at this link https://ardcloughgaa.clubzap.com/draws

Thank you to everyone who supports the draw and to our PSG members who support the Club Committee to run the draw each week. Best of luck to everyone in the draw.

• Friday 27th March - Easter Holidays - School reopens on Monday 13th April
• Wednesday 22nd April - Staff Training (Primary Curriculum) - School closed for pupils
• Monday 4th - Friday 8th May - School Closed