Parent Newsletter

We’ve had such a wonderful start to the new school year here in Dangan! The boys and girls have settled back in really well, and it’s been lovely to see so many happy faces as we come together again after the summer. There’s a great sense of energy and excitement around the school, and we’re looking forward to another year of learning, fun, and community together!

Please take a moment to read the following notices...Many thanks, Ms Ryan.

Memory Lane photography will be here this Wednesday the 10th to take photos of Junior Infant pupils (and their siblings). A class photo of 6th class will also be taken. Please send your child in wearing their full uniform on this day. If you would like your child's photo to be taken on this day and they are not in Junior Infants, please email the office and I will add them to the list. office@dangannationalschool.ie

From this school year onwards, all parent communication should be sent to our dedicated school email address: office@dangannationalschool.ie

The school phone will be monitored between 9:00 am and 2:30 pm each day.
All emails will be received by the school office and passed on to the relevant staff member. Teachers will respond in due course but will not reply during teaching time, in the evenings, late at night, or at weekends. We ask for your understanding and cooperation in respecting these boundaries.

Please ensure that all communication is respectful in tone. Staff will not respond to emails that are threatening or abusive; such correspondence will be referred to the Board of Management.
If contacting the school about a sensitive matter, please note that parents must not name or discuss the children of other families. Any such emails will also be referred to the Board of Management.

The school must be informed in advance of a child being collected early. This can be done via Aladdin Attendance Notes section, click the “My child will be collected early” option. When a child is absent from school, parents must submit an explanation and this can be done through the Aladdin App.

If parents wish to make an appointment to speak to a teacher, they can do so by sending an email to the office or a note in the homework journal.

• Confirmation Wednesday 4th March (Time TBC)
• First Holy Communion Saturday 16th May (Generally 11am)

We would like to invite you to a brief meeting with your child's class teacher during the week of September 22nd. These meetings will take place first thing in the morning in your child’s classroom and will last 20 minutes. Your child can come to school with you at this time and will be supervised in the yard or in another room while the meeting takes place.

During the meeting, your child's teacher will discuss the classroom protocols and procedures for the year, including curriculum priorities and an overview of homework. Since we will be adhering to a tight schedule, if you have any questions you'd like the teacher to address, please email them to the office before Monday the 22nd September (office@dangannationalschool.ie).

Afterward, coffee and tea will be available in the hall, offering an opportunity to meet other parents of children in the same class but I understand if you are heading straight to work once the meeting is finished.

Please note – There will be no individual meetings. Meetings are scheduled for all parents of the class to attend together in one session.

We understand that it may be difficult for everyone to attend these meetings. But, we believe they will be highly beneficial in starting the year off on the right foot and giving you and the teacher a chance to align on the priorities for the year ahead. We hope you can join us.

• Monday, September 22nd: 8:40-9:00am – Mr Kelly’s Class (5th)
• Monday, September 22nd: Time TBC – Mrs Prendergast’s Class (A.C)

• Tuesday, September 23rd: 8:40-9:00am– Ms Payne’s Class (Senior Infants)
• Tuesday, September 23rd: 8:40-9:00am– Ms Hardagon’s Class (1st)

• Wednesday, September 24th:8:40-9:00am – Ms Wall's Class (2nd)
• Wednesday, September 24th: 8:40-9:00am– Ms Mollison’s Class (3rd)

• Thursday, September 25th: 8:40-9:00am– Ms O’ Loughlin’s Class (4th)

• Friday, September 26th: 8:40-9:00am– Ms Duffy’s Class (6th)
• Friday, September 26th: 8:40-9:00am - Ms Forde & Ms Walsh's Class (Junior Infants)

To facilitate staff training , the children will be finished school at 12pm (11:45am for infants and their siblings) on Wednesday 8th October.

Please note that the enrolments for the school year 2026/2027 will be accepted from October 1st.

If anyone is looking to enroll their child for September 2026 can you please contact the school for an Enrolment Form or download a form from the school website https://dangannationalschool.ie/enrollment/

Our Open Day for our New Pupils will take place in June. I would appreciate it if you could share this information with family and members of the community who may be looking to enrol their child. Thank you for your support.

While we currently have no available spaces in our Autism Class at Dangan, this information may be useful to parents who are seeking a special class placement for September 2026. Children will be placed on a waiting list for our Autism Class once correct steps have been followed.

A helpful document from the Irish National Teacher's Organisation. (Click on the title above to be redirected to the document)

Best of Luck to our boys and girls' football team, who face Longwood NS this Wednesday at Summerhill GAA in the first round of the Cumann na mBunscol Football Competition.

Our School Marathon, held two years ago, was a hugely enjoyable fundraiser that helped us install playground markings and purchase new playground equipment. This year, we’re aiming even higher!

We would love to create a walking path around our school pitch, giving children the opportunity to enjoy “walk and talks” throughout the winter months. This would ensure everyone gets some fresh air, even when the pitch is too wet to use.

With your support, and some sponsorship from local businesses, we are hopeful that our marathon relay event will bring us a step closer to having a new walking path in place before 2026.

Sponsorship cards will be sent home with the children in the coming weeks, and we’ll share more details about the fundraiser closer to the event. We’d love to see as many families as possible get involved and help make this exciting project a reality!

This fundraising initiative is helping us cover the cost of the two sensory pods we installed last year. These pods have been a fantastic addition to our school, providing children with a safe space to regulate and take a moment away from the busyness of school.

To register for the school lotto, Please click on the link below or scan the QR code on the poster below to take you to our lotto page. The maximum contribution is 5euro per week and the minimum is 2.50e per week.

https://www.ourfundraiser.ie/org/dangannationalschool

We really appreciate your support!

If you have any issues logging in or registering with the Aladdin app, please contact the office - office@dangannationalschool.ie

Contact Details

Please check that all your child's information is correct on Aladdin, if your phone number or address has changed, please update it as soon as possible.

Fees

Many thanks to those of you who have paid the school requisites. I would be grateful if any outstanding fees were paid as soon as possible. These payments are made via Aladdin, on your child's page.

If your child has an allergy or medical condition that you feel the school should be made aware of, please get in contact with your child's class teacher, if you have not done so already.

As you are all aware, school attendance is very important for all children. Good attendance at school supports children to achieve their full potential.

In circumstances where a child is taken out from class during the school day the parent/guardian responsible will sign the sign-out book in the school office. This will note the date and time the child leaves the school. This document will also record the date and time of the child’s return to class should the absence be for a brief period to attend an appointment.

Children who are absent for more than 20 days at school must be reported to the Educational Welfare Board of An Tusla and this is done periodically. The school is obliged by law to submit a School Absence Report and parents will be notified in writing when this happens.

However, if the school has serious concerns about a child’s attendance at school, the school is obligated to make a referral to the Educational Welfare Board of An Tusla requesting school and family support. If serious concerns are raised in relation to the reasons as to why a child is absent from school, the Designated Liaison Person is obliged to make a referral to the Social Worker Department of An Tusla.

Child Protection

All staff members are mandated persons and have an obligation under the Children’s First Act 2015 to make referrals to An Tusla when necessary. The designated liaison person is Aoife Ryan, and the Deputy Designated Person is Sharon Wall.

Kindly find our contact information provided below. For the latest updates on your child and their class activities, we invite you to stay connected through our school website.

Email: office@dangannationalschool.ie
Website: www.dangannationalschool.ie
Location: Clonmahon, County Meath, A83 HN83, Ireland
Phone: 046 955 7332
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/School/Dangan-National-School-110400390786882/