St. Oliver Plunkett N.S.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

It was a busy and exciting month in St. Oliver Plunkett N.S., filled with learning, creativity, and plenty of Halloween fun! From Maths Week and the Skip Around the World Challenge to our wonderful Witches’ Walk, pupils across all classes have shown great enthusiasm and school spirit.

I would like to thank our staff, pupils, and parents for their continued support and involvement in school life. Your partnership and positivity make such a difference to our whole school community.

As we move into November, we look forward to another productive and enjoyable term ahead.

Le gach dea-ghuí,

Ian Corbett

• School Closed: Thursday, 13th November (staff training on new Child Protection Guidelines)
• Parent-Teacher Meetings: Tuesday, 17th & Thursday 19th November
• Christmas Panto: Monday, 8th December

We encourage all families to stay connected and up to date with the latest school news and activities by following our school’s X account.

It’s a great way to stay informed about upcoming events, achievements, and everything happening in our school community. Don’t miss out – follow us here!

Admissions for September 2026 are now closed, however we will continue to accept late applications.

All relevant information and application forms remain available on our school website under the “Enrolment” section.

We look forward to welcoming our new pupils and families to the St. Oliver Plunkett N.S. community next year!

Information regarding our upcoming Parent–Teacher Meetings was shared with families through Aladdin this week. Meetings are scheduled to take place on Tuesday, 18th November and Thursday, 20th November.

Booking opened in stages to allow parents with multiple children to schedule their meetings close together. Parents can log in through the Aladdin App or website to select their preferred times.

If any parent is unable to attend on the allocated dates, teachers are happy to arrange an alternative time.

We look forward to meeting with all parents and guardians to discuss pupils’ progress and achievements so far this year.

The Department of Education and Youth is inviting all parents and guardians of primary school children to take part in the new “Have Your Say” Primary School Survey.

This short, confidential survey takes just five minutes to complete and gives parents an opportunity to share their views on areas such as school type, patronage/ethos, and language of instruction.

Your responses will help the Department plan for the future of primary education in Ireland.

You can complete the survey by visiting 👉 www.gov.ie/primaryschoolsurvey

The survey will remain open until 16 December 2025.

We encourage all families to take a few minutes to have their say!

We celebrated Maths Week 2025 with a range of fun and engaging activities across the school. Pupils took part in maths trails, puzzles, quizzes, and problem-solving challenges, all designed to show that maths is everywhere and can be great fun!

Throughout the week, classes explored 2-D shapes, created shapes using their bodies, and completed a maths trail around the school grounds. We also took part in activities such as Maths Eyes, the Smarties Challenge, Maths Journals, and a lively online maths quiz for 5th and 6th Class.

It was wonderful to see such enthusiasm and teamwork, with students using their mathematical thinking in creative and practical ways.

A huge well done to all our pupils (and staff!) for making Maths Week 2025 such a success!

In October, our pupils took part in the Active School Flag “Skip Around the World” Challenge!

Each class worked together to see how far they could travel around the globe — one skip at a time. The challenge promoted fitness, fun, and teamwork while helping children develop balance, coordination, and endurance.

There was fantastic enthusiasm and energy from all classes — well done to everyone who got involved!

You can find out more about the challenge on the Active School Flag website.

Our annual Witches’ Walk was a huge success once again! Pupils and staff arrived in a fantastic array of costumes, filling the school with colour, laughter, and Halloween spirit.

Classes enjoyed a day full of fun activities, including art projects, themed games, and some spooky music and stories. The Witches’ Walk was the highlight of the day - thank you to everyone who supported it and helped make it such an enjoyable event.

A special word of thanks to our Parents’ Association for organising another successful fundraiser. Your ongoing support and hard work are greatly appreciated by the whole school community.

Well done to all our pupils for their creativity and enthusiasm — you made Halloween in St. Oliver Plunkett N.S. one to remember! 👻

We were delighted to welcome back the Mobile Library to Killina N.S. in October! Pupils were very excited to browse the wide selection of books and choose some new reads to take home.

A big thank you to Kildare Libraries for continuing to provide this wonderful service; it’s a fantastic way to promote reading and a love of books among our pupils.

Our Parents’ Association AGM took place in October. It was wonderful to see such a great turnout and to welcome both new and returning members

We extend our sincere thanks to the Parents’ Association for their continued support and dedication to our school. Their efforts play an important role in enhancing school life and creating new opportunities for our pupils.

We look forward to another productive and enjoyable year ahead, working together for the benefit of our school community.

Upcoming meeting: The Parents’ Association will meet on Tuesday, 11 November at 7.00pm to plan our biggest fundraiser of the year - the Christmas Raffle.

All parents/guardians are warmly invited. If you can’t attend but would like to help, please let the PA or the school office know.

Junior and Senior Infants, along with the rest of the school, enjoyed a wonderful visit from our local Gardaí this month. The Gardaí visited each classroom, spoke with the children about their work, and shared important advice about staying safe during Halloween.

In Art, the children created colourful monster drawings using pastels, showing fantastic imagination and creativity.

Before the mid-term break, the infants also had great fun playing a variety of Halloween games, filling the classroom with laughter and excitement.

It was a fantastic month of learning, creativity, and fun for our youngest pupils!

Second Class had great fun exploring 2-D shapes during Maths Week. Pupils made shapes using their bodies and took on problem-solving challenges involving 2-D shapes.

They also enjoyed a visit from the Mobile Library, where they had the chance to browse and borrow some exciting new books to take home.

It was wonderful to see such teamwork, creativity, and enthusiasm in action!

It’s been a busy and creative month in 3rd and 4th Class! Pupils completed fantastic River Wildlife projects, showcasing their research and creativity. They also enjoyed getting into the Halloween spirit with spooky art and fun seasonal activities.

The class made the most of recent events in school, taking part in skipping sessions and enjoying a visit from the Mobile Library.

Well done to all in 3rd and 4th Class for their great work and enthusiasm throughout October!

This month, 5th and 6th Class completed their explanation writing pieces on how the President of Ireland is elected, showing excellent understanding of the democratic process and clear, well-structured writing.

In Art, pupils created their own versions of Vincent van Gogh’s The Scream — adding a fun twist by placing their own faces (or a friend’s!) into the picture after designing the background.

Before the mid-term break, the class rounded off a busy month by playing a variety of Halloween games, bringing plenty of laughter and excitement to the final day.

Well done to all in 5th and 6th Class for their creativity and hard work throughout October!