CATHOLIC ETHOS
First Holy Communion 20th May 2023
CHILDREN THINKING OF CHILDREN
We were delighted to help out children in direct provision and homelessness by gathering up some of our Hallowe'en treats and sharing them with them. Thanks to Elizabeth Mackay who organised the tasty drop!
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION 25TH SEPTEMBER 2021
The children from 2nd and 3rd class finally got to make their First Holy Communion on Saturday, 25th September 2021. The ceremony was really beautiful and we were so proud of the children - huge congratulations to them all! We were joined on the day by some children from Whitechurch school also and we hope they enjoyed the occasion as much as us. Huge thanks to Ms Tighe and Ms Browne for preparing the children. Also huge thanks to Ms Wallnutt for organising a little siblings' choir. Their lovely singing really added to the ceremony. Fr. Lyng and Fr. Hughes were on hand to confer the sacrament and also Margaret our Sacristan, Bernadette and Sr. Anna who are great friends to our school. Linda typed up a gorgeous booklet at a very busy time at the start of the school year - she is the best! We were delighted to present the children with a lovely certificate when they returned to school the following week.
The children made beautiful Rosary beads during the month of May. Sr. Anna judged them and because they were all so lovely - everyone was a winner of a delicious apple!
First Holy Communion 2021
Archbishop Dermot Farrelly has told us that it will be Autumn before the children will receive their First Holy Communion this year. Meanwhile, the children are busy learning their prayers and mass responses, attending mass online and Sr. Anna has given them some wonderful workshops via Zoom - thank you Sr. Anna! Well done boys and girls - your big day will come soon enough.
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS' WEEK 2021
This is normally a hugely important week in the life of our school. We are sad that we are not together to celebrate it properly. However, we enjoyed our Zoom Assemblies and we were especially delighted to receive a blessing from Fr. Lyng. Well done to all the boys and girls who read prayers - thank you for representing your classes so well. Lots of work was done at home - writing poems for Grandparents, writing prayers, making St. Brigid's crosses etc. Check out some of the results below.
What a clever idea to use straws for your cross - it's beautiful!
Check out these wonderful crosses and pictures made by Junior/Senior Infants - well done boys and girls!
Just look at this wonderful weaving to represent St. Brigid's cloak and St. Brigid's crosses completed by first and second class - aren't they just wonderful!
GRADUATION 23RD JUNE 2020
On Tuesday, 23rd June, we live-streamed the Graduation service for 6th class from the church of Our Lady of Good Counsel. Fr. Lyng, Mrs Cleary our principal, Mr. Dunne the class teacher, Ms Wallnutt our Deputy Principal and Catherine and Mick Behan attended in the church. The previous day, the parents of the children had collected a little Graduation Gift bag for each child. In it there was a personalised Graduation candle with the school crest, a pen with the school motto, a certificate, a letter from their teacher, a book mark from Mrs Cleary and also a special Graduation Prayer. There was also a bag of lovely goodies (organised by Joan Colgan and Maebh Langford Smith) and a little scroll with messages from each child organised by the Parents' Association. Tied to each gift bag was a lovely helium balloon. On Tuesday evening, the children were invited to light their candle and we all said the Graduate Prayer together. Parents presented the certificates and pens. Two children read poems which were played through the microphone. It was a very emotional ceremony and we wish 6th class every blessing in the adventure that awaits them. They were a very special class and as the banner outside the school says "We will miss you". It was lovely to chat with them later on a special Zoom call. We know they will come back to visit us.
CONFIRMATION 29TH FEBRUARY 2020
On 29th February, the children in 5th and 6th class were Confirmed by Archbishiop Diarmuid Martin in the church of Our Lady of Good Counsel. It was a beautiful ceremony. Little did we know then that the school and church would close less than two weeks later due to Covid 19. Our children were so blessed to have received this wonderful sacrament and the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. We hope they always remember to use these gifts throughout their lives. The choir sang beautifully on the day - sincere thanks to the choirmistress Ms Wallnutt as always. See lots of lovely pictures under our event page here.
CEREMONY OF LIGHT 11TH FEBRUARY 2020
We celebrated a short but moving Ceremony of Light during February. The Confirmation candidates received their Baptismal candle from their parents signifying that they are now ready to take responsibility for their own faith journey. The school choir added wonderfully to the occasion as always.
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS' WEEK 2020
Edmondstown will celebrate Catholic Schools' Week from 27th January 2020. The children will celebrate what it means to be a Catholic school. The theme for this year's celebration is: Living in Harmony with God's Creation. The Laudate Festival takes place on Wednesday 29th and we will celebrate Grandparents' Day on 31st. We are very excited to welcome our grandparents once again to school - we love to hear their stories.
LAUDATE FESTIVAL
The children from 3rd - 6th have been busy learning a wonderful repertoire of hymns for the forthcoming Laudate Festival. We hope as many of you as possible will come to the festival which takes place during Catholic Schools' Week on 29th January 2020 at 7pm in Ballyroan church.
ANNUAL NATIVITY PLAY CHRISTMAS 2019
CONFIRMATION 2020
TheThe children in 5th and 6th class are busy preparing for their Confirmation which takes place on 29th February 2020. The triangle of influence on the child - the home, school and parish will play a vital role in their faith journey. We ask everyone to keep them in their prayers. The recent enrollment mass was very special. Many thanks to Fr. Lyng who celebrated the mass.
ADVENT 2019
Some children from 5th and 6th class told us all about Advent during one of our assemblies.
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION 2019
On 18th May 2019, the children from 1st and 2nd class made their First Holy Communion. Fr. Lyng celebrated the mass and it really was a very special occasion. Our school choir really added to the joy of the day. Check out more photos here.
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS' WEEK 2019
What a wonderful week of celebrations we had during Catholic Schools' Week. It began with the Laudate concert in St. Pius X's church. Our choir sang beautifully along with lots of other schools. During the week the children learned about various different Saints associated with this time of the year - St. Brigid, St. Blaise, St. John Bosco. Sr. Anna gave a wonderful workshop on St. Brigid and the senior classes made lovely crosses to distribute to the elderly in our community. On Thursday we held a really special event - Grandparents' Day. This was such a wonderful occasion and you could really feel the "love" in the air. Thank you to our terrific Student Council who ran the event. Check out lots of photos of the day under our events tab here.
ADVENT ASSEMBLIES
Mrs Cleary loves to gather the children together for our Advent Assemblies. There is always a beautiful atmosphere as the candles are lit and the readings are read. Mrs Wallnutt leads us all in our assembly hymns.
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
On Monday 21st May, Sr. Anna came to visit 5th and 6th class. She delivered a really interesting talk on Papua New Guinea. Sr. Anna spent six years there and she had some very inspiring stories about the people. She brought wonderful examples of the crafts that the people make there - basket weaving, candle sticks, carved wooden praying hands and rugs sewn from scraps of materials. No two pieces are exactly the same - just like no two human beings are the same. We are all unique and loved by God. Sr. Anna reminded us of the importance of "God's time".
CONFIRMATION CEREMONY
On Saturday 14th April 2018, His most Reverend Excellency Bishop Eamonn Walsh conferred the sacrament of Confirmation on our 5th and 6th class children. The sun shone and lifted everyone's hearts. Bishop Eamonn concelebrated the mass with Fr. Dick Lyng and Fr. John Hughes. We were very proud of the children who listened intently to Bishop Eamonn's words of wisdom. The atmosphere was greatly enhanced by the singing of our wonderful 3rd and 4th class choir conducted by Ms Wallnutt - The Holy Spirit was definitely "moving in this place". The carefully chosen sponsors kept a reassuring hand on each candidate's shoulder whilst they waited on Bishop Eamonn to administer the Confirmation Chrism. Our fantastic Parents' Association provided delicious refreshments back at the school after the ceremony. The Behan family took some wonderful photos on the day and we are very grateful to them. Check some of them out below. See lots more under our "Events" tab by clicking here.
CEREMONY OF LIGHT
On Tuesday 13th March, the children from 5th and 6th class took part in a beautiful Ceremony of Light. This special ceremony marks the passing of the Baptismal candle from parent to child symbolising that they are soon to become adult members of the church, with responsibility for their own Faith Journey. The children read some readings and spoke about people in our community who are "Shining Lights" and wonderful role models. People such as Sr. Anna, Bernadette Toal, Members of their families and the people who work hard up in the DSPCA. The choir sang beautifully and really added to the occasion.
LENT
On Ash Wednesday, Lent began and the children received blessed ashes. Many thanks to Bernadette and Mrs Cleary for distributing the ashes. The children from the choir sang some beautiful songs from the Laudate repertoire. It was a very special ceremony and we lit our Catholic Schools' candle once again.
CONFIRMATION ENROLMENT & COMMITMENT CEREMONY
On Sunday 4th February 2018, the children from 5th and 6th class enrolled for Confirmation and made their commitment to prepare well for this special sacrament. The children brought forward gifts representing the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit which they will receive on their Confirmation day and Ellie and Laura reminded them that these are different than other gifts - these gifts will never go out of fashion or get broken. These gifts will help the children to be the best person they can be. Mrs O'Carroll made a commitment, on behalf of the parents, to prepare the children and help them as much as possible by bringing them to mass and by family prayers. Mrs Cleary made a commitment on behalf of Edmondstown National School to prepare the children using the "Grow in Love" programme and by witnessing to our faith. Fr. Lyng and Mrs Bernadette Toal represented the Parish and their role in the faith journey of the children. Mr. O'Dwyer called all the children by name, just like at Baptism. Mrs Wallnutt and the school choir made the ceremony very special. Overall, it was a lovely ceremony and the Parish of our Lady of Good Counsel made us all feel very welcome .
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS' WEEK AND
GRANDPARENTS' DAY
During the week 29th January to 2nd February, our school celebrated Catholic Schools' Week. The children enjoyed learning all about various Saints associated with this time of year and engaging with the theme: Catholic Schools - Called to be a Family of Families. The children also learned all about St. Brigid and Sr. Anna taught them how to make St. Brigid's crosses using rushes collected by the Lambert family. Younger classes used green card to make their crosses. The highlight of the week was Grandparents' Day on Friday. The excitement in the school was wonderful. Every grandparent was remembered on our Tree of Hope. Children who did not have a grandparent visiting on the day had a buddy and were allowed to "adopt" a grandparent. Check out the lovely photos of the event under our Special Events tab.
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MEDITATION & MINDFULNESS IN 3RD & 4TH CLASS
Ms Bernadette Toal, our Parish Pastoral Worker visits the children every week and teaches them how to meditate and introduces them to the art of mindfulness. These are wonderful skills for the children to practice.
SCHOOL MASS SEPTEMBER 2017
Our annual school mass to mark the beginning of the school year, took place on 22nd September 2017. It was a very special occasion and we are very grateful to our Chaplain, Fr. Lyng for celebrating the mass. Our new Junior Infants were very well behaved and we were very proud of them. Representatives from the different classes brought up symbols of our lives in Edmondstown and read the prayers. Our choir were terrific, as always. Every child and teacher wrote their hopes and dreams for the year on a leaf which we have displayed on a tree in the hall.
Sr. Anna visits the children regularly and does beautiful workshops.
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FIRST HOLY COMMUNION MAY 2017
Our First and second classes have been preparing all year for the First Holy Communion Day. The ceremony will be held on Saturday, May 13th. After the ceremony, the children and their families will be treated to a little reception back at the school. We are very grateful to our Parents ' Association and to the volunteers from third and fourth class who will look after the arrangements for this lovely, friendly get together. It is a great chance for the children to meet each other and get some photos. We are very grateful to Mick and Catherine Behan who take photos of the children in the church and give them to each family free of charge - what a lovely gesture! Check out the lovely photos below.
The art work they children have created is beautiful:
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First and Second class had a beautiful ceremony of First Penance recently. It was a very memorable step along their faith journey.
Communion 2017
Our First and Second classes are getting ready for a wonderful day which will happen next May 13th – their First Holy Communion. They recently had their enrolment mass to mark the beginning of their participation in the “Do This in Memory” programme. This is the next stage of their Faith journey and we know that our school will receive special blessings with all the candles that they will be lighting and all the prayers that they will be saying.
Confirmation 2016
On 12th March 2016, his grace, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, confirmed the boys and girls of sixth class. It was a beautiful ceremony which really brought home to us how special this sacrament is. The sun was shining in agreement on this glorious day. The Archbishop spoke about the difficult role that parents have in giving children strong roots of values to live by, but also giving them wings to soar and fly and taste life. The choir provided beautiful music as did several of the confirmation candidates. The Archbishop then joined us back up at the school were the Parents’ Association had delicious refreshments awaiting everyone. It really was a great occasion of celebration. We hope the boys and girls of sixth class will always use the gifts they received today of Knowledge, Wisdom, Understanding, Right Judgement, Courage, reverence and Wonder and Awe in God’s Presence.
CEREMONY OF LIGHT 2016
On Thursday 25th February, sixth class had their Ceremony of Light, in preparation for their Confirmation. It was a lovely evening and the music from Ms Wallnutt’s choir made up of third and fourth class, really added to the atmosphere. Fr. Lyng gave a special blessing to all present. The children chose various `leading lights’ in the community such as Sr. Anna and Bernadette as their inspirations.
First Holy Communion 2015
On Saturday 23rd May 2015 the sun shone for a wonderful occasion when the children of first and second class made their First Holy Communion. All the children looked beautiful and there was a lovely atmosphere in the church. Fr. Lyng and Fr. Flor celebrated the mass. The choir from 3rd – 6th were absolutely terrific under the watchful baton of Ms Wallnutt. It really was a great occasion. Everyone headed back to school where terrific volunteers from our parents’ association had put on a lovely spread of tea and cakes. What a great day we all had.
