NewslinkOCTOBER 2016

MOATE COMMUNITY SCHOOL

Health Promoting Schools coordinatorsMs Patrice Smyth and Ms MichelleDelaney are now in the process ofapplying for formal recognition for ourwork in health promotion since 2013.Work in the area of health promotion since2013 has included:• Couch to 5k initiative. This walk involved

on average 200 students and a largenumber of staff completing a 3K walkduring lunchtime two days per week.

• Weekly cycles on our local greenway.• Mental health and bullying talks for all

year groups.• Health seminars on physical and

mental health.• Promotion of a healthy lifestyle all

around our school and inside ourclassrooms.

• SPHE team continuously deliveringworkshops to students on areas such asphone safety, healthy eating, physical

health, smoking and alcohol.• Relationships and sexuality talks for all

First Year students.The co-ordinators and members of thecommittee are working hard to documentall the work that is ongoing in MoateCommunity School. Our dedicatedcommittee includes students, staff andparents. If you are interested in joining thisexciting team please don’t hesitate incontacting Ms Delaney or Ms Smyth.

MCS… An active Health Promoting School

A record number of First Yearstudents have entered the doorsof MCS this year. They havesettled in very well and ourschool would like to welcomethem all. The transition from primary tosecondary school is a huge oneand can be a difficult one. Inorder to aid this transition FirstYear students and their Tutorsand Yearhead went on a“bonding day” to Tayto Park inAshbourne, Co. Meath onFriday, September 16th. All students had access to all the

rides open on the day and veryquickly the adventurous soulswere separated from those notso adventurous ones!! Studentsenjoyed rollercoaster rides and astroll around the park in theautumn sun. Students got achance to mix with all classgroups and new friendshipswere formed and old onescemented.A most enjoyable day was hadby all and teachers involvedcommented on the excellentcooperation given by studentson the day.

First Year students enjoyTayto Park

First Year students taking time out at Tayto Park.

NEWTEACHERS IN

MOATECOMMUNITY

SCHOOLClodagh Kelly

I.T.

Diarmuid Lenehan Maths and Applied Maths

Elizabeth Conway I.T.

Eoin Manning Religion & English

Michael CostelloCareer Guidance

TY STUDENTS TACKLETHE COURSE AT

BAY SPORTSOn Friday, the 16th of September, TY studentsheaded on an outing to Bay Sports, Athlone.On arrival, students were fitted with wetsuitsand life jackets, and then split into threegroups. The days events involved kayaking,stand up paddling and team building exercises. Following this students participated in DragonBoating and later came the highlight of the day- Ireland’s largest inflatable water park!!Students climbed the different obstacles toreach one of the many slides and then plungedinto the cold lake water. It was an exhilaratingexperience.

SENIORS DEBATETOPICS OF CONCERNStudents from our Senior Debating Team weredelighted to participate in the ConcernDebating Workshop held in the SheratonHotel, Athlone on Wednesday, October 5th.The long running debate competition heldannually by Concern is now so popular thatnot all schools are afforded the opportunity totake part.6th Year students Nia Murray, Owen Cuskellyand Chloe McMahon and Transition YearDeborah Fakeye joined students from theWestmeath and Roscommon region for theday in preparation for the upcoming heats ofthe competition. The students had anopportunity to speak out on topics as diverse asselfies to the French burkini ban.In a society where adults often complain thatteenagers don’t care enough about issues notconcerning them, it is heartening to seeadolescents so passionate about current affairsand making a difference. MCS take on Mercy Convent, Kilbeggan onThursday, October 27th.

Ben O'Brien and his crew.

TY students on the water at Hodson Bay.

BT YO U N G S C I E N T I ST SCongratulations to the following studentswhose projects have been selected for the BTYoung Scientists exhibition in January 2017:Ronan Murphy and Gerard O’Reilly with theirproject “Can plants lead the way to unleadedsoil?”, Lorna Boland with her project “Can beesbe the answer?”, Nicole Murray and Jenny Foxwith “Growing plants for nutrition in space”,Jessica Okpeaye “The wonders of red palm oil”.

Five other projects were submitted butunfortunately did not succeed in gettingthrough to the Exhibition. Seán O’Flaherty,

Tina Geoghegan & Nicholas Hamm –Investigating the effectiveness of over the countermedicines with other medicines and food. EuanMcDonnell – A replacement for the electricfencing in farming pastures. Rian Rasmussen –An investigation into the Efficiency andEnvironmental Impact on various Irish energysources. Cian Fanning & Joe Ennis - Aninvestigation of Supertasks and the problemsassociated with them. Fiona Broderick – Water.Well done to all students and teachers involvedand best of luck in the preparations for theexhibition!

On Tuesday the 14thof September both 5thand 6th Year artstudents visitedNewgrange in Co.Meath. With beautifulweather the studentswere able to exploreboth the interpretivecentre and themonument itself.Over 5,000 years agothe people of the Boynevalley built thismonument. Its size andsophistication had neverbeen seen up to thispoint in Europe.Newgrange together with the two other greatpassage tombs of Bru na Boinne and Knowthand Dowth, is one of the greatest achievementsin Irish history.

The students got to see a simulation of the lightfrom the winter solstice on December 21stwhere for 17 minutes the sunlight enters theroof box over the entrance and lights up thechamber.

TY students who proposed projects for BT Young Scientists.Back: Jessica Okpaeye, Gerard Carroll, Cian Fanning, Sean O'Flaherty,

Rian Rasmussen, Nicholas Hamm. Front: Lorna Boland, Jenny Fox, Nicole Murray, Fiona Broderick, Tina Geoghegan, Euan McDonnell. Absent from photo: Ronan Murphy and Joe Ennis.

S E N I O R A RT ST U D E N T S T RAV E L TO N EWG RA N G E

All language students united thisyear at MCS to provide what wastruly a wonderful celebration ofcultures. Spanish, French, andIrish students worked hard toprovide a rich tapestry of culturein the form of posters, banners,flags and music. Language, art,history, geography and festivals,were just a few of the manycultural aspects promoted in thiscelebration. Students preparedtraditional cuisine for all to sampleand enjoy. The Irish department entertained us all with some lively traditional Irish music. The day was awonderful success and a clear indication that cultural awareness is thriving at MCS.

EUROPEAN LANGUAGES DAY 2016

Geography Field Trip The 2017 Leaving Certificate class participated in a field trip thattook them to the river valley site at Ballykeeran. The focus of the tripcentred on the impact of transportation and deposition on theformation of a fluvial feature. Key investigative techniques wereemployed to investigate the impact of these processes on theformation of a meander on the Breensford River. Fifty seven pupilsactively engaged in data sampling, recording and analysis on the day. These activities are a critical part of our geography curriculum andfurther develop an appreciation and awareness of the geological andnatural features within our locality. The emphasis on team work andcooperative learning was equally important. Especially whenconsidering incidence of loss of balance! Although the weather wasinitially a challenge, it improved in the afternoon and proved to be avery productive day.The venue continues to be a perfect site for key exploration and ourcontinued thanks to John for the use of the facilities at Athlone LoughRee East Camping & Caravan Park.

Right: Jordan Nugent and Sinead Fagan on the Geography Field Trip.

Recently Sorcha Grisewood (Concern Ireland Schools and Youth Fundraising Officer) visited MCS andprovided an Information Workshop on the work that the Concern organisation carry out. Sorchadiscussed the work they do and where the organisation carry out their work, she mentioned that therecent tragedy in Haiti meant that Concern was one of the first organisations on the ground in termsof providing aid. The students were introduced then to the concept of hunger with the shocking statisticthat 1 in 7 people in our world are considered hungry. Concern educate communities in up-to-datefarming techniques, they provide communities with crops, seeds and tools, and reduce vulnerability todroughts and enable communities to have better access to water. Sorcha reminded the pupils’ thatConcern are still as active in Syria as they were this time last year, they support Syrian refugees byproviding clean water and hygiene kits. Sorcha finished by encouraging the students and teachers ofMCS to take part in the National Concern Fast on Nov. 24th this year and to explore www.concern.net

Mr. Lowry, Ms. Prendergast, Sorcha Grisewood and Ms. Neilan pictured with students after Concern talk.

Caroline Al-Salihi, Pamela Kowalska and Nikola Kowalska.

Eoin Heavin, Roisin Muldoon and Mr Lowry.

Joe Daly Lowry and Lauren Allen.

CONCERN REPRESENTATIVE VISITS MCS STUDENTS

MCS GRADUATION 2016

SWIM SUCCESSBryan Scully, a16 year oldstudent inMoate CScompeted in theDivision 1 All-Irelandswimmingcompetition inJuly 2016. Bryanwas victorious intwo races bringinghome the gold medals in the 4 x 100m freestyleand the 4 x 50m freestyle. Bryan was theyoungest member in the team and made the50m final alongside Shane Ryan, an Olympicqualifier.Following this, in October 2016 at theCastlebar Gala, Bryan also won gold in the100m breaststroke in the men’s final. Bryan wasawarded gym membership for the year2016/2017 and is currently the captain of theAthlone Swim Club. Congratulations to Bryanon all of his achievements.

Deborah, Emer, Lorna and Rachel help out!

MCS VS. ROCHFORTBRIDGEMCS seniors recently went on the road for the firsttime this year. The rain had eased off but the surfacewas greasy for the players so a tough physical gamewas expected. Moate started the stronger, led by SeanFarrell, who had scored 3 points beforeRochfortbridge registered a score of their own. Thehome side got the difference back to one point beforeSean Pettit struck for a goal to give Moate a solidadvantage. Rochfortbridge pointed again beforeMoate hit a purple patch, Pettit getting 1-1 and SeanClinton also chipping in with a point.Rochfortbridge popped over a point and Ben Coxdid the same as Moate went in at the half sevenpoints up, 2-6 to 0-5 the score. The game finished 2-10 to 1-7 as Moate ran outwinners despite an unconvincing finish to the game.However the win makes it two victories in twomatches in the league for the defending champions.Team: Jordan Nugent, Cathal Byrne, Luke Gavin-Mangan, Charlie Parker, Kieran Hartnett, PaulGorman, Ciaran Kelly, Daniel Heavin (0-1), SeanClinton (0-1), Lorcan Daly, David Fleming, JackBradbury-Hughes, Sean Farrell (0-3),

Sean Pettit (2-3), Ben Cox (0-2). Subs: DavidMullins for Hartnett, Liam O’Neill for Gorman,Cameron Monaghan for Bradbury-Hughes.

MCS VS. ST. MEL’S, LONGFORDOn Wednesday the 5th of October, Moate set out tocontest their first league game of the year. As theywon the league last year expectations were high andMoate were looking to impress in front of a homecrowd. After an exciting closely contested game offootball, Moate ran out winners on a scoreline of 4-13 to 3-11. A solid victory, but tougher tests lie aheadfor the team. The next league game is away toRochfortbridge.Team: Jordan Nugent, Liam O’Neill, Luke Gavin-Mangan, Charlie Parker, Kieran Hartnett, PaulGorman, Ciaran Kelly, Daniel Heavin, Sean Clinton,Ben Cox, David Fleming (1-1, 1f ), Harry Cornally(0-1), Sean Farrell (0-1), Robert Forde (2-4, 2f), SeanPettit (1-5, 1f). Subs: David Mullins for Kelly, CathalByrne (0-1) for O’Neill, Padraig Nestor for Cox, JackBradbury-Hughes for Cornally, Lorcan Daly forForde (black card).

SENIOR BOYS FOOTBALL GOLF

David Fleming (6), Jack Bradbury Hughes (5),and Peter O'Kelly Lynch narrowly missed outon qualification to the Leinster strokeplayfinals recently. Qualification for this eventtook place in Naas at Craddockstown GolfClub and despite some brilliant scoring fromour boys they missed out by a couple of shots.The next event for our Senior golfers is theinter schools match play, where they will bejoined by Sean Clinton (7) to make up a fourman team to compete against Mullingar CBS,Killina and Clara.

Moate CS Golfers: Jack Bradbury Hughes, David Fleming and Jack O'Kelly Lynch.

LIDL SENIOR A POST PRIMARYSCHOOL CHAMPIONSHIPOur Senior Ladies Football team kicked offtheir championship season competing in theSenior A grade this year following on fromtheir Senior B Leinster victory last year. Theirdebut game was against Coláiste Iosagáin ofDublin. Kitted out in the new Lidl jerseys, ourladies faced the Irish speaking school fromDublin. Moate CS had home advantage. The gameproved to be a very exciting and close

encounter but unfortunately despite great playand 100 percent effort it was not to be Moate’sday.Final Score: 5:6 MCS to 1:19 Coláiste Iosagáin.

Team: Therese Robbins, Emma Kelly, AnnMarie Moran, Nicola McCormack, NiamhPalmer, Therese Geoghegan, Ciara Heavin,Amy Gavin-Mangan, Roisin Ennis, MaryHarkin, Leanne Slevin, Tara Hughes, MariaO’Donohoe, Chloe Butler & Emma Collins.

Senior Girls just fall short of toppling All-Ireland A Champions

The MCS Under 16 girls team kicked off the yearwinning their first match against St. Mary’s, NewRoss, Co. Wexford. The game took place onWednesday the 12th of October in Stradbally. Moate started strongly scoring 1-2 in the openingminutes of the game. The Moate girls continued towork very hard and the half time score read Moate 3-10 New Ross 1-6. This tally included great scoresfrom Hazel Hughes, Leah Quigley, Aoife Dalton,Ailbhe Sheridan and Sinéad Robbins.Moate continued their excellent support play in thesecond half and created numerous opportunities forthe forward line to generate scores. Wing forwardMaria O’Donoghue scored two excellent points fromplay, followed by a point each from midfielders Áine

Gaynor and Roisin Ennis. Aoife Dalton,scored again, shooting for the top leftcorner followed by a goal by MariaO’Donoghue. Moate got a penaltyapproaching full time, and yet againAoife Dalton added a goal to thescoreboard.Two more points came from LeahQuigley and Ailbhe Sheridan before thefinal whistle. New Ross did not add totheir score of 1-6 in the second halfleaving the full time score at 6-16 to 1-6.Panel: Fiona Fox, Clodagh McCormack, Anne MarieMoran, Emily McCabe, Therese Robbins, ThereseGeoghegan, Emma Kelly, Roisin Ennis, Áine Gaynor,

Marie O’Donoghue, Leah Quigley, Sinead Robbins,Hazel Hughes, Aoife Dalton, Ailbhe Sheridan, LaurenClaffey, Orla Robbins, Rachel Butler, Ruth Martin,Hannah Lynam, Maria Farrell.

Kicking off the year with a great win!!

Brosna Press Creative Design & Print 090 6454327