Mercy Ballymahon News
Enrolment
A reminder that the deadline for enrolment for incoming first years is Monday 30th November at 5pm. We hope that you have seen the virtual tour of our school which can be found on the school’s Facebook page. For further information on enrolment, please see our website www.mercyballymahon.ie.
Leaving Certificate 2020
Best of luck to those students from the class of 2020 who have opted to sit their Leaving Certificate examinations. We admire the students’ diligence, determination and focus and wish them the utmost success.
Staying Connected
Well done to our Transition Year students who recently took part in a ‘Community Focus’ letter writing initiative in association with An Post. The students wrote personalised letters to the residents of Thomond Lodge Nursing Home, Ballymahon. Thank you to Mr. Mulvihill for facilitating this initiative which encourages our students to stay connected with and show compassion for the elderly in our school’s community.
Student Council
Four representatives from our student council, Norris Philips, Lavender Mc Cormack, Oisín Lane and Lucia Hoysted, attended a virtual event in association with Comhairle na n-Óg on Friday 13th November. The students learned about matters arising in education and how student voice can be used to highlight and act on these matters. Thank you to Mr. O’Gara and to Longford Comhairle na nÓg coordinator Avril Gilchriest for facilitating this event.
Careers
Thank you to Gráinne Dunne from NUI Galway who presented a virtual information talk to our 6th year students on Monday 9th November. CAO applications for Leaving Certificate 2021 opened on Friday 6th November. An information video on how to make your application has been uploaded on the school’s Facebook page.
Transition Year update
TY students have been busy over the past week. Firstly, students have been promoting their enterprise projects. Make sure to follow mercy.masks2020, strezzballzofficial and mercyhats_2020 on instagram to see some of the excellent initiative being shown by our students. Thank you to Brendan Doyle from Longford Sports Partnership who has been working with the students, giving them the opportunity to avail of the Level 1 Award in Sports Leadership. Well done to Ms. Brady’s horticultural studies students who have sent their air samples to GLOBE for analysis. The TY Angus team for 2021 has been formed and students have begun working on this year’s project. Students have also started working on their entries for the Formula 1 in schools competition, a global STEM competition which challenges secondary school students to design, build and race miniature compressed air-powered Formula One cars of the future.
Science Week
Well done to the Science department for organising a range of science week activities. All students participated in a quiz to challenge their knowledge on all things science related! Please see our collaged photographs of our winners.
Virtual ‘An Triail’ Production
6th year Gaeilge students were delighted to watch An Fibín’s production ‘An Triail ar líne’ on Wednesday last. As students couldn’t attend an onstage production this year, the drama was streamed virtually to their classrooms. Thank you to Ms. Fox and Ms. Daly for organising this event.
Christmas Tests 2020
Mercy Ballymahon News
Enrolment
Enrolment for incoming first years has now opened. Make sure to take the virtual tour of our school
which is available on the school’s Facebook page. For further information on enrolment, please see our
website www.mercyballymahon.ie. The deadline for enrolment is Monday 30th November at 5pm. We
look forward to welcoming the next cohort of first year students to our school community in September
2021.
Naughton Scholarship
Congratulations to Zoe Guinane from the Leaving Certificate class of 2020 who has been awarded a
3rd level Naughton Scholarship 2020. Zoe is the 6th Mercy Ballymahon student in the last 7 years to
be awarded this prestigious scholarship. We wish her every success in her studies in UCD.
VHI Mini Marathon
Well done to our Transition Year students who recently took part in the VHI Mini Marathon and to their
teacher Ms. Quinn for organising the event. Funds raised from this event and from the school’s
Halloween fancy dress day will go towards Cian’s Kennels, a charity that is very close to the heart of
our whole school community.
Angus Beef Competition
It has been a busy few weeks for last year’s TY Angus team who received their prize of 5 Angus
beef calves at the school on Tuesday 20th October. Huge congratulations to Aileen Briody, Kate
Mulvey, Ciara Gavigan and Rachel Maguire on this fantastic achievement, as well as their teacher
Ms. Murphy. Our special guest on the day was Angus beef farmer and former Longford footballer,
Dermot Brady. The calves are now settled in on the Maguire farm where they will be reared for 18
months.
Success for TY Angus Team as calves arrive at Mercy Ballymahon! Pictured from left to
right: Ciara Gavigan, Dermot Brady (Angus beef farmer and former Longford footballer), Ms.
Avril Murphy (Teacher), Mr. Gary Kenny (Deputy Principal), Ms. Josephine Donohue
(Principal), Rachel Maguire, Kate Mulvey and Aileen Briody.
Retirement wishes
Staff and students at Mercy Ballymahon would like to wish ‘Bonne Chance’ to our caring and
esteemed colleague and teacher, Ms. Carolyn Cooney, on her recent retirement. A teacher of
French and English, Ms. Cooney has dedicated thirty seven years of service to Mercy Ballymahon.
We wish her a well-earned, healthy, content and fulfilled retirement.
Students and management at Mercy Secondary School Ballymahon bidding farewell to their
teacher and dear colleague, Carolyn Cooney, who recently retired after 37 years of service.
Mocktobers 2020
REOPENING BALLYMAHON FORÓIGE CLUB
As this is the start of a new club term Ballymahon Foróige Club is currently welcoming new members. The club is available for young people aged 13+ years of age and is a safe, enjoyable place for them to hang out, meet new friends, get involved in activities and have a voice. The club will meet in The Bridgeways Family Resource Centre. Start date and weekly club time to be confirmed.
To register your young person's interest in becoming a member please complete the Ballymahon Foróige Club Expression of Interest Form
We are also looking for adult leaders to help out with the club for just one hour per week. If you would like to get involved just complete the Foróige Club Adult Leader Expression of Interest Form
If you have any questions about the club please do not hesitate to contact Cyril Reilly on either 0860144832 or cyril.reilly@foróige.ie
More information on Reopening
Please download more information on Reopening Mercy Ballymahon here:
Letter to Parents, Guardians and Students
Covid-19 Policy Statement
School Map with Zones
Additional Information on Reopening Mercy Ballymahon
Reopening of Mercy Ballymahon
Dear Parent(s), Guardian(s) and student(s) . Please click on the link to get information on the reopening of Mercy Ballymahon
DOWNLOAD LETTER HERE
Preparing for School
Please download the letter with important details about preparing for School at end of August:
DOWNLOAD LETTER HERE
Free Family Wellbeing Support Programme
Longford Womens Link are offering a free online Family Wellbeing Support programme, it starts next Tuesday.
LWL have specialist facilitators delivering the casual style sessions including an adolescent psychotherapist to assist parents with teenagers
It starts next Tuesday the 23rd of June from 11am until 12pm and will run for 6 weeks
What’s included:
Being home is hard! Parenting is so hard! We all need support, resources and tools to help navigate these times of change.
Q: Do you wish you had more support?
Q: Do you think everyone else has it easier and you want more ease?
Q: Do you end up shouting or reacting harshly to other adults or your kids, even when you plan not to?
Q: Do you want clear tools that you can use to strengthen your communication and ability to work with conflict?
Q: Do you want more joy in your relationships?
Q: Do you want to make sure that you have a strong relationship with your child to carry you through these trials?
Q: Is home-schooling in isolation adding a whole new stress that you need tools and support to navigate?
1. Techniques for letting go of feelings and developing better listening.
2. Skills for communicating during tough moments and conversations.
3. Tips and support for navigating home-schooling pressures.
4. Introduction to the tools of Hand in Hand Parenting that will give you the skills to
· Manage challenging behaviour without punishments, rewards or shouting.
· Develop skills for addressing aggression (hitting, biting, kicking) in your child.
· Learn new skills for playing with your children that can bring more joy into your own life.
· Join a network of parents, and have space for you to be with adults.
This will be in a friendly, casual learning environment online in groups. (Via Zoom)
To register contact Karen Reilly, Programme Mentor at mentor@lwl.ie or tel. 086 4183435.
Calculated Grades Student Portal
Dear Parents and 6th yr Students. Please click on these links and read the Letter to students and The Guide to using the Calculated Grades Student Portal. This is very important.
LETTER TO STUDENTS RE CALCULATED GRADES STUDENT PORTAL
CALCULATED GRADES STUDENT PORTAL - BEFORE YOU START GUIDE
Mercy Ballymahon Notes
U14 Boys Football
On the 24th of February our U14 boys football team took on Wexford CBS in Heywood Co Laois in the Leinster semi-final. We won this exciting game by a score of 5-8 to 3-10.Well done to all the U14 boys and to their coaches Mr Larkin and Shane Kenny. Best of luck to them in the Leinster final
Trip to Facebook
On Wednesday the 26th three of our TY students who are on our Digital Champions Team were invited to Facebook in Grand Canal Square in Dublin for a very informative talk on the operations of the company who also own Instagram and Whats app. They got a great insight into the different jobs they have to offer. They also were taken on a tour of the building, which was very interesting. They had a great day. Thank you to Ms Donohue for accompanying Abbey Corrigan, Katie Brogan and Cormac McDonagh who acted as great ambassadors for our School.
School Hall Athletics
On the 25th,26th and 27th of February our TY students helped the 4th 5th and 6th class students of 12 primary schools from around Longford with the School Hall Athletics event which was led by Brendan Doyle. The students participated in events such as relays, javelin, long jump and more. Great fun was had by everyone. The winners go through to the All Irelands which will be held in AIT. Thank you to Sports Partnership Longford, Brendon Doyle and our TY students.
Ladies Football
On the 27th our U14 Ladies Football team played Scoil Mhuire Longford. It was a great game with Mercy leading at half time, but Scoil Mhuire came back to win by a point at the final whistle. Thanks to the coaches Ms Mc Carron and Ms Mc Govern and the TY Future Leaders.
Boys’ Basketball
Congrats to our 1st and 2nd Year Boys’Basketball teams who both won their games against Coláiste Coilm Tullamore last week. Thanks to their coaches Ms. O Sullivan and Mr. Tansey.
1st year Parent Teacher Meeting
Thanks to all the parents who attended the parent teacher meeting last Thursday. This was the last parent teacher meeting for the current school year.
West Regional Finals Junk Kouture
Good luck to our creative Ty students Sadbh Mac Giolla Ri, Tomi Arole and Grace Nwadike who will represent Mercy Secondary School Ballymahon in the Western Regional Finals of the Junk Kouture recycled fashion competition with their garment “Wired Down”.
The Western Finals will take place in The TF Royal Theatre Castlebar on Thursday 5th of March.
The recycled fashion garment named ”Wired Down” is made from recycled computer components - stripped cables, old keyboards and wires. we wish you all the best in the competition.
Tickets for all regional shows will go on sale from each of the venue box office and websites.
YOU CAN FIND TICKET LINKS HERE ALSO
Tickets are €20.00/£20.00 (plus venue booking fee)
Mercy Ballymahon Notes
Reporter: Katie Brogan
Senior Ladies Football
Congratulations to our Senior Ladies football team who were crowned Leinster Champions last week following an outstanding performance against St. Leo’s Carlow. The final score was 6-13 to 3-10. Thank you to their coaches Ms. O Reilly, Mr. Seery and Mr. Bohan for training the team. Good luck to the girls as they move on to contest the All-Ireland semi-final in March.
Boys’ Basketball
Congrats to our 1st year and 2nd Year Boys’basketball team who won their games against Rathangan last week. Congrats to their coaches Ms. O Sullivan and Mr.Tansey.
School Bank
Congratulations to our TY School bank team for this school year, Leia Victory
Lauren McGuire, Cormac Casey, Gemma Coyne, Duileach Ryan and Grace Nwadike. Well done to everyone who applied and attended the interviews. We look forward to the bank opening soon and a chance to save some money.
Shannonside Radio
Well done to our TY students who participated in the Learning Wave Transition Year Media Week with Shannonside last week. On Saturday morning February 1st from 10.00-11.00 on Shannonside radio, the programme was produced by thirteen TY students, ten of whom were from Mercy Ballymahon. The students received a certificate of participation, it was a great insight into the media world and a fantastic opportunity for students who may think of following a career in media.
Seinn Concert
Forty two of Mercy Secondary School Ballymahon’s students took part in Seinn Concert last Thursday night the 6th February in St. Mel’s Cathedral. 250 students from across the diocese gathered together for this occasion. This year Seinn had a new and exciting music programme, including many different musical genres and styles from Gregorian chant and traditional hymns to contemporary Christian music, by a range of Irish and international composers. It is hoped that the music in the Seinn programme will assist students and teachers in providing good and suitable music for use in school liturgies throughout the year. Many of the songs in the programme celebrate a sense of belonging, it was a very enjoyable and uplifting evening for all. Thank you to the religion department for preparing the students and Ms. Bohan, Ms. Malone and Ms. Fitzmaurice who accompanied the students on the day.
St. Vincent de Paul Fundraiser
The students of Mercy Ballymahon presented Sr. Vincent from the Ballymahon branch of St. Vincent de Paul with a cheque for €911.30 which was raised on the day of our Christmas holidays. Well done to everyone.
Best Leaving Certificate Results 2019
Ms. Donohue recently presented Cian Belton Leaving Cert student 2019 with the Award for achieving the highest Leaving Cert results of the Class of 2019. Cian has as a result of his excellent L.C.results received a Naughton Scholarship and an Entrance Scholarship to U.C.D
Junk Kouture Voting
Cast a vote on the following link daily to support Katie Brogan TY
https://app.junkkouture.com/customer/vote/all?display=true&county=14&school=505
Remember, you have until Friday 6pm to get the votes in for your favourite design(s) in the Lifeline Vote!
Tips:
1. You must register to vote app.junkkouture.com
(Teachers/students do not need to create a voter account if they have already registered, if you have not registered then you will need to register)
2. Vote for your favourite design(s) everyday until Friday! Fish Grave!
3. Earn extra 'Super Friday' votes by completing tasks (i.e. follow our social channels, share a design to Facebook)
4. Look out for the daily magic word on our insta stories
5. Give all your votes to ONE DESIGN on Friday
Please note T&Cs apply.
Mercy Ballymahon Notes
Reporter: Katie Brogan
Young Scientist
Congratulations to our BT Young Scientists Ellen Costello, Ciara Gavigan and Ruth Farrell who received a Highly Commended award for their project, ‘The Factors that Influence the Educational Aspirations of Girls in the Midlands’. Well done girls on a great achievement. Thank you to Ms. Noone . Well done also to our Boys’ team of Duileach Ryan, Eoin Farrell and Brendan Finnan on their great performance.
TY Irish Angus Beef Project
Well done to our TY group who took part in the 2nd round of the Irish Angus Beef competition last week. The group presented their projects and were interviewed at the event which took place in Mullingar. Good Luck to Rachel Maguire, Aileen Briody, Kate Mulvey and Ciara Gavigan and thank you to Ms. Murphy who worked with the girls on the project.
First Aid
All our TY students were First Aid trained by trainer Martin Mulvey this week. The purpose of this course is to help participants identify and eliminate potentially hazardous conditions in their environment, recognise emergencies, and make appropriate decisions for first aid care. It teaches skills that participants need to know in order to provide immediate care for a suddenly ill or injured person until more advanced medical care arrives to take over. Well done to all our TY’s who received their certificates and thank you to Martin for providing us with essential life-saving training.
U16 Girls’ Basketball
Commiserations to our u16 Girls basketball team, who last Friday week, played against 2 very worthy teams in their All Ireland play offs of U16 “A”. They first played Loreto Dalkey, where they held the lead for the first two quarters and most of the third quarter. The girls battled relentlessly on the court. However Loreto Dalkey came back fighting in the last quarter and won by just 5 points, leaving the end score at 37-32. The game against Loreto Letterkenny was also a very tense one, the girls held the lead for the first half. Both the third and fourth quarter were very tense. The girls only lost by a point in the end. This left the end score at 63-64. A huge thank you to the girls for their dedication to the team all year. And also to Ms. Carr and Ms. O'Brien, they couldn't have had so many brilliant performances without their coaches.
U 14 Boys’ Football
Well done to our U14 Boys’ football team who won the replay of the North Leinster semi-final against Boyne C.C. last Friday. The boys were very disciplined in their approach and put in an excellent performance. The final score was 4-7 to 1-7. They now proceed to the final against Ardee C.C. Thanks to coaches Mr. S. Larkin and Mr. S. Kenny.
Triple P Schedule Spring 2020- including Fearless Seminar
Here is the 2020 schedule for Triple P Workshops and Group Programmes for Parents of Children aged 2-10years and Teenagers aged 11-15years living in Longford.
*We have included our Fearless Seminar dates also . Triple P – Fear Less (Reducing Anxiety in Children) are delivering a 2 hour talk for parents of children aged 4 – 15 year olds, who might be concerned about their child/teen experiencing anxiety.
To book a place or for further information, please contact Catherine 0877057965 or Fiona 0863801163.
All of these programmes are FREE to attend.
Mercy Ballymahon Notes
Reporter: Katie Brogan
Equestrian Team
Congratulations to our Equestrian Team who competed in the Inter-schools Competition Sunday the 14th of December in Mullingar. Tommy Killian, Aine Murray, Katie Shaw and Daniel Whyte all competed in the 80s, 90’s and 1 meter class. Daniel had an excellent round and finished in first place with Aine placed 4th.
Boys Football
Well done to our First Year Boys who had a great day out in Dunganney, Meath CoE on Tuesday 16th December they played against Moyne, Boyne CS and St. Ciaran’s Kells. Thanks to our TY Future Leaders, Mr. Shane Kenny and Mr. Larkin for training the team.
TY
Well done to our TY students who collected toys and gifts during the month of December, all were donated to St. Vincent de Paul in time to be given to families in need for the Christmas period.
Carol Service
Our traditional Carol Service in collaboration with St. Matthew’s Primary School put us all in the mood for Christmas, last week. A combination of our favourite modern and traditional carols created a joyful spirit in the run up to Christmas. Truly beautiful singing punctuated with spiritual readings brought Christmas alive for us all once again. Thank you to Ms. Malone for all her hard work and dedication to the choir and to our music students to performed beautifully on the night.
Bláthú Narnia Christmas Dinner
Our special classes celebrated Christmas dinner with their teachers and classmates this week. The students prepared and cooked dinner for their teachers and everyone sat down together to celebrate Christmas. It was a lovely occasion for us all. We would like to thank our students in the special classes for all their hard work getting ready for the Christmas dinner and our SNA’s, Helena Molihan, Helena Brady, Claire, Deirdre and Shane for supporting the students on the day. The meal was delicious, with all the trimmings and beautiful desserts, and was thoroughly enjoyed by all.
First Year Autism Friendly Christmas Party
Our first year Art class celebrated the last school day of 2019, by having an Autism friendly Christmas party with their classmates from Bláthú, one of our special inclusive classes. Christmas can be a difficult time for people who live with sensory processing difficulties. Loud Christmas music, Christmas tree lights and noisy parties can cause great distress. Our Bláthú students take Art as a mainstream subject and so it provided the perfect opportunity to have an Autism friendly Christmas party. Soft music was played on low volume, and students played a round robin of traditional board games, giving them the chance to get to know each other and practice their social skills. There were also Kahoots on the IPads with lots of prizes and treats. Our Narnia students who are senior students helped out also. Well done to everyone involved for putting inclusion on the map once again at Mercy Secondary School Ballymahon.
Christmas Greetings
We would like to wish all our students and staff a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year, as we look forward to the new experiences, challenges and celebrations 2020 will bring for us all at Mercy Secondary School Ballymahon.
Mercy Ballymahon Notes
Reporters: Katie Brogan, Cormac McDonagh
U15 Boys’ soccer
On the 27 th our U15 Boys’ soccer team had a super game against St. Brenden’s Community School Birr. We had a very successful 4-2 win. We now advance to the quarter finals. Thanks to our U15 team and our coach Ms Quinn.
U16 Ladies football
On the 29 th our U16 Ladies football team played Moate C.S in the Leinster A semi-final. We had a strong game but Moate came out victorious in the end winning by 9 points. Thank you to all our U16 girl football players and our coaches Mr Bohan and Mr Seery.
Battle of the wits
The TY’s table quiz team competed in the battle of the wits competition last week representing Longford. The team consists of Rachel Maguire, Cormac McDonagh, Darragh Campbell and Diarmud Conlon. They took part in the Regional final representing Longford in Athlone and came 5 th in the final following a tie break. Well done to the team and thank you to Ms. Bohan who accompanied the team.
TY ice skating
Thursday the 5 th December TY travelled to Dublin for some Christmas fun and spirit at the Dundrum Ice skating rink and shopping centre. A funfilled day was had by all as they took in the Christmas atmosphere and learned to skate. Thank you to the teachers who accompanied the TY’s Ms. Cafferkey, Mr. Mulvihill, Ms. Bohan and our SNAs Claire and Deirdre.
Blessing of our new Altar
On Friday 29 th of November, Fr. Liam Murray celebrated mass in our School Oratory and blessed the new altar that was installed during the summer. Thanks to Ms. Fitzmaurice who helped prepare for the mass and to her 2 nd year class who attended. Thanks also to architect Freddie Quinn who designed the beautiful glass altar. Our Oratory provides a beautiful calm space within our busy school where students and teachers can visit during the school day.
Enrolment for 1 st Year 2020
If you are enrolling for 1 st year September 2020, it is really important that you submit your enrolment form by the closing date December 17 th , 4pm.