10@10
Prize Winners
We would like to say thank you so much to Mrs. Nolan (mother of past pupils Eamonn, Micheál and Áine Nolan) for our fantastic set of new jerseys. Mrs Nolan entered a competition and very kindly nominated Borris N.S. as her chosen school. We look forward to wearing these jerseys with pride as we represent our school in the future.
Ceatharlach Abú!
We really enjoyed our visit from four members of the Carlow Camogie team today, 16th September. Three of these ladies (Gráinne, Niamh and Shannon) are past pupils of Borris N.S. and Áine attended Ballymurphy N.S. They showed us the cup they won last Sunday in the All Ireland Junior Camogie final, and answered our questions about the training and dedication involved. They were very impressed with the colourful artwork created by Fourth and Fifth Classes, in the Carlow colours. Thank you to the girls and their MLR mentors for visiting! Truly inspirational!
We really enjoyed our visit from four members of the Carlow Camogie team today, 16th September. Three of these ladies (Gráinne, Niamh and Shannon) are past pupils of Borris N.S. and Áine attended Ballymurphy N.S. They showed us the cup they won last Sunday in the All Ireland Junior Camogie final, and answered our questions about the training and dedication involved. They were very impressed with the colourful artwork created by Fourth and Fifth Classes, in the Carlow colours. Thank you to the girls and their MLR mentors for visiting! Truly inspirational!
Huge congratulations from all of us at Borris N.S. to the Carlow camogie team who claimed a historic victory at GAA HQ with their victory over Armagh in the Premier Junior All Ireland Camogie Final. They showed such determination and character throughout, and were an inspiration for the whole county. We would like to say a special well done to four members of the panel who are past pupils of Borris N.S. - Niamh Doyle, Gráinne Nolan, Niamh O'Loughlin and Shannon Kavanagh. Well done ladies! We look forward to watching your future exploits on the field of play! Onwards and upwards!
School Tour
First - Sixth classes had a great day at the "Let's Go" activity centre in Kilcullen. We enjoyed a range of activities that were fun for everyone . Please see the slideshow below.
First - Sixth classes had a great day at the "Let's Go" activity centre in Kilcullen. We enjoyed a range of activities that were fun for everyone . Please see the slideshow below.
Third Class
Please see a selection of photographs from Third Class showing how healthy and active they are being! Well done all!
Please see a selection of photographs from Third Class showing how healthy and active they are being! Well done all!
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of the 1st of June, we have now reached Dundalk, the County Town of Louth! Thanks to all of the extra laps completed as part of Global Running Day and the beautiful weather helping us to get out more regularly, we are making great progress.
Next stop -Navan, the County Town of Meath! Keep up the good work everyone!
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of the 1st of June, we have now reached Dundalk, the County Town of Louth! Thanks to all of the extra laps completed as part of Global Running Day and the beautiful weather helping us to get out more regularly, we are making great progress.
Next stop -Navan, the County Town of Meath! Keep up the good work everyone!
Féile Fundraiser
Global Running Day
Wednesday 1st June is Global Running Day. So we in Borris N.S. decided to get out and do our bit to join in. Please see the slideshow below showing different classes having fun in the sun. Check out the website www.globalrunningday.org for more information on this worldwide initiative.
Cumann na mBunscoil
Hurling and Camogie Blitz at B.V.S.
3rd and 4th Class had a lovely trip to B.V.S. to join with various local primary schools in a GAA blitz on Friday 13th May. This was organised by the Transition Year students who have undertaken coaching and event management courses. Well done to all of these students, as well as the P.E. teachers for their support. We would also like to thank Mr. O' Sullivan for welcoming us to B.V.S.
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of the 6th of May, we have now reached Longford Town, the County Town of Longford, and have even ran a little bit past it! Thanks to all of the extra laps completed during Active School week and the weather being so nice that we didn't need to postpone many days, we are making great progress.
Next stop - Dundalk, the County Town of Louth! Keep up the good work everyone!
Great News!
Today we heard the brilliant news that we have been awarded the Active School Flag in recognition of all of our hard work this year. The Active School Committee brought the certificate and flag around to all the classes to spread the good news. Well done to everyone- it is a great achievement for Borris N S.
Now let's keep up our healthy habits!
Now let's keep up our healthy habits!
Thank you to Gowran A.C.
After the success of their visit during Active School week, we would again like to thank Gowran A.C. for gifting us a huge box of fruit today to encourage a healthy lifestyle. The fruit was sponsored by The Aubergine Fruit and Vegetable shop in Kilkenny for a road race in Gowran yesterday. Our Active School Committee members were busy delivering apples and bananas around the classrooms today. Please see the 4th Class members below ready to do their bit.
Our Active School Poster
Please see below the overall winner of our Active School poster competition, designed by Hannah in 5th Class. Well done Hannah! It really sums up our message at Borris N.S. that being active should be about enjoyment and finding a fun way to keep fit and healthy. There are so many choices - just find the one that suits you!
Please see below the overall winner of our Active School poster competition, designed by Hannah in 5th Class. Well done Hannah! It really sums up our message at Borris N.S. that being active should be about enjoyment and finding a fun way to keep fit and healthy. There are so many choices - just find the one that suits you!
Active School Week - Friday
Today was the final day of our Active School Week. We had Lisa and Sharon, who are Sports hall athletic coaches, visiting to host sessions with every class from Junior Infants to 6th Class. These coaches were working in conjunction with Carlow Sports and Recreation Partnership and we are very grateful for all the activities they organised.
We had all been crossing our fingers and toes that the weather would stay nice and dry enough to be outside. It worked! We participated in a number of events such as standing long jump and an obstacle course that tested many skills. Please see the slideshow and collages below for pictures from throughout the day.
This was a lovely way to end our first Active School Week at Borris N.S. We want to thank all the teachers for their support and enthusiasm throughout, along with all the coaches and visitors whom we welcomed to our school. The week was a great success!
Remember:
“Borris School is getting active, it’s everyone’s job to keep sports attractive!”
We had all been crossing our fingers and toes that the weather would stay nice and dry enough to be outside. It worked! We participated in a number of events such as standing long jump and an obstacle course that tested many skills. Please see the slideshow and collages below for pictures from throughout the day.
This was a lovely way to end our first Active School Week at Borris N.S. We want to thank all the teachers for their support and enthusiasm throughout, along with all the coaches and visitors whom we welcomed to our school. The week was a great success!
Remember:
“Borris School is getting active, it’s everyone’s job to keep sports attractive!”
Active School Week - Thursday
As a special treat to recognise all of the hard work and dedication they have shown throughout this year, and especially in the past few weeks, the 18 members of the Active School Committee went on a trip to visit Borris Vocational School today. This was organised by Ms. Bambrick in Borris National School, who is our Active School co-ordinator, and Ms. O'Malley in BVS, who is their Health Promoting School co-ordinator. We met five members of their Health Promoting School committee, including Niamh and Shannon, and we were then given a guided tour for almost three hours by Anna, Shane and Colin, who are all 5th year students. These students spoke to us about the importance of keeping fit and healthy, making healthy nutrition choices and generally living a happy and healthy lifestyle.
Firstly, they brought us to the sports hall, where they have been undertaking their "Cycle around Ireland" challenge. We took the opportunity to tell them all about our "Running around Leinster" initiative too - they were very impressed! We each took a turn to cycle, to help them on their way around Ireland. Please see the slideshow below to see us pedalling our socks off! It was a great work out!
Next we were treated to a tour of the gym, where the students explained who uses the gym and what the benefits of strengthening our muscles are - not just for playing sport, but also for living active, healthy lifestyles. They spoke about nutrition and the importance of eating healthy sources of protein, carbohydrates and fats. They also spoke about drinking plenty of water to keep our bodies hydrated. They demonstrated how to use a number of the machines and told us about the wide variety of sports and clubs that students participate in at BVS. BVS promotes the same message as we do - being fit and healthy doesn't have to mean competitive sports or team games. It's all about finding the activity you like and enjoying keeping fit with friends and family!
Next, we were given a brilliant tour of the whole school, and we saw many of the different subject classrooms such as Engineering, Art, Music and Science. The facilities at BVS are state-of-the-art and we were really impressed. The four 6th Class members were especially excited as they will be attending BVS from September and it was great to have this personal tour before that. The 5th years were really helpful for pointing out the locker areas and giving them little hints and tips for settling in to life in secondary school. They even brought us out to the garden to show us the fantastic work that their Green School committee are doing. They just heard the good news, like us, that they will be awarded their Green School flag at a ceremony in early May. We were also shown the outdoor sports facilities. I don't think there was a section of the school that we didn't explore - the tour was so comprehensive!
We were also provided with tasty fruit as a healthy snack, and there was a quiz based on some of the information we had heard throughout the day to see how well we had been listening! There were a number of water bottles given out as prizes - great reminders to keep hydrated! We were really well looked after.
We had a fantastic day on our trip to BVS and we are very grateful to Mr. O'Sullivan, the principal, Ms. O'Malley and the Health Promoting School committee for providing us with this opportunity. Thank you to all for their lovely welcome.
Active School Week - Wednesday
What a fun-filled day at Borris N.S. today! The sun even came out to add to the excitement.
The highlight of today was the visit of four coaches from Gowran Athletics Club. Liam and John are juvenile coaches within the club, while David and James are two exceptional athletes who are both in secondary school. David is an All-Ireland medal winning 60m and 100m sprinter whose current 100 metre record is 10.98 seconds (By comparison, the world record held by Usain Bolt is 9.58 seconds). David is fast...you can see for yourself in the video below! James is a fine discus thrower who also has won numerous medals in his event. The boys are both fantastic role models, showimg how hard work and dedication pay off.
The slideshow below shows the variety of events we participated in. First to Sixth class all had an individual session with the coaches and it was a fantastic opportunity to try out some new events. We want to say thank you very much to these coaches for giving of their time and expertise. We really appreciate it.
As a special treat to finish off the sessions, David treated us to a display of his medal-winning speed! His friend James is an excellent discus thrower and is obviously very fit to compete at such a high level! In his own words, he is "an average runner"....which means he is still very fast. So this video gives you an idea of David's talent! It was great to see this in person! I barely managed to catch him on video!
The Junior Infant and Senior Infant classes also had a busy day. The 12 most senior members of our Active School Committee (4th - 6th Class) organised a fun-filled P.E. lesson for both these classes in the afternoon, with the help of Mrs. Ivors and Ms. Brennan. These students showed their fantastic leadership skills and did themselves proud. The infants really enjoyed all the activities. Please see the photos below.
Active School Week - Tuesday
Today was another busy day, full of enjoyable activities.
In the morning, the Active School committee met to judge the Active School poster and slogan competition. The standard was extremely high, which made our job very difficult! After much deliberation and every committee member completing their voting sheet, the results were compiled and a clear poster winner was found from each class, with the winning class slogan chosen also. We also had a second round of voting where we picked an overall poster winner to represent the school. These prize winners were announced at the Active School assembly later in the day (please see photographs below).
In the middle of the day, we had a fantastic "Dance Display". We had a great number of parents who visited and they really enjoyed seeing the talent on show. Please see the slideshow below for a variety of pictures.
Thank you very much to Ann for her hard work throughout the year, we really appreciate it.
In the afternoon, we held our Active School assembly. We announced the winners of the poster competition as follows:
Junior Infants: Dian
Senior Infants: Aoife
1st Class: Tam
2nd Class: Shannon
3rd Class: Sarah
4th Class: James
5th Class: Hannah
6th Class: Rachel
Each child was presented with a drawstring bag sponsored by Carlow Recreation and Sport Partnership, which we filled with a healthy drink and snacks. The overall poster winner was also announced as Hannah in 5th Class, who was presented with a Frisbee and water bottle, both of which she can use to keep fit and healthy. Please see the pictures below of their fantastic artwork.
The winning class for the slogan was announced as 3rd Class, with their slogan:
“Borris School is getting active, it’s everyone’s job to keep sports attractive!”
The winning posters and the slogan will all be on display within the school to remind us of the benefits of being fit and healthy!
Finally, to finish our assembly, James and his Fourth Class classmates sang us his Active School song, which he accompanied on his guitar. It's so catchy and full of motivational ideas for a healthy lifestyle! Hopefully as a school we can all learn it and sing it together some day soon. Well done again James on showing great initiative and sharing your creative talents with us!
On Saturday, the Borris Community Games under 11 hurling team won the Carlow competition. They now progress on to the Leinster competition. These boys in 3rd and 4th Class are on the team and brought in their medals to show us. Well done and best of luck in the next match boys!
Active School Week - Monday
Monday was a busy start to our Active School Week. Firstly, we had a visit from the Active School Flag assessor to approve our application. We planned a wide variety of activities to show all of the work we have been undertaking this year. Mrs. Behan, Ms. Bambrick and the Active School Committee student members met with the assessor to discuss our application and show how we are being positive role models for an active, healthy lifestyle. The committee spoke so well and really did themselves proud. We will hopefully hear the result of our application in the coming weeks. Fingers crossed!
Throughout the day, we held our break time dance activities with Ola, Jessica and Zoe on the senior yard. This drew a great crowd and the pupils all enjoyed dancing in the glorious sunshine. Caoimhe, Michelle, Hannah and Abbie also organised active games on the junior playground and the infants had a great time. Thank you for all of this input girls.
We also organised "Drop Everything and Move" visits to all classrooms. We used a hat for "lucky dip" exercises and also used "The Maxarena" dance from Gonoodle. Thank you to Third class for showing us this dance, it's great fun!
We also held a Tug of War demonstration for Fifth and Sixth Class. This was given by Cathy from Tug of War Ireland. The students thoroughly enjoyed this activity and participated very enthusiastically. For many, it was a taste of a new form of exercise, while for others it was a familiar reminder of the strong Tug of War tradition which is still alive and well in Rathanna. If today was anything to go by, there could be a few recruits in the making. Well done to everyone involved, it was a great end to our first day of Active School Week.
Please see the Tug of War slideshow below, along with a short video of an epic pulling battle! Well done everyone!
We're famous!
This week, the National Coordinator of the Active School Flag process contacted us to congratulate Borris National School on the success of our "Running around Leinster" initiative. She was so impressed by what we had achieved that she asked if we would be happy to be featured on the Active School website, and in the Active School newsletter for May 2016. She felt that we would be an excellent example to other schools. Of course we said we would be delighted! So please click here to read the article and see some photographs of our running under way. When you click the link, please look under the "Primary" heading to see our "Running around Leinster Initiative". We're officially putting Borris on the map! Well done to everyone!
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of the 22nd of April, we have now reached Mullingar, the County Town of Westmeath!
Next stop - Longford Town, the County Town of Longford! Keep up the good work everyone!
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of the 22nd of April, we have now reached Mullingar, the County Town of Westmeath!
Next stop - Longford Town, the County Town of Longford! Keep up the good work everyone!
Active School poster, slogan...and now song!!
We are currently running an Active School poster and Active School slogan competition in school. There will be a poster winner from each class, along with one overall poster winner for the school, announced at the assembly on Tuesday. Each class also submitted slogans and we will be announcing the winning slogan, and the class who wrote it, at assembly too. We will have some lovely prizes that reflect the positive message and healthy lifestyle we are promoting!
The talents in Borris N.S. don't stop there, however! As well as all of the above creativity, a pupil in Fourth Class has displayed his amazing song writing and musical abilities by taking huge initiative and composing an Active School song by himself! James, who is also a hard-working member of the Active School committee, should be very proud of himself. He kindly agreed to play it for us in class and even organised for two friends, Joey and Pauric, to accompany him on guitar. It was a real treat. Thank you boys!
The talents in Borris N.S. don't stop there, however! As well as all of the above creativity, a pupil in Fourth Class has displayed his amazing song writing and musical abilities by taking huge initiative and composing an Active School song by himself! James, who is also a hard-working member of the Active School committee, should be very proud of himself. He kindly agreed to play it for us in class and even organised for two friends, Joey and Pauric, to accompany him on guitar. It was a real treat. Thank you boys!
Borris NS Active School Song
Chorus:
Borris School is getting active
Everybody get interactive,
Borris School is getting fit,
Go put on your sports kit
Verse 1:
We want to get our flag so listen,
Laps and dancing - no competition,
We can do sweet funky moves,
And shake our hips to the jazzy groove
Chorus
Verse 2:
Instead of the couch on a summer's day,
Get out on that trampoline and play,
How about some tunes to dance?
Go put on your sporty pants!
Chorus
Verse 3:
Yes I’m sure we’ll get that flag,
Fingers crossed it's in the bag
Come on, get up, join with a friend
I promise you’ll be glad in the end
Chorus:
Verse 4:
Not about winners, not about losers,
All about teamwork - so let's get to it!
Come on everyone, let's get a-moving,
Simple, easy... just watch us prove it!
Borris NS Active School Song
Chorus:
Borris School is getting active
Everybody get interactive,
Borris School is getting fit,
Go put on your sports kit
Verse 1:
We want to get our flag so listen,
Laps and dancing - no competition,
We can do sweet funky moves,
And shake our hips to the jazzy groove
Chorus
Verse 2:
Instead of the couch on a summer's day,
Get out on that trampoline and play,
How about some tunes to dance?
Go put on your sporty pants!
Chorus
Verse 3:
Yes I’m sure we’ll get that flag,
Fingers crossed it's in the bag
Come on, get up, join with a friend
I promise you’ll be glad in the end
Chorus:
Verse 4:
Not about winners, not about losers,
All about teamwork - so let's get to it!
Come on everyone, let's get a-moving,
Simple, easy... just watch us prove it!
GAA Coaching - fun in the sun!
We have been so lucky with the fabulous sunshine this week! Our GAA coaching with Shane, Becky and Shay on Friday was held out in the glorious weather and we had a lovely time. Fingers crossed it stays as nice for Active School Week next week!
Active School Week -
plans underway!
We are all very excited for Active School Week, which will be beginning on Monday 25th April and lasts until Friday 29th April. Plans are well under way and we have so many exciting activities to look forward to! Amongst others, we have a Tug of War demonstration (5th and 6th), a Dance Display for every class, a visit from Carlow Recreation and Sports Partnership coaches and we will have an assembly to announce the winners of our Active School poster and slogan competitions. There will be plenty more happening throughout the week also so watch this space to see regular updates!
Junior Infants - fit and healthy!!
Junior Infants have been learning all about healthy eating and nutrition this term. They have obviously been listening really well as Mrs Ivers has been so impressed by the amount of healthy lunch boxes in her classroom these days! It's like a rainbow full of healthy fruit and vegetables! Keep up the good work everyone! These busy pupils need all this healthy energy as they are so fit and active! Please see the photos below of all the fun the Junior Infants have been having in P.E. lately!
Healthy Eating Ideas
In line with our Healthy Eating Policy, please see the fantastic ideas for healthy lunch boxes below. These documents are also available on the Primary Education section of the Safefood website, along with additional information and healthy ideas. Click here to visit the safefood website, or here and here to print both documents yourself.
New app launched!
"The Federation of Irish Sport and the Vodafone Ireland Foundation have launched ‘GameDay’, a new app that allows the public to locate their nearest club for over 30 sports organisations including IRFU, Swim Ireland and Athletics Ireland. The app uses location-based services and GPS technologies to create a grassroots network of sports clubs across every county in Ireland. " (www.irishsports.ie)
This new app (which is free on both iphone and android phones) allows you to chose by sport, county or search nearby (using GPS) to discover the contact and location details of sports clubs in your area. For Carlow, there are a number of sports listed such as athletics, boxing, golf, gymnastics and tennis, plus many more. Search for "Gameday FIS" on the App store (iphone) or search "GameDay R2S digital" on Google play (android), and see what's available in your local area. The picture up above is the logo that you will be looking for. During the Easter (or upcoming Summer!) holidays, it could be a great way to try out a new sport, make new friends and keep fit and active!
Click here to read the media statement for more information.
Seachtain na Gaeilge
To celebrate St. Patrick's Day and Seachtain na Gaeilge, everyone in Borris N.S. wore something green to school on Wednesday, 16th March. The school was bursting with all different shades and everyone made a great effort.
The Active School Committee made visits to all the classrooms again and got everyone up and moving...as Gaeilge! Bhíomar ag abair an dán "Aon, dó", ag imirt Deir Ó Grádaigh agus ag imirt "Cén t-am é a mhac tíre?". Bhaineamar go léir an-taitneamh as!
Please see the two slideshows below which show a mixture of photographs from all the classes. The first slideshow shows the visits to Junior Infants, Senior Infants, First Class and Second Class. The second one shows Third - Sixth Class visits and the whole school joining up in the hall for the Easter Draw, organised by the Parents' Association.
Also, there are plenty of photographs from our whole school céilí held on Proclamation Day on our 1916 page here. To celebrate our national dance on this special day, we finished with a céilí outside, led by Ann White Egan. The whole school attended and it was the turn of First - Sixth classes to display their dancing talents. We had a selection of dances on show, including a Two hand Céilí, Siege of Ennis, a hurl dance and even some line dancing.
Happy St. Patrick's Day and Easter to all students, staff and parents of Borris N.S. Don't forget to get out in the lovely fresh air and sunshine! Also, while you're enjoying those special treats from the Easter bunny, try to keep up the fruit and veg too! Let's keep Borris N.S. healthy, fit and active! See you all back in school on Monday 4th April!
The Active School Committee made visits to all the classrooms again and got everyone up and moving...as Gaeilge! Bhíomar ag abair an dán "Aon, dó", ag imirt Deir Ó Grádaigh agus ag imirt "Cén t-am é a mhac tíre?". Bhaineamar go léir an-taitneamh as!
Please see the two slideshows below which show a mixture of photographs from all the classes. The first slideshow shows the visits to Junior Infants, Senior Infants, First Class and Second Class. The second one shows Third - Sixth Class visits and the whole school joining up in the hall for the Easter Draw, organised by the Parents' Association.
Also, there are plenty of photographs from our whole school céilí held on Proclamation Day on our 1916 page here. To celebrate our national dance on this special day, we finished with a céilí outside, led by Ann White Egan. The whole school attended and it was the turn of First - Sixth classes to display their dancing talents. We had a selection of dances on show, including a Two hand Céilí, Siege of Ennis, a hurl dance and even some line dancing.
Happy St. Patrick's Day and Easter to all students, staff and parents of Borris N.S. Don't forget to get out in the lovely fresh air and sunshine! Also, while you're enjoying those special treats from the Easter bunny, try to keep up the fruit and veg too! Let's keep Borris N.S. healthy, fit and active! See you all back in school on Monday 4th April!
St. Patrick's Day Fun Run
If you are looking to get out and active on St. Patrick's Day in this lovely weather being forecast, how about heading into Kilkenny for a nice jog/run around the Castle Park? It's all for two local charities too! The race starts at 11:00 so you'll even have plenty of time to be back to Borris for the parade! What a great way to start off your Easter holidays!
Get Ireland Active
The Get Ireland Active website is a one-stop shop for information on exercise and the benefits of keeping fit and healthy. It provides ideas for activities, places to be active and many interesting resources too. There are videos, brochures and links to other useful websites too. There is information for children, early years, adults and even older adults so you could learn a thing or two to help everyone from younger siblings to grandparents. Click here to take a look!
Ballymurphy National School 5k Run
Why not get out and support this local fundraiser? A lovely event that will get all the family active, while supporting a local school.
Breaktime Buddies!
Today Hannah and Abbie from the Active School Committee joined Caoimhe and Michelle in teaching playground games to the Junior infants at breaktime. We also had some Senior Infant pupils who joined in too, which was fantastic. The more the merrier! Abbie and Hannah were very enthusiastic and now that we have four senior pupils to lead this activity, we are hoping to make this a weekly event. Please see the photos below of this wonderful example of peer teaching!
Awesome Athletes!
Well done to Abbie and Catie who both travelled to the Athlone Institute of Technology indoor track on Saturday 5th March to compete for their Athletics club, Gowran AC. Both girls participated in the u12 60m sprint and did themselves proud. This was a fantastic opportunity to run in this state-of-the-art facility. The track is bright blue and is 200m, instead of the usual 400m that they run on in Scanlon Park in Kilkenny. Well done girls!
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of the 4th of March, we have now reached Tullamore, the County Town of Offaly!
Next stop - Mullingar, the County Town of Westmeath! Keep up the good work everyone!
March - the Month of Marbles!
,A lovely tradition that is still going strong in Borris Mixed N.S. is that of marble season. Many of the children bring their bags and boxes full to the brim with shiny thaws and all sorts. This is a really enjoyable game to enjoy in Springtime and as it's so fast-moving, it helps keep everyone moving and on the go. Children of all ages can get involved and it's fun for everyone!
Please see the photos below of our students keeping this long-standing tradition going! In this day and age, it's really refreshing to see that sometimes, the old games are very often still the best!
Please see the photos below of our students keeping this long-standing tradition going! In this day and age, it's really refreshing to see that sometimes, the old games are very often still the best!
Playground Games
At Borris N.S. we are trying to spread the message that being active is fun and can include your friends too. We also know that people of all ages can find their own enjoyable ways to keep moving! Therefore, Caoimhe and Michelle from our Active School committee decided to join the Junior Infants at lunchtime, teaching them playground games to enjoy with their friends. The first game they tried was "Duck, duck, goose", which the infants really enjoyed.
Please see the photos below that show the great fun they all had. Thanks to the Sixth Class girls. They were very responsible and took on the role of teachers very well! Watch this space for more updates.
Promotion of Healthy Lifestyles in Primary Schools
On the 4th February, the Department of Education published guidelines and advice to all primary schools who are working on the promotion of healthy lifestyles...schools like us! It is really interesting to see how many of these aspects we are currently focussed on developing - it's great to know we are on the right track! For example, promoting nutritious lunches, educating students about a balanced diet, working towards Active School status and building in inclusive physical activity throughout the day are all mentioned! Well done us!
Now let's keep up the good work in Borris N.S.!
Breaktime Boogie
Our second lunchtime dance activity was another brilliant success! The girls chose some great songs to get the crowd moving and it was fabulous to see a mixture of boys and girls from a variety of classes joining in! Offering an alternative activity at lunchtime means more children can get active and join in the fun. Thank you to Mirren and Aine for co-choreographing with Alanna.
Now....like they say on Operation Transformation...."it's your move!"
In preparation for Proclamation Day, when we will celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the 1916 Rising, we are practising some new Irish Dances with Ann. Take a look below and listen out for our exciting plans.
Community Games
Congratulations to the Under 10 Community Games soccer team who won at the weekend. There were many pupils from our school on this team. A great achievement girls, well done!
Land PAWS
Following on from our very enjoyable swimming lessons in the Apex in New Ross before Christmas, we are continuing with the Aquatics strand - but in the classroom this time! The Land PAWS (Primary Aquatics Water Safety) programme covers water safety in relation to a number of areas - farm safety, water safety at the pool, water safety in the home, safety on waterways, safety on a boat and safety at the sea. Captain Bird's Eye teaches plenty of important tips that everyone, both adults and children, should remember to follow.
Check out www.iws.ie for more information, resources and videos.
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of the 5th of February, we have now reached Mountmellick in Co. Laois on our way to Tullamore! Keep up the good work everyone!
GAA Coaching
Gaelic football coaching has started in school for this term and we are really enjoying all the games and drills. There is a big emphasis on having fun, being active and making sure everyone is taking part. Even the bad weather can't stop us as we relocated into the hall to avoid the rain this week! See the pictures below of us playing "catch the tail", "over and under" and working on our catching drills.
Keeping Sport Fun!
"These days, if our children are so anxious and nervous about competing in sport, we need to help them realise that this is only a game, something that is there to be enjoyed." Sonia O'Sullivan
Some wise words from the athlete herself. This is an interesting article, reminding us that sport should be fun and enjoyable!
Dancing for All!
Today, some members of our Active School Committee trialled a new lunchtime initiative! Alanna and Ola were teaching hip-hop dancing out on the Senior Yard and as you can see from the pictures, they drew quite an audience of eager pupils. The girls did a great job of thinking up fun songs to get the crowd moving, and it was a great first step in providing "active" alternatives at lunchtime! Thank you to Meadhbh who also helped out with the choreography!
We're hoping to make this a regular event so if you hear the music playing, why not join in? Requests are welcomed too!
We're hoping to make this a regular event so if you hear the music playing, why not join in? Requests are welcomed too!
#trysomethingnew
As we think about Lent and the usual list of things to “give up”, this year how about being positive and think of new habits you can build that will make you healthier, even after Easter has come and gone?
Some suggestions for you and your family could be:
Our Lenten motto in Borris Mixed National School is #trysomethingnew
Some suggestions for you and your family could be:
- Walk/cycle your journey (if it’s safe to do so!)
- Reach for water when thirst hits!
- Take the stairs when you’re out and about!
- Try a new vegetable every week – The “Super 6” is a great place to get ideas!
- Park the car a little further from the shops!
- Bake and cook it yourself – homemade is so much tastier!!
- Get an extra 15 minutes of fresh air every day…it’s good for your mind and body!
- Make your lunchbox a rainbow of fruit and vegetables – the more colours the better!
- Encourage all your family and friends, young and old, to join in! The more the merrier!
Our Lenten motto in Borris Mixed National School is #trysomethingnew
Activities in Third Class
Third Class have been busy keeping fit and healthy. These pictures show pupils who participated in Kilkenny's Park Run, played Camogie matches, ran in running races or took part in the Third Class X Factor competition! Sounds like great fun is being had in Mrs. Nolan's room - keep up the good work! You are all a great example of keeping fit while having fun!
Active Assembly
On Monday, the 1st of February, we held an Active School assembly where our Active School Committee spoke to the whole school about the progress we have been making recently. Second Class spoke about using the Gonoodle website for dancing at lunchtime while Third Class spoke about this Active School section of our website. Fourth Class had previously updated us at a different assembly so they took a break this time. Fifth Class spoke about "Running around Leinster" progress while Sixth Class updated us on "Healthy Eating" and how to be aware of ingredients by reading labels. Please see the pictures below. Well done on the great public speaking- we have future leaders in the making here!
We also celebrated the "active" achievements of some of our students. Hannah and Caoimhe won a Silver medal in the Leinster under-14 Cross Country Relay race in Kilmacow in January. Hannah also came first in the Under-18 category at the Charlie Curran Fundraiser 5k race in Carlow Town on Sunday 31st January. Zoe also competed in a gymnastics competition at the weekend, and won a fabulous medal. Well done all!
Lovely Lunches!
Please see below some pictures of our tasty, healthy lunches! We need to give our bodies plenty of nutritious energy for all the activities we are taking part in and these children are making smart choices! This is just a selection of lunches and snacks from Second - Fifth Class. Keep bringing in your fruit, brown bread and plenty of water to get your picture taken too!
Update -
"Running around Leinster" progress!!
As of Friday 22nd January, we have now reached Portlaoise on our journey around the County Towns of Leinster!! Next stop... Tullamore!! What county are we heading for do you know?? Hint - it begins with a vowel, the only one in Leinster that does!!
Park Run
Park run organise free, weekly, 5km timed runs that are held all around the world. They are open to everyone, free, and are safe and easy to take part in. Our local run is held every Saturday morning at 9.30 am in the Castle Park in Kilkenny. All you have to do is register online at www.parkrun.ie where you will be given personalised bar codes to print out. You just need to bring along one (the other five are spare!) with you on the day. Enjoy your run (/jog/walk) and then hand over your barcode to be scanned at the finish line to have your time recorded! It's fun for all the family and a great chance to get some fresh air in the Castle Park. You will see plenty of familiar faces as quite a few of our students, parents and teachers take part regularly.
January Jigs
After the success of the Active Advent Calendar in December, we decided we needed a new initiative to get us active and awake first thing in the morning, now that we are back to school for January! So every morning before we hit the books, we have been dancing our socks off to a variety of funny and silly songs on www.gonoodle.com ! It only takes a few minutes and one or two dance tunes, but it means we are wide awake and ready to learn! It gets our day off to a great start! Everyone can get involved and move to the music!
Please see some pictures of our funky dance moves below!
Please see some pictures of our funky dance moves below!
Healthy Lunchboxes
With all the talk recently about "hidden sugars" and "processed food", it can be difficult to know what exactly is nutritious to have as a snack or for lunch! Safefood have published this information leaflet to help explain, we hope you find it helpful!
You can click here for the link, or read the PDF document below!
You can click here for the link, or read the PDF document below!
Music Generation and Irish Dancing
Welcome back to a new school year! 2016 is going to be another busy one, full of exciting activities!
We are now incorporating our "Be Active" motto into many of our subjects in school, including Music Generation lessons with our teacher, Elspeth. Take a look at Fourth Class moving to the beat as they practised clapping rhythms!
We are now incorporating our "Be Active" motto into many of our subjects in school, including Music Generation lessons with our teacher, Elspeth. Take a look at Fourth Class moving to the beat as they practised clapping rhythms!
We have also been practising Line Dancing with Ann during our Dancing time. We will be having an exhibition for parents before the Easter holidays and preparations are well under way to make sure we put our best foot forward on the day!
All this activity is keeping us healthy and full of energy, and shows that you can keep up your fitness even if the weather is frosty outside! Just find a type of "movement" that you enjoy and it should never feel like hard work!
All this activity is keeping us healthy and full of energy, and shows that you can keep up your fitness even if the weather is frosty outside! Just find a type of "movement" that you enjoy and it should never feel like hard work!
We had a busy day full of activities today, Monday 21st December. After break time, the Active School Committee gathered to surprise the school with DEAM - Drop Everything And Move!! We met last Friday to think of ideas for fun activities, and placed these all in a Christmas stocking! Then today we surprised each class! We came into their classrooms and got everyone moving by choosing various activities from the stocking! Well done to all the Active School Committee members, from 2nd all the way up to 6th, who took on this responsibility and got the whole school moving. See the pictures below! Well done all - a great TEAM (Together Everyone Achieves More) effort!
Try to keep up the good work over the holidays! Get out for some fresh air and exercise to keep your fitness levels up and stop your brain from getting bored!! Mount Leinster Rangers GAA club are hosting a 5km Fun Run on Sunday 27th December at 1pm. Registration is from 11am that morning at the clubhouse! Why not bring along your family too - all are welcome!
If the weather is bad or it's too dark for outside, why not log into www.gonoodle.com and get moving in the comfort of your own home? There are plenty of Christmas songs on www.youtube.com also - you can get Rockin' around the Christmas Tree!
Merry Christmas to everyone - we look forward to a healthy and active 2016 in Borris Mixed N.S.!!!
Try to keep up the good work over the holidays! Get out for some fresh air and exercise to keep your fitness levels up and stop your brain from getting bored!! Mount Leinster Rangers GAA club are hosting a 5km Fun Run on Sunday 27th December at 1pm. Registration is from 11am that morning at the clubhouse! Why not bring along your family too - all are welcome!
If the weather is bad or it's too dark for outside, why not log into www.gonoodle.com and get moving in the comfort of your own home? There are plenty of Christmas songs on www.youtube.com also - you can get Rockin' around the Christmas Tree!
Merry Christmas to everyone - we look forward to a healthy and active 2016 in Borris Mixed N.S.!!!
Christmas D-I-S-C-O
We held our second disco this afternoon too and it was a great success. Some photos of the Junior Disco (Junior Infants - Second Class)
Some pictures of the Senior Disco (Third - Sixth Class). Thank you to Mr. O'Brien for the sound and lighting equipment, really made it!
Active School Assembly
We had an Active School assembly on Friday 18th December. Mr Donegan presented certificates to 5th Class pupils who had completed the Deep End Test during their swimming lessons at The Apex in New Ross. Mr. Coady spoke about Hannah and Caoimhe running Cross Country. In November, Hannah came 9th in the under 12 All Ireland in Santry, and came 13th in the under 13 All-Ireland race in December. Caoimhe ran on this team in Waterford too and they both helped Kilkenny to win the 3rd placed county team overall. Well done to all!
Visit from the Professionals!
On Tuesday 15th December, we had a visit from a Movement Specialist Professional, and two students from Waterford I.T. As part of a Physical Literacy Pilot programme being run with the Kilkenny and Carlow Sports and Recreation Partnership (KRSP and CRSP), the pupils in 4th and 5th Class were lucky enough to be the only primary school in Carlow (at present) to have their fundamental movement patterns assessed. This involved a squat test, a lunge test and a single leg balance test to check our primary movements and to see what areas we could work on to develop our mobility, stability and compensation. The three experts assessed every child and will report back to the school in the New Year with their results. We will then be able to see what exercises we can work on to improve our mobility, stability and compensation. The children all participated brilliantly and represented the school very well! Check out the photos below!
Newsflash!!!! Running around Leinster update!!!
Having set off from Borris Mixed National School, we have now ran through Kilkenny City (County town of Kilkenny) and have made it to the town of Abbeyleix in Co. Laois! We are actually 4 kilometres past Abbeyleix at this stage! Next stop - Portlaoise (County town of Laois)!!!
Keep an eye on our Active School Board in the school entance to track our progress on the map!
Please see the pictures of Senior Infants running their laps below!
Active Advent Calendar
A 4th class student shared a fantastic idea with our class that brings together our active lifestyles and the festive season - she suggested we have an Active Advent Calendar! What a clever idea! So, all of 4th class thought of one activity that we could do every morning (including at weekends!!) between now and Christmas Day! Luckily there are 24 pupils in our class so one day for everyone! :)
On Day 1 we were running with "high knees" for 30 seconds, break for 10 seconds and back at "high knees" for another 30 seconds! It got our hearts pumping, that's for sure! Day 2 we tried 10 press-ups...you can see how strong we are in the picture below! Day 3 we needed some stretches and Day 4 we practised our squats! Keep checking back for more updates and pictures!
On Day 1 we were running with "high knees" for 30 seconds, break for 10 seconds and back at "high knees" for another 30 seconds! It got our hearts pumping, that's for sure! Day 2 we tried 10 press-ups...you can see how strong we are in the picture below! Day 3 we needed some stretches and Day 4 we practised our squats! Keep checking back for more updates and pictures!
Senior Infants have also been taking part in the Active Advent Calendar during the Christmas festivities. Thank you to Ms. Griffin for these lovely pictures of the boys and girls having fun and being active!
After the success of the Marathon Challenge last year, we are taking things one step further this year! As a school, we are going to run around Leinster! We will start in Borris and run (the equivalent distance) to each of the 12 County Towns! Every class has chosen a day to run their laps at 11.10 am. Junior Infants, Senior Infants and First Class will run around all three of their playgrounds, while Second- Sixth are running around all the grassy playgrounds below the basketball court. We will record our distance and plot our progress on a map of Leinster! Check out the photos of Fourth Class doing their bit this week!
Staying "Active" when it's too wet for outside!
Unfortunately, the lovely weather we have been having has taken a bit of a dip this past week! However, we aren't going to let that stop us keeping fit and active! In Fourth Class, we have been enjoying many of the videos and activities on www.gonoodle.com. This is a fabulous website with a wide variety of guided dancing (Zumba for kids) to popular chart music, free movement options, stretching and co-ordination activities. You can even create a "My Favourites" playlist to keep all your favourite tunes together - just click on the heart icon when you hover over a song and it will be added to your playlist. The website is free for all to join so why not set up an account and take a look? It's a great way to get the family moving on a cold, winter's night! Check out our funky dance moves below!
Second Class and Mrs Farrell have also been getting active in their classroom, as Gaeilge freisin!! Take a look at the photos below where they are reciting their Irish rhyme, while performing their brilliant dance moves too! Maith sibh Rang a Dó!
Our Active Parents and Teachers!
Well done to Mr. Coady on an amazing finishing time in the Frankfurt Marathon, running a new Personal Best!
Congratulations to Derek Kehoe, Gary Condren and Rachel O'Hara on brilliant performances in the Dublin City Marathon! Weather conditions were very poor but you all persevered to achieve great successes! Now enjoy being looked after by your supportive children while they're on holidays! :)
Hallowe'en Activities in Borris Mixed N.S.
Monster March
After break-time, the whole school, from Junior infants right up to 6th Class, joined together on the basketball court to "get active" and show off our fabulous Hallowe'en costumes at the same time! We enjoyed our Monster March - we were a scary sight!
D-I-S-C-O
Then it was time for our Hallowe'en Disco! All classes joined in with big smiles on their faces and danced their socks off! Take a look at the pictures and videos below!
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Swimming
Well done to 3rd, 4th and 6th class who have just finished their block of swimming lessons in The Apex in New Ross. All swimmers represented the school brilliantly and gave their best efforts for the swim instructors. We even had a number of pupils who succeeded in the "Deep End test". Well done to everyone!
After the mid-term break, it will be the turn of 2nd and 5th class to attend for 7 weeks, starting on Monday 2nd November! Don't forget your swimming gear on the first day back!
After the mid-term break, it will be the turn of 2nd and 5th class to attend for 7 weeks, starting on Monday 2nd November! Don't forget your swimming gear on the first day back!
Junior Infants - A walk a week!
Junior Infants have been very busy getting out and about in the fabulous autumnal weather we are enjoying at the moment. Please see pictures below of their "Crunchy Walk" and "Pumpkin Patch Parade". They are exploring our lovely school grounds while keeping active with their friends! Thanks to Mrs Ivers for the great pictures!
Senior Infants ag damhsa!
The girls and boys in Senior Infants have been waking their bodies up by dancing along to the brilliant videos on www.gonoodle.com! This is a fabulous website with a wide variety of guided dancing (Zumba for kids) to popular chart music, free movement options, stretching and co-ordination activities. You can even create a "My Favourites" playlist to keep all your favourite tunes together - just click on the heart icon when you hover over a song and it will be added to your playlist. The website is free for all to join so why not set up an account and take a look? It's a great way to get the family moving on a cold, winter's night! Thank you to Ms. Griffith for the great action shots!
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Please find links below for leaflets and information on healthy habits and keeping active.
Get Ireland Active guidelines | |
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Little Steps - Getting Active and Eating Well | |
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Stretches - Get Ireland Active | |
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Irish Heart Foundation - Get kids on the go | |
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Lunchbox Planner | |
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