Avondale Community College
OPEN NIGHT 2013
Avondale Community College was delighted to open its doors for 2012/2013 Open Night, which proved to be an outstanding success.
Prospective parents and students were given a tour of the school by industrious First Year students, before retreating to the Sports Hall, for a presentation by Principal, R. O' Neill, Deputy Principal, F. Boyle, Learning Support Co-Ordinator, M. Egan and Parents' Council Member, P. Smith. Visitors to the school had the opportunity to meet all members of staff, as they moved throughout the various subject departments to view displays of work.
The highlight of the evening was the Interactive Science session, facilitated by the Science Department and scientists from Schering Plough, who support our Interactive Open Days and Open Night. Just settling back from the excitement of exhibiting at the BT Young Scientist Exhibition the previous week, the students who were involved with the four projects were delighted to share their theories and discoveries with visitors. Sixth class students are already looking forward to the exciting challenges which second level education at Avondale Community College will open up for them.
YOUNG SCIENTIST EXHIBITION
Last week was an exciting week for the Young Scientists at Avondale Community College. A total of four projects were accepted into BT Young Scientist Exhibition.
Two Second Year students, David Fleming and Conor Windsor presented their project 'The Calving Alarm' , which is an alarm which will alert a farmer when a cow is in labour. Currently the primary method of monitoring labour in cows is through CCTV. This method is time consuming however, as the farmer may have to spend several hours watching the screen to detect any movement. The Calving Alarm is an invention which eliminates the need for this CCTV monitoring. In its place the farmer will receive an automated message on his phone when the cow goes into labour. Another project 'Dance FX' aims to explore the effects of dancing barefooted compared to dancing in prescribed shoes.
According to Fifth Year students from Avondale Community College, Ciara Mulhern and Andrea Kenny-McDonald dancing barefooted is healthier, more natural and more aesthetically pleasing. The girls used numerous methods to explore their theory, including comparing the weight of different types of dance shoes, comparing how dancers felt wearing shoes and then dancing without them. The students measured the effects of dancing barefooted on the performer's feet and lower limbs. An audience was also surveyed to ascertain if it was more appealing to experience a performance where the dancers are in dance shoes or barefooted.
The project 'Foster Ewe!' investigates the different methods of ensuring a ewe will adopt a lamb. At present the most popular method of fostering lambs on a farm is a fostering crate. This process takes approximately two days. Fifth Year students Robyn Mooney and Gavin Staunton found that this process could be more efficient and more successful using a cone collar and a bucket with a cut out area which blocked the ewe's sense of sight. These methods are effective in encouraging a ewe to adopt a lamb.
Second Year students from Avondale Community College, Grace Long, Ellen Durkin and Theresa Durkin aim to raise awareness of the water wastage around the country through their project 'The Water Sentinel'. The girls have designed a Water Sentinel to tackle what they perceive to be a serious problem. The device is an alarm system which is activated when water has been left running for too long. This environmentally friendly invention will encourage people to conserve water.
The hard work and dedication of the students has been astounding, Well done to all the students and teachers involved! Media Moguls! As well as presenting their projects to the judges at the Young Scientist Competition students from Avondale Community College have also been gaining much media attention for their hard work.
Avondale students featured on a variety of television programmes, including TV3 News, Morning Ireland, The Morning Show and Nationwide. Radio stations across the country, including Today FM, Newstalk, Drivetime and South East Radio, interviewed the students. As well as this the print media were interested in the Avondale entries, as articles featured in both The Irish Times and The Irish Independent last week.
This was a great opportunity for the students and was testament to the interest that surrounded many of the projects.
TRIP TO RDS
Apart from this year's participants in the Young Scientist Exhibition, twenty seven students who had entered projects this year and all First Year students had an opportunity to visit the exhibition on Friday 11th January to experience the world of Science and to see the many interesting projects on display. Students were impressed with the entries from their fellow students and many were inspired to enter next year's competition!
UNDER 19 BOYS' BASKETBALL
The Under 19 Boys' Basketball team reached the All-Ireland Semi- Finals last week. The team met Setanta College, Dublin in Tallaght Leisure Centre last week. Unfortu- nately the team did not meet their true potential and ran into trouble early on in the game.
The season is not over yet for the Avondale boys, as they have reached the All-Ireland Quarter Final Play Offs. With a more positive and determined attitude the team may reap great rewards. Best of luck to the team in their next big challenge!
UNDER 14 BOYS' FOOTBALL
The Under 14 Boys' Football team have reached the South Leinster League finals for the second year running. The team defeated Bridgetown Vocational School, Wexford in the semi-final. Well done to the team and best of luck in the next game!
TRANSITION YEAR NEWS
PairedReading: Last Monday Trans 2 began paired reading in the Boys' National School. The students are paired with one or two children to encourage them with their reading. This is a great opportunity for both TY students and younger students to improve confidence and literacy.
Module Change: Since Christmas, Transition Years students have changed modules. They will have an opportunity to experience different courses to broaden their experience in Transition Year.
THIRD YEAR PARENTS' INFORMATION
An information evening was held on 9thJanuary 2013 for parents of Third Year students. Information was provided for the Transition Year Programme by Mr. Boyle and Ms. Griffith. Information was also offered in relation to Fifth Year and the subject choices available.
COLLEGE APPLICATION DEADLINE
A reminder to Sixth Year parents that the CAO deadline of the 1stFebruary is looming. The reduced application fee of €25 will end on 20thJanuary.
Anyone applying for HEAR, DARE or Carlow Access Programme or the UCD Elite Scholarship must also have their applications completed by February 1st.