ColáisteChill Mhantáin
HEALTHY LIVING WEEK
First Year Home Economics students had the opportunity to sample a variety of foods in class during Healthy Living Week. This allowed them to experience what they have learned in class around some of the different food commodities for themselves. It also assisted the students in developing their vocabulary for sensory analysis.
Thank you to SuperValu, Wicklow for kindly donating fruit to the school in support of Healthy Living Week. It went down a treat with students as part of their healthy breakfast in school last week.
CELEBRITY CHEF
First Year Home Economics students and JCSP students had an excellent day on Tuesday with Celebrity Chef Louise Lennox from RTÉ’s the Restaurant. Throughout the day the different groups watched and helped Louise cook popcorn chicken with a healthy ranch and avocado dressing served in lettuce boats and quinoa and butter bean burger wraps served with a Greek yoghurt and cucumber dressing, all of which was quickly eaten up by the students and teachers.
All of the students seemed to really enjoy the interactive demonstration and also learned lots of tips and tricks in the process. Hopefully we will see Louise back in Coláiste Chill Mhantáin next year. Many thanks to the JCSP scheme for the funding of this initiative.
SUSTAINABLE EDUCATION
For three weeks in January, Jim Kirwan, who works with Gorta-Self Help Africa, has been doing workshops with all Transition Year students. Each TY class attended three two-hour-long workshops where a variety of topics were discussed. The topics were Sustainable Agriculture, Climate Change, Gender Inequalities and Fair Trade.
In Sustainable Agriculture students discussed the different methods and systems that farmers in Africa use, how they support themselves and one another through farmers’ co-operatives, and local credit unions and the differences between the small family run farms in Africa and the large company-owned farms in America. They discussed the causes and effects of Climate Change on the environment, and watched a video on carbon dioxide emissions.
When learning about Gender Inequalities, students discussed stereotypes. To do this, they were divided into four groups. Two suggested stereotypes regarding boys, and two about girls. These common stereotypes were then compiled and discussed. Students carried out a survey on whether more males or females did a selection of 10 household chores in our homes; in most cases, females did the chores far more often than males.
Students also learned about the Gender Inequalities in developing countries, including how women are often in arranged marriages, and the inequality in both work and education. They also filled out a questionnaire at the start of the first workshop based on their prior knowledge and, again, at the end of the last workshop to see if they have learned any more. The workshops were interesting and engaging and prompted students to think about issues they normally wouldn’t consider.
The presentations were fascinating and Jim had plenty of stories about his experiences in Africa which tied in with all the pictures from his travels. We would like to thank Jim for giving of his time and for facilitating such a worthwhile experience for the students. (REPORT BY KAYLEIGH CLARE MALONE, TY2)
DEBATING
On Wednesday, January 25, our Coláiste Chill Mhantáin debating team had their second round debate against Gaelcholáiste na Mara. The team made up of Joshua Moore, Dylan Geoghegan and Conor Hogan were proposing the motion ‘Ireland is failing to take action on climate change’. The boys spoke passionately but, unfortunately, they were just pipped to the post by the opposition. It was a hard-fought battle and the boys are disappointed not to progress to the next round of the competition.
MATHS RESEARCH LESSON
On Wednesday, January 18, some third Year Maths students were involved in a Research Lesson developed by some of our maths teachers. This lesson provided an opportunity for the teachers to engage with teachers in other schools who were all involved in this collaborative initiative. Our teachers have been working on this lesson since September and this research lesson will be presented at the maths teachers’ conference in Maynooth in March.
The aim of the lesson was to encourage students to recall their prior knowledge which they have gained from previous lessons to attempt a more challenging question. Students were required to apply a variety of methods to solve more complex problems, use their imagination to interpret three dimensional shapes and discuss different methods and listen to other students as they explained their way of problem solving.
One of the major challenges of the lesson was for the student to interpret a three dimensional shape by the use of a two dimensional shape. The students needed to take out a right-angled triangle to begin to discover more information about the three-dimensional shape. In doing this, the students needed to use their imagination and develop their creative thinking skills. On the day the students happily embraced the task and came up with three different methods to solve the problem.
TECHNOLOGY AWARD
Coláiste Chill Mhantáin has been successful in its bid to be selected as a ‘Pioneer School’ as part of the Ultimaker Pioneer Challenge. Ultimaker is the world’s leading 3D Printer manufacturers and set up a program to offer 10 places, within the UK and Ireland, as a Pioneer School.
As part of the selection process the school put forward the ‘One trolley at a time’ project as a basis for their selection. The project was originally part of the ‘Sci-fest’ Science competition within the school. ‘One trolley at a time’ was the brainchild of a number of Fifth Year students, headed by Trinity Dockery, and was based around a prototype design of a foldable shopping trolley. The competition involved schools from throughout Ireland, Northern Ireland, and the UK and submitting entries about the use of 3D Printing Technology to increase knowledge, boost creativity and develop key skills in several different subjects from maths to Engineering to art and beyond.
On Friday last, the School was represented at the British Educational Training and Technology (BETT) Show in London where it was announced that Coláiste Chill Mhantáin was the sole Irish recipient of an Ultimaker 3D Printer, fending off stiff competition from throughout Ireland and the British Isles.
As part of the Pioneer Program, Mr McVicar will now be listed among the ranks of educational 3D printing ‘Pioneers.’ By encouraging these contributors to share resources such as 3D printing lessons, programs, labs, and classroom experiences, it is envisaged that the program will facilitate collaboration and innovation among educators, eventually culminating in a series of modern curricula which teachers can use to effectively bring 3D printers into the classroom.
GAELIC FOOTBALL
FIRST YEAR – Coláiste Chill Mhantáin 7-6 Avondale Community College 2-4: the CCM First Year Boys’ Gaelic Football team enjoyed a comprehensive victory over Avondale in a high scoring game at the Wicklow GAA Centre of Excellence in Ballnakill.
CCM enjoyed an excellent start to the game, going 1-1 to no score ahead after just a few minutes. Avondale responded immediately with 1-1 of their own to equalise the game, however CCM soon regained their composure and led for the rest of the match. The midfield pairing of Ross Quinn and Ryan Beale proved instrumental in CCMs success. The duo were completely dominant in securing possession from kick outs and providing the launch pad for CCMs attack. Kevin Leonard also had an excellent game at centre half forward, while Jake Brady, Tom Hodgkinson, Jack Hayden Moorehouse and William Moorehouse worked tirelessly in attack too, all of whom chipped in with at least a goal apiece.
While it’s fair to say CCMs back line weren’t as busy as their team mates in attack, they managed to provide an exhibition in the art of defending when called upon. John O’Brien and Mark Evans were first to every ball, and Thang Tran Quoc was equally impressive with his tireless work rate.
COUNTY SCHOOLS – Hard luck to the County Schools’ team who were defeated by St Peter’s by a narrow scoreline. Well done to Andrew Earls, who represented Coláiste Chill Mhantáin on the day.
JUNIOR GIRLS SOCCER
Hard Luck to the Coláiste Chill Mhantáin Junior Girls’ Soccer team who were beaten by Gorey Community School in the first league match. Although improving their performance as the game progressed, Gorey proved too strong on the day for the CCM girls.
SENIOR GIRLS SOCCER
Well done to the CCM Senior Girls’ Soccer team who played their final group match against St Kilian’s Bray last Thursday. With two devastating defeats to date, the girls needed a win to boost their confidence more than anything else. Two goals from Sophie Richardson and one from Lucy Hobbs gave the CCM girls a well-deserved win with a scoreline of 3-1.
Captain Natasha Fitzgerald, Lucy McGettigan, Zara Browne, Weronika Kuzio and Louise Healy all gave dedicated performances for the duration of the game. Well done and, although progression from the group is doubtful, it was a valuable win for the girls.
CROSS COUNTRY
EAST LEINSTER ATHLETICS CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS: Last Thursday in Avondale, Coláiste Cill Mhantáin Athletics Club had a great turnout consisting of twenty two runners. Up first were the Junior Boys. Daniel Murphy had one of the runs of the day, fighting up till the line to gain an excellent third place in a field of over 150 runners. Dylan O’Donovan gave an exhibition of endurance by quickly following Daniel home in 12th place, earning himself qualification for the Leinster Cross Country Championships in February too.
The rest of the Junior Boys’ team showed great performances, overcoming the tough conditions to represent themselves very well. The Inter Boys had to face one of the toughest fields of the day, one where 200 runners took to the line. Joseph O’Shea went out at a fast pace and kept it consistent to come home in third, followed home by his brother Thomas in 22nd place. James Byrne from TY1 was the only entrant from CCM in the Senior Boys 5k. James dictated a fast pace from the start and stayed consistent throughout to hold himself in 11th position earning himself a qualification to the Leinsters.
Aimee Bell King secured sixth spot in the Minor Girls’ A race, followed closely home by her sister in 15th just getting in for the last qualification spot. The last two qualifiers were Finn Egan Barron in 12th and Jack O’Neill in 14th sealing the final two spots on the bus for Santry in February.
Overall the group were a very positive bunch of students who showed great encouragement for each other and a big thanks to Jack Dunne and Aaron Byrne, who assisted throughout the day also. A great day for the school and for Athletics in CCM.