What a fantastic occasion we witnessed on Monday!  Our girls' hugely successful season culminated in a well deserved appearance in Croke Park! While the result on the day didn't go our way it's safe to say that the girls and their strong supporters had a great day out in the home of the GAA!
To play in Croke Park was a huge achievement for our girls and they battled to the very end of the game, our captain Mia (0-2) was her usual all action self alongside her midfield partner Alana. Juliette made saves that would make Stephen Cluxton jealous and there were huge performances across the defence of Sarah, Lucy, Caoimhe, Issy, Ríodhna and Grace. Up front the girls battled hard as well, with standout performances from Catherine, Ava, Lucy, Saorla, Daisy and Sophie! The biggest cheer of the day came when substitute Thea stuck her powerful shot into the top corner of the net! All of our girls got to experience playing in Croke Park, including Anna, Aisling, Ailsa, Emily, Thuy, Elaine and Lauren! A notable absentee was Jetta, who made a great impression on her debut in the semi final.
A big thanks to the vocal support from St. Mary's parents, teachers and students that cheered the girls on throughout the game and in many cases throughout the year! It was a huge factor in ensuring that our girls came out of every game smiling.

There is huge excitement in St Mary's this week due to the fact that our excellent ladies' football team have qualified for the county finals in Croke Park! The final is to be played against Scoil Mhuire Clondalkin at 15:30 next Monday 22nd of October. Tickets are €5 and are available to collect at the school reception. This is the first time in the history of St Mary's that a GAA team has made it this far in the competition and they have already done themselves, their families and the school proud. You can read about the girls' progress on their so-far unbeaten run this season on the GAA section of the website. St. Mary's Abú!

​Please Note:
In the unlikely event that an after-school activity has to be cancelled at short notice, you will be notified. Should you not be in a position to collect your child at the normal school closing time, your child will be supervised for the period of the after-school activity.

​3ú M. Fómhair, 2018
​
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian,
I am delighted to welcome you and your children back after the summer holidays. I can’t believe how tall the children have grown – it must have been all the lovely warm sunshine. I wish to extend a special welcome to our 90 new Junior Infants and their parents whom we will accompany on their educational journey. I would also like to welcome the children who have joined us from other schools and you their parents – you have joined a very special school community where we place a strong emphasis on fostering a warm, welcoming and respectful atmosphere in which every child is enabled to reach his/her potential.
Aongus O’ Briain, Innessa Ní Fhearáin and Órla Ní Ghiollagáin have joined the teaching staff of St. Mary’s NS and Máirín Doyle has returned to the staff following a Career Break. I look forward to working with them and I’m sure they’ll be very happy here in St. Mary’s. We are very fortunate to have a committed staff with such a high level of expertise and skill sets which they use to ensure we achieve the highest level of teaching and learning here in St. Mary’s.
We are delighted to welcome our new caretaker Paddy Burke to the staff of St. Mary’s. Paddy has been beavering away for the past few weeks ensuring the grounds and buildings of Belmont Ave and Milltown Park were ready for the staff and pupils on their return to school.
The Board of Management ratified the Administration of Medicines and Emergency Care Policy at the end of the last school year and it is published on the school website. I would ask you to read this policy carefully. I would ask you to read in particular the sections under the title ‘Procedures’ as there are changes in practices relating to children with medical conditions attending the school.
The form for Personal Accident Insurance for School Pupils is available to download on the school website. Please complete and return to your child’s class teacher before 7 September.
It is very important that you complete and submit the Emergency Information Form as soon as possible to ensure that we have your most up to date contact details in the unlikely event we need to contact you during the school day.
 
Extra-curricular activities will be resuming in the near future and you will receive information about all the activities over the next few days.
 
Please see below a few reminders which will ensure a smooth and speedy transition for all our families at this busy time.

• The building in Milltown Park opens at 8:50 am. I would appreciate if you could ensure that your child lines up in the yard before the doors of the school are opened to ensure that teaching and learning can begin promptly at 8:50 am.
• The building in Belmont Ave opens at 9:00 am. Again, it is very important children arrive on time for school.
• The children should wear their school uniforms except on designated PE days. Children are permitted to wear dark shoes or runners (no white soles/ white stripes).
• Please ensure that all clothes and belongings are labelled with your child’s name.
• We ask that you are mindful of blocking resident’s driveways when parking near the school in Belmont.
• Children are not permitted to cycle or scoot in the school yards.
• We ask that parents/guardians do not remain on the school premises between 1:40 and 2:40 pm
• The Milk Scheme will not be in operation this year due to the limited uptake of same in the past number of years.

I look forward to meeting you during the year.  Should you wish to meet with me to discuss any matter, please contact Josephine in the office to schedule a meeting.
Le dea-ghuí,
Anne Purcell.