It was time to say farewell to our Primary Seven children this year with our Leavers' Assembly taking place this morning. It turned out to be a very tearful event......maybe they think school isn't so bad after all!!!

General Excellence prizes, Reading Awards and Presentation Awards were all handed out, as well as our big three awards, for Contribution to School Life, Effort in Sport and Academic Excellence.

The winners were:

Contribution to School Life:

Newmanda Dunn

Effort in Sport:

Joe Robinson

Academic Excellence:

Rebecca Campbell

The Awards for the June Pupil of the Month were also given out. 

This year we are supporting the charity, “schoolchildren for children.” This charity was chosen by the children in Primary Seven.

This charity promotes fitness in our schools while benefiting disadvantaged children worldwide. You can find out further information on the charity by visiting their website:

www.schoolchildrenforchildren.org

We have organised a fun run/walk for Thursday 1st May 2008 at the Roe Valley Country Park. The course is 2.5 miles in length for children from P4-7, and 1.25 miles for children in P1-3.

Between now and then we will be trying to get fit and stay healthy! We are hoping to raise £20 per family....!

Some of the best secrets stay hidden for a long time, some for a very long time........................and this one is a real belter!

Take a close look at the picture and you may find one of our most devoted Chelsea fans................IN A LIVERPOOL TOP!

This is the best Christmas present Mr Guy could wish for!

  The children in Primary Seven were finally able to breathe a sigh of relief this morning as the second paper of the Transfer procedure was completed.

Those children sitting the tests-and all their classmates-were able to wash away the memory of the ordeal with some rather fine cake!

Poor Kirsty had the pleasure of having to complete the test on her birthday-however, she did get first pick of the cakes!!

The internet has revolutionised many ways of life in the world today, however, many people still have fears and quite rightly are concerned for their child's safety when using the range of resources available online. A new website is now available-with a range of resources and advice not just for parents, but children as well!

Take a look by clicking on the link below:

http://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/

Sadly, after such a good spell of weather, we have been hit by heavy rain yesterday and through the night. The forecasts give more of the same for today, so sadly we have no alternative other than to cancel today's events. Unfortunately this also has to include the P.T.A. Barbeque as well.

The Sports Day events will be run at the next available opportunity-kids should be prepared every day between now and the end of term-our days are limited to get it completed!

Little birdies can fly all the way to Prague you know.........happy birthday to the big guy!

Congratulations again go to our Scientists who have succeeded in reaching the Northern Ireland finals-the second year in a row after last year's team also made it through!

The team had to design and make a travelling object, which would travel down a ramp and over a hill, lighting a warning light as it passed over the hill.

The team will now be travelling to the Odyssey Arena in June where they will compete against finalists from all the other Education and Library Boards.

Anyone recognise either of these two.........

School resumes on Monday morning, and whilst the thought of dragging yourself out of bed might not be too appealing, at least there are some new things happening which may ease the pain!

Monday sees the beginning of cricket practise from 3-4 p.m.

Tuesday sees the introduction of Horse Riding lessons-hopefully everyone is really excited about this!!

On Wednesday Netball coaching continues-and hopefully Judith will make sure the nets are at the right height this time!!!!

On Thursday Drama sessions should be starting-this will be confirmed on Monday, and finally.......

Fridays sees the chidren in Primary 1-3 becoming yogabugs-another first for us!

So, there are plenty of reasons to jump out of bed on Monday morning!

The latest addition to the Dougherty family made a surprise appearance in school today. Arriving barely three days after entering into this world the as yet unnamed young gent displayed impeccable behaviour and his brother and sister were both delighted to see him!

The children in Mr Guy's & Mrs Crosbie's class were treated to a visit from a weird and wonderful selection of animals.

The children have been studying the Animal Kingdom under their study of "Living Things". .

Gareth from the Zoolab company produced a display which captured everyone's attention.

The children had the opportunity to handle a number of the animals-though some such as the tarantula and the scorpion weren't allowed out to play!

(Remember that all the pictures you see here can be enlarged by clicking on them-they will automatically enlarge in a new window!)

As mentioned in our newsletter, this week saw the arrival of two new French friends in our school. Farhaty and Sabrina have joined us from Paris, and will be staying until Easter. Farhaty is working in Mr Guy's class and Sabrina is working in Mrs Crosbie's class.

Farhaty has a background in advertising, whilst Sabrina has a background in European Law. Both girls are keen to be involved with school life, develop the French skills among our own students, and maybe even return to Paris with a Donemana accent!

Happy New Year!!
Monday morning will see us welcome two French students into school. Farhaty Abdillah and Sabrina Amiar will be joining Mr Guy’s and Mrs Crosbie’s classes respectively between now and Easter. As well as helping out within these classes they will also be providing the children with some French lessons. Everyone is looking forward to their arrival and giving them a very warm welcome.
New Website under development:
We are currently in the process of developing a new website. This new website is much easier to update on a frequent basis, and allows children the access to write their own articles and pieces of work. The address currently is :
http://www.donemanaps.com
This is a temporary address which will revert to our old .org.uk address hopefully very soon. Please take a look around the site and if you wish to sign up to it, click on the members link and enter your details. It is hoped that in the future we will be able to notify all members of events in school and even deliver newsletters through e-mail!
Election date revealed:
The election to the Northern Ireland Assembly has been confirmed for Wednesday 7th March 2007. Whilst we have not yet received official notification that we will be used as a polling station, this has traditionally been the case. We anticipate that this will be the same for this election, and therefore school will be closed on this date. We will inform parents as soon as we have any official confirmation.
New Money Envelopes:
Every family in school will be today receiving  a new school money wallet. There is a huge amount of time being wasted in school every week sorting out the various amounts of money that we have to collect. We would ask that these envelopes are used:

• For each individual child (not money for an entire family);
• With the correct change;
• Clearly labelled and identified;
• That dinner money is paid on a Monday morning.

Further wallets of the envelopes will then be available to purchase for the nominal price of £2 per wallet. Each wallet contains 40 envelopes. They can be purchased from Margaret.
Building Work:
The building work which has been going on for what seems like forever, is now nearing completion and we hope will be over soon!
Transfer Test results:
The results of the Transfer Tests will be revealed to all those children who took it this weekend. We hope everyone achieves what they were hoping for! Regardless of results, all those children who took part worked extremely hard and should be congratulated for this and look forward to next year-whatever tomorrow’s outcome!
World Book Day-FANCY DRESS:
It’s coming soon…….

MARCH 1st 2007