"Bin It"  Workshop

On Thursday the first year students had a "Bin It" workshop.The aim is to help create an environment free of littered chewing gum. This commitment includes constant work to support education in the importance of responsible litter disposal. Teaching pupils about correct litter disposal helps them learn that they can have a positive influence on their environment by helping to reduce the amount of litter around them. Students who learn about the need to reduce litter become more caring about their environment and gain heightened social responsibility.

“An Triail” 

Pictured above are the sixth year higher level Irish students who attended the production of “An Triail” in the Axis Theatre, Dublin.
On Friday, October 12th, all sixth year higher level Irish students and their teachers, Ms. S Kelly, Ms. Keenan and Ms. Tully attended a production of “An Triail” in Mullingar Arts Centre. On the day Fíbín presented its highly acclaimed version of the modern Irish classic, ‘An Triail’ by Máiréad Ní Ghráda as you have never seen it before! Fíbín addresses issues highlighted by both teachers and students alike, by bringing a seeming outdated plot into the context of modern society using, puppets, masks, engaging visuals and physical performances to appeal particularly to a younger audience, making it current and more accessible. This production goes beyond the black and white nature of the dialogue and helps to overcome these obstacles to learning in a snappy, engaging and humorous show. There is no doubt that this experience will be of great benefit to the girls in both their written and oral Irish exam.

Basketball Update

Pictured above are the Convent of Mercy Senior Basketball Team. Back Row: L-R; Sioda McGuinness, Ava Mc Fadden, Saoirse Gillooly, Hannah Coen, Sinead Early Maria Duarte and Ellen Cafferkey. Front Row: L-R: Ciara Carr, Niamh Fitzgerald and Niamh Cuttle.
Pictured above are the Convent of Mercy Senior Basketball Team. Back Row: L-R: Emma Fahey, Ruby Wang, Emma Brandon, Elaine O’Grady, Eabha Killeen, Katie Hennessy. Front Row: L-R: Shelly Hunt, Kate O’Brien, Orla Connolly, Ciara Martin and Rachel Murray.
This year’s senior basketball campaign is well underway with Convent of Mercy entering two teams in this year’s league competition. The two Roscommon teams (Navy and Blue) were placed together in a pool alongside Abbey Community College Boyle, Coláiste Muire Ballymote and St. Mary’s College Ballysadare. Our Navy and Blue teams faced off against each other in the Sports Hall on October 15th, with the Navy’s taking the spoils in a competitive match. On October 18th Boyle travelled over to face our Blue team and unfortunately the fact they are used to playing a division above us showed as they proved to be too strong for us. Thanks to Ms. Sandra Shanagher for officiating both games. The two teams then travelled to Boyle on October 21st to complete the remaining fixtures in the pool in a blitz format. Our Blue team put up a good fight against both Ballymote and Ballysadare with Orla Connolly, Éabha Killeen, Emma Brandon and Rachel Murray landing a number of baskets. Sadly the opposition had too much for us and the Blues did not make it through to the finals. Whilst our Navy’s came up short against Boyle, they learned a lot from this game and put in 2 excellent performances against Ballysadare and Ballymote, winning 48-11 and 26-14 respectively. The Navy’s put in a massive team effort with all players playing a big part on the day. They now advance to the semi-finals with a date and venue yet to be announced. Navy panel: Sinead Earley, Maria Duarte, Niamh Fitzgerald, Ciara Carr, Ava McFadden, Ellen Cafferkey, Síoda McGuinness, Niamh Cuttle, Saoirse Gillooly, Hannah Coen, Amy Fitzmaurice, Anna Campbell and Reece Higgins. Blue panel: Emma Fahey, Shelly Hunt, Ruby Wang, Laura Finan, Rachel Murray, Saoirse Murray, Éabha Killeen, Kate O’Brien, Orla Connolly, Ciara Martin, Katie Hennessy, Emma Brandon and Elaine O’Grady.

Cadette Basketball

Pictured above are the Convent of Mercy Cadette Basketball team. Back Row: L-R: Roisín O’Brien, Katie Lohan, Sally Bolger, Sinéad Mannion, Taylor Kelly and Leah Casey. Front Row: Orla Cox, Limani Tsatiashvili, Nicole Reaney and Mella Lawless. 
On October 22nd our Cadette basketball team travelled to Sligo to play the first round of league matches against hosts Coláiste Muire Ballymote and Abbey Community College Boyle. First up we took on Boyle. We were slow off the mark in this game and had an uphill battle at the halfway point. A spirited comeback was not enough to get us the win as Boyle came out on top. A strong Ballymote team stood in our way in the next game. Playing two games in a row was a big ask. Taylor Kelly, Limani Tsatiashvili and Nicole Reaney all landed some impressive 2-pointers but the Sligo side came out on top.

Bread Making Workshop

Pictured above at the recently held Bread making workshop are L-R: Holly Harkins, Aoife Parker and Kayla Bruton.
This week the Home Economics Dept. organised a bread making workshop for our transition year students. Master baker Dimitra 'Miki' Dose of ' My Strandhill Bakery' spent a full day mixing, proving, kneading, rolling, plaiting, more proving, glazing and finally baking the most beautiful loaves of Bulgarian Yeast Bread. The girls had fantastic day learning about the age old art of bread making, grain varieties and fermentation. Miki spent some time talking with the students about entrepreneurial skills and starting businesses. It was wonderful to see the students learning such a practical skill and they all left with a beautifully baked loaf of bread and looked deservedly proud of their efforts. The girls would like to thank Ms. Henriques (Home Economics teacher) for organising this workshop.
Pictured above are Transition Year students enjoying the recently held Bread Workshop with Master baker Dimitra 'Miki' Dose of “My Strandhill Bakery”.

Pope John Paul II Awards 2019

Pictured above are Rachel O’Grady (Papal Cross Recipient), Bishop Kevin Doran and Elaine O’Grady (Gold Recipient) at the recent Pope John Paul II Awards Ceremony which was held last week in Summerhill College, Sligo.
Pope John Paul II Awards 2019 were held on Wednesday, October 23rd in Summerhill College, Sligo. The ceremony was attended by Bishop Kevin Doran, Barry McMahon (Deputy Supreme Knight), School Principals, Award Leaders, Teachers, Priests and Parents. Niall McDonagh was the guest speaker and his personal faith testimony and words of encouragement for our young people were greatly appreciated by all in attendance. He explained that his journey to find faith all began when he almost lost his leg due to a horrific sports injury while playing professional football with Crystal Palace F.C. His world came crashing down again when his beloved brother Bernard died at 22 followed shortly by the death of his cousin, Galway hurler Niall Donohue. And just when Niall believed he was at his lowest point, his father lost his cancer battle. Struggling to cope with his grief, Niall admits he had no other choice but to turn to God. He explained that "I couldn't change my circumstances, so in many ways, I was forced to change myself. I began to read the scriptures and I started to develop a relationship with God”. Serious about his faith, Niall started to volunteer with missionaries around the world. Impressed with their charitable work, he then quit his job as a guidance counsellor in Dublin and moved to New York to volunteer with the homeless and drug addicts. He commended the awardees for their service to their communities and urged then to continue doing so.Three of the Awardees, (which included Zara Hunt from our school) shared personally and profoundly about their experience of partaking in the Award. Zara is to be commended for her confident and professional presentation on the night. The John Paul II Award Initiative was launched in the Diocese over seven years ago through the Diocesan Youth Ministry Office. This was made possible by the very generous sponsorship of the Knights of Columbanus who funded the entire cost of the setup and launch of this fantastic initiative. 76 young people received awards on the night representing 24 parishes and 9 post primary schools. The Award is now established and running in 19 Dioceses and supports the Church’s mission in a practical way and facilities the handing on of the Catholic faith to the next generation. In his address on the night Bishop Doran congratulated the young people and thanked them for giving their time and energy to their local parishes, schools and communities. He expressed his hope that through their experience of the Award they would be encouraged to continue to give time to the practice of their faith and service to the community. 
Congratulations to the eight students from our School who received their John Paul II Awards on the night.  This is a wonderful achievement for all the girls and we are very proud of them.  The students had to complete both a Parish and Social activity for a number of weeks as well as completing a written presentation on their activities which included a personal reflection. One student from our school, Rachel O’Grady received the highest honour of achieving the Papal Cross Award, this is a fantastic achievement. Eight girls completed the Gold Award, Anna May Keegan, Jolene Reilly, Elaine O’Grady, Ella Fitzmaurice, Zara Hunt, Evelyn Kilcline, Shona Hanly and Alicia Green. Thanks to Summerhill College, and the Board of Management for making their beautiful new school available. The girls would like to thank their award leaders Mrs. Fitzmaurice and Mrs. O’Brien (Religion teachers) for all their help and encouragement.

All Ireland Schools’ Poetry Winner

Pictured above is sixth year student Niamh Petrie being presented with an All Ireland Schools’ Poetry Award  for her poem entitled: “Girl Versus Male Entitlement: Courtroom Number One” from competition judges Ms. Kate Barry and Mr. Conor Murphy.
Congratulations to Sixth Year Student Niamh Petrie who won an award for her poem entitled: “Girl Versus Male Entitlement: Courtroom Number One. Niamh was presented with her prize at an awards ceremony which was held in the Killeshin Hotel, Portlaoise on Saturday October 12th.

Young St. Vincent De Paul

Pictured above are the members of the Young St. Vincent dePaul who were elected last week in our school. Back Row: L-R: Ava Feeley, Aleksandra Maronska, Limani Tsatiashvili and Ellen Feeley Front Row: L-R: Nicole Reaney and Kawany Marques.
Last week a Young SVP committee was elected in our school.  The girls learned about SVP, Social Justice and how to engage in social action. During the workshop the girls focused on four projects which they hope to work on during this academic year which will improve the lives of others and gain a better understanding of Social Justice. The projects include “Befriending Project”, “Education Project”, “Social Justice Action Project” and “Direct Aid Projects”. These projects will give the girls the opportunity to engage in social action in their local communities and encourages personal and social development in a positive and meaningful way. 

Comhairle Na nÓg A.G.M. 

Pictured above are the Convent of Mercy Students who attended the 2019 Comhairle na nÓg A.G.M. which was held in the Phoenix Youth Centre, Ballaghadereen last week. Back Row: Katie Hennessy, Anna Higgins, Siobhán Rimmer, Carla Leonard and Isabelle Quinn. Front Row: L-R: Laura Finan, Marve Farrell, Niamh Cuttle, Chloe Donoghue and Jade Jeung.
On Tuesday, October 15th, the Roscommon Comhairle na nÓg A.G.M. was held in the Phoenix Youth Centre, Ballaghadereen. Ten students from our school attended the event, Siohhán Rimmer, Katie Hennessy, Niamh Cuttle, Laura Finan, Chloe Donoghue, Anna Higgins, Jade Jeung, Carla Leonard and Isabelle Quinn. Comhairle na nÓg provide a forum for children and young people to discuss local and national issues of relevance to them. Delegates from Comhairle na nÓg are elected to represent their local area at the National Executive. Comhairle na nÓg and the National Executive are recognised as the official structures for participation by children and young people in the development of policies and services. Many local authorities around the country are doing fantastic work with Comhairle na nÓg and involving children and young people in various projects. 

Maths Week

Pictured enjoying the recently held Maths Quiz in the school are Megan Flynn (first year), Emily Regan (first year), Eva Beisty (fifth year) Kaitlin Egan (first year) and Éabha Dolan (fifth year).
Maths Week Ireland 2019 took place from the 14th October –18th October. This is an all-Ireland celebration of maths and is a partnership of over 50 universities, institutes of technology, colleges, schools, museums, libraries, visitor’s centres, and professional bodies – any group that values maths. Maths Week Ireland promotes awareness, appreciation, and understanding of maths through a huge variety of events and activities. The school was a hive of activities last week as it participated in national Maths Week. Students got involved in solving puzzles, looking at the logic in maths and most importantly enjoying the fun side of maths. The week culminated in a monster table quiz where our 5th year Caras (mentors) teamed up with their 1st year Caras. We would like to thank Ms. Kane, Ms. S. Kelly, Ms. R. Kelly and Ms. Tully for organising this event and all the teachers who helped out on the day. Maths Week is all about promoting a positive image of maths. This annual event aims to convince people that maths is not intimidating, but can be enjoyable. It also aims to illustrate that at present, maths graduates are in huge demand, with two-thirds of graduates finding employment immediately after leaving university.
Winners of the Maths Quiz 

First Year Bonding

Pictured above are first year students during their recent bonding trip to Roscommon Omniplex.
On Wednesday, October 16th all first years from our school went to the cinema on a bonding trip. The girls had the opportunity to mix as a year group and get to know each other better. This was followed by a pizza party. The first years thoroughly enjoyed the day and would like to thank all involved in making this day possible, in particular Ms. Kathryn Finn (Career Guidance teacher) who organised the trip to the cinema.

Junior Cert Delight

Pictured above are delighted Transition Year students who received their Junior Cert. results recently. L-R: Amy Fitzmaurice, Muireann O’Brien, Saoirse Murray, Saoirse Gillooly, Medbh Hickey and Orla Cox
Congratulations to the Junior Cert. students of 2019 on their excellent results. 91 students received their results on Friday, October 4th and there were happy faces all around and great satisfaction at the culmination of three years hard work. Thank you to all the teachers for their assistance over the years and the best of luck to all the students as they embark on their senior cycle within our school.

Tag Rugby

Pictured above is Ellen Ryan (1st Year) enjoying the Girls Secondary Schools Tag Rugby blitz which was held last week in Creggs RFC.
On Wednesday, October 3rd, first year students from our school competed in a Girls Secondary Schools Tag blitz in Creggs RFC. Other schools competing on the day were Glenamaddy Community College and Ballygar Community College. The teams played 7 tag matches. Convent of Mercy girls showed great speed and skill on the pitch and thoroughly enjoyed participating on the day. The girls would like to thank Ms. Tully for accompanying them and for all her help with the teams. A big thank you to Creggs CCRO Micheal Glennon for the excellent work he has done in our school.

Debating Workshop

Pictured are Transition year students with Ms. McGuire (English Teacher) at a debating workshop which was held in the Prince of Wales Hotel, Athlone recently. L-R: Saoirse Gillooly, Laura Finan, Ms. McGuire (English Teacher), Emily Feeley, Kawany Marques, Ava Feeley and Medbh Hickey.