OUR POLICIES
- All Policies are currently being updated and redrafted
Our school facilitates the use of playground equipment. The Active School Flag Committee are responsible for bringing out and returning the P.E. equipment for each break time.
Our Active School Walkway is situated along our school yard and around our play tunnel. In June 2022, we were fortunate to have our Walkway fully tarmacked. We use our Walkway route throughout the year to promote physical activity in all kinds of weather.
Our ‘Active Break Every Day’ whole school challenge commenced on 15th November. All classes completed the 4 weeks. The children got more than one movement break as they did running, exercises and even learned a line dance. On the wet days the children did a go noodle/just dance movement break. The teachers saw a big improvement in the pupils ability to concentrate after a break. The pupils enjoyed it so much some classes continued the movement break throughout the year.
Each class completed a ‘Run a Day’ challenge, as a whole school initiative, over a 4 weeks this year. The Junior side of the school did ‘DEAR’ – Drop Everything And Run. Everyday the pupils ran around the whole school. They started off with a lap or two for the first week, then slowly built up the number of laps until we got to 10 laps around the school. The pupils were very proud of their achievement in the end.
3rd to 6th Class participated in Marathonkids Ireland 2022, which started in February and continued for 8 weeks. A new topic was covered every week throughout the programme. This included learning about the physical, mental and social benefits of exercise and the role of hydration and nutrition. A new warm up exercise was also demonstrated by the playground leaders to the classes at the end of small break before the daily run. The students looked forward to their run every day and enjoyed keeping a record of their progress towards the ultimate goal of running a marathon. In May, a representative from the Limerick Sports Partnership visited Meenkilly to recognise the achievement of the students. The students were also awarded with t-shirts and medals to mark the occasion.
National Walking Day
To celebrate National Walking Day with all of Europe the pupils of Meenkilly National School walked the Caher Ring 5KM as a whole school activity. We admired the view along the Wild Atlantice Way and all the nature and fauna had to offer. Our Junior and Senior Infants completed the walk with a cheerful bualadh bos at the end from a very supportive senior end of the school. The atmosphere was electric.
European School Sports Day was a great success. The pupils studied selected countries from Europe, presented a project and made flags for our parade. The children also learned how to say ‘hello’ in different languages.
The pupils enjoyed a range of activities to keep them moving. We started with an introduction to a new sport that is unusual as is recommended. We learned how to play Frisbee Fluency. The pupils learned how to throw and catch the frisbee and all about the rules of the game.
We continued with some balloon relays, Wacky Waiter Relay – building Tessellation Shape Pattern and Crazy Card Shuffle. The Active School Committee were fantastic leaders on the day. They organised equipment and directed the children in how to play each game.
Our Student Council organised this event giving everyone a country, including the staff. Pupils were asked to dress up in their country’s colours or research 3 facts about the country.
On Friday Morning the 16th November, we were delighted to meet all our teammates and display our team colours. Pupils also played a soccer game between each team. The competition was fierce as the talent was high. A wonderful morning enjoyed by all.
