Newpark Newsletter - April 2016

April 2016, Issue 48

Celebration Day 29th February 2016 1

Mr Derek Lowry

Four Newpark Principals on Celebration Day

The official opening and subsequent celebrations on Monday 29th February were a huge success and a testament to a great collaboration of students, parents and teachers working together to give everyone who attended a special experience which will live long in the memory. I have been very heartened by the number of visitors who have written or emailed about the atmosphere and warmth of the occasion.

The open viewing of the school building on Saturday 27th February was very successful too with a consistent flow of visitors coming in through the morning. All those students who gave tours of the building did a superb job and impressed all with their confident and open manner and their friendliness.

They were supported by the tireless members of the PTA whose capacity for hard work knows no bounds.

We are indebted to all the staff, students and parents who assisted over the two days and I want to thank them all for their contribution to such a great occasion. The spirit and ethos of Newpark is alive and well in its new home.

Now we move on into a new era. Next August another 144 students will start in the school. They will be the first year group who will start on the campus without any building work in progress. We must continue to ensure that all these students benefit from what the school can offer them across the academic, sporting and artistic areas.

The present 1st and 2nd years are the first to study the new Junior Cycle course starting with English. The rollout of the new course has been fraught with difficulty due to the significant industrial relations issues which have culminated in the Teachers Union of Ireland agreeing to implement the new Framework while the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland have continued to oppose aspects of the new proposals. In dual union schools such as our own this has created a situation where within the same departments some teachers will have availed of continuous professional development (CPD) on offer 2

and others not. This is a most unsatisfactory position and it is to be hoped that a resolution will be found in the very near future.

Next September the new Junior Cycle Science and Business courses will be rolled out and be taken up by students for the first time. Consequently during the summer term a significant number of our English, Science and Business teachers will be absent for one day at least to undertake training in the delivery of the new courses. This will put significant strain on the resources of the school in terms of substitution but every effort will be made to minimise the impact on teaching and learning. This level of CPD training is something over which the school does not have control as the days and number of teachers are determined by the Junior Cycle for Teachers CPD organisers.

As the new Junior Cycle is rolled out it will offer students many new opportunities to demonstrate more of their skills and to have those skills recognised in a way which has not been possible up to now.

The Mock exams are complete and students have received their results. It is important for all students to carefully consider their results and especially to consider the advice of their teachers in relation to the levels they should take. For those students who may be disappointed with their results, a focused approach to study during the remaining months can make a substantial impact on the potential results. Everyone is capable of improving on the performance in the Mock exams.

Finally I can announce that Newpark is one of forty schools selected to pilot the new Leaving Certificate course in Politics and Society. Over 120 schools nationwide applied to be part of the pilot project so it is very pleasing that the school has the opportunity to offer this year’s TY students the chance to do this new course. I would like to thank Ms O’Dwyer and Mr Holmes for their work in putting together the successful application to be part of the pilot scheme. The strong tradition of Newpark in CSPE and the presence of Philosophy, Development Education and Anthropology in the TY programme over the years played a significant part in achieving this result.

There are four strands studied in the subject specification: Power and Decision making Active Citizenship Human Rights and Responsibilities Globalisation and Localisation The course is very much discussion based and I hope it will be a very interesting and challenging one for those students who choose to do it.

Having thoroughly celebrated our new building, here’s to a happy and productive summer term for all of our Newpark community.

Proclamation Day 2016 On Tuesday 15th March Proclamation Day was celebrated in schools around Ireland In Newpark the whole school stopped to reflect as we listened to this speech by teacher Gearóidín O’Dwyer

At four minutes past noon on Easter Monday 1916 outside the GPO, Pádraig Pearse read the Proclamation and declared Ireland to be a Republic.

The 1916 Rising is widely remembered as a rebellion against something… against English rule but it was much more than that. It was very much a fight for something….a fight for the right to establish a Republic where we, as a nation, could be independent, control our own destiny and be true to our values and cultural identity. In the Proclamation the leaders of the Rising state their vision - a country that promised religious and civil liberty for all its citizens, equal rights and equal opportunities for all, the right to pursue happiness and prosperity for all the nation; a commitment to cherish all the children of the nation equally.

Today, 100 years on, we remember the leaders of the 1916 Rising: Pádraig Pearse, James Connolly, Thomas Clarke, Thomas MacDonagh, Seán McDermott, Joseph Plunkett and Éamonn Ceannt along with the hundreds of other Irish men and women who were willing to die for that vision. We remember also the many other men, women and children – Irish and English - who died during the Rising.

100 years is a very short time in the life of a nation. We still have a long way to go and many challenges to overcome but we should also be proud of and remember all that we have achieved. For a country with a tiny population of just over four and a half million we have made an incredible mark on the world…

We produced eight Nobel Prize winners and European, World and Olympic champions in too many sports to list.

We invented the submarine, the torpedo, google maps and milk chocolate.

We discovered why the sky is blue, explored the South Pole, gave the world the Beatles, U2, Walt Disney and Mohammad Ali as well as 22 American Presidents.

We are famous worldwide as a nation of poets, storytellers and musicians, for our friendliness, generosity and innovation, and our national holiday, St. Patrick’s Day is the most celebrated national holiday in the world!

Every day I relish the freedom which independence and democracy allow me and allow our country…the freedom to be proud of who we are as a people and to reach our full potential as a nation rich in culture, language and tradition. The visit of Queen Elizabeth five years ago showed that being Irish no longer means hating Britain but loving Ireland and all we have to offer.

Today we are invited to remember the past, celebrate the present and imagine the future.

With that in mind, as we think about the next

hundred years, I am going to finish with a quote.

Although these words could have come from Pádraig Pearse, Martin Luther-King, Nelson Mandela, or any other leader with a vision for his or her nation, they were actually spoken by Conor McGregor:

Never give up on your dream Be your own inspiration A beacon of self-belief If your dream doesn’t scare you it’s not big enough So dream as big as you dare…..

If we as Irish citizens do that, and create a true Republic then we will do justice to the memory of those who died for our freedom and really have something to celebrate.

The Head Boy will now raise our national flag at the front of the school and our Head Girl will place the flag beside the Proclamation in the GPA. We ask everyone to please stand for our National Anthem.

Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.

Ms O’Dwyer

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Green Schools Committee

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Green School’s goal is to help make our school as eco-friendly as possible. We have put stickers on the correct light switches in each classroom to show everyone the right one to use. This is to help us save energy in the school, instead of wasting it. Before there was a lot of fiddling and lights flashing on and off.

Now the green sticker indicates which switch switches all of the lights on and off. Teachers can use the switch by the board to control the light immediately above them when they are using the projector.

We’re chuffed with the erection of the new flagpoles.

You may have thought that they would be included in the plan of the new build, but alas no, and it was our persistence that brought them into being so that we could fly our Green Flag, and let everyone know of our accomplishments. The flag was hoisted on Thursday 25th February—just in time for the Opening Ceremony.

Huge congratulations again to all who played a role in making this happen.

We have also done temperature audits around the school. The first was before the heating was on in September, so it assessed the quality of ventilation really. Many rooms were around 25 degrees! The second was in January, and we found that much of the school is too hot in winter also. Mr Lowry has taken the audit documents to consult the engineers from the building management team on how to improve this.

Two competitions have been run.

The first was making Halloween decorations out of waste, and Liza Kurevleva (2CH) won for her very impressive skeleton made out of numerous drinks cans.

The second was a Christmas decoration competition and was won by Lara Jennings-Barr from 1CBR. Very well done!

Cool pictures of Leonardo diCaprio and Patrick Stewart were put up in the toilets, encouraging us to keep them clean, and especially not to waste toilet paper. We’ve taken them back down because the impact was always meant to be short and sweet. There were noticeable improvements, and there is no doubt everyone prefers to go into cleaner and tidier cubicles, so keep it up!

We try to make everybody as aware as possible so we have given presentations so far to 1 st, 2nd, 3rd

and 4th years explaining what Carbon Footprint is, and how we can make less of an impact on the environment. Daniel Hatter has written about his experience presenting this. The First Years had an additional workshop from the Bin It Roadshow. It was highly entertaining. Littering is clearly just laziness and copying other lazy people like unthinking sheep.

Just in time for the Climate Summit in Brussels we added ourselves to the Facebook Campaign with a ‘Cop on Enda’ photograph. We will continue to support such initiatives, and spread the word about relevant protests and petitions. Our own Facebook page is now live (see details below) and all are welcome to check it out, contribute to it, and stay informed.

While the Climate Summit was a success, promises aren’t often kept (look at the Millennium Development Goals) so individuals need to do their bit, and need to continue to be activists lobbying for Green Energy for everyone, world over. If you’re motivated and passionate about this, do join Green Schools.

Come meet the committee in T5 at lunch time on Mondays.

Sabrael Svobodo 4AK and Ms Achari

Green School Facebook We are excited to announce the launch of our Facebook page! We invite you to like and follow us.

It is updated regularly with news both Irish and Global. We will also provide regular updates about the Green Schools.

You can also contact us via facebook with any questions you have. Simply follow the QR code or link www.facebook.com/NPGSC/

Green Halloween When a Halloween decoration out of recyclable materials competition was suggested during a Green Schools meeting I had the idea to make a skeleton out of an odd can collection I’ve had for a while. It was only when I was going home that day that I realised I had no clue how to make it. So I just started on making the basic shape. I laid out cans on my floor making it look as much as a skeleton as I could. When I was happy with it I took a while figuring out how to tie the cans together; I went with using shoelaces in the end. I poked holes in the cans with a screwdriver and then tied them to one another with shoelaces from old shoes.

I didn’t have much time so I very well remember it being 1a.m. on the day I had to bring the decoration in; my whole family was trying to sleep, and I was stabbing cans with a screwdriver, making a ton of noise. I got a lot of odd looks when I entered the school that day holding a can skeleton that was about my height. Ms Achari and Mr Kirwan hung the skeleton up amazingly well and it was quite fun to hear the things some people said about it.

Liza Kurevleva 2CH

Green Schools Expo 2016 Following the raising of the Green Flag over Newpark two students, Daniel Hatter and Louis Roche, went to attend the Green Schools Expo on behalf of Newpark.

The Expo was an opportunity for Green Committees from all over Ireland to display and showcase their work and what they have achieved.

New committees (like ours) used this opportunity to learn about what is ahead and what we can look forward to in our future. Twenty-three schools gave presentations on the six concepts of Green Schools: waste, water, energy, travel, biodiversity and global citizenship.

We had a great time and the presentations were brilliant. It inspired us and gave us ideas about what we can do in the future.

To read more follow this link.

Climate Talk

During the first half of this year members of Green Schools Newpark gave presentations to the First to Fourth Years about the effect we have on our environment. We wanted to focus on how we as individuals affect our environment and how we can help to protect it for the sake of all of us.

We focused on how Ireland is being affected NOW by climate change. People’s lives are being hurt NOW. This is evident by the many storms that have been battering our nation recently. Climate change will cause storms like these to become more frequent.

We hope we have given people a greater awareness of how climate change affects our planet and things we can do to help save it. We also help people have fewer misconceptions about the slow destruction of Earth caused by humanity.

Daniel Hatter 3AL

Raising the First Green Flag On the 25th of February flags were flown for the first time outside the new school building.

The three flags were the Trídhathach na hÉireann, the Green Flag and a Newpark School banner.

Mr Lowry and the Green Committee attended the ceremony, with many people observing from the yard. Daniel Hatter of the Green Committee (with help from the caretaking staff) raised the flags.

It was great to raise the flags outside the new building. It gave many members of the Green Committee a sense of completion when we saw the green flag flying for the first time.

The Green Committee put a lot of hard work into getting this first flag and we would like to thank all the people in Newpark who worked hard to help with this achievement.

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BT Young Scientist 2016

exhibition is a fantastic experience and I would really urge anyone with an interest in science to enter a project next year, and to start thinking of ideas now— it’s a big commitment, and involves a lot of work on top of schoolwork, but it’s well worth it and you get so much out of it.

Jemima Turner 5LT

Team Maths Table Quiz 2016

At the beginning of January this year I took part in the BT Young Scientist Exhibition in the RDS, the third year I have taken part. My project, entered in the Senior Individual, Chemical, Physical and Mathematical Science category, was titled “A structural analysis of antimalarial molecules from natural sources”. For my project I studied the chemistry and molecular structure of almost two hundred different chemicals from a variety of plants which had been found to be antimalarial, and compared this to around a hundred similar compounds that had been found not to be antimalarial, to see what properties contribute to making chemicals antimalarial.

My project was mostly computer-based and involved finding lists of chemicals from different scientific studies, finding out their chemical structures (available free online from a variety of chemistry and pharmaceutical databases) and using different software programmes to analyse their properties. A lot of work went into the project but I found it all really interesting, especially when it came to analysing my results. One of my main results was that chemicals with different types of rings in their structures were more likely to be antimalarial. I also identified a number of common substructures that were linked with a high level of antimalarial activity. This information could potentially be used in the development of new drugs for malaria.

I really enjoyed every aspect of the competition – the four days are incredibly tiring, but the atmosphere is brilliant and everyone is so interesting to meet. I really enjoyed talking to my judges, but also to all the members of the public who visit the exhibition. I was able to talk to people with a particular interest in the subject matter of my project, including a Kenyan molecular biologist working on a vaccine for malaria, scientists working in the pharmaceutical industry and people involved in development work. Of course, it’s also fascinating to talk to other students and hear about their projects.

I won the Eli Lilly award for the project with the best chemistry content, as well as being highly commended, which I was delighted about. Overall, the 6

The Team Maths Table Quiz is an annual event sponsored by the Irish Maths Teachers Association for Leaving Cert students. This year’s quiz took place on Friday 29 January at Rathdown School Glenageary.

Teams of four from schools across the Dublin area participated in this highly competitive event.

Newpark fielded two strong teams—Aron Gordan, Leo Kurevlev, Robert Meagher and Claire Mullen made up Team 1. Due to a last minute cancellation, Team 2 was forced to compete with just three team members—Jonah Byrne, Eoghan Cunningham and Kacper Twardowski.

As with previous years, the timing of the event was excellent (Friday night before the start of the mocks) so the Newpark students were able to combine an enjoyable night out with a little bit of maths revision! Ms Lawless was on hand to support the teams and the Newpark students did themselves proud. Well done to all participants!

Ms Ellen Lawless

Business Award On Tuesday 9th February Transition Year students Grace Banks and Elisabeth Manning were awarded for their excellent achievement in the Junior Certificate Business Studies 2015 examination. The presentation ceremony took place in Maynooth University, with over 95 schools from all over Ireland represented.

Congratulations Grace and Elisabeth on this fantastic accomplishment!

Ms Ger Cloney

Sci Fest 2016 comes to Newpark This year Sci Fest took place at Newpark on Wednesday the 20th and Friday the 22 nd of January in the General Purpose Area. Sci-Fest is a science competition that many schools can enter with the first round taking place in the individual participating schools. It’s all about showcasing your own scientific discoveries, with a chance to progress further into the competition.

All of First Year were excited to enter and hoped to win. We began researching a few weeks earlier, taking advantage of the well-equipped science labs. It was great to take on our own choice of projects, and to reach conclusions based on our results.

We made posters showing what we had discovered and displayed them around the GPA, which was decorated and had a large display of prizes. It was great fun, with some really impressive entries!

Ellen Connolly 1MBD

What water works best?

One of the prize winning Sci Fest projects

For our experiment for Sci Fest, we decided to see what water works best for plant growth. We got three containers and planted wheatgrass in them, using tap water for one, stream water for another and bottled water for the last.

We found that bottled water worked best, probably because of the dissolved minerals in it.

Second place went to the stream water. This was probably because of the mineral content, but maybe it didn’t grow as well as with the bottled water because chemicals could have gone into the stream. Third was the tap water. This might be because of the chlorine and fluoride in it.

We based our results on the colour, height and thickness of the wheatgrass in each container. It was really enjoyable doing this project.

Ulyana Kuzmenco and Liadin Murray, First Year

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Senior Boys Bring Home League Title The senior boy’s hockey team got their reward for their hard work and dedication this season when they picked up the Senior B League title on Wednesday 4 th February.

Having beaten Sutton Park, King’s Hospital, St. Andrew’s Bs and Sandford, drawing with High School and losing narrowly (2-1) to eventual A league winners Wesley, the team finished second in the group level on thirteen points with High School. This resulted in a tense play-off against High School, with a place in the A League semi-finals on offer. In an exciting game the lads were narrowly beaten by the Rathgar school and despite having the upper hand for much of the second half the game finished 3-2. The disappointment of that result had to be quickly forgotten about as the team faced a tough trip to Kilkenny for the B league semi. With the game not going to plan, the lads showed great character to come back from 2-0 down at half time to salvage a 2-2 draw, sending the game to penalty strokes.

Goalkeeper Ben Mayberry saved all three of Kilkenny’s strokes and the Newpark players kept their cool, winning the shootout 3-0 and setting up a final date with Mount Temple.

The final was a mouth-watering encounter between two evenly matched teams. Mount Temple three times took the lead, only for the Newpark boys to peg them back each time. As the game went on Newpark became more and more dominant but Mount Temple always looked dangerous on the counterattack. Newpark’s first goal came from a deft deflection from Ewan Ramsay, with Luke Adams firing in from close range for the second. And it was Adams who again popped up for the third smashing a volley expertly into the top right-hand corner, for what was the pick of the goals. That equaliser sent the game into a tense ten-minute period of extra time in which Newpark created numerous opportunities to put the game to bed, even hitting the post late on. No goals in extra time sent the game to penalty strokes and again Ben Mayberry was the hero, saving all three of Mount Temple’s strokes, while Herbie Fowler-Hudson, Luke Adams and captain Daire Hibbert showed composure beyond their years to seal a 3-0 shootout win and bring the league title back to Newpark after a five year wait.

This win is made all the more impressive considering the fact that there are only four Sixth Years in the squad; the future is bright.

This group of players has showed incredible commitment all season and it is brilliant to see how much they’ve improved since September.

Simon Lowry, Coach

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Minor 1 Champions

The season came to an exciting and dramatic end for the Minor A hockey team this year. A brilliant run of form in the league meant that they topped their group unbeaten thanks to great team performances and excellent goal keeping from Dervla Young and Emily Keogh between the posts.

The final, held in Three Rock Rovers, was packed out with supporters from both Newpark and Our Lady’s Terenure. The match got under way with Terenure immediately pressing high, putting Newpark under pressure. It wasn’t long before goalkeeper Emily Keogh was called into action to save a strike from close range. Both sides looked nervous from the onset as every tackle and pass was met with roars and cheers from the schools’ supporters.

In the second half, Newpark came out of the blocks fired up, pushing higher. The very impressive Milly Lynch was causing Terenure all sorts of trouble with her blistering runs up the pitch, beating countless players as she went, much to the delight of the Newpark supporters. While the Terenure keeper made some good saves to keep the score at 0-0, Jess Whelan in centre back was also forced to make some important tackles for Newpark as Terenure looked dangerous on the counter attack. At the end of normal and extra time, it was still 0-0, meaning it went to 1v1s—this is where the attacker, who has to start on the 23 metre line, has eight seconds to try to score against the goal keeper.

Captain Aoife Grogan showed great leadership as she stepped up to take the 1v1, skilfully rounding the keeper and calmly placing the ball in the back of the net. A penalty goal for Zoe Watterson paired with three brilliant saves from Emily Keogh meant that Ava Paul stepping up to take her 1v1, had a chance to win the match. Although her shot was initially saved by the Terenure keeper, she showed great experience and quick thinking to take the rebound, lifting the ball easily over the goalie and winning the league for her team. A well deserved win to end a fantastic season, massive congratulations to all the girls involved on a great achievement!

Special thanks to Twila Cooper, Kate Rushe, Carl Breaden and Emer Grogan for all the work that went on behind the scenes.

Anna Richardson, Coach

League Win for Juniors

The Junior boys hockey team rounded off a successful season by beating Wesley 3-1 in their league final. In a relatively even first half the score remained 0-0 although both teams created plenty of opportunities.

Wesley broke the deadlock soon into the second half with a well worked effort finding the baseline followed by a neat switch which caught the Newpark defence off

guard. From then on it was all Newpark. With wave after wave of attacks it felt like a goal was coming and after a lot of pressure the boys in blue were rewarded with a fine goal from a corner rebound by Mathew Jungmann. A twelve minute salvo saw two more goals added in quick succession, Mathew Jungmann getting his second while Ewan Ramsay made the game safe with the third and final goal.

The Juniors had a good season this year and were lucky to have a very large squad to choose from.

The team included players from 2nd, 3rd and 4th year which means that most of the players will have another year at Junior level next season. Many thanks to coach Mark Cullen who has worked tirelessly once again to help Newpark hockey go from strength to strength.

A special mention must go to all the Newpark players who achieved representation this year including Luke Adams and Ewan Ramsay (Leinster and Ireland) and Mathew Jungmann and Oisín O’Sullivan (Leinster).

Carl Breaden, Newpark Hockey

First Year Boys

This was the first year in a long time that we had sufficient players to put two 1 st year boys’ teams into the Leinster Leagues. Turnout at training has been excellent all year and everyone has worked really hard on improving their skills and technique.

The 1st year As qualified for the semi-finals of the A League and were narrowly defeated by St Andrew’s. The boys had to repeat this the following week as they met St Andrew’s in the first round of the Cup. Another ding dong battle ensued with Newpark creating the lion’s share of the chances, cheered on by plenty of fans (parents and students). Unfortunately we couldn’t convert the chances into goals and St Andrew’s got the better of us once more in a very close match.

The Bs also had a very good season, competing very well in all their matches in the U13 South League.

The team has developed really well under the stewardship of coach Mr Kirwan. The numbers look very promising for next year and the challenges that await in the minor leagues.

Carl Breaden, Coach

First Year Girls Hockey is going really well this year for the First and Second Year girls. Both teams are strong and have won most of their games. There are plenty of players and it’s been a lot of fun. The second Year A team won their league.

Six girls have been selected for the Leinster development trials which has added to the fun and excitement. Congratulations and best of luck to Ellen Connolly, Jennifer Sheeran, Lily Adams Iona Phillips, Zoe Watterson and Milly Lynch.

Zoe Watterson & Milly Lynch 1 DOF

Many thanks from all the Newpark teams to all those who come to cheer us on!

Hockey photos by Carl Breaden

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East Leinster Cross-Country Championship Avondale House, Rathdrum, Co. Wicklow, Wednesday, 20th January, 2016

It was a lovely crisp day for running.

The course was hilly (especially for the intermediate and senior boys) and this was proper cross country, with some narrow stretches and some muddy patches but all in all a lovely course.

There were thirteen students competing for Newpark from first year to fifth year. In each event the top fifteen athletes qualified for the Leinsters in February.

Well done to all of our athletes and special congratulations to Cameron Ramsay, Robyn Bolger, Oisín Kelly, Sadbh O’ Loan and Rory Kelly for their Leinster qualifications.

Ms Lillian Whooley

The event took place in Avondale House in Wicklow.

It was a good day - and we got to miss a day of school!

We were the first to get there and when we arrived we walked the course to check for any holes or rocks etc.

In the Junior race Ben Vincent was our first runner in 25th place followed by Hugh Hodkinson, Mark Fahy and Daragh Collins O’Regan so they did well overall. Oisín Kelly and Nathan Moore did well in their very long race (four kilometres long!) with Oisín coming in 8th and Nathan 42nd.

In the Intermediate girls Sadbh O’Loan came 9th in her race and qualified for Leinster. Muireann McDonald came 22nd in her Senior race. We had another qualifier for the Leinsters with Rory Kelly finishing an impressive fifth in the Senior 5000m.

The Minor races (1500m) were the very last races to be run. Robyn Bolger was the only Newpark girl in the Minor girls’ race and did well to come in 5 th place – another Leinster qualifier.

The Minor boys’ race was the very last one.

Cameron Ramsay, Adam Walsh and Luca Knight were the Newpark boys in the junior race. Adam Walsh came 50th, Luca Knight came 41 st and Cameron Ramsay did really well to come in 2 nd place.

Overall the day was a great success and a big thanks to Ms Whooley and Ms O’Brien for taking us.

Cameron Ramsay 1st Year

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Leinster Cross Country Championship Santry Demense, Wednesday, 10th February, 2016

This was another great day for running, very crisp. The course was fairly wet and heavy in places but not too hilly. We were delighted that five Newpark students from First Year to Fifth Year qualified for this highly competitive event. Athletics coordinator Lillian Whooley and a parent of each student were there to cheer our runners on.

First Year Cameron Ramsay came third in his 1500m race with a super run and a very strong finish. As well as clinching a Leinster medal, Cameron’s performance qualified him for the All-Irelands in March. Unfortunately he was away for this event, but Cameron is proving to be great athlete—definitely one to watch out for in the years ahead.

Robyn Bolger (also in First Year) got an injury at the beginning of the Minor B 1500m race but still managed to finish 57th, a very good result with her injured leg.

The indomitable Sadbh O’ Loan (pictured here with one shoe!) came 24th in the Intermediate Girls 3500m race. After a very tough week and managing to lose her shoe early in the race this was a brilliant result! Sadbh has another year at this level.

In the Intermediate Boys Oisín Kelly came 40 th in an extremely tough and fast 4500m race. Oisín managed to pull in a few of the runners towards the end which was great. Oisín also has another year at this age group.

Rory Kelly came 37th in a very long race with some very competitive runners. The surface was very muddy and messed up by the time Rory’s race began, making the ground very heavy. This was Rory’s first year running in the senior age group and a great result for this level.

Congratulations to all five athletes on their performance at this high level.

Ms Lillian Whooley

Indoor Athletics

Irish Hockey Stars Glasgow, Easter 2016

Pictured below are Third Years Ewan Ramsay and Luke Adams proudly wearing the green for their series of international matches against Scotland in Glasgow this Easter.

Beside Ewan is Ben Melvin, physiotherapist for the Irish team and Newpark past pupil.

Newpark players have really made their mark on the provincial and national squads and development panels this year. Congratulations to all involved.

February 2016

Patrick Gilceava had another successful u-16 competition, winning five gold medals. The events include long jump with a jump of 6.16 metres (a new personal best), high jump, 60 metre sprint, 60 metre hurdles and shot putt. Finally Patrick and fellow Newpark student John Nugent were on the winning team in the relay event.

John Nugent won a gold medal in the high jump with 1 metre 65 in the u-17 category and took silver in the long jump.

Both Patrick and John qualified for the All Ireland Indoor Championships in Athlone.

We wish John Nugent and Patrick Gilceava the best of luck in their respective age competitions.

Ellie Dunne: Equestrian On Monday 29 February 2016, Third Year Ellie Dunne took part in an Equestrian Event organised

by Special Olympics Ireland held at Cherry Orchard Equestrian Centre. Ellie competed in two events and was awarded a Gold medal for Working Trails and a Silver medal for Dressage I got dressed in my horse-riding clothes. I have to wear jodhpurs, a white shirt and a special suit, red inside and black outside. I always wear a helmet and special riding boots.

I went to the competition with my Mum. I felt excited because it was a really big day. After we parked the car I met a man who showed me where the horses were.

I went on the horse, his name is Georgie, he is brown and he is a kind horse. I had to walk the horse a long way in the field; I got two Medals, one is Gold and the other is Silver.

People were clapping and cheering. I had to ride Georgie a second time around the poles.

I felt very happy and lucky and my Mum felt happy, she was so pleased. I felt hungry so I ate a cheese sandwich and drank a Diet Coke. My Mum put a picture of me on Twitter.

Ellie Dunne 3AL

Swimming Success

Newpark had a strong team of thirty swimmers taking part in the gala at Tallaght Community School on Friday 4th March 2016.

Congratulations to all students who competed. Newpark is proud of the supportive and competitive spirit that was evident from the students in the gala.

Pictured above is the First Year Girls’ relay team who won their race to bring home their share of the large cache of gold, silver and bronze medals that returned to Newpark!

Thank you to Ms Whooley who accompanied the swim team.

Ms Gormlaith Ormond 11

The Mile Challenge

The annual Glo Health School Mile Challenge ran over two days this year.

Students from Second and Third Year participated on Monday 25 th January and First Years on Friday 29 th January.

Overall 324 students completed the mile distance.

A number of achievements were recognised in the year assemblies. The Street Trophy was awarded to the fastest boy and fastest girl. This trophy was discovered in the move to the new school and was donated

by Mr and Mrs Street who worked in Newpark. The trophy was first awarded in 1948 and prior to its discovery last year it was last awarded in 1975. Thirty nine years later, this prestigious award is no mean feat to win with such large numbers taking part in the challenge.

Different colour wristbands indicating each individual finish time were given to the students and a prize was awarded to the fastest average time in each year group.

We are so pleased to see Newpark students continuing to keep moving: keep fit and keep healthy.

First Year

In January First Years took part in The Mile Challenge. We had to run a mile around ‘The Rockies’ (in Rockfield Park across the road from Newpark). Groups 1 and 2 departed first, swiftly followed by groups 3 and 4 and finally groups 5 and 6.

Some students ran continuously without stopping, others had to have regular breaks. At the end we were given 12

a time by Ms Ormond which had to be given to one of the Transition Year students helping to run the event.

All students did a great job.

Very few of us had run a mile in race conditions before so it was interesting to see the results. Running a mile as fast as you can is harder than it looks, especially when you have never done it before.

The mile run was a great test of fitness and was enjoyed by all.

Congratulations to all participants.

Bruno Chuilli Cummins & Milly Lynch, 1st year

A Teacher’s Observation

On two bitterly cold January afternoons, I had the fantastic opportunity to cheer on First and Second Year students who were taking part in the GLO HEALTH school mile challenge.

I was very impressed by the student’s enthusiasm, teamwork, and encouraging cheers along the way—especially when climbing the last hill heading towards the homestretch. Next year maybe the staff could swap their coats and umbrellas for runners and get out there too!

Ms Fiona Keilthy

Second Year

This year our mile challenge took place on the 25th of January. The conditions were perfect; it wasn’t too hot or too cold and for the first time in a while, the skies were completely clear.

We walked down to the Rockies for around 11:45 where the challenge took place. We lined up at the entrance to the park and were staggered out in small groups so that there

wasn’t a stampede of school kids running through the park. There was no room for cheating or cutting corners, student and teacher volunteers waited at every turn to give us words of encouragement and guide us along the route. Then waiting at the end of the mile challenge were Transition Year students who took our times and gave us our scores.

There were three prizes in this mile challenge.

The first prize was a trophy donated by Mr and Ms Street, the second prize was for the group who ran the fastest time and wristbands were awarded to each participant to indicate their time-zone in which they ran the race.

The mile challenge was a huge success.

Everyone tried really hard and pushed themselves to the finish line. We would like to thank Ms Ormond, the Newpark PE department and all the student and teacher volunteers for organising and making this run possible.

Rachel Whelan and Nathan Moore, 2GC

A Flag for Newpark Third Year student Daniel Hatter discusses his proposed design for the Newpark Flag to fly at the front of the school with the Irish flag and our new Green School flag.

My design follows the five principles of vexillology: Keep it Simple: A flag, they say, should be so simple that a child can draw it from memory. Kids will have fun drawing Japan’s flag, but not so much fun with Turkmenistan’s elaborate carpet-like patterns.

Use Meaningful Symbolism: The symbol of the rifle found on Mozambique’s flag may not be the most positive icon to represent a country!

Use Two to Three Basic Colours: Most flags get this right. Clearly South Africa didn’t get this memo — it has six colours on its flag.

No Text or Seals: Mexico has incorporated an extremely complicated seal into its flag — an eagle holding a serpent, perched atop a prickly pear cactus, atop a rock that hovers over a lake. Try drawing that!

Be Distinctive or Be Related: The Scandinavian flags are part of a family.

Benefits of my design

Thanks to Terry Emerson for the Mile Run photos

How To Illustrate Happiness Grab a fresh sheet of memories Erase any after school stress Sketch a circle of friends Splatter the scent of cinnamon Add some abstract with a horror film on a Saturday sleepover Shade in Windows in the rain Add in some texture with a warm blanket on a duvet day Put in some colour with a sea coloured pencil Paint in some mash potatoes And dark chocolate too Draw a movie night and a pillow fight or two Splash a cup of tea one for you and two for me A line of photography and an editing day Add the realism of a blog post Sign off with some sketching, English Class, singing, quotes, Christmas morning, Dunmore and finally the loved ones I let go.

Zara O'Sullivan 1CBR

The flag can be identified while not in motion.

Wind comes and wind goes. It is important for a flag to be identifiable when there is no wind. This design features a canton that can still be seen while not in motion.

The flag has a sense of motion. The horizontal lines accentuate the motion of the flapping and waves. This makes a flag look better while flying in a strong wind.

It is a correct derivative of the Newpark crest.

Many flags make the mistake of including a seal and becoming overly complex—from a distance the detail cannot be seen. A correct adaptation is when a flag is inspired by a coat of arms.

The flag obeys the golden rule of thirds. The bottom bars are set in the bottom third as well as the castle being set to the left third. These proportions are visually appealing. By keeping the castle to the hoist of the flag it can be identified more easily.

It is a unique design. I have done research into similar flags in use and there are none. The most similar flag is the flag of Aruba!

No text. Many flags make the mistake of including text. A flag is meant to be an international symbol that represents a place. Text is also impossible to read when the flag has no wind or is flapping too hard.

The Symbolism The Three Bars represent the three areas of Newpark: STEM, the arts and sport.

The White Field represents that there are no divides in Newpark. In Newpark everyone has a say and can be a part of it. Teachers and students work closely together and the students have a sense of importance.

The Castle is derived from the Newpark crest. It also represents the sense of identity and solidarity the people of Newpark have.

Daniel Hatter 3AL

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CELEBRATION DAY: Portraits

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Celebration Day Photo Studio by Daniel Siberry dansiberry1@gmail.com

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CELEBRATION DAY: The Ceremony The formal School Opening ceremony took place in the morning of the 29th February 2016. It was a moving, upbeat and highly enjoyable ceremony packed with wonderful music, personal memories, reflections and wishes for the future.

Derek Lowry and Robert Grier (Chairman of the Board of Management) opened the ceremony, followed by current students Olivia Drennan and Karim Tamu—all four gave their insights into the extraordinary transformations and experiences of Newpark in transition. Past pupil and former head boy, Ben Melvin hilariously recounted and reflected warmly on his version of The Newpark Experience. Emily Keogh read from Colossians and Newpark’s patron, the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Michael Jackson, concluded the ceremony with his blessing.

Musicians included current students Cian Malin, Maya Baum, Norah Corcoran Chan and past student Claire O’Donnell who played a beautiful harp solo. The magnificent choir and orchestra of staff and students set the tone at the start with John Rutter’s celebratory Look at the World. They closed with a roof raising rendition of Elbow’s One Day like This—leaving hardly a dry eye in the GPA.

In the Words of the Students Olivia Drennan Having spent six years of my life at Newpark, I feel as if I’ve truly have grown up alongside the school. I spent my Junior Cycle in the old building, my Transition Year in the temporary prefabs, and finally, the majority of my senior years in this brand new building.

In both old and temporary, we made the most of what we had and I think that’s truly what makes Newpark what it is. For myself and many others, Newpark is our home, no matter the building. We are a community. Here, I have made friends for life with both past and present pupils. Here, I have formed part of my family. There is no school quite like us.

But now we have arrived in this brand new building, and I know there are those who worry that some of that ‘Newpark spirit’ has been lost. But let’s be realistic. Now we have a proper school with new facilities and equipment. You can see the benefits

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already amongst students and staff. We no longer have to worry about things like leaks in our lockers or flooding, and of course, now we have central heating!

That Newpark spirit was never really about the old building. It was about who we are, and all that this new building means is a far more beneficial learning environment for us all!

Newpark used to have a reputation amongst those who didn’t know us. They say never judge a book by its cover, but many people did anyway. Not until they got here did they see what Newpark was all about: the people, not the building. But now we have this incredible new, modern school, and people want to come here not just for Newpark’s spirit and creativeness, but also for our brand new, shiny building!

This new school is built where one great school used to stand, and we are just starting out. This is our blank canvas. With the spirit of the old, and the energy of the new, I am so excited to see what we can do with this place. This is just the beginning. Let the new chapter of Newpark begin. Olivia Drennan 6CQY

the students themselves, the diverse and accepting atmosphere you only get in a school like this, are what make the Newpark experience what it is. Now we have the building that the students deserve, and we begin a new chapter of Newpark within its walls.

Celebration Day press photos Paul Sherwood Photography wwww.sherwood.ie

Karim Tamu 4CB

Karim Tamu I never experienced the old building. I moved to the school in 2013 as I went into Second Year. I was returning to Ireland after four years living in Sierra Leone, so my first experience in Irish secondary education was Newpark Comprehensive…

I remember walking into the prefabs for the first time.. Honestly, my first impressions of the school were… amazing! I mean, I chose my own subjects, got my own locker and there were even the automatic tissue dispensers – all things I had never witnessed before. But the absolute best thing I witnessed was the people. The warm, welcoming spirit took me in and made me feel a sense of belonging. I straight away felt like I fitted in.

Fast forward about a year and a half and it came time to leave the temporary accommodation behind in favour of a new building. As students, we spent days moving tables and chairs to the new site; we were helping make this new building (that we had watched grow over the year or two) ours… and look at it now.

We’re in a state-of-the-art building with so many little quirks that make it unique; the artistic colour scheme, the monitors, and all the places groups of students call their own, be it beside the windows or under the stairs. These are but a few of the things that make this building pretty fitting for the students. But

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Celebration Day in Newpark

Celebration Day press photos Paul Sherwood Photography wwww.sherwood.ie

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CELEBRATION DAY: Whole School Celebrations This extraordinary day was the brainchild of a committee that insisted that Newpark’s Opening Day must be a celebration for the whole school—not just the group of invited guests that could be accommodated in the GPA for the formal ceremony in the morning.

Ms Glancy and the music department leapt into action to create a fabulous programme of gigs and workshops that turned the GPA into a festival of talent drawn from students past and present and reaching a climactic finale with the superlative staff band.

Meanwhile Mr Hollwey and Mr Byrne invited staff and students to imagine and devise amazing, fun and diverse ways to celebrate Newpark. And sure enough the ideas began to multiply!

The school was full of music all day and the tireless PTA and school baking team provided delicious refreshments downstairs. With the GPA constantly pumping, around the rest of the school unusual things were happening everywhere. There was a battle of human chess taking place in the theatre; you could take on The Cube in the technology room, a pop up play was being created and performed; fairground games and paper airplane competitions filled upstairs corridors; there was a video booth and a portrait studio, poetry and speakapella performances, art installations, a revealing Interview the Teacher session, salsa dancing, photography exhibitions, multiple nostalgic slideshows and a memory wall….

Upstairs the final touches were being put to the incredible costumes for the fashion show and students created a whole new set of newspaper costumes for the Instant Fashion Show. There were superheroes staging pop up battles and over the course of the day more and more people were transformed by facepainters. There was even an amazing room of electronic music and visuals thanks to the expertise of past students. And there was the chance of an oasis of calm in a series of meditation and mindfulness sessions.

The only hitch came in the form of the wild weather which put paid to the great line-up of games and tournaments planned for outside. The human chess was moved indoors and the basketball tournament went ahead in the gym, but a lot of people had signed up for inter-form and senior and staff battle through a medley of sports, tug of war and games.

Hopefully in the summer term we can re-schedule this keenly anticipated part of the day.

By the evening everyone had gathered back in the GPA for what was to be one of the most extraordinary gatherings ever experienced in our extraordinary school. There was fashion like you’ve never seen it before, there was the Newpark cake designed by Beatrice Ritzen, and finally there was the extravaganzic performance of The Announcements blasting out a song from every decade of Newpark’s existence. The crowd went wild with delight—truly a day to remember. The new Newpark has been fittingly and thoroughly celebrated!

Anna Johnston 20

Leap Day Extravaganza

A Different Perspective!

On the 29th February, Leap Day, I arrived at Newpark’s Celebration Day expecting great things.

There had been a lot of talk about the day—a grand piano was even brought in and the whole school was dressed up for visitors. Although it felt like we were showing off our creativity around the school— portraits of past pupils, clay hands crawling up the walls, flowers and posters—it was really impressive and illustrated our school’s ethos perfectly.

The highlights of the day for me were of course the live music (seeing my friends stand up and perform) but also the Interview the Teacher and the fashion show gave me a completely different view on some of the teachers. Some revealed the truth about their time as students and really surprised me.

The GPA was always packed—it was a music filled day.

Some thoughts from students in 3EL 

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Maebh Healy, 3rd Year

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A transformation occurred-from normal, average, prim and proper teachers, to party animals, gods of laughter.

The day in itself transformed our perspective, embraced our souls with laughter and put a smile on everyone’s faces.

Who knew teachers were actually fun and could be not always strict? They were actually people.

The school felt more unique and more as though everyone was a family. The teachers’ band played songs and were almost drowned out by the crowd. It felt magical, amazing, WILD! Newpark had a whole new perspective set upon it. Exstudents who were used to being given orders were now giving orders to teachers. Students were not wearing uniform which let them be more creative. The cherry on the cake for me was when Mr Cookman dressed up as Ziggy Stardust in the fashion show!

It was just a nice day with no uniforms, no bells, no classes! There were no rules or roles (i.e. teachers or students). I don’t think you are ever going to see the staff singing and dancing like that again! It was one day that students stayed voluntarily after four o’clock.

It was almost like Opposite Day with ex-students teaching workshops and teachers getting taught.

It was a very classy event that gradually got crazier and crazier. It started with the Principal giving a very formal and impressive speech and ended with the teachers parading around in garbage bags and singing.

What other school would have done that?

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CELEBRATION DAY The Music I was only involved in the music part of the celebrations… but I was heavily involved. For us the celebration began with staging in the GPA until half seven on Friday evening followed by an early morning (for a Saturday) with Coby and I arriving at school at nine to set up for the Open Day. It was tough work, setting up the stage, the microphones and speakers.

I was appointed ‘Head Gaffer’—a very prestigious title which meant I was in charge of making sure performers were ready and that they were sufficiently miked and plugged in onstage. This is a job that can rapidly switch from calm to stressful, but it’s by no means a difficult one.

Once Hudson Taylor began to play on Monday afternoon I realised all the work had been for a good reason. I thoroughly enjoyed every performance I got to see: Newpark is an amazing school for music and I’m very glad I didn’t go anywhere else. After Hudson Taylor there was a constant programme of music performed by current and past students. A highlight for me was Paddy Whelan’s rendition of All Star by Smash Mouth—a personal favourite.

The show would not have been as good as it was if not for the work of Fifth Year Coby Baker under the watchful eye of Niall Shortall. These two engineered the sound throughout and made the show what it was.

This would not be a report on the show if I did not address the grand finale spectacular that was The Announcements. I heard the staff band practise while I was in study (thanks for that!) and sound-checked them on Friday evening; I even played in place of Mr O’Farrell in their Saturday rehearsal. I have to say I’m very proud of them—they absolutely killed it with their stellar performance on Monday. It was so good of the teachers to show their human side and it will only add to the heightened sense of camaraderie this school offers.

A big thank you to all involved in organising and participating in the event.

Lughaidh O’Brien, 3rd year

I really enjoyed the large variety of music and bands playing at this day of events for students and staff alike. The genres differed from cool smooth jazz to the classic, alt and pop tracks sung by the staff band. The student bands weren’t just from one or two years— there were people playing from every year in Newpark.

There were past students too: Hudson Taylor and The Jazz Heads.

The staff band sang some great classic hits like “All the Things I’ve Done” and “Come on over Valerie”. I really enjoyed the day overall and the music was fantastic.

Tadhg McDonagh Cunningham, 3rd Year

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Drama At Work

Joan Burton, Mountain Dew and the realm of interdimensional real estate

One Day Like This...

I was involved with the choir in the opening ceremony—it was a great experience. We sang two songs “One Day Like This” (the Elbow song but with new lyrics for the occasion) and “Look at the World”

by John Rutter. Happily, both songs went really well.

At the start of the musical performances in the afternoon, Hudson Taylor played and they were amazing!! Everyone listening had a great time and the atmosphere was brilliant. The band members Harry and Alfie (an ex-Newparker) were really nice and more than happy to chat and have photos taken with students in the music room afterwards.

Towards the end of the day there was a recycled fashion show and the teacher band sang.

They were hilarious and had the whole crowd in stitches. The audience sang and cheered them on— everyone had a great time. The Opening Day was definitely a day to remember.

Lucy Murphy, 3rd year

Seeing as Drama is an integral part of Newpark’s identity it made sense that we would put something on for the Celebration Day. What we eventually did put on was, I have to say, one of the weirdest plays the school has ever done. And knowing Newpark, that’s saying a lot!

Along with workshop supervisors (past pupils Cian Ó Ceallacháin and Sian Ní Mhuirí) the participants devised a hilariously moving drama about a boy who must go on an epic journey to recover the lost Mountain Dew from the lair of the evil... Joan Burton! Combine that with annoying sidekicks, wacky real estate agents and some potentially politically incorrect jokes about ‘booty’ and you have an idea of what sort of epic brilliance went down in the drama department that day.

Without a doubt, it was a fitting way to celebrate drama’s place in the community of Newpark!

Ross Coleman, 6th Year

On Newpark’s Celebration Day I spent my time in the drama workshop where we had around two and a half hours to create and prep a short play (up to ten minutes). Most of our time was spent trying to cobble together a story from everyone’s ideas, leading to a very interesting plot.

It consisted of a mother telling her son he needs to go off and steal the moutain dew from a mighty dragon. The reason for this quest was because of the water bills being put in place which meant they could no longer afford water. The substitute for water? Mountain dew.

So the son and a random companion went to the Dimensional Real Estate Office to find a dragon.

They ended up in the universe of Bootyland and were directed from there to Mount Dewrrier, where the dragon lay. But the dragon turned out to be Enda Kenny…

The creation of this short act was a good bit of fun and everyone had their part to add, coming up with small lines and jokes to slip in. It wasn’t all acting, we had instruments and visuals to back up our actors. While I was not acting in the short I made illustrations for our background. Louis Roche, 3rd Year

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CELEBRATION DAY Reviewing ‘The Announcements ’

Newpark’s newest musical act made their dramatic debut on Celebration Day, February 29th. Having searched far and wide (in the staff room) for those good enough to make the cut, a lucky thirteen were chosen…

From humble beginnings, this eclectic ensemble flourished under the watchful eye of Hayley “The Keys” O’ Keeffe. They worked tirelessly to perfect a set-list that encompassed a wide range of genres from the last five decades. Their aim—to amaze and enthral a captive audience with their vocal prowess and skilled musicianship.

Brainstorming sessions in classrooms across the school produced many suggestions for band names: ‘The Late Slips’, ‘After School Detention’, ‘The Plus Mds’, ‘Past Papers’, ‘3 Hour’ and ‘Bobby’s Office’. However, these sessions just so happened to coincide with the demise of the TY-hand-delivered announcements and so, a band was born.

These are The Announcements you don’t want to miss...

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On Monday the 29th of February, we were all treated to a once in a lifetime experience of seeing our own teachers perform in the staff band, The Announcements.

It was unknown until the moment they walked on stage who was in this mysterious music group. There were numerous genres of music played including rap, pop, soul and artist legends such as Stevie Wonder and Amy Winehouse.

The crowd was shocked and delighted to see the level of ability and enthusiasm projected from the stage by the staff who failed to show their nerves.

Lead vocal spots were shared between the members of this amazing ensemble: Mr Byrne, Mr Hollwey, Ms Keating, Ms O’Keeffe, Ms McCarron, Ms Glancy, Anna, Nola, Mr Ludgate and Mr Lamprecht. Rocking the guitar were both Mr Twamley and Mr Quigley (who also played the fiddle and had his turn at lead vocals) and last but not least was Mr O’Farrell on the bass guitar. This was a terrific evening of music.

The constant electric atmosphere throughout the celebration day peaked during the performance of The Announcements. Everyone adored every single second, there was an encore and a standing ovation in the packed GPA. The whole crowd was dancing and singing along … and also contemplating how on earth we would all return to normality the next day! The appreciation was truly beaming from the smiles of the satisfied crowd. The support of the crowd and the talent of the group made this experience unforgettable, along with the soon to go viral videos on our phones!

Emma Horsfield and Lucy Lou Galligan, Fifth Year

Fabric Free Fashion Show Some lucky visitors to Saturday’s Open Day were treated to a sneak preview of incredible costumes in the final stages of preparation. The sewing room on the top floor had become an Aladdin’s cave of creativity with costumes made from every kind of recycled material imaginable under the inspirational leadership of Avril Crampton and Daki Rezic.

Staff and students past and present were drawn in as designers, assistants and models to create an unforgettable line-up on the Celebration Day catwalk. You can admire the finished costumes on the following pages.

One of the events that took place was a student-teacher fashion show. Everything designed was made out of recycled material and was made by the students. It featured a few newspaper models, a couple of modern looking robots, a lot of funky looking women, and Ziggy Stardust even made an appearance!

Kenza Ramdane, 5th Year

When I first signed up for a Fashion Show I was interested in doing some art and having fun, which I certainly got while chatting and exploring design concepts with Katya and Emily, burning myself with industrial hot glue gun (ouch). It was an experience, one that I am not likely to forget both as a student and as an artist. I am glad to have taken part, and a big thanks to Avril and Daki and my lovely model Ms Cameron.

Esme Galloway, 6th Year

Beating the Cube Congratulations to Adam Pearlman-Spencer 1 CBR..... you have what it takes to beat the cube!

Adam took on challenges such as ‘momentum’ ,‘digit’ (pictured below), ‘structure’, ‘addition’, ‘barrier’ and finally ‘crescent’ to gain the title previously held by Mo Farah! He took on each challenge with accuracy, a steady hand and nerves of steel. Not only did he win, he made it look easy!

Ms Claire Grant

Adam Pearlman-Spencer taking on ‘Digit’ in The Cube

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CELEBRATION DAY—Phantasmagoric Fabric Free Fashion

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Photos by Daki Rezic

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LCA Art Exhibition—IDENTITY First we talked about our own identity and how we think people view us in school and outside. We talked about alter egos. Alter egos are a person’s alternative personality or a hidden side to them. We talked about the history of masks and how we all wear masks in everyday life.

To come up with ideas we drew silhouettes of a head and shoulders and drew things that describe our identity on the inside and on the outside. We drew things that we think describe how people view us.

When we had an idea of the imagery we wanted to represent ourselves with we started to make our masks .

We used mod rock to cover a mask template and then secured the mask to a canvas using more mod rock. We used cardboard, wire, newspaper and masking tape to create the features and details on the masks. We covered over everything in mod rock and then we painted them.

When we finished our masks we had an exhibition. All of our parents came and some teachers. We cooked brownies and cupcakes for the event and it was a great success.

I really enjoyed making the mask and thinking about my identity. It was very fun to make and you don’t need to be too skilled to do it.

Chloe Foster, 5HH

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International Model United Nations

Over four days during the Easter holidays a group of ten students from Fifth Year took part in St Andrew’s International Model United Nations (SAIMUN).

We represented two delegations: Egypt and Chad. We were all assigned to different committees with different issues to resolve in each.

I went with the Human Rights committee and wrote a resolution on the question of human rights of displaced persons. As I was part of the Egyptian delegation, I had to write the resolution with Egypt’s policies in mind. We then merged our individual resolutions with other countries with similar views and then these resolutions were debated in the committee.

Initially it was very hard to understand the debating procedure as it was our first time taking part, but everyone was very helpful and we caught on quickly. Soon we were all making speeches about resolutions, writing amendments and asking difficult questions. Each resolution was voted on and then debated on the last day when we all came together for the General Assembly.

The whole conference was so well organised and we got to meet other delegates from all over the world. It was an amazing experience to learn how the 30

UN works and it increased our confidence with public speaking. Finn MacGearailt and I ended up winning Distinguished Delegate awards, so overall the experience was a great success.

We’d like to thank Ms O’Dwyer and Mr Lowry for making it all possible and can’t wait to do it all again next year.

Ruán Ó Conluain 5EG The SAIMUN conference went on for four days and it was a very new experience for all of us. This was Newpark’s first time participating in any MUN conference and we were all very excited—and petrified.

What made my experience different from the others was that I was part of the Security Council which is the highest committee of the conference. It was incredibly challenging—it’s highly unusual for a first time delegate to be on the Security Council.

I was in a room with fourteen experienced delegates who had done these conferences before, so it was very intimidating. Even so, after the first two days you catch on to the procedures of MUN and can therefore participate more. At the end of it all I really enjoyed the whole experience; I made new friends and learned so much in the space of four days: I am really looking forward to taking part again next year.

Emily Hogarty 5EG

Sleepover for Homelessness

On Tuesday the 15th of March Third Year CSPE groups 1 and 6 had a sleepover in the school to raise awareness of homelessness.

By being sponsored to sleep in the school we also raised over €700 for Focus Ireland. Students co-ordinated the organisation of the event.

Everyone arrived at around 8pm and the evening got off to a relaxed start as we were allowed to roam around the ground floor, play games or music or just chat. Quite a few people had brought musical instruments.

At around 10.30 we all went up to the middle floor and were given the areas where we would sleep for the night. The girls had the library and the boys were in the classroom opposite. A movie was put on in one room and some people were playing cards, board games or playing music. We moved around between the rooms.

After midnight we had to stay in our rooms and go to sleep. Of course, it was not easy getting to sleep on the cold, hard floor. We could certainly empathise with the people who have no other choice but to sleep on the streets. It was very uncomfortable and cold rose up from the floor and absorbed into the sleeping bags. All in all it was an eye-opening experience and was enjoyable and inclusive nonetheless.

A huge thanks to Ms O’Keeffe for her flexibility about this action project as well as Mr Breaden and Ms Ormond.

Adam Klug 3AL

After the movie a bunch of people sat in the hall with guitars and we sang all these songs we used to love like ‘Stacey’s Mom’ and Taylor Swift classics.

Next morning we went down to Spar and bought croissants for breakfast—it was super-nice.

The whole night was so lovely and I wish we could do it again. The only downsides were that our phones were taken at the start so we couldn’t take pictures, we had to sleep so early and the ground was really uncomfortable.

Mayka Aberasturi 3AL One thing I do remember was waking up and seeing a load of guys sitting around a table at about 5am playing cards. I can’t stress how weird this was to wake up to.

The next thing I remember was waking up at 7am with only about two hours of terrible sleep. My back hurt really badly and my neck was sore as I had to use a bag as a pillow. If we had actually gone the full way and slept rough without watching a movie it would have had even more impact. Sam Shortall 3AL We were up at 7 am and from there on it was a tiring but normal school day.

Ben O’Sullivan 3AL 31

Twelfth Night

The Review I really wanted to hate this production. I really did.

Surely after six years of fantastic direction, six years of memorable acting, six years of breathtaking costumes, it would only make sense that Newpark Drama would finally have a stinker. It was only a matter of time.

But, in all honesty, Newpark’s recent production of Twelfth Night was the definition of perfection. I mean that in all seriousness. Everything about the production from the cast, to the music, to the set was sublime. The main roles were perfectly cast.

Lucy Lou Gallivan’s Viola was wonderfully endearing and she worked well with Finn Howley’s love sick fawning Duke Orsino. They were well supported by Olivia Drennan’s Olivia and Sophia Finucane’s Maria.

At first I was a bit unsure of the production’s choice of costumes. The modern design of the clothes augmented with Shakespearian twists seemed to be at odds with the Renaissance style music. But, as the production went on, I felt that the costumes complimented the madcap characterisations. For instance, I thought Dylan Burns’ portrayal of Toby Belch as a sort of mad drunken Oscar Wilde figure was original and innovative. Louis Toole’s ostentatious costume added greatly to his foppish, cowardly Sir Andrew Aguecheek. As always, the costumes (made by Avril Crampton and Esmé Galloway) were wonderfully designed.

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Two actors dominated my imagination: Chloe Smith as Feste and Cian Malin as Malvolio. Chloe Smith was wonderfully lithe, handling her character’s witty lines with ease. As with her Puck from the production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream a few years ago, she was a joy to behold.

Yet in this production, we got to hear her sing. There was a great scene where she was in Duke Orsinio's palace, singing about death. In a stroke of comedic genius, everyone on stage was left writhing in tears.

It was hilarious. Yet, at the same time her singing was poignant and beautiful. All in all, a cracker of a performance.

Cian Malin’s Malvolio... I have no words. He was amazing: a passive aggressive Francis Brennan.

Dressed out in his black steward’s suit, his sycophantic fawning and his overblown pomp became endearing and made the audience laugh. I particularly enjoyed the addition of the little ‘Hmph!’ at the end, like something straight out of At Your Service.

As a cross-gartered Malvolio, Malin was at his peak. He really went for it and the result was outstanding. His Malvolio was lecherous sashaying in his yellow stockings with hilarious results. He reminded me of a perverted Spongebob Squarepants, so zany was he in his desperate attempt to win the love of his mistress. It is a shame that when we next saw Malvolio, he was his ‘normal self.’ Needless to say, at the end of his cross-gartered scene, Cian Malin left to the sound of claps and a standing ovation.

And really, that is what the production deserves. Everything was pitch perfect and everyone involved—the directors, Cathy Devis and Anna Johnston; the costume designers, Avril Crampton and Esmé Galloway and the musicians, conducted by the wonderful Elaine Cullen—should be given the highest honour. I could go on and on about this production but everyone should be proud. I have failed in my task. Twelfth Night is not a stinker. Twelfth Night is... better than Richard III (my favourite Shakespeare play and the pinnacle of Shakespeare’s oeuvre). Damn you, Newpark Drama, with your fantastic play! Making me commit heresy! I’ll be revenged on the whole pack of you!

Ross Coleman 6CQY

Photos by Kevin Kirwan

The view from Inside

Before Twelfth Night, I knew I enjoyed drama, but I’d never thought of it as seriously before.

I was ecstatic when I realised I had got the role of Maria as I love comedy acting, especially in Shakespeare. As I read more about her and watched different people of different ages playing her in different ways, it became apparent that she was one of those characters who tended to be brushed aside as ‘light relief’ and forgotten in the Great World of Shakespearian Theatre. It became my mission to make her important, give her a reason for what she did and allow the audience to sympathise with her—all while getting people to laugh! I hope that I achieved that.

Working with such an excellent cast and crew was a huge benefit. I learnt from not only our directors but also the talented actors in the play.

Mostly I just had a lot of fun!

The experience of Twelfth Night will always be something I recall with genuine pride. I’d never felt more at home than I did when I was on that stage in the Hunter Theatre. I don’t think another drama department could have done it quite like we did and, pardon the cheesiness, but I will always hold a special place in my heart for this play.

I greatly enjoyed acting in Twelfth Night and I loved getting to know everyone over the course of its production. Conveying such a diverse band of wacky characters to an audience was truly an amazing experience. I’d never really acted in a stage production like that before and I found something that I really enjoyed. Lorcan Kelly (aka Antonio or Ant), 4th Year

Sophia Finucane, 5th Year

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Scientists and Dramatists take London by Storm This three day trip to London in March was not for the fainthearted. With Ms Devis and Ms Odongo leading the way, an intrepid band of Newpark students from Third to Sixth Year set out to conquer London for Newpark Drama and Science.

Between us all we took in three plays, two drama

workshops, a backstage tour of three theatre spaces at the National Theatre, the London Eye, an inspiring talk at Guildford University, Hamleys, the Science Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Royal Institution, the theatre section of the V&A, Mr Byrne’s

selected highlights of the National Gallery, intense shopping at Camden Market, a walking tour of London and a whole lot of Tube stations. The pace was Devis fuelled—exhilarating, exhausting and inspiring—and our youngest group members Emma and Fern (aged four and eleven) kept us all going with their unfailing energy and enthusiasm (although many were spotted eyeing Emma’s buggy with considerable envy at times!)

This was a lovely eclectic group: many thanks to Twelfth Night cast and crew members, Fifth and Sixth Year chemistry students, Ms Devis, Ms Odongo, Ms O’Keeffe, Ms Johnston, Sylvestri, Emma and Fern for making it all so enjoyable. Special thanks to Ms Devis for all her work in advance organising the trip.

Three Plays...

I really enjoyed the fact that we saw three completely different pieces of theatre; a Disney-based musical, a Shakespeare play and a black comedy set in 1950s America. The three productions couldn’t have been more contrasting. First we saw The Lion King performed in the ornate West-End Lyceum Theatre,

with the steepest of tiered seating. The set, costumes and music were incredible.

Later we were ‘groundlings’ standing in the open air watching Twelfth Night at Shakespeare’s Globe, the actors 34

With Professor Jim Khalili getting to grips with wormholes, science TV and the new field of quantum biology (...and some Bantam Physics!)

competing with pigeons and helicopters above their heads during the play. It was a fascinating experience being so close to the actors; I felt like they could communicate freely with the audience. Then we headed to the smaller Donmar Warehouse to see Welcome Home Captain Fox!, a play about a soldier coming home from the trauma of the Korean War to Communist hysteria in the US. Although an unfamiliar play, the strong cast as well as the incredibly effective use of lighting and sound made it hilarious and memorable.

With three performances in three days, as well as theatre workshops and tours, the trip was jampacked but definitely worth it.

Cian Malin 6th Year

...and other Highlights from the Students  

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The Natural History Museum was my favourite: very interactive and so much to do. Loved the dinos.

Twelfth Night: the atmosphere at The Globe was incredible; loved the way that every actor played the ukulele and danced at the end; Malvolio’s lederhosen!; I loved being so close to the actors— they were really talking to us; loved the band!; great to see other actors’ interpretation of the characters; amazing!

Camden Market was lively and fun with loads of haggling—must go again. Very easy to get lost though.

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Welcome Home, Captain Fox: fantastic actors and script, superb use of sound and lighting, amazing set and costumes—one of the best plays I have ever seen.

The London Eye—an amazing view and a 4D experience. Really proud of the scared of heights peeps.

The Lion King workshop: energetic and enjoyable; learnt new acting techniques; lots of fun.

The Royal Institution: it was really cool to see the lab Faraday worked in and where the elements were discovered; Jack face-swapped with a statue— very creepy.

The National Theatre backstage tour was amazing: I want to work there now!

The workshop at The Globe: quick moving and interesting—everyone got personal tips; learned loads; everyone got involved.

The Lion King: very enjoyable with really awesome costumes and mechanics, brilliant music and visual effects; amazing!

Professor Jim Khalili a true gent and a living legend.

Hamley’s aviation sensation.

Ms Devis’s walking tours were really fun and informative.

The whole atmosphere of the trip.

It was fab—thanks very much.

Newpark Talent Clash It was an absolute pleasure and a privilege to be at Newpark’s Talent Clash on the 13th of January in the GPA. This was a competition between the many individuals and groups in Newpark writing and performing their own music. The prize was a hotly sought after studio recording session and the three judges were experienced professionals. Yet somehow the atmosphere was one of collaboration rather than competition—the support and encouragement between these eclectic and talented musicians was tangible.

There were eleven acts that night and they couldn’t have been more diverse. Some of my highlights included Jonah Byrne’s contemporary and playfully exciting instrumental, Ryan Kelly and Thyvion McGuinness—an intensely relaxed and enjoyable duo, Leila Mathias Hayes’ haunting tones, the simple and poignant tribute to much missed Georgia Murphy, the sheer musical joy and lyrical fun of Emma Horsfield and Coby Baker’s band and the charismatic vigour of Fish in the Sky… by the end it was hard to know how on earth the three judges would make the call.

Ryan Kelly was a worthy winner—he looked astonished as he came out to accept his prize and sing a reprise of the winning song to the absolute delight of the assembled audience and musicians. Another great night for Newpark music. Many thanks to Ms Glancy and all involved.

Anna Johnston

This is just the beginning…

Indecision I’ve been waiting, time’s been wasting Procrastinating over you.

Photos pasted, memories erased it Disappeared without a trace or two And I’ve been lying and multiplying All the problems that start with one plus you, In the division it’s your decision What’s left of me, if they take away you?

I’ve been learning the world keeps turning And we’ve got nothing to lose If you’re leaving your looks are deceiving You’ve got sixty seconds to move And I’ve been lying and multiplying All the problems that start with one plus you, In the division it’s your decision What’s left of me, if they take away you?

David Bowie

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Emma Horsfield Fifth Year

Second Year Musicians put together this tribute to the life and work of David Bowie who passed away on January 11 2016

It was only last year that Coby Baker and myself became co-writers. It all started through a musical platform Ms Glancy set up called Creative Lab. Every second Friday students who composed their own music (or wanted to) would gather in G7 for a lunchtime of original music. We would all listen to each person and their pieces and it was amazing seeing the sheer talent this school holds. Here everyone was honest. It was a fantastic way to get feedback on our compositions; it can be very daunting playing your own music for others, as it is such a personal thing.

Coby and I had written a piece together called “Indecision”. It was for voice and ukulele, which is a lovely combination, but this song was missing something, it needed an edge. We played it for everyone in Creative Lab and it was here that we found Lughaidh, Toby and Tommie. They began to play along. It was crazy: the song went from basic to completely finished in the space of about ten minutes.

Toby was on the piano, Tommie was on the guitar and Lughaidh was on the cajan. These talented Third Years brought something to the table we could never have imagined and were the key to our later success. I was chuffed.

Only days after we had joined forces, we were told about an upcoming songwriting contest in the school. The judges included the owner of a recording studio, someone heavily involved with Riverdance and Katy Perry’s drummer. It would be foolish to say

no to such an opportunity; our names were near first on the sign up list.

The group practiced over and over, perfecting the timing and all the layering of instruments. The time of the contest came and the nerves were running pretty high—a day in a recording studio was up for grabs as first prize. The performance we gave was definitely one of the most enjoyable I have experienced—as a group we just gelled so well and I think the crowd could tell. We came third place in the competition and I was really happy, even to place was an achievement. We were up against some incredibly talented musicians.

All in all it was a wonderful evening and we’re all looking forward to collaborating together in the future and hopefully achieving bigger and better things, who knows!

The Junior Plays Yes, it’s that time of year again. Fifth Year students are trying their hand at directing groups of First and Second Years. The Junior Plays will be on in the Hunter Theatre at 7.30pm on April 21st and 22nd.

Tickets cost €12 for adults and €6 for students.

We have four plays this year, three devised and written by the directors and actors. Below the directors give us a sneak preview of what’s coming up.

The Residents’ Association Two towns are battling it out in the most important competition of their lives: The Tidy Towns Award.

Gertrude, the leader of Pleasantville thinks she has everyone and everything under control in order to beat Darlington for the fifth year in a row. But this year Darlington are willing to do whatever it takes to beat their enemies.

Who will be victorious after Gertrude forgets to keep her friends close, and her enemies closer?

Directors: Odette O’Beirne

& Ruán

Ó Conluain

The Park Bench Our play is about a bench, except it isn't.

Brendon is a shy, quiet boy whose life seemingly lacks significance in the grand scheme of things. This play only presents the audience with four days of his life, but chronicles his journey from the age of eight to his fifties in twenty minutes. It represents how the cycle of life moves quickly, but some things always remain constant, even if they go unnoticed...and we get to meet some funny characters along the way!

Directors: Jade Gamble & Sophia Finucane

Falling Stars by Alex Brown In this short play for young people, the Wicked Queen, Peter Pan, Captain Hook, Lancelot, Snow White, Noddy, Big Bad Wolf, Tinkerbell and Alice in Wonderland leave Storybookland.

They travel forward in time to confront the dreaded 20th Century creature known as “The Movie” who is locking children into big black rooms and forcing them to watch strange little pictures on big white screens.

Consequently the children are unable to read their books. Along the way they must also confront Vince, King of Video Games and his dastardly band of Silicon Chips.

Directors: Dara Neville Fulena & Lucy Lou Galligan

Keep Your Secrets Secret Moving schools isn’t for everyone, especially for Caitlin who has already found herself in a rather unusual situation after her nuts teacher leaves the classroom. She’s stuck with her new and fairly odd classmates and as tensions rise she begins to unravel a lot about their personalities. Their honesty, sanity and friendships are challenged when they stumble upon a cruel message that’s so twisted they begin to question everything…

Directors: Emily-Jane Warinton, Emily Hogarty & Lucy Richards-Smyrk

One Act Festival After over a year out of theatre practice, I was approached by Ms Devis to return to direct a play in Newpark. I decided on the short Between Mouthfuls by Alan Ayckbourn, a piece set in a restaurant that demanded of its players a mature and intuitive knowledge of comedy—of pace, and space.

It wasn’t always easy. One must never underestimate the effects of an absence of practice.

You can lose your vocabulary for what you love, what fulfils and what you are good at. Thankfully, I was blessed with a talented and versatile band of five players who gave me all the tools I needed to reestablish an understanding of the stage.

When we performed at the St Andrew’s College One Act Festival, we were met with roaring laughter at every turn, and a glowing review devoid of criticism. We walked away with an award for Best Supporting Actor on the part of our very own Sam Cheesmore. This play best exemplified for me how there are no small roles: each actor is located in a performance with an equal weight and lend themselves as a component of an onstage composition. My cast painted a strange and joyous picture for their audience.

I am proud of each one of them, and as a whole.

I would like to thank them for playing along with my directing style, and Cathy Devis for facilitating it.

Day Magee, Director

A New Look at Hamlet On Thursday the 21 st of January, all of Fifth Year and their English teachers went to a screening of Shakespeare’s play Hamlet in the IFI cinema in Temple Bar. This National Theatre production was broadcast live around the world in cinemas last October and stars Benedict Cumberbatch.

This version of Hamlet had both positives and negatives.

The scene transitions were very well done. This was a stage performance of a very long play so a versatile set was needed to minimise the time needed for set changes.

The huge, solid room of the main set had two massive doors downstage and stairs to a long balcony with another door. By making the stage hands extras in the play (waiters, courtiers etc) the transitions could be rolled into the story preventing extra clutter on stage.

For the second half of the play large amounts of black gravel were heaped inside the set to give an outdoor setting.

My favourite scene was Ophelia’s madness and the events leading up to her death. The actress was brilliant and, unlike some of the film version of Hamlet I have seen, she didn’t go over the top trying to appear mad. I enjoyed her quieter, more upset portrayal.

[Continued on next page]

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Hamlet Continued from previous page

Ophelia drags a big suitcase on stage, which she leaves behind at the end of the scene when she walks slowly out of the back of the castle. Gertrude opens the abandoned case and finds it full of Ophelia’s photographs and her camera—it was a subtle and effective way of showing that Ophelia has given up on life along with her hobby. The actress playing Gertrude conveyed this moment of realisation brilliantly—her motherly instincts come out as she struggles to follow Ophelia over the mound of gravel leading out through the huge doors.

Benedict Cumberbatch suited the role of Hamlet perfectly and like Ophelia he didn’t force too much craziness onto us. He was clearly and effectively acting mad without constantly shouting as in some versions. During several of his soliloquies the rest of the cast remained on stage locked in silent slow motion—it was a clever way to tie the soliloquies in more effectively with the rest of the scene.

My only complaint is that the film ran for three hours without an interval—maddeningly we saw the theatre audience getting their interval but the IFI decided to cut out ours! Shakespeare’s plays require full attention and concentration—it was a lot to ask for three hours straight.

Aisling Grogan, 5th Year

Goal Walk a Mile Challenge On 9 December 2015 3MT organised the Goal Walk a Mile Challenge. This walk was organised to raise money for the charity organisation Goal to support them in their work across 50 countries. They provide emergency response to natural disasters providing food, health care and shelter.

The walk took place on the hockey pitch with all of First Year participating. They had to complete five laps of the pitch and each lap was completed in a different way e.g. walking, jogging, skipping, backwards running and back to skipping.

The first years had a great day and 3MT managed to raise awareness of the great work Goal carry out across the world. The event raised €280.

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Form 3MT

Action Project for Simon Every Junior Cycle CSPE class has to do an Action Project as part of their Junior Cert Exam. This year, Ms Mackey’s class of 2015-16 have chosen homelessness as our important fundamental human rights issue—our Action Project.

While we do this, there are just over 700 families, 1500 children (statistics from 2015) either on the streets or in government provided housing accommodation all over Ireland. These may be small numbers compared to other countries around the world, but they are our numbers, our Irish people and it’s important that they live the lives that they deserve, like us.

Our CSPE class managed to raise just under €500 to donate to Simon a worthy foundation for homelessness. We have raised this sum with a simple bake sale and we know though the sum is small that it will go a long way.

Many thanks to everyone who got involved to make this simple helping hand such a success and although so simple, so effective. So why should it not be done more often? Why only when we’re forced to, even though helping does not ask of too much of us?

Every little step gets us closer to our national and even international goal of stopping this fundamental problem. Even our €470 can go a long way.

Maya Bailey, 3rd Year

CSPE trip to Leinster House February 9th 2016

Our CSPE class went to Leinster House where we got a tour around the building.

This was a trip we had to organise ourselves. We were allocated different jobs in our groups: photographers, people who organised transport, people who organised permission slips and a few other groups.

We spent some time in Saint Stephen’s Green before we went to Leinster House and met our tour guide. First we went the Dáil and the tour guide explained what people do in the Dáil. We were shown portraits of the past Taoisigh and walked through a few more corridors before we arrived at the Seanad, where we were able to sit down and ask questions.

Downstairs we got to examine one of the three silk flags brought to Ireland by John F. Kennedy. We were also shown portraits of early Irish state politicians.

It was a really enjoyable learning experience and we thank Ms Whooley for bringing us.

Form 2RS

One Village, Two Classes, Three Churches On Tuesday 26th of January, fifty Second Year students, Ms Keating, Ms Harris, Mr Styles, Linda and Wanda, made the pilgrimage to Monkstown to visit the three Christian places of worship. This trip helped us to experience communities of faith and ecumenism in action, as well as being able to see first-hand the features and layout of different places of worship.

Thank you to Mr Lennon who made three trips in the mini-bus to get us there on a blustery and wet morning!

I’m at the bus stop when all of a sudden, I realise we have an RE trip today. At school it’s pouring rain and everyone is moaning because we are supposed to be walking to Monkstown Village for the trip! When Ms O’Keeffe tells us that we will be taken there in the mini -bus a sigh of relief fills the class.

We are taken first to the Religious Society of Friends (Quaker) Meeting House in groups of 16 at a time. We are greeted at the door by a very nice man named Tim. The room is quite plain, with large windows and an amazing wooden ceiling. Suzanne and Neville greet us and explain the history of the Quakers, not only in Monkstown, but worldwide. We ask some questions and leave the Friends with a smile.

We then head down the road to the Church of Ireland church, my personal favourite. We walk inside, only to hear the tremendous sound of a massive church organ. Directly ahead of us are these amazingly huge stained glass windows. We take our seats and are greeted by the man at the organ and a priest of the Church of Ireland, Archdeacon Gordon Linney. He tells us a brief history of the Church and how long he has been a priest. He then takes questions and Nathan Moore hits him straight with a banger – he asks about the relationship between religion and science. I found the debate between Nathan and Gordon extremely interesting. I thought Gordon was a very nice and amazing man and was sure to go and shake his hand.

After the questions, we are let loose in the church and given a worksheet to fill out.

At our final destination, the Roman Catholic church across the road, Ms Keating directs us to be quiet because although it is not too busy, the church is still open to the public. This church is also impressive.

Its ceiling is very high and light seems to shine in from every angle. Fr Michael welcomes us and I find his talk the most interesting. He tells us when, how and why he became a priest and also, the church’s opinion on marriage equality. We then hear a member of MC3 speak about the group and the kind of events they organise for the community. We explore the church; this involved for some a journey into the confessional box.

We say our goodbyes and make our way outside. At this point, the rain has stopped. The walk back to Newpark is quite enjoyable and we make it back to catch the end of Maths class and second break.

All in all, a good day!

Jay Menelou 2HOK

On Tuesday the 26th of January, Ms Keating’s R.E. classes (2HOK and 2GC) went on a trip to Monkstown to look at three different churches, the Religious Society of Friends Meeting House, the Church of Ireland church and the Roman Catholic church. We also got a talk from a representative of MC3, which means Monkstown Churches x 3.

First, we went to the Quaker Meeting House.

It was very quiet and the room was relatively plain.

There were lovely big window and all the seats were set up in a circle.

Next, we went to the Church of Ireland church.

This was my favourite church. It was the most spacious and had the most amazing architecture. The stained glass windows were also amazing. The priest was so nice and he answered our questions very honestly. When the priest finished talking, we went on a treasure hunt. After the treasure hunt, we got our lunch and then went to the Roman Catholic church.

The Roman Catholic church was also very pretty and it had lovely statues and stained glass windows.

My favourite part of the trip was exploring the Confession Box with Genevieve. My least favourite part was when Rowan and Jack got to eat some of Ms Keating’s granny’s cake as they came first in the treasure hunt. I was “well jel”. All in all, it was a really fun trip.

Avalon Ryan 2HOK Our trip started on the cold, windy and miserable morning of the 26th of January with the Quaker Meeting House, where everything is minimalist and tidy. We were greeted by three members of the Religious Society of Friends who recounted their experiences of religion and being Quakers. One of the member’s stories included being left out of R.E. class because of her denomination. They talked about how Quakers have been involved in various roles in society, such as driving ambulances in war zones and making biscuits.

The next church we went to was the Church of Ireland church. We were greeted by Archdeacon Gordon, who played the organ and then gave us an inspiring talk about how science sometimes looks at humans as machines, whereas religion sees more, like our personalities and talents. Even when asked a difficult question, he managed to answer it fully. Later, we were given a worksheet and we went on a hunt for various features of the Protestant church.

Next came the Roman Catholic church, where Fr Michael greeted us. He recounted a humorous story about how he became a priest. The church was beautiful. It had stained glass windows and wonderful statues, as well as an impressive organ at the back.

Fiona, the MC3 representative, talked to us about unity and the importance of being a community and not just a religious organisation. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed our trip and hope my classmates did too.

Edoardo Nestor 2HOK 39

A Word from the PTA

Another term over, and what an exciting term it has been. Like the rest of the school, much of the PTA’s time has been taken up with the planning of the official opening ceremony and all the celebrations around it. The idea from the start was that this was a Newpark celebration for all and it has to be said that the organising committee did an incredible job at getting as many people as possible involved—students, staff and parents, both current and past. So many people helped out in so many different ways to make that last weekend in February a really special one and in particular made Monday the 29th February 2016 a really Newpark Day! Huge thanks go out from the PTA to the bakers (parents, students and teachers) who not only baked goodies for the official opening but also for the five or six hundred “friends” of Newpark who came to the Open Day on Saturday 27th February. Past pupils, prospective parents, neighbours and well wishers were treated to guided tours of the school given by

students (many thanks to the Student Council for organising a great team) or PTA members.

The tours were followed by tea and cakes … and what amazing cakes!! Newpark parents, take a bow!

This term the PTA also organised a parents’ talk in January given by psychologist John McSharry. He was a fascinating and very practical speaker who gave the audience a lot of food for thought. We hope to have a third parent evening next term focusing on the topics that you felt were the most relevant to you all.

We hosted a First Year parents evening in February followed by a joint Second/Third Year one two weeks later. The aim of these evenings is purely social, to allow parents a chance to meet and chat both with PTA members and more importantly the parents of their child’s friends.

The next PTA event is just after the Easter holidays—the second annual Newpark Table Quiz will be held on April 14 th in Stillorgan Orchard pub. Tables of four cost €40 and can be booked online at newparkschoolptaquiz.eventbrite.ie. or at the door (if not sold out!) Registration starts at 7.30pm. It was a very enjoyable event last year so round up your team and brush up your general knowledge and we’ll see you in the Stillorgan Orchard on April 14th.

Becky Johnston, PTA Chair

Newsletter team: Anna Johnston & Kevin Kirwan Thanks to all our contributors this month.

Please email contributions for the next issue to newsletter@newparkschool.ie

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