General Information for Parents

School Opening/Closing Times

School begins at 9.20 am.

School finishes for Junior and Senior Infants at 2pm and 3pm for all other classes.

Children in Junior and Senior Infants must be collected at 2p.m. Parents  must collect from the school gate.

Children  must wait at the main gate under the supervision of the teachers until they are collected by a parent or guardian at 3 o’clock.  This is for health and safety issues.

Parents should inform the school if there are changes to who is collecting children or if parents/guardians are running late.

School doors will open at 9.10.  School staff will supervise children between 9.10a.m. and 9.20a.m. each morning before school in the classrooms.  After school supervision is not provided by the school.   Children who arrive on the school grounds before 9:10 a.m. or remain after 3:00 p.m. (2p.m. for Infant classes) are not the responsibility of the school. Children who are on the school grounds before 9.10 a.m. and/or after 3p.m. are the responsibility of their parents/guardians. 

School Attendance

Regular, punctual attendance at school is a necessity for children to learn and develop and we are glad that there is a very strong tradition of good attendance in St. Ronan’s N.S.

Parents/Guardians are asked to record any absences or withdrawals from school in the back of the school homework diary.  Written notes and phone calls to the school are also acceptable.

From 9.20 a.m. onwards, latecomers must be accompanied to the school door by a parent/guardian. Parents/guardians must ring the bell at the entrance and wait outside the door with the child(ren) until the child(ren) has gained access to the school. Adults are not permitted to accompany latecomers to class. Significant concerns in relation to timekeeping are reported to the Education Welfare Officer.

If a pupil has to leave the school early, the parent/ guardian is required to ring the bell at the entrance and wait for the child(ren) outside the entrance.

All late arrivals, absences and withdrawals will be recorded by the class teacher on Aladdin (electronic roll system).

 Please note:

The Education Welfare Officer will be notified as a matter of procedure is a child is absent for more than twenty days in a school year or whose attendance is erratic. This is in accordance with the Education Welfare Act 2000. 

When planning holidays, please avoid taking children out during school time if at all possible.

Homework

Homework is given from Monday to Thursday night and is recorded in the school homework diaries.  These should be checked nightly and signed everyday. The diaries can also be used as a means of communication between the school and the home and messages can be sent from parents and/or teachers. This is another reason why it is essential diaries are checked often.

Homework given to the children is usually based on work covered during the school day and on skills the children need to practice and consolidate.  The amount of homework given will vary according to the class and age of the child.  The time each child spends on homework will vary from one child to another.  However, if you have any concerns about the amount of homework given to your child, the time it takes your child to do the homework or the ability of your child to complete the homework, please don’t hesitate to talk to the class teacher.

Children attending SET classes may have additional and/or alternative homework assigned to them.   Please make sure to check this homework every night also.

Homework is not limited to written work – Reading, Spellings and Tables are also a very important part of your child’s homework and should also be checked.

Parent/Teacher Communication

Parents are  very welcome to come and talk to the teacher and principal by appointment.   Every effort will be made to accommodate parents as quickly as possible.  Homework diaries can also be used to communicate matters between the school and home.

Parent/Teacher meetings are held annually. These meetings are an opportunity for you to discuss the progress of your child and to work with the class teacher on any area which may need to be developed.    Written school reports are sent home in June by post.

We have introduced the Text-a-Parent service to communicate upcoming events, reminder and emergency situations with parents and guardians. It is a fast, reliable and cost effective internet based system whereby text messages are sent to mobile phones.  It is essential that we have current and up-to-date mobile numbers for parents, guardians,  Board of Management members and staff.

Newsletters on upcoming events are sent home, throughout the year, with the oldest child in the family. Please read them thoroughly   to ensure nothing important is overlooked.

School Uniform

The school uniform  at St. Ronan’s is very relaxed and consists of the following:

Blue jumper with school crest  (Ordered through the school)

White or blue t-shirt

Navy or black trousers, tracksuit bottoms, skirt or pinafore

The blue jumper with the school crest can  be purchased  through the school.    Any shoes can be worn but we recommend trainers as children run around a lot.  Velcro shoes are suitable for young children who cannot tie their own laces.

Children should wear their school uniform every day. Jerseys are not part of the school uniform and should not be worn to school.

All clothing should be labelled with the child’s name or initials to avoid confusion and loss of belongings especially jumpers and coats.  Please check labels regularly as names can fade or wash off. The school cannot be held responsible for missing items.

School Books

The school takes on the responsibility of purchasing all the school books and copies every year.  We ask the parents to pay €25 towards the cost of the books in September.  Some of these books are written into and these books will be sent home when completed or at the end of the school year.  Some books are reused e.g. reading books and while they may be sent home for homework purposes, we ask that they are kept in a good condition and not written on so they can be reused the following year.  This keeps down the costs of books from year to year.   Copies are also sent home when completed or at the end of the year.

The school also provides pencils, rubbers, toppers and colours for classroom use but children will need their own for homework use.  Most children like to have their own pencil case with pencils and colours and these can be used at school.  The school cannot be held responsible for missing items.  Markers are not allowed in the Junior Room. Crayons and colouring pencils are more suitable for this age group.

When purchasing school bags, please keep in the mind the size of school books.  Many school books and workbooks are A4 in size and will not fit in very small school bags. There should be enough room in the school bag for school books, workbooks, copies, a pencil case and a lunchbox.

Healthy Lunch Policy

St. Ronan’s N.S. has a healthy eating lunch policy.  Only healthy food is allowed from Monday to Thursday.  Friday is “Treat Day” and children can bring in treats such as chocolate, crisps, sweets etc.

Below is a general list of foods allowed/not allowed Monday to Thursday.  If parents have any questions or queries regarding the healthy lunch policy, please do not hesitate to contact the school.

No hot foods or foods requiring  heating or microwaving allowed for healthy and safety purposes. Hot drinks in flasks are allowed.

Chewing gum is not allowed at any time.

Any lunch not finished is sent home again.

In May 2015, we  introduced a free lunch scheme. Every child availing of the scheme  receives a free daily lunch consisting of a sandwich, bottle of water and a snack.  Parents are provided with a menu to choose  from and this can be edited as needed.

As we have a child in the school with a serious peanut allergy, peanuts are banned from lunches.

We also ask parents not to send in food or treats to share with other children except on the last day of term.

Break Times

First break begins at 11 am and ends at 11.10 am.  Before break, the children are given a few minutes to eat a snack from their lunch e.g. a banana.

Lunch break begins at 12.30 pm and ends at 1pm.  Children are given 10 minutes to eat the remaining contents of their lunch.

School Yard

The school yard is not zoned and the children have access to all play areas.

Once children are out on yard, they are not allowed to enter the school building or go outside the school grounds without permission from a teacher.  The school grounds are supervised by a teacher during break.  Children are allowed to bring P.E. equipment out to play with in the yard if they receive permission.  Personal belongings such as toys, game consoles, phone are not allowed out into the yard with the exception of sports apparatus such as balls.  Food and drinks are not allowed in the yard.

First Aid

Accidents will occasionally happen.  If a child is injured while at school, the teachers will assess the severity of the injury and will administers First Aid are required.  In the case of more serious injuries, parents/guardians/emergency numbers will be contacted by phone.  If deemed necessary a doctor or ambulance will be called.  The school has an up to date First Aid Kit kept in the Staff Room.

All accidents where first aid is required will be noted in the Accident/Injury/First Aid Book.

If your son/daughter needs to take any medication in school – inhalers, antibiotics etc – you need to contact the school principal.  Prescribed medication required by students will be administered only by teachers, subject to school policy and only on the request of parents. Children are not allowed to have any medicines in the schoolbags without the permission of the school principal.

Assessment

No standardised testing takes place in Junior Infants

The MIST Test is administered to children in Senior Infants and if it is deemed necessary children take part in an Early Intervention Programme with the Learning Support Teacher.

Standardised Tests take place in English and Maths from First Class to Sixth Class usually in May/June and the results are communicated to the parents.

Health Board Services

The HSE provides vaccinations, dental and opticians examinations from time to time over the eight years your child is in primary school.  Parents/Guardians are notified  when they are due to take place and permission must be obtained.

Referrals may be made to the Educational Psychologist, the Speech Therapist or Occupation Therapist as needs arise and in consultation with parents.