History Trip

On the 10th of March, students from the transition year history classes went on a trip to the Michael Collins Barracks, Asgard Museum, Arbour Hill and Glasnevin Cemetery.

The students explored the '1916' museum within the Collins Barracks and were deeply interested by the facts and objects from the rebellion. Students were able to use interactive computers to look up interviews with survivors for the 1916 and see the surrender letters between Pearse and General Lowe.

Next, the students visited the Asgard Museum where the restored Asgard, the boat used in the Howth gun-running, is situated. There, students saw the restored boat and some artefacts related to it such as uniforms, materials and the guns they were transporting.

After the Asgard, students visited Arbour Hill where the seven signatories of the Proclamation and other leaders were laid to rest. It was a very peaceful and inspiring place to visit. 

In the afternoon we visited Glasnevin Cemetery. It was a guided tour and we learned many interesting facts about the Irish Greats and about burials in the cemetery as well as the guarding of the cemetery when it was founded.

We were all delighted to be a part if this trip and the TY Blog would like to thank Mr.Cox and Ms.Buckley for the opportunity.

                             

                                   

Junk Kouture Semi Final 2016

The Junk Kouture Eastern Semi-final took place on the 7th of March. It was a fantastic and exciting event where Loreto Balbriggan's costumes were presented to the judges along with schools from all over Leinster. The fabulous Creations that lit up the Catwalk were Pink Crocodile by Ella Ceban, illuminated Cells by Maya Brezing and Aoife Scott, Meltdown by Aisling Egan and Megan O'Regan Artaud, Intothevein by Cara Dowling and Katie McManus, Dream Queen by Ciara Murray, Roisin Bentely and Rachel Downes, Queen Galactica by Giovanna Elliot and Sophie Hardman, Capsulated by Ciara Fullam, Chloe O'Neill and Sarah Harris, Spring loaded by Rebecca O'Reilly, Mary McKeown and Amy Louise Hall and Ethereal Dreams by Dagmara Dobkowska. 

The judges were impressed with the overall creativity and hard work of the Students in Loreto Balbriggan and chose Ethereal Dreams to go to the Grand Final in the 3 Arena on April 14th in which the Editor in Chief of "Vogue India" and Louis Walsh will be featured in the judging Panel. How exciting!

TY Mini Company Award 2016

Before Easter Niamh Corry, a transition year student, won the overall “Fingal Mini Company” prize. Niamh told us about her project and the experience.

How did you come up with the idea for the business?

I have a massive binder at home full of notes from the Junior Cert and every time I had a test I had to drag this binder out which I hated doing so when I found out I would be doing Mini Company I immediately thought of that binder and how I could make easier for students.

What was your business about?

My company which is called 'Skim it Quick' is an educational playing and revision card company.

I custom designed these cards in a range of subjects and topics. The topics and subjects were compressed into shorter versions of the curriculum.

Who was your target audience?

I aimed the cards originally for Junior Cert students but I realised on 'Market Day', the business fair in school, that a lot of Leaving Cert students were also interested so I extended my market.

What were the prizes that you won?

I won a large trophy and a trip to Barcelona which I'm very excited about!

On behalf of the school, TY Blog would like to congratulate Niamh on her fantastic win.

TY Driving Course 2016

On the 14^th and 15^th of March a number of transition year students attended a driving course for the full day in Mondello park, Co. Kildare. Experienced, professional race instructors had three classes prepared for us; Safety Class, Driving Class and a tour of the park. In the safety class we were explained the rules of the road and how important it is to follow them. We were shown short video clips of what could happen if the rules of the road weren't obeyed. Everyone leaving the class felt more aware and alert of road safety.

Following the road safety talk we then proceeded out onto the race tracks to get into a car with our driving instructors. There were two people per car and each person did four laps around the race track learning and practicing how to drive a car. We were shown how to properly steer the car, how to hold the wheel, how to make a turn, how to stop and how to change gears. The experience was very helpful and exciting.

Lastly to finish the day off we got a tour of Mondello Park. We were shown around the race track and brought up to the watch towers where instructors would monitor the races. We were also brought to the emergency room and shown how a racer would be treated if an accident was to occur. We were then lastly brought to a museum situated in the park which contained a collection of old and new racing cars. The Driving Course was well worth attending and was an extremely fun and exciting experience. All of the transition year students were delighted to have participated in this course and would like to thank the instructors for their time and effort.