Monday, December 10, 2012

Debating Science Issues


Debating Science Issues (DSI) is a public speaking competition for secondary schools with a science twist. St. Columba's are once again involved this year, although our team is now comprised of TY pupils only including Arthur Moffit, Bethany Shiell, Callan Elliot, Cameron Wood, Alina Stiehler, Mark Russell and Piers Morrell.  Funded by Discover Science & Engineering, DSI aims to engage young people in debate on the cultural, societal and ethical implications of advances in biomedical science. Areas like stem cell research, nanotechnology, vaccination or genetically modified foods are amongst the topics up for discussion. Earlier in the term, our team were treated to a workshop from Éilis McGrath from CRANN - Trinity College's Nanoscience Research Facility - on how to debate and research effectively. The workshop was excellent and kicked started a great run. The team, who rotate speakers from event to event, have been victorious in our first two debates, defeating St. Joesph's in Lucan and Castlecomer Community School in Kilkenny, and taking home the CRANN title. The team will face the winners from UCD CLARITY in the new year. Topics discussed so far have been nanoscience and its potential in environmental science and whether self testing  was the future of health management. Our next debate will centre on ethical issues surrounding stem cell research and the team are already busy formulating their argument. Hopefully our good run will continue right through to the final.

Maths Mentoring

Mr Coldrick's latest initiative is a maths mentoring programme with TY pupils. Several TY pupils are now helping younger pupils, who struggle with maths, a number of times a week. Lydia Johnson reports.


About a month ago, Mr. Coldrick asked around the transition year, people who had done higher level in their junior cert, if they would be interested in tutoring a junior pupil in maths, as one of the numeracy initiatives. I was really enthusiastic about the idea, as I thought it would be good for the student to be taught by someone of a similar age with the same perspective, but also because it would be a great experience for us, the mentors, almost as a sort of teaching work experience. It was very appropriate for people in transition year, as this year is all about trying new things , and experiencing the type of things you wouldn`t necessarily learn in a classroom, so one on one mentoring sessions with a younger student fits perfectly into the TY programme. And so, 5 girls and 4 boys including myself in the transition year began giving lessons to our assigned students for an hour a week, in two half hour sessions or all in one go. The nine students being tutored range from first to third year, doing both higher and ordinary level junior cert, so there is a wide variety of standards. As far as I know, everybody who volunteered is thoroughly enjoying themselves, and I for one get on great with the boy I work with, and really look forward to our sessions as we do the work, but we also have great fun while we are doing it! I think it is a brilliant thing to do and I am very glad Mr. Coldrick established it, as it is very beneficial for everyone involved. 

Muffin Baking

While we don't have a dedicated Home Economics room in the school, it rarely stops us from dabbling in some baking with our TY pupils. A few weeks ago, Ms. Kilfeather organised a muffin baking session - Ally Boyd Crotty tells all.


On the 14th of November, eight of us from TY went to Rice (a classroom) to make Muffins with Ms. Kilfeather. She had prepared everything perfectly to start and brought in all ingredients and products, as well as borrowing 2 of Mr. Clarke's ovens. We had the recipes for Chocolate-Chocolate-Chip Muffins and Banana-Cinnamon Muffins, but we decided on just making two lots of the Chocolate ones, as they are a favorite. 

We split into two groups of four, and both groups mixed all the ingredients together in bowls, tasting as we went. When we had finished mixing, even though the consistency didn’t look so normal, we filled up the molds and stuck them in the oven. The smell filled up the classroom, and they smelled delicious. 

Strangely, when we opened the oven to check if they were cooked, they didn’t look so normal… The first lot tasted quite abnormal, but also nice and sweet and they were gone in a minute. However, the second lot didn’t work out so well, they were burnt and tasted horrible. Ms. Kilfeather tried to save them by removing the burnt top and covering them in golden syrup, which did help, and soon we managed to finish them. 

This was a very enjoyable night and I would love to take part in it again. Thank you so much to Ms. Kilfeather!!

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Team Hope Shoe Box Appeal


'Tis the season to be jolly... In some cases it is, but in some countries it’s just another day without presents.

This year SCC Transition Year will help Team Hope to complete their challenge of gathering shoe boxes, filling them with gifts that have been donated by generous people, wrapping the shoe boxes up and sending them with their love to countries in Eastern Europe and Africa.

Imagine, you’re a child aged 2 to 14, you have been a victim of war and disease, and when the cold winter is just around the corner, you, like every other year have nothing.

What can you do to help this child? It’s easy! Get a shoebox, wrap it up and fill it with little presents that would put a smile on a child’s face.

When filling your shoe box bear in mind the 4W’s, something to wear (clothes, hat, gloves) something to wash with(toothpaste, toothbrush), something to write with(copybooks, pens) and the WOW factor! It doesn’t matter where the box goes to, in Africa at night it is just as cold. If you are putting toys in, please don’t put any toy guns because most of these children have been victims of war. With donation of four Euros you can help Team Hope deliver these presents as if they were on the back of Santa’s sleigh.

Imagine you’re a child and at Christmas you received a shoebox that was generously made just for you. Your cheeks would hurt from smiling so much, imagine being that child and think about the fact that you could change this child’s life. Merry Christmas!

Jesse Faulkner

Friday, October 19, 2012

Come Dine With Me India

Mr. Coldrick has started a new cookery series with the TY pupils - themed 'Come Dine With Me' evenings. Charlotte Cooper reports on the first in the series - India night.



On Wednesday evening, the 17th of October, Cameron, Jess, Jessye and I went to Mr. Coldrick’s house and cooked an Indian meal for Mr. Coldrick, Ms. Mc. Nelis and twelve other students.

We went down to his house at four after classes and started cooking. Cameron first stir-fried the onions and curry paste, while we prepared the meats and sauces. After a long two and a half hours, all the dishes were ready, the meat cooked, the rice steamed and spiced and the naan bread toasted. We had made a Chicken Tikka Masala, a Chicken Korma, a Lamb cinnamon and apricot curry, and a Beef curry. The students had all just arrived at this stage, so we were ready to go. We decided to have the meal in a buffet style and allow every one to serve themselves.

Everyone helped themselves, and started to eat. Surprisingly, the food actually tasted really good and no one seemed to feel sick afterwards! After the meal we all just relaxed in the sitting room and garden until it was time to go back to school. 

TY Musical Night - Pat Coldrick

The first TY musical night took place last week with classical guitarist Pat Coldrick giving a wonderful and varied set. Cameron Wood reports.


Our first TY monthly music night started with a recital and talk by Pat Coldrick a well known classical guitarist who has appeared on National television and written music for world renowned musicians. On the night Pat played a variety of music from classical to contemporary, including a version of Stairway to Heaven by Led Zepplin. My favourite piece of the evening was one of Pats own compositions called Antarctica.  This piece was very moving and different. Pat used a strange technique of sliding up the strings making a very eerie noise like the sound whales make under water. Overall it was a great evening and very inspirational for new guitar players like myself.

Monday, October 15, 2012

Alexandra Panayotou

On Thursday last, ultra endurance runner and Old Columban Alexandra Panayotou visited the school and gave a presentation to our TY pupils. Jessica Beresford reports!


On Thursday last we were visited by Alexandra Panayotou, an Old Columban and ultra endurance runner. Alex hasn’t done sports her whole life, though she does it intensively now. She began running properly, when she was 30 - her first time since doing running at the college. 

She started running marathons, and quite by chance one day happened to do an ultra endurance run, up mount Olympus. She loved it. Much to her surprise she was able to do it, finishing in an unbelievable 2nd place. From here developed her ultra endurance running career. 

In 2008 Alex decided that she really wanted to challenge herself, by doing a solo ultra endurance run. She was going to run from Barcelona to Santiago de Compostela. This run was 1208 km and would be from April 26th to May 16th. 

This would be her first time running constantly day after day. 

Her next challenge was to run against a horse. With a 5 hour headstart the statistics were that the horse would come in 15 minutes before her. She managed to arrive 15 minutes before the horse. 

In 2010 she ran 2010 km in 31 days to promote the European Athletics Championships. She ran 70 km a day allowing herself a “rest day” on a Sunday- 30 km . 

Her most recent challenge was in aid of Foodbank, a charity that helps send food if a natural disaster occurs. In this she ran 315 km non-stop. To really publicize what Foodbank does she ended her run, in the half time of a football match, in front of 40 000 people. 

I thought Alex was very interesting, an amazing inspiration. She maintains a belief that with mental preparation, determination, resilience, discipline and courage you can do anything. Her story just shows that it’s never too late to aspire to fulfil your dreams. 

“Find your own motivation to keep you moving forwards for when the road ahead seems tough” –Alex.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

TY Film Society - O

The TY Film Society is organised by Mr. Coldrick, who chooses some hard hitting classic films for our TY pupils once a month. Ally Boyd Crotty reveals how the first film of the year, O, was received.


On Tuesday evenings, once every month, Mr. Coldrick comes into our prep to treat us to a film society evening. This being our first film evening, we were all very excited. The chosen film was called O, and is basically an modern adaptation of the tragedy Othello, the play written by William Shakespeare, which we are just beginning to study in English class. 

The film was set with a young cast, in a US high school, set around the a basketball player, Odin (depicting Othello). The film concentrates on the basketball team in this high school, and the harsh coach of this team, who wants to lead them to victory. But the coaches son, called Hugo, does not think his hard work is getting the recognition he deserves, especially when the coach gives the best player award to Odin, and says he loves him like he is his own son. Odin also then only give recognition to another basketball player Michael Cassio. Hugo then decides to get back at the boys who stole his glory, and sets them up. He slowly schemes against them, turning them against each other, and his jealously leads him to hurting more people than expected. 

I think that all of us in TY enjoyed the film very much, and it was fresh in our minds and still being talked about for days afterwards. After starting the play in class, we can now see the similarities between it and the film and it makes it even more interesting. I would say I can speak for everyone in TY when I say that I cannot wait until our next film and am very eager to find out what film will be next!

Monday, October 1, 2012

Transition Year Information Evening

All Form III and Form IV parents and pupls are invited to the Transition Year Information Evening which will take place in the Big Schoolroom on Thursday 4th October at 8:00pm.

This is a chance to hear more about the nature of our Transition Year Programme. The presentation, involving staff and former and current TYers will last about 45 minutes and there will be an opportunity to chat to various members of staff over coffee in the Drawing Room afterwards.

We do hope that many parents will attend.

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Junior Cert Celebrations

A few weeks ago, our Transition Year pupils received their much anticipated Junior Cert results. Luckily for them, their results were exceptional so we left them escape that evening for some (organised) fun! Sofia McConnell reports.


On Wednesday, 12 September all 52 of us received our Junior Certificate results. There were tears, smiles, frowns and laughs but by 1.30, all that was pushed to the back of our minds as we set out on our trip!

We reached Dublin and all got off the bus, excited for what was ahead of us. Randomly split into groups of about 23 we each set off for our separate adventures. My group’s first trip was a Viking Splash Tour, we all got on an open roofed bus with Viking helmets on our heads and, driven by our tour guide Paddy and his almost funny jokes we made our way into Dublin City Centre. He showed us the main Irish offices for Google, Facebook, the Boland’s mills, houses and apartments of Bono, Jedward, Colin Farrell, admired some pretty ‘Celts’ that passed by our bus and finally we arrived at the canal. After putting on life-jackets and readying ourselves for the change from land to water, our bus became a boat and we continued our tour by canal.

Our next activity was a visit to the Jeanie Johnston, a beautiful, old boat that had been used to transport emigrants from Ireland to Canada during the Famine in 1840, she was famous for having a kind, caring captain and an accomplished doctor. We learnt about how difficult life had been for them, how rarely they found who they were looking for once they arrived at their destination and the small percentage that actually made it there alive (however on this particular boat everyone was taken care of and survived the journey, sadly this wasn’t always the case with other boats.)

Our final group expedition was a sea safari around Dublin bay. We went in an open boat, rode the wake, got thrown about, completely soaked and overall had a brilliant time. Delicious, crispy-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside chips, hamburgers and hot dogs followed as dinner. 

Finally all 73 of us walked to the Odeon Cinema. With popcorn and cokes in hand we watched a gruesome and exciting movie about prohibition in the USA, in Virginia. At 10 PM we arrived back in school feeling content, comfortable and not nearly so worried about our results. We would all like to say a big thank you to Mr. Sherwood, Ms. Kilfeather, Mr. Clarke and Alannah for coming with us and organizing such a brilliant day.

Thursday, September 20, 2012

TY Hike Season Kicks Off


Last Saturday, the 15th of September, was the first of our Transition Year hikes with Mr. Coldrick. Ally Boyd Crotty tells all.

All the girls from Hollypark house, along with a few boys from Glen house hiked together with Mr. Coldrick and his daughter up Kilmashogue, behind our school gates. The hike took us about two and a half hours up, and we stopped at the top to admire the beautiful views of the countryside and Dublin city. The weather wasn't great but the rain thankfully held off until we got back to school. 

As we began our descent, we received a call telling us that three of our hikers had "taken the road less travelled" on their way up. While Mr. Coldrick went to redirect the unfortunate three, the rest of us began the much more enjoyable walk (or for some run) downwards, taking about an hour. The hike was great fun and I think we will all definitely take part in another one very soon.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Getting Set For Zambia 2013 With Habitat for Humanity

The 2011 SCC Habitat for Humanity Team

Want to hear something really exciting? Next year, a group 20 Transition Year and 5th Form students are travelling to Zambia, writes Bethany Shiell.

I bet you don’t even know where that is (truthfully neither did we until a little while ago!) We will be going with the charity Habitat For Humanity Ireland, which takes teams to foreign countries to help the locals build houses for themselves. (“Habitat for Humanity does not build houses for people, it builds with them”) And on this expedition we will be flying to Zambia; Zambia is a landlocked country in southern Africa which has 64% of its population under the poverty line, and almost 85% living on under €2 a day. We will spend two weeks there, living in conditions the same as the houses we will help build; with no running water or indoor toilets. The trip will be an incredible experience which all of us will carry with us forever. Each member of the team must fundraise €3,000 and every candidate is working hard, coming up with original and imaginative ideas to bring in the cash. Barbeques, Family Fun days, Concerts, Comedy Nights .... the effort is endless and ongoing until we reach our target. 

The team will be led by Mr. Swift (unfortunately Mr. Jones won’t be able to join us - as he will have a new arrival by then) and will also include four more teachers, whose identify seems to be a closely guarded secret. While in Zambia, we will be working from the early hours in the morning and continue the hard labour throughout the day. We will be building two houses alongside the people who will be living there. We will be carrying out all kinds of construction work from laying bricks to painting walls, and we will also be participating in cultural activities off-site. Habitat For Humanity offers “not only the chance to build much needed homes, but the opportunity to build real relationships with communities in need and develop an understanding of the problems they face”. We head off in late June 2013, so Zambia here we come! 

For more information on the St. Columba's College Habitat for Humanity project, visit http://scchabitat.blogspot.com. You'll find loads of information and photos about this and previous HFH trips.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

And We're Back!!!


Hello and welcome to Serpents & Doves - the Transition Year blog of St. Columba's College. We are back for a second year, ready to inform you about all the comings and goings of the TY class of 2013. We are currently forming our blog team - a group of core TY journalists that will write maintain the blog and our Twitter account. We plan on publishing loads of posts, photos, videos, podcasts and more over the coming months so stay tuned. Coming up this week - we will have posts on the first TY HIKES, our JUNIOR CERT CELEBRATION DAY, a visit to the opening day of Science Gallery's MAGICAL MATERIALS EXHIBITION, an update on the HABITAT FOR HUMANITY  trip and info on our TEAM HOPE SHOEBOX APPEAL. Stay tuned!

Picture: Last year's trip to Italy for TY's and V years. Guess where?

Monday, June 18, 2012

TY Finale and a performance to remember



Last Saturday's Actiontrack performance marked the end of the Transition Year 2011-2012. A version of Ovid's Metamorphoses was enacted with a sense of mystery, a song and dance flavour and a dramatic flourish. It was so uplifting to see our pupils write, compose, rehearse and then perform for the school. The entire evening was a fitting finale to what has been a busy, productive and happy year for all those who gave so much to make it a success.

A busy pupil tends to be a happy pupil - so it has been for our TY this year. Have a look back through this blog to see just some of the activities our pupils have undertaken...

We look forward to welcoming our new recruits in September, so until then:

Au revoir, adios, auf Wiedersehen, slan libh and goodbye! 


Wednesday, June 13, 2012

The TY end is nigh...







Fresh from their Achill adventures, on Monday the TY undertook an all-day series of team challenges. In glorious sunshine, under the beady eye of TY Co-ordinator Mr McCarthy, the two teams selected their leaders and then had to display physical and mental dexterity as a unit in order to overcome the obstacles set before them. The day culminated in a display of marching that was a sight to behold. Under orders from their individual team leaders each unit performed with military precision. I don't know about the enemy, but they certainly frightened me!

On Monday evening we had the TY Final Presentation Evening. Several pupils spoke to the audience about their Transition Year and the TY Choir closed the evening with a song.

Subject prizes were presented to the following:

Maths
H Johnson
Business
C Alvarez (in absentia)
Latin
P Gromotka
Classical Studies
H Peters (in absentia)
Construction
J Palomero (in absentia)
Chemistry
W Wood
French
S Bergareche
Spanish
E Speckter
Music & History
S Brady
Economics & Biology
U Onwurah
Art & Geography
A Owens
Physics, English & Irish and overall subject prize winner
S Sheeran

The prestigious Columban Award Scheme was shared between Sadhbh Sheeran and Anna Herrero.


On Tuesday morning the pupils began their Actiontrack Showbuild and we look forward to seeing the presentation on Saturday in the BSR at 8:15pm. All parents are most welcome!  You can follow their progress through the week on www.sccenglish.ie 






Wednesday, May 30, 2012

TY English Evening


 

Last night the English Department gave their end of year presentation with pupils reading their own and other's work. The guest speaker was Mr Tom Doorley, journalist and former member of staff. He regaled the audience with tales of St Columba's in the 1980s and to the great amusement of the pupils managed a fair impersonation of several members of staff. He urged pupils to continue to read regardless of the format of books - traditional or electronic. The best way to become a writer, he said, is to read and read and read. A full report of the evening appears on www.sccenglish.ie

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Rome comes to St Columba's

The TY Classical Studies class performed their comic play Plausibilia in the BSR last Thursday night. Written by Mr McCarthy in the Roman comic style it featured a motley collection of stock comic characters - a lovesick young man, a maiden in distress, a muscular soldier and a clever slave who saves the day. Hurrah! Much hilarity and mirth ensued as love contended with lust, money mixed with mania and brains battled brawn.

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Dramatis Personae

 But enough of this alliteration. The players:

Ugo Onwurah wept as Lacrimus, Harry Jonhson was cynical as Contemptuous, Ifueko Bello-Asemota stunned as Bustia, Molly Dunne strutted as Madame Poxia, Julianna Huggard was fragrant as Aroma Nastia, Tara McCormick was miserly as Avaricia, Sebastian Hillert leered as Lecherus, Lilian Glennon was indignant as Virtua, Anna v Schintling posed as Biggus Laddus. The heroine of the piece was Helene Peters, as Plausibilia, the clever, plausible slave. As she said at one stage, she has saved Lacrimus' bacon so many times she should slice it off and have it for her supper!

Music was arranged by Dearbhala Gernon and the play also featured an appearance from our three ornamental shrubs. These provided cover for eavesdropping and asides, a particularly Roman comic feature.

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Plausibilia cons Avaricia

Well done to all!

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Latest TY Events

Last Wednesday we were were visited by Carl Grainger, an Old Columban who works with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. He spoke to the form about his work in the field of human rights and it was an eye-opener for the pupils to see how grossly under-privileged so many people their own age are.

On Thursday and Friday the pupils were in Dundrum Town Centre collecting for the Irish Heart Foundation. Well done to all.

Friday, May 4, 2012

TY Academic Prize



The Transition Year Academic Prize presentations took place last night in the BSR. We were delighted to have as our adjudicator former Senior Master and Head of English Mr John Fanagan. Six candidates made their presentations:   Sadhbh Sheeran spoke about Organ and Tissue Donation in Ireland, Anna Herrero presented Genetic Mutations, Helene Peters illustrated Street Art, Marcia Kettern assessed Martin Luther King, Rebekka Kerhwald gave her thoughts on Factory Farming and Siobhan Brady examined The Life of Jacqueline du Pre

 After each presentation candidates were questioned by the adjudicator and the audience. Mr Fanagan then spoke about each candidate's work before announcing the winner and presenting the TY Academic Prize cup to Rebekka Kehrwald. Well done Rebekka!
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Rebekka and John Fanagan

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Transition Year Classical Studies

Mr McCarthy is transported on his time travel machine and writes:

During the course of this academic year our group have studied Greek Drama, reading the two great tragedies of Sophocles, Oedipus Rex  and Antigone. The struggles of human beings against their destiny and against their own instincts and beliefs are clearly and dramatically illustrated in these great works of the theatre.

Our pupils are now also well versed in everyday Latin usage, recognising their alma mater, rising ante meridiem each day, acknowledging their teacher in loco parentis and thinking caveat emptor before spending their money in shops. Most importantly of all they understand magister dixit. All thanks to our Latin for Today module.

Our study of the position of women in the ancient world outlined the huge changes that have taken place over the centuries in terms of the rights of women and it is encouraging to see that all agreed that this was a progressive development. We also looked at some of the major female characters from Greek legend - the ever-loyal Penelope, the child-killer Medea and the husband-killer Clytaemnestra.

Penelope rebuffs her suitors
Marcus Aurelius
Contemplation of the thoughts of the philosopher emperor Marcus Aurelius provided time for reflection and I was very impressed by the manner in which pupils interpreted these each week.

Marcus advises teachers: Teach them better if you can. If not, remember patience was meant for times like these. A very wise man indeed...

Performers in a Roman comedy
Our final module this term is a performance of a play in Roman comic style. Plausibilia is currently being rehearsed and will hopefully be performed for a Form IV audience before the end of term.







Monday, April 30, 2012

Trinity Term begins for TY




The TY arrive back today for their final term of the academic year. Having completed their work experience programme there will still be a lot of activities this term.

Tomorrow night they are off to the Abbey Theatre to see Alice in Funderland, a quirky take on the popular story, courtesy of the English Department.

On Thursday evening the TY Academic Prize takes place in the BSR and on Thursday and Friday members of the year will collect for the Irish Heart Foundation.


Next weekend many will travel to Italy for a cultural weekend while those who return on Tuesday will visit a fruit and vegetable farm in North County Dublin from where the college sources much of its food. This will be of particular interest to those who will study Agricultural Science in Form V.


On Wednesday of next week the year will have a talk from a representative of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, the UNHCR.





Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Sun shines on the end of Hilary term



As the Hilary term draws to a close and the sun begins to shine, pupils are in holiday mood. Today the intrepid Mr Sherwood, Ms Kilfeather and Ms Caulwell are leading a mystery expedition which will involve much work and water. No doubt a tale will be told at the end of it all.

For the TYers the holiday period will incorporate work expeience, recuperation after a busy term and of course some time for fun. As the ad for Mars bars would say, 'work, rest and play.'

Pupils should not return to the college until the second week of the Trinity term i.e. Sunday 29th April for boarders and Monday 30th April for day pupils. We hope that they will find their work experience enjoyable and informative.


 Next term sees the Transition Year Academic Prize. Many entries have been submitted and the shortlist for actual presentation on 3rd May is as follows: Sadhbh Sheeran, Siobhan Brady, Rebekka Kehrwald, Helene Peters, Anna Herrero Tejada and Marcia Kettern. 
They will present their thoughts and findings on Organ and Tissue Donations in Ireland, Jacqueline du Pre, Factory Farming, Street Art, Genetic Mutations and Martin Luther King Junior.


We wish a  happy and peaceful Easter to all.                 

Thursday, March 22, 2012

TY Quiz

The inaugural quiz was held in the BSR on Tuesday evening with ten teams pitting their wits against each other in rounds of general knowledge, sport, history, film & TV, the USA, music and some quirky questions on the college itself.

At the end, the floor of the BSR was dripping with knowledge as a closely fought contest left two teams, Aristotle and Descartes neck and neck going into the final round. The winners soon emerged and it was Aristotle who came out on top. How the teacher of Alexander the Great must be smiling in the Elysian Isles of the Blest.

The winning team memers were Molly Buckingham, Harry Fitzgibbon, William Wood, Gerardo Escauriaza, Ifueko Bello-Asemota and Emily Speckter. They were presented with the TY Quiz Trophy, kindly sponsored by the Parents' Association.

Pictures will follow...

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Inaugural Annual TY Quiz




Who shot JFK? Who shot Lee Harvey Oswald? Whatever happened to Jack Ruby?

These are some of the questions that will not be asked in the inaugural TY Quiz which will take place next Tuesday evening in the BSR.

The form have been divided into ten teams, each bearing the name of a great philosopher. So the likes of Socrates, Plato, Marcus Aurelius, Voltaire and Rousseau will live again. The name of the winning team will be engraved on the TY Quiz Trophy, kindly sponsored by the Parents' Association.

Mr McCarthy and Mr Swift have devised a series of fiendishly perplexing questions, such as ..... Oh I've run out of time. All will be revealed on Tuesday evening.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Mandarin Classes

As previously reported beginner's Mandarin has been offered to TY-ers one evening a week. A group of regular attendees emerged, namely Brendan Dickenson, Ugo Onwurah, Lasse Schaefer, Harry Johnson, Tosan McLarn, Pia Gromotka, Clara Booth, Tara McCormick, Alex Owens,  Molly Dunne, and Sadhbh Sheeran. Well done to all for supporting this initiative and to Mr. Coldrick for driving it. They say your reward will be in heaven but in fact the group are going to into Dublin with their tutor Mrs. Fang Wang next week for an authentic Chinese meal. 


Evidence of Teaching & Learning on the White Board
Tosan's Turn

Sunday, March 11, 2012

First Aid in Action



Our TY pupils receive training in first aid from Ms Maybury. One of them, Siobhan Brady recently had occasion to put this skill to very good effect indeed. Below, she tells of her experience.

On Friday the 17th of February I was sitting in Insomnia, St. Stephen's Green having a cup of tea and waiting for a few friends to show up. I was minding my own business and half-listening to my iPod when two girls walked into the coffee shop. They both looked hardly older than myself, probably around nineteen or twenty years of age. Both of the girls had infants with them, both infants were girls, the older girl being around two years old and the younger one being just six months old. The six month old girl was wearing a blue denim dress with pink flowers and bright pink tights with her tiny wispy hair tied up in a bobbin on top of her head. I noticed how one of the women was putting some food on a small plate for both of the girls.

I didn't see straight away what the food was but I then realised that it was Haribo sweets that she was giving them. Honestly, I thought nothing of it at first, because I assumed that the mother knew what she was doing. But as the six month old began banging the little table of her high chair with her little fist, flinging her plate at the ground, her face getting slowly redder and redder and all the while as she was making a strange rasping noise, I knew something was wrong. The mother of the baby started to pat the infant on the back but that seemed to be making the child worse. She stood up and exclaimed that she didn't know what to do, that she wasn't trained in First Aid. The other girl was busy cleaning up the mess that the child had made, she didn't see how big a problem this seemed to be.

An overwhelming feeling came over me that if I didn't do something at that very moment, this child could have suffocated to death. Fortunately, we had covered choking and what to do in a situation if someone was choking. I knew I shouldn't perform the Heimlich maneuver on such a tiny infant because that could cause me to break one of her ribs and perhaps puncture a lung which would have made the situation so much worse. I stood up immediately and told the woman to pick the baby up and to point her head to the floor but she held the baby upright which didn't help the child cough up the sweet at all and there wasn't enough time to explain to the mother what to do, so she handed me the toddler and I held her with her head facing downwards and her feet diagonally up in the air and the mother kept a firm hold of the baby's front, just under the diaphragm and I proceeded to thump on the girl's back. For a moment I thought nothing was happening and I was so worried I was making it worse because I had never practised this on a real person before, but the girl started to cough violently and eventually she started vomiting all over the floor and out popped the sweet! The woman was so grateful she started crying and I just told her to bring the baby outside to get some fresh air and I asked a passing waiter to fetch a glass of water. The woman insisted on buying me a hot chocolate as a gift of gratitude and I explained to her how it says on the packet of the Haribo "not suitable for children under 18 months" and she said from then on she would be far more careful with what food to give her child.
 
This day, Friday the 17th of February, was the single most terrifying day of my life. So many things could have gone wrong, but I just took a chance and luckily it paid off. I'm so grateful to Ms Maybury for teaching me these skills because although I am not an expert in First Aid, at least I had an idea  what  had to do. It's not every day you walk into a coffee shop and save a child's life so no matter what people say, everything you learn in Transition Year is valuable and I'm glad I paid attention to that SPHE class all those weeks ago!


Bravo Siobhan!















TY Geography/European Studies




Continuing our profile of TY subjects, Head of Geography Mr Sherwood writes:

To date we have adhered to the schedule as indicated in the European Studies Programme. In the Michaelmas Term we studied contemporary Europe from the end of the second W.W. We looked at the institutions that govern the E.U. and learnt the locations of countries, capitals. major rivers, seas, mountain ranges and climates.

We established Contact Sheets, drew up Personal Profiles and forwarded our European Celebrities as role models to our affiliated schools in Denmark, Norway, Northern Ireland, France and Romania.
Computing skills have been tested by each pupil presenting a PowerPoint presentation on a European country of their choice. A minimum of 7 slides was required to achieve this. The Michaelmas examinations tested the work to date.


Hilary Term has seen us embark on a researched, hand-written and portfolio-bound study of the European Treaties since the Treaty of Rome in 1957, outlining the significant changes that the five subsequent treaties have brought about. Each pupil also undertakes to present a PowerPoint presentation on an aspect of a European primary industry. The pupil must stand in front of the class and teach the subject they have researched to their peer group. This is a most beneficial undertaking employing many skills they will need in later life.

The second half of this term will see a similar research topic based on a European Manufactured Product, e.g. Ferrari, Chanel, etc. which the pupils present and grade each other in terms of computer proficiency and knowledge gained.

In early November we visited the European Public Information Center in Molesworth Street where we watched a DVD on today's Europe, enjoyed a quiz, and collected important resource materials for our coursework.

This stand alone course provides valuable material for a modern citizen of Europe. It tests and encourages independent thinking and enhances their computer skills while at the same time demanding they can present an accomplished piece of research to a known audience.                                                      
                                                                                                                                                                         

Saturday, March 10, 2012

The Junior Play - TY Involvement


TY luvies winding down in the Green Room, l-r: Brendan, Moll, Siobhan, Aidan and Ugo
TYers are eligible to audition for our Junior play. It was very pleasing that many did and that five of them acquitted themselves on stage in 'The Field' by John B. Keane with dramatic distinction. Molly Buckingham played the widow selling her field, Aidan Chisholm played Mick the barman / auctioneer, Brendan Dickerson had no trouble with the west of Ireland accent as Tadhg, the Bull McCabe's son, Ugo Onwurah played William Dee the visitor from outside looking to buy the field and Siobhan Brady played the scary bishop. The production was a great success overall and another feather of achievement in the caps of already busy Transition Year chaps and chap-esses....?

Aidan (left) is worried about the smoking ban and new drink driving regulations
Trouble in paradise - Mick the barman doesn't know where to look

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Wicklow Way - First Leg

Mr. Coldrick led a large group of intrepid hikers from college into the wilds of Wicklow two weekends ago. They were blessed with the weather. They followed the Wicklow Way and stayed the night in the An Oige hostel in Knockree. The following day they walked to Roundwood. In a few weeks time they plan to continue from Roundwood and do two days hiking which will bring them to the foot of Lugnaquilla. Mr. Coldrick was assisted by Ms. Caulwell and Ms. McNelis and by friend of college hiking Mr. Brian Bell. A more in-depth pupil account is imminent but in the meantime enjoy the photos.