The Three Peaks Challenge
In order to fund our difference day next Monday for St. Catherine's school, all Transition Year students completed the 'Three Peaks challenge'. This was a challenge that was about 17km long and included a walk of the big sugarloaf, walk to the small sugarloaf, the small sugarloaf, walk to Kilruddary, walk from Kilruddary to Bray Head, Bray Head and then back to the promenade in Bray.
I thoroughly enjoyed the walk and was a great opportunity to talk to loads of people on the trip. It was also a practice for people going on the Camino de Santagio in June, I am going on this trip and this walk was a great opportunity to test out our walking shoes and get an insight of the distance we will be walking each day. Its going to be unbelievable I'm really looking forward to it. It was a gorgeous day and the sun shined the whole way through. Farmers tans, burnt necks and chests were all round from the trip!
I thoroughly enjoyed the walk and was a great opportunity to talk to loads of people on the trip. It was also a practice for people going on the Camino de Santagio in June, I am going on this trip and this walk was a great opportunity to test out our walking shoes and get an insight of the distance we will be walking each day. Its going to be unbelievable I'm really looking forward to it. It was a gorgeous day and the sun shined the whole way through. Farmers tans, burnt necks and chests were all round from the trip!
Barista Course
I completed an optional 10 week barista course with Dublin Barista School. The classes took place on a Saturday from 3-4 on Westmoreland Street. We did 7 weeks of 1hour classes but our last class was 3hours long. The teachers Lena, Luca and James were really helpful and took time to explain and demonstrate what we were learning. It was nice that the classes were in town because we always got to go shopping beforehand or go for food afterwards. We have now completed our 10 weeks of classes and will be soon assigned a 3hour work placement to put our skills to the test! We learnt how to make a coffee shot and foam milk perfectly, it’s a lot harder than it sounds and everything has to be weighed to the exact decimal! We will also receive a certificate that we are certified baristas and hopefully this will help me when getting a job when I’m older! The course was really enjoyable and I learnt lots.
I completed an optional 10 week barista course with Dublin Barista School. The classes took place on a Saturday from 3-4 on Westmoreland Street. We did 7 weeks of 1hour classes but our last class was 3hours long. The teachers Lena, Luca and James were really helpful and took time to explain and demonstrate what we were learning. It was nice that the classes were in town because we always got to go shopping beforehand or go for food afterwards. We have now completed our 10 weeks of classes and will be soon assigned a 3hour work placement to put our skills to the test! We learnt how to make a coffee shot and foam milk perfectly, it’s a lot harder than it sounds and everything has to be weighed to the exact decimal! We will also receive a certificate that we are certified baristas and hopefully this will help me when getting a job when I’m older! The course was really enjoyable and I learnt lots.
Musical Rehersals
The musical is slowly approaching and rehersals are at full-speed! The principals have been selected and we are practicing everyday. Each form has a dance, A are performing "Positive", B are performing "Bend and Snap", C are performing "Omigod", D are performing "Take it Like a Man". Also A and B join for a dance and C and D join for a dance. Luckily I am in near,y every dance due to the small number of girls we have. I am really enjoying the rehersals and can't wait to perform on stage!
Musical
I can safely say that the musical by far has been my highlight of transition year so far! When we were told that we would be performing the musical Legally Blonde, there was very mixed reactions. A lot of the principal roles were female which we questioned because of the little number of girls we have.
Soon, auditions began. When all the principal roles were chosen it was time to start rehearsing! Each form class had a dance and then A and B joined for a dance and C and D joined for a dance. Form A danced “ Positive” , B danced “ Omigod” , C danced “Bend and Snap” and D danced “So much better”. I was lucky enough to be in nearly every dance as we were lacking numbers of girls
As we got closer to the performance dates of our musical , classes were messy due to rehearsals and principals were always at rehearsals. Unfortunately I missed all of the auditions because I was injured but I managed to get two small parts as Elle’s Mum and Da Joyce Riley. I had only a few lines as each role but being on stage and the atmosphere was amazing! I loved the dancing part of the musical. I was in nearly every dance and loved learning and practicing them everyday.
As we got closer to the performance dates of our musical , classes were messy due to rehearsals and principals were always at rehearsals. Unfortunately I missed all of the auditions because I was injured but I managed to get two small parts as Elle’s Mum and Da Joyce Riley. I had only a few lines as each role but being on stage and the atmosphere was amazing! I loved the dancing part of the musical. I was in nearly every dance and loved learning and practicing them everyday.
We had a total of 8 performances. The evening shows ran smoothly and we were delighted with the feedback from our audience. Overall the musical was an experience of a lifetime and something I will always remember. For many, including myself that was the last time we will probably ever perform on stage and i am so glad that i was given the opportunity to perform on stage with my year. I had so much fun in rehearsals and performing and can defiently say that our year really bonded together in the weeks approaching our evening shows. I am so happy I got the opportunity to do the musical with my year group and it is defiently my highlight of Ty so far.
Martial Arts Course
On Monday the 23rd and Tuesday the 24th of October, all transition year students took part in a Martial Arts Course. On Monday, we all gathered in the hall, where we met our instructor, Daragh and he explained what the course would involve and the importance of knowing self defence. Afterwards, we went to the sports hall to begin the course. We learnt different hitting techniques to use as self defence such as; the fist jab, slap and the hammer. We then had the chance to practice ground fighting against our fellow classmates. The following day, we were taught how to fix someone on the floor and defend ourselves from the floor. We also learnt how to defend ourselves against weapons such as a knife and a gun. The final part of our course was to complete an assessment. Each of us had to complete a certain sequence of the defensive techniques we learnt throughout the course. I found the course really enjoyable and fun and I think it will be very beneficial to me if I am ever attacked or need to defend myself.
Public Access Of Law
On Tuesday the 24th November, I took part in a day long course that focused on the subject of Law. I have always had an interest in Law so i was really interested and excited to participate in the course.
During the day we learnt about the different types of law e.g criminal and civil, the different courts e.g the Supreme and the District Courts. I found this topic quite interesting as many of the court I had never even heard of ! We watched a 30 minute video also on CSI and forensics. I found this so interesting how criminals carry out crimes and the steps they take to try and cover up their crimes. This is defiantly a subject I may be possibly interested in as I particulary enjoy CSI / Criminal shows such as Criminal Minds.
The Last 2 hours of the day were my favourite part of the course by far. We had a mock trial ! I felt this was great fun but also very terrifying at the same time. I was the defendent in this particular trial and the prosecution from my fellow classmates was strong and quite aggressive in trying to get their point across to the jury. I felt quite intimidated and this gave me an insight into how distraught people must feel having to stand in the podiums in courts. I never wish to go through that process again. On a positive note I won my case by majority vote of the jury and was proven not guilty.
I feel I learnt a lot from this course and it has influenced my knowledge of the Legal system further as a result.
During the day we learnt about the different types of law e.g criminal and civil, the different courts e.g the Supreme and the District Courts. I found this topic quite interesting as many of the court I had never even heard of ! We watched a 30 minute video also on CSI and forensics. I found this so interesting how criminals carry out crimes and the steps they take to try and cover up their crimes. This is defiantly a subject I may be possibly interested in as I particulary enjoy CSI / Criminal shows such as Criminal Minds.
The Last 2 hours of the day were my favourite part of the course by far. We had a mock trial ! I felt this was great fun but also very terrifying at the same time. I was the defendent in this particular trial and the prosecution from my fellow classmates was strong and quite aggressive in trying to get their point across to the jury. I felt quite intimidated and this gave me an insight into how distraught people must feel having to stand in the podiums in courts. I never wish to go through that process again. On a positive note I won my case by majority vote of the jury and was proven not guilty.
I feel I learnt a lot from this course and it has influenced my knowledge of the Legal system further as a result.
Mini Company
This year I teamed up with Sarah, Ella and Claire to complete our mini company project. After a lot of discussion and many different ideas we decided to do our mini company on slime. Our first mission was to decide how to produce and advertise the slime. We researched various slime recipes online. We split the ingredients and everyone bought something. Before we made our slime, myself and Sarah created a social media page on Instagram. We spoke about our upcoming slime product. We met together outside school to make out product. Unfortunately, we our slime production was unsuccessful. We found that the slime was much harder to make then we had thought. It was either too slimey or rubbery. We met together again the following week with a fodders today recipe to try again, unfortunately this was also unsuccessful. I am very disappointed that our mini company did not work as it would have been a great experience and I think it was an excellent idea.
Bens bake sale for Operation Smile
Last Friday, on the 27th of April Ben organised a bake sale in aid of Operation Smile. Operation Smile is an organisation who fundraiser for children who have cleft lift. They fundraise to pay for their surgeries which many can’t afford. Everyone brought in cakes and worked on the stalls to help Ben. The bake sale was a huge huge success raising nearly €2,000. This money will fund ten surgeries. Ben was delighted with this and raised way more than expected. It was great to be able to help Ben achieve his goal and was such an accomplishment for him. Everyone was so generous and it was a huge success! Well done Ben :)
Tag Rugby
On Monday the 25th of September, all fourth year students began a 5 week tag rugby course . On the first week, we learned how to pass the ball and catch it. At the end of the 5 week course, we took part in a tag rugby tournament in UCD. Blackrock Colledge and Loreto Dalkey also took part in the tournament. We were mixed into teams with the other schools. This gave us a good chance to mix and socialise with people from other schools. Each team was given the name of a country. I was on team Argentina. My team and I reached the final and played against USA, but unfortunately we lost. The course and the tournament were both really fun and I really enjoyed learning to play tag rugby.
First-Aid
During the days April 16th, 17th and 18th a large group of TY students took part in a First Aid Course. This is an important skill to have , that in my opinion should be learnt by everyone as it could be the difference between saving someones life. I was partnered with Claire for the Practical parts of the coursework where we had to bandage each other, complete full body examinations and practice making a sling.
My teacher Brian was very informative and lovely and taught us everything we needed to know regarding strokes, cardiac arrest, sprains, broken bones, slings, consciousness, whole body examinations, choking in adults, someone in a wheelchair, infant choking and much more. I really enjoyed the course and learnt so much from it. I loved taking part in this course as it was so interactive, fun and educational at the same time.
Carrying out the practical exam was very stressful it felt like I was in an actual accident! I had to bandage a wound bleeding badly, put someone into a recovery position and complete a full body examination and perform CPR on a mannequin. In the written exam there were 22 questions and your best 20 were marked, I received 85% which was great!
My favourite part of the course was learning how to perform CPR on the mannequins. We had to place one hand on top of the other on the casualties spectrum, we then pushed in hard for 30 beats, we then gave the manequin two breaths using the mask we were given. We were told to do our 30 compressions to the tune of Stayling Alive by---. This was very helpful to stay in a rhythm. I feel that having the ability to possibly save a persons life is a huge responsibility on everyone and first aid is such an important skill.
My teacher Brian was very informative and lovely and taught us everything we needed to know regarding strokes, cardiac arrest, sprains, broken bones, slings, consciousness, whole body examinations, choking in adults, someone in a wheelchair, infant choking and much more. I really enjoyed the course and learnt so much from it. I loved taking part in this course as it was so interactive, fun and educational at the same time.
Carrying out the practical exam was very stressful it felt like I was in an actual accident! I had to bandage a wound bleeding badly, put someone into a recovery position and complete a full body examination and perform CPR on a mannequin. In the written exam there were 22 questions and your best 20 were marked, I received 85% which was great!
My favourite part of the course was learning how to perform CPR on the mannequins. We had to place one hand on top of the other on the casualties spectrum, we then pushed in hard for 30 beats, we then gave the manequin two breaths using the mask we were given. We were told to do our 30 compressions to the tune of Stayling Alive by---. This was very helpful to stay in a rhythm. I feel that having the ability to possibly save a persons life is a huge responsibility on everyone and first aid is such an important skill.
Scuba Diving Theory Day
Wednesday the 22nd of November , I took part in a scuba diving theory session as part of my scuba diving extra curricular course. A man from 'Ocean divers ' diving school came in to talk to us for 1 hour about the safety and rules of using the scuba equipment. He told us about the safety precautions that should be taken while in the water and the names of the equipment that we will be using. I and many from my class will be visiting the National Aquatic Centre next month to carry out the practical section of the course. When I first heard in early September that scuba diving was an Extra Curriculum activity I immediately signed up for it. I have never done Scuba diving before although I love to swim. Also I have many friends who have carried out scuba diving previously and highly recommended it to me ! We were told that our Scuba diving practical would be a day long course whereby we get to use the equipment shown to us in our theory session.We were also showed a brief presentation and video about the sort of things we will be carrying out when we attend in the National Aquatic Centre such as sitting on the pool floor crossed legged ! I will be challenged to remember all the various hand signals and how to equalise the pressure in my nose, ears and other air chambers in my body, as we taught in our theory session. I can’t wait ! Our Scuba diving Session will take place on Monday the 27th of November.
Scuba Diving
On Monday the 27th is November I went to the national aquatic center to participate in a scuba diving course. I was very excited about scuba diving because it was something I never done it before and it was something I had always wanted to do. Due to the huge demand for this course, we were split into two groups. Each group took it in turn to use the scuba equipment while the other group ate lunch. The group was split alphabetically and my group went first. During our scuba session we learnt how to equalize the pressure in our ears and noses, to lower ourselves deeper in the water and how to breathe correctly and much more. I got the hang of it almost instantly , but others found it harder. Unfortunately, my tank ran out of air and I had to finish early. There was panic as my instructor realized my tank was low but I remained calm and swam to the age of the pool. I really enjoyed scuba diving but was disappointing that my experience was cut short!
French Exchange
Towards the end of April the French pupils in our school took part in a French exchange programme. I personally don’t study French in school but I loved meeting the new French people. They were in Ireland for 10 days on their exchange. In June the students from Gerard’s will be going to their houses in France to get the same experience. Adele has two french students staying with her, Julia and Tuscan. I've really enjoyed getting to know them.
Sarahs Coffee Morning
On the 16th of March I assisted Sarah in doing a fundraiser coffee morning. During easter sarah will be traveling abroad to Romania with a group of 20 young people. In Romania, she will help to build houses for the poor people in that area. She organised a fundraiser coffee morning to fund her trip! She asked a few of the girls to help her! LilyKate, Amy, Adele, Claire, Sally and I helped Sarah to host her coffee morning and helped her to raise an astounding €1348. This was way above what she needed and expected and was delighted! It was great to be able to help out Sarah and see the money we helped her raise.
Salsa Dancing
On Wednesday the 4th of November, my Spanish class participated in a Salsa dancing workshop. Ms. Molloy's Salsa teacher Will came to teach us. Will is from Cuba and was such an amazing dancer. We laughed all the way through the session as we attempted the salsa moves. Unfortunately, our musical rehearsals overlapped with the salsa dance class meaning I missed the beginning of the class but I really enjoyed learning to salsa ! Thank you to Ms. Molloy for organising everything
Faith Friends / Cara
On the beginning of October every fourth year student, girls and boys were assigned a buddy or two of the same gender ! When I was in First Year I had a Sixth Year 'buddy' although it soon became clear to us and our head of years that this match wasn't right ! The Sixth Years didn't have enough time for First year worries and the age gap of about five years didn't help ! The role has since been awarded to Transition Years. This is a huge responsibility but I feel it will work really well and will be more successful. I was teamed up with two girls. We met with our First Year buddies in the dining hall for a general talk and refreshments of hot chocolate and a bar. It was great to get to know our little buddies and to try and help them as much as we can with their problems. I can't wait to develop my relationship with my buddy further.
ECDL
This year I took part in a computer course called the European Computer Drving licence (ECDL). This course is a great thing to have on your CV and I have learnt a lot from it. I am very pleased to have passed all my tests. I am really glad I decided to do ECDL as I’m constantly using my new computer skills every day. It is a really beneficial course and enjoyable at the same time.
Summer Concert
On the 28th of April the annual St. Gerard's Summer Concert took place. This is a great night every year with an amazing amount of talent from a variety of acts. This year many of my friends were competing. Amy, Lilykate and Abbie sung a song together as well as their own individual acts. All of us in the crowd were blown away by the high standard of talent amongst our peers.
Hockey
This year I was honoured to captain the Junior Cup Team in Hockey. We started off the season slow but we had a very successful season overall. We unfortunately lost to Muckross in the semi final of the cup. My team this year consisted of mostly third years with only three fourth years, including myself. It was both challenging and rewarding being captain of the team. I unfortunately was injured for a lot of the season but managed to play all the cup matches which i was delighted about. Throughout the season, we really bonded as a group and the fourth and third years mixed really well which proved to benefit the results of our matches. I loved my year of hockey and will defiantly miss playing with these girls
Pilates
Since October I have been doing Pilates twice a week in Rathmicheal. Originally, I started Pilates to help my back injury but I ended up really enjoying it and have continued it on since. Pilates was a great way for me to exercise while I was out of hockey. I am so glad that I started Pilates because before transistion years I would never have thought of trying it out.
Newsletter
This year , I am a member of the IT and newsletter committee. Every month the newsletter publishes a document containing pictures and descriptions of the fun and exciting activities in Ty of that month. Every two weeks , the committee meets and decides who will take on what role and which activity whom should write about. I love English and being a part of the newsletter committee gives me a chance to practice my English.
Student Council
I am part of the student council. This is my third year being elected. As part of the student council we strive to make a difference to the students of St Gerards and suggest ways to make our school better. Sometimes our suggestions are not always carried through but we make our headmaster Mr Geraghty and head of student council , Ms Fanning aware of the problems that we see in the school. I enjoy being part of the student council because it gives me a chance to speak up on behalf of my year group.
Non-Uniform Day in aid of Breast Cancer Ireland
On the 23rd of March the student council held a non-uniform day in aid of Breast Cancer Ireland. The student council met to discuss the details.
As a member of student council I helped to make decisions such as the date and how we would fundraise for breast cancer Ireland. We decided to do a non-uniform day. Each child would bring in €5 that would go directly to breast cancer Ireland. Breast cancer Ireland were so kind to send us balloons, badges and wrist bands to thank us for fundraising for them. I collected the €5 contribution from each student at check-in and also gave out filers explaining the importance of their research and how to test yourself for breast cancer. Everyone wore a breast cancer Ireland badge and it was really special. The fundraiser was a huge success and we raised a total of /!
As a member of student council I helped to make decisions such as the date and how we would fundraise for breast cancer Ireland. We decided to do a non-uniform day. Each child would bring in €5 that would go directly to breast cancer Ireland. Breast cancer Ireland were so kind to send us balloons, badges and wrist bands to thank us for fundraising for them. I collected the €5 contribution from each student at check-in and also gave out filers explaining the importance of their research and how to test yourself for breast cancer. Everyone wore a breast cancer Ireland badge and it was really special. The fundraiser was a huge success and we raised a total of /!