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KETNS Green Schools Committee
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Garden Club is now happening every Wednesday at break time. Watch this space!
BIODIVERSITY GREEN CODE
Congrats to Isabelle Finn who won our coveted prize of a bee pleasing seed bomb as well as a selection of beeswax wraps which are a great alternative to cling film. Her entry is now a part of our Biodiversity Green Code along with 4 other rules to live by while making the world a greener place for all life on Earth!
1. Single use, no excuse!
2.Save the bees, plant more trees.
3. Be green.
4.
5.
1. Single use, no excuse!
2.Save the bees, plant more trees.
3. Be green.
4.
5.
Green Team 2019/2020
Meet the committee, with children from 1st-6th class who will be working towards getting a Biodiversity flag for our school. What is Biodiversity you say? Why it's basically everything, from the smallest slower in your garden to the biggest whale in the ocean!
Pollinator Patch
We now have sections of our yard where we will not cut the grass so that our bees and minibeasts can enjoy the wild flowers and grasses!
Our sensory garden and old garden beds will now grow freely so feel free to put on your detective hat and see if you can spot some minibeasts.
Welcome to our New Green Schools Committee
Welcome to our newest, and returning, committee members. We are now officially working on our 5th flag which is for Biodiversity. It will a two year programme which will be full of new learning for us but for now we are looking forward to a wonderful, green 2019! :D
**Important Reminder Be Safe! Be Seen!**
Reminder to all pupils, parents and guardians to remain safe on our roads and paths even during those lovely summer days. Although it is getting brighter and sunnier, it is important to continue to wear High-vis vests, armbands and strips as motorists will still find it easier to see you with a high-vis vest if there is a glaring sun high in the sky. Those cycling, scooting or skateboarding should always wear helmets and safety gear.
Exciting News!!
We have achieved our fourth green flag award this year under the theme of travel. Travel is the fourth theme of the Green-Schools programme. The ultimate aim of the theme is to increase the number of students walking, cycling, scooting, using public transport or carpooling on the way to school. Well done everyone and keep up the active travelling!!!
Our School Garden
Over the past few weeks we have set up a school garden. Each class has their own flower bed where they have planted various flowers and vegetables. Each class played an active role in the choosing and planting of our crops. Student gardeners were taken out in small groups of four, and each child had an important role. Firstly, a drill was dug using a small spade. Next the chosen seeds were spread evenly, another gardener used a fork to cover the seeds over with soil and most importantly the soil was given a generous sprinkle of water.
All of the lovely flowers and vegetables each class carefully planted:
Junior Infants: Pumpkin, Dill and Calendula.
Senior Infants: Lettuce, Radishes and Sunflower.
1st Class: Salad, Carrot and Sweet Pea.
2nd Class: Potatoes, Chives and French Marigold.
3rd Class: Beans, Coriander and Borage.
4th Class: Beetroot, Cabbage and Sunflower.
5th Class: Carrot, Coriander and Calendula
6th Class: Kale, Babyleaf and French Marigold.
All of the lovely flowers and vegetables each class carefully planted:
Junior Infants: Pumpkin, Dill and Calendula.
Senior Infants: Lettuce, Radishes and Sunflower.
1st Class: Salad, Carrot and Sweet Pea.
2nd Class: Potatoes, Chives and French Marigold.
3rd Class: Beans, Coriander and Borage.
4th Class: Beetroot, Cabbage and Sunflower.
5th Class: Carrot, Coriander and Calendula
6th Class: Kale, Babyleaf and French Marigold.
Keep your eyes and ears open for information about our upcoming Spring Clean which we are in the process of finalising dates for. :)
KOF (Knowledge On Friday)
Friday the 26th of January saw each class in the school pairing up with other classrooms to teach a mini lesson on the theme of Travel. Junior Infants showed off their vocal chords by teaching the Safe Cross Code. Seniors taught all about cycle safety- I don't think anyone will forget their helmet again! :) First Class were hard to beat on their knowledge of scooter safety telling us all about the rules, safety gear and what to watch out for such as signs and having someone with you on your travels. Second Class blew us away with their information on carbon footprints and how we can reduce our carbon shoe size by doing simple things like carpooling and buying local! Third Class taught us all about deforestation while Fourth Class showed off their knowledge of the rail system Ireland has to offer. Fifth class demonstrated just how far Ireland has come in terms of transport from 1700 all the way up to 2018! Sixth Class showed us how global warming all started and gave us tips on how to slow its progress. Thank you to all the wonderful children and teachers for participating in our very first KOF! :D
The Green Code
1) Don't be a Quitter, Don't Spread Litter - encouraging people to take the time, no matter what, to put rubbish in the nearest bin, recycling or reusing waste for something else. The best thing we could do would e to reduce our waste in the first place.
2) Be Safe, Be Seen - encouraging the use of visivests and appropriate clothing when walking or cycling
3) Buckle Up Sherriff- You're safe when you hear the click-encouraging the use of safety belts when in a car.
4)Share the Drive- encouraging carpooling
5)Wear your Helmet- Helmets keep you safe when cycling, scooting or rollerblading
2) Be Safe, Be Seen - encouraging the use of visivests and appropriate clothing when walking or cycling
3) Buckle Up Sherriff- You're safe when you hear the click-encouraging the use of safety belts when in a car.
4)Share the Drive- encouraging carpooling
5)Wear your Helmet- Helmets keep you safe when cycling, scooting or rollerblading
Meet the Green Team 2017-2018
This year, we are in the second year of a two year cycle working towards our 4th Green Flag; Travel. We will focus on the benefits of carpooling, monitoring our carbon footprints and how transport has evolved to date contributing to global warming. We will also continue our work on Litter and Waste, and striving to spread further knowledge and awareness of how we can reduce our carbon footprints by lessening our transport levels. Welcome Lucy, Dara, Fleur, Harry, Rebecca, Hannah, Ethan, Isabelle and Otis.
Busy Bees!!!
Dust off those gloves and ditch the glad rags, it's time to get cleaning! We've been busy rehearsing our Green Schools Advice for cleaning that we will present on the wall after small break tomorrow. We have also been getting ready all the bags and gloves for collecting rubbish. Check out just a small bit of the huge amount of work that goes into prepping for our Spring Clean! There's still time to sign up as a volunteer. :)
Spring is almost over but the hard work has almost begun! :D
Tomorrow we will be announcing the official KETNS Annual Spring Clean that will be on the 28th of April at 11:15am. Thats the first Friday we are back to school for our holidays so enjoy the break everybody because when we get back it's all hands on deck! Keep an eye out for our posters around the school.
Introducing the Eco Monitors!!! (Litter Louts Beware) :)
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So I guess you're all wondering what exactly an Eco-Monitor is and what they do? Basically there's going to be Eco Monitors in every class who will have the extremely important responsibility of making sure that toilets are flushed and left tidy at the end of the day, lights and switches are turned off when there is nobody staying in the room, windows and doors are closed and that everyone picks up any pencils or belongings off the floor before going home. Check out our Eco-Monitor badges!
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Welcome James!
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We've found our representative from 6th Class and finally our GSC is complete. Welcome aboard James, we're lucky to have you!
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What we want to change!
Since our last walk with 4th Class down to the main entrance to our school avenue we've put together a few things we'd like to see changed to improve the location of our school. Right now we're asking the local authorities if there is anything they could do to help us like put in more signs to warn people about all of us girls and boys in the area during school.
Carpool Fortnight
A huge thank you to everybody that participated in our carpooling fortnight. At the moment our figures show us that 10% of our school car pool and we're hoping to get that percentage up to 16% percent by the end of the year so we hope that this experience has shown you all how fun it can be to carpool or at least given everybody a chance to get to know their neighbours!
A Walk in the Park!
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We joined Fourth Class on an educational walk down to the main gate entrance to our school. We used trundle wheels to measure how many meters it would be from our school to the main road. We also timed our trip and it took s about 27 minutes for everybody to reach the gate. It was super fun and showed us how nice it might be to walk to school from the gate in the mornings or in the afternoons. We also collected data on the different types of flora an fauna that we saw en route and surveyed how many cars we met on the road. We were really surprised by how busy the road was in the middle of the day. It really showed us how important it is to walk on a footpath and wear a high visibility jacket. Have a look at some of our pictures.
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Do you know how most of us get to school everyday?
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This week we went out and surveyed how children in KETNS get to school. We found out that a whopping 75% of our school take the bus to school keep up the sustainable travel everyone! Take a look at some of our surveys below. :) |
What's on our agenda for 2017-2018 we hear you ask??
We are going for our fourth green flag this year which is a flag for Travel. The Green Schools Committee (GSC) are currently trying to come up with an action plan to increase the number of students walking, cycling, scooting, using public transport or carpooling on the way to school so start getting to know your neighbours and pump up those bicycles! #GoForFour
Meet the Committee 2017-2018
Proudly introducing Ethan and Rebecca from 2nd Class, Leah and Harry from 3rd Class, Dara and Lucy from 4th Class and Darel and Fleur from 5th Class. Our planet is definitely in safe hands with these boys and girls! Looking forward to a busy year ahead :) |
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Meet the Committee
2015-2016
Back Row L - R: Hannah-Mae, Karina, Aoibhinn, Daróg, Sarah
Front Row L - R: Connor, Liadhm James, Rose, Jack
Front Row L - R: Connor, Liadhm James, Rose, Jack
Water Forum 2015
On the 27th November, Aoibhinn, Daróg, Sarah and Karina represented KETNS at the annual Water Forum in Galway. This is a great opportunity to share and get new ideas on the theme of water conservation. All four members did a great job at presenting their dream" Water Conservation" school and action plan. Well done!
Our Water Footprint
Here are some interesting water facts for you to consider!
Power showers use twice as much energy and hot water as a bath.
Washing the dishes makes up eight per cent of our daily water.
A fully-loaded modern dishwasher uses less energy and water than washing by hand.
Reuse your plastic bottles: it takes 1.39 liters to make one liter of water.
Check in for more water facts soon!!
Power showers use twice as much energy and hot water as a bath.
Washing the dishes makes up eight per cent of our daily water.
A fully-loaded modern dishwasher uses less energy and water than washing by hand.
Reuse your plastic bottles: it takes 1.39 liters to make one liter of water.
Check in for more water facts soon!!
Green Schools Commitee 2014-2015
The Green Schools Committee this year are Amber, Hannah-Mae, Aoibhinn, Cathal, Sarah, Daróg, Katie, Lonan, Fleur, Jack, Rose (students) Tracey, Clare (teachers) and James, our caretaker.
Water Hat Parade
The aim of the water themed hat parade was to raise awareness about the importance of saving water. From the incredible creativity we saw on the day we are sure that children and parents had lots of interesting discussions about water during the making of these hats! Well done everyone!
The Green School Committee would like to say a huge thank you to the Student Council for organising this event and for being so enthusiastic about the water theme.
The Green School Committee would like to say a huge thank you to the Student Council for organising this event and for being so enthusiastic about the water theme.
Galway Schools' Water Forum
Amber, Cathal and Hannah Mae recently attended the Galway Schools' Water Forum Event. Here they shared ideas with other schools, designed their dream water school, updated our Water Saving Action Plan and presented their work. We are very proud of how well all three children represented KETNS on the day. We also took the opportunity to share our "Save Water" message on the beach in Salthill!
Reading the Water Meter
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Our theme this year is Water
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Here are some tips:
Turn off the tap when you are brushing your teeth
Check for drips and leaks and get them fixed
Recycle water to water the plants
Collect rain water
Have a shower instead of a bath
Don't overfill the kettle
Use a half load in the dish washer and washing machine when possible
Turn off the tap when you are brushing your teeth
Check for drips and leaks and get them fixed
Recycle water to water the plants
Collect rain water
Have a shower instead of a bath
Don't overfill the kettle
Use a half load in the dish washer and washing machine when possible
We were awarded our Green Flag for Energy in 2014
