St. Patrick's BNS Mallow Cork

2 weeks ago

Dear Parents and Guardians,



As you know, schools are closed for the month of January and we will begin remote teaching and learning next week. The staff here are busy working behind the scenes getting ready to work with the boys on Google Classroom, starting next Monday.



Remote teaching and learning is far from ideal and, like yourselves, we are looking forward to the day when we can get all of the boys back to St. Pat's and school life can return to normal. Until then, our priority as regards remote teaching is to keep things simple. As a staff, we recognise that every family has it's own unique situation. Many of you are going out to work every day, many of you are working from home. You may have elderly parents or other family members that you are looking out for. The children in your house might be 'out of sorts' without the routine of school which is such a big part of their lives. We know that every household is trying its best in what is a very anxious and stressful time for everyone.



I would like to reassure you that it is our sincere intention that the period of home schooling ahead of us will allow the boys to feel connected to school and their teachers and will allow them to get small pieces of meaningful work done in a way that does not cause extra stress in your home. Thankfully, Google Classroom is familiar to the boys. We have been using this platform since last September, just in case another lockdown would happen. You will see in your child's work over the next few weeks that big new topics will not be covered, especially in Maths. There is lots of work that we can do without a child feeling that they are not keeping up or that they are under pressure. The special ed team will also be engaging with parents about the boys' work.



The school books were sent home before Christmas so your child should have everything he needs. If your child was absent when the books went home, please ring the office (22368) to arrange a collection time. You can also email the office at stpatsmallow@eircom.net. My own email is denisemcsweeney@stpatsmallow.ie and if I can be of any help to you, please do get in touch.

The next communication you receive will be from your child's class teacher on Monday morning where they will outline what their plan is for the boys in the class. Obviously this will vary according to the ages of the boys. Work for the boys will be available on Google Classroom by 11am.



On behalf of the staff, we are looking forward to being back in touch with all the pupils and, as always, if you have any concerns please contact the class teacher directly or myself.



Best Wishes,

Denise Mc Sweeney ... See MoreSee Less