Young Scientist's Exhibition 2016

On Friday 8th January, the 3rd-6th classes were delighted to travel to the Young Scientist's Exhibition in the RDS in Dublin. It was an amazing day where the children were awed with presentations and demonstrations. We had an action packed day with a presentation about aeronautical space, a visit with Titan the Robot, a 3D celestial voyage, the world of robots, an insight into the life of a mentalist with David Meade and visiting the wonderful exhibitions from the primary and secondary schools. It was an amazing inspiring day and hopefully we will be back next year exhibiting!

Science Week 2015

Julia Marzoni and Pat Lacey From Merck came in to speak with us. 

Today we were fortunate enough to have a presentation by Pat and Julia from MSD as part of our Science Week.

Julia spoke to us about the history of medicines, from natural remedies such as tree barks used in ancient times to modern pharmaceutical. She spoke about John Snow’s identification of cholera, of Louis Pasteur’s research in microbiology, and his chance discoveries of penicillin.

Pat discussed the operations of a modern pharmaceutical facility, like the M.S.D factory at Rathdrum. He compared the operation of the factory to bread making. I found this a great description very useful in helping me to understand exactly how the batches of tablets and medicines are made.

We were very fortunate to get to talk to Julia and Pat about the interesting jobs in science.

By Adam

Science Week

On Monday 9^th of November 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th & 6^th had a speaker come in and talk to them about engineering. The lady’s name was Karen and she talked to us about engineering. Karen showed us videos about engineering, the video was about when you wake up to an alarm. Engineers have made and invented that you have toast for breakfast. Engineers have made the toaster eg Karen showed us pictures of when she worked in Jaguers Land Rover in England.

She showed us all the tests she did on the cars like the water test when she drove really fast in a car around a wet motorway and tested which tyres were best for that test. She did a really good job and I learned loads!

Ø  Being a Mechanical engineer means they work with cars and engines and robots or factory machines.

Ø  Engineers think a different way to normal people do.

Ø  Engineers are always thinking what they can do to make the world better.

Ø  You would have to be good at maths to be a engineer.

Ø  Some engineers work on making bridges and structural engineers.

Ø  It takes four years of study at college to be a mechanical engineer.

By Zoe

Engineers

On Wednesday Catríona came in to talk to us about engineers and what engineering is all about.

Basically what engineering is, is fixing problems in our homes or making things possible so hopefully in the future we could have hoverboards etc

Catríona is a software engineer so she works with computers. She does alot of coding with her work. Coding is basically telling the computer what to do and how to react in different situations.

*        Maths is an important subject if you won’t to be an engineer

*        Coding is telling a computer what to do

*        Engineers fix problems, they ask the questions.

*        Software engineers do lots of coding.

*        To be an engineer you have often to travel alot to work with different people

*        There are lots of types of engineers like civil engineers who design roads and bridges, mechanical engineer who make and design cars and robots, software engineers who programme computers and chemical engineers who work with materials.

By Laoise

What a Troubled World

Look at it this way the world may be ok at the moment but in 10, 20,  50 years what is it going to be like? Why don’t we look up from our everyday lives and actually see what we are doing to our lovely planet.

Just think about if a few million on earth put a real effort into this because not one person can do it alone, but as a united nation it is more than possible.

Just think if we stopped driving our cares and polluting the planet we could change the world into a better place.

Imagine a world with no starving people and polluted lakes and rivers with no big polluting chemicals. I know the world will never be a perfect place where the new born human baby will play with the adult lion but why not make it the best we can because a lot of people are happy at the moment.

Just think how much of a better place we could make it because a lot of people think going out an extra few miles in your car won’t hurt, but it will.

If we continue the way we’re going, we’re going to be over populated, rundown world with half of it impossible to live in due to global warming. The British and the Americans fought Germany for their future and ours. Now we need to fight for our future and our descendants future. We want to live a full life so make it happen, now.

By Ben 

Science Week 2015

St. Saviour’s National School, Rathdrum celebrated the 20^th anniversary of Science Week with a variety of events and activities. The week’s events included informative presentations from Karen Fitzgerald who is studying a PHD in hip replacement technology, Catriona Shannon a senior computer software engineer in IBM and Pat Lacey/Julia Mizoni from Merck Pharmaceuticals. All of the presentations gave the children an insight into how important science is in our everyday lives. On Tuesday, it was the children’s opportunity to be scientists when the children hosted their own science exhibition. The children from 3^rd-6^th classes conducted and presented experiments for the rest of the school. The experiments were across a variety of topics including designing a lava lamp, robots, creating fire extinguishers, investigating how strong eggshells are, designing a paddle boat and lots more. The week also included science logo and poetry competitions, science raps and whole school assemblies on famous scientists such as George Boole, Robert Boyle and Isaac Newton. The event concluded with awarding certificates of participation in the Science Exhibition. Everyone agreed it was a great event and we look forward to our participation next year. The school’s activities during Science and Maths week (October) will count towards applying for an excellence award in Primary Science and Maths which will be awarded in 2016.

Yeats Poetry 

4th , 5th & 6th class studied the poetry of W. B. Yeats and inspired by this they wrote wonderful poems, and some have been chosen to be entered into The Blackrock Education Centre,Yeats Poetry Competition. 

See some of their poems below: 

The Enchanted Forest of Oak

The first light of a new day unfolds

The sun blankets the ocean,

Rays of sunlight break through

the enchanted forest.

For the spirits have finished

their party.

Flowers are being showered

by fiery sunlight,

I see a girl on a white horse,

She whispers in my ear,

                     Come away! Come away!

                          Come away!

By Adam 5th class 

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Epiphany

Walking down the beach with the orange sun setting,

I think to myself many depressing dark thoughts.

As I reach the forest my anger brews,

The sun soon sets leaving me in pitch black.

As the small thin layer of hard, dead leaves

Starts to thin, I realize I am not where I thought.

My ever ageing lamp soon starts to dim,

The orientation of the land is changing.

Suddenly there are no trees around me,

I am lost, the only indication of land

Is the small pitter-patter of a nearby stream.

My anger changes to sadness and fear.

With this sudden change of heart,

The dark is extinguished like a blazing flame deprived of air.

The presence of death is removed from the land,

To be replaced by a blinding light.

I tried to turn back but I could not

I took a step forward and I was on the beach,

Just as I had been only moments ago.

By Harry 6th class 

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Dancing with Nature

I was walking slowly through the trees,

With the awakening winds,

Flowing through my unbound hair.

The carpet of leaves and moss,

Soft on my bare feet,

As I made my way swiftly by  the trees.

The light spilled from the gaps

Between the branches,

And the sound of the running water,

Flooded to my ears.

I followed it,

To find a beautiful ancient oak tree,

With a stream and waterfall at its side,

The sunrays dancing,

On the silver water.

I tried to get rid of my mortal dreams,

To live this moment for as long as I could,

Until the sun disappeared,

 Until the stains of light fade away…

By Nele 6th Class 

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Lovely Sligo

we are young,

we are in love,

and we are wandering Sligo together,

we sit up above the water,

and I persuade him to jump in.

we love all sligo’s beautiful features,

the carpets of leaves in the hazel wood,

where we walk in bare feet,

where he hauls himself onto the tree,

and he pulls me up after him,

we sit up there for hours,

admiring the beautiful views.

 By Jazmine 5th Class 

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The Fairy

The fire flaming in early dawn

In a mystical forest,

In lands far away

The fire fairy is  dancing in the flames,

Her fiery hair blowing in the wind

Her flaming dress flowing in the breeze

Running out of the fire

As I see her fading away into the dark forest.

I follow her to the waterfall

Which trickles  into the silver pools

In mystical lands afar,

She skates on silver lily pads

Jumping from boulder

 To boulder covered in a blanket of moss.

The little  fairy is dancing

Hiding shyly in the waterfall

From the sight of  me.

By Isabelle 4th class 

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SHADOW!!!!!!!

Sunbeam, Emerald and all I can see,

I spot a cairn ,no lock no key,

The stony mountain overlooking a gleaming fountain,

The crystal water,

Reflecting the fairies flutter,

The winds cry,

Making the lake sigh,

Sunbeams of emerald,

Are all I can see ,

I spot a cairn, no lock no key.

By Nadia 4th class 

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The Mists of Sligo

The Mist of Sligo,

Invading the tops of the mountain

As the wind flies around,

Silver mist trickling

As the magical fairies

Were blowing tiny bubbles

Into the hurricane of grass and leaves

The salty sea is spraying the shore

The waves crashing against the rushy bay

The sun’s reflection sparkling

Against the crystal  ripples.

Of the shiny rock pools.

By Robert 4th class 

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Grainne’s Dance

Grainne is wondering the magical

Country-side of Ireland,

Spreading beauty everywhere,

Her golden hair wild,

As she jumps the crystal waters,

Runs over dew tipped grass,

And climbs the highest mountains,

No one sees her,

But she’s there,

Wandering the bright country-side,

Unknown to the mortal world. 

By Lauren 5th class 

4th, 5th and 6th classes wrote some short stories about 'The Witch'. Here is a selection of some of them.

The Witch

One cold chilly Halloween Night. In a dark cave a witch lived around, roaming flying high in the cold sky. She was cackling to herself. Her hair was knotted, swirled twirled. It was black with a white strip down it. Her robe was dark black and had many bugs and small holes in it. There was a piece of rope tied around her hips because it was too long. The robe was 500 years old, that’s why it is so smelly.  It’s been passed down for many generations. Her face was hideous, I could not stand to look at it. I got quick glimpse if you want to know. Ok, I will tell you. She was very stooped as well. Her face is light green. It looks like you are going to vomit. Her nose was so long it would poke you in the eye. She had a big wart on her nose. She only had five yellow disgusting teeth the rest fell out. She had two pairs of shoes now only one the others were eaten by her pet rat rubble. The ones she had were long and black and very worn.

By Isabelle

 

The Witch

Legend has it, that on Halloween night all the witches have a bonfire and dance around a cauldron. Each witch is just as disgusting as the last. Matted grey hair, big sharp noses, fat warts, with hair coming out of them, rugged dresses and cloaks and broom sticks and black cats. They have long sharp nails full of dirt and who knows what else. Sharp toenails that stick up through shoes and they sing and dance all night around their steaming cauldrons. They have a special recipe for that particular night that they sing “A sprinkle of this, a tinkle of that, I think I’ll put in a big fat rat! A strand of red hair, some puss from my nose, what about a snot from it too. An eyeball a finger, a tonsil an eyelash, a dash of brains, a splash of blood”  Then they would cackle all night long. Their party hats and black cloaks look like silhouettes in the light of the bonfire. When they cackle you can see all of their yellow and black teeth and can smell their horrible  killing breath.  In the morning all you can see are ambers of the bonfire.

By Nele

 

The Witch

One windy night in a clearing, in the deepest darkest part of the woods Smugglewart Mc Witchypot the 3^rd, was stirring a fowl smelling potion in her cauldron, to make her beautiful. You see Smugglewart was not the most beautiful being in the world well actually she looked horrid. She had grey and black knotty hair with rats tails at the ends because her hair had never been cut or brushed before she also had a few bald patches. Her face was not at all charming either. There was warts all over her face, chin and head her eyes were a grey black colour and her skin was,  well obviously green as most witches are famous for. Her teeth were either yellow, brown or gone. Her lips were dry or cracked, and of course, yep you guessed it she had a big, huge long pointy nose, with warts all over it!

Her clothes were ripped and ragged with holes and little bits of well everything all over them. She wore a black dress, a big pair of blocky leather boots, and yep you guessed it again a long pointy black hat. And now you know she was sooo ugly, and you wouldn’t be surprised to know everyone said that a pig was more beautiful then Smugglewart Mc Witchypot the 3^rd.

By Alannah-Bel

 

The Witch

She flies in the moonlight of a silver moon heading to the old haunted mansion. It’s the witch of the silver moon, Maggy! Maggy is an old witch who has grey, notty long, scraggily hair. Her hair smells like old monster socks “Stinky”. Her face is a dark bumpy green face. Her teeth are yellow and brown and her nose covered in huge green warts. Her eyes are an evil glowing red in colour. Maggy’s long black raggedly 40 year old dress goes down to her hairy green knees!! Her long brown cloak is smelly and has ugly patches on it. She has huge black smelly shoes with ugly brown socks too. Maggy’s hands are green and warty and very dirty because she never washes her hands!!! She has a black wicked cat, a big black cauldron and a long broom stick. Her dull black pointy hat sticks up from her head.

 

By Lily

The Witch

 

Once upon a time on the top of the hill lived an old cranky witch. She was plumb and short with a long neck about half a metre long. Her name was Nanny Lumpalula. Her face was long and she had a big double chin, her face was covered in wrinkles and warts.

The warts were filled with pumpkin snot. Her lips were thin and crispy and her face was pale. Her eyes were grey and she had picked her eyelashes out with a nail clippers. Her skin was blotchy and had little pin pimples all over it. Her hair was short and grey and greasy. She wears a black dress and pink high boots. Her favourite thing to do was dance in the moonlight at midnight.

By Zoe

The Witch

My witch is called Bridget. She has long black hair with snakes in it. She’s wearing a black hat to keep the snakes in it. She has a torn black clock. Her face is full of warts and has a nose like a pig. She is sly, nasty and ill mannered. She is wearing boots to small for her (she stole them off a child)

In her spare time, she brews potions and feeds the snakes in her hair.

By Adam

October 2014

Science
The senior room learned about magnets, electricity and alternative forms of energy in September and October. As part of this the children worked in groups to construct a magnet powered boat. On the last day of half term 4th, 5th & 6th class went to the park and timed our magnet powered boats racing down a section of the river in the park. It was a very close competition but Zoe, Jazmine and Lauren's pretty boat stole the race in a time of 10.2 seconds. Well done girls!

Halloween Arts & Crafts
We had great fun constructing our wonderful witches.

Halloween Parade
We had great fun dressing up for Halloween !