Thank you for your patience in regarding the drinking water in school, we realise it is an inconvenience for the students.  We are doing all that we can to resolve the issue.

Thanks again for your understanding.

Dear Parent, 

“Thank you so much for coming to my school. You really inspired me and made me feel less alone, especially when you mentioned your parents’ divorce and how you felt like you couldn’t change it. Thank you for letting me know I am enough!” – Words from a 2nd year student who attended one of our 2023 school workshops.  Will we get a more recent one?

On Monday The Shona Project carried out a workshop with the young women in third year in Loreto College Foxrock and we hope that through our unique, honest and open approach, we have lit a spark of change.  We know through listening to these incredible girls, that they need support to face the challenges that today’s society places on them, and working with you, together we can help deliver that support.

The Shona Project ( https://shona.ie/ ) works to nurture the self-esteem of girls while educating, empowering and inspiring them to embrace their abilities.

As we are all aware, teenage girls in Ireland face a specific set of challenges including the societal pressure to look perfect, which leads to low self-esteem, and mental health issues often resulting in their potential not being realised. 1-3 young people in Ireland struggle with anxiety or depression contributing to the shocking fact that Ireland has the highest rate of death by suicide among teenage girls in Europe. 

Our workshop is focused on ensuring Irish girls have the skills, tools and self-esteem they need to achieve their potential.  During the hour and a half, we spent getting to know your child, we worked on the following:

• Influence: The people we surround ourselves with and how they influence how we feel about ourselves and the young women we become, being in tune with our values, and holding them firm, even when trying to fit in.

• Kindness: When we don’t know how to channel sadness, anger or frustration in a positive way, that’s when we take it out on others. We’ve all done it, but today we have all made some heartfelt apologies and promises, and all pledged to make our school a safe place, where every girl will be supported and encouraged by those around them, so we all can thrive.

•  Mindset: It’s not what happens to us that defines us, it’s how we respond to it. We’ve spoken a lot about resilience and responsibility today, and we’ve all set goals for ourselves that we can work towards. Ask your child to explain the E+R=O equation to you, you might find it useful!

We work on breaking down barriers and believe through early intervention we can avoid the possible downhill spiral many young teens in Ireland unfortunately face.  But we only have a short time with them, so your role as the parent/guardian cannot be underestimated and you can and should continue these conversations with your child once they come home from school. 

We understand it is hard to find the right words to start these conversations, and a part of our goal here at The Shona Project is to create an ecosystem for the young people of Ireland to thrive. So, we wanted to give you some tips and talking points to encourage positive and healthy conversations. 

Tip 1: Don’t say you need a chat. This will heighten their insecurity and anxiety. Just ask them how their day went, or how they feel about a certain topic. Avoid the sneak attack. 

Tip 2: Eye contact can be difficult when having important or deep conversations. Why not go for a drive or a walk? This way, you are beside your child, rather than face to face. 

Tip 3: Kids don’t need you to solve all their problems. If you do, they will never know what they are capable of. As parents, our number one goal is to listen and validate how they’re feeling. When young people struggle, they feel like it’s their failure. Use terms like “That is tough”, “I hear you”, and “This is not a normal situation, be gentle with yourself while you work through it.” Work together to come up with solutions, but always hear them first.

We hope that these ideas and tips are useful and may have helped you and your child with additional tools to encourage positive conversations and communication.  We share the goal of wanting them to grow into a strong, resilient, and confident young person. If you would like to learn how you can further open up conversations with your child, please check out our podcast for parents HERE. 

Tammy has also recently published a book that you might like to stock in your library. You've Got This! is a positive and empowering guide designed to help girls find their place in the world and grab life with both hands. Full of practical information on handling the challenges of the teenage years with a healthy mindset, it covers topics like finding your friendship tribe, handling peer pressure, healthy body image, periods, love, sex and relationships, exam pressure and navigating the online world. You've Got This! is a supportive companion that will boost self-esteem, inspire positive thinking and build resilience while encouraging you to see the amazing potential in yourself. You can purchase this book €15.95 (including delivery) via our website here.

We are currently developing tools and workshops for parents, carers, coaches, and teachers – if you are interested in learning more about our work, the SHINE Festival, our future projects, how we might help you and your child, or indeed how you might support us, why not visit our website or social media channels to continue the conversation or sign up to our newsletter here to stay up to date with all things Shona while we also share our recommendations for books, music, podcasts, TV shows, movies, self-care items, and everything in between.

“It’s important for young women to feel like they matter, that their opinions matter, that their achievements matter - the Shona Project gives young women that platform to equality, positive representation and making their voices heard” - Katie, Youth Ambassador for The Shona Project

Kind Regards, 

The Shona Team

Dear Parent/Guardian,  

In 2021, the State Examinations Commission (SEC) as part of its digital strategy, introduced a facility to allow Leaving Certificate candidates to confirm their subject and level entry details online (including adding or withdrawing from subjects), replacing the previous system of using individual Leaving Certificate candidate (E7) entry forms. The use of the online system, the Candidate Self Service Portal (CSSP) will continue for the 2024 Leaving Certificate.  

All candidates must register through the Portal as this Portal will provide candidates with the opportunity to confirm their subject choice and levels, to also allow future access to their results and for the later stages of the process such as the appeals application process.  

The portal will open on Wednesday 17th of January 2024 for candidates to register and activate their account and confirm their subject entries and levels. It will remain open for this purpose until 5 pm Friday 02 February 2024.  

The candidate portal can be accessed on www.examinations.ie from 1 pm on Wednesday 17th of January 2024.  

There is helpdesk support available at 1800-111135 or 1800-111136 between 9 am to 5 pm Monday to Friday until Tuesday 02 February 2024. Outside of these hours, you can email candidateportal@examinations.ie 

Dear Parents/Guardians,

The issue with the drinking water in the main school building has been resolved. Water in the school building is now safe to drink, with the exception of the the Sports Hall. We are working on the issue in the Sports Hall and will keep you up to date. Thank you for your patience while we worked to resolve the issue.

REMINDER

Dear Parent/Guardian,  

In 2021, the State Examinations Commission (SEC) as part of its digital strategy, introduced a facility to allow Leaving Certificate candidates to confirm their subject and level entry details online (including adding or withdrawing from subjects), replacing the previous system of using individual Leaving Certificate candidate (E7) entry forms. The use of the online system, the Candidate Self Service Portal (CSSP) will continue for the 2024 Leaving Certificate.  

All candidates must register through the Portal as this Portal will provide candidates with the opportunity to confirm their subject choice and levels, to also allow future access to their results and for the later stages of the process such as the appeals application process.  

The portal will open on Wednesday 17th of January 2024 for candidates to register and activate their account and confirm their subject entries and levels. It will remain open for this purpose until 5 pm Friday 02 February 2024.  

The candidate portal can be accessed on www.examinations.ie from 1 pm on Wednesday 17th of January 2024.  

There is helpdesk support available at 1800-111135 or 1800-111136 between 9 am to 5 pm Monday to Friday until Tuesday 02 February 2024. Outside of these hours, you can email candidateportal@examinations.ie 

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Please note that full school uniform is expected from tomorrow, Monday 22nd January. Thank you for your cooperation.

Congratulations to Elaine Zhang in 3rd year who recently won 2 gold medals and one bronze medal in the Leinster Short Course Championships. Best of luck in your upcoming competitions. 

Our 3 Leinster schools debates teams are competing in the second round of the competition in UCD this evening. The motion is "That this house supports a united European state". 

Two teams proposing the motion (but in separate rooms) are: Ciara Redden & Laura McMenamin (5th Year) and Mya Madigan (6th Yr) & Parina Rucktooa-Gukhool (TY).

Our third team of Grace Jones & Lucy Mullins (5th Year) is opposing the motion. 

The very best of luck to all our speakers!

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Welcome back, we hope everyone had a lovely Christmas break. We would like to remind you that the school is closed for students this Friday, 12th January to allow for a School Planning Day. 

Thank you.

Dear Parents and Guardians

As we come to the end of the first term of 6th Year, we would like to take this opportunity to commend the 6th Years on their positive start to the Leaving Cert year.  All their hard work and committment from last year have proven to be good foundations for the year ahead.  This was further cemented by their trip to Glendalough in September.

The 6th Years have embraced their roles as leaders in the school.  They have been modeling excellent behaviour for the younger year groups by wearing the school uniform with pride (especially their new black jumpers!) and displaying kindness and courtesy around the school.  The Leadership Team have been working well with the junior classes and organised a very successful fun day for the 1st year students to help them settle into school.

We are aware that this is a very challenging year so we would like to offer a few reminders:

- students are encouraged to continue with extra-curricular activities

- students should refer to the 'How Prepared are you to Learn Checklist' on Teams for practical advice

- students are encouraged to seek help from the support systems in the school - class teachers, tutors, Year Heads and guidance

- students have been offered the opportunity to avail of the Academic Mentor Programme which will start after mid-term.

We hope that all students take advantage of the mid-term break to relax, rest and recharge the batteries for the next part of the year.

If you have any questions or concerns please contact the relevant Year Head.

Kind regards

Leonora O'Shea and Jennie Corcoran