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Pupils learned about difference between a refugee, an asylum seeker and a migrant. It’s crucial today to understand what an asylum seeker or a refugee is because of all the misconceptions and misunderstandings around those terms.

Al Jazeera announced recently that it wasn’t going to refer anymore to the Mediterranean “migrant crisis”, instead it would call it a “refugee crisis”. More than 72,000 have now signed a petition on Change.org urging the BBC to use the term “refugee crisis” instead of “migrant crisis”.

The terms have distinct meanings, and despite some grey area, confusing them completely leads to problems for those respective populations.

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Refugees, Asylum Seekers & Migrants: A Crucial Difference

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What is the difference between refugees, asylum seekers and migrants? Why does it matter and how does it change our perceptions?

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This was presented to all staff and also sent to all Board of Mangement members.

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Schools of Sanctuary Presentation for Staff

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Children from our Student Council attended a webinar on 31/03/22.

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Staff Meeting to discuss our application to become a "School of Sanctuary". We emphasised how much we are already doing along with some new focuses. We even had the Chairperson of our Board of Management, Canon O'Malley present.

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This powerpoint was delivered to all classes to put a strong focus on our application to become a "School of Sanctuary"

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St Mary's NS welcomes our first Ukrainian pupil.

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St Mary's NS were delighted to welcome our first Ukrainian pupil to the school. Eldar has settled in really well in 1st class and made some new friends already. As you can see from his picture, he is quite a talented artist. He has been learning lots of English and is getting some extra help from Ms Roche. His mum is also a talented artist and she has been taking part in our parents' Art & Craft class. Make sure you say a big hello to Eldar when you see him.

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We were delighted to have our all inclusive parents' classes back. Pictured above is Taisiia (Eldar's Mum) who has just arrived to Ireland from the Ukraine. What better way for her to get the know the school community than to join in in our wonderful Art & Craft class. It is clear to see she is a very talented artist. Big thanks to our HSCL Noelle Mann for facilitating these wonderful classes.

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Our Steering Committee is made up of Staff members  and students from our school council. We are actively involved in making our school a place of welcome and inclusion for all.
This photograph was taken on the 8/4/22 when our school signed the pledge.
Ahmed Hassan Mohamed attended on the day and spoke to the older classes about the importance of identity and how language gives us a strong sense of who we are. He reminded the children of how we never know what the future holds but that education gives us choices and opportunities.
He also pointed out that all of us are global citizens and part of a wider community that share so much in common - the need to belong, the need to feel safe and understood, the need for friendship.
Ahmed told us that curiosity is good if our questions come from genuine interest in another person. We cannot learn if we don't ask!

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On Friday 8th April 2022, we held our official "Pledge Day" to become a School of Sanctuary. We pledged to become an all inclusive, safe and welcoming school. We pledge our support to the City of Sanctuary vision that Ireland will be a welcoming place of safety for all and proud to offer sanctuary to people fleeing violence and persecution. As a school, we recognise the contribution of refugees, migrants and people seeking sanctuary to Ireland. In working towards becoming a School of Sanctuary we pledge to:

1.   Learn what it means to be seeking sanctuary and about the lives of refugees, migrants and marginalised groups in Ireland.

2.  Take Action to support sanctuary seekers in the daily life of the school.

3.  Share this new knowledge and understanding with the school's wider community & the Schools of Sanctuary network.

Ahmed who is a migrant from Zanzibar spoke to us about the importance of accepting everyone for who they are #Inclusion #SchoolOfSanctuary

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Our 'School of Sanctuary' Display. Our pupils pledge to help keep our school a welcoming, inclusive and safe environment for all.

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Our Wellbeing statement reflects our school's commitment to  safeguarding and enhancing pupil and staff wellbeing.

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Aladdin - St. Mary's National School - User_ Marian Kennedy

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Friendship Group is an evidence-based group work programme that helps children who are experiencing difficulty making and keeping friends to develop the skills they need to interact appropriately with their peer group. Friendship Group is about giving children a place to develop and practice the skills they need to form healthy friendships. This proven programme was designed in the United States and is rooted in a strong understanding of children’s development.

What does a child learn in Friendship Group?

The ability to make and keep friends is a really important life skill for children to learn. Some children need an extra helping hand to learn these skills and this is what Friendship Group is for.

Friendship Group helps children to make and keep friends by teaching them about:

Feelings - how to recognise their own feelings and the feelings of others

Solving problems - how to negotiate with others and find solutions to problems

Working together - how to play fair, cooperate, get along with others and develop their give-and-take skills

We are proud in St Mary's NS of our strong committment to forging and maintaining positive and meaningful friendships.

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First class learns a new word!

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Mukhttar taught 2nd class to say 'hello' in pashto. Pashto is spoken in Afghanistan. Mukhttar's family came to Ireland from Afghanistan.

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Belly breathing helps children feel calm and relaxed.

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In St Mary's, we learn that we can self-regulate. We are the 'bosses' of our minds and bodies. We learn techniques to self-soothe and calm racing minds and busy bodies.

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We use 'Headspace' to help us learn wellbeing strategies.

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Our new inclusion Policy indicates our commitment to an all inclusive school environment.

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Our S.P.H.E. plan reflects our inclusive and holistic ethos.

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Aladdin - St. Mary's National School - User_ Marian Kennedy

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Listen to a clip of Junior Infants singing the 'Welcome Song". We are a  welcoming school.

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We would sing this song for Carly. We would sing this song to welcome children from other places to our school.

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Senior Infant's response to
' Carly's Story'.

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Roots of Empathy is an evidence-based programme delivered in primary school classrooms which has shown significant effect in reducing levels of aggression among school children by raising social-emotional competence and increasing empathy. At the heart of the programme is a baby (Sadie) and parent (Lorraine) who visit third class (virtually) every three weeks during the school year. A trained Roots of Empathy instructor coaches the children to observe the baby's development and to label the baby's feelings. The baby is the ‘teacher’ in this experiential learning, while the instructor helps the children identify and reflect on their own feelings and the feelings of others. The Roots of Empathy instructor also visits before and after each "family" visit to prepare and reinforce teachings using a specialised lesson plan for each visit. Research results from national and international evaluations of Roots of Empathy indicate significant reductions in aggression and increases in prosocial behaviours.

The Curriculum - Roots of Empathy primarily addresses the affective (feelings and emotions) side of the Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) curriculum. However, it is cross-curricular as it features strong links to maths, music, art, language and literature, and Social, Environmental and Scientific Education (SESE). The Roots of Empathy curriculum is specialised to the learning outcomes of four different age ranges from junior infants to 6th class. There is a theme for every family visit, with nine themes covered and three visits per theme (pre-family visit, family visit, post-family visit).

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Creative arts therapies is a collective term used for art therapy, dance movement therapy, drama therapy and music therapy. They are evidenced-based health professions with a strong research foundation. They work with a focus on psychosocial, cognitive, emotional and physical needs and utilise creative mediums that allow an alternative and additional means of communication. They coordinate planned and creative use of the art forms to accomplish individualised clinical goals within a therapeutic relationship.

Creative Arts Therapies are proven to:

·         Develop self-awareness and personal insight.

·         Improve sense of self and self-identity.

·         Encourage self-expression.

·         Improve confidence and self-esteem.

·         Resolve inner conflicts.

·         Assist with gaining a sense of control over difficult emotions and life situations.

·         Aid emotional regulation.

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Senior Infant's watching ' Carly's Story'.

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Sing out with Strings - Our music programme for all.

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Sing Out with Strings (SOWS) is a groundbreaking initiative in conjunction with the Irish Chamber Orchestra that offers all our pupils the chance to learn music for free with qualified musicians. Inspired by El Sistema, the Venezuelan model of music education, Sing Out with Strings provides our pupils with free singing, song-writing, violin, viola, cello and double bass tuition, harnessing the power of music to develop pupils’ key skills, including concentration, co-ordination, listening and teamwork. There are also several "Meet the Musicians" workshops throughout the year where children meet musicians from various different genres.

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All in the school community were saddened to hear about events unfolding in the Ukraine. The school decided to support the Ukranian people by making an appeal to the school community to donate much needed funding to supply vital necessities for refugees seeking refuge in Poland.

This idea came from our Polish SNA Pati Simring whose friends have actually taken in refugees to their homes in Poland. Their kindness inspired Pati to start up an appeal. Pati sourced materials directly in Poland so that they get to the Ukranian people immediately.

Le Chéile NS and Melody Cafe in Limerick heard about our appeal and jumped on board to help.

We are delighted to announce that we raised in excess of €2,500 to fund much needed supplies for the people of Ukraine. Pati has been busy organising medical supplies, baby food, toiletries and much needed necessities.

The Limerick Leader even wrote about our fantastic effort:

https://www.limerickleader.ie/news/home/765499/limerick-schools-help-raise-3-000-for-ukraine-aid-effort.html

Thanks to everyone for their generous donations #NoWarInUkraine

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Our student council was established in 2021.

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St Mary's NS is extremely proud of our Student's Council which gives pupils the opportunity to have THEIR say in THEIR school. Student Councils can create a sense of ownership of the school and its activities among the student population. The establishment of a Student Council gives students an opportunity to acquire the sort of communication, planning and organisational skills which will be of benefit to them in their future lives.

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We were delighted to welcome Margaret Grace from St John the Baptist NS in Pennywell. Mr. O'Byrne and Ms Kennedy shared our portfolio and ideas to help them with their journey to become a School of Sanctuary. Margaret's energy and enthusiasm for the project was amazing. We discussed a collaborative music project in conjunction with the Irish Chamber Orchestra. This will be based around the Schools of Sanctuary theme. We even managed to get a selfie in front of our School of Sanctuary Welcome Board. We are looking to meet with Margaret and her principal David Nicholas in the not too distant future to further develop this solid relationship. Sharing is core to the ethos of both schools.

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Staff watched the introductory webinar and afterwards, they were emailed the 'School of Sanctuary' booklet to inform their own teaching and the powerpoint which can be shown to all our pupils.

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Ms Kennedy Shares with Primary and Post-Primary Schools in Mary Immaculate College

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Ms Kennedy gave a powerful presentation to lead teachers, principals and lecturers in Mary Immaculate College on Thursday 26th May 2022. She outlined the process of becoming a School of Sanctuary and how much the school has embraced the initiative. She discussed the ongoing elements in the school and the development of our padlet & school website to incorporate the school of Sanctuary. She further went on to discuss our collaborative approach with St John the Baptist NS and to detail a programme that will commence in September 2022 to facilitate a musical project amongst refugee children in both schools.

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Incredible Years is run in every class in St Mary's NS.

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The Incredible Years (IY) Programme is an international early intervention programme which aims to achieve long-term positive impacts on children’s behaviour. It consists of three types of programmes for parents, children, and teachers. In St Mary's NS both teachers and SNAs are trained in IY to create a whole school positive approach to behaviour. The programme is designed to have long term reductions in problematic child behaviours, such as aggressive, externalising, hyperactive and oppositional/non-compliant behaviours. We are a proud IY school that wants to make a positive difference in the lives of the children who attend our school. The foundation of this approach is inclusion for all and a willingness from staff to accommodate all needs.

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St Mary's NS is a proud member of the TEAL project in conjunction with Mary Immaculate College. Launched in September 2019, the TEAL Project (TED EAL) is an initiative of the TED (Transforming Education through Dialogue) Project located within the Curriculum Development Unit at MIC. As the first of its kind in Ireland, the project was developed in response to an urgent need to accommodate the diverse language and literacy needs of students in primary and post-primary schools. It aims to assist the children of migrant families in their language learning journey by fostering culturally and linguistically responsive teaching approaches. It celebrates linguistic diversity in the classroom and is designed to increase teacher knowledge and confidence in the teaching of children whose first language is not English. It has been recognised by the European Commission. The project prides itself on SHARING information and resources amongst its members and also external agencies. Together we can make a difference.