St Patrick’s NS Stackallen

School Wellbeing & Initiatives

  Physical Education

  1. Pupils in Stackallen NS engage with a minimum of 60 minutes of physical activity per week.
  2. All 5 strands from the Primary Curriculum are taught on a rota basis at every class level during every school year.
  3. Our priority PE strand for the 2019/2020 school year is Athletics.

Partnerships

  1. The teachers also engage with the Fundamental Movement Skills framework as advocated by the PDST. There are three staff members who have completed the FMS course.
  2. An ‘Active Schools Flag’ committee was established in November. All pupils pledged to undertake at least 60 minutes of exercise a day.
  3. We have established strong links with local clubs in the community. Tennis, GAA, Rugby, Stretching, Athletics, Zumba etc. We ensure that the pupils experience a variety of exercise throughout the school year.
  4. Updates about our Active School Flag journey are posted on our school Facebook and Twitter pages.

Physical Activity

  1. Movement breaks take place 2-3 times a day in every classroom.
  2. Wake Up-Shake Up takes place during the Spring/Summer term, three mornings a week at 9.20. Each class is assigned a week to lead the exercises.
  3. Pupils have the opportunity to play with a variety of equipment; footballs, tennis rackets, hula hoops etc, at all break times. Active School Flag leaders ensure that the equipment is accounted for at the end of each break.

Active Schools Week

  1. A programme of exercise is designed by the Active School Flag committee and lead teachers in the Summer term.
  2. Sports Day takes place on the last day of Active Schools Week.
  3. Physical activity is the only homework given to the pupils during Active Schools Week.
  4. Pupils also have an opportunity to experience new sports and games during Active Schools Week. Coaches from the local area or teachers undertake to teach new sports to the pupils to ensure an inclusive sporting experience for all pupils.

Active Flag

The Active School Flag (ASF) is awarded to schools that strive to achieve a physically educated and physically active school community. The process aims to get more schools, more active, more often.

Schools wishing to achieve the ASF begin the process by self-evaluating their current provision across 3 areas: Physical Education, Physical Activity and Partnerships. Schools must also organise an Active School Week programme and commit to having it as part of their annual school calendar. Schools that can say ‘yes’ to all of the ASF success criteria will be awarded with the active flag. The flag remains valid for a period of 3 years after which time schools will be invited to re-apply.

ASF is a Department of Education and Skills initiative supported by Healthy Ireland.

We are delight in Stackallen NS to fly our Active Flag with pride.

 

Amber Flag

The Amber Flag initiative is an initiative run by Pieta House which recognises the individual efforts of primary and secondary schools, youth reach, third level institutions, community groups, clubs and companies to create healthy, inclusive environments that support mental wellbeing. 

Minsters Jan O’Sullivan and Kathleen Lynch have launched Well-Being in Primary Schools- Guidelines for Mental Health Promotion. This joint collaboration between the Department of Education and Skills and the Health Service Executive, aims to promote positive mental health and wellbeing in primary schools. It is recognised in these guidelines that positive mental health and wellbeing enables young people to lead fulfilling lives and is vitally important to their holistic development. 

To promote positive mental health and wellbeing in Stackallen N.S., we take part in the Amber Flag Initiative. Successful completion of the Amber Flag initiative involves the whole school community coming together in order to create a safe, positive and healthy attitude towards our general physical and mental health and well-being. 

We, in Stackallen N.S., encourage the wider school community to embrace positive mental health and wellbeing. If any parents are willing to share their skills and talents with us in terms of music, meditation, mindfulness, fitness, healthy eating, art, etc. we would be delighted if you got in touch. 

We will be documenting all of our hard work on our school Instagram page @stackallenns.

Our aims and objectives are:

  • To create Amber Flag notice boards in the school, promoting positive mental health strategies. 
  • To hold a fundraising event for Pieta House and Sarah’s Christmas Lunch Coffee Morning to promote gratitude & positive mental health in our school
  • To raise awareness of positive mental health strategies for our pupils & our staff. 

 

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