Pupils were awarded for their hard work and effort at our Annual Prize Day on Friday 22nd June 2012. Mrs Geraldine O'Hanlon, former teacher was the special guest at the Foundation Stage/Key Stage 1 Ceremony. Mrs Glenda Hall (SELB Senior Principal Architect) was the Special Guest at the Key Stage 2 Ceremony.

Yet a another successful Sports Day took place on Thursday 14th June 2012. Thankfully it was a virtually rain-free day and everyone thoroughly enjoyed participating.

 

Please visit the Gallery to see all the photos.

Our Nursery pupils attended a special Graduation Ceremony in the School Assembly Hall on Thursday 21st June 2012. Many parents, grandparents, relatives and friends attended the event to mark their graduation from Nursery to Year 1 in September.  Pupils were presented with Graduation Medals and Certificates by Mr Woolsey.

To see photos, please visit the Gallery.

During the event Minister O’Dowd unveiled a plaque to mark the occasion and a blessing was carried out by Parish Priest, Fr Michael O’Dwyer. The works which commenced in November 2011 included the refurbishment of the entrance area, the provision of a new library and new toilet facilities as well as additional resource and storage space. The refurbishment also involved the relocation of the nursery unit to allow it to become a more integral part of the main school building.

 

Following a tour of the school the Minister said: “It is a pleasure to be in Ballyoran Primary School today to celebrate the completion of their £500,000 refurbishment project. I had previously visited the school in October last year just before the refurbishment works kicked off so I can clearly see just how much of an impact these improvements have made.”

 

The Minister also commented on the music and dance performance provided by the pupils: “As I visit schools across the north I am continually amazed by the fantastic talent displayed by our children and young people. That talent has been in evidence yet again here today at Ballyoran and I would like to thank the school choir, the instrumental group, the Irish dancers and all the children for their great welcome and the entertainment they have provided.”

 

“I also welcome the fact that Ballyoran Primary School is represented by many different cultures and nationalities so it was particularly good to hear the beautiful singing from a group of Polish children at the school.”

 

In conclusion the Minister said: “I would like to thank the school Principal, Richard Woolsey for inviting me to participate in this special event today. As we approach the end of the school year I also want to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of all those involved with Ballyoran Primary School and I hope that all the staff, pupils and their families have a relaxing and enjoyable summer break.”

The Official Opening of our refurbished school will take place on Wednesday 13th June 2012 at 10.00am. All parents, relatives, friends and members of the community are invited to join us for this special day in the life of our school.

 

Please come along and join in the celebration. Many pupils, including the Nursery, will be taking part in music, song and dance.

 

The Opening Ceremony at 10.00am will be followed by an Open Day from 11.00am to 12.15pm when everyone will get a chance to tour the school and see it in action.

Unfortunately due to the very wet weather forecast for tomorrow, I have decided to postpone Sports Day.

 

Pupils should come to school tomorrow  in uniform and school will still finish at 1.00pm for everyone as planned.

 

Sports Day will take place on the next dry day and I will give you as much notice as possible via text. The day that Sports Day takes place will be a full school day for everyone.

 

The Themed Olympics Lunch has also been postponed and will now take place on the day that Sports Day will be held. Please see overleaf for the menu.

 

I apologise for the inconvenience but given the forecast this is the most sensible decision.

R Woolsey
Principal

Yet another very successful Year 7 trip to Shannaghmore has taken place from 30th May to 1st June. The pupils were accompanied by teachers: Miss Daly, Mrs Heaney and Mr Hendron. Everyone had a very enjoyable time.

To see all the photos, please visit the Gallery.

It was a tremendous honour that one of our Year 7 pupils, Tiernan Byrne, was selected to play in a Mid Ulster soccer team which took part in a tournament at Stormont on Saturday 19th May. With Tiernan playing a starring role in all of the matches, the Mid Ulster team overcame opponents from Belfast, Dublin and Scotland to win the tournament. Congratulations to the team and we are very proud that one of our pupils played such an important role.