Bocombra Bulletin Summer 2008
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY!

29th April - Year 3 visit to Streamvale Farm
1st May- Mr Vallelly’s first day as Principal
Mullen Cup final- Annagh Playing Fields - 7.00pm
5th May- Bank Holiday
7th May- Year 1 visit to The Argory
8th May- Parents’ Information evening - Shannaghmore 7.00pm
-Boreatton Park 8.00pm
9th May- Team Photographs (Opus Digital)
14th May - Football 6-a-side Tournament 10.00am-1.00pm
19-21st May- Shannaghmore Residential
23rd May- Staff training day
26th May- Bank Holiday/Year 7’s leave for Boreatton Park
27th May- Year 2 visit to Belfast Zoo
28th May- Rugby Fun Tournament (Year 6)
30th May- Year 7’s return from Boreatton




FUTURE DATES FOR THE DIARY


12th June - Sports Day
19th June - Annual PTA Summer Fun Night
24th June- Annual Prize Giving assembly
27th June- Last day of term


STANDARDISED TESTS AND EXAMS
During the month of May most children will be completing some tests and exams. Due to school trips the tests will be carried out at different times throughout the month. When revision at home is required your child’s teacher will inform you in plenty of time. The level of testing obviously varies depending on the age and ability of the children. Standardised tests are two-fold. Firstly they allow us, as a school, to monitor our whole-school performance during the past twelve months. Secondly, it allows the staff to identify individual pupils who may require additional support in a particular area of the curriculum. Please do not place a huge emphasis on these tests. They are important, especially in Key Stage 2, but they are not the deciding factor for new classes or new school placements. If a child under performs badly, the staff can still use their own professional judgement to ascertain whether there is a specific difficulty or it was a one-off under achievement due to worry or an additional issue. Encourage the children to work hard with revision and constantly praise them for good effort but do not cause unnecessary worry by building this work into something of unparalleled importance.


SHANNAGHMORE/BOREATTON RESIDENTIALS
PARENTS’ NIGHT
The parents of all Year 6 and Year 7 pupils who are attending our school residentials to Shannaghmore and Boreatton Park are invited to parents’ information sessions in school on Thursday 8th May.

SHANNAGHMORE (Year 6) 7.00-8.00pm
BOREATTON (Year 7) 8.00-9.00pm

The purpose of the evening is to provide parents with all relevant information as well as allow an opportunity to speak confidentially with the staff who are travelling. Please do try to attend as your presence assures the children that they are adequately prepared for the visit. Unless completely necessary, children should not attend as we will go through the same information with them closer to departure


HOLIDAYS
School will be closed for staff training on Friday 23th May and for the Bank holidays on Monday 5th and Monday 26th May.


ANNUAL PTA SUMMER FAIR
The PTA is again making arrangements for our annual summer fair to celebrate another successful Bocombra school year. This is planned for Thursday 19th June. Additionally there are plans in place for Christmas cards which will be printed with your own child’s artwork so all you early Christmas shoppers DON’T buy your Christmas cards yet! More news to follow in September.



SAINSBURY AND TESCO VOUCHERS
Please keep sending in your Sainsbury and Tesco vouchers. We still require many more to reach our targets. The children have thoroughly enjoyed working with all the new equipment purchased through the voucher scheme last year.



RUGBY
Congratulations to the Rugby Team who have won the Gilpin Cup for the second year in a row! Well done to the boys and their coaches Mrs Flack and Mr McMullen. We are all extremely proud
of their achievement.


GIRLS’ HOCKEY
Congratulations to the Girls’ Hockey team who have finished second in their league and also did us proud by reaching the Northern Ireland Finals and finishing in fourth place. They played consistently to a very high standard in all their matches. Well done to the girls and their coaches Mrs Mc Quitty and Mrs Flack.



FOOTBALL
Congratulations to the boys who won the Mid-Ulster Small School’s League, beating Lurgan Model 6-1 on Thursday 10th April. Well done to the boys and their coaches MrMcMullen and Mr Thompson. They also beat St Mary’s in the semi-final of the Mullen cup and would appreciate as much support as possible on Thursday evening when they play in the final.

Forthcoming Fixtures:
Dates – Thursday 1st May – Mullen Cup Final v. Millington P.S. 7.00pm
Annagh Playing Fields(to be confirmed)
- Wednesday 14th May – 6-a-side tournament (boys and girls)



CYCLING PROFICIENCY
Mrs. Taylor and Mrs. Kelly are again teaching Cycling Proficiency to the Year 7 pupils on Tuesdays. Please remember that pupils who ride their bike to school should wear a helmet and ensure their bicycle is locked whilst on the premises. To ensure everyone’s safety, please also remember that all cyclists should dismount and walk with their bicycle as soon as they reach the school gates. We would discourage all cyclists from using the public roads prior to completing their training.