Return to flip book view

Spring Edition 2024 St Cecilia s News Perfect Seanain Ulster Schools Cross Country Food for thought We Rock Cover image by Wilde Rose Schneider 9Hope2 Myths about Rats

Spring 2024 Welcome to the Spring edition of our school magazine St Cecilia s News It s been another very hectic term We have had so much going on a particular highlight was our amazing school show We Will Rock You which wowed audiences for 3 nights Our M P H was packed to the rafters and the performances have won the pupils and staff involved plaudits all over town In St Cecilia s our pupils have been involved in writing poetry letting our hair down learning about rats meeting celebrities starting their own businesses and succeeding in sports As you can see there s lots in this edition of St Cecilia s News for you to enjoy As always a big thank you to all the writers and my very helpful junior editors Orlaigh Eirinn Bella and Ruby Don t forget to get in touch if you d like to get involved Mrs Brady Literacy Coordinator jbrady054 c2ken net 1 Page

Spring 2024 BPerfect It was a Thursday afternoon and the whole of Derry was buzzing that BPerfect were opening their new store Ekin Su from Love Island was going to be there I came home from school got ready and headed to the town with my mum and sister Chloe The town was packed with people We queued and one of the staff from BPerfect spotted us and brought us into the shop for a private tour It was amazing We met the owner and he gave me a goody bag full of makeup I then got to meet Ekin Su She spoke to me asking me my name and I had my picture taken with her It was brilliant I was so so happy Seanain McCallion 2 Page

Spring 2024 What do you think of when you imagine a rat Bella Nociarova 11 Peace writes about a muchmisunderstood animal She enjoys having her very own pet rats What do you think of when you picture a rat Most people see something along these lines However this is the negative stereotyped version of these animals which is often portrayed by the media Rats are misunderstood creatures and many of the assumptions people make about them are simply untrue To clarify this article is specifically aimed to educate you on domesticated rats not wild ones So without further ado Here are 10 myths about rats explained Rats carry diseases Pet rats do not carry any type of disease People usually believe that rats are dirty because of the Black Plague but they couldn t be more wrong Recent studies have shown that rats shouldn t be blamed for the spread of the Black Plague It s actually more likely that the plague passed directly from person to person through lice breath and touch Additionally rats are actually very clean creatures and groom themselves up to several hours a day that s more than cats do When an animal has never been in the wild your chances of getting sick from them is practically non existent So don t fear you re more likely to get sick from a classmate than a pet rat Rats are aggressive Rats shouldn t bite or scratch unless they are trapped sick or scared Rats are quite territorial though and don t like foreign objects intruding on their personal space If you smell unfamiliar they may bite you Avoid wearing excessive perfume around rats A proper rat bite can cause lots of damage so nipping is more common They usually nip to show mild annoyance or by accident if they mistake your fingers for food Nipping is an unpleasant behaviour you can luckily train them out of 3 Page

Spring 2024 Rats are incontinent Rats can control their bladder and bowel movements They can even be litter trained Mice are incontinent so people assume the same of rats which is false Rats and mice are both rodents but they re not identical However rats especially males do scent mark Have you ever seen a dog urinating in a certain spot to claim their territory It s the exact same thing for rats Rats are smelly As I mentioned before rats clean themselves often so I don t think that they re smelly animals Some rat owners actually love the scent of rats and compare it to granola A couple of my boys do smell slightly of sweet porridge but don t let that fool you Most rats carry no smell or a faint musk There s a stigma that male rats have a stronger scent than females but I don t think that s the case Although the cage itself can definitely smell nasty without sufficient cleaning A rat cage should be deep cleaned at least twice weekly with regular spot cleaning That should prevent any odours from invading your air Rats love cheese My girls go crazy for cheese but that doesn t mean much seeing as they aren t picky Overall I think it depends on the rat Many studies have repeatedly proved that when rats were given meal choices cheese was trumped by foods like boiled eggs corn kernels and peanut butter The myth originated in medieval Europe Ideal rat foods such as meats and grains were stored in unreachable areas within tight jars and containers Cheese was stored in weak sheds or cupboards Rats naturally eat what s most available to them so they would often go for the cheese and not for other foods People believed that rats specifically love cheese and since then they became a popular pair in various forms of entertainment Rat tails are gross I suppose this is more opinion than myth but I wanted to cover it since many people dislike rats due to their tails Trust me the tails are not scaly or slimy or rubbery It just feels like skin Rat tails are really cool if you give them a chance Rats need their tails for balance and regulating their body temperature Rats can release up to 20 of their body heat by directing their cardiac output to their tails Conversely in winter rats can restrict blood flow to their tails which keeps them nice and toasty 4 Page

Spring 2024 Rats are stupid Rats are incredibly intelligent Rats are thought to be as smart as a 2 3 year old human being That s on par with dogs and monkeys As previously mentioned rats can be easily trained to do tricks and solve puzzles Their intelligence is why rats are so often used in psychological studies to help understand human behaviour Rats can feel empathy too so many people keep them as emotional support pets Rats breed often This myth is true Make sure to keep males and females separated because rats reach sexual maturity once they re five weeks old and female rats go into heat every four to five days from then The gestation period for rats is only around twenty one to thirty days and typical litters can range from seven to twenty babies That s a lot of rats Rats are loners Did you know that a group of rats is called a mischief Rats are highly Fun fact social animals and need to have friends No man or rat is an island Rats should always Baby rats be kept as a trio or larger group because they can grow depressed if kept alone Rats have their own can be hierarchies and are capable of morality a study showed that rats will stop doing something they like if it harms another rat They also form strong bonds called pups or kittens with their owners They recognise you by your scent and the sound of your voice My rats even get excited whenever I come home from school much like a dog Rats chew on everything In my experience this is true Rats teeth never stop growing so make sure to put things for them to gnaw on in their cage If rats are under stimulated then they may chew things out of boredom Chewing can depend on personality too Some rats just have a naughty streak Some rats may nibble nails jewellery and earlobes They see those things as different on your body so they re just trying to groom you 5 Page

Spring 2024 School Council In St Cecilia s College the voice of our pupils is very important Miss Boyle has worked tirelessly to facilitate the school council and to help students bring their opinions and concerns to the school s management team A few of the councillors told St Cecilia s News about their experiences so far Year 11 pupils Shannon Mooney and Lily McCool 11 Hope told us We are proud representatives of the school s Student Council We have worked hard this year to bring a wide range of ideas and suggestions to members of the Senior Leadership Team and are delighted to have introduced reforms to the school Let us introduce the new changes that you will see throughout the school ASL Sign Language Sign language lessons that will cover the basics of sign language will be taught next year to pupils within Year 8 to Year 12 This means all pupils will be able to communicate with those who use ASL sign language Pinafores We listened to Year 12 and Year 13 s interest in bringing a pinafore back to sixth form as part of the sixth year uniform A survey will be sent out to current Year 12 and Year 13 pupils asking for feedback on this Hair Finally We brought it to the Senior Leadership Team that for girls to feel more confident and to stop a few arguments with teachers and they agreed to banish the school s oldest rule Now we no longer have to wear our hair up We truly hope this makes all pupils feel more confident and comfortable in their school uniform as they now have the choice of how to wear their hair Remember of course that we must still wear our hair up in practical subjects To conclude if you would like to send us your suggestions about your opinion or even fundraising ideas we will have a table set up at lunch time once a week and we would be delighted to listen to your views 6 Page

Spring 2024 Katie McElhinney 9 Peace My name is Katie and I am a Year 9 representative in the Student Council I have loved being a member this year and I feel very proud to be representing my year group I was fortunate to speak to members of the Senior Leadership Team in a meeting in the boardroom and this was excellent for my confidence I look forward to hearing more pupil voices and hopefully meeting with Mrs O Carolan Mrs Beattie Mr Lafferty and Mrs Barber again this year Ellie May Sweeney 9 Grace My name is Ellie May and I am a member of the Student Council I love attending the lunch time meetings because it is an opportunity to meet up with my friends and share ideas with Miss Boyle and the group The school were delighted when they found out about the hair rule and this made me feel very proud I hope we can continue doing things like this for the school 7 Page

Spring 2024 St Cecilia s Sporting Stars As we all know St Cecilia s pupils are fit fast and athletic Here s a round up of just some of the sporting achievements this term Ulster Schools Cross Country A gutsy run from year 9 pupil Sophie in Mallusk Out of a field 119 Sophie finished in a fantastic 43rd place We are extremely proud of you Sophie Congratulations to year 8 pupil Millie who competed at the Jordanstown open meet recently She finished 2nd in the U14 shot PB 9 26m and 4th in the long jump District Schools Cross Country Championships 2024 We had a great day at the District Schools Cross Country Championships Our girls ran well on a tough wet course Our year 8 team Faye Cora Katie Laura and Tiarna finished 9th overall Congratulations to Amy y11 who competed in the Intermediate Girls race today Well done to our Minor XC team Sophie Casey Nicole Brooke and Kayla who finished 5th team overall Sophie McAllister finished an impressive 14th and qualified for the Ulster Schools Championships 8 Page

Spring 2024 Food for Thought Since taking over the restaurant in St Cecilia s College Richard Merrigan Senior Unit Catering Supervisor has been making improvements that are going down very well with the pupils of the school We asked him about his plans What restrictions are there in making changes I ve guidelines that I ve to follow For example allergies Every year there are more students who have allergies to certain foods nuts oranges dairy gluten for example My team and I have to be aware of these At times this can force restrictions on what can and can t go on the menu Apart from that I ve a lot of freedom to try to new dishes What has influenced your decisions to revamp the menu Having gone from being a cook to becoming Catering Supervisor has helped give me that push to try new things and help bring in more students and staff We ve all had the new E A Flavours of the world introduced throughout schools This brings in food from different cultures Also I m trying to move with the times and cater to a younger generation who are exposed to lots of different foods from TikTok to YouTube This brings young people so much choice so we try incorporating that into the menu as well 9 Page

Spring 2024 What are your hopes for the future of the canteen How do you measure your success so far I measure my success through continued communication with the school and students to get feedback on what young people like and if there s any changes they would like to see in the canteen I am thinking of doing a survey to see what young people are interested in so we can make sure every pupil has a good experience in the canteen I also measure by seeing numbers grow getting good feedback from pupils and staff This what my team and I are striving for I also measure my own success as I ve advanced from being a from cook to catering supervisor Although this is something that is still new to me I am embracing the challenge that it has brought What other changes have you planned My team are always thinking of new ways to change things up bring in new menu items and seeing what food trends are out there Feedback is always welcome because pupils are at the forefront and we always just to make sure they re getting a good meal We are always on the lookout for new ideas to add to the menu What do you feel has been your biggest challenge since taking on the role The biggest challenge is trying to make everyone happy The main goal is for everyone to come in pupil and staff and get a good meal to set them up for the day There are always going to be challenges but it s how you deal with them I know you can only do your best to feed everyone and as long as that is done then I am happy The feedback so far has made it all worthwhile 10 P a g e

Spring 2024 Clubs for everyone In our last edition we featured many of the brilliant after school and lunch time clubs that are available This time we are shining a light on a few other offerings Would you like to give these a go 11 P a g e

Spring 2024 12 P a g e

Spring 2024 Without a doubt the school production of We Will Rock You was the highlight of last term For three nights the school hosted what can only be described as an impressive show We Will Rock You was produced by Mr Quinn Ms McTague Ms McConnell and Mrs O Donnell Kaidence Feeney Shields 9 Hope2 attended on behalf of St Cecilia s News I went to the show on Friday night and I was impressed by how professional it was The acting the set and the costumes all made it an amazing experience Scaramouche was my favourite character I thought she could star in a West End production as her acting and her voice were just brilliant Her voice was bold and beautiful 13 P a g e

Spring 2024 The show was also comedic whilst having a nice message The scene when Scaramouche sang Somebody to Love was my favourite part I was blown away by her Grace Flood in year 14 who played the role is such a talented performer I also really loved the Killer Queen s costume and I felt that the person responsible for costumes did an amazing job of finding exactly the right one for each of the characters You could just see the big personality of the Killer Queen All in all I thought We Will Rock You was a brilliant show I loved it I loved watching how well all the kids clicked and gelled together to work on the show Mrs A O Donnell 14 P a g e

Spring 2024 Derry Credit Union Quiz 2024 Congratulations to our year 8 and year 9 pupils who participated in the Derry Credit Union Quiz recently There was such a great atmosphere amongst all the pupils from across the city Congratulations to St Patrick s who were the overall winners Lily Mae McMenamin 9Hope2 told us The Credit Union Quiz was fun I was in a team with two year 8 and another year 9 pupil The quiz was fun and I enjoyed the preparation that we did in advance with Mrs Currie We got treats afterwards and it was worth it to take part even though we didn t take the top spot this time Nina McNamee 9Hope 2 enjoyed it too The Credit Union quiz was amazing I was in a team of four and I was very proud that I scored 59 points I found some of the questions quite challenging but I really loved the picture round I hope that next year St Cecilia s will win 15 P a g e

Spring 2024 Building Businesses Congratulations to Mrs McIntyre Head of Business Studies and her Business Studies pupils on their recent sponsorship from Derry Credit Union Kerri from the Credit Union is pictured here presenting our pupils with a cheque This donation will help develop the entrepreneurial skills of our girls Business Enterprise Groups Mrs McIntyre is passionate about helping our pupils to build their business There are a number of Business Enterprise Groups currently running in the school Mrs McIntyre told us We have our Key Stage Three Group Cecilia s Charms who design clay bead jewellery These proved very popular at our recent school show We also have our Young Enterprise Group Just to Say they make self care boxes These beautiful boxes are filled with treats designed to allow a little pampering for yourself They are competitively priced and make a perfect gift for yourself or someone you love The Young Enterprise Group Just to 16 P a g e

Spring 2024 Say had a very successful day at the Young Enterprise Trade Fair in Foyleside on 2nd February The girls were awarded Best Customer Service Award and their team member Rachael also got a Special Recognition Award Mrs Mc Intyre commented We are very thankful to Derry Credit Union for supporting these groups We are excited to see what other enterprise initiatives that may grow from this My Entrepreneurial Journey Grace Karran 8 Grace told us about her experience of Young Enterprise I would like to tell you about the young enterprise group In September I started at the school I wanted to join so many clubs but one popped up that immediately appealed to me We came up with the idea to create something that we could sell at the rickety wheel just before Christmas We decided to create clay bracelets Making the bracelets was very relaxing and put me in a calm mindset and before I knew it I had made a bracelet Every Thursday after school I worked hard right up until the day before the rickety wheel The day before we decided on a name for our business St Cecilia s Charms I thought it was perfect and we had to decide on the process On the day of the rickety wheel I felt a sense of pride looking at the bracelets we had made We were selling out fast and it felt great to know that people loved our bracelets At the end of the 17 P a g e

Spring 2024 night we counted our money and found that we had earned enough for a pizza party We all had an amazing time and the pizza was delicious Grace s Crafty Creations After Christmas I thought about how Young Enterprise had inspired me so I set up my own clay bracelet business I named it Grace s Crafty Creations To date I have made some impressive jewellery Orders from friends and family are coming thick and fast All my customers are satisfied with their purchases This has given me such a great sense of satisfaction I really hope to be a successful entrepreneur in the future watch this space Inspiration I will always be grateful for the inspiration which the Young Enterprise group gave me My books are open for future orders so don t wait around 18 P a g e

Spring 2024 BBC Bitesize In November the team from BBC Bitesize made their second trip to St Cecilia s College The workshop was fun filled and allowed our year 10 pupil to discuss attitudes to artificial intelligence Groups had to plan how to make a short news report Year 10 excelled in the use of green screen iPad cap cut Each group had to work closely together to create their reports Watching them back added to the fun The Bitesize team were very impressed with our pupils creativity and teamwork 19 P a g e

Spring 2024 Poetry in Motion Last term Mrs Brady s year 10 pupils took part the Poetry in Motion Schools Project This project is an innovative literary programme for primary secondary grammar and special schools This year St Cecilia s were delighted to take part in the project as one of only twenty schools to be selected across the North of Ireland Poetry in Motion aims to develop the creative abilities of young people enabling their poetic voice through increasing students language skills introducing participants to poetic devices and encouraging them to use their creative imagination Emphasis is placed on the ability to create poetic works through activities which are fun joyful and which encourage self expression Workshops were conducted by published producing poets most of whom have a wealth of experience in working with young people The theme this year was Write Where We Belong and our school benefitted from three workshops by local poet Abby Oliveira Our Year 10 pupils were encouraged to own their own words and language discovering that the words they use every day can be transformed into poetry through learning how working poets approach their own practice The pupils embraced the project and as you can see many of them produced outstanding poems about their lives Mrs Brady was also invited to get involved 20 P a g e

Spring 2024 Evie Crawley Dearbhaile Carlin Alexandra McCallion and Selina McGavigan s poems have all been chosen for publication and we are looking forward to taking part in the event planned for the end of March 21 P a g e

Spring 2024 22 P a g e

Spring 2024 23 P a g e

Spring 2024 24 P a g e

Spring 2024 25 P a g e

Spring 2024 My Lovely Luna Pets are an important part of many of our lives Tiarna Daniels 8 Grace told us all about her lovely French Bulldog Luna Luna turned 5 on 20th February She has grey fur and chocolate brown eyes She s such a lazy dog but also funny Luna can do so many tricks sit give you her paw spin dance and wait Luna did dog agility with me and she won an AllIreland competition Luna was amazing Her breed isn t famed for being active The dog agility instructor was not sure whether the competition would allow me and Luna to enter They thought that I wouldn t be able to guide Luna as I am so young 26 P a g e

Spring 2024 Finally the organisers agreed They gave me a pep talk They reassured me that they d be proud of me whatever the outcome of the competition Luna heard the word treats and got very excited I was getting nervous but as soon as I got on the field I felt better Luna and I completed the course and Luna couldn t have done any better I was so proud when we finished Luna got lots of treats We were there for another half an hour until the prize giving ceremony We had to stand in a line as the results were announced Before long they were naming the top prize winners third place second place By this point Luna and I were the only ones still waiting So it slowly dawned on me we had won It was the best feeling ever I was the youngest but Luna and I were the best 27 P a g e

Spring 2024 Caring for the Environment Mrs Rainey our very own environmental champion took the time to tell St Cecilia s News about all the hard work being done in the school to take better care of our environment St Cecilia s College Environmental Group is on a mission to establish robust recycling habits in the school community and reduce textile waste by running termly swap shop events Daisy Caitlin Ava Caoimhe Erin Ava Ellie Anna Olivia Lilly and Dara meet each Wednesday after school to discuss environmental issues and to make positive changes to our school s waste and recycling policies These conscientious young ladies give up their precious time to monitor the recycling bins by actually going through each bin by hand and removing non recyclable material If the recycling bins contain contaminated waste they won t be collected or recycled by the waste companies and will inevitably end up in landfill Most weeks they collect between 20 and 30 large bags of recyclable waste They have presented several assemblies over the years showing pupils and staff how to use recycling bins correctly They are excellent role models and practise what they preach not ashamed to show their concern for the environment All Ireland Eco UNESCO Young Environmentalist Awards While the recycling of plastic and paper is ongoing in our school the Environmental Group have been busy organising a project for the All Ireland Eco UNESCO Young Environmentalist Awards since September The group were concerned about the environmental and ethical impacts of fast fashion especially among teenagers We re all guilty of a Shein haul but the group were concerned with the amount of textile waste ending up in landfill and in oceans so their Swap with Style initiative was born They came up with the idea to run termly swap shop events where staff and pupils could bring in items of clothing they no longer wear get a ticket for each item then return 28 P a g e

Spring 2024 on the day of the swap shop to leave with a preloved fashion piece completely free of charge Swapping with Style The first swap shop was on the 6th December 2023 and the group never expected it to be such a success 277 items were swapped That s 277 less items going to landfill Thanks to the team carrying out quality control checks the standard of preloved clothing was very high and so it enticed a lot of pupils to donate an item so they could leave with an item The team successfully reduced the social stigma among teenagers of buying second hand clothing and showed that swapping clothes can give the same buzz as buying new items Economically in this cost of living crisis it couldn t have come at a better time The group have since organised a second swap shop and another one is due around Easter with a the final one planned in the summer term Their hope is that other schools will follow suit and hold their own swap shops perhaps for Halloween costumes Christmas jumpers sports gear or even preloved uniform pieces I m so proud of this group as they have challenged society and fast fashion brands and have been true leaders in embracing sustainable fashion It took courage to get up in front of their peers at assembly conveying that preloved fashion is the new way to shop They have just gotten word that their project is through to the Young Environmentalist Awards semi finals in Armagh with the hope of reaching the finals in Dublin in May Congratulations With the climate and environment such a prominent concern throughout society more and more pupils are following in the steps of this environmental group and want to make positive changes After all it s now cool to care 29 P a g e

Spring 2024 World Book Day An important date in the calendar is World Book Day Year 8 were treated to some storytelling and readings in the M P H Reading is so important From improving your mental health to increasing your language skills reading is both a powerful tool and an essential skill There are so many benefits of reading books Did you know 1 Young readers who read for pleasure have higher levels of academic achievement in various subjects including math vocabulary and spelling National Literacy Trust 2 Reading can improve fluid intelligence which is your ability to solve problems and think critically Iris Reading 3 Students who read for fun every day have higher reading scores on reading comprehension tests compared to those who rarely or never read for fun American Library Association 30 P a g e

Spring 2024 4 Reading for fun is a strong predictor of academic achievement in different subjects including math and science Journal of Educational Psychology 5 Young children who have access to a wide range of reading materials at home are more likely to perform better in reading assessments National Literacy Trust 6 Children who visit the library regularly and have library resources available at school tend to have higher academic achievement in various subjects American Library Association 7 Reading during the summer months can lead to improved academic performance when children return back to school National Bureau of Economic Research 8 Students who read for fun score on average 10 15 higher on standardised tests National Endowment for the Arts 9 When children read more they build their background knowledge In turn this leads to increased reading comprehension Serravallo 2012 10 Teenagers who read understand 26 more words than peers who rarely read Centre for Longitudinal Studies 31 P a g e

Spring 2024 Use your World Book Day voucher to buy one of these titles or to get a discount on a book of your choice Visit participating bookstores 32 P a g e

Spring 2024 Talented Year 10 We have many talented artists in St Cecilia s College and Jenna Sweeney in 10 Courage 2 has been working hard in English Jenna created illustrations to represent the characters in the novel Stone Cold by Robert Swindells that she was reading with Mrs Toye Jenna created these fantastic images of the characters Well done Jenna 33 P a g e

Spring 2024 We hope that you have enjoyed this edition of our school magazine St Cecilia s News A big thank you to all our contributors Would you like to get involved in creating our Summer edition If so please get in touch Speak to Mrs Brady She can be found in G005 in the English corridor or email jbrady054 c2ken net Or talk to one of the editors Eirinn Ruby Orlaigh or Bella We look forward to hearing from you 34 P a g e