Outdoor classroom installed for benefit of Scoil Aonghusa

AN OUTDOOR classroom was installed at Scoil Aonghusa Junior School in Tallaght last Friday, after a past pupil put them forward for an initiative where corporations give back to communities.

The past pupil, Niall Lynch, works for Wolters Kluwer Financial Services which runs Difference Days, where employees suggest charitable causes and carry out work to make a difference.

The school is the most recent recipient of a Difference Day, where €38,000 was raised and staff from Wolters Kluwer installed the outdoor classroom on Friday, to the delight of students and staff.

Ann Marie Blake, principal of Scoil Aonghusa JNS, told The Echo: “Since Covid-19, we know how important it is to have different learning settings for children.

“Young learners thrive when they do outdoor learning.”

The group who worked in the school

Ms Blake added that the development of the outdoor classroom would not have been possible had the school, which is a DEIS school, tried to fundraise and construct it alone.

“After our energy bills and heating bills, there’s no money left for anything else,” she explained.

“This has given the children a huge lift. The outdoor classroom might be a very soothing setting for some children.”

A rota has been created for the outdoor classroom, so every class will get a chance to use it, and it’s a suitable environment for teaching all manner of subjects, including art and reading.

Seamus, Dervla, Audrey and Aoife painting the garden table

It’s kitted out with benches and a blackboard, and features a walk-on xylophone which was a hit with the children when they spotted it on Monday morning.

“We’re always trying to drill into the children that they deserve the very best,” said Ms Blake, “and we want to make sure that they have the same opportunities that other children have.”

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