Where's Matt?!

In English this week, Ms.W gave us a motivational speech on life. She told us, that each of our futures are yet to unravel and our life plans will change along the road, and change for the better. She then told us about a man named Matt who wasn't very well educated and the odds seemed to be against him. He then started creating videos of himself, dancing in different locations in the world.
The video then became viral, and Matt is now a speaker around the world. This shows that life may not always turn out the way we planned.....
Enjoy this video, It has also given me an idea for my TY. Video Project...

Eventful Friday Out and Video Making in IT

The sun was splitting the trees on Friday morning, and all TY's set off to the NCA in Blanchardstown. The atmosphere was great on the bus and everyone was looking forward to their day ahead.
We all quickly got changed into our swimsuits and we were out in the pool. Some brave girls decided to swim a full mile themselves. The others got to divide into groups and swim a mile as a group. I realised how unfit I was hahaha!
After swimming, we went to Blanchardstown shopping centre for some food and a look around the shops. Overall it was a great day and many thanks to the teachers who brought us and to the LCVPs who organised the trip.
In IT classes, Mrs.L assigned us an end of year project to create a video of our choice which lasts three minutes. I'm really excited to do this project as I've made videos before and I love making them! I'm looking forward to see everyone else's videos :)

Swim a Mile

Every year, Transition Years get involved with the Ian Daly Swim A Mile which takes place in the National Aquatic Centre, Dublin. Before Easter, Mrs.L gave us all a Sponsorship Card each. We've all been asking our relatives to donate some money to this worthwhile charity.
We all get into separate groups and swim a mile between us. There are four girls in my group. I'm really looking forward to next Friday. On a good note, its the day before my Birthday. Wooo :)

William's Words coming to an end.

As we're coming to our last term in Transition Year, and all our Mini Company competitions are over..we are beginning to close down our businesses. Its amazing to think how far we have come this year. We've developed team work skills, organisational and unforgettable memories. 

Its so impressive to think that a group of fifteen and sixteen year old girls can actually work together to design, create, publish and sell their own product. I was very lucky to work with such an amazing set of girls and getting to create a product which I was so passionate about.

Although it has been quite stressful, I have enjoyed the Mini Company project the most out of all the projects this year as I've learnt a bountiful amount of skills. I've developed as a person - I've come to know myself better. I've realised that everything requires effort and work in  order to be successful. Independence is key and team work is essential.

 I'd like to sincerely thank my Business teacher Ms.P as without her, we would have been lost. She guided us through the whole process and kept us positive and enthusiastic even though things seemed impossible at times. She gave up so much time for us and we're so appreciative of it.

Recalling Memories

Last class we had English class. We took the time to reminisce on some memories which particularly stood out for us during the year. TY night is slowly creeping up, its so hard to believe. 
Its even mind blowing to think that we're in April, our last term of Transition Year. It shows how quick a school year can fly by once you're busy and enjoying yourself :)
As TY Night is supposedly one of the great highlights of Transition Year I'm really looking forward to it. TY Night is organised by TY's themselves, guided by the teachers...So there'll be a lot of preparation to be done in the coming few weeks.
Easter break was great and I was looking forward to going back to school to see everyone and how their Easter went. I've made so many new friendships throughout the year and also bonded on the ones I already had. I'm looking forward to the rest of the year :D

Photos from Fashion Show!!

Fun Filled Friday.

Friday the 1st of March was a fun-filled day in the life of a TY to say the least....
In the morning, the judging from Sci-Fest was commencing. All of us set up our stands in the Hall, and a judge from Sci-Fest, Ken from my Chemistry Work Experience, Mr.L and Mr.K judged all the projects. It was a great morning and everyone enjoyed themselves.

After Sci-Fest, the choir travelled to Wesley College in Newbridge to take part in the Wesley Schools Choir Competition. We all had so much fun and there was singing to and from the school on the bus!

Last day of Work Experience

For the past eight weeks, I've been doing Work Experience in a local café, "Halo Café". On the first day I was so nervous as I didn't know what on earth to expect but over the weeks I grew more confident and I got a grasp of what I was doing. Towards the end of it, I was on the floor taking orders and making drinks!
 The staff at Halo Café are so welcoming, kind and friendly. I've never met a group of people so nice! I had such a good time and it was sad leaving, I'd definitely recommend going to Halo for Work Experience, it was soooo good! :)

Regional Finals - Mini Co

As "Williams Words" got through to the regional finals we were absolutely delighted and headed out to the Kilashee Hotel in Naas on Monday the 4th of March. We had a fabulous meal and spent the day watching all the Mini Companys present their product. We were so impressed by the high standards of them all. We got to wear blazers!!! 

On the day we made a profit of 60 euro selling our books,it was great. Well done to all the Mini Companies who got this far into the competition and a special congrats to "Click n'Light" who made it into the National Finals.Williams Words won the best display award. We were delighted with ourselves :D

Although Mini Company can get ever so stressful at times, I can safely say it was one of the best experiences of Transition Year so far. You learn so many lessons through working with a team, you develop your own skills such as confidence and independence. I was so lucky to work with such a great set of girls and I can't believe we actually made our own Shakespearean dictionary! I'm so proud of us all we achieved a lot and I would do it all again! 

Backpacking for Pieta House

Pieta house is an organisation which was set up to help those who inflict harm on themselves or have attempted suicide. Its a non profit organisation and relies on donations. So, on Friday the 15th and Saturday the 16th of February some TY's volunteered to do bagpacking in Tesco to help raise some funds.

Bagpacking is actually quite fun, you get to meet a lot of nice people through it, and its for a great cause. I bagpacked yesterday in Tesco from 1pm to 3pm. 

Overall, we raised around 1,500 euro for the charity. Well done to all the girls who got involved (-:

I'm looking forward to going back to school tomorrow as we have a DRUM WORKSHOP first thing in the morning!!! I'm so excited yaaaaaay :D

In the NEWSPAPER!

Two weeks ago in Work Experience, I was speaking to a Journalist in Leinster Leader about my Mini Company and how we were shortlisted for the Kildare finals. He seemed really intrigued about our idea and felt that putting an article in the newspaper would be an excellent method of advertising our product.

Well, the article has been printed and it looks great! So happy YAAAY....We've so much work to do before the Kildare finals, but I'm so excited :)

Briary Gap Video

During our trip to Briary Gap, I took some videos of our day. Hope you enjoy,

Kildare here we come!!!

On Monday the 21st of January, two judges from the student enterprise board came to our school and judged the Transition Year mini company groups. We all set up our stalls and showed off our product to the best of our abilities. Four companies were shortlisted for the Kildare finals; Stuzic, Hair Couture, Cuppa Stuff and William's Words (my group).

Well yesterday, Mrs.P gave our class fantastic news, my group William's Words got through to the Kildare Finals! I am so so so happy, there is a lot of work to do, but I am absolutely delighted. :) 

No fear, it's only Shakespeare!

Gaeilge san Idirbhliain

In Irish classes this year, we are getting up to a lot of work. Although we're going over our grammar and practicing our essay skills, we are doing some productive project work to take a different approach to Irish this year.
In class, everyone was assigned a different title to do a few slides on, and then present it to the class. I got "Mé féin" so here is my presentation..

Highlights of TY so far

I've made a short powerpoint showing my highlights of Transition Year so far in pictures.... hope you all enjoy..

Síocháin's trip to Briary Gap

 On Tuesday the 29th of January, class Síocháin alongside Ms.G headed off to their drama competition in Briary Gap, Mullingar. During religion class, we studied the Millenium Development Goals and our inspiration for our dramas sprung from these goals.
 My group did a play based on Homelessness. We raised awareness of the fact that anyone can become homeless. And that its not just an alcoholic who was made all the wrong choices in life. The other group did a play on war and how warfare can affect one mentally. We both put in tremendous efforts during practice, and it certainly paid off whilst we were performing on Tuesday.
After registration on Tuesday morning, we got the bus to Mullingar. The hour long journey flew by with singing and laughter on the bus. We were kindly welcomed by the staff at Briary Gap when we arrived there and we were assigned a dressing room to ourselves.
Once we got changed into our costumes, and did our makeup we were all set to start our last minute rehearsals. We weren't due to go on stage until one o'clock, which meant we had an hour to check out Mullingar town. We viewed the Joe Dolan statue, had time to get a bite to eat and also admired the fact that Mullingar town is the home town of Niall Horan from One Direction.
We were back to the centre in no time, and we had the opportunity to watch other schools perform their dramas. The standard was absolutely brilliant and we certainly had tough acts to follow. Despite nerves kicking in, everyone in both groups performed to the best of their ability and it was truly a success.
We will find out soon enough whether any of the groups got through to the final in Cork. Fingers crossed. Thanks to Ms.G for accompanying us on our trip.
I'm in the middle of making a video about our trip, it'll be ready soon. In the mean time, here are a few pictures from the trip....

Joe Dolan statue

Some last minute practice 

An other school performing their drama

Geography Projects, and an Embarrassing Video....

As you can tell from reading my blog, throughout Transition Year we're assigned many projects in which we have to complete before a certain date. Deadlines are so important this year, and you have to have all your projects done on time, as hard as it can be at times..! In Geography class, we did a project called "Virtual Trip Around the World project" which I vlogged about a few months ago. We did these projects separately, and then our teacher, Ms.G put us in pairs to do a presentation on one country in particular. I was with Amanda and our country was Kenya. Below is our project, I used this website to display the powepoint on my blog....

Also, I came across a video from the first year talent show, where I was dancing...dressed up as a nerd...How embarrassing hahahaha!. I pasted the video below to give you all a laugh. (I'm wearing a pink top with a white shirt over it).

Minicompany Madness!!

Although its been a lot of work, it's safe to say that Minicompany has been my favorite project in TY this year :) My group "William's Words" decided to make a dictionary which translates 16th Century English into modern day English to make studying that little bit easier. It took a bountiful amount of work, but the end result was rewarding.
We only got our booklets printed on Saturday, just in time for the competition on Monday. Two judges from the Student Enterprise Board came to our School and judged all the mini companies. William's Words won the innovation award and we were shortlisted. We'll find out next Friday whether we got through to the Kildare competition. I pray that we do, it'd be absolutely amazing!
I've good news, today in Work Experience a journalist from Leinster Leader was there. I told him about my Minicompany, and he was very intrigued and he wants me to write an article tonight about our product and it'll be on the next paper. I'm so grateful for this as its a great way to promote our product to a bigger audience. Below are a few pictures from the competition on Monday...

<-Theres our Mini Co team..consisting of Ruth,    Caitlin, Juliette, Ciara, Aisling and I

Our Shakespearean Stand

Ruth and I with the booklets we produced

Innovation award...woooohooo!!!

Everyone put in so much work for Mini Company so well done to everybody :) 

BT Young Scientist....

I've been so excited for this day for weeks! The Young Scientist is a competition which is held in the RDS, Dublin annually. It's a great way for students who have an interest in science to get involved with others who share the same interests. It's a great learning experience too.
The science teachers brought Second Year students and Transition Year students to the exhibition yesterday.  I enjoyed it thoroughly. I was really gutted that I didn't get in this year, but there's always next year! The projects were well researched and really interesting.
There was lots of stalls, such as a Bank of Ireland stall which gave out free stuff. Who doesn't love free stuff?! I came home delighted with a bag full of science magazines, pencils and much more. The queues for food were huge and the food was quite expensive, so I'd advise anyone who goes to bring a packed lunch with them.
Shows were held in the arena every half hour or so and I got the opportunity to watch the Robot Show. Although I have to admit, the robot was quite scary. Below there's some pictures that I took of my day out and a short clip of the Robot Show. I had a great time :)

What a week!

This week has been one of the best weeks in Transition Year for me so far!

On Tuesday in Art we began our "Casette Tape" project. We're picking a picture of a celebrity and making a casette tape masterpiece out of it. Here are a few examples of what has been done before....



The celebrity which I chose to do a portrait of is Johnny Cash. I chose him because my Dad loves Johnny Cash and I'll give him the finishing piece! It'll be hard work, but worth it when it's finished. I haven't done art since first year so this will be a challange for me!

In Home Ec, we baked scones. I never knew baking was so fun! It didn't take long for the scones to be all eaten by the family when I got home. In Home Ec, we're baking every Tuesday. Next Tuesday, we're baking Apple Crumble. I'm looking forward to that :) On our Friday double in Home Ec, we're designing a teddy bear which will be interesting.

Wednesday was our first week of our second Work Experience placement. I'm doing my Work Experience in Halo Cafe. I felt that doing Work Experience here would be useful as you develop a lot of useful skills when working in a cafe. When I got home I was exhausted from all the hardwork. The people there are so lovely.

On Thursday we went to the BT Young Scientist. I had an absolute ball. There was a huge variety of different projects and so many free stuff! Check out my other blog post to hear more about the day :)

On Friday (today) we spent four classes completing our mini company work. "Williams Words" is my Mini - Company idea and we're designing a Shakespearean dictionary. It took so much time and effort to complete but we're finally finished. We've sent it off to print this evening and hopefully they'll be ready to sell soon. If you have any questions, feel free to contact any of the team or message us on our Facebook page...
http://www.facebook.com/WilliamsWordsMiniCo

Work Experience Video

During my time in NUI Chemistry Labs I made a video to show other girls what my experience was like. Overall, it was brilliant and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who has an interest in Science. You learn a lot. Enjoy the video, and if you're interested in going for work experience there, the link is below. http://www.chemistry.nuim.ie/

Christmas Carol Service.

It's a tradition in St.Wolstan's to have all the school come together for a morning for a carol service before the Christmas exam's begin. On Monday the 17th, we had our annual carol service. In the music department there has been a huge amount of effort gone into preparing for this occassion.
In choir we sang lot's of Christmas carols, in orchestra we also played some Christmas carols and in the Irish Traditional Group we played two polkas. The music certainly got everyone into the festive mood.
Mr.K also went through a lot of effort to organize this carol service and it was an absolute success like the years before too. Students from each year read and it was a nice opportunity for the whole school to get together.

My former year head, Mrs.Holmes gave out certificates to a few students for their Junior Certificate results. I was really surprised that I got one, it put a smile on my face! We had to stay behind to get our pictures taken by the Liffey Champion. The three girls who got 10 A's were also awarded. Well done to everybody. :)

Christmas Fun Day

Having fun is what us TY's do best, and we certainly had some craic last Thursday. Class Cairdeas kindly hosted a party for the TY's in the library in the morning. We all did Kris Kindle in our classes where we bought a small present for someone under a fiver. A girl in class Cairdeas dressed up as Santa and gave out the presents. There was smiles all round when everyone opened their gifts.
There was food, drinks and party music playing and everyone was having a great time. We all did the cha-cha slide! Then, at quarter to eleven there was two coaches outside to take us to bowling. In no time, we got to the bowling alley and we divided into groups. I am terrible at bowling, I must admit but I still enjoy it thoroughly and I had a brilliant time with my friends.
After bowling, we went to the Whitewater Shopping Centre. We had the opportunity to do anything we wanted for an hour. Typically, my friends and I headed straight to the food court and I got Ginzeng. Mm love  chinese food :)
Overall, I had a brilliant day and it got me into the festive mood :)

Fashion Show

Since September, we've spent six classes a week doing our Junk Kouture project. It was finally worth it as we had an opportunity yesterday to showcase all of our creations with a Fashion Show. A Third Year class, a Fifth Year class and all of TY's were there. Everyone was nervous, as there was Judges. After a while the nerves had went and everyone was having fun.

I decided to go crazy and dance whilst modelling my outfit. No one was expecting me to dance to it was nice to see all the smiles on their faces. It was great fun and I was glad after it. Today we found out that Ruth and I had came first place in our class. We're delighted, our hard work paid off! Everyone in the class had completely different outfits, they were all original and everyone did an amazing job and should be so proud. Here are some pictures from the eventful Fashion Show :)

Trying to Meet Deadlines

From September onwards, we've been working on the two main projects in T.Y. "Junk Kouture" and "Mini Company". Last class, in Home Ec. was our deadline for Junk Kouture. We've all put in a huge amount of effort for this project so the result was brilliant for everyone. In my group, Ruth and I are making a dress out of crisp packets and it's turning out really well. We're all delighted and we hope our hard work pays off in the competition and fashion show.
In Mini Company, we're doing a Shakespearean dictionary. We have so much work to do and we need to have it ready this evening to print. Lots of work to be done! :)

Work Experience.

Next Wednesday is my last day of Work Experience in the Chemistry Department at NUI Maynooth. Over the past nine weeks, I've had some amazing experiences, met a lot of new people, learnt to adjust to a new environment and finally got a taste of the world of work. For Junior Cert, I was science mad and enjoyed it thoroughly. By doing a science-related Work Experience I learnt what Chemistry was like at third level and it helped shape my view towards choosing Science as a sector to have a career in when I'm older. I really enjoyed it, but I'm not too sure if it's for me. I'm going to do my next two Work Experience placements in careers which I'm also interested in, as it's enjoyable if you have a passion for it.
This is why Work Experience is so important and useful, as it gives you a taste of what the career is like, and it helps to shape your view towards it. I have met a lot of new people in my Work Experience, and it has thought me to not be afraid of new people and places, and to make the most of new opportunities which I'm given. I'm really looking forward to my next Work Experience placements and I'm truly glad that we're doing Work Experience as part of our Transition Year Programme.

For people who are interested in science, I would definitely recommend going to NUI Maynooth Chemistry department as you perform experiments and learn a lot about Chemistry. You get the opportunity to meet a lot of lovely people, and to get a taste of what college life is like. :)
http://www.chemistry.nuim.ie/

Junk Kouture Madness!

All us TY's have spent from September onwards working on our Junk Kouture projects. There is a wide variety of differently styled outfits in my class. From presents, to flower pots, to lolly pop sticks! Having a look at the Junk Kouture projects would certainly make you smile as they're all bursting with colour. This day in two weeks we have our fashion show. I am doing my Junk Kouture project with Ruth and the outfit is based on the theme of crisp packets. For the last few weeks we were both stressed, but now as it's coming together nicely it's a great relief!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0egjZdiCs8 <--- Here's a video which shows what theme our outfit is based around. But, our end result is completely different to what we intended to create at the beginning... I will show you all the outfit when it's finished!
                     Junk Kouture really shows us that with a bit of effort and time, old "Junk" can be transformed into something truly beautiful. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!!