PRINCIPAL’S INTRODUCTIONThose who know me will appreciate that I am always on the lookout for initiatives to enhance the excellent and outstanding opportunities provided for all in St Mary’s inside and outside of the classroom. This term has been typically busy, productive and rewarding. We have launched SIMS Learning Gateway with a number of year groups; others will follow. SIMS Learning Gateway makes it easier for the whole school community to work together to boost students’ achievement, providing information to teachers, parents/guardians and students by enabling live online access to the School’s Information Management System (SIMS). Although we are at the early stages of utilising this fantastic tool, in time parents/guardians will be able to check that their child has arrived in school minutes after registration has been taken. They will also be able to view their child’s academic progress, attendance, reports, achievements and behaviour. This information is in real-time and available 24/7 via a secure website that can be accessed via our website. It will enhance the value we place on communicating with home; but, it will also ensure that our children will receive additional support should that be shown to be necessary. We also launched iPad technology to our new Year 8s. We have additional arrangements in place to support our reliance and promote innovation regarding ICT in school: we have more ICT staff, provide ICT support between 8.30- 8.55 every morning in D2 and staff continue to receive specific training so that their lessons will embrace the vast potential of ICT in a confident, creative and stimulating manner. In addition, Fit 4 Schools was undertaken by a number of staff and it was a wonderful success on so many levels: thanks to the sterling efforts of Emma McCann, and Arlene Maguire and Noel Tierney (Fit 2 Function Gym, Cookstown). Those who participated revised their eating habits, undertook more rigorous exercise and led a number of events within the school community to raise awareness of, and raise much valued money for, Cancer Focus. The camaraderie, commitment and challenges were superb. I am delighted we were involved and hope that we will undertake such a worthwhile activity again. Many other successes and achievements will be apparent as you read through this snapshot of life in St Mary’s. We were thrilled to receive our Investors in Pupils Award, delighted to receive a prestigious BASLA award inthe Irish department and to have vast accomplishment in our sporting endeavours. As the term draws to a close, I wish everyone the joys and peace of the season. And here’s to the promises of 2016:we have a building project to oversee as we continue to lay firm foundations for every young person entrusted to our care.Mrs D. Gillespie, Principal

STARS IN OUR SCHOOL‘It takes a whole team to make a school a safe and happy place for children to learn. But many are tucked away behind the scenes – the unsung heroes of our children’s education.’ UNISONSt Mary’s joined schools across the UK to say ‘thank you for all you do’ to our teaching support staff. Led by Assistant Principal, Mrs I Hynds, she explained, “A video diary of our teaching supportwas filmed by Moving Image Arts students and will be shown at all assemblies. Each pastoral team opted to do something for Teaching Support staff to show their appreciation, such as cleaning thecanteen for them on a given day or assisting with litter duties outside. Year 8 pupils (and their families) have already established that they are exceptionally skilled at baking: they baked muchappreciated treats for all support staff. And each member of staff was paired up with a Teaching Support member to do at least one nice thing for them that week.”The result was that our ‘tucked away behind the scenes’ stars were allowed to shine for all to see and thank!

ST MARY’S CELEBRATES SUCCESS!St Mary’s is the first school in the NEELB to be accredited with the Investors in Pupils Award. The Investors in Pupils programme isan established national quality mark to recognise, develop and extend pupil/student voice and participation strategies in schoolsthus building young people's life skills, character and resilience. Supporting personalised learning, the programme fosters healthyrelations, pupil to pupil and pupil to adults, leading to greater pupil responsibility over their own learning and behaviour andproviding a powerful tool for developing a positive whole-school team ethos. Miss McAllister led the whole school initiative forInvestors in Pupils during the academic year 2014-15. It was fully supported by Mrs Gillespie, who stated, "It ties in with our driveto maintain and improve standards." A whole day assessor visit and assessment took place on 25 June 2015 led by Mr Charles Fitzsimons, Northern Ireland assessor forIIP. Mr Fitzsimons praised the students he met: “The school has articulate, responsible and well-motivated students and it was apleasure and privilege to meet so many of them.”His final assessment reflected the whole school commitment to investing in pupils: “In St Mary's, the Investors in Pupils Award isan extension of already existing work where students are given the opportunity to develop leadership roles. Students areencouraged to take responsibility to develop their learning needs. The School Development Plan for 2014-17 indicates thedevelopment of Student Provision and Student Voice. Most importantly Investors in Pupils is a natural extension of the existingInvestors in People Gold Award, awarded in 2014.” Chairperson on the Board of Governors, Mr James McKee, was interviewed and said: “The staff care about the social development of pupils and have done so for many years: the Board of Governors fullysupports this!" Miss McAllister is building on this success in 2015-16 by leading St Mary’s application for the Rights Respecting Schools Awardadministered by UNICEF which seeks to further empower students and enhance their participation in school and community life.

ANNUAL AWARDS CEREMONY St Mary’s held its Annual Awards Ceremony on Monday 14 September and had as its theme, 'Investing in Pupils'. Former pupil, Thomas Niblock, who is a sports journalist with BBCSport NI, was the guest speaker. He is pictured with some members of the Board of Governors, including Mrs D Gillespie, Fr J Gates, Mr McKee, Dr Hutchinson, Mr Dace, Mrs Skelly,Mr Thompson and Miss Donnelly. Some awards were only announced on the night. Enya Loughlin was the recipient of the 75th Anniversary Cup and Karl Rocks was the recipient of the 80th Anniversary Cup. Both are presented by the staff of St Mary’s and recognise students for their contribution to the community spirit of the school. Rignach Glasgow,Maria Doyle, Patsy Walls and Joseph Craig were the recipients of the Margaret Mooney Cup. This cup was presented to the Year 13 students who had, in the opinion of teachers,most consistently shown care, compassion and consideration to other pupils. Diarmuid Logan received the Salt of the Earth Cup. Introduced in 2013, it is presented annually byeach school within the Magherafelt Learning Partnership to a student who has made outstanding personal efforts in serving the local, national and/or international community.Catherine McCauley was the recipient of the Magherafelt Market Trustees Cup and associated bursary. It is awarded annually to the pupil in Lower Sixth who best displayedenterprise and entrepreneurship throughout Year 13. Ellen McErlean-McGhee and Niall Conlon were the recipients of the Joanne McConville Year 12 Awards. These two trophies,presented by the McConville family in memory of Joanne, were awarded to these Year 12 pupils, who in the opinion of teachers, most consistently displayed kindness,consideration and friendship to other pupils in the year group. The Key Stage 5 House Star Champions and Key Stage House Champion Awards were also presented.

QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY, BELFAST SCHOLAR AWARD – 2015Congratulations to Callum Mullan-Young who gained a Queen’s University, Belfast Scholar Award. It is a full fee scholarship and is designed to reward academic achievement andrecognise wider social and community contributions including sports, music and the arts, leadership, enterprise and social responsibility. Callum, who joined the ChemicalEngineering department in October 2015, is delighted to be an ambassador for QUB.

Achievements and Standards

The Internal Awards Ceremonies 2015 were held over a number of days in late September, and recognised and rewarded academic excellence, extra-curricular talent, class spirit,attendance, Key Stage House champions and special achievements. Each ceremony was expertly co-ordinated by Mrs S Higgins.

TOP CANDIDATES IN CCEA SUMMER 2015 GCSE AND GCEADVANCED LEVELEXAMINATIONSCongratulations to the following students who achieved first, second andthird highest marks in the CCEA 2015 GCSE and GCE Summer Examinations:

Claire Cosgrove – First in Spanish and First equal in French Emma McKay – First equal in Art Keeva Madden – Second equal in ICTCliodhna S Ni Mhianain (Year 8) – First equal in Irish Lauren McStocker – Third equal in Science DA Modular

A FORMAL OCCASION

FIT FOR LIFEAs a health promoting school, Miss O Donnelly has launched the ‘Get Involved’ programme of activities where pupils can participate at every level from a health and well-being perspective up to sporting excellence and elite levels. Miss Donnelly explains, “Details of things to do or join are on noticeboards thus giving pupils an insight to what activities they may become involved in within each year group. Details are also displayed on the Health Education noticeboard outside Café Bordeaux. The core message is… ‘Get Involved’!”

HEALTHY REWARDSCongratulations to the pupils from each year group whoaccumulated the highest number of healthy eating points for the first half term. In early November, their healthy choices wererewarded with a £10 top up voucher. Well done: Emily Cullen, Siun Cummings, Charlotte Doran, Eireann McCusker, Alice Collins,Niall Conlon and Eunan O’Kane.

FREE FRUIT FRIDAY!The free fruit that the SNAG committee gave out at break-time on 20November was an immense success! It was in response to recent findingsthat 96% of children in Northern Ireland do not eat their five a day andneither do 82% of adults. A report says sugar intake should be drasticallyreduced. The SNAG group agree with the sentiments of the report and sotook this step: “We want to encourage children to reduce their intake ofsugar through sweets/ biscuits/ cakes which contain lots of saturated fatetc. And at the same time encourage children to take more natural sugarthrough their fruits and veg which contain more fibre and are ultimatelymuch better for them.” The lesson was most fruitful!

LESS IS MOREIn order to raise money for Cancer Focus, some membersof staff took part in a six week Fit 4 School challenge that involved a healthier diet and more exercise. These staff members organised a number of activities inside and outside of school in order to fundraise, such as a non-uniform day, Cash for Clobber and a Come Dine With Me on a staff development day (even though they could not eat the culinarydelights they had prepared!) Rosaleen McKernan said, “When Mrs Gillespie first mentioned she wanted staff to participate, I jumped at theopportunity and was delighted to get a place on the programme. Whilst I wasn’t dreadfully overweight nor a stranger to exercise, I can beprone to poor eating habits, have a shocking sweet tooth and can lack motivation. I could not believe the change clean eating and caffeineand sugar abstention made to both body and mind. I loved the regular exercise sessions organised in school and the camaraderie with theother participants and felt great being able to raise money at the same time for a very worthy cause….Keeping it going now is the hard bit!”

RISING TO THE CHALLENGEHuge congratulations to our Year 14 students who were very successful in the recentSenior Challenge achieving 12 Silver and 36 Bronze Awards. The UKMT Individual MathsChallenges are lively, intriguing multiple choice question papers, which are designed tostimulate interest in maths. Well done to Anna Coogan, Paul McCarron, Orla Mallon,Marc Friel, Gerard O‘Brien, Megan Monaghan, Emma Quinn, David McGuigan, SiobhanComer, Una McCoy and Emma Robinson who each received the Silver Award; and to therecipients of the Bronze award, namely Bronagh McFarlane, Dermot Donnelly, JamesTennyson, Hannah McGurk, David McErlain, Connor Devlin, Cormac Mackle, BernadetteHenry, Sheila Campbell, Conor McCann, Niamh Hughes, Kyle Johnston, Jack McLean,Hugh-Roe O’Donnell, Hannah Doherty, Niamh Kelly, Jamie Duffin, Shannon McGillian,Conor Burns, Eamon Conway, Ciara McAuley, Mark Rushe, Tonicha Donnelly, EllenGroom, Conor Shaw, Megan Kearns, Cathal Craig, Bronagh Harkin, Michael McElhone,Gabriela Kacprzyk, Alana Quinn, John Joe O’Hagan, Eamonn Devlin, Claire O’Neill,Maria McVey and Cathal Mullan.

YEAR 9 PUPILS GET TO GRIPS WITH IZAK9The Maths department has been using Izak9, which is an active learning device specifically designed tocreate a totally immersive and engaged shared learning environment. It provides exceptional opportunitiesfor the teaching and learning of mathematics. All areas of the maths curriculum at Key Stage 3 areaddressed in an environment rich in problem solving, oracy, fluency, variation and depth. Izak9 supportsthe needs of pupils of all abilities and preferred learning styles. Children work together in small groupsusing real cubes to not only solve the number, algebra, data and shape / space problems posed, but alsoto develop ideas and create tasks and questions of their own.

Health Promoting School

Mathematics Matters

Language, Literature and LeadershipST MARY’S YOUNG LEADERS OF THE FUTURE!Following on the outstanding success of Siobhan Comer in last year’s Rotary Competition, the followingYear 13 pupils seized the opportunity to participate in the 2015 Rotary Youth Leadership Competition inOctober: Lauren McStocker, Sarah Gallen, Hannah Neely, Emma Boyle, Jake Kuczogi, Daniel Bradley,James McTeague and Kevin Small. Each student had been nominated because of the leadership they haddemonstrated throughout their years in St Mary’s Grammar School. The interviewers from CookstownRotary Club were highly impressed with all eight candidates and commended each one for their excellentcommunication and interpersonal skills. Lauren McStocker was selected as the winner of Round 1. MrsReid, who prepared the students, explains: “The competition involved two more rounds of very intensiveinterviews and Lauren was superb! She is one of just 20 winners from across the North and South ofIreland who will participate in a week long leadership trip to Strasbourg in February, where she will havethe opportunity to further develop her leadership potential. She is a lovely, unassuming and modest pupil– a true ambassador and a commanding leader!”

THE PATRICK KAVANAGH POETRYAWARDS 2015Congratulations to Year 10 pupils, Declan Murray, Eva Hirst and Olivia Harney who recently attended an AwardsCeremony in The Patrick Kavanagh Centre, Co Monaghan, where they were highly commended, in the Senior Section, for their poems on the theme of Childhood. Declan Murray - Fortress of the Country; Eva Hirst - As Fast As You Can; and,Olivia Harney - Winter Wonderland. Their teacher, Mrs O Reid, said their poems were, “Exceptional: their command oflanguage and imagery were all the more impressive given that they had been written when the pupils were only in Year 9.”

IS THIS A CINEMA I SEE BEFORE ME..?With the witching season almost upon us, the English department decided that a trip to the new adaptation of Macbeth was a must. Maghera Film House opened its doors on Friday 23 October to Year 12 students;many were not exactly thrilled by the prospect of watching the play that is more than four hundred years old but it proved to be a hit. Blockbuster battle scenes, spine-tingling staging, utterly believable performances –perhaps this is as good as Shakespeare on film gets! Matthew Larkin explained, “While this was not the greatest film to watch, it did get us out of the classroom and it did provide a visual experience that added muchwhen we came to write our Controlled Assessment.”

CULTURE, CREATIVITY AND CRAIC!On 23 September, GCSE Drama pupils enjoyed an evening out at the Lyric Theatre to see Brian Friel’s Dancing at Lughnasa. Set in County Donegal in 1936 during the Celtic harvest festival of Lughnasadh, the play tellsthe story of the five Mundy sisters and their brother Jack, who has returned home from the missions after 25 years away. This new production, which marks the 25th anniversary of the play’s premiere in Dublin, wasdirected by award-winning Annabelle Comyn. A very cultural and entertaining evening was enjoyed by all. Akvile Stringyte added, “Although sad in places, I loved the humour: it made me smile in so many moments.”

FREEDOM OF SPEECHCongratulations to Sarah Gallen (who was awarded Thirdplace), Ethlinn Walls and Leanne Graham who participatedin the regional heat of the Soroptimist International Ladies’Public Speaking Competition in Ballymoney on 5 November.Mrs O Reid explained, “All three girls were wonderfulambassadors for St Mary’s.”

BUSINESS-LIKE AND VERY PROFESSIONAL!Congratulations to Ethlinn Walls, Sarah Gallen and James McTeague who participatedin the Ballymena heat of the Business and Professional Women’s Public Speakingcompetition. Staged to represent a public meeting in miniature, the students acted asGuest Speaker, Chairperson or Expresser of Thanks. Miss Hatchell prepared the teamand explains, “On the night, the team faced some very stiff competition, including last year’s finalists, and were successful in securing a place in the next round of thecompetition in Belfast in January. The team worked very hard, whilst also competing in Soroptimist and Rotary, so it is even more of a credit to them that they have wonthrough to the N Ireland final.”

PAST AND PRESENTCongratulations to Year 14 student Eimear Mc Williams whose desire to pursue a career in journalism has seen her articles appearing inthe County Derry Post. One such article featured our recent past pupil Ciara Hampsey who is making quite a name for herself as a MakeUp Artist. We wish them continuing excellence in their creative fields!

Love of Languages

BRITISH ACADEMY ANNOUNCEMENTThe British Academy recently announced the 2015 winners of its Schools’ Language Awards. From more than 150 applications submittedfrom across the UK, 14 prizes of £4,000 each are being awarded to schools and colleges – or institutions supporting them – for innovativeprojects aimed at increasing the numbers of students learning languages at higher levels. Spanning 17 languages, the awards are beingmade across both mainstream and supplementary sectors.

Alun Evans, Chief Executive and Secretary of the British Academy, said: “Congratulations to the 2015 winners. Our Awards aim to find innovative and inspiring ways of encouraging more students to studylanguages to higher levels of education. We’re delighted that schools across the UK have responded passionately with such high quality applications, understanding the importance of language skills. We hopethey will continue to inspire and challenge their pupils with learning initiatives and help to ensure the next generation are thoroughly equipped with the language skills they need.”

A panel of judges assessed the originality, credibility and potential replicability of the proposals, with particular emphasis this year on building partnerships. St Mary’s was the only N Ireland winning school.

The Irish department is delighted to receive this prestigious award and is excited by the upcoming project entitled Gaeltalk – a project which will link sixth form students of Irish with the Irish medium students inSt Mary’s and also with primary pupils in the local Gaelscoil – Gaelscoil an tSeanchaí. The funding will be used to purchase media equipment which the students will use to work collaboratively to produce a seriesof short promotional clips pertaining to the use of Irish in the locality, all of which will be shared via a blog and youtube channel. In addition to this, students will further their communication and thinking skillsas they design and produce a series of podcasts which focus on local cultural aspects including sport and musical talent, both contemporary and traditional. The project will build on the strong Irish languagetradition that the department prides itself on, having also been recognised for excellence in oral proficiency with the presentation of the Ashbourne Shield to the department in 2012. Head of Department, WayneMac Feilimí commented that, “the award is a fantastic recognition of the talents and dedication to Irish which is displayed by the students within the department. In a time where the Irish language is enjoying ahuge revival in the North, it is important to recognise that the focus for the next generation of Irish speakers will be on the skills that they possess. I believe that this sustainable project is an excellent platform toenable our students to demonstrate and develop the wealth of skills that they possess. We were delighted to have the success featured in ‘The Irish News’; and as a result, TG4 recorded the students and myselffor the 7.00 pm news.”

LET’S CELEBRATE THE EUROPEAN DAY OF LANGUAGES! The Modern Languages Department organised a series of activities during the week of 21 September to celebrate the European Day of Languages.Junior pupils enjoyed a Quiz and a Pétanque game! On 26 September, Year 10 students took part in an all-languages based Quiz with questions in German, French, Spanish and Irish. We were very fortunate this year as we were joined by a number of German exchange students. The Quizcovered a range of topics from General Knowledge to European celebrities and famous landmarks. Out of the 191 participants, Thomas Mallon,Lucy O’Neill, Rory Loughran, Eimear Duffin, Joseph Harper, Charlotte Doran and Alice McDonald came out on top winning themselves a multi-lingual goodie pack. It was a great opportunity for Year 10 to put what they had learned in the classroom into a real life language situation.Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the day, language learning was promoted, and it was an all-round opportunity to have some multilingual fun!

More than forty of our Year 12 linguists taught some Spanish, French, Irish and German in Holy Family Primary School. Many topics were taught to pupils from P3 to P7 including pets, colours, numbers and food. It was a fantastic experience! Our students were congratulated on theirdedication and enthusiasm and the primary school pupils and teachers were highly impressed! Bravo Year 12s! Maith thú!

GAEL LINN QUIZOn Friday 16 October 2015, two Year 10 classes participated in the Tráth na gCeist Gael Linn which provided students with the opportunity to hear the language being spoken outside the classroom at an informal and light-hearted event. Many schools participated in the Quiz so we weredelighted when four of our pupils, namely Kate Lavery, Blaithin Rafferty,Maeve Shields and Katie Cushley won 2nd place, securing them a place in the Ulster final. Miss McGouran added, “It was a great day out,promoting Irish language learning and the pupils were even up singing and doing céilí dances! We look forward to progressing on to the next stage of the competition.”

SI PARLA ITALIANOA MAGHERAFELT!Senior students are immersing themselves in Italian! Every fortnight,a group of twenty four students (Year 12 to 14) dedicate their lunchtime to learn about Italian language and culture with Miss Commault.Several topics are being taught from greetings, to numbers, coloursand ordering food…all in a relaxed atmosphere.

VALUABLE VOCAB EXPRESSEDHaving participated in Vocab express, we were delighted tolearn that we were placed 4th in the Challenge Cup Medio(schools with less than 500 enrolled pupils for Spanish) and 15th overall. In our category, there were 7,000 students and 60 schools, so 4th and 15th is not bad at all!

Congratulations to everybody who took part in this year’sLeague of Champions. It was an incredibly excitingcompetition, and it’s clear to see how much dedication andhard work has been put in by students and their teachers to achieve some of the highest scores we have ever seen.

WILLKOMMEN TO OUR GERMANVISITORSDuring the third week of September we were visited by twenty eightpupils and two members of staff from our partner school in Germany.

Catriona McCoy and Eimear McKernan explained, “St Mary’s pupils studying German in Years 11 and 12 were each assigned a Germanpupil to look after. It was an extremely enjoyable experience and we learnt a lot from it. The German students were very talented andexcellent at English. This helped us a lot, as we were able to exchange words and phrases in both English and in German. We hope to get the opportunity to visit our new friends in Germany and to take part in further trips and projects with them.”

Enriching Curriculum and Careers in Focus

MINDING THEIR OWN BUSINESS On Thursday 17 September, the Year 14 Applied Business group visited Belfast Central Library to gather information fromKeynote and Mintel reports to help them with their Business Plans. The students will now use the information to support their business proposals. Who knows… they might find themselves in the Dragon’s Den or as Lord Sugar’s next apprentice.

YOUNG ENTERPRISE (YEAR 13)A group of Year 13 students formed a mini enterprise organisation, with the aim of selling products (ice cream, cup-cakes, hoodies and jerseys) to the school community. The company was set up in September 2014; they decided to donate all profit earned from trading to the very worthy Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice. They proved to beenterprising and financially successful. Mrs M McKeever (Teacher in Charge) said, “Under the guidance of theirManaging Director, Katie McCauley, they generated profits in excess of £1000! All members made an excellentcontribution to the success of the business and are all very proud of their achievements.”

CREST FOR THE BEST!Congratulations to Mr Martin McVeigh, Technology and Designteacher, who has been awarded one of the very limited number of 2015 British Science Association CREST Teacher recognition awards for his outstanding contribution to enriching students’experiences of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).He said, “I am over the moon with this award and would like tothank all the pupils involved for their continued contribution, hardwork and dedication towards STEM related activities”.

OPPORTUNITY AND BRIGHT STARTSThe Careers department was visited by representatives from Deloitte to raise awareness of their Bright Start Higher Apprentice programme.Three Year 14 St Mary’s students were successful last year in being offered a place with the Bright Startprogramme, with Nikita Kelly taking up the offer.Nikita was also present and offered students adviceregarding the application process; in addition, shespoke most enthusiastically about her training so far with Deloitte. St Mary’s is looking forward to a return visit later in the month when Gary fromDeloitte and Nikita will offer further guidance on the application process to interested students.

SUCCESS SKILLSVivienne Walsh from Young Enterprise delivered theprogramme ‘Success Skills’ (along with Alan Hunter andMartin Morgan) on Tuesday 29 September to Year 12students. The aim of the programme was to assist studentsto develop their employability skills and capabilities for life in school, and for their future careers and the world of work. Year 12 thoroughly enjoyed the programme.Anna-Maria O’Donnell said, “I found this quite useful, as we were reminded that we can make learning interestingand exciting rather than viewing it as stressful.”

DEVELOPINGTOMORROW’SLEADERSCCEA, the Food Standards Agency, SafeFood and C2K joined forces to host and stream a live video conference for GCSE ChildDevelopment and GCSE and GCE Home Economics students andteachers on Thursday 12 November. Janet Calvert, the RegionalBreast Feeding Lead who works for the Public Health Agency,hosted a question and answer session with students. Megan Teaguesaid, “We really valued this experience. The questions and answerswere informative, and will definitely help us with our coursework.”

MAKE SOME NOISEDuring Anti-Bullying Week, the St Mary’s Pupil Support team of Anna Coogan, Caroline Collins, Eva Kelly, Grace McKenna, Maria Doyle, Paul McCarron,Luke Doyle and Dillon Chapman visited all year groupassemblies delivering a very important message aboutbullying and the impact it can have on students. They reminded all pupils that they offer weekly support every Wednesday at break time in D4.

A Faith Community

SERVING OTHERSDermot Kelly from the Armagh Diocesan Youth Commission visitedSt Mary’s Grammar School to give a presentation to Year 13students on the John Paul II Award. There was a very positiveresponse from all those present, evidenced by the large number of pupils who signed up to participate in the Award. Mr G Maynessaid, “We hope that it will enable our students to become moreactively involved in the life of their parish and community and thatthey will experience the contentment and fulfilment that comes from serving others, especially those in great need.”

PRAYING MATTERS!Pupils and staff of St Mary’s took part in ‘One million children praying the Rosary’ on Monday 19 October. Their prayers were offered upfor personal peace, family peace, as well as unity and peace throughout the world. Year 8 pupil, Aine Young, said: “It was nice to be part of it and to bring the year group together in such a special way.”

THE POWER OF PRAYERWe recently welcomed representatives of Gideons International,namely Mr Billy Brown, Mr Ray Stewart and Mr David Henry. Year 8 pupils led the assembly, The Power of Prayer. Then Mr Brownaddressed the Year 8 students before giving each pupil a Gideonsbible. Mrs Gillespie shared her personal story of receiving her Gideonsbible when a pupil in school, a bible that she still treasures to this day.

Beyond the BooksCAUTION AT THE COASTOn 22 September, Year 13 biology students made a trip to the Antrim Coast and Portglenone Forest Park in order to collect data for their coursework. The pupils left school in full outdoor gear accompanied by theteachers of the biology department and after an hour long bus journey, not even the rain could dampen their spirits.

Lucy Quinn explains, “Our first task was to create a line transect using quadrats from the sea to the shore and record data in the table we designed back in school. After this, the impossible task of not falling on theslippery rocks began as we began measuring the length and height of limpets attached to the rocks to see if there is a change depending on whether the limpets were on a sheltered or exposed shore. While we werethere, we found different species of plants and animals along the shore like crabs and seaweed. In Portglenone, we took a set of 20 random co-ordinates and used the quadrats again to measure the % cover of theground and the light intensity at each point. The data we collected will be used in our coursework that will be completed after Christmas. It was a great learning experience”

SEEING GEOGRAPHY COME TO LIFEFieldwork is an enjoyable way of seeing geography and theories come to life, as well as improving knowledge andunderstanding of the subject. With this in mind, on a lovely autumn morning in October, AS Geography students,accompanied by their teachers, Mrs Bradley and Mrs Stevenson, left school to spend time doing some fieldwork activities.

The purpose of the fieldwork was to investigate the changes downstream in the river at Crawfordsburn by measuringsome of the river’s characteristics including the width, depth, and velocity of the river. It was great fun. The studentsworked in groups, carrying out a range of tasks at each of the sites they stopped at along the river. Everyone enjoyed theday: the only complaint was that the day wasn't long enough.

CHEMISTRY AT WORK 2015On Wednesday 14 October, twenty five Year 12 Chemistry students,accompanied by Miss Carey and Miss McCloskey, attended a RoyalSociety of Chemistry “Chemistry at Work” event hosted at UlsterUniversity, Coleraine. Students attended a show by Scientist Sue on the chemistry that could be used to train a dragon. This included some explosions, lots of dry ice and a starring role by Aidan McKeeverin helping a baby dragon to fly (and lose its head!). Students thenattended a number of presentations hosted by leading chemicalemployers in Northern Ireland including Randox, Almac and Norbrookalong with finding out about different university courses on offer tofurther their interest and studies in Chemistry. The day finished withCaoimhe Meeke winning 2nd place in the student quiz and studentsavailing of plenty of free refreshments!

THE TOWN WE LOVE SO WELLYear 11 history students visited the museum of Free Derryand the Bogside area of Derry on Friday 6 November.Students study the Battle of the Bogside and Bloody Sundayas part of their GCSE study of Northern Ireland 1965-85.

Promoting Partnerships

RCUK-QUB-MLP “CROSSINGBOUNDARIES IN 21ST CENTURY”On Friday 20 November, St Mary’s hosted sixty Year 9 students from across the Magherafelt Learning Partnership for a series of workshops facilitated by Queen’s University, Belfast. Students considered the Emigration and Immigration Patterns of Irelandand the UK over the last thirty years and the rationale behind how and why they have changed. Students also participated inthought-provoking workshops on Human Rights and the value they place on them. Miss McCloskey explained, “Students from St Mary’s worked in small groups alongside students from our partner schools and enjoyed this experience greatly.”

In the afternoon, students attended a prize giving ceremony for their posters in response to “What does it mean to be a migrant in 2015?” and “What does it mean to be a European? Sian Devlin (9C) was placed firstin the Year 9 Migrant category and Jarlath Young (9E) was placed third in the Year 9 European category. Thomas Doherty (10B) achieved first place in the Year 10 European category and Eve Donnelly (10E) wasplaced second in the Year 10 Migrant category.

JINGLE ALL THE WAYThe Young Enterprise group took part in a fundraiser and formedpart of the ‘Santa Coming to Town’ parade in Magherafelt towncentre on Saturday 5 December. All proceeds from this and theirother ventures this year will go to the very worthwhile charityNorthern Ireland Children’s Hospice. In early December, some of the Mini-company attended St George’s Market to sell someChristmas goods.

PURPOSE AND PRIVILEGE!Six students from St Mary’s, namely Siobhan Comer, Connor Devlin, Ellen Groom, Kyle Johnston, Una McCoy and Tara McGrogan, had theprivilege of travelling to India with students from three Belfast schools: St Malachy’s College, Dominican College and Belfast Royal Academylast summer. Ellen Groom takes up the story: “In preparation for our trip, each of us needed to raise £750, together with a further £3500as our team fundraising from St Mary’s. All the money raised goes directly to the schools, communities and the children supported bySaphara. Fundraising was fun, and a great excuse to get a break from the books! We held street collections (in the rain), abseiled down theEuropa Hotel, and held a Christmas Jumper Non-Uniform Day in School - to mention a few things. For my personal fundraising, I organiseda Christmas charity concert in my local parochial hall which included refreshments and a raffle, and it raised over £3000. Despite all the‘blood, sweat and tears’ when we arrived in India we realised the fundraising was worth every second. We cannot thank everyone enough(and in particular, Mr Tracey) for their generosity and support.

My Saphara experience has, without a doubt, been the most rewarding experience of my life. This charity aims to ‘open the eyes of youngpeople to their unique potential to change the world’. The word ‘Saphara’ itself means ‘Journey with Purpose’ and for each of us whotravelled to India with Saphara last summer, it was not only a physical journey where we taught, helped and built relationships with theunder privileged children we met in India, but also an emotional journey as we were given an insight into the lives of children living inpoverty in India. Education in India is regarded as a gift, a gift that each child cherished. After visiting the marginalised communities wheremost of the students lived – with homes the size of a bus shelter and food, clothing and sanitary conditions minimal – my eyes wereopened to the importance of education for these children to allow them the opportunity to escape the vicious, seemingly never endingpoverty cycle. I learned so much from the experience!”

Mr Tracey added that plans are already well under way for the next team, “This year we are delighted to have eight pupils on our Sapharateam: Damien McCoy, Ruairi O'Kane, Alicia McAuley, Meabh McGirr, Shauna Lennon, Aoife Bradley, Faoiltiarna Burke and Eoin McAuley.They will travel to India in July 2016 along with pupils from Sullivan Upper School and Ampleforth College.”

SHOE BOX APPEALSt Mary's again took part in the Road of Hope- Shoe Box Appealwhich is a voluntary charity organisation that relies on the goodwilland support of local people to help support those underprivileged incountries such as Bosnia, Croatia, Romania and Africa. The schoolcommunity ensured that we will spread some Christmas cheer toalmost two hundred people ranging from 0-2 years to the elderly,and both male and females. All shoeboxes were collected in earlyNovember and are on route to those less fortunate than ourselves!

IN GIVING WE RECEIVE…Mr G Maynes, who leads the Christmas Hamper appeal for St Vincent de Paul in school, recently sent form classes the message: “It’s that timeof year again. SVP always appreciates our contribution in making Christmas a little brighter for those who are disadvantaged in the community.Could each class provide a Christmas Hamper? One item of seasonal food per pupil should suffice.” His message was then reinforced whenYear 10 pupils Philip Baine and Declan Murray spoke at assemblies urging us to support the appeal. Despite the many demands on the schoolcommunity, we are always grateful for the selflessness of all who respond with generosity of spirit and support.

PTA HOSTS TEA PARTY IN ST MARY’SCafé Bordeaux was transformed on Saturday 17 November into a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party.Co-ordinated by the school’s PTA, the invitation to attend was extended to the parents/guardians of new Year 8 students. The Year 8 pupils and their sixth form Buddies alsoattended.

The pupils and their families most generously provided baked goods and raffle prizes.Donations and the proceeds from the baked goods sale raised £850. Head of Year 8and link teacher with the PTA, Mrs AM Anderson said, “This was such a great morning,affording the parents and guardians a chance to meet. The pupils enjoyed socialisingwith new and old friends.”

MENTORING DAYSThe importance we place on Mentoring, affording our pupils invaluable time with tutors, Heads of Year and senior teachers, meant wecollapsed timetables for Key Stage 4 and 5 pupils in November. It proved to be very significant. On these days, we also invited speakers toaddress particular year groups such as Jackie Burke, a reformed drug addict, who spoke to Year 12 pupils; and, Amazing Brains who led asession on study skills with Year 11. Cassie Ni Cathain, a Year 12 pupil, was deeply moved by Jackie Burke. She said that she was mostimpressed by his “honesty, informality and his humour” as he talked about his brush with death because of his drug habits, and, his growingfaith in the midst of his turmoil.

BRING THEM HOMEAs part of the school’s on-going Eco-Schools’ campaign, two groups of Year 8 students recently took part in a lunchtime club to raiseawareness of bio diversity beyond St Mary’s school gates. They made bird boxes over lunchtime and brought these home to place in theirgardens to provide shelter during the hardship of winter. It was designed to make the pupils more environmentally aware. They learnedhow the bird boxes could provide a nesting place for the birds and even be used to help maintain the population of species in their variousareas. Declan McFerran said, “I learned about many endangered birds in my area and that we need to help them find shelter.”Carla Doherty said, “I gave the bird box to my Granda to put in his garden: it was a fun experience and I would do the project again.”

ECO WARRIORSAs earlier mentioned, some staff in St Mary's were involved in a Fit 4 School programme in order to raise money for Cancer Focus. The six-week programme involved exercise and a clean diet in order to improve health, fitness and reduce the risk of cancer. As part of thefundraising efforts, members of staff and Year 13 Eco-Committee pupils were involved in organising a Cash for Clobber initiative within theschool community which generated 520kg of clobber and some healthy competition amongst the classes to see who was the most Eco-friendly!

RIGHTS RESPECTING SCHOOLS AWARDIn September 2015, Miss McAllister (Head of Year 10 and Citizenship Coordinator) raised the idea of St Mary’s applying for the RightsRespecting Schools Award. The Rights Respecting Schools Award is a UNICEF programme that aims to put children’s rights at the heart of schools in the UK. Mrs Gillespie and the Senior Leadership Team were extremely supportive of this proposal and since then Miss McAllister has attended training on RRSA led by David McGimpsey the UNICEF representative in Northern Ireland. Miss McAllister also sought and received the support of the Board of Governors and has set up an RRSA steering committee to oversee and direct the application for the award.The committee consists of students from all key stages, teachers, parents, a Board of Governors representative, support staff and a member ofthe Senior Leadership Team. The steering committee will post updates on their progress on the school website and via our Facebook page.

MOVING TO THE MUSICIn true Christmas spirit, St Mary’s Junior Choir took part in anevening concert of festive music, raising money for Action Cancer onThursday 1 December, in St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast. This was afree event, featuring choirs, orchestras, instrumentalists from schoolsacross Northern Ireland. All family members and friends werewelcome to attend.

In order to participate, the choir had to raise £500, and did so byholding a sponsored ‘singathon’ on Friday 20 November.Throughout both Junior and Senior lunch periods, the Junior choirsang a variety of popular songs in the assembly hall for other pupilsand members of staff to come and watch …and join in. The hall wasalive with the sound of music and it was so timely in helping to buildanticipation for the fast approaching festive season. Miss Flanaganexpressed her gratitude for the wealth of support, “More than £1500was raised which was absolutely amazing!”

MAGHERAFELT CUPTuesday 29 September saw the inaugural Magherafelt Cup take place in St Mary’s Magherafelt between StMary’s and St Pius X College. The idea of the cup was to further strengthen the bonds between the two schools.So many pupils in each school have family and friends in the other and given our proximity, it seemed onlynatural to unite over a shared love: sport!

The concept of the day was games. Gaelic, camogie and soccer took place on the pitches but really they werea side show. The day was about friendship and forging of links. Mr M McCullagh explains, “Mr Frank Dunloppresented the trophy to the winning captains from St Mary’s this time but the real winners were the Year 8pupils (almost 100 of them) that took part on the day, renewing acquaintances and sharing tales of how theirlives have changed since September. Special thanks must go to the 2 Principals, Mrs Gillespie and Mrs Bartley,and the PE teachers.”

A Sporting Community

HOLDING THEIR HORSESThe Meadows Equestrian centre hosted the first Interschools’ competition of the year. Inthe open individual, Year 13 student Carine Fullerton won, out of 48 competitors, on Lexi.Interschools’ is extremely competitive so getting a good fast time is crucial. The school iscurrently in 4th place in the Premier class in a field of 27 competitors. We wish Carine(and Lexi) good luck for the next two rounds.

WINNING WAYSYear 8 boys attended the Oisin McGrath Cup on Friday 16 October and came away as group winners, defeating:St Colman’s, Newry; St Michael’s, Enniskillen; and, Omagh CBS in the process. This set up a quarter final tie afterHalloween with the fourth placed team from the other group. They met St Patrick’s Academy, Dungannon in thequarter-final stages at MUSA and came away victorious on a score line of 3-10 to 2-7. In the first half, the boysplayed into a strong breeze and scores were hard to come by. We trailed at half time by four points on a scoreline of 1-5 to 0-4. Playing with the breeze in the second half, the boys produced a great performance whicheventually saw them win by eight points. They played Abbey CBS in the semi-final on a wet and windy Friday in Belfast and were sadly defeated. We are so proud of their team spirit and commitment!

PRIMARY COLOURSOn Thursday 5 November 2015, we hosted a Gaelic football blitz in Meadowbank Sportsarena for Primary 6 pupils from numerous schools around the area. Thirty one teamsparticipated with 7 pitches being used. There were over 300 children involved with 140matches played. The blitz was split into 2 sections – boys and girls.

In the build-up to the blitz, two PE technicians went out to the primary schools to coach.The PE technicians looked at the fundamental skills within Gaelic football and helpedthe pupils develop and improve upon these skills. The blitz proved to be a huge successwith the schools all getting very much involved and showing their competitive sides. The children seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. There was one school that came out on top in both the boys’ and girls’ sections. This school was Derrychrin Primary School. They were brilliant throughout and proved to be deserving winners.

SPORTS LINKSWe held our annual Sports Link cross country event on Thursday 19 November. One hundred and fifty pupilscompeted in six races: Year 8 boys, Year 8 girls, Year 9 boys, Year 9 girls, Year 10 boys and Year 10 girls. All local post primary schools attended. We are most grateful to ASDA who again sponsored the event providingwater and fruit to the participants.

GRASS ROOTS COACHINGOn Thursday 8 October, Year 12 and AS PE students were given the opportunity to take part in a coaching courseoffered by the Irish Football Association. The course lasted three hours and at the end of the training, the studentswere presented with their ‘IFA Grassroots Soccer Coaching Award’. Well done to all involved!

GET SET FOR COMMUNITY ACTIONGet Set for Community Action is a brand new programme, which aims to strengthen relationships between young people and their local communities through the Olympic Values (friendship, excellence andrespect) and the Paralympic Values (courage, determination, equality and inspiration). Thousands of 14-19 year olds – ‘Action Leads’ – will work in teams across the UK, building relationships with localcommunity groups to plan and deliver at least two projects each, in the run-up to the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. We are delighted that St Mary’s has been designated a champion school, one of only four in N Ireland. There are only 100 Champion Schools recruited by the Youth Sport Trust in the UK as a whole. We will support local schools (Cluster Schools) to take part in the Get Set for CommunityAction programme, while also working with our own community partner(s). We will also act as champions of good practice, providing case studies for the Youth Sport Trust to share with and inspire other schools.In preparation for this exciting project, Mr McElholm and two Action Leads (namely Meaghan Lagan and Erin McKenna) attended the National Training Day on Wednesday 25 November 2015 in Birmingham.

WORLD IN UNIONEighteen Year 13 pupils from St Mary’s joined pupils from St Pius X, Sperrin Integrated College and Magherafelt High School to attend the Ireland V Romania Match as part of the Rugby World Cup 2015. This MLP Sports Link trip to Wembley Arena is an extension of the great partnerships set up between schools in the Magherafelt area where Mr J McElholm (St Mary’s) and Mr G Burns (Magherafelt High) have had theleadership and foresight to arrange trips which have afforded pupils the opportunity to experience world classsporting fixtures and events such as the London Olympics in 2012, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in2014 and now the Rugby World Cup 2015.

Pupils left school at lunchtime on Friday 28 September, bound for Dublin Port. While taking part in a range of activities such as Go-Karting and Football Golf, pupils from all schools mixed and established greatfriendships which were firmly bonded over the weekend. On Saturday morning, the students had a few hours to sample shopping in Cheshire Oaks Outlet Centre, before travelling to witness Stoke City edge outBournemouth in a Premiership game at Britannia Stadium. After being treated to a king-size breakfast on Sunday morning, the students then boarded the bus for Wembley. The atmosphere was electric and towitness 'Ireland's Call' being sung by a record attendance at any World Cup game was definitely an experience which will last in the memories of all those present. The students eagerly cheered on their countryto a great 44-10 victory before setting off on a long journey home. Despite the bleary eyes on many on their faces as they pulled back in the car park in Magherafelt at 9am on Monday morning, the buzz ofexcitement from this experience was accurately recalled by a number of pupils who described the weekend 'as a trip of a lifetime'! Alicia McAuley said, “The Rugby World Cup trip was an amazing experience,and one I will never forget!” Whereas Kealan McCann stated: “How do I sum up the ‘World Cup Experience- Ireland versus Romania’? It was great match for the fans as Ireland won and there were lots of tries.We also enjoyed the Mexican waves and chanting. Returning home, I was tired but elated.”

MACRORY CAMPAIGNSt Mary’s opened the MacRory Cup campaign with an encouraging 1-10 v 0-12 victoryover St Patrick’s, Armagh. Liam Quinn (1-1) and David McErlain (0-3) impressed andexpectations were high going into the remaining fixtures. However, the next gameagainst local rivals St Patrick’s, Maghera ended in defeat on a scoreline of St Patrick’s,Maghera 4-7 v St Mary’s, Magherafelt 0-10. Ronan Donnelly scored 4 excellent points andGoal Keeper Ben McKinless pulled off a string of excellent saves in a gutsy display againstone of the pre-competition favourites. Further defeats to St Michael’s, Enniskillen and StMacartan’s, Monaghan followed. The last game was against top of the table side StPatrick’s, Dungannon who also proved too strong for our MacRory boys. However, theyplayed much better than they had in the previous two games giving Mr Brady and MrConway and their team some hope for their play-off game v St. Patrick’s, Cavan at theend of January. We wish the boys every success.

DANSKE BANK CASEMENT CUP FINALOUR LADY’S & ST PATRICK’S, KNOCK 3-10 ST MARY’S, MAGHERAFELT 2-10

The Casement Cup hurlers - under the expert guidance of Mr R Kennedy and Mr M McCullough - secured a place in theDanske Bank Casement Cup final for a consecutive year, thisyear against Our Lady’s and St Patrick’s, Knock. Our boys wereskilful, determined and tenacious and thus worthy winnersagainst Rathmore Grammar in the semi-final. The final tookplace on Friday 6 November in QUB. Parents, staff and peersjourneyed in considerable force hoping to see the boys go onestep further than last year. Our Lady’s and St Patrick’s wereleading a half-time; a few motivational words in the changing rooms meant that our boys produced a solid responseand so drew level with them five minutes after the break. It was an exciting, excellent Danske Bank Casement Cupfinal at the Dub. It looked as if we would make up for the disappointment of losing last year’s final but it was not tobe! Despite valiant efforts, team commitment and incredible resolve the game slipped away from them. We are all so proud of them and their coaches/managers/mentors.

A STRIKING ARTCongratulations to Hannah Maguire in Year 11 and herbrother Conor Maguire in Year 9 who competed in theNorthern Ireland Karate Board Open Championships inBanbridge. Hannah won gold and bronze. Conor won gold for the third consecutive year. They are the Northern IrelandChampions in their respective categories. Hannah and Conor train at the NIKW Antrim Club.TAE KWON DO

Year 8 and 9 pupils Caitlin Devlin, Anna Quinn, Rachel Quinn, Declan Mc Ferran, Conal Heaney and Daniel Quinn recently enjoyed success in a Tae Kwon Do competitionin Edinburgh, Scotland. They are members of the Leo Maguire club where they were allsuccessful in taking home medals.

Conal Heaney explained: “I was in Edinburgh over the weekend of 30 October. While I wasthere, I was competing for my Northern Ireland Junior Squat for Tae Kwon Do. When I wascompeting I won gold in my Sparring (fighting) and also my special technique (Flying HighKick). I also received an overall trophy which I wasn’t expecting!” Caitlin Devlin added, “Out of my three categories (patterns, sparring and special technique) I got a bronze and a gold; I was delighted!”

STAR STRUCKMassive congratulations to Year 12 students Caoimhe Meeke and OrlaithPrenter who recently achieved Ulster Colleges’ All-star awards for Ladies’Football. They will represent Ulster in the All-Ireland Interprovincialcompetition on Saturday 30 January. And their awards presentationnight will be on Friday 15 January.

Congratulations to three Year 12 Students (Adam Connolly, James Crawford and Tiarnach Donaghy) who were selected to attend QUB Future Star Trials at MUSA, Cookstown.

We are also hopeful that our boys will be successful in the All Star trials- Congratulations to Conor McGrogan, Ben McKinless, Peter Lagan and Liam Quinn who have made the first selection.

COUCH TO 3KThis term, almost thirty Year 8 girls have been taking partin Couch to 3K offered by Acorns AC in conjunction withthe Magherafelt Learning Partnership. It is a wonderfulopportunity to increase fitness levels, encourage pupilswho maybe don’t participate in other sports to getinvolved in exercise, meet up with old friends and makesome new ones! The girls train very hard twice a week at Meadowbank and this great activity wouldn’t be possible without their teachers, Mr Tracey and Miss Hatchell giving up their time to escort them to Meadowbank and supervise the girls there - Mr Tracey and Miss Hatchell’s fitness levels are also improving!

2016FORTHCOMING

DATESJanuary JAN 7: Year 13 PTM (7pm) / JAN 9–16: Ski Trip / JAN 18–22: KS 4/5 Mock Exams / JAN 27&28: Open Nights (7pm) / JAN 28&29: Staff Dev Days (Staff Only)February FEB 11&12: Year 13 Work Experience / FEB 15–19: Mid-Term Break / FEB 25: Year 11 PTM (4.30pm)March MAR 3: Yr9 PTM (4.30pm) / MAR 16: Yr8 PTM (7pm) / MAR 17: Holiday / MAR 18: Staff Dev Day (Staff Only) / MAR 22–29: NY Trip / MAR 24–APR 1: Easter BreakMay/June MAY 31–JUNE 2: KS3 Internal Exams