Catching Up..

OMG I havent written in ages...we've been sooo busy since work experience. Last week we went to a workshop in Carlow with Self Help Africa. We learnt loads about conflict, development and HIV/AIDS. It was really interesting and I learnt loads..we got to ask questions and it was so informative. We had a podcasting workshop on Friday. I'll try and upload the podcast we made (about Gillian McKeith) soon. We were taught how to record a podcast, edit it, add music and sound affects and then we listened to each others..they were very funny!! (and a little bit embarassing!! :D) Today myself, Ciara, Clara, Laura and Katie presented a project on the Berlin Blockade and the Cuban Missile Crisis to class Ash in 3rd year..it was really scary..I feel sorry for teachers having to talk in front of a class all day!!! Later this week we have our fashion show. We made dresses in home ec and one member of each group will model the dress..it should be really fun!! At the moment, Im busy trying to finish projects and other work. It was snowing today so we got off 10 minutes early!!!! Yay!! I'll post again later this week. :)

Last Day of Work Experience!!! :(

I cannot believe it's over!! This week was absolutely amaaaaazing!!
Today I was in Tirmohan N.S. It's a lovely little school in Meath's countryside and only has 6 class teachers!! I began in a class thaat has 25 fifth class and 5 fourth class. I gave a spelling test and corrected it and I wrote a weather report for the class' pen-pals in Poland. After break I went to 6th class and helped with a science experiment. I had to light candles which was....interesting!! Then I went into junior infants to help stick sheets intot heir copies..they were very cute!! After lunch I detangled loads of skipping ropes and then listened to thee fourth and fifth class practising their play..it was a great day and a good experience!!
It's so wierd to think that next week we'll be back in school in classes after a week of experiencing the working world!! This week has made me think a lot about possible careers and I also had a LOT of fun!!! I met so many amazing people and it was such an eye-opener. I can't wait for March for my second week of work experience when I'll be heading to the courts' service.
I'll write again next week when I'm back in school!! :)

Work Experience Day 4

Well today was my last day in the hospital and I'm really gonna miss it!! I was in the physiotherapy department today with three other TY students (every other day I was by myself so it was a nice change!!). I saw out-patients with normal problems such as back and neck, and in-patients with respiratory problems. I didn't realise that physiotherapists helped with that sort of thing so it was definitely another learning curve!!
Out of all the departments I was in this week I found nursing most exciting and I definitely enjoyed that experience the most (helped by the very nice nurse who I shadowed!!). However, in terms of a career, I would probably be most interested in pursuing a career in pharmacy - I found this to be interesting and the hours weren't as bad as some of the other departments. I can definitely say that I would love to work in a hospital anyway. The staff were all friendly and had good relationships which is very important in a workplace. As well as that, although it was hard to see how sick some people are, it felt nice when they showed an improvement, and I'd love to be able to help someone get better.
I definitely feel that work experience is going to be one of this year's highlights for me and was educational in sooo many ways. I learnt loads about myself too and I have a new understanding of what it takes to work in a hospital environment. I also realised how hard people work in that sort of a job (especially the nurses!!).
Thanks to Naas General Hospital for giving me such a fantastic opportunity and to all the staff and patients who allowed me to be there and observe what was happening!!
I'm off to Tirmohan National School tomorrow for my final day off this installment of work experience. I'm really looking forward to seeing how a totally different working environment works from day to day.
I'll write again tomorrow.. :)

Work Experience Day 3

OMG!! I had another brill day today. I was in the Moate Ward (which specialises in coronary care) shadowing a lovely nurse called Caroline. I got to help out with the patients and I watched her do some of the harder work and some reports. I never realised how much work nurses do and how hard they work!! It really was hard work being on my feet for so long - and I was only there from 9.00am until 4.30pm!! Once again, everyone there was really nice - patients and staff included!! I had to wear a long white coat too which was cool. Tomorrow I'm off to physiotherapy for my last day at Naas General Hospital. I'm really enjoying my work experience and I definitely think it's a very worth-while programme!! It's a fantastic oppurtunity and I'm having a ball too!! I'll write again tomorrow... :)

Work Experience Day 2

I was in the pharmacy today and I may have just found my future job..I love work experience sooo much..it's definitely a highlight of my TY so far..again, today, everyone at the hospital was lovely - I was under the supervision of a really nice woman who thought me loads!! I got to see how orders of medicine from the wards are logged, I helped check the stock on one of the wards and I was shown how drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act are dealt with...it's so interesting and I had another great day!! I also returned to the Radiology department to see an ultrasound scan being done. So far, I love being in a hospital..I definitely would love to work in a hospital one day (after such an awesome two days so far!!). Tomorrow I'm heading to the Moate Ward to see the nursing side of a hospital. The days are going by sooo fast..it's crazy..I'll write again tomorrow!! :)

Work Experience Day 1

Today was my first day of work experience. I spent the day in the Radiology Department of Naas General Hospital. It was really cool and very interesting!! I learnt loads about different types of x-rays and how to get in to radiology. I saw people having X-Rays, DEXA scans and CT scans done. Everyone in the hospital was really nice too which was a good bonus!! Tomorrow I'm going to the Pharmacy in the hospital. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the week!! :)

Back After Mid-Term Break :)

We returned to school today after a much-needed break. It's going to be a busy eight weeks before Christmas. Next Monday we're all heading off for our first week of work experience. I'm going to Naas hospital from Monday to Thursday and Tirmohan National School for Friday. Getting work experience was a challenge but I know it'll be worthwhile. It was a great learning experience for the future.
Soon we'll be beginning our study for our Christmas exams. We won't have too many this year because we're in TY but they're still as important as every other year!! They start the week before we get our holidays.
I had a great start to TY and I'm really enjoying it so far...I can't wait for the rest of the year!! :)

Accord Talk, Dress Up Day and Mid-Term :)

Yesterday, Laura from Accord came in to talk to us about the RSE programme. It was a very interesting talk and very useful.
Today we are having a dress up day. The TY theme is scary movies. Everyone dresses up and brings in 2euro. There will be a parade at lunch where the best in all the classes go in front of the judges (the teachers!!) and the best dressed wins a prize.
Tomorrow is the start of our mid-term...time to relax after a busy eight weeks of work(!) :)
When we come back, we've only a week of school until it's time for work experience. I'm going to Naas hospital for four days and Tirmohan national school for one day...I can't wait!!! :)

TY Updates..

Today we went to Moate theatre in Naas for our second of three mini company workshops. We met with Orla, who is guiding us with our projects. She listened to our marketing strategies and asked us about how far along we are. We were able to show her a computer image of our design and a mock prototype cut to shape and size. For the next workshop we have to have to have a proper working prototype and a finance plan made out. Hopefully it won't be long before our product is on the market!!
Tomorrow, we're having a visit from Accord who will be talking to our classes about relationships and on Friday, we're having a Holloween dress up day..TY have the "scary movie" theme...and then  we have a week off for mid term!!!
Time has flown by..we've fit so much into this term already and I can't wait for the next half!! :)

Colour Me Beautiful

Last Friday, Lys and Louise from Colour Me Beautiful came in to talk to us about what colours and shades suited us - they put us each into one of six categories...clear, soft, warm, deep, light and cool. I was a clear, like Dannii Minogue, which meant that contrasting colours suit me best. They also spoke about our body shape and whether we were petite (below 5"3'), normal (5"3'-5"7') or tall (5"7'+). I was "normal". They said that if you are petite, you should accessorise accordingly with small accessories. If you are tall, big accessories are best etc etc. They told us what body shape we were - pear, hourglass, straight or curvy. It was really worthwhile and I learned a lot from it. :)

Water!!!

water..omg what would we do without it?? its a well-known fact that without water, you'll die in three days..water keeps us alive, but it can also be the death of us..only 2.5% of water is fresh, the rest is saltwater, and in 60% of European cities with over 100,000 people living there, the water is being used up far quicker than it can be replenished. Every single person needs between 20 and fifty litres of water a day to ensure their basic needs are being met..but all around the world people are being denied that..one in six people worldwide dont have access to fresh water. Please please please help to conserve water and next time you flush the toilet, have a shower or turn on the tap, think of all those people who cannot do this!!

Our Mini Company

Our mini company is called Knot A Problem - to see our blog click here !! :)

English Dramas

In English class at the moment, we're working on dramas to perform at the Briery Gap TY drama competition. Our class has been split into two groups and each group has written a drama to perform. Our drama is on the death of a teenage girl in a car crash and the effect it has on her family and friends. We are looking forward to acting out our dramas in January!! :)

Carlingford!! :)

We went to Carlingford at the start of our second week in TY. We left at 7am on Monday morning and had an action-packed two days. On day one, we went on the high ropes in the morning..we climbed 40ft poles and other...high stuff :) Then we had lunch (which was very yummy!!) and went for water sports. Our group did kayaking and then we went pier jumping..it was really fun (but I was petrified!). After dinner we were taken out on an adventure which we'll never forget. We left at 7pm and went on a hike through the mountains. It was rainy and windy but it was a lot of fun and it really helped us to bond with each other. When we arrived back at 10pm we got Chinese :) and then went to bed..
The next day we did orienteering in the morning. We then headed off to do the challenge course, where we had to work together to earn "gems". They included a big truck container that we had to crawl through to find our way out...in the dark!! After that it was time to leave; with our bags packed we hopped on the bus and were back home by 7pm on Tuesday evening.
It was a great two days - we bonded with everyone, made loads of new friends and had a ball!! Thanks to Ms. O' C & Ms. R for bringing us!!
:)

Projects...

So far this year we've been busy doing loads of projects. We started with our Geography project-our Trip Around the World. I'm heading to Italy and Russia. Other projects include our dress-design Home Ec project, our projects on french artists, our history project on the Cold War and our Young Scientist project, which we will work on for the year. Here's some pictures from my Geography project on Italy and from my Home Ec project on Irish fashion designer, Louise Kennedy:


The Colosseum, Rome

 

The Pantheon; There's a hole in the roof ^^^^^



Autumn/Winter Collecion Louise Kennedy

URL's for images:
Colosseum: http://www.google.ie/imgres?imgurl=http://www.planetware.com/i/photo/colosseum-rome-rcol4.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.planetware.com/picture/rome-colosseum-i-rcol4.htm&usg=__NpHSam7WKT67zClIIOF9h3izhIw=&h=334&w=500&sz=258&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=LQ6ydfauOkJSlM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=190&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcolosseum%2Brome%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D1004%26bih%3D581%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=126&vpy=115&dur=47&hovh=183&hovw=275&tx=125&ty=94&ei=aQGrTIi6OcTKjAes08G6Bw&oei=aQGrTIi6OcTKjAes08G6Bw&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=12&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0

Pantheon: http://www.gothereguide.com/pantheon+rome-place/

Louise Kennedy: http://www.louisekennedy.com/collection/



Mini Company Visit

Today we had a visit from Orla, our mini-company mentor. She listened to all our mini-company ideas and gave us tips on how to exapnd them..it was really helpful to listen to her views - she was a great help!! Our next mini-comp date is 20th of October when we will go to Moate theatre in Naas with other Kildare schools for the second part of our work-shop. I'll write again soon :)