Ash Wednesday

We are celebrating Ash Wednesday in our School by getting the ashes of last years palms on our foreheads. This happens 46 days before Easter Sunday. We get the ashes as a sign of repentance or to say we are sorry.

We were talking about what the priest or teacher says when they put the ashes on the forehead,

Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.

or

Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel.

These are phrases from the Bible and remind us that we are sorry.

Pancake Tuesday

Pancake Tuesday is also called Pancake day or Shrove Tuesday. Shrove Tuesday is the last day before the period which Christians call Lent. This day is one of the moveable feasts in the church calendar and is directly related to the date on which Easter falls.

When is Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day)?
Shrove Tuesday always falls 47 days before to Easter Sunday, so the date varies from year to year and falls between February 3 and March 9.

Why do we call the day Shrove Tuesday?
The name Shrove comes from the old word "shrive" which means to confess. On Shrove Tuesday, in the Middle Ages, people used to confess their sins so that they were forgiven before the season of Lent began.

What is Shrove Tuesday?
Shrove Tuesday is a day of celebration as well as penitence, because it's the last day before Lent. Lent is a time of abstinence, of giving things up. So Shrove Tuesday is the last chance to indulge yourself, and to use up the foods that aren't allowed in Lent. Pancakes are eaten on this day because they contain fat, butter and eggs which were forbidden during Lent.

What is an Irish pancake?
A pancake is a thin, flat cake, made of batter and fried in a pan. The photograph shows a pancake being cooked in a frying pan. Caster sugar (superfine sugar) is sprinkled over the top and a dash of fresh lemon juice added. The pancake is then rolled. Some people add maple syrup, golden syrup or jam

Other names for Shrove Tuesday
- Ireland, UK and Australia - Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day or Pancake Tuesday
- Sweden - Fettisdagen (Fat Tuesday).
- In Catholic and French-speaking parts of the United States this day is called Mardi Gras.
- Poland - Paczki Day.
- Germany - Fasnacht Day (also spelled Fausnacht Day and Fauschnaut Day).
- France - Mardi Gras, which means Grease or Fat Tuesday.
- Iceland - "Sprengidagur" (Bursting day).

We made pancakes in school, they were very nice! We will post up the pictures soon!

Here are some pancake day activities.

New Zealand Earthquake

Above: An arial view of Christchurch Cathedral's Damage after the earthquake.

Above: A Toyota Yaris caught in a sinkhole following the earthquake in Canterbury Region, NZ.

On February 22nd 2011 an earthquake struck New Zealand's South Island measuring a magnitude of 6.3 on the Richter Scale. This happened in the Canterbury Region near Christchurch.

So far 148 people have been confirmed dead but there are over 200 people reported missing. We are thinking of all those who have been effected by this Natural Disaster. by Jack (Rang VI)

A chip off the old block!

Chocolate Cookies Recipe
We made very tasty cookies. We hope you like our video made on Picasa. It was easy to make and then we put it on vimeo for the world to see... and yes they were even tastier than they look... believe it or not!

Here is a poem about an adventure to explore the cookie jar!

The Cookie Jar Adventure

Wakey-wakey from our beds,

thoughts of cookies in our heads.

Mom's and Daddy's eyes are closed.

(They are sleeping. They won't know).

Hurry-hurry, on the double!

If they wake, we'll be in trouble!

Blankies, pillows, on the floor.

Squeaky-squeaky goes the door.

Shhh, shhh, tippy-toe.

To the kitchen we will go.

Sneaky-sneaky down the hall,

bare feet creeping 'long the wall.

C'mon, Sissy, it's not far,

there it is, the cookie jar!

I can't reach it, I'm too small.

Let's get a chair to make us tall.

Shuffle-shuffle, scooty chair,

pushy-pushy, almost there.

Clinky-clinky goes the top,

hold it tight, or it will drop!

Giggle, giggle, tee-hee-hee,

two for YOU, and two for ME.

Uh oh, Sissy, turn around ...

Mom and Daddy. We've been found.

Peeky-peeky, Mom and Dad,

are you angry? Are you mad?

Whisper-whisper, over there ...

they want to know if we will share!

Chocolate Chip Cookies - Yummy! from Joanne Gilmartin on Vimeo.

Happy Valentine's Day

Today we made Danish Woven Heart Baskets to celebrate Valentine's Day. They were great fun to make and every basket used different mixtures of colours! Well done to all, they were pretty tricky!

If you would like to learn how to make these baskets please click the link here to find further instructions!

We hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day!

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

When love was in the air over the last few days we looked at some traditional and some less traditional poetry around love for Valentine's Day. We found some really great ones and would like to share them with other children!
Valentine's Poetry

Chocolate Muffins

Chocolate Muffins Dylan

We made very tasty muffins in school today, here is our recipe!

Happy St. Brigid's Day

Spring has finally come and we have been very busy making our Funky St Brigid's Crosses.

We discovered that there are in fact three different ways to make these crosses... one way was enough for us!

We hope that you like our pictures!