Why We Should All Have a Pet Dog

One day I was walking home from Subway with a six inch ham and cheese toasty when suddenly seven people mugged m!. They took my money and roll. Then I saw something out of the corner of my eye. It jumped on one of the men and bit him and scared of the rest. It was a dog that saved me that day and I have wanted one ever since.Firstly, I believe everyone should have a dog because if all your friends are staying in you could play with it. A dog will offer company and friendship.
Secondly, in my opinion it could give you protection and make you feel safer. A dog can offer you protection and will certainly help you if you are in danger. Dogs are very loyal.
Thirdly, if you had a dog you could go jogging with it to keep you company and to get fit. Again a dog would be a great friend when you are getting fit.In addition I think that it will give you a sense of responsibility because you have to feed it and give it water and get it needles.
In summary, my points are that having a dog would keep you company and fit. It would make you feel safer and would give you a sense of responsibility.

by Conor Darcy

Why Our School Should Have a Cafeteria

Imagine a school where you could smell fresh, hot and tasty food - in a school cafeteria, where food is healthy and fresh. At lunch you could go to the cafeteria and get a burger or a pizza. You could even get healthy food!
Firstly, I believe why we should have a school cafeteria is we would have free food if you forget your money. This would save time making lunch at home, leaving more time for study.
Secondly, in my opinion why we should have a school cafeteria is at the moment we have cold food, we would have hot food and the food would be tastier and healthier. This would improve our health and we would miss fewer days than through illness.Thirdly, I strongly suggest why we should have a school cafeteria is instead of buying an unhealthy lunch in Centra or something you could instead get a healthy lunch in school. Again, if we are eating healthy we are less likely to be ill and miss school.
Furthermore, why we should have a school cafeteria is we should be eating healthy lunch, then we would be fit but if we are eating unhealthy we would be fat.
In summary, I believe we should have a cafeteria because we would have free food, healthier food, we would be fitter and likely to miss less days from illness.

By David Dykas

Strange Sounds!

Today in class we did two experiemnts exploring vibrations and sound. One was 'feeling' sound. We blew up balloons and held them next to our friends' ear. When we spoke through the balloon the sound was louder and really clear.
For the next experiment we put clingfilm over a plastic box and pulled the clingfilm really tight. Then we put uncooked rice on the clingfilm. After that we placed the plastic next to the speaker of a music stereo. When we played the music, the vibrations made the rice hop and dance - the rice can dance better than most of the lads in my class!!

By J-Dizzle D-Money

Let's Build a Rocket Boys!

We did some great science stuff and experiments this afternoon. We learned that when water or different liquids are added to vitamin c tablets, carbon dioxide is released. The pressure of the carbon dioxide builds up inside the canister until it blows the lid off the canister. If we put the canister upside down, on the lid, then it will shoot into the air like a rocket!!

By John and Cameron

Creating with Clay

Trying on new size 12 Nikes! How can I miss with these?!



New pair of Nike T-90s! 'Feet of Clay'? Never!

Guess who? An improvement on the original?!!

Check out our our clay creations - full size football boots and face masks - Donatello, Rodin and Michelangelo ain't got nothin' on our sculptures and clay creations!

By JD Dizzle and L-Money!

Across the Divide

This week we all wrote a verse about each event in the novel 'Across the Divide'. See if you can work out who wrote each verse!

Across the Divide
(by James, Josh, Cian, Scott R., Leon, Kian, Jonathan, Pierce, Scott H., Lee, Cameron, Barry, John and David.

This is a story about two young lives,

And all the events they must survive,

It all starts with Larkin, a speech and Sackville Street,

And how Liam’s head and a baton meet.

Liam and Nora meet at a féis and Nora lost her music sheet,

Nora was sure competition would end in her defeat,

But Liam said do you want one of mine,

As a friend he said, ‘really it’s fine’.

Next of all Br. Raymond formed a choir,

Liam and Nora joined, music their desire,

They wanted to be the very best,

To be better than all the rest.

Then to Jim Larkin’s speech out in Skerries,

An O’ Meara picnic, with sandwiches and berries,

Larkin’s speech was really just great,

All the men then decided, striking was their fate.

And so all the workers got locked out,

While the Peelers and DMP lurked about,

Soon families started to starve,

Thankfully ‘The Hare’ and other food ships arrived.

These ships had food for the poor,

Liam and Nora carried it from door to door,

It wasn’t needed for the very wealthy,

But instead to keep the poor people healthy.

Next of all Liam hops the train to Ballincargy,

When the conductor caught him, he knew there’d be bargy,

So he jumped to the icy bank,

Now in the middle of nowhere, his heart just sank.

Luckily, he found a nice barge,

And men who gave him a bed without charge,

Soon he was on the road again,

Nora passed by and Liam shouted ‘Amen’.

Then they got to Aunt Molly’s

When their mood became more jolly,

Liam’s aunt gave food and money,

The food was truly yummy.

They travelled back to Dublin, sneaking back on the train,

Would they be caught, every nerve would strain,

Soon they got back and through the station,

Delivering the food to Liam’s family with true elation.

And that’s all of this book about two great friends,

We all think Liam and Nora are real legends,

You really should read this great book,

Or I’ll come swinging, and you better duck!

Influences on Our Choice of Subjects in Secondary School

 

Recently we completed our research project, which we presented in the NCI. Our project is about the choice of subjects that you can do in secondary school.

The first thing we did was ask what subjects are  in the different schools in our area.
The second thing we did was ask what subjects do you need for different careers.
The third thing we did was create a questionnaire about what influences our choice in subjects.

In this we asked

a) Have I thought about my subjects for next year?

b) Will I discuss my subject choices with my parents?

c)  Is it important what subjects my friends pick?

d) Do the subjects in the school influence my choice of school?

e) Is it my parents responsibility to choose my subjects?

Every boy in the class, all 18 of us,  completed the questionnaire and our teacher counted the answers (on the Likert Scale).
We then represented our answers on a bar chart and pie charts using EXCEL. It shows how we answered each question and what we feel about the importance of subjects next year in secondary school.

By Johnathan, John and Ben

Studying Mid-Term Break

During the last two weeks, we have studied Mid-Term Break by Seamus Heaney (Winner of 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature!). It is a very moving poem, highlighted by reading the title initially and contrasting this with the final lines of the poem.
Here are some of Larriers' thoughts on the poem - hope you enjoy our art work too

‘In the porch I met my father crying, he had always taken funerals in his stride’

I like this line because it shows that his father is moved by this funeral and shows that he feels sadder than at other funerals – Cameron

The baby cooed and rocked the pram . . . wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple’

I like these lines because the first lines are playful but then I feel so touched when I read about the poppy bruise – Ade

No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear, a four foot box, a foot for every year’
I like these lines because they make me really understand this poem and how sad it was - Conor

Next morning I went up into the room, Snowdrops and candles soothed the bedside. I saw him for the first time in six weeks, paler now
I like these lines because I think these remind me of my Grandad's funeral and I can picture it. - Scott R.

No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear, A four foot box,, a foot for every year
I like these lines because they are the most sad and they really get to you and help you understand this sadness. - Cian J.

It is a very moving poem and my favourite lines in the poem are 'I sat all morning in the college sick bay' and 'A four foot box, a foot for every year'I like these lines because it gives you an image of how the story starts and ends - Kian McDonagh

No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear, a four foot box, a foot for every year
I like these lines because they are very graphic and it's easy to imagine these lines. - Jonathan

The King of the Sea

There are 350 different kinds of sharks all over the world. Sharks were around 400 million years ago. The smallest sharks the size of an adult pinky finger and is called a Tsurangohbittom. Many sharks like the Tiger shark and the Bull shark are named after land animals. The tiger shark has dark black stripes on its back similar to the big cat. But as the sharks grows older the stripes often fade away. The Bull shark gets its name from its flat wide snout which resembles that of a bull. The biggest type of shark is the Whale shark, it can grow up to 18m long. However, the fastest shark is the Sharfin Mako shark. It swims at about 35km/h or 21.75 miles per hour. The longest living shark is the Spiny Dogfish shark which lives for between 70 and 100 years.
Habitat: Sharks are found in most oceans and seas. The more active sharks usually stay near the surface or the middle of the ocean. The smaller ones prefer the ocean floor. Some sharks live near the coast and can even enter rivers and lakes that are linked to the sea.
Diet: A shark’s only proper weapon is its mouth. The two most important parts of a shark’s mouth are the teeth and the jaws. Sharks do not chew their food but usually crush their prey into mouth-sized pieces. Sharks can crush the shells of other marine animals.
Appearance: The Great White shark is actually grey or bluish grey in colour with a white underbelly. Its colouring helps it to get close to its prey without being noticed when seen from below. The white underbelly blends in white the bright reflection on the sky quite often this shark attacks its victims by sneaking up quietly. The shark greyish colour then helps it to blend in with the dark water. I chose his project because i live them and they are interesting.

By Leon Murphy

The Black Hawk

I am sure you have heard of the Black Hawk, an army helicopter used by the U.S military service. The UH-60 Black Hawk entered service in 1979 replacing the Bell UH-1 and it is now the main helicopter for the U.S. Army. They are very expensive they cost $21.3 each.
Wars: It served in wars such as Grenada, Panama, Iraq, Somalia, the Balkans, Afghanistan and other areas in the Middle East.
Uses: The U.S. Border Patrol uses the UH-60 in its operations specifically along the southwest border. The Black Hawk has been used by the Border Patrol to interdict the illegal aliens into the U.S. and incursion of dangerous individuals. Additionally, the Border Patrol regularly uses the UH-60 in search and rescue operations.
Versions: Many armies like China, England, Israel and many more have their own modified versions of the UH-60.
Armour and Weaponry: The UH-60 comes with machine guns, free-fire and heat-seeking missiles and heavy metal armour.Death of Osama bin Laden: The biggest operation the UH-60 was in was the U.S. Special Forces operation to kill Osama bin Laden. A highly modified version of the UH-60M was used. Extra blades were added to the tailfin to make it silent. The same radar that’s on the B-2 Stealth Bomber was used to keep it hidden from Pakistani Air-Force radar. The operation was watched through a camera by Barack Obama and the rest of the U.S Defence Board.
Navy: The U.S. Navy use the Sea Hawk and it is the second largest helicopter in the US after the CH-47 Chinook. It is heavily armoured and is specifically designed for search and rescue missions at sea.

By Cian Joyce