Scoil Athphoirt – Aphort School
Scoil Athphoirt is very special and unique in many ways. It is a Catholic Primary school in which Irish is the first language of communication among teachers, pupils and parents. Established in 1915, the school currently has an enrolment of 18 pupils. We have classes from Junior Infants through to Sixth Class. Scoil Athphoirt is a two-teacher school. The staff, parents and children are so supportive of one another and thanks to all of them, it is a vibrant school with a colourful curriculum, where children can grow and learn, develop their skills and knowledge and hopefully provide them with the building blocks to help them on their journey through life.
Scoil Athphoirt is also a Gaeltacht school. As a school we show pride in our language and our culture and that is why we have chosen to teach through the medium of the Irish language for our children. It is very important that everyone makes a great effort to speak the Irish language within the school and also at home. Even if you only have a “Cúpla Focal”, it is important to use them. If any child has a special need in which Irish is not the preferred language, we will accommodate this, as the wellbeing and quality of learning is first and foremost.
The community of Athphoirt is extremely welcoming and supportive and Scoil Athphoirt is at the heart of that community. There is a true sense of community and togetherness, which make living and working here so enjoyable. Tradition is also a huge part of life on Arranmore and we also value this greatly in our school. We also have a vibrant Parents Association whom I can call upon when we hold special events at the school such as Ice Cream Day, Pancake Day, school concerts and the like. This year, we are organising Strictly Come Dancing in December!
School life is very busy here in Scoil Athphoirt. During the past year alone we have won numerous awards, received our 4th Green Flag, hatched chicks, learned to knit, achieved an award for our Junior Entrepreneur Programme, where we also made and sold fairy houses in conjunction with the transition year class in the local secondary school. This year we are focusing on getting our Gaelbhratach and our active flag. We travel to the mainland regularly to take part in activities such as swimming, competitions, theatre and cinema. Schools are now very technologically advanced and I’m delighted to say that we have interactive whiteboards in all our classrooms. We have broadband connection at the school and every pupil has access to iPads and laptops, which enhances their learning. Children also avail of free school lunches and the school try’s it very best to reduce expenses for parents by providing free curriculum books.
For more information, please contact the Principal of Scoil Athphoirt at 074 95 20117 or visit our new Facebook page at Scoil Athphoirt to see what we get up to!!