Laois schoolkids win awards for farm safety and athletic fitness
Summer will be a healthy and safe one for the children of a rural Laois school after winning farm safety and fitness skills awards.
Rushall National School, a two teacher school with 37 pupils, has achieved their accreditation to be a Farm Safe Star School.
The Farm Safe Schools Programme is an initiative to Engage, Educate and Empower children to become farm safety ambassadors.
The pupils had studied three modules covering The Farmer, Farm & Fields, Animals, Machinery and Vehicles. They then had to complete five activities from each of the modules which included drama, construction, art and project work.
Eamhair Conroy, is the co-ordinator of Farm Safe School at Rushall NS.
“Creating conversations around farm safety was successfully achieved. The pupils are aware now that they have the ability to make a big difference in improving safety on our farms and in the countryside and to continue to create conversations around farm safety as Farm Safety Ambassadors,” she said.
The Farm Safe Schools programme is run in partnership with the Irish Farmers Association, AgriKids and Agri Aware.
That was not all for the high achievers. Later that same week the school received a Certificate from the Fit4Class Athletics Ireland Programme.
This achievement was awarded after the schoolchildren completed a ten week teacher led programme. Fit4Class introduces athletics in a fun, engaging and non-competitive environment. It focuses on the use of games to develop fitness whilst enhancing agility, balance and coordination.
“The pupils had lots of fun throughout the programme. As the school year comes to an end the boys and girls can look back with a great sense of achievement for what they have completed,” principal Anne Bergin said.
Just last month Rushall NS hoisted the Pieta Amber Flag, awarded to recognise their work on mental health support.