Lanesboro Ballyleague
Party time for all Longford people
The Longford Association in London is holding their 62nd Annual Dinner Dance on 18th February at The Crown Hotel Cricklewood.
This is traditional a fabulous night with Longford people travelling from far and wide to join in the celebrations. The committee is once again looking forward to meeting some old friends and hopefully making some new ones. Go along represent your county and parish and make it another truly remarkable night of celebrations. You do not have to be from county Longford to join in their celebrations – everyone is very welcome to party the night away.
Tickets are now available. If anyone would like to book, please message or call Aidan Ganly to arrange 00447786081999
Sympathy
We would like to extend our deepest sympathy to Bernadette and Greg Gillen and family, The Green, on the death of Bernadette’s sister Teresa Mc Coy, Jerretts Pass, Newry last week.
St. Patrick’s Day Parade
The St. Patrick’s Day Parade committee is now up and running and they are preparing for another great day in Lanesboro and Ballyleague on St. Patrick’s Day 17th March. The committee would like to see a greater number of club, associations, businesses and individuals making a big effort. It is hoped that this year will be the biggest and best yet. There are a good number already expressing their interest which is great. We hope a lot more with a great sense of adventure will add their names and plans to this year’s festival.
50/50
On Monday night 23rd January, the 50/50 draw took place in the Adie’s. The Rathcline 50/50 draw winners Pat Reilly, Rathcline. Pat won this week’s pool of €376.
The club thanks you for your continued support. Blue weekly tickets are on sale in all local businesses and yearly pink tickets are also available costing €100.
Monster Meeting Wednesday week
The Lough Ree Monster group will have its first meeting of the New Year in Rosie’s at the Lifebelt on this Wednesday 8th February at 9pm in Clarke’s Bar.
Sympathy
We would like to extend our deepest sympathy to Kathleen and Johnny Kyne and family, Rathcline and Gertie and JJ Fallon, Knock, on the death of Dan Keating, England husband of Joan Murray formerly Rathcline and brother in law of Kathleen and Gertie.
CD’s Back on Sale
Such was the popularity of the new CD by Fran Deffew and Rake the Ashes that they completely sold out locally. A new batch of CD’s have arrived and they are back on sale with Mags Gillen or in O’Brien’s. The CD’s cost only €10 and the music is only mighty.
Fermoyle National School Enrolment
Enrolment for the Academic Year 2017/2018 is now open until February 3rd 2017.
Please call or contact the school office for an Enrolment Pack any Monday, Wednesday or Friday between 9.30am and 1.30pm. Tel: 043 3321959. Email: fermoylens@gmail.com
Taking names for Defibrillator Course
We, by now, should be patently aware of the benefits of being capable of using the defibrillators located through both parishes. As you may know the siting and knowledge of the use of a defibrillator at Clonbonny was vital when a young player was in need a time ago.
A new course will soon be available and it is very important that more and more people in the wider community get trained in the use of a defibrillator. There is also the need for those who are already trained up to do a refresher course.
Each and every club in this and surrounding parishes should have at least one person doing this course.
Please give your name and contact details in to Martina O’Brien at the Corner Shop or phone Martina at 3321107 or 086-3538934.
Lanesboro Bridge Club
The results of the Lanesboro Bridge competition held on Wednesday 25th January are: 1st Gemma Douglas and Elisa Gray, 2nd Una Lawlor and Brid McDermott, 3rd Katherine Harrison and Philomena Walsh.
Social Services Whist Drive
Your support over the Christmas time whether at the Whist Drives or through contributions meant so much to the hard-working committee and the people in the community that they supported. The committee would like to extend a very big thank you.
Friday night next 3rd February the monthly Whist Drive will take place in St. Mary’s Hall at 8.30pm and it is hoped that a big number of card players will go along and have another enjoyable night. You are asked to encourage your family and friends to come along and enjoy a night of card playing. Refreshments will be served.
Lough Ree Golfing Society
The 23rd AGM of the Lough Ree Golfing Society was held in Strokestown GC.
Before the meeting commenced a vote of sympathy was offered to, John James O’Shea on the death of his dear sister Hannah Clyne, to Timmy Glynn on the death of his brother in law Brother Michael Burke, and to Sheena and Donncha mac Aodh on the sad and sudden death of their beloved granddaughter Shauna.
The meeting commenced, following the Captains, Secretary’s, and Treasurers reports, the feeling was the year had been a brilliant success for the society.
The new committee for 2017 was elected, Captain Jackie Mc Donnell, Secretary, Ronan Cullen, Treasurer, Michael Brennan, Ass. Treasurer, Joe Mc Grath, committee member Brendan Whitty. Thanks was expressed to the outgoing committee and best wishes is extended to the new committee, the Society looks forward to an enjoyable and successful 2017
The following is the list of outings for 2017, new members are always welcome,
April 19th Birr, May 10th Castle Barna, June 14th Longford, July 26th Carrick on Shannon, August 23rd Highfield, September 20th Portumna, October Strokestown
BT Young Scientist Great Success
This year Lanesboro Community College had four projects accepted to the recent BT Young Scientist of the Year at the RDS. Just to have one project accepted is an achievement in itself but having four successfully accepted is wonderful for the students, school and their parents. The achievement for the school was further enhanced when two of the projects won awards. Brian Lyons came 2nd in the senior individual category of the Social Behavioural Science section and Sean Maguire and Patrick Kenny were highly commended for their project in the senior group category of the Social Behavioural Science section.
The other students to represent Lanesboro Community College were Adam Kingi and Orla Lyons both 1st year student. We say a very well done to everyone on their great work and acknowledge the work of their teachers in creating the atmosphere for their wonderful achievement.
An introduction to each of the projects and the young people involved can be seen below
Understanding how the weather affects fishing.
My name is Adam Kingi and I am in 1st year in Lanesboro Community College. My project that has been shortlisted for the 2017 BT young scientist exhibition in the Biological and Ecological Sciences category is titled : Understanding how the weather affects fishing.
I selected this project to create a reference especially for those starting out fishing so they can have a better understanding of when is the best time to go fishing. This could prove vital in keeping an anglers interest in fishing alive and for them not to end up giving up such a beneficial pastime due to not catching any fish and losing interest. It’s vital in an age where more and more young people’s outdoor activities are dwindling that we do all we can to promote a pastime like fishing. There are also numerous studies to prove the physical and mental health benefits of fishing and how it relaxes the brain and can reduce anxiety.
In order to do this project, I need to fish at different times of the day and in different weather conditions. The factors that I need to take into consideration on each fishing trip are water temperature, clouds and wind, precipitation and barometric pressure. I need to log my findings after each fishing trip and see if a pattern starts to emerge between the weather conditions at the time and how many fish I actually catch.
I also need to refer to different fishing publications and speak to experienced anglers. I am hoping once all my results are presented it will provide a reference and provide an understanding for anglers on how the weather affects fishing. I am confident that this information would make more anglers starting out develop and retain a passion for fishing.
We remember 95% of what we teach”: Peer tutoring in senior cycle science.
My name is Brian Lyons and I am a Transition Year student from Lanesboro Community College.
My project is examining the effectiveness of peer-tutoring as a tool for improving results in science subjects for Transition Year Students.
Last year I examined the effects of a peer-tutoring system on first-year students’ maths results. I found overall that the tutor-tutee group results improved more than the results of the control group. I found that selecting the groups randomly helped the results, so I have continued to use that method this year.
I have also introduced reciprocal peer tutoring mentioned in my recommendations from my last project. This means that tutors and tutees switch roles regularly. This is beneficial as the two positions (tutor and tutee) require reflection on the topic in a different way meaning it is more beneficial for results if students are able to reflect on what they have learned in different ways.I will continue to use questionnaires as these allowed me to restructure my experiment last year to help the students to work more effectively.
I decided to examine how peer-tutoring affects the results of an older year group. This was because in my recommendations from last year I recommended trying an older group to see if the peer-tutoring program would have an even greater effect on their results. I selected our schools Transition Years due to the ease of access.
My experiments are to operate as follows: I will randomly select my tutors and tutees. I will be employing a rota system, meaning that the roles of tutor and tutee will change regularly. I will also have a control group which does not use peer tutoring. I will have both groups work on the same topic after which they will sit the same test. I will then run this process for a number of different topics, rotating the tutors and tutees throughout.
I will then compare the results of my test group with the results of my control group. I will also be using several statistical analysis methods and programs such as Gretl. By doing so I will be investigating how effective peer-tutoring is at improving TY science results. I hope my results will show that peer tutoring creates a positive learning experience which encourages students to take control of their own revision. Maybe it will be the key to making preparation for the Leaving Cert a little easier?
Medical Cannabis: Is there a middle ground?
We wish to investigate the attitudes regarding the benefits of THC(Tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD(cannabidiol) contained within medical cannabis.
We will carry out a stratified survey of two distinct populations.
The first group will be sourced from those connected with individuals affected by Epilepsy and multiple sclerosis (MS).
The second group will be sourced from the general population in our community.
We will analyse the data we generate from these surveys and statistically calculate if there is a significant difference between the attitudes of the two groups.
Also we wish to find out if medical cannabis should be available to the people who have Epilepsy or MS.
We would also like to investigate the different forms that medical cannabis can come in and different methods of consumption for medical cannabis.
We will administer a questionnaire to two groups.
The first group will be randomly sourced from individuals affected by Epilepsy and MS.
The second group will be randomly sourced from the population of the Lanesboro Ballyleague area.
We will collate the data from the responses to the questionnaires and use a t-test to statistically analyse our results to test their significance.
We will source information from people who have being treated by using medical cannabis and how effective in their opinion are such treatments are in comparison to regular prescription medicines.
Abstract
Our project is a statistical analysis of the Irish public’s perspective on the use of CBD oil as a treatment for epilepsy and Multiple sclerosis. Our objective was to find out who had a better understanding about CBD oil as medication, those associated with or affected by epilepsy and m.s. or the general public.
The first task that was laid in front of us was how we were going to gather our data for our project. We started reaching the different derivatives of medical cannabis and that their medicinal value. From there we discovered that CBD oil was the main medicine that we wanted to concentrated on. We next had to decide on how we would format our survey and how it was going to be distributed. After researching a wealth of different background research about the layout of surveys we started preparing pilot surveys as detailed in our background research section.
These would be the areas that the participants of the surveys would be examined on. These areas were the following:
- Their knowledge of CBD oil
- Their opinion on the use of CBD oil
- Their interest of CBD oil
- If they are in favour of legalizing CBD oil if there is a percentage of THC included
These areas were then broken down further for the survey.
- Their knowledge of CBD oil – We wanted to know what the Irish public’s knowledge was on CBD oil.
- Their opinion on the use of CBD oil – We wanted to know what the opinion of the Irish public on the use of CBD oil for the for Epilepsy and Multiple Sclerosis.
- Their interest of CBD oil – We wanted to know is there an interest out there for the medical use of CBD oil.
- If they are in favour of legalizing CBD oil if there is a percentage of THC included – We wanted to find out if the THC side of medical cannabis was putting people of the legalisation of it.
“Driven by Gender? An investigation into subject choice in 1st year.”
My name is Orla Lyons and I am a 1st year student in Lanesboro Community College. The aim of my project is to determine whether a taster programme can have an impact on the subjects 1st year students pick?
As a first year student, I will soon be making my subject choice for the junior cert. While carrying out research as to the best subject choice I could make, I came across a paper called sé sí, which stated that not enough girls were taking STEM subjects for the junior cert. After talking to a number of girls in my class after they had done a STEM subject during the taster programme, I found that quite a few of them loved the subject and wanted to keep it on for the junior cert. I therefore decided to carry out a project to determine whether the practical subjects are still gender focused. I will also be investigating if a taster programme can change this mind set.
To investigate this I will administer a number of surveys to the 1st year students in my school. In my first survey, which I administered on the first day of term, I asked students what subjects they thought they wanted to do before starting secondary school. I will then survey them again after seven weeks to see what subjects they want to do at the end of the taster programme. These questionnaires will be conducted both pre taster programme and post taster programme. I will then collate my data and compare my findings with a school of the same population of students and demographic as my school, but this school does not offer a Taster programme. I will investigate if there is a significant difference between the practical subjects boys pick and the practical subjects girls pick. For example, my research (Sé Sí- Gender in Irish Education) shows that boys are more likely to do Metalwork, Woodwork and TGR, while girls are more likely to do Art and Home Economics. I will also investigate whether the Taster programme has any impact on this choice. I will do this by running a t-test to determine whether the taster programme has caused a significant difference in the gender uptake of particular subjects in my school when compared to my control group (school without taster programme).
Activities at the Library
Knitting & Crochet Group continues on Monday 6th February 2-4pm. All Welcome!
Lasraí Writers Group
The very popular ‘Poetry and Music’ will continue at Lanesboro Library on Monday 13th February from 4.30 to 5.30pm. Come along and share a favourite poem. The group is looking forward to seeing you there and meeting new people interested in poetry and music and song.
ESOL Class continues on Tuesday evening 7th February 7-10pm.
Internet/Social Media Course
A 6-week course on using Internet/Social Media will start in the Library on Monday 6th February 6-7pm. Course costs €50 total. This course will introduce learners to the basic uses of internet and social media in an easy and relaxed environment. For more information and to book your place contact Stella on 0433321291 or email lanesborolibrary@longfordcoco.ie
Closing date approaching
Now is the time to be thinking of becoming a GAA referee. Foundation courses and referee introductions in Longford GAA will commence from mid/late February. The new system introduced in Longford last year was an outstanding success and between the nine new referees they officiated at almost 200 games. The system has gained wide acclaim and it is a great welcome to refereeing.
Longford for the first time had 2 female referees which was very welcomed and they would like to increase that number of ladies next year and in the coming years.
If you want any more information or want to let your name go forward contact me at joea@iol.ie, phone 086-2460840 or email Longford county board secretary.longford@gaa.ie with your name and contact details.
Lough Ree 2000 Bridge Club
The results of the most recent competition are: N/S: Gross: 1st Maureen Hynes and Una Clarke, 2nd Joan Donlon and Fergal McGuinness and 3rd Fiona Gillen and Essie Nugent
Nett: 1st Maureen Hynes and Una Clarke, 2nd Fiona Gillen and Essie Nugent and 3rd Joan Donlon and Fergal McGuinness
E/W: Gross: 1st Mary Fallon and Tom Feeney, 2nd Teresa Kiernan and Catherine Kelly and 3rd Carol Hamill and Ann Hagan.
Nett: 1st Mary Fallon and Tom Feeney, 2nd Teresa Kiernan and Catherine Kelly, 3rd Frank and Mary Conmy.
Special General Meeting
The Rathcline GAA club will hold a Special General Meeting in Clonbonny on Friday night next 3rd February at 8pm. All club members are asked to attend.
Lough Ree AC
The “highs and lows “of an Athletic Club could be the heading for this week’s notes.
After a poorly attended A.G.M, the adjourned meeting was not much better. A motion to wind-up the club was lost and it was agreed to register the club for the coming year and participate in Sunday’s Co. Roscommon Cross Country Championships for the younger age groups.
For the first time, the Roscommon County Board presented a Perpetual Shield for the Best Club. It now rests proudly on O’Dowd’s sideboard in Rathcline, as their family contributed the most points to Lough Ree’s winning total. Results as follows: – Gold U/8 – Sean O’Dowd, U/10 – Christian Donlon Goncalvez, U/11 – Eoin Cox, U/12 – Kieran O’Dowd, U/13 – Nikita Attis & Ella Hogan. Silver U/10 – Daniel Hogan, U/11 – James Mimnagh, U/13 – Cian Walton & Orla Cox. Bronze U/9 – Ryan Mimnagh, U/11 – Cormac O’Dowd
In the girl’s race Ella Hogan was quite impressive, likewise Nikita in the boys, his first time to finish ahead of team mate Cian. Orla Cox, a sprinter by trade has to be commended for tackling the long run. Finally, we cannot forget Leah Mimnagh and Sean O’Dowd who had their first taste of Cross Country. Very well done to all.
Noel Henry RIP
It is with deep regret we heard of the late Noel Henry’s death. His record non-stop run from the GPO Dublin to Ballyleague will never be forgotten and this event is commemorated in a plaque opposite the Sliabh Ban Hotel, Ballyleague.
Shannon Gaels Club Notes
Registration for the new season will take place in Clonbonny on Friday night 10th February from 7 to 8pm. Could all parents ensure that they register their young people as without registration they are not eligible to play. Anybody that wants to come and play with us and on our club will be greeted warmly.
In the Leinster League, last weekend our U13 team had a hard-earned victory over Colmcille. The U15 game did not take place as our opposition could not field. Our U13 team will travel to Bective next weekend for a 2.30pm throw in. The U15 team have a bye next weekend.
The Strength and Conditioning under the guidance of Joey Horgan is proving to be a great success with big numbers attending. The U14 indoor training in the Hall on Friday nights is also attracting great numbers. Thanks to all parents and young people for their efforts.
Well done to Lanesboro Community College Juvenile team who qualified for their Final and it will be played in the coming days.
The club is actively seeking interested people to take up refereeing. It can be great fun and there is great comradery amongst the refereeing panel. Refereeing keeps those interested in games involved in the game from a different side and it can take you to many club and county grounds, inside and outside the county, you were never felt you would be. Last year two ladies completed their first year and they found it very worthwhile. The call is out for male and females within the club to get involved this year
Tractor Run
Newtowncashel Tractor Run will take place from Newtowncashel on Saturday 25th February. The Tractor Run is in aid of the Irish Hospice Foundation and it start from ‘The Local’ at 4.30pm. The entry fee is €20 and every sort and type of tractor is welcome to participate.
Later that evening music and a raffle will take place in ‘The Local’
Get Fit and Healthy
Now is the time for getting out to get healthy and fit. Training has started for the Ronan McCormack Charity Challenge 2017, walking/jogging/running training takes place on Tuesdays and Thursday at 7pm from the Quad Centre Roscommon Town. Cycling training takes place on Saturday mornings at 10am. Every age and ability catered for. A perfect opportunity to clear the head and shed a few pounds for 2017.
International Adult Poetry Competition and Primary School Midlands Poetry Competition
As part of the Maria Edgeworth Literary Festival 5th – 7th May 2017, there will be an International Adult Poetry Competition and Primary School Midlands Poetry Competition with cash prizes. Entries to be sent through www.edgeworthstown.net/festival or by post to Competition Secretary, Edgeworth Literary Society, Old School House, Ballymahon Road, Edgeworthstown, Co. Longford. Tel: 043-6671801. Email: edgelocdev@eircom.net. Closing date is 24th February 2017.
Health Care Training
Healthcare training Programme FETAC Level 5 takes place in the EDI Centre Longford commencing February 16th, 9.15-4.30 One day per week for five weeks. Starting with the care skills module, Excellent employment opportunities are now available – Care Assistant – Personal Care, Home Care worker, Nursing Homes and Hospitals. Cost €295.00 if in receipt of welfare payment, you may be eligible for funding, please contact the local DSP office. For further information please contact EDI Centre on 043 3347515 or enquiries@edilongford.ie.
Shannon Gaels Minor Club
We are seeking former players and current players aged 18 (this year) and upwards to consider a career in refereeing. Longford Co Referees committee is actively seeking new recruits for the coming year. The Foundation course for new referees will commence on Monday 20th February and will continue for the following 3 Monday nights. Following that you will be assigned to some of the senior referees for further guidance and mentoring. This is a new and innovative course and one that was hugely successful last year.
Refereeing can and will be fun and it will draw you to a completely different side of local and national GAA.
If you are interested contact Joe O’Brien, 086-2460840.
Defibrillator course: it is essential that we have people competent in the use of the defibrillator at the club grounds and we would encourage parents and supporters to get the upcoming training. As we all seen a few seasons back the value of the defibrillator and someone with the knowledge of its use so it is important that we have people available in Clonbonny for all our games fully up to speed with its use. Please give your name to Tina, Sharon, Collette or Bríd.
Code of Ethics
Safeguarding 1 – Code of Ethics & Good Practice for Children’s Sport
This workshop is a 3-hour basic awareness workshop, which is for the benefit of everyone involved in sport for young people including coaches, leaders, administrators, parents/guardians. The next course is scheduled to take place on Thursday 2nd February 2017 from 7-10p.m. A registration from must be completed and returned along with the course fee of €15. Alternatively, payment & registration can be completed online at www.eventbrite.ie
St. Faithleach’s GAA
Presentation Night: St. Faithleach’s GAA Presentation Night takes place on Saturday 11th February in the clubhouse for all Senior, Junior, U20, Junior Ladies, Mother’s & Others and Minor Boys and Girls. All members and supporters welcome to attend.
Stand Development: As on-going work progresses with our spectator stand and the installation of training lights we would like to advise people to please adhere to our safety policy and for players to refer to management’s instructions when training near construction.
Registration: Thanks to all who attended our registration night on Friday evening last, for anyone who was unable to attend please contact Caroline Connaughton (Senior), Mary Margaret Hoare (Boys Register), Bernie Scally (Ladies Register) or Alan Brehon, Monica Connaughton, Qona Cox (Secretary’s).
Congratulations: To Roscommon U21’s, club rep Mikey Cox and club reps Wally Burke and Clement McCormack (selectors) on their victory in the Hastings Shield on Saturday last.
Allianz League: Best of luck to Roscommon as they take on Tyrone in the opening game of the Allianz League in Omagh on Sunday.
Lidl NFL: Congratulations to Roscommon ladies who started their National Football League with a comprehensive win over Offaly on Sunday. They play Tipperary in round two.
Lotto: €20 Winners from draw held on Tuesday 24th January were Donal O’Grady, GNIB c/o Derek Thompson, Aidan Tully, Gertie Murray, B. Horohoe. The numbers drawn were 15, 16, 17 and 30. There was no jackpot winner. The next draw will take place on Tuesday 17th February. The team in charge of next draw are Ursula Kilcoyne and Nicola Byrne.
Tourism in Longford
County Longford Tourism invite you to take part in a series of Free information and training events focusing on accommodation and visitor experience development taking place on Monday 6th February in Backstage Theatre Longford.
County Longford Tourism are currently working on several projects which we believe will have a positive impact on tourism numbers to the county.
We hope that these projects will assist us in the promotion of County Longford as a tourism destination and see increased numbers of people utilising the amenities available to both visitors as well as residents of our towns and villages.
However, in order to move forward with the development of tourism in the county the issue of accommodation also needs to be addressed.
Additionally, we would like to encourage everyone with an interest in tourism to work together in promoting our county.
It is with these goals in mind that Longford Tourism in collaboration with Fáilte Ireland will host an information day and experience development workshop for accommodation providers and business owners in the county on Monday February 6th in The Backstage Theatre Longford.
The first information session is being delivered by Peter Stocksborough, Quality Assurance Manager with Fáilte Ireland in order to help us address the issue of accommodation in the county. He will also advise on the various changes which have recently taken place within the industry. Please find attached a copy of the ‘Tourist Traffic Acts’ which some of you may find interesting/useful to read in the lead up to the session.
The second training is being delivered by Fiona Candon, Training and Business support specialist with First Western. Fiona will help us work together in developing experience packages/bundles which we can market to the relevant target segments as defined by Fáilte Ireland, eg. the culturally curious, great escapers, connected families, indulgent romantics etc. Please find attached a brief description of the workshop and what Fiona will cover with you.
This training will be beneficial to everyone. Business owners of accommodation, restaurants, pubs, activities and attractions, festivals and event’s organisers and anyone interested in working together to develop distinct Longford visitor experiences are all welcome.
The venue for both sessions is the Backstage Theatre, Farneyhoogan, Longford, located just outside of Longford town.
As both of these info/training sessions are being delivered free of charge I would encourage you all to take part. It should prove a very informative and worthwhile day. Longford Tourism staff will be in attendance at both trainings as well as available afterwards to assist in any way possible.
To register your attendance at these sessions please contact Anna at the tourism office on 043 3342577 or by emailing info@longfordtourism.ie Registration can be made for either or both of the sessions. I would appreciate it if you could confirm attendance to me before Friday 3rd February.