Lacken National School

Lacken NS is a small co-educational school situated on the edge of Blessington Lakes, nestled at the base of the Wicklow mountains. After returning to the school building following the January to March school closure, morale was low amongst children and staff alike. The school had been working towards our 4th Active School Flag prior to that closure. Active Week was planned for the end of April and the staff decided to make it a week that nobody would forget and a week that would boost morale and create a buzz around the school. Active Week consisted of five jam-packed days of activities ranging from mountain hikes for all the children and shorter beach walks and tree exploration walks taking advantage of the beautiful local amenities. Each day the Active School Committee recorded videos of fun games that could be played throughout the day on the yard. The target was a minimum of 60 minutes of activity a day and as much fun as possible! In addition, children took part in the Run Around Ireland Challenge each day which ran over a 4-week period over April and May. Each day there was a ‘Drop Everything and Dance’ session and this was so much fun for everyone! ‘Active Break’ Challenges were also used throughout the year but were first introduced for Active Week. For homework, teachers recorded Active Challenges which created a great buzz and acted as a wonderful link between home and school.

“We’re lucky that we have a team of wonderful Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) who worked hard to make the activities fun and enjoyable for all the children with one-to-one help and support where needed. The mountain hikes were challenging but many of the children from the special classes took part. For anyone who couldn’t do the mountain hikes, they did a walk to the beach which is a lovely less challenging walk.”

Lacken N.S. school has four Special Needs classes as well as four mainstream classes with, regular integration between them. It was important that all children were included in the activities and felt comfortable participating. The Active School Committee ensured that the activities were suitable for all and could be adapted if any child struggled to participate.

The initiative was aimed at all children and staff. It’s important for the children to see the adults in the school enjoying themselves as much as the children. There was a buzz created around being active and the positive effects that has on your physical and mental health. About 120 people took part in the activities at school. Parents and other siblings also took part in the Teacher Active Homework Challenges.

The initiave had a huge positive impact on the morale of children and staff alike, regardless of barriers and challenges. These could include lack of time, lack of interest/motivation, disability/illness, cost or other. Students took part and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.