Vol 28 No 21      24 Feb 2023

Form 5 Spanish Excursion

We made the most of every moment on our Form 5 Spanish excursion to Madrid.  From our bright and cosy stay at The Hat Hostel to our wanderings along the busy streets in the morning we thoroughly enjoyed our time spent in this amazing city.  We toured the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, a beautiful building overflowing with modern and unique artwork, including Picasso’s Guernica.   We experienced what it felt like to stand in the crowd of the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.  In groups of four we took a sunny boat trip around the lake of The Retiro Park.  We ate traditional Spanish food such as paella and thanks to our lovely walking-tour guide we learned a lot about Madrid and its compelling history.  A lot more was done over the three full days: a zoo visit, a fun game of bowling, and a few hours spent in Plenilunio shopping centre.  It was a great adventure!
Daisy Kirk-Gillham

Cricket Ireland Success

The High School had two past pupils - namely, Rachel Delaney (HSD,  2009-15) and Orla Prendergast (HSD,  2014-20) playing for Ireland in the recent T20 World Cup hosted by South Africa.  Ireland did not succeed in qualifying for the final stages following a series of challenging group matches against England, Pakistan, the West Indies, and India.  However, congratulations are due to Orla Prendergast who reached the milestone of 500 runs in T20 internationals during the tournament.  In addition, her innings of 61 runs against the West Indies at Newlands Cricket Ground was the highest score by an Ireland player at a Women’s T20 World Cup.  There is so much more to come from our past pupil and we wish her every success in future competitions.
Ms Gray

TCD PhilSpeaks MACE Debate

The High School recently sent a team consisting of Jake O’Loughlin and Daniel Tallon to compete at the PhilSpeaks MACE Debate hosted by Trinity College, Dublin.  This is a special kind of competition where debaters only receive their motion fifteen minutes before they must speak for five minutes. This forces them to rely on their quick thinking and their general speaking ability. The first half of the competition had each team participate in three rounds of debate.  After this, the top teams would make it into the finals. After a strong performance in the early rounds (coming 2nd, 1st, and 1st again in each round respectively) The High School team advanced to the Gold Medal finals. This meant they had reached the top 4 out of 32 different teams from schools around the country which was a huge success considering this was the first time either of the two members of the team had competed in a format like this. In the end The High School did not win the whole competition but competing for the Gold Medal was success in itself. As well as this, Jake O’Loughlin on the team was awarded the prize of 3rd best individual speaker out of the 64 speakers at the competition. Well done to the Senior debating team!  
Jake O’Loughlin 

Form 4 Photography

Pupils in Form 4 were invited to the launch of the National Library of Ireland's People and Places photography exhibition at the National Photographic Archive, Meeting House Square in Temple Bar recently.  The show features a collection of photographs which reflect how Irish life has has evolved over the last 150 years. 
Ms Rogers

Form 5 Agricultural Science 

Over the past few weeks Form 5 pupils studying Agricultural Science have been focussing on the dairy cow, its digestion, nutrition, and reproductive cycle.  There have been no dairy cows at Danum since 1960 but we got gowned and gloved-up and tried our hands at calving "Phyllis the cow" with varying degrees of success.  We have also being trialling whether it is better to sow the seeds of tomatoes or plant the whole tomato to grow the plant.  Our tomato seedlings have sprouted this week and we hope to plant them out around the campus in March with some delicious produce expected before we break for summer holidays.  We expect to sow our spring crops of Oilseed rape, Spring Barley, and Wheat in the coming weeks.  We are also looking forward to a farm walk and lecture at the UCD Lyons estate on the 15 March. 
Sam Kelly

Form 4 Media Studies

For St Valentine's Day pupils in the Form 4 Media Studies class were tasked with creating hearts using Artificial Intelligence (AI) software.  We used unusual materials such as coral, pebbles, bricks, and plants to design unique hearts which challenged our preconceived ideas of what a heart should be and what it symbolises.  We learned how to harness AI software and our imaginations to create original - and at times unearthly - pieces of digital art.  The results are quiet provocative.  It fundamentally changed our linear ideas of what art is.  I really enjoyed the task and found it very interesting to learn how to use new technology.
Ciara Morton

Leinster Swimming Interprovincial Selection

Well done to Danylo Prokhorov who put in a strong performance at the Leinster Schools Swimming Gala recently.  He has been selected to represent Leinster at the School Interprovincial Event in the National Aquatic Stadium on 26 March.  
Ms Deacon

International Women's Day

International Women’s Day is fast approaching!  We will celebrate on Wednesday March 8 and we are inviting all of you to join us once again on our night walk which will take place on the same day. Our walk will be followed by refreshments in The Reynolds Hall. Everyone is invited to sign up at lunch over the next couple of days. This walk is staged in solidarity with all those women who do not feel safe walking alone at night, but most importantly it is in support of Women’s Aid Ireland who are doing vital work to protect women throughout the year. This week will be a celebration of the powerful and inspirational women who have shaped our society for the better and we hope that you will join us both for the night walk and all the other events we have lined up for you!  

Form 1 Basketball

Congratulations to the Form 1 Basketball team who have earned a place in the quarter final of the Schools Basketball League.  Commiserations to the Form 2 players who made it to the quarter finals play-off against Holy Family School but did not qualify on this occasion.  
Mrs Murdoch

Minor Hockey Update

The Minor A Girls hockey team have been working very hard during the last few matches and training sessions and have really come together as a group.  Our skills and technique have improved since the start of the year and we are all proud of ourselves and how far we have come.  Our hard work paid off with two successful matches: a 3-0 win against Loreto College Foxrock and an amazing 5-1 win against Holy Child Killiney.  The goals in these matches were scored by Hollaí Quinn, Mila Dimitrova, Imogen McCreery, and Chloe Morris.  We lost 3-2 against The King's Hospital and we were disappointed following a 1-0 loss to Loreto College Beaufort.  It was a really tough match and we played so well but sadly we were beaten in the last ten minutes.  Still, we have really improved as team and are getting stronger everyday.  We will keep training hard and wish our team good luck in future matches!
Emily Kyle (Captain)

Form 1 Rugby Blitz

Form 1 pupils enjoyed a rugby tournament  before half term at Blackrock Rugby Football Club.  They had terrific fun and scored some great tries!  We are very excited about our trip to Cork in two week's time!
Ms Garland

Form 5 Study Skills

Recently, Form 5 pupils enjoyed a different kind of learning experience.  The event focused on study skills and examination technique.  Throughout the day many topics were covered, including productive study methods, effective examination technique, ICT skills, and research skills.  We acquired valuable knowledge applicable to school work, project work, and examinations.  We gained an understanding into the science of learning and how we can learn, remember, and recall information quickly and effectively.  We also learned how to correctly identify what examination questions are asking and how to determine the level of information to use in answering a question.  Overall, this learning experience was a very valuable one.   Many thanks to all involved in the organisation and execution of this event! 
Eoin Kelly 

Form 3 Studyclix

We have just set up FREE Studyclix PREMIUM access for all pupils in Form 3 courtesy of the HSD Parents' Association.   Studyclix.ie is Ireland's most popular study website.  It helps pupils to revise effectively using questions, videos, notes and quizzes. To avail of the offer, create or login to your own personal account on Studyclix and enter the code which has been emailed to parents.  If you have any questions or queries contact Studyclix's support team at info@studyclix.ie who will be able to help.  We should like to thank the HSD PA for their generous support of this initiative. 
Ms Connolly
Deputy Principal

HSDPA Event

The High School Parents' Association is excited to announce that Zak Moradi, former refugee, best-selling author, and hurler will join us for an evening of conversation at the Reynolds Hall on Wednesday 1 March.  Doors open at 7.00 pm.  Tickets are free and are available here.  Staff, parents, and pupils are all welcome to attend. 

Zion Parish Fête