Students from all over the District of Ireland, Great Britain and Malta have been participating in the Lasallian Award and I am pleased to report that De La Salle College Churchtown have been working hard over the last number of weeks on two different projects: The Junior Lasallian Award Project and The Transition Year Community Project.
The Junior Project was completed by 1st and 2nd Year students led by the RE, CSPE and SPHE Departments. Although students could work collectively on certain aspects of this project, it also required students to work independently at home and within their local community. These activities shone a light on what it means to be Lasallian and how this can be incorporated into our ordinary lives. This project was based around the five core principles of De La Salle;
Faith in the presence of God
Respect for all People
Quality Education
Inclusive Community
Concern for the Poor and Social Justice
It consisted of a list of thirty-five different activities involving these principles. Some examples include:
Showing care for our environment by picking up litter for thirty minutes in the local area
Writing a letter to someone who is living on their own
Spending quality time with family by playing a board-game together
Teaching family about something you learnt in school
Broadening your education by watching a documentary
Writing a prayer for strength and courage
Researching the life of a saint
Learning five things about another culture
Learning five phrases in sign language
I am pleased to announce that our 1st and 2nd Years embraced it and completed wonderful projects which were displayed with pride at our De La Salle Day Mass in Good Shepherd Church in honour of De La Salle’s Day.
The Transition Year Community Project was led by a number of teachers and very willing Transition Year students. They have worked tirelessly on our courtyard in creating a much safer, brighter, colourful and more useable space that can be enjoyed by the entire school community. They are basing this project on the principle ‘Inclusive Community’, which is one of the five core principles of De La Salle. While a lot of hard work has been done over the last number of weeks, namely;
Weeding
Planting
Building Flower Beds
Power washing
Digging out a number of tricky tree stumps
Relaying slabs and improving walkways and patio areas
Rebuilding and repairing garden furniture
Replacing the water pump in the School Fountain
Washing windows
Breaking tools (**Haha**)
There is still more to be done.
A graffiti artist worked with these students, in designing and painting ‘wall art’ using the theme ‘Inclusive community’ and it will serve as another focal point in this beautiful space. The students have tended to and will maintain this space until they pass it onto next year’s Transition Year, hoping that they can continue to uplift this space and make their mark on it next year.