Curraghboy pupils launch their own school magazine
The pupils of Curraghboy National School recently embraced the publishing industry by producing and launching their own magazine, called Our Village, Our Europe: Voices of Change from Curraghboy.
The impressive publication, which was created with the help of funding from the Department of Foreign Affairs 'Communicating Europe' initiative, was launched at the South Roscommon school on Friday, January 30.
Principal Rory Leonard described the launch as "a proud and memorable day for our school community," and Fine Gael MEP Nina Carberry, Senator Gareth Scahill, and local councillors Tony Ward and Valerie Duffy were among those in attendance for it.
A film crew also captured the occasion for a video promoting the 'Connecting Europe' initiative, with Mr Leonard and some of the pupils interviewed for the clip which is expected to be rolled out online in the coming weeks.
The magazine, which was produced in both printed and digital formats, features pupils from all classes in the school and contains a series of articles written by those in sixth class.
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Pictured at the launch of the Curraghboy NS school magazine were: John Shaughnessy of Roscommon County Council, Cllr Valerie Duffy, Cllr Tony Ward, MEP Nina Carberry, Rory Leonard, school principal, Grace Boon of Creative Schools, and Senator Gareth Scahill.Image 2 of 2
MEP Nina Carberry addressing the pupils of Curraghboy NS at their recent magazine launch.Topics covered in the magazine include Lough Funshinagh, Curraghboy Tidy Towns, the local Four Roads and St Brigid's GAA clubs, the ESB Science Blast competition, and developments in the world of digital technology.
"It was all about the student voice," said Mr Leonard. "Nowadays kids are consumers of information, TikToks and all that kind of stuff, but by making a magazine they became producers of information - content creators, editors, publishers and interviewers.
"They really enjoyed it and they took great pride in seeing the finished product with their names on it."
The creation of the magazine was guided by the theme 'The EU as a Catalyst for Change', resulting in the pupils learning more about how Europe connects with their lives in Curraghboy.
Mr Leonard expressed his gratitude to Big O Productions, which filmed the launch of the magazine on behalf of the Department of Foreign Affairs, and thanked the distinguished guests who attended.
"We are also deeply grateful for the support and collaboration from Michael Barrett and Amanda Joliffe, from Microsoft Dream Space, who helped bring a fantastic digital and creative dimension to the project," he added.
"A special thank you as well to Sarah Soulou from Ellinogermaniki Agogi in Athens, whose international input helped our students connect their local stories to a wider European perspective.
"Most of all, this was a celebration of our students — their hard work, teamwork, journalism, creativity and confidence. They didn’t just create a magazine; they shared the story of our community and showed how young voices can be powerful voices for change," the school principal concluded.
Curraghboy National School (Eircode: N37 EK20) is holding its enrolment evening on Monday next, February 16, at 6.30pm.