By;

Joey Duggan &

Jamie Mc

Transition Year
Activities
These are all of the fun and exciting activities that we have been doing during
the course of this year. Enjoy.

TRIP TO PETERSBURG
Our first outing was to Petersburg Outdoor Education Centre, in Mayo. We all gathered outside
the school at nine oclock sharp and soon left for our highly anticipated destination. The
atmosphere on the bus was electric. We finally reached Petersburg and were assigned our rooms.
We quickly got prepared for our first activity, gorge walking.
We were driven out to a remote area in the heart of the rugged countryside. We waded up a small
river and eventually reached the spot. We were told to jump into the river from a staggering
height. It felt as if I were flying as I leaped up into the air. My heart was in my mouth as I
plunged down into the cold stream bellow.
Our next activity of the day was the obstacle course. We walked out to a pier where we then took
a boat across to an island. We finally reached our destination and got stuck into the obstacle
course right away.
After an eventful day we gathered in the cafeteria and split into groups. We were sent out on an
orienteering expedition during the night. We had an hour to find all of the letters scattered across
the area.
The next day we had two more activities. Firstly we went caving. We were guided through the
cave and were told all of the caves features. The last activity of the day was abseiling. We were
dangled from a rope in a massive crevice. When I looked down I nearly fainted as I dangled
above the rocky and rugged floor.
After a fun filed and eventful stay at Petersburg we finally returned home.

IRISH DRAMA WORKSHOP

Our second activity of TY was the Irish Drama Workshop in the Mercy. Here we were shown a
short drama like production of Noahs Ark, that consisting of only two actors. It was a comedic
short story of sorts and was very impressive.
After this we were split into groups and had to produce our own short scene. The actors showed
us techniques on how to show expression by using our hands, as well as our posture and facial
expressions. We then practiced our lines using these new techniques before staging our scene.

TUAM CANCER CARE

We visited Tuam Cancer Care after. We walked to their premises from the school at one thirty.
We were welcomed and shown into a room where we were shown a power point presentation.
This presentation showed us various statistics based on how to reduce the risks of cancer and
how almost all cancer can be cured if it is caught in its early stages. We were then shown around
the Cancer Care premises and the equipment it has to help its members.

We were also invited to take part in the Tuam Cancer Care walk around the park in Tuam. This
walk was for survivors of cancer and all of the people who had supported them during this time.
For this event we created and designed posters to be put around the park.

PREPARING FOR THE WORLD OF WORK

For our next activity we were brought into the study hall for a talk by Joe Long, a former teacher.
He talked to us about an interview and how to go about preparing for one. He talked about how
difficult it actually is to even be called for an interview. We were told that on average one
hundred people apply for a single job and by the end only four or five people get called for an
interview.
Joe Long gave us advice on how to prepare a CV and what to write in one. He also gave us the
opportunity to sit an interview. We had to prepare for our interview. Our interview was recorded
and we received a copy as to asses our performance.

SCIENCE IRELAND WORKSHOP

This workshop focused mainly on physics. We were shown various scientific experiments. We
were shown how to use a spring to show soundwaves. We were also shown that air has mass. The
presenter had a homemade helicopter powered by a balloon, when he asked how much air should
he put into it everyone said more but when it just sank to the ground it proved that air has a mass.
We also did other experiments based in chemistry. A vitamin C tablet into a pot of water, a lid
was put on it and then it blew the lid off it due to the pressure that the CO2 makes from the tablet
combined with the water. This was a very interesting and exciting activity.

PETER OCONNELL
This activity was a talk by Peter OConnell who became the first man from Connacht to climb
Mt. Everest. He talked about how he climbed Mt. Everest
In the first part Peter went through the climb and how you do the climb. . I found the climb
between each camp and pitch tents very interesting. We were then told that he had to go back to
the base to make it to the next camp and so on until your body adjusts to the altitude.
The second part was about how to complete any goals you have set yourself and that you cant
just give up if things start getting hard. One of the main points he made was to stay positive and
to get rid of negative thoughts. I learned about how to stay positive when trying to complete a
goal or target. I also learned how to keep the end in sight and to focus in on that so not to give
up.

EAGLE FLIGHT

The next activity of the year was Eagles Flight. We were brought into the study hall first thing in
the morning. Here we were assigned into groups and shown a game called The Lost
Dutchmans Mine. We were then given varying amounts of fuel, supplies, money, etc. Then we
traded with other in a bid to get to the mine and back home. We had to plan our route to and from
the mine.
Later on that day, we gathered in the study hall again. We were given the task of building a
bridge of Kinects in sixty one minutes. We were all given certain parts of the bridge to build. We
elected a foreman and a project manager of the build.

CSI WORKSHOP
After break we gathered into the hall. We were introduced into the world of a crime scene
investigator. We were shown a mock murder crime scene and had to solve the murder. We went
around from station to station finding out clues about the murder and the suspect.
I learned that the life of an investigator is not as glamorise as it seems on the television. I also
learned that it is not easy to match fingerprints as they must not be first time offenders and about
the importance of DNA in solving a crime as everyone has unique DNA.

TALK ON HAITI
We were moved into the study hall for a talk on Haiti. We were told a brief history of the country
and the experiences that the presenter had out there while he worked in an orphanage. We also
were told about the living conditions and about the people of Haiti.
I enjoyed the memoirs that our presenter had. It was very interesting to hear about Haiti from a
person who has been out there. I found the history of Haiti to be very interesting also. I learned
about NGOs such as Bthar, Goal, etc. We learned that a devastating storm hit the country every
ten years. The country of Haiti is very poor and people usually live in makeshift huts. Illiteracy is
also common in Haiti.

ECO UNESCO
We were given a talk about what Eco UNESCO is and what it does. We were also talked about
our project and how best to plan it. Our project is to do up an area outside the first year locker
room. We were taken through the steps that will make our project successful.
I learned about Eco UNESCO and the work they do among young people to promote
environmental awareness. I also learned how to plan a project better and how to approach
environmental issues.

TRIP TO DUBLIN

We left the college at 7:30 and set off to Dublin. Here we went to the National Art Gallery. We
were given a guided tour around the art gallery and were shown prints and various different types
of paintings. We were also told how prints were made and the different styles of painting.
We then went to the Bord Gas Energy Theatre, were we saw the musical The Commitments.
We were seated in the top section of the Theatre and watched the musical. The Commitments
is a musical set in 1950s, it follows the story of Jimmy a music producer who sets up a new
music group of talented individuals.