Startbright Early Learning Centres

10/09/2026

🌟 A Fantastic Summer of Fundraising! 🌟

We are incredibly proud of our School Age children in StartBright St Finians, who worked together over the summer to raise an amazing €555.85 through a wonderful series of fundraising activities! 💛

The children got creative with an art exhibition, inviting parents and families to purchase their artwork, organised a bake sale, and celebrated Yellow Day, wearing yellow to symbolise hope. They also held a raffle for parents and finished the summer with a very special movie evening, where the children purchased their own movie tickets to support the fundraising effort. 🎨🧁🎬

Alongside raising funds, the children and families also donated much-needed hygiene products to local organisations supporting people experiencing homelessness.

This was so much more than fundraising. It was a wonderful opportunity for the children to experience kindness, empathy, community involvement and the difference we can make when we work together. 💛

A huge thank you to all of our children, families and educators who supported the activities and helped make the project such a fantastic success. 👏✨

09/09/2026

21/07/2026

On the 15th of July we had Orla from Kinder Minds visit us in StartBright Greenhills to do a mindfulness session with some of the afterschool children and preschool children. The session began with Orla going through different emotions using figurines of the characters from Inside Out. Orla asked the children which emotion each character represented and how we may feel when we experience a certain emotion.

Orla then showed the children a technique to slow their breathing when they feel emotions such as stress, anxiety, sadness or anger. The children were able to talk about how they were feeling by adding a certain colour of glitter to a jar which reflected the emotion they were feeling. We then added water to the jar, shook the jar and the children were told to take three deep breaths. When the three deep breaths were finished the mixture in the jar had settled, reflecting the powerful affect of slow, deep breathing.

Orla then read a story to the children called In My Heart which was a book about different feelings. The children were able to recognise a lot of the emotions in the book and learned about how different emotions can make us feel.

To finish the session the children spent time making a feelings heart where they could add all their feeling to a cut out heart. They used stickers showing different emotions, markers, crepe paper and glue to make their hearts. This was to show the children that their feelings come from their heart. This was a very beneficial session for all involved and all the children thoroughly enjoyed it.

21/07/2026

Our little gardeners in StartBright Bawnogue had a wonderful time planting in the classroom! 🌱 The children eagerly got their hands dirty as they filled pots with soil, planted seeds, and learned how to care for their growing plants. This fun, hands-on activity encouraged curiosity, teamwork, and a love of nature. We can't wait to watch our plants grow together!

20/07/2026

Our little gardeners in StartBright Bawnogue - Bright Sparks had a fantastic time growing their own cress from seed! After patiently watching it sprout, they harvested their fresh cress and used it to top their homemade pizzas. The children were so proud to enjoy a tasty meal made with something they had grown themselves. It was a fun, hands-on activity that encouraged healthy eating, teamwork, and a love of gardening

09/07/2026

Supporting children with additional needs begins with having access to the right information at the right time.

The NCSE *Parents Notify* provides important guidance for families who are seeking a special class or special school placement for their child. If this is something your family is considering, we encourage you to take a look at the information available through the link below.

Please share this resource with anyone who may find it helpful.

Parents Notify is for parents and guardians who are looking for a new Special Class or Special School placement for their child for September 2027.

06/07/2026

https://onefamily.ie/policy/research/