On the 10th of June 2018, 10 KTCS students made the journey to Castletown, Co. Laois for our residential training week. With no idea what lay ahead of us, we were completely unaware that this would be one of the best weeks of our lives. We developed both personally and as a group; making great memories and amazing friendships. Through the bonding activities our group became much closer and started to work efficiently as a team. We were then able to bring these skills and experiences back to KTCS with us in September. Our Meitheal group quickly became more than just that; we became a family.
We met with the 1st years for the first time at the introduction days towards the end of August. They were split into their base classes and assigned Meitheal leaders, who took them for a fun-filled day. During the day we played games, tricks and icebreakers to make them more comfortable with each other. We also lead a treasure hunt around our school to familiarise the students with their surroundings. Anonymous questions and answers were also done within base classes to ensure worries were calmed before their first day. Lockers and journals were distributed and any major issues were dealt with by Meitheal leaders.
Early in September we met again with our first years for a movie day in the library. This was a nice break from classes for first years to relax with their friends and Meitheal leaders. The students were allowed to bring treats to have during the movie. This was a day much enjoyed by students and Meitheal leaders alike!
Early in October, we had the first of the “catch-up” classes with the first years. We surprised the first years by taking them for a free class to make sure everyone was settled in well. We had lots of fun chatting to and catching up with the first years, and playing games – of course!
It’s still early in the academic year. Our Meitheal team meets weekly and works tirelessly in organising as many activities as we can for our first years. We try to make their first year experience in KTCS as enjoyable as possible.