This year we said goodbye to 23 of our special butterflies as they prepared to spread their wings for Primary School in Septemeber. 
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Alot of hard work was needed to prepare for such a special occasion. These preparations began back in April, when the staff and children began selecting and learning songs, which they enjoyed and reminded them of moments in their Longfield Journeys. 'The Greatest Showman' movie was a big hit this year with the children, and so the theme 'Hollywood/Oscars' Graduation was born. 

On the 26th June, with all the prepations complete, the big night arrived. The red carpet was rolled out for our special VIP guests (our parents/guardians).

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With the Audience in their seats and cameras ready, the children took to the stage. They performed all their songs beautifully and gave an award winning performace. 

The highlight of the evening was our Longfield exclusive performance of "This is Me". The lyrics were re-written by Ciara and the dance routine choreographed by Donna, Sinead and Siobhan. ​There wasn't a dry eye in the house and the children all received a standing ovation 

After the show, we went outdoors to our new sensory garden for some well earned refreshments and treats. The children and parents all chatted about the amazing year we had in pre-school. Cameras were busy taking the final photos of the amazing friends we have made in Longfield before it was time to say an emotional goodbye. 

We will miss all the children dearly and they will forever remain a special part of the Longfield family. We wish them all the best in their new schools and we hope they come back to visit us soon. ​

On Wednesday 29th of May, the Senior Preschool Class headed off with their school bags on the 'Big Bus', for their school trip to Ardmore Open Farm. 

The excitement in the Senior Preschool Class was immense! The children spent all week trying to predict what animals they would see at the farm. When the day finally came, the children arrived to preschool all ready to head off on their adventure to Ardmore.

At 9 am, the children and Rufus put on their high-visibility jackets and made their way out on to the bus. 
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The children all sat into their booster seats and we all put on our seat belts ready for the journey that was ahead of us.Plenty of songs were sung on the bus and the bus driver even joined in when we were singing 'Wheels On The Bus'. One of the children was ecstatic that she was able to show us where her house was and we all waved just incase someone was home that could see us passing. 

When we arrived in Ardmore, we made our way into the centre. Firstly, we were brought into the petting zoo where the children were given the opportunity to hold the rabbits. Some of the children were dubious about this and preferred to just look at the rabbits. One of the children in particular did not want to put the bunny back when it was time to move on. The adults were also very fond of the rabbits and would have liked to take them home!  The childre also got to pet a Bearded Dragon, however they weren't as keen on him as they were the rabbits.

Following on from the petting zoo, we then went for a guided tour around the farm. We saw many different animals such as Prairie Dogs, Meerkats, Otters, Alpacas, porcupines, ponies, goats, donkeys and many more. The Meerkats and Otters were among the children's favourites.

After the tour of the farm, the children played football and took turns on the zipline before going inside to play in the soft play area. By 12.30pm the children had worked up an appetite and we sat down to have our lunch. 

When our tummies were full, we headed up to the big outdoor slide and risky play area. The children loved the slide and climbed to the very top of the climbing frame. Just before 2pm, all the happy but very tired children headed back to the bus. It wasn't long before we had some sleepyheads on the bus. We had a fantastic day on our school trip. The Junior Preschooler's will be heading on there outing to Le Cairde Day Care Centre this week. We can't wait to head off on the bus again!

On the 30th of May 2019, Tara came to visit us here at Longfield Academy. Tara is a Dental Nurse in ConfiDental, dental practice in Cahir, Co. Tipperary. 

Tara began by inroducing herself and telling the children all about what she works as, and what her job entails on a daily basis.

Tara discussed with the children what they should expect from a trip to the dentist and reassured them that they don't need to be afraid when they are at the dentist. Tara invited the children to talk about their experiences of the dentist, if they had been before. Tara taught the children about what drinks are good for your teeth and what drinks are bad for your teeth. The children learned that milk is good for your teeth because it contains lots of calcium. They also learned that juice is not so good for your teeth because it is full of sugar. Some of the children were worried about this because they "had juice yesterday", but Tara reassured them that it is okay to have juice now and again, maybe just not everyday!

Tara then introduced Mr Dinosaur and Mr. Lion to the children. Tara showed the children how they should brush their teeth, nice and softly and in circles. The children also learned that it is important to brush their teeth in the morning after their breakfast and before they go to bed at night. 

The children all took turns brushing Mr Dinosaur's and Mr Lion's teeth. The children really enjoyed this.

A big thank you to Tara from ConfiDental. The children are already asking when Tara will be back !

On Friday 10th of May, we took part in Early Childhood Ireland's National Pyjama Day. Early Childhood Ireland’s National Pyjama Day is the largest one-day fundraising event organised by the early childhood care and education sector in Ireland.

Pyjama day is one of the staff's favourite days of the year as they get to come to work in their pyjamas, slippers and dressing gowns. Our day started at 7.30 am when children began arriving to the creche, all cosy in their pyjamas. Some very brave parents also dropped their children to the creche wearing their own pyjamas. 

,A little later on in the day, we opened Longfield Academy's Pamper Parlour. The children came and sat two at a time in the Pamper Parlour waiting room. While waiting in the waiting room they decided on what treatment they would like; Nail painting, hairstyling, head massage or hand massage. Some of the children chose the whole package while others preferred to only have on or two of the options. Once decided, the children came in to the parlour, where they were pampered.

The children received cucumber to put on their eyes to refresh them, however some of the children felt there was a better use for the cucumber and decided to eat it instead !

Nails were painted, hair was styled and heads were massaged all day long here at Longfield Academy. 

All the clients of Longfield Academy's Pamper Parlour were very happy leaving the salon. One child even told us "this is the best day ever, I am beautiful now".

Once the children had all been pampered, they took part in a bed making race. The children raced against each other two at a time to see who could make the bed the quickest. It was great fun and the children all cheered for each other.

Many of the children brought teddies into creche with them, so we had a Teddy Bear's Picnic and story-time with the bears, followed by a DVD to end a very relaxing day!

We managed to raise over €300, on what turned out to be "the best day ever". We are already excited for Pyjama Day Next year