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Schooldays at Kingsland National School by Thérèse Cregg
Thérèse Cregg
I can remember clearly the day I started school in Kingsland N.S. As an innocent three-year old I couldn't wait to start. One day when I called in with my mother to give my school-going brother a message I cried to stay. As it was shortly before the summer holidays, Mrs. Higgins who was then teaching in the Junior room let me remain and thus began my days in Kingsland N.S.
I don't remember much else of those two months before the summer holidays except a feeling of extreme happiness that I was now among those carrying their bags over the stile at 10.00a.m. every morning.
Those first few months and even years can be beguiling, giving a false impression that schooldays will always be full of fun and little work. Although over the years that followed my impressions changed, those days I spent in Kingsland N.S. are for the most part full of happy memories, interspersed with the odd bad one which can now be laughed about.
When I returned the following September as a fully-fledged four-year-old, Mrs. Higgins had been made principal and Miss McLoughlin had been appointed as the new teacher for the Junior Room. She taught me for the next four years. The memories of those years do not follow a logical sequence, but rather mould together in no particular order.
I recall vividly the monkey circle drawn with chalk in the corner where we sat if we were bold, the spelling tests every Friday, where the coveted reward was a star and the Cómhra we had every morning without fail.
Through all our misdemeanours Miss McLoughlin showed herself to be very patient. At times you would feel the tip of her pen on the back of your head or suffer a slight reprimand but overall, she was very kind and very fair.
The one memory which stands alone in those four years is my First Communion. I was the only girl in my class, with six boys as classmates. However, having four brothers and no sisters, at the time I did not find this strange. That year 1981, Fr. Mulvanney came to Breedogue, his first parish and we were his very first Communion Class. He was younger and funnier than any priest we had previously known, and we all looked forward to his visits to the church for rehearsals. Following our Communion, he and a party for us in his house which boosted his popularity further. Miss McLoughlin sent a lot of her time preparing with us and on the day everything went beautifully. With all the attention that was lavished on me, I felt so important.
Back to school however and it was time to start thinking of moving into Mrs. Higgins' room. Those already in her room were circulating the traditional fictional stories in an attempt to scare us. They succeeded leaving us all dreading the prospect of entering her room.
Needless to say, once we got there neither the amount of homework nor Mrs. Higgins reputation was anything like what we had been led to expect.
Like Miss McLoughlin, Mrs. Higgins was very kind and very fair with all her pupils. She tried to impart her knowledge to us in the hope that we would use it and do well in the future. However, we were not the most receptive pupils and, on many occasions, gave her good reason to raise her voice at us.
Two major changes which occurred du ring my time with Mrs. Higgins were the introduction of the school uniform and the installation of an oil-fired central heating system. The school uniform though not popular was worn by everybody without protest. However, there were constant problems with the central heating system, which allowed Tommie Gilligan and Vincent McGarry to spend much of their time in the boiler house pretending to fix it. It was often the reason for us having an extra day off school during those cold winters. I believe the system is not in perfect working order.
The highlight of the year came in the Summer Term, when the School Tour took place. All year long we looked forward to that day and we were lucky as I always remember it being a sunny day. We usually departed from the school gate at 8.00 a.m., but such was the excitement that almost everybody arrived before 7.30 a.m.
One of the most popular and enjoyable tours was our trip to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park and Craggaunowen. Other tours included the following destinations: Dublin Zoo, Connemara including Padraig Pearse's Cottage, The Burren and the Cliffs of Moher and Mosney.
The Summer Term also heralded the start of the football season for the boys. They were very successful reaching the County Final on a number of occasions and eventually winning it in 1986. Parents and pupils alike turned out in great numbers to support the team from the opening rounds which were played in Frenchpark to the Final which was played in Hyde Park.
I remember my days in Kingsland N.S. fondly and although it is not yet ten years since I left a lot has changed in that time.
One of our favourite haunts, the double ditch, is no more. This was an ideal place to hide during hide and seek and the holes between the bushes provided excellent escape routes during games of tag and catch.
The prefab, where the girls played badminton has been demolished and the field inside the wall where we played rounders is now tarmacadam.
Both of my teachers, whom I held in high regard no longer teach in Kingsland. We were all sad to see Miss McLoughlin move to Mayo when she married, and Mrs. Higgins' presence is missed since she retired last year. Today there are two new teachers, Mrs. Moore and Mr. Murphy. Time is moving on and the present pupils are forming their memories which they will look back on in years to come. I am sure they will be happy ones.
Thérèse Cregg
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