Rath Cairn pupils say failte to Inis Oirr

First year pupils from Colaiste Pobail Rath Cairn and two of their teachers spent a week on the Aran island of Inis Oirr last week. The Meath gaeltacht school has been involved in exchange visits with the local school on the island, Colaiste Ghobnait, for the past seven years. The students spent the mornings in class at Colaiste Ghobnait and the afternoons were spent taking in the sights and playing games. Two of the Meath students, Ronan MacDonnacha and Ruth Ni Cholla, both residents of Rath Cairn, were featured live on Radio na Gaeltachta during their stay on the island. On Thursday, the students travelled to Irish Mor, where Dun Aongusa was the main attraction. Among the activities during the week were a table quiz and football with coaching by Jojo Ridge of Galway GAA. They also went swimming and visited the wreck of the Plassey, the ship which sank off Inis Oirr in 1960 and which features in the opening credits of the famous TV series 'Fr Ted". The students met the poet and author Dara O"Conghaile, whose work features on the Leaving Certificate syllabus. He is a teacher at Colaiste Ghobnait, where there are just 16 students. Students from Rath Cairn and Inis Oirr will participate in a joint venture ski-trip to Switzerland in January 2010. Meanwhile, students from all years in Rath Cairn recently returned from a school trip to Rome.