The Department of Education is pleased to announce the opening of a new round of Creative Clusters. The deadline for receipt of applications is 10^th April.

Each Creative Cluster will receive grant funding of €3,000 per school over a two-year period to implement their project 2025–2027. 

• 3 schools would receive €9,000
• 5 schools would receive €15,000 

In addition to financial support above each cluster will also receive: 

• A Creative Cluster Facilitator 
• Teacher Substitution to attend Workshops and Meetings
• Room hire, travel & subsistence
•  

Please see the following link for more details: Creative Cluster 2025 Department of Education Guidelines

Applications are to be completed online using the following link: Creative Clusters 2025 Application should you need assistance, please contact your local full-time Education Support Centre (list at Appendix 1 of Guidelines document on DE website) or use this link Appendix 1

Any queries, please contact your local Education Support Centre or email National Arts in Education Administration This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Eligible Schools - The following schools are welcome to apply to participate in Creative Clusters:

• Schools that have not yet participated in Creative Clusters.
• Schools that have  not yet participated in Creative Schools and those who will complete Creative Schools Year 2 in the 2024/25 school year.
• Schools that will complete Creative Clusters Year 2 in the 2025/25 school year. However, they must apply as part of a cluster who have not yet participated in the initiative. In this instance, it is required that this school applies to lead a cluster of schools that are new to the initiative.
• The local Education Support Centre will have a key role in identifying and supporting a Creative Cluster for their local area.
• 42 Creative Clusters will be selected nationally - 2 per Education Support Centre.

Creative Clusters is an initiative of the Department of Education, led by and in partnership with the 21 full-time Education Centres (Education Support Centres Ireland - ESCI) and funded through the Schools Excellence Fund.

Dual Language Application Form

Meitheal is the Irish expression of ancient community that thrives through cooperative work.

Dr. Helen Hallissey taught for more than 30 years, holding a post of responsibility in Music and Drama at Scoil Mhuire, Ballincollig. She facilitates drama workshops, is a regular contributor to Intouch (INTO monthly magazine) and frequently presents at drama and education conferences. Her PhD explored creative writing (students as playwrights), winning Helen a John Coolahan Award for Research.

Máire Goggin has been a classroom teacher for over 15 years (St. Luke’s, Montenotte). She is an e-tutor with OIDE and has a Master’s in Teaching and Learning with Hibernia College. Máire is a creative teacher. She has a special interest in story through the arts. Recently, Maire has been exploring film-making with her class on their imaginative project based on Shandon Bells. 

Features of Cork Arts Meitheal

• This is a co-op where teachers are willing to swap resources, work samples, classroom management ideas.
• It is highly practical and hands-on.
• It provides an opportunity to discuss issues regarding teaching the arts.
• It provides an opportunity to listen to like-minded teachers, to their ideas and stories, to inspire and be inspired by them.
• Each Meitheal will be based on a topic or story. It will involve Drama ideas, Visual Arts ideas, Music ideas, Film ideas based on that agreed topic/story.
• You will leave with resources to take back to your classroom and your work colleagues.
• We will build one another’s teaching capacity and establish Cork Education Support Centre as a centre of excellence in the arts.
• We will meet once this term and twice in both Terms 2 and 3 at Cork Education Support Centre.
• It will be a sociable 'Are you going to the Meitheal'?

Feedback from a similar Cork-based community of practice in the arts:

‘What worked well?’

• Inspired by the new ideas, it makes me look forward to going to school the next day
• 3 aspects of the arts on the same story
• The practical nature of the workshop. Physical samples of work. PPT presentation from real classrooms.
• I love the concept of teachers sharing ideas.

Starting date:    Meitheal 1.   November 26th  2024 at 7pm

Other dates:     Meitheal 2.    January 21st 2025 

                          Meitheal 3.    March 4th 2025

Two further dates to be decided

Venue: Cork Education Support Centre, The Rectory, Western Road, Mardyke, Cork T12KC86

Book your place here: https://cesc.ie/cop/3355-cork-arts-meitheal-1-community-of-practice-in-the-integrated-arts.html 

Ficheall 2024/2025

Ficheall.ie is the national network of primary teachers promoting chess in their schools for the social and cognitive benefits it has for primary school students. Ficheall teachers use chess as a tool to teach through and an opportunity for their students to develop new skills and values, as well as representing their school at Ficheall tournaments called Féile Fichille (chess festival).

The Ficheall.ie website contains many excellent resources created by fellow primary school teachers such as:

• A series of 10 beginner chess lessons (with optional integration to the SPHE curriculum)
• List of CPD chess courses for teachers (summer, evening and online courses)
• Chess numeracy puzzles
• Ficheall newsletters with chess updates
• Online Teacher Chess Club

Ficheall Summer Course

Cork Education Support Centre have hosted the Chess for Social Skills summer course previously with great success. Upon completion of this course teachers can play chess (most attend the course having never played chess before) and can teach the basics of chess to students in their class while also teaching key SPHE curriculum objectives from 1st to 6th class (all of this without worksheets).

Féile Fichille Chess Tournaments

Féile Fichille tournaments are non-competitive chess tournaments organised annually in Term 2. No medals, prizes or trophies are presented. Instead, the day is a celebration of the students learning chess and social skills as well as their teachers’ leadership skills to introduce the initiative in their school. For many students it is their first opportunity to wear their school jersey and represent their school. More details about Féile Fichille Tournaments can be found here (including a checklist to ensure students are ready for the Féile Fichille)

Féile Fichille Timeline

• September: Registrations Open
• October: Registrations Close
• November: Schools informed of tournament date and venue
• January/ February/ March: Féile Fichille tournament will be scheduled in term 2. Registered schools will be allocated one Féile Fichille tournament to attend. Schools are required to be at the venue at 9.30am with the event concluded by 2pm

Contact Us

If you have any queries regarding the Féile Fichille Tournaments please contact Ficheall using the Contact Us link here.