As junior infants settled into their new routines, having taken the first daunting steps in their educational journey, many parents across the country were bracing themselves for a rollercoaster of emotions this week as the children realised school would become a permanent fixture in their young lives.
Among these youngsters getting used to the new way of life was Darby Flynn, who bounced through the gates of Gaelscoil Bhreifne in Aghnaskerry, Co Cavan, last Wednesday morning “full of beans” and ready to take on the world, according to his father Tom Flynn.
Happily for Darby and his family the transition to junior infants has been “plain sailing”.
“He just embraced it straight away...there were no nerves at all,” his father says. “I wasn’t worried about him at all. I’d be more worried about him running the place,” he laughs.
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And there have been no complaints as yet from young Darby about the early starts during the week. On the contrary, he’s usually out of bed before his parents. “It’s a gift,” his father says.
Darby is already bilingual, speaking Vietnamese with his mother Phuong, as well as English. A quick learner he’ll soon adopt Irish at Gaelscoil Bhreifne, and will therefore be proficient in three languages from a tender age.
Despite coming home on his first day with a small scrape on his knee after running around the schoolyard with his new friends, “they love the tig in there”, Darby didn’t bat an eyelid. It wasn’t long until his spotless uniform of green jumper, white shirt, dark trousers and shiny new shoes began to bear the scuff marks of all this energetic activity.
A highlight for Darby and his classmates has been experimenting with multicoloured play dough, traces of which have made its way home lodged under his nails – a sure sign of a good day.
And teachers such as Shane Mac Diarmada and his colleagues were always on hand to help.
The principal of Gaelscoil Bhreifne, Niamh Ní Cheallaigh, who happens to be a niece of The Dubliners’ singer Luke Kelly as well as a talented fiddle player herself, was on hand to welcome the junior infants to the multi-faith, coeducational school last Wednesday.
