Proclamation Day at Knockaderry National School

The New Historians: Sixth Class Knockaderry National School pupils who collected and compiled family histories as part of their school project. Front:  Darren Deniel, Brian Burke , Michael Brosnan and Andrew Moynihan. Back row: Katie Brosnan, Evelyn Daly, Eibhlín O'Leary, Olivia Gleeson and Ruth Daly.
The New Historians: Sixth Class Knockaderry National School pupils who collected and compiled family histories as part of their school project. Front: Darren Deniel, Brian Burke , Michael Brosnan and Andrew Moynihan. Back row: Katie Brosnan, Evelyn Daly, Eibhlín O’Leary, Olivia Gleeson and Ruth Daly.

Proclamation Day is a Department of Education and Skills led initiative designed to promote time for schools to commemorate and reflect on the events of 100 years ago.
It will be celebrated on Tuesday, March 15, 2016 in every educational establishment in Ireland. In preparation for the day the pupils of Knockaderry National School, Farranfore, have each undertaken an ancestry project looking back to 1916 and beyond.
Working as historians the children and their families researched their family trees from oral, pictorial and documentary sources.

Presented in Book Format
Each family collated the resultant material and compiled a family tree, which is presented in book format. These books represent an historical document not only for each family, but also the wider community.
They were encouraged to read the proclamation and to write their own individual proclamations. As the project progressed the children also researched material relating to the village of Farranfore in the early part of the 20th century.
The complete ancestry project will be on display on Proclamation Day. In preparation for the day each school in the country has been given a tricolour.

Safe Keeping
This was delivered to Knockaderry National School, last September by two members of the Defence Forces and has remained in safe-keeping ever since.
On Tuesday March 15, at 10 am, it will be raised by the youngest and the eldest pupils of the school. Its significance will be explained, the children will sing the national anthem and the proclamation will be read. It promises to be not only a very significant morning in the life of the school, but also the life of the village and surrounding community.
All are invited to attend the ceremony and view the ancestry project when family trees, extracts from the schools register dating from 1903 to 1916 and material relating to the village in general will be on display.
Proclamation Day coincides with the Knockaderry National School’s Open Night – which will run from 6.30-7.30pm.
The exhibition of historic material will continue with entertainment, music, dancing and drama which will be provided by the children and light refreshments will be served.
Again, all are welcome and encouraged to attend. Enrollments are now being taken for the 2016/2017 school year.