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Transition Year

What is Transition Year?

Transition Year is a distinct one year programme taken after the Junior Certificate and before a Leaving Certificate Programme. Transition Year offers students a broad educational experience and provides a bridge to help students take greater responsibility for their own learning and decision making. We encourage our Transition Year students to participate in learning experiences which are active and experiential. This aids our students to develop a range of transferable critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills.

Aims of Transition Year:

Education for maturity with an emphasis on social awareness and increased social competence.

Education through the experience of Adult and working life as a basis for personal development and maturity.

Promotion of general, technical and academic skills with an emphasis on Interdisciplinary learning.

TY Team

Transition Year Coordinator – Peter Wallace
Year Head - Gavin Ó Briain
Tutor Team – Adelle Adams, Eoghan Cleary, Alicia Newton, David O’Brien, Daniel Pim, Clare Wildes

Subject Categories

Core Subjects

  • English, Irish, Maths, Science, The World Around Us, Modern Languages, Well-Being, Sports & Recreation, Tutorial & Portfolio, Education for Living, Thesis

English

 

Irish

The TY Irish Course offers students the perfect opportunity to improve upon their written accuracy and oral fluency in the language. Over the course of the current academic year, we have focused on these elements in detail and in context of the topics set out by Teastas Eorpach na Gaeilge. This scheme of work is currently under review; however, students will likely continue to complete an end of year Written and Oral exam that will go towards their placement in Fifth Year classes. The Oral exam currently accounts for 30% of this exam result. We will be increasing the focus on the oral element of the course in the next academic year and so this percentage may increase to 40%, as is the case in the Leaving Certificate examinations.

Maths

In TY maths we aim to consolidate all of the key areas of Junior Cert maths that students will need as they progress onto the Leaving Cert Course. We also offer students the chance to try some of the new topics that are specific to the Leaving Cert, therefore putting them in a better position to decide whether to continue at Higher or Ordinary level in 5th year. Students are expected to work hard throughout the year and complete an end of year exam based on the content they have covered in TY.

Science

In TY Science, students rotate every 5 weeks between Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. They complete 2 rotations in total for each subject.  The TY Chemistry course aims to expose students to some of the Leaving Certificate Chemistry material while highlighting how this applies to areas of Science that students could pursue after school including Forensic (Analytical) Chemistry, and Nanoscience. The two Chemistry modules involve a significant amount of practical work as well as lessons on the theory underpinning the practical techniques being used. Physics at TY gives students a chance to see what the experimental side of the subject will be at Leaving Cert level, while also spending time addressing misconceptions in Physics. Biology will look at the processes of IVF, genetic screening and genetically modified plants and animals and the debate of the ethics behind these subjects

 

The World Around Us

This five-week rotation allow for students to explore previously unseen elements of Geography and History.

  • An exploration and analysis of the principal events of the First World War and the changes they brought to the world

  • 9/11; 102 minutes that changed America. Students analyse the events and aftermath of the events of September 11th through written, visual and aural sources

  • An investigation into the World's most “instagrammable” places and a step-by-step guide to planning a voyage in the modern world

  • An exploration of local geography through the medium of unmanned aerial vehicles. A creative and informative space to approach the land from a unique perspective

  • This module will aim to give an overview of the Nazi Holocaust in Europe, 1933-1945. The Holocaust was the systematic murder of six million Jews, and hundreds of thousands of other victims by the Nazis and their collaborators

  • Investigating the Battle of the Amazon and the impact of the different parties involved in this ongoing climate war

 

Modern Languages

Modern languages will continue to expand on the work from the Junior Cycle and bring it into a more informal setting, focusing strongly on aural work and conversation. Students will be completing leaving cert style comprehensions and aural work throughout the year to ensure their immersion in the language continues to develop heading into the Senior Cycle.

 

Well-Being

Well-Being allows students a reflective space to looks back on the Junior Cycle and forward to the Senior Cycle in a reformative and reconstructive manner. It is a module with mental health, positive attribution and stress and anxiety management at its core. Topics include mental health, sex education, gender and equality studies, psychological and behavioural experiment analysis, public speaking, and the “Nua” course, delivered by our chaplaincy team.

 

Sports and Recreation/Community Interaction

Sports and Recreation is an extension of the traditional games period, looking at a variety of new and interesting sports and leisure activities. Over the years we have offered Fencing, Gymnastics, Krav Maga, Spinning, Fat Biking, Paddle Boarding, Rock Climbing, Yoga, Pilates, Yogalates and many more. This time in the academic calendar also offers us a chance to allow students to engage in community interaction. Helping an elderly relative, working in a charity shop, coaching sports groups. This time allows students to complete it in the school day or use it as time off in lieu of completing it at another time.

 

Tutorial and Portfolio

Tutorial and Portfolio is a time in the week that allows students a space to reflect on the work they are completing and the experience they are gaining from Transition Year. It is a mixture of public speakers, one on one tutor time, and portfolio development. The portfolio comprises of monthly assessments, feedback on courses, completion of an experience week journal, completion of community interaction. All of this is expected to be completed in a fun and creative manner, adopting many mediums throughout the year.

Education for Living

This module come in six five-week rotations.

  • Career Guidance

  • Aptitude and Career Test

  • Interview Techniques

  • Anxiety Awareness

  • Car Mechanics

  • CPR Training

Enrichment

Audio and Video Applications
Go Kart Making
Junk Kouture
Creative Photography
Drama
Access Music

Dance

Magic

Stage Make-Up

Introduction to Coding
 

Personal Interest

Arts & Craft

Podcasting and Content Creation

Sustainable Development

Music Appreciation

Sports and Nutrition

Furniture Design

The World of Business

Applied Academics

Agricultural Landscaping

Architecture

Biotechnology

Politics and Society

Classical Studies

Chinese Cultural Studies

Product Design

Enrichment Musical Section Courses

Drama & Production

Costume Design

Backstage Department

Set Design

Music Performance

Dance

Magic

Stage Make-Up

Introduction to Coding

Subject Descriptors

 

Enrichment

Long Courses

 

Access Music/Drama/AV Applications

All three courses will take on different elements of the year’s chosen Musical or Play. Ranging from stage direction to music to theatrical production, including set design, lights and sound, with this wide-ranging module crossing over constantly and fluidly in the run up to the production. Anyone who attended last year’s production will know what a success it was, but it is what happens behind the scenes, with the progressive growth of the group as a whole and the overwhelmingly positive bonding experience it creates, that really sets this module apart. Auditions will take place and the on-stage cast list will be limited but we will always aim to ensure as many people can be involved in some facet of the production. Only 12 students did not take part in the musical this year in some facet.

 

Go Kart Making

The Red Bull Soapbox Challenge is coming to Temple Carrig. Have you ever watched the Red Bull Soapbox Challenge and taught you could do better? Have you a great idea for a car design? Do you have a need for speed? If so, this course is made for you. Students must design and build a soapbox car made from materials they scavenge. Fuelled by nothing but sheer courage and the force of gravity. This unique, non-motorised racing event, challenges students to design and build outrageous soapbox dream machines and compete against the clock in a downhill race on Temple Carrig Hill.

 

Good Food

This module will focus on students learning basic culinary and nutritional skills by making versatile recipes for breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks, desserts and bread. It is designed for students who have not studied Home Economics at Junior Certificate Level, as well as those who have, to develop transferable culinary skills.

 

Junk Kouture

Junk Kouture is a national fashion competition using recycled materials, which challenges young people to design, create and model high-end couture from everyday junk. This project takes in elements of fashion, design, engineering and environmental sustainability, by transforming junk into wearable pieces of Artwork, like no other!

 

Creative Photography

This module encourages students to grow as creative people while exploring and exposing them to the processes involved in Photography. Students will develop an aesthetic awareness by exposing them to the possibilities that can be achieved through the process of listening, looking, thinking, researching, designing and creating.

 

 

Short Courses

 

Magic

The aim of this course is to develop skills in the following areas; Problem-solving, logical thinking and analytical reasoning, Performance, acting & confidence, Physical dexterity. Most weeks will include the following; Card skills, an illusion, performance & analysis, viewing clips from professional magicians and analysing them to work out how they are done. Learning new tricks to perform at home, development of a stage illusion for performance, next week’s trick (a trick is performed at the end and students try to work out how it was done before it is taught the following week). 

 

Introduction to Coding

In this TY module, students will gain insight into studying computer science.  The course will instil confidence in working with technology, foster creativity, curiosity and collaboration. Throughout the course, students will have available a mixture of online and in-class lessons that emphasise hands-on coding.  Students will learn how to code by working in a real software development environment to design, program and publish mobile apps and games. 

 

Stage Make-Up

The aim of this course it to introduce students to the various materials and techniques used in different types of stage make up. They will also be led through the process of creating prosthetics. Students will learn about: Managing the production process from initial concept through to presentation. As the class moves into the musical the focus will shift to specifics stage make up; Prosthetics, Aging, contouring and much more.

 

Personal Interests

Personal Interests

 

Arts & Crafts

This course gives students the opportunity to learn a variety of specific skills related to art and to further develop their artistic skills. This course will cover aspects of art, craft and design providing students with plenty of scope to be creative and original. To develop through structured practical work the students’ aesthetic sensibilities and powers of critical appraisal, appreciation and evaluation, and to enhance the student’s qualities of imagination and creativity.  This course will be an excellent experiential platform for those thinking about choosing Art for Leaving Cert.

 

Podcasting and Content Creation

In this module students will learn how to craft a podcast from inception to release. They will supplement the Temple Carrig New podcast with their own podcasts on a variety of subjects. They will also learn to develop content and promotion techniques around the release of their podcast to aid its appeal. This module aims to develop students’ aesthetic, critical and communicative skills, as well as helping them to understand the content making process in a wider context and empowering them to become critical and active viewers.

 

Sustainable Development

In TY Sustainable Development, students explore the UN's Global Goals for Sustainable Development before studying a number of sustainability issues including Climate Change, Fast Fashion, Food Production and Consumption, Economics, Plastic Waste, and Fair Trade. From what they learn students then plan and conduct an action project which must work towards one of the Global Goals in their local community.

 

Furniture Design

This course equips students with the essential skills of furniture design and making. The course is based heavily on a practical ethos, with a large emphasis on project work. Initially in the classes, students will carry out research into existing projects. They will use this research to carry out their own design process using the tools in the woodwork workshop. Each student will have the opportunity to develop skills, so they can produce their own pieces of furniture. Students are encouraged to work independently and in groups to complete their own uniquely designed furniture.

 

Music Appreciation

Students will develop skills on an instrument previously studied or learn a new instrument in a relaxed music classroom environment. They will work on individual skill building in their chosen instrument and will perform pop songs as a band. This course is designed to develop the voice through solo and group performing activities. They will learn how to read music, harmonise and how to use a microphone. They will each record a solo track at the end of the course in the Recording Studio.

 

Sports & Nutrition

The importance of the link between sport, food and human health is becoming increasingly evident and students need to recognise and understand the link between each area. The course is going to encompass several elements including health, nutrition and physical fitness. It will provide students with the knowledge of the composition of food and nutrition and how it affects an individual’s personal well-being.

 

The World of Business

The aim of this course is for students to research, create and bring a business idea to life. Students will be taken through the process of developing a business plan and bringing a business idea to market. Students will invest money at the start and aim to make a profit. A proportion of all profits made will be given to charity and TY funding. 60% Students/ 20% Charity/ 20% TY Funding.

Applied Academics

 

Architecture

The Architecture course is a study of the built environment. It is a study of architecture in the wider context and is designed to develop the students’ technical and creative skills. Students will learn how the manipulation of shapes, forms, space, colour and light can change an environment. Students will learn how to draw architectural site plans. This is a practical hands-on course exploring various aspects of modelling & construction making. Students will learn how to create a model of their design with various materials and tools. On completion of project students will present their work.

 

Biotechnology

The Transition Year Biotechnology (Applied Academics) module gives students the opportunity to get hands-on experience in various biotechnology related activities.  The course aims to develop students’ skills and understanding of the role of microorganisms in biotech processes, the nature of genes and how and an organism’s DNA can be manipulated to change its characteristics.  Through a series of laboratory investigations, students will learn the techniques involved in growing and manipulating microorganisms, manipulating DNA, gene transfer, and how organisms can be genetically engineered to have new traits.  Lab activities include micro pipetting, isolating and culturing microorganisms, plasmid modification, DNA fingerprinting, and bacterial transformation. We will also look at the ethics of genetic engineering, particularly in the light of recent advances in gene editing using techniques such as CRIPSR. This module is aimed at those students who have demonstrated keen interest in Junior Science, particularly Chemistry and Biology, and are willing to pursue an advanced course in science. 

 

Politics and Society

This module will analyse key issues in Politics and Sociology such as human rights, equality, diversity, sustainable development ​and power and democratic decision-making. The students will explore these topics through enquiry based research and perspective debates.

 

Product Design

Are you a dreamer, a thinker and a problem solver? Do you like a creative challenge? Would you enjoy making things that improve the quality of people’s lives? In product design students will engage on a critical analysis of an existing product. They will compare and contrast how the product has evolved over time to develop a deep understanding of the product. Finally students will design their own product based around their own personal interests. This product will be designed using a 3D drawing package so students will get a realistic view of how the product would turn out.

 

Classical Studies

In Classical Studies in TY they learn about Ancient Civilisation and how it affects so many parts of our modern life. They learn about Greek Myths and Legends and take a look at Ancient Rome life through a study of Pompeii. An active learning experience will accompany this course with role playing, theatre, gaming and design all standing out in this interactive module. It will be a direct link to the Leaving Certificate course for anyone interested in taking it up.

 

Chinese Cultural Studies

The course provides sample language and culture content to engage learners with interest in Chinese language and culture.  On completion of this unit students should be able to:

 

  • Understand and exchange simple greetings in Chinese

  • Send simple messages using pinyin

  • Share information about festival, family, hobbies and Chinese food

  • Appreciate the cultural, Confucius’ philosophy, Chinese invention and the brief history of China

  • Learn how to make dumplings, Chinese painting/calligraphy and paper cutting

  • Build on learning portfolio and pass the assessment

 

Agricultural Landscaping

A course that looks at all aspects of the land around us and the crops we produce from it. This practical class will involve the upkeep of the Temple Carrig Garden and the sowing and management of new crops each term. It will also delve into landscape design and architecture with a strong focus on animal husbandry, with visits to local farms for experience.

Other Information

 

Gaisce - The President's Award - Bronze Level

As part of Transition Year we will be offering students the opportunity to take part in a period of community engagement, obtaining a new personal skill, and taking part in some form of physical activity. By doing this they will have completed 3/4 of their Bronze Award. Their final element will be an overnight adventure walk in the Wicklow Mountains.

 

Trips - Throughout the year we aim to travel into Dublin City Centre, and many other locations, to take part in tours, visit sites etc. We will be asking the students to make their own way into town using public transport focusing on developing their personal responsibility and independence. Trips have included Jumpzone, Skillzone, Cinema, Theatre, Galleries, College Visits, Expo's, Road Safety Roadshow, Ice Skating and many more.

 

Experience Weeks

3 weeks can be split up with community involvement/student experience. We recommend that at least one of these weeks will be a traditional work experience. The responsibility to find appropriate work experience is with the students. Their first experience week must be organised before September.

 

Role of the parents

 

Opportunities - The parents of TY students should try and familiarize themselves with all the extra and optional opportunities the school plans to provide during the year.  Students may only convey what they are excited by to their parents and many valuable opportunities may be overlooked. Sometimes parents only discover what was on offer at the end of the year!

 

Homework - Acclimatise yourself to having a student who will not have ‘traditional homework’.  The TY student will tend to focus more on research-based projects and practical applications of their skills. This does not omit the traditional work format that will appear with the core subjects. They will always have their e-portfolio and thesis to work on.  It really is a year in which the benefits accrued directly relate to the effort put in.

 

Motivate - Demonstrate as much interest in your child’s daily educational activities as you would when he/she is following Junior Cert or Leaving Cert programme.  TY opens doors to other ways of learning, specifically experiential learning, knowledge through the practical application of one’s learnt skills.  Encourage your son/daughter to make the most of the TY programme. Consistent attendance is vital to this

 

 

TY Fee

 

            The TY Fee includes your;

  • Outdoor Pursuits

  • Sports and Recreation

  • Speakers

  • Local trips

 

It also includes costs which are normally covered by the Administration Fee & Extra-Curricular Fee:

  • Admin fee

    • Personal accident insurance fee

    • Stationery

    • Schoology & MS365 License Fees & Support

  • Extra-Curricular Activities

    • Sports – Buses, Entry Fees, Referee Fees etc.

    • Drama – & other school clubs.

 

Our aim is to keep all TY based activities within this budget, so you won't be asked for payments outside of it, unless a specific subject has an opportunity to host a trip, but these will be optional for students. Examples over the last two years are, the Mustard Seed charitable initiative, the Berlin/Krakow trip, and a HE/Art trip to Southern Italy. You will hear of schools with smaller initial budgets, but our research has shown that these extra payments mount up throughout the year and can often surpass expectations as they are not as easily monitored.

 

A portion of the budget is for the Outdoor pursuits week, which is an integral part of the Transition Year Experience, and compulsory for all students. This will be part of the education for students, helping them to become more confident and independent.

 

Provisional Dates for 2020/2021 TY and School Calendar

 

 

Monday August 31st – School returns

Wednesday September 2nd – TY Induction Day

Monday September 7th to the 11th - Delphi

School Closes for Mid-Term – 23rd October

School returns from Mid-Term – 2nd November

Experience Week 1 – 7th of December to 11th of December

School closes for Christmas Holidays – 22nd December

School returns from Christmas Holidays – 6th January

Experience Week 2 – 8th of February to the 12th of February

School closes for Mid-Term – 12th February

School returns from Mid-Term – 22nd February

School closes for Easter – 26th of March

School returns from Easter – 12th April

Experience Week 3 – 17th to the 21st of May

TY Awards Night – 25th of May

TY Final Day – 26th of May

School closes for Summer Holidays – 4th of June

 

 

A reminder that we will be strict on experience week dates taking place in the allotted weeks. It serves as a massive disruption to the academic year and disrupts the payment of activities if students begin to take part in experience weeks outside of the allotted times. The only exceptions will be institutional experience weeks that have set dates, for example RCSI’s student experience.

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