Clonmore National School – Tipperary County Winners in Primary School Initiative

Moo Crew: The Primary Dairy Moovement is a new programme for 3^rd to 6^th class primary school children. It was developed by The National Dairy Council in consultation with teachers based on findings that 37% of girls and 28% of boys aged from 5 – 12 years in Ireland have inadequate calcium intakes in their diet. (Ref 1).

Moo Crew is an interactive educational initiative intended to help to bridge that nutritional gap by encouraging children to learn about the importance of the ‘milk, yogurt and cheese’ food group, in a fun way.

It was introduced to primary schools after Easter with support for teachers including four different lesson plans, including activities and web resources available at www.moocrew.ie .   Classes participating in the programme also had the option to take part in a class-based competition which culminated during National Dairy Week.

School children took part in the initiative in a variety of different ways.   For instance some school classes worked together to write songs and raps, create puppet shows or stage a Dairy Day; whilst others generated scrapbooks, posters, wrote poems and created recipes.

Over 127 primary school classes then entered the Moo Crew competition.  The organisers have now announced a short list of 26 county finalists.

From this short list, the top three regional classes will win an action packed V.I.P. trip to Causey Farm in Co Meath; whilst the overall winning class, to be announced on 11^th June, will win a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 tablet for each child in the class. Each of the remaining 23 county finalists will receive one Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 tablet for use in the classroom.

The 2013 County Finalists in the NDC Moo Crew – Primary Dairy Moovement are:

Region 1 Qualifying Group

• Tuamgraney National School, Tuangraney, Co. Clare – 5^th & 6^th class “Tuagreney’s Moo Crew”
• Barryroe National School, Lislevane, Bandon, Co. Cork – 3^rd class “Our Legend-Dairy Week”
• Boheshill National School, Glencar, Co. Kerry – 3^rd-6^th class “Don’t Just Drink It – Milk It”
• St. Joseph’s B.N.S., Thomas Street, Rathkeale, Co. Limerick – 4^th class “The M.C.Y. Project”
• Clonmore National School, Clonmore, Templemore, Co. Tipperary – 3^rd & 4^th class  “Super. That’s how milk, cheese and yogurt make you feel.”
• St. Saviour’s National School, Ballybeg, Waterford City, Co. Waterford – 3^rd – 6^th class “Better School Lunches Challenge”

Region 2 Qualifying Group

• St. Felim’s National School (S. N. Beal Atha Na Neach), Ballinagh, Co. Cavan – 5^th class team project.
• St. Laserians, Old Dublin Road, Carlow, Co. Carlow – Senior 2 Group “Dairy Poems”
• Scoil Mhuire, Mount Sackville, Tower Road, Chapelizod, Co Dublin – 6^th Class “Eat Dairy Daily !”
• Kildangan National School, Kildangan, Monasterevin, Co. Kildare – 3^rd & 4^th class “Easy Cheesy, Learn About Dairy”
• St. Leonard’s National School, Dunnamaggin, Co. Kilkenny – 3^rd & 4^th class “Dunnamaggin: Churning It Out”
• Sacred Heart Primary School, Church Ave., Portlaoise, Co. Laois – 5^th class “Udderly in Love with Dairy”
• Scoil Bhride, Killasonna, Granard, Co. Longford – 3^rd – 6^th class “Moo Crew Project”
• Stonestown National School, Stonetown, Dundalk, Co. Louth – 3^rd-6^th class “We Like to Moo It Moo It”
• St. Mary’s Primary School, Trim, Co. Meath – 4^th class “National Dairy Week – Our Learning Log”
• Scoil Mhuire Clontibret, Tullybuck, Clontibret, Co. Monaghan – 4^th & 5^th class “Smoothie Days & Ways”
• Schoil Bhride, Ballyboy, Kilcormac, Co. Offaly – 3^rd & 4^th class “Dairy is Cool, says Ballyboy School”
• Ardnagrath National School, Ardnagrath, Walderstown, Athlone, Co. Westmeath – 3^rd, 4^th & 6^th class “Moo Crew Journey by AdrnagrathNS)
• Saint Leonard’s National School, Saint Leonard’s, Ballycullane, New Ross, Co. Wexford – 5^th & 6^th class “Moo Crew St. Leonard’s in Action”
• Wicklow Educate Together, Marine House, The Murrough, Co. Wicklow – 3^rd class “Duncan McSour – What we Learned with Moo Crew”

Region 3 Group Qualifying Group

• Cloughfin National School, Cloughfin, Ballindrait, Lifford, Co. Donegal – 3^rd – 6^th class “Our Moo Video”
• Scoil Chroi Iosa, New Castle Road, Galway, Co. Galway – 5^th & 6^th class “Moo Crew Project”
• Aughawillan National School, Garadice, Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim – 3^rd – 5^th class “Our Moo Crew Dairy Project”
• Foxford National School, Foxford, Co. Mayo – 3^rd Class “The Moo Groove”
• St. Mary’s National School, Ballinagare, Castlerea, Co. Roscommon – 3^rd-6^th class “Ballinagare Moo Crew Project”
• Coolbock National School, Coolbock, Riverstown, Co. Sligo – 3^rd-6^th class “Mooliciouis”

Caroline O’Donovan, Nutritionist with the National Dairy Council, explains that Moo Crew is underpinned by nutritional expertise, based on the latest guidelines of the Department of Health’s Food Pyramid and links learning about a healthy, balanced diet with the importance of an active lifestyle. It extends to learning about dairy and farming as part of our lives in Ireland, with one of the lesson plans exploring where milk comes from and its journey ‘from farm to fridge’.

Irish boxer, Darren O’Neill, who captained the Irish boxing team at the London 2012 Olympic Games and is also a qualified primary school teacher, has been an ambassador for Moo Crew.