All the Young Authors! Diary of a Selkie in The Future. By Maggie Wednesday the 16th of June I wake up as normal to the sound of the strong, gentle silver lappings that lead to my home in Cullane underwater City splashing against the rocky land. The city is the most fantastic place I have… Continue reading Bloomsday 2024: Young Author Competition
Latest Posts
Cantonese Flowerboards: From Hong Kong to Ireland
Welcome to a trilingual blog about Flowerboards, by Cantonese in Ireland (www.cantoneseireland.ie). Flowerboards are an important feature of Hong Kong’s cultural heritage. Read on to understand what flowerboards are, why and how they are made, and see a few that featured in St Patrick’s Day parades! What are flowerboards? Flowerboards are used for ‘for celebrating… Continue reading Cantonese Flowerboards: From Hong Kong to Ireland
International Day of Education (2025)
All children on the Island of Ireland have the right to education. This means that it is the Government’s responsibility to make sure that all children are able to access learning. This is established in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989). This is a document that sets out all the… Continue reading International Day of Education (2025)
Our second in person meeting, January 2025
On 03 January 2025 we had our second in person meeting at the Office of the Children’s Ombudsman in Dublin. 10 CAT members participated, and Harry Shier and Hadjer Taibi facilitated. Our special guest was Eemer Eivers from the MoCI Education Team. It was a packed agenda: Thanks to our hosts the Office of the… Continue reading Our second in person meeting, January 2025
Wanda the Walking Doll, 1950s
Advance Doll and Toy Co “My Wanda, a gift from an uncle in America, is made of hard plastic with eyes that open and close, blonde hair, yellow dress, and a mechanism in her body which connects to wheels on the soles of her shoes. When wound, this makes her “walk”. Her arms and head… Continue reading Wanda the Walking Doll, 1950s
YEATS, Jack B RHA (1871-1957): The Wren Boys
Hand-coloured Cuala Press print. Framed, 62.5 x 33.5cm (24.6 x 13.2in). Size of print 48 x 19cm (18.9 x 7.5in). Scene depicts a traditional December 26th, Saint Stephen’s Day celebration. Four boys carry a bush decorated with ribbons through a village. Footprints suggest snow, and open mouths suggest the boys are singing the traditional rhyme.… Continue reading YEATS, Jack B RHA (1871-1957): The Wren Boys
Michael Farry on Reading in Childhood
A school photo of Michael age 7 A short piece on reading in primary school with a special mention of the Famous Five, Enid Blyton series Books were scarce in rural Sligo in the 1950s and early 1960s when I attended our small village two-teacher school. There was plenty of other reading material of course.… Continue reading Michael Farry on Reading in Childhood
When We Were Kings and Queens of the Road: Alan Lambert
The early morning walks to school that I experienced in the late 1970s have never really receded into the past, as they are revived every time I connect with any part of the Metals, the lanes that run parallel to the railway lines from Dalkey to Dun Laoghaire. As we lived near Sallynoggin, at the… Continue reading When We Were Kings and Queens of the Road: Alan Lambert
Blessed Are The Children, John Kingerlee 2004
Blessed Are The Children, Work by John Kingerlee, 2004. Artist John Kingerlee was born on the 17th of February 1936. Her lives on the Beara Peninsula in West Cork, and is a non-conformist at heart John Kingerlee was born in England in 1936. His Mother was related to Hogan’s from county Cork. In 1982 he moved from the… Continue reading Blessed Are The Children, John Kingerlee 2004
Puppet Show, Seó Puipéad and Dominican School
Christmas 2024 The Museum of Childhood Ireland were at Bloomfields Shopping Centre on December 13th for a festive day with McCormick’s Puppets, featuring seasonal performances between 1:00 and 4 pm! Santa had arrived, but where was Rudolph the Reindeer? And what was Crocodile up to? Plus, we all met Cheeky Monkey and snapped a photo… Continue reading Puppet Show, Seó Puipéad and Dominican School
David Finnegan’s Letter to Santa, Dublin 1970
A letter to Santa from David Finnegan, The Rosary, 69 Palmerstown, Co Dublin in the 1970s. David doesn’t forget to mention his siblings Mary, Patricia, and John.
Film & TV Toys
Display in BOI, Dún Laoghaire, December 2024 on Toys influenced by Film and TV Shows in the 60s, 70s, 80s. Toys I received as gifts at Christmas “I grew up watching TV and going to the cinema every chance I got. There were plenty of repeats of The Lone Ranger on television in the 60s,… Continue reading Film & TV Toys