It was a rainy morning in Hansfield, a new suburb on the outskirts of Dublin, when a group of 60 children started their first day at school.
Lina Kuzminskiene and her son Marcus (5) watched as the more than 500 older students of Hansfield Educate Together National School funnelled into the hall to be sorted into their new classes.
A few minutes previously, teachers rushed around carrying cartons of milk and crates of things to be placed in the classrooms, describing it as “first-morning madness”. Several teachers commented about how they got “absolutely soaked” on the way in.
While the rain did not bother them, “we came too early,” said Kuzminskiene, laughing. Marcus is her second child to begin primary school; his sister August is in third class. He arrived bearing a bouquet of flowers for his teacher Jennifer.
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“It’s going to be an easy transition, the teachers here are really nice and very friendly,” said Kuzminskiene.
Like many of the children beginning primary school in Hansfield, Marcus has come from preschool and is used to the drop-off routine.
Teacher Jennifer McGovern described her new class as “actually very settled”.
“I find with preschool you notice such a difference. They’re used to being dropped off and their parents leaving them,” she said.
Principal Desmond Guihen agreed: “The first day of school isn’t as daunting as it once was.”
But for the parents “it’s a big day, a landmark in their child’s life”, he said.
Guihen oversees the 24 mainstream and two autism classes that make up Hansfield National School. He said the student body reflects the fact that Dublin 15 is one of the most diverse places in the country.
It is his third year as principal. “It’s busy at the best of times but we just have to embrace the madness,” he said.
“Today the work is done. We’ve been busy preparing over the course of the summer. We’re fortunate that there’s a full staff this year.”
Guihen is apprehensive but “fully supportive” of the two school secretaries and a caretaker who will begin an indefinite strike tomorrow.
“They’re the lifeblood of the school. We hope that in the coming days a resolution can be found. It will be a massive disruption to school life but we have to do what we can so that students’ learning isn’t disrupted,” he said.
The parents of Adhira Bhattacharya (5) said they are “excited” to see their first daughter go off to school. “She’s starting ballet on the 2nd of September, it’s going to be a very busy period for her,” said her father, Arindam Bhattacharya.
Bhattacharya is pleasantly surprised by the diversity and openness in Hansfield compared to his own school experience. “I went to a convent school all throughout my career. It was totally different, it was a very formal education, we had strict uniforms and it was all boys for 14 years.”
He and several other parents said that they needed to get back home as soon as possible to “log in”.
Wala Abbelkareem was more overwhelmed by the day than her son Rashid (4), who happily played at a table. A Spider-Man backpack he picked out himself hung on the back of his chair.
He is the last of her three children to start school, which means she can start looking to return to work as a doctor.
“I’m nervous but happy for him. It’s a big change,” said Abbelkareem.
There were a few tears as one parent left the classroom, but the teacher’s assistant didn’t panic: “He’ll be fine, watch now in a few minutes.”
Sure enough, by 9.25am the classroom was calm, and the rain outside had cleared too.
