Niamh Doyle

Gaelscoil an Lonnáin 

https://www.gaelscoilanlonnain.com/

Subject or Primary School Year: Primary 1/2

Place of Birth: Belfast

Where you studied: St Dominic’s Grammar School 

What was your first job?  Restaurant Server

What did your first job teach you? It taught me how to handle individuals in different situations, as well as the importance to be kind and smile. 

Family/Status:  Single

Best advice you would give to someone thinking of a teaching career: The best advice I would give is to learn from your peers. When I started in my school, I saw the difference between teachers and their different teaching styles, and I’ve learnt a lot from them. Watching your peers, such as how they interact with children or handle different situations can help you to learn new strategies or techniques. Learning from others helps to expand your own knowledge and show you what type of teacher you want to be, and what approach you want to take whether it’s teaching styles, behaviour management or day to day classroom management.

From a young age, Niamh had responsibility to take care of her three younger siblings and younger cousins. Deep down, she always knew that she would be attracted to working with children in an educational or care setting.

She had an opportunity through a family member to start as a teaching assistant at Gaelscoil an Lonnáin a year and a half ago. Niamh was initially a little apprehensive about the role, being a little rusty with her spoken Irish. A year and a half on, the experience has truly transformed her life and her idea of what the future holds. She has had the opportunity to work closely with children with various educational needs and has loved learning how to help them through each day in a nurturing way.

The role has given her a renewed level of self-confidence and drive and has really inspired her to take the next step towards training to be a teacher. Niamh hopes to start at St Mary's next year with a view to eventually working in the Irish medium sector as a bunscoil teacher. She is a proud past pupil of Bunscoil Phobal Feirste and also attended St Dominic's. Her experience of the best teachers she had were those who were kind, patient and understanding and their example has had a profound effect on how she cares for the children at Gaelscoil an Lonnáin

Despite the school being small in size, she feels that it allows staff to give more one-on-one attention and to attend to the children’s needs more. Niamh loves working at the school and has made friendships with staff and families that will never leave her. In her spare time, she likes to spend time with her family as well as reading.