Portlaoise school celebrates multiple religions with incredible model village

6th class Portlaoise Educate Together NS with artist Maeve Sookram.

placeholder image — 6th class Portlaoise Educate Together NS with artist Maeve Sookram.

Artists in Schools Scheme at Portlaoise Educate Together National School

Children at a Laois school that teaches religious tolerance have created a cute but important village model that incorporates many places of worship.

Religions including Sikh, Islam and Christianity are all represented in the model of Summerhill Village (below) by Portlaoise Educate Together National School.

It depicts a complete community right down to gorgeous details like a passing train, disability parking spots, and picnickers in the park.

It is the joint work of Collette Moore's creative 6th Class in Portlaoise ETNS who took part in the Arts Council's Artists in Schools programme in partnership with Laois County Council.

Marie Mulligan applied for the funding and linked with artist Maeve Sookram who worked with the pupils on the project.

"The children created various temples of worship (Temple, Church, Mosque and Gurdwara) representing some of the religious beliefs we have in our school," Marie told the Leinster Express / Laois Live.

The buildings were then placed in their own 'Summerhill Village'.

Their parents all got a chance to meet and view the model.

An exhibition was held on Thursday, February where the 6th Class pupils showcased their village and their knowledge on the various religions. Parents, family, staff and pupils all attended the exhibition.

Educate Together schools aim to provide "equality of access and esteem to children irrespective of their social, cultural or religious background", and are democratically run and child centred. There are 117 such schools in Ireland.