The National Children’s Choir is a school-based choral experience for primary school children. Pupils from 4th, 5th or 6th class in our school learn a repertoire of songs that more than satisfies many objectives of the music curriculum at the senior end of primary school.

The programme is selected and prepared by its three Musical Directors, Órla Gillan, Anne Purcell and Mairéad Déiseach, who then train teachers at a summer course to deliver the programme to their pupils during the following school year.

The children learn the repertoire in our school, taught by their own teacher. Throughout the year, they join with other local schools on three occasions to rehearse the songs. These rehearsals are led by Mrs Máirín O'Keeffe, Principal of Drumshanbo N.S., Co Leitrim and an Assistant Musical Director. The local rehearsals are generally hosted by our school and take place in St Mary's Community Centre with a regional rehearsal taking place in Scoil Eimear, Longford Town.

Every child will participate in a local concert held in St Mel's Cathedral which in the past has been compèred by a former teacher of St Mary's N.S., Mrs Williams. Practices for this concert are facilitated by St Joseph's N.S., Longford Town. A percentage of children from each participating school is selected to perform in the National Concert Hall, Dublin under the baton of the musical directors.

​The National Children's Choir runs every second year. In the 2018 - 2019 school year, 9,301 children from 139 Primary Schools nationwide, performed in 28 concerts singing 15 songs from classical to pop, folk to musical theatre, traditional to newly composed, unison to 4 part harmony, and in many languages.

​Quality choral singing is alive and well in our school thanks to our talented, hard working, enthusiastic and dedicated teachers, who teach the National Children's Choir repertoire alongside the rest of the curriculum.

Unfortunately, due to Covid-19, the National Children's Choir has not been able to perform since 2019. However, we look forward to participating again in the near future.