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An author and mindfulness coach is about to try to nurture a love a reading in children across Charleville and Doneraile.
Marie O’Halloran has taken up the role of Cork County Council’s Reader in Residence for 2025 and will work with pupils in Charleville CBS Boys School and Doneraile National School.
In this role, Marie will encourage pupils to seek out stories, poems, scripts, jokes, picture books, audiobooks and songs in areas that interest them. A further connection with reading and creating stories is supported through drawing and creative activities.
Funded by Creative Ireland, the Reader in Residence programme aims to inspire a lifelong positive relationship with reading and stories, whatever way they are structured or in whatever language the pupil wants.
The programme also aims to support teachers and the curriculum by connecting reading to other subjects such as science, history, geography, music and art.
Speaking about the programme, Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Joe Carroll said: “Reading brings people together and gives people space to explore their own imagination and creativity. Marie O’Halloran’s skills in mindfulness creates a space for pupils to connect with their own creativity in a calm and safe environment, where there are no wrong answers and difference is actively encouraged.
“Marie is a welcome member of our creative residency programme, joining writer Leeanne O’Donnell and historian Shannon Forde to connect all ages to creativity and to the county they call home.”
Marie O’Halloran publishes female-led crime novels under the name Casey King. Fellow crime novelists also consult with her as she holds a diploma in policing studies, along with a diploma in coaching/coaching psychology and a masters in wellbeing.
The Reader in Residence brief combines Marie’s skills in writing, facilitating, coaching, mindfulness, and her love of reading.
Pupils are also making the most of Cork County Council’s library service, with CBS continuing regular visits to Charleville Library, whilst Canon Sheehan Primary School in Doneraile are visited by one of Cork County Council’s four mobile libraries.
It is hoped that the Reader in Residence programme will extend to additional locations across the county over the coming years.