Our Staff

Nicola Corr

Nicola Corr is an AMI trained 3-6 and 6-12 Directress. She has been working with the 6-9 Class in The Children’s House Primary since 2005. Before joining The Children’s House Primay, Nicola worked with the 3-6 age group in Cork. Nicola has also trained with the Dyslexia Association of Ireland and works closely with children with Specific Learning Difficulties. Outside of work Nicola loves to travel and bring her experiences back into the classroom.

Orla O’Duffy

Orla is an AMI trained 3-6+ Directress (Sion Hill). She spent two years working in a Montessori school in New York before returning to Ireland. She has been teaching young children for 35 years. Orla also spent some time doing voluntary work in Kenya. Orla attended a Montessori school herself from the age of 3! Outside work Orla enjoys singing and is a member of two choirs. She is a keen but often frustrated golfer!

Alison Pigot

Alison holds an AMI 3-6 Montessori Diploma, has over 30 years experience and is our Deputy Principal. Having originally studied Mathematics and Psychology at UCD she felt that her calling was the teaching of young children. Over the years she has taken part in many refresher courses run all over the world by AMI Montessori. She was President of the AATI in Ireland for many years. Recently she completed a Certificate in Special and Inclusive education run by DCU and St Patrick’s College of Education. Alison has a passion for  hockey, sailing,  golf and gardening. She encourages the children to look after our beautiful garden here in The Children’s House Primary.

Janet Irwin 

Janet holds AMI 3-6 and 6-12 diplomas and a Benincasa Diploma in Special Education. She has taught children in 3-6, 6-9 and 9-12 Montessori classes. For nineteen years she taught all subjects including EAL (English as an Additional Language) in a boarding school for Mexican girls in Co. Wicklow.

Janet was an AMI National Examiner for twenty years for the 6-12 Training Course in Dublin. She joined TCHP in 2020 and works in the 9-12 class. She also shares her great love of handcraft with the 6-12 children. She is very keen on life-long learning.

Outside of school, Janet loves playing tennis, quilt making, travelling, gardening and doing many different crafts!

Deirdre Bascug

Deirdre has a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood from the Philippines. She also received her AMI 3-6 Diploma from Santiago de Compostela and has completed the AMI 6-12 Orientation course. Deirdre has a lot of experience working with young children. She helps run our After School programme.

Outside of working with children, Deirdre likes to travel, bake and do handcrafts.

Eike Treanor

Eike is the founder of Purely Yoga, which began in 2005. She has been teaching yoga to all ages since 2005.  She trained at Birthright & The Elbow Room. In addition, she received specialized training in children’s yoga from the Yoga Bugs program along with many other yoga courses. Eike is also an accredited Play Therapist.

She has taught yoga for children at The Children’s House Primary for over 15 years and teaches in many other local schools. Some of our past pupils still practise Yoga with Eike in their senior schools.

When not teaching or practicing yoga, Eike enjoys keeping fit, playing board games & Uno with her own children and trying out new sports!

William Mansfield

William joined The Children’s House Primary over a decade ago. As a retired school Principal he is now dedicating himself to drama. He has taught many classes over the years as well as directed plays and musicals. He has  been a member of St Patrick’s Dramatic Society, Dalkey for 40 years during which time he has acted and directed on the All-Ireland One Act circuit and in the Pavilion Theatre. A great guide of TCHP productions over the years he states, “I believe that what children bring to drama is fascinating with their energy and different perspective”.

Edd Charmant

Edd joined The Children’s House Primary in 2007 as Friday karate teacher. He has a great interest in the benefits of sport/physical activities & fitness on positive mental/emotional wellbeing.

Edd has been instructing students (from 4yrs to adults 70yrs) nationally & internationally for over 30yrs. He holds black belt degrees in various martial arts including a 4th dan in Shotokan karate. He gained an instructor’s licence in 2007 from the JKS. He holds a certificate in Embedding mental health in a curriculum,  a BA degree in Economics & Archaeology, a diploma in computer animation, graphics & multimedia applications.

Edd is a professional media composer/music producer with many TV credits  and holds certificates & diplomas in cinematic music composition/ virtual orchestration & production.

Celia Morrissey

Celia recently joined the staff at The Children’s House Primary in 2019. She trained in Sion Hill, Co.Dublin and holds the AMI 3~6 Diploma, AMI 6~12 Diploma, the Benincasa Certification in Special Education and has over 35 years teaching experience across all the age groups. Celia also enjoys golf, gardening and a more recent interest is bird watching!

Karen Hogan

Karen joined the school in 2013, coming from a background in healthcare management. She had over twenty years of experience as a First Aid instructor working mainly with children.

Since then, she has completed courses in Early Learning Education and Special Needs Training. She now holds a diploma in Early Childhood Care and education, with a focus on children with additional needs. She is continuing to learn about the Montessori method at every opportunity.

Outside the school, Karen’s interests are First Aid, Crafting, Fashion, and Interior Design.

Rhona Reedie

Rhona joined TCHP in 2013 as our Administrator. She has a Master’s Degree in English Literature and an RSA Diploma in Teaching English as a Foreign language.  She has taught English in many countries including India, Turkey, Kuwait and Egypt. While working on an education development project in Saudi Arabia she met her Irish husband and since then Ireland has been her home!

She enjoys art, crafts and travel and is currently studying Textiles part-time at NCAD so as to further expand her skills in this area.

Róisín Ní Chonchúir

Róisín completed her primary and secondary education through the medium of Irish, achieving fluency in the language. She holds a BA in Economics and German from University College Dublin (UCD) and a Level 9 Master’s in International Marketing Management and French from the Technical University of Dublin, formerly known as the College of Marketing and Design.

Róisín spent eight years in Brussels, working as an expert for the European Commission under the Innovation Programme. Upon returning to Ireland, she continued her career in the fields of technology, innovation, and educational programmes.

Róisín lived in the heart of the Gaeltacht in Kerry for several years and spends every summer there, immersing herself in the Irish language.

In her free time, Róisín enjoys swimming, hillwalking, cycling, and skiing. She is also deeply passionate about art and all things crafty.

Maria Jose Lopez de Lara Gonzalez

Maria is a passionate educator committed to fostering lifelong learning. She completed her Pedagogy degree at Universidad Panamericana, Mexico, in 2010 and moved to Ireland in 2012 for international experience, where she discovered her profound connection with Montessori education.

Maria pursued AMI certification for ages 3-6 at the Montessori Institute of San Diego, USA, and for ages 0-3 at Instituto Montessori Valencia, Spain. Her training solidified her belief in the AMI approach, which she believes offers children unparalleled opportunities to reach their full potential. In her free time, Maria enjoys traveling, hiking, and crafting.

Ana Lopez-Quevedo Carles