Issue #9 11th June 2025
Principal's Update
Car Park Safety Reminder – Let’s Keep Our Students Safe!
While we frequently share safety reminders about our carpark, more recently we have seen an increase in problematic behaviour from parents and carers. I remind all parents and carers to drive carefully and attentively in and around the school car park. There have been a number of near misses involving students, which serve as an important reminder of the need to stay alert at all times. Road safety is a shared responsibility, and one that we all play a vital role in supporting. Thank you for your cooperation and care while we work together to keep our school community safe. Please take extra care to:
Drive slowly and remain vigilant, especially during drop-off and pick-up times.
- Watch for students using the pedestrian crossing and give way at all times.
- Do not park across or queue across a pedestrian crossing, often our 'walkers' group is made to wait as there is no safe passage across the road.
- Parking rear-to-curb is a rule in our carpark, please adhere to this.
Only park in designated car spaces – avoid double parking, stopping in the bus bay (even to quickly drop off), or parking on the grass area of the driveway. All of these are illegal in our carpark.
- Do not use the gates near the oval as a 'Kiss and Drop' area. We see cars have near misses with children and other cars in this area almost daily. Park only in designated car spaces.
Never call children to cross through moving traffic or between cars.
Year 6 in Canberra Last week our fabulous leaders enjoyed three days away in Canberra. They had a wonderful time, and represented our school so well. They travelled to the War Memorial, Parliament House, Questacon, The Electoral Commision, Old Parliament House, the Dinosaur Museum, the National Capital Exhibition and the AIS. You may have seen some of their fun on our school Facebook page! They were exhausted on their return on Friday evening. A huge thank you to the staff who attended, it is a long three days of supervision as students move about these venues.
Students from our school have recently undertaken an education tour of the national capital. Students were given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia’s history, culture, heritage, and democracy. The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion the Australian Government is contributing funding of $30 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the excursion.
Broken Bay Cross Country A few weeks ago we saw our largest group of runners attend the Broken Bay Cross Country. Everyone tried their best and were great representatives of our school, well done! Congratulations to Isabella W, Ivie T, Madison R and Flynn B who all finished in the top 8 at Broken Bay, and proceeded to Polding Cross Country, which is being held today at Horsley Park. Good luck to our runners!
Reports and Parent Teacher Meetings Semester 1 reports will be sent home next Friday 20th June. Reports are sent to parents through Compass, and they will be available from 3.15pm. Parent Teacher meetings are then held the following week, 23rd - 26th June. Teachers will be available across various mornings and afternoons through the week. On the Wednesday of that week, 25th June, all teachers make times between 12.00pm and 6.00pm to meet with parents. Children will be supervised in grade groups between 12.00pm and 3.15pm that day. All meeting timeslots are 15 minutes, and we encourage all parents to make a booking to discuss the effort, learning gains and achievements of your child. Please log into your Compass app, go to 'Conferences' and follow the prompts. 6 Gold parents a reminder that your meetings are in Term 3, Week 2.
Year 6 Leadership Day Annually, our Year 6 students attend the online Leadership Day, along with the other 36 primary schools in our diocese. Yesterday our students attended this day, where they were able to listen to and ask questions of Bishop Anthony, and also our Director of Schools, Danny Casey. The students also participated in a number of activities in their classroom and on the oval. Thank you to Mrs Kyle and our Year 6 teachers for leading the day.
Tech Club Did you know that we have a fantastic Tech Club at school? We have some innovative Year 5 and Year 6 tech leaders who assist Mrs Perry each Tuesday as they explore different components of technology. Over the last few weeks, students have been loving exploring photography in Tech Club. They have been looking at being creative by using filters, iPad positioning, self timer and mark up on photos. Students have taken some great photos.
Athletics Carnival Reminders Our Year 2-6 carnival will be held on Wednesday 2nd July at Mingara Athletics Centre. A note has been sent out through Compass. Please complete the form and choose your child's events as soon as possible, so that the events can be organised. 8yrs to 12yrs children can choose to compete in the timed championship events of 100m, 200m and 800m or they can choose the 50m and 70m which will be untimed events.
Our Kinder and Year 1 Carnival will be held here on our school oval on Friday 27th June (following Mass). At the conclusion of Mass (10.15am), children will have an early recess break, before beginning their activities at 10.40am. The carnival will go for approximately 1.5hours. The children will complete a rotation of activities including running races and fun relays during the morning. Although we do not require parent helpers, parents are very welcome to come along and cheer for your child from our parent viewing areas on the oval perimeter. No parents are allowed on the oval with the children.
Expression of Interest Notes Expression of Interest notes for Rugby League and Touch Football have gone out this week. These must be back by Tuesday 17th June. Notes will not be accepted after this time. Please call the office if your child still needs to receive a note.
Year 5 and Year 6 Soccer Gala Day Tomorrow our students will attend a fun soccer gala day with other Year 5 and Year 6 classes from across the Central Coast. Have a wonderful time!
ICAS Tests Last week you received a Compass message about ICAS Tests. These are optional assessments to extend students, offered to students in Years 2-6. Please read the attached letter (below) for further information.
Bus Safety This term, each grade is being visited by Busways on a Friday, for a bus safety talk. These have been great opportunities for all of our students to listen to the safety rules for travelling on a bus. Please ask you child about it.
Year 1 Excursion Our Year 1 children are very excited to be attending Hunter Wetlands Centre for their excursion this Friday. They will be able to explore the wetlands and see, close up, what creatures live in this environment. Have fun!
Open Classes During Week 10, we invite mums and dads to come in and share the classroom for the afternoon with your child. On the afternoon of Monday 30th June our classrooms will open for an hour - you are welcome to join us for as much time as you would like between 2.15pm-3.15pm. Children may also be signed out early after you have been in their classroom.
Save the Date - Grandparents Day 2025 Early next term we celebrate our grandparents, inviting them to share our school for the afternoon. More information will follow, but for now, please save the date for Friday 25th July from 12pm.
Staff Development Day Reminder As per our Term 2 calendar, Wednesday July 2nd is the last day of school for students for Term 2. Thursday 3rd and Friday 4th July are both Staff Development Days. Students return to school on Tuesday 22nd July. A full Term 3 calendar will be attached to our next newsletter.
From our REC
Year 4 Sunday Parish Mass
Our Year 4 students will be leading the ministries at this Sundays 9am Parish Mass. Our teachers have handed out many roles for Sunday morning. This is a wonderful opportunity to strengthen our relationship with our Parish. All students will sing a Thanksgiving song. All students preparing for the Sacrament of Eucharist will be presented to our Parish. The majority of students making their First Eucharist are from Year 4. Please bring a plate of food to share for morning tea after Mass.
Year 6 Leader's Day
Yesterday all the Year 6 students across our Diocese came together via zoom for a Leadership Day. The day was focused around the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her she was chosen by God to be the Mother of Jesus. We were blessed to hear from Bishop Anthony and Danny Casey our Director of Schools who unpacked the scripture for us. Bishop Anthony reflected on Mary's humility and how she always pointed us back to Jesus. Mr Casey shared with us that leadership can be hard as you have to make decision not everyone will like and the importance of standing up for those in need. The students participated in a variety of activities to reflect on the scripture. We finished the day with four actions:
- Be Brave
- Be Kind
- Listen to God's call
- Step forward and be the leader God wants you to be
Sacred Heart Mass
On Friday 27th June Kindergarten and our Mini Vinnies team will lead our Sacred Heart Mass. Please join us if you are able to.
Winter Appeal
Our Mini Vinnies team have launched the Winter Appeal for 2025. If you have any pre-loved blankets or warm clothes, please send them into school. Each grade has been allocated a non-perishable food item. Our team is hoping to put together staple bags of non-perishable food to help those less fortunate than us. Please support us in this initiative.
Sacred Space 2 Green
Last week 2 Green shared their learning in Religion. They shared with our community the importance of Mary. The month of May has a focus on Mary.
Litugical Movement - Sunday 29th June 9am
Our Parish Feast Day is coming up on Sunday 29th June - Our Lady of Perpetual Succor. Our Parish has asked us if our students could prepare a liturgical movement following Communion. If your child would be interested in doing this and they are in Year 2 and above please contact the school office and let them know. If we get enough numbers, we will plan a liturgical movement for this event.
ICAS Assessments 2025
We will again be offering ICAS Assessments to students in Years 2-6. These are optional assessments to extend students. Please read the attached letter for further information.
Invitation to Register for the Sacrament of Confirmation
We are excited to invite children from Year 3 and above, who have been baptised, to register for the Sacrament of Confirmation. This is a significant milestone in their spiritual journey, and we look forward to supporting them through this important sacrament.
Please see the attached flyer for more information and register through the QR code provided.
We encourage you to take this opportunity to deepen your child's faith and connection with our community.
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