2024 Newsletter #04 March 20

Principal News

Dear St Paul’s families,

Welcome to this week’s update. It’s a little unnerving that we only have a week left of school until the Easter holidays.

ST PAUL’S TRIVIA NIGHT: Last chance to buy tickets for our Trivia night which will be held this Friday night.  Tickets can be purchased online through CDF pay.  If you do not have a table, we can certainly add you to one.  This is a great opportunity to meet new families and raise funds for our new goal posts for the John Hill Oval.  Doors open from 6.30pm for a 7.00pm start.

Thank you to those families and businesses who have donated goods and Services so far. We are extremely grateful for your support. 

Our sponsors and donors are:

King Construction Group
Hards Homes
Jim’s Carpet Cleaning
PoolWerX Mildura
Mangan Developments
Australian Garlic
MyHealth Solutions
The Setts
Intersport Mildura
Adriano Aiello-Ray White Mildura

There are lucky door prizes, raffle and auction items, including children’s artwork, on the night. It is sure to be a fun night.

NAPLAN: Well done to the children in Year & 5 who have participated in the NAPLAN assessment over the last week.  It can be a little daunting for some, but it always provides us with useful data to compare with our own and track student progress.

CONGRATULATIONS:  
Congratulations to Mackenzie and Murphy Mangan who received the sacrament of Baptism on the weekend at Sacred Heart Church.  A very special moment for them and their family.

ST JOSEPH’S COLLEGE: Yesterday the Year 5 children had the opportunity to visit St Joseph’s College and participate in a range of activities across the campuses. This is a part of the transition program and is a nice introduction to secondary life.  

HARMONY DAY: Tomorrow the children will be celebrating Harmony Day at school with various activities planned. Thank you to the staff who are on the planning committee and have organised the resources and activities for the children.  We are very blessed at St Paul’s with our diverse and multicultural community.  I think it is one of the things that makes St Paul’s so unique and a great place to be.  Students may wear casual clothes with orange on it.

PUPIL FREE DAYS: Thursday 28^th March and Monday 15^th April are both Pupil Free days.  The staff will be participating in Professional Learning on those days at School.  On Thursday  28^th  March we will continue our Structured Literacy Journey as we further embed best practice in teaching literacy.  Next term, on Monday 15^th April, we will be working with Shane Garner with our focus centred on wellbeing.

ASSEMBLY: There will be no assembly this Friday as we have a short week next week for the end of term. Assembly will be next Wednesday 27th March @2.45pm.

LAST WEEK OF TERM: There are lots of things happening in the last week so please check the calendar.

Wednesday 27^th March:

Last day for students. School will finish at 3.25pm.

9.15am- Holy Week Whole School Liturgy will be celebrated in the hall.

10.00am – Foundation & Junior Unit Easter Bonnet Parade.

2.45pm – Assembly & Easter Continuous Raffle

ST PAUL’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY: Check out this week’s history of St Paul’s as it ends 1974. Next term we will find out more about 1975.

EASTER HOLIDAYS: As we near the end of term and prepare for the Easter celebrations, I hope you all have a happy and safe holiday with family.  Easter for many Catholics is the most important event in the Church’s calendar as we recognise the sacrifice Jesus made for us all.  Have a happy and Holy Easter!

GOTCHA AWARDS- Congratulations to this week’s milestone achievers for following our school norms:

Be Safe, Be Respectful and Be Your Best!

Bee Milestones - Dustin Simmons, Helen Mouzakis, Veronica Lotong, Zalee Le Poidevin, Mayta Tamangaro, Hayley Rowe, Sam Mafi-Reale, Mackenzie Mangan, Dazzle Douglas, Freyja Thake, Elsie Freeman, Niro Arden, Tiffany Tiyagu, Luna Fenech, Wernix Teoh, George Thomas, Callum Humphrey, Nico Pettinau, Lavinia Fatanitavake, Franco Pettinau, Farai Nyabonda, Hugo Blagus, Ariah Tickle, Poppy Thannhauser, Nhalla Tabinas, Grace Panagopoulos, Nicholas Horne, Jett Yates, Emmy Rayson, Jack O’Callaghan, Ryan McDonald, Sienna Humphrey, Taylor Burns, Alice Blanchard, Khloe Garland, Faye Ratcliffe, Jenny Tran, Treeza Jessil, Lucien Graham-O’Connor, Aisha Smythe, Jassi Benipal, Heidi Slimmon, Murphy Mangan, Nicholas Caminiti, Chaz Biddle, Alyson Morshedi, Sofia Cricelli, Samuella Allieu, Clayton Body, Mike Hogan, Sione Latukefu, Tapaita Pome’e, Ruby Powell, Mischa Pascale, Michael Davies, Samuel Midgley, Jasmeet Bassi, Emma Williams, Hollie Tickle & Indy Baker

Hive Milestones -Taylor Burns, Nicholas Horne, Olly Morton, Oliver Harradine & Charlie Stephens

I hope you all have a great week and enjoy the weekend.

As always,

Keep the Faith

Vince Muscatello

End of Term 1 2024

Wednesday 27th March is the last day of school for Term 1 for students.   

**School will finish at the normal time of 3.25pm.**  

Buses run to the normal everyday timetable.

Thursday 28th March is a Pupil Free day, Professional Development day for staff.

Monday 15th April is a Pupil Free day, Professional Development day for staff.   

Term 2 Classes for students will resume again on TUESDAY 16th April 2024

Religious Education News

Holy Week Liturgy

Next Wednesday 27th March 2024, we will be celebrating Holy Week with a Whole School Liturgy at 9.15am in our School Hall. Parents, family and friends are most welcome to join us in our celebration. 

Sacrament of Confirmation

This year, students in Grade 3 and above are able to celebrate their Sacrament of Confirmation. A registration form has been sent home with students in Grade 3, who made their First Reconciliation last year. Registration forms will need to be completed and dropped off to the St Anne and Joachim Parish Office by 4pm on Wednesday 27th March. Parents and / or guardians will also need to attend a Parent Information Evening next Wednesday 27th March at 7pm at the Sacred Heart Church. If you have any further questions regarding the Sacrament of Confirmation, please don't hesitate to contact the Parish Office on 5021 2872.   

Middle Unit Liturgy

This Friday 22nd March, our Middle Unit will be celebrating their Unit Liturgy at 9.15am in our School Chapel. With the great support and guidance from their classroom teachers and LSO's, the Middle Unit students have co-created the liturgical celebration, including the writing of the prayers, presenting of the scripture, choosing the songs and the incorporation of symbolism within the sacred space. The co-created model was designed to maximise the engagement and involvement of all during the prayer experience and we look forward to seeing this engagement and excitement this Friday. Parents, extended family and friends are most welcome to  join them in their celebration      

St Anne and Joachim Parish Masses for Holy Week and Easter 

If any families or friends would like to attend any of the Holy Week and Easter Masses within the St Anne and Joachim Parish, the times are detailed below: 

Palm Sunday: 

9am @ Mildura 

Holy Thursday - Mass of the Lord's Supper:

5pm - Merbein

6pm - Red Cliffs

7pm - Mildura

Good Friday - Celebration of the Lord's Passion

9am - Mildura, Stations of the Cross

3pm - Merbein

3pm - Red Cliffs

3pm - Mildura

Holy Saturday - Easter Vigil in the Holy Night

6pm - Mildura

6pm - Red Cliffs 

Easter Sunday - Mass of the Lord's Resurrection

8.30am - Irymple

9am - Mildura

10.30am - Merbein

11am - Werrimul 

Please note, there is no 5pm Mass. 

If you have any questions regarding Holy Week and Easter Celebrations within the Parish, please contact the Parish Office. 

Foundation Unit News

Welcome to Week 8!

Wow, what a busy term we have had and it is hard to believe we are almost at the end.

Just a few reminders as we finish up the term:

• Tomorrow is HARMONY day. Children are required to dress in orange and will be learning about how we all belong. We appreciate and celebrate each other's cultures and the diversity it brings to our school.
• Children are required to make their Easter Bonnets at home for the parade next Wednesday in the hall at 10:00am. (We hope to see you there)
• Health Questionnaires need to be completed online ASAP. This is an opportunity for the health nurse to check hearing, vision, speech, dental, motor skills and behaviour and social skills. Please scan the code below or visit https://students.educationapps.vic.gov.au/s/ and answer the questions. If this is not filled in, unfortunately the nurse will not be able to assess your child. 

Starting next term in Week 2 the children will be rostered on each week to be

“Star of the Week”.

This is one week in the school year where your child gets to be celebrated and acknowledged more than usual.

This will mean that your child will have certain privileges and responsibilities for that week. During their time as “Star of the Week” they will:

• Wear a star to be identified
• Be the line leader
• Sit on a special stool during mat time
• Complete special jobs
• Receive a certificate at the end of the week

They can also bring in show and tell on the Friday of their week to share with the children.

Junior Unit News

Imperials Football Clinic: The Junior Unit students absolutely loved having the opportunity to participate in the Footy Clinic provided by Imperials Football Club. 

Footy Clinic

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Literacy Learning: 

The Grade 1 students have been learning how to write sentences using the conjunctions: because, but and so. Conjunctions are used to expand a sentence and provide more information. For example: Australia is ours to share so everyone should feel welcome. 

The Grade 2 students have been learning how to identify and convert fragments to sentences. A sentence is a group of words that is made of two parts:

1. A who/what (which is also called the subject).
2. A what doing (which is also called a verb).

For example: the dog (fragment) converted to a sentence: The dog was fetching a stick in the park. 

We are super impressed with how well students are engaging in our Literacy block each morning! 

Middle Unit News

In Numeracy, students have been learning their times tables. Grade 3s have been learning their 2, 5 and 10 facts, while the Grade 4s have been learning their 8 times tables. A practice chart will be sent home with your child this week. Please encourage your child to practice their times tables throughout the school holidays.

Congratulations to the Grade 3 students who have completed their first ever NAPLAN assessments throughout Week 7  and 8. The students gave each assessment their all, and we are so proud of our bunch of SMARTIES!

In Religion, students have been busy preparing for our upcoming liturgy.  On Friday students will host our first co-constructed liturgy for a year. A co-constructed liturgy gives the students ownership and involvement in the planning and running of our liturgy. Students choose one specailty area; Sacred Space, Sacred Prayer, Sacred Music or Sacred Word, and are in charge of setting the theme, writing and reading prayers, portraying the Gospel or choosing and singing songs. It has been fabulous to see a high level of participation in our planning and we are looking forward to sharing this special mass with our family and friends. 

Last week students enjoyed being involved in an AFL clinic run by Ben Tallent and Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti (ex AFL player). We throughly enjoyed learning some skills and hearing Tipa's story about becoming an AFL star. 

Senior Unit News

What a busy few weeks we have had in the Senior Unit! 

We had a fantastic time away in Adelaide on our Senior Camp. It was so encouraging to hear positive feedback from instructors and members of the public alike about student behaviour throughout our stay - well done everyone! You can see lots of photos of camp on the St Paul's Facebook Page. 

NAPLAN

Our Grade 5s have powered through their NAPLAN in the past week and have done an excellent job of applying themselves and putting their best effort in. Well done! 

Grade 6 Lower Murray Water Visit

Last Thursday, our Grade 6s visited Lower Murray Water's bushland garden as part of their Inquisitive unit - Biological Sciences, Adapting to Survive. Students were treated to a scavenger hunt where they found colourful rocks and some interesting emoji toys! Students also built their very own terrarium made from household items. 

Grade 5 St Joseph's Visit

Yesterday, our Grade 5s got to experience a taste of what students get up to at St Joseph's Mercy campus. 

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Chromebooks

Please ensure student Chromebooks are brought to school every day and fully charged ready to be used in the classroom. 

Harmony Day - Thursday 21st March 2024

Celebrating Harmony Day: Embracing Diversity in Our School Community

As we step into the vibrant month of March, we are thrilled to celebrate Harmony Day, a special occasion that holds profound significance in fostering unity, understanding, and appreciation for the rich tapestry of cultures that make up our diverse school community.

What is Harmony Day?
Harmony Day, observed on March 21st each year, is a celebration of cultural diversity, promoting inclusiveness, respect, and a sense of belonging for all. It is a day for us to reflect on the beauty of our differences and the strength that comes from embracing various cultures, languages, and traditions.

What activities is St Paul's doing to recognise the day?

All students will particpate in a Harmony Day lesson and are welcome to wear casual clothes with orange. Remember students must wear closed in shoes eg: runners

St Paul's Trivia Night - Friday 22nd March

Thank  you to families who have purchased their tickets for Trivia Night this Friday 22nd March @7pm.  There are only 4 tables left.  Come and join us for a fun night to raise money for the SAC to purchase new goal posts.   BYO Drinks & Nibbbles.

Tickets are still available to purchase online through the CDFpay shop (QR code above)  up until Friday 12pm. $10 per ticket.  Tickets will be sent home with your child. 

Reminder this is event is for Adults only. 

Technology News

It's National eSmart Week!

National eSmart week is a week-long celebration of all the incredible work schools and libraries around the country do to promote positive digital citizenship. Here at St Paul's we; have a Technologies specialist subject that teaches students the importance of being safe and secure online, but also how to harness the power of the internet to be content creators not just consumers of online content; We participate in the Inform and Empower live incursions with Marty and the team to further develop staff, student and our school communities understanding of cyber safety and digital wellbeing; and we are an eSmart accredited school. 

The eSmart Program is an initiative of the Alannah & Madeline Foundation, designed to empower students to be safe and responsible online. It encompasses a range of learning tools and resources to help students build essential digital and media literacy skills, so they can thrive online.

So far this week, to celebrate eSmart week, year 1 students have learned more about the internet and how it is similar to a theme park. Not only are they both fun and have new things to see and do, but they can both be a bit scary, confusing and make us worry. Check out the song we learned from Damo, a member of the Inform and Empower team. Even better, if your child is in year 1, play the video and listen and watch as they sing along with actions.

After learning the song, we had a very important conversation about how to seek help if we experience those uncomfortable feelings when using the internet.  We all agreed we needed trusted adults who can help us and made a helping hand to remind us of who our trusted adults are.

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For the Parents/Carers...

As many of the staff at St Paul's are parents ourselves, we understand just how hard it can be to raise children in this new age with the internet readily available on all devices. Not to mention the apps - tiktok, facebook, instagram & snapchat just to name a few.

That is why we are sharing with you the open letter below written by psychologist, mum and eSafety endorsed Carley McGauran. If nothing else, at least read and consider the ten ideas Carley shares that you can put into action 'today so your children can be safer and healthier online'.

Lastly, remember, if you have any questions, queries or concerns regarding cyber safety or digital wellbeing of your children, we are here to support you. Feel free to email me at nsimms@spmildura.catholic.edu.au anytime.

Regards,

Mrs Narelle Simms

Hands Up Mallee

Celebrate National Ride2School Day which is taking place this Friday 22^nd March, by discovering the joy of active travel and kickstarting new healthy habits for the future. Riding/scooting to school can be a simple way in which children can get their 30 minutes physical activity in and set them up for a positive start to their day.

Any student who rides, walks or scoots to school can have the opportunity to enter a draw to win some new headphones or an Intersport Gift Card compliments of Sunraysia Community Health Services. You may choose to scan the QR code to enter or see Narelle Simpson for a form.

As we have done the past ANY student who rides or scoots to school on Friday will be able to use their bike/scooter during the first half of lunch play on the basketball courts. This is the 3rd year that we have offered this and it is always a very popular day. It has also been pleasing to see that a few more students are riding to school since we started to offer bike and scooter play every Friday to different units. 

St Paul's History-The Early Years Ch. 4

Two facts are immediately obvious, the former area was very small and cramped for the children and the latter was very large.

It now became obvious that the period of time spent in the Hall was an invaluable preparation for the successful operation of the junior classes.

The two problems that became obvious, the overcrowding and the necessity of strict timetabling because of different groupings, presented some problems, especially the former. This was because they were adjacent to an empty area that was set aside for the library, but the teachers were told that it could not be used as teaching space. This was in case an inspector arrived who was concerned with a grant for a Pilot Library which had been applied for.

Groups were formed for Mathematics and language activities by using teacher observation and informal assessment. Most children, in fact, remained with their previous teacher for these skill areas. The day’s timetable showed these subjects and Religious Education were treated in the morning, with home or mixed groups being used in the afternoon.

The teachers decide to work in a thematic way, with the theme entering as many areas as possible. Planning was done by meetings of the teachers outside of school hours.

Problems were encountered in the senior area. At the end of the 2^nd term, the senior staff wondered if it would be possible to keep their grades for home groups and to gradually introduced mixed grouping as children and teachers got to know each other. This was not to be and the Principal organised the children into groups without consulting the teachers.

Also, testing had not taken place for Mathematics and Language and no tests had been decided on. Each grade had been working in different ways in these areas, so there was no common ground.

Equipment was also a problem as the senior grades brought very little with them from Sacred Heart School. A new reading scheme, Young Australia Scheme, had been bought that was unfamiliar to all except the migrant teacher. New Mathematics equipment had been bought, but this was also foreign to teachers and children.

The problem of space in this area was the opposite from the junior area – here there was too much and the children reacted by missing it. The main problems, as indicated from the Principal’s evaluation of November 1974 and a report by the four teachers involved in this area of December 1974, could be summed up as follows:

1. No definition of the term “open”
2. Lack of preparation, particularly in senior area in the way of communicating about subject areas, groupings, responsibilities, equipment.
3. Pressure was felt because staff thought that somehow St. Paul’s should be “different”, but no one knew how.
4. A breakdown of communication between the Principal and staff.

At the end of 1974, the school was an unhappy place. The main area of friction was between the principal and the senior staff. The children in Grades 3 to 5 had not settled in at all well and a feeling of failure was felt in areas of discipline, communication and curriculum development.

The staff were required to go before a committee who were reviewing positions for 1975. After the interviews, two teachers from the senior area transferred to Sacred Heart School, Mildura and St. Joseph’s Red Cliffs. The third teacher had previously resigned to return to Port Fairy and the migrant teacher had also resigned. The staff in the junior area remained intact. During the Christmas holidays, the Principal was transferred and Sr. Pam Barlow appointed.

Also appointed were three experienced teachers and one Aquinas College graduate which meant that at the beginning of 1975 the staff and children in the senior area were entirely unknown to each other.

During the third term, a meeting was held with the idea of establishing a Mother’s Club. Regular meetings began in 1975. The Mother’s Club has been instrumental in organizing the canteen, as well as other fund-raising activities including street stalls, raffles, selling sweets and ice-creams at football finals, contract cleaning of telephone boxes, and support of the White Elephant Sale and Bingo catering.

Learning Diversity News

The Root Cause - Standing for Children's Health

Sts Anne and Joachim Catholic Parish Bulletin

Parent Noticeboard