2024 Newsletter #11 June 19
- Principal News
- Student Led Conferences - Wednesday 25th June & Thursday 26th June
- End of Term 2 2024
- Religious Education News
- Foundation Unit news
- Junior Unit News
- Middle Unit News
- Hands Up Mallee
- St Paul's History- The Early-Ch.11
- Sts Anne and Joachim Catholic Parish Bulletin
- Parent Noticeboard
- AusKick - Hosted at St Paul's - $50 per child
Principal News
Dear St Paul's families,
Welcome to this week's news.
PRINCIPAL APPOINTMENT: Congratulations to Mrs Sutherland who has been appointed as the new principal of St Paul's commencing at beginning of 2025 school year.. Melissa is very deserving of this appointment. She has been and continues to be an amazing educator and advocate for Catholic education in Sunraysia.
CONGRATULATIONS: On behalf of the St Paul's community I would like to thank Mrs Marg Pongrac for her wonderful service to St Paul's as our librarian teacher since 2012. Marg will be taking long service leave for the remainder of the year as she transitions into retirement. We will have an opportunity to formally farewell Ms Marg and I know we will all miss her joy, enthusiasm and love of learning at St Pauls; and most importantly, her beautiful smile. Wednesday 26th June will be Ms Marg's last day.
CONSULTATION: Today we have Finnish Education expert and professor at Melbourne Uni, Pasi Sahlberg visiting us at St Paul's. Pasi will be accompanied by Dave Runge, director of Future Schools and Catholic Education Ballarat's Executive Director Tom Sexton. As part of the co-design of the new DOBCEL Strategic Plan, Dave and Pasi are visiting all schools across the diocese to understand our context. This visit is intended to be conversational, they are here to find out what our school does well and what our challenges and opportunities are. It is very exciting to have such internationally renowned education experts in our school and we look forward to their visit.
VISIT: Yesterday, I received a phone call from the office of Dr Anne Webster (Federal Member of Parliament) informing me that today, Mr Darren Chester, the Shadow minister for Regional Education would like to visit St Paul's primary school. Mr Chester wants to develop a better understanding of education in regional Victoria and the positive impact we are having on our children's learning.
WELCOME: A special St Paul's welcome to Penny Phoutjantai who is completing her Learning Support Officer placement in J8 this week and next week.. I hope she enjoys her time with us and gains invaluable experience.
We also welcome Kailli Hafoka who will be completing her work experience at St Paul's for the last week of term.
MILDURA EISTEDDFOD: Good luck to our Middle and Senior Choirs who are performing at the Mildura Eisteddfod today and tomorrow. We know that you will represent our school well and reflect the wonderful and talented people that you are. Thank you to Mr Brouwers for his support with the children getting them ready to perform.
SENIOR UNIT LITURGY: The Senior unit will be hosting their liturgy on Friday 21st June morning at 9.15am All parents and friends are welcome to attend.
STUDENT LED CONFERENCES 25th and 26th June: Please book your Student Led Conference by going to SIMON Everywhere/Pam before the end of the week. If you have any problems doing this please contact the office and we can book a time for you.
REPORTS: Reports will be available to parents through PAM/SIMON Everywhere on Monday 24th June.
FUNDRAISER for BREAST CANCER: Next Wednesday the 26th June, is a casual clothes day for the children and we are encouraging them to wear pink to school in support of Breast Cancer research and awareness. It is a gold coin donation. Annually, over 20,000 people are diagnosed with Breast cancer in Australia. The overwhelming majority are women with a small percentage of men.
GRADE 6 TRANSITION DAY: As part of the transition process to secondary school, our Gr 6 students have a fantastic opportunity for a secondary school experience to St Joseph’s College on Tuesday 25 June. Parents should drop their child off directly at ENRIGHT CAMPUS (154 Twelfth Street Mildura) by 8.45am for a 9am start. A staff member will meet all students. They can be collected by parents at the end of the day (3.20pm). The college will provide a BBQ lunch for all students. Students are to wear casual clothes.
ST PAUL'S FEAST DAY Friday 28 June: The day will begin with a whole school mass at 9.15am in the hall. The children will have a modified timetable for the day and will be participating in a range of activities celebrating the life of St Paul. The children can wear casual clothes and suitable footwear as there are outside activities organised. St Paul was a faithful follower of Jesus, who proclaimed Jesus’ message of love across the nation. He became the greatest missionary. St Paul calls his followers to live lives filled with faith, hope and love.
LAST DAY OF TERM: Friday 28th June is the last day of Term Two. School will finish early as 2.25pm Assembly will be at 1.45pm
FAREWELL: We say farewell to Samuel Laiju J7, TJ Pham M1 & Lily Pham S13 who are leaving St Paul's at the end of the term. We wish them and their families all the best for the future.
ENROLMENTS 2025: Letters of offer for Foundation 2025 have been emailed (docu sign) out today. Current St Paul's families do not need to re-apply for enrolment in 2025. However to assist with our planning for next year if your family will be relocating etc in 2025 please let us know ASAP.
GOTCHA AWARDS: Congratulations to the following children for following our school norms and reaching important milestones.
BEE MILESTONE:
Elijah Hunt, Oliver Harradine, Hayley Rowe, Veronica Lotong, Annalise Goncalves-Wood, Rafael Mammone, Ariah Tickle & Hunter McInerney-Greco
HIVE MILESTONE:
Kyden Noble, Harry Traeger, Lily Dobricic, Claire Pitt, Sienna Mackay,Lola Droffelaar, Eli Thompson, Luke Hunt, Alirah Jones, Callum Humphrey, Jemma Trinh, Ruby Divola, Ira Janssen, Lorenzo Pettinau, Erika Nguyen, Levi Morton, Maggie Slimmon, Chaz Biddle, Chase Humphrey, Hayden Rowe, Jessica Allieu, Cohen Hateley, Nimrat Dhaliwal, Amalia Roccisano, Darius Davis, Mali King, Mike Hogan, Erin Taylor, Kimberly Dong, Sione Latukefu, Clinton Rose, Gurshaan Tiwana, Darcey Bysouth, Shani Singh, Neve Morton, Elise Davies, Cooper Chapple, Michelle Mithun, Mankirat Singh Bassi, Tapaita Pome’e, Emi Walter & Abbie Peters
CALENDAR UPDATES:
Wednesday 19th June- Senior Unit Choir Eisteddfod performance
Thursday 20th June - Middle Unit Choir Eisteddfod performance
Friday 21st June- Senior Unit Liturgy 9.15am
Monday 24rd June- Semester 1 Reports available
Tuesday 25th June- Yr 6 Transition Day St Joseph's College
- Student Led Conferences
Wednesday 26th June - Student Led Conferences
Friday 28th June - St Paul's Feast Day Liturgy- 9.15am in the hall
- Assembly 1.45pm in the hall
- School finishes 2.25pm
I hope everyone enjoys the last week and a half of term and has an enjoyable break over the holidays.
As always
Keep the Faith
Vince Muscatello
Principal
Student Led Conferences - Wednesday 25th June & Thursday 26th June
Student Led Conferences in the last week of the school term on Tuesday 25th and Wednesday 26th June from 3.45pm-5.45pm (excluding J7). Parents are invited to book a 15 minute time slot via SIMON Everywhere.
Student-Led Conferences are a meeting where students present their progress and achievements to their parents. Unlike traditional parent-teacher conferences, these meetings are led by the students themselves, encouraging them to take responsibility for their learning and development.
We encourage all parents to book a 15 min timeslot on the Simon Everywhere App.
- Select Parent Teacher Interviews from the Home screen.
- Select Child
- Select Student Led conference
- Select Class (this will default to their CORE class which is their usual classroom.
- Select Interview Time
- Book Interview
We look forward to as many families as possible attending to affirm the learning of our fabulous students.
End of Term 2 2024
Friday 28 June 2024 is the last day of school for Term 2.
**School will finish at the earlier time of 2.25pm.**
The school buses will be running to an earlier time table. Parents of children who make a connection to normal Main Road City Buses, please note that these buses run to the normal timetable.
Term 3 Classes for students will resume again on Monday 15th July 2024.
Religious Education News
Senior Unit Liturgy
This Friday 21st June, our Senior Unit will be celebrating their Co-Created Liturgy at 9.15am in our School Hall. They will be reflecting upon their Term 2 concept - Heritage. The Co-Created Prayer model was designed to maximise the engagement of all involved in the prayer experience, through the active participation in all of the planning. Over the past 4 weeks, our Senior Unit students have been working in four different groups planning our sacred space, sacred music, sacred word, sacred understanding and sacred prayers. They look forward to their special celebration, which they have been so actively involved in planning. We invite all families and friends to join us and we hope to see you there!
St Paul's Feast Day - Friday 28th June 2024
On Friday 28th June, we will be celebrating the feast day of St Paul. Our day will begin with a Whole School Liturgy at 9.15am in our School Hall. Following our liturgy, students will engage in learning about St Paul with their classes, as well as engage in some fun games and activities led by our House Leaders and our PLAY Leaders.
As it is the last day of term, students may wear casual clothes. Please ensure students are wearing enclosed shoes (runners) suitable for participation in physical activity. Parents and friends are most welcome to join us throughout the day!
If you would like to find out more about St Paul, please have a read below!
About St Paul:
Who was St Paul?
St Paul, originally known as Saul, was born in Tarsus (in modern-day Turkey) around the year 5 AD. He was a Roman citizen and a dedicated and committed Jew. Initially, he opposed followers of Jesus and even persecuted them. However, his life changed dramatically when he experienced a vision of Jesus while travelling to Damascus. This vision led him to convert to Christianity and became one of its most influential followers.
Key Teachings:
St Paul travelled extensively throughout the Roman Empire, spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ. His letters form a significant part of the New Testament in the Bible. In his writings, St Paul emphasised the importance of faith, love and forgiveness. He also taught about the unity of all believers in Christ, regardless of their background or nationality.
Missionary Journeys:
St Paul embarked on several missionary journeys to share the gospel (good news) of Jesus Christ. He travelled to cities such as Antioch, Ephesus, Corinth and Rome, often facing challenges and persecution. Despite these difficulties, he continued to preach and establish Christian communities, laying the foundation for the early Christian Church.
Legacy:
St Paul's teachings and writings have profoundly influenced Christian theology and ethics. He is regarded as the Apostle to the Gentiles for his efforts in spreading Christianity beyond Jewish communities. His courage, faith and dedication inspire people of all ages to live according to Christian principles.
St Paul's life is a testament to the transformative power of faith and the importance of spreading love and compassion. His legacy continues to be celebrated by Christians worldwide. Learning about St Paul helps us to understand the early history of Christianity and the enduring impact of his teachings on people's lives today.
Foundation Unit news
What a busy term we have had and we still have quite a few things to tick off before the end of the term next Friday 28th June..
I would like to say a big thank you to the parents and grandparents that came to our Liturgy last Friday in the Chapel at such short notice. The children were very respectful and made a wonderful re-enactment of the creation story. It was so beautiful to witness and we are very proud of all of them.
Next Thursday 27 June, the second last day of school, the Foundation Unit will be having a fun day to celebrate reaching the GOTCHA milestone of filling the cannisters. We made it! We are very excited to finish the term off on a wonderful high. More information will follow next week about the outline of the day.
Student Led Conferences are next week on Tuesday 25 and Wednesday 26 June if you have not yet booked a time.
We have had lots of children reaching 50 GOTCHA's and many of the children are deciding to be the teacher for an hour. In 16 years we should have some wonderful teachers heading out into schools from what we are seeing in their little lessons they are running. We have been putting their photos onto Facebook, so if you have missed it, go back into Facebook and have a look at the confident foundation students taking their own lessons.
On the last day of school we will be having a special St Paul's Day. At the end of the day the Foundation students will be performing some songs at assembly. The assembly will be at an earlier time slot to cater for the early finish.
We have noticed that a number of children are not wearing the correct uniforms. Can parents please ensure that your child is wearing the correct winter uniform, this also includes the correct coloured socks.
We need cardboard boxes! If anyone has spare cardboard boxes at home could you please send them in with your child asap.(cereal , muesli, biscuit boxes etc)
Junior Unit News
Gotcha Reward Day: On Wednesday the 21st June, the Junior Unit will be celebrating all of their hard work by enjoying our Gotcha Reward day! We are so proud of their efforts in upholding our school norms: Be Respectful, Be Safe and Be Your Best.
On this day, the whole school will be 'going pink' to raise money for the Breast Cancer Foundation. Students are invited to wear pink clothing.
Throughout the day the Junior students will participate in fun activities such as; art activities, a movie and free time.
We are looking forward to meeting with many of you next week as part of the Student Led Conferences. This is fantastic opportunity for students to share their learning with you. Please note that if you wish to discuss your childs report/academic progress, please arrange another suitable time with the classroom teacher.
Just a reminder that the term will finish next Friday 28th June at 2:25pm. We hope you have a wonderful winter break and look forward to seeing you back in Term 3!
Middle Unit News
This week we have continued learning about states of matter. To help with our learning, we conducted an experiment of making ice cream with only cream, milk, salt and ice. Before making the ice cream we completed our own Science Investigation Plan where we recorded the aim, method and results! We are happy to report that we were successful and were able to make our very own ice cream!
Hands Up Mallee
As we draw close to another term ending I would like to take this opportunity to say thank-you to all the parents who have supported their children in bringing their bikes and scooters to school on a Friday so they can enjoy them during lunch play. It is a great chance for them to learn new skills and road awareness in a safe and supported way. We use the time to not only have fun but to also remind them through games of obstacles that they may encounter such as learning to duck under trees without falling, practicing stopping suddenly, checking for traffic and dodging and weaving.
Each week, students will be reminded by their teachers on a Thursday which unit will be able to meet me. It is generally on a two week rotation - Foundation/Juniors one week and then Middle/Seniors the following week. I look forward to seeing more children taking the opportunity next term.
St Paul's History- The Early-Ch.11
The history of St. Paul’s can be seen as a continual development. That it exists can be said to be due to the foresight of Msgr. F. McKenzie and his committee who, although cautious at first, took the steps necessary to establish the school when the opportunity was there.
The school had shaky beginnings when everyone connected with it, and especially the staff, wondered if the open plan design was a mistake, but it can be seen, on looking back, that it has been a large factor in its development. The openness of the design has become a way of thinking, whereby teachers see beyond their own sphere and share ideas, suggestions and practical help.
The review of the school of October 1979 mentions:
“The educational leadership of the Principal”, (Review, page 3).
Sr. Pam came to the when it was at a low ebb and all her efforts were directed to unifying and developing the personnel concerned with the school. In this, she was instrumental in developing, what is remarked on by many visitors to the school, the atmosphere where:
“Pupils appeared to enjoy school”, “The friendliness in the staffroom” and “The active School Board”. (Review, pages 1 and 2).
Sr. Pam speaking of her time at St. Paul’s at the Annual General Meeting of 15th April, 1980 says:
“At first, in 1975, the task seemed overwhelming- the years have been ones of little successes, little failures, of struggles, of victories. Yet positive things have happened, the Spirit is alive and active. It’s good to meet youngsters of those first years and learn that their memories are happy ones and that they have fitted into their secondary schools.
It’s true our St. Paul’s community has had a lot of support- Our Priests Msgr. McKenzie, Fr. Dan Murphy, Fr Les (Sheahan), Fr. Gerry (Prunty)- Special Education Unit teachers, Educational Consultants Norm Lalor and Mick Burke, in-service concentrating on staff development and developing our mathematics and language program.
It’s relatively easy to work in your own classroom, close the doors, do your own thing, it’s much more challenging to work in a team… a lot more give and take is called for. Yet, if the staff can pull together… the reality of a Christian Community can be experienced by all”. (Page 2)
This, then, is what St. Paul’s has become.
Sts Anne and Joachim Catholic Parish Bulletin
Parent Noticeboard
Sunray Warriors 2024 - Places filling fast
Great news: Sunray Warrior is back for 2024, and registration is now OPEN for primary school-aged students.
Sunray Warriors is a multi-agency environmental event.
Here are the details:
Dates: September 10 & 11 (Tuesday and Wednesday) 2024
Location: Mildura South Sporting Precinct
Students will enjoy four 30-minute hands-on interactive activities with an environmental focus.
Morning session to start at 9.30 – 12.00 pm. Afternoon session to start at 12.00 pm – 2.35 pm
To register: https://forms.office.com/r/fYXaubibMW
Registrations close: Friday 2nd August 2024
AusKick - Hosted at St Paul's - $50 per child
