Newsletter #29 October 7
Principal's News
Dear St Paul's families,
Welcome back! It was wonderful to see everyone back at school on Monday. It has felt like forever since we last saw everyone. The children certainly looked happy to be back and to catch up with their friends. I know the staff were excited to see the children again. It has been a very long and exhausting journey for all involved. Hopefully you had an opportunity to recharge the batteries over the holidays, although the timing of Daylight Savings, no pun intended, could have been better planned. It will definitely take a few days to get used to the change in time on top of getting back into the school routine.
School this week has been finishing at 3.00pm each day and will return to normal 3.25pm as of Monday 12th October. We are very much aware of the children not being used to the full day routines and it was important that they are eased back into it. Our focus this week has been primarily on Wellbeing, reconnecting with the children and with the staff. This Friday is a Pupil Free Day, as the staff continue to participate in Professional Development with the focus being Wellbeing and Relationships. A special thank you to Fr Matthew Thomas who will be working with us throughout the morning as well. There will be no school for the children this Friday 9th October.
Last night the School Advisory Council met for the first time in a long time. A lot of discussion centred around the current restrictions in place and forward planning for the remainder of the year. Items discussed were:
School Ovals- top dressed and fertilised over the holiday break
John Hill Oval trees (Etiwanda Avenue)- gum trees were removed this week and we will be planting new trees in the coming weeks. The trees will be the same varieties that were planted on the Mercy Oval Boundary fence.
Security Fencing- new fencing has been installed and is being finalised in the coming weeks as well as extra seating in the pickup/Drop off area. The new fencing is in line with meeting our Child Safe Standards. Once they have been completed it will ensure that all visitors, including students, can only enter the school grounds via the front office between 9.00am and 3.15pm. This will ensure all our children are safe.
Current Covid-19 Restrictions
As we return to school there have been some changes to the operational guidelines provided by Catholic Education. However, a number of procedures will remain in place until further notice.
The following changes have been made:
-Temperature checks are no longer required
-Playgrounds are accessible for the children
-Our Prep Orientation Program for 2021 will go ahead later this term, however, the children will be attending in smaller groups and different times. More information to follow soon.
At this stage, parents are not allowed onsite unless they have contacted the school prior and made an appointment. Children are still to be collected either via the Pick up /Drop Off area or via the pedestrian access gate at the front entrance. All adults are required to wear masks when arriving and follow our hygiene practices in place.
We are hoping a number of the restrictions will be lifted in the coming weeks which will help inform a number of decisions still to be made regarding future events such as: assemblies, masses, graduation and our end of year concert.
On a more positive note, I would like to announce that our St Paul's staff family is continuing to grow once more. A special congratulations to Mrs Leah Jeffers (J4) who is expecting another bundle of joy to add to her family. I've lost count but I think since 2013 that makes a total of 21 babies for St Paul's staff. WOW!
Congratulations to the following children who have received Gotcha awards over the remote learning period.
25 GOTCHA AWARDS: Nimrat Dhaliwal, Charlotte Hogan, Jeron Kuruvilla Robin, Grace Panagopoulos, Haseena Qasem, Jett Yates, Sebastian Bergman, Annalise Goncalves-Wood, Lorenzo Pettinau, Darcy Strubelj, Macki Tickle, Sophia Moala, Deji Obatoki, Prabhnoor Purba, Oliver Capp, Lilliana Bush, Manpriya Atwal, Elena Akkus
50 GOTCHA AWARDS: Isla Madden, Dan Boby, Alan Abraham Jessil, Jack Humphrey, Jett Johnson, Kooper Carmichael, Ethan Jones, Angela Luo, Zac Scott, Olivia Smith, Malakai Stone, Darcy Strubelj, Akesa Toto, Christian Giang, Fletcher Heagarty, Charlene Lion, Anakin Nilnak, Prabhnoor Purba, Arianna Ram, Eliza Campbell, Isabella Burdett, Alexis Baker, Roman Caristo, Amber Echanes, Manpriya Atwal
On a sadder note I would like to offer my condolences and sympathy to the Sappupo family, (Leticia S13 and Anne-Marie LSO) on the passing of their father and grandfather, Mario during the holidays.
Once again I want to say thank you for your continued support through out this time. It has been very much appreciated by the staff.
As always
Keep the faith
Vince Muscatello
Principal
Senior Unit News
Welcome Back!
It was great to welcome back our students on Monday! From the amount of chatter and buzz around the classrooms it was obvious that everyone was excited to be back!
This term is shaping up to be a busy one already:
2021 Student Leadership Opportunities
Over the next couple of weeks we will be learning about what makes a successful leader in preparation for our 2021 school leadership nomination and election process. The 2021 school leadership positions are:
8 x House Captains (2 per house)
2x School Leaders
The students who nominate will then be invited to make a speech to the Senior Unit. All Grade 5 and 6 students will the have the opportunity to vote. We will keep you updated on this process.
Puberty Education
On Thursday 22nd October the Secondary School Nurse will be presenting a puberty education lesson to all of our Grade 5 and 6 students. If you have any queries about this session please contact Mrs Rebecca Thurman via email rthurman@spmildura.catholic.edu.au
Middle Unit News
Welcome back everyone! It was so lovely to see all the children and parents on Monday morning at drop off time. We can tell by how quickly the students have settled into routine that they are as happy to be back as we are. This week we are looking at the following things. Numeracy will be devoted to time tables, we really want students to be continuously practising those that they cannot yet remember. Reading will be about identifying the message in books like The Invisible Boy, Wingari's Trees, and Rulers of the Playground and making connections to their own experiences. In writing, we are setting goals for the rest of the year and reflecting on how remote learning went. Finally, in Religion, we are exploring how meditation can be used as a form of prayer.
Hopefully, with the movie time, school disco and tabloid sports that the students will all be participating in this week, they are eager and excited for our final term. Just a reminder that sport days are Tuesday and Thursday and hats need to be worn for Term 4 so please ensure that your child has a hat and it has their name on it. Lastly, we have book week celebrations coming up and the theme is 'Curious Creatures, Wild Minds'.
From the Middle Unit Teachers
Junior Unit News
Welcome back everyone!
What a great start to the term it was to have all the students back at school again. The students have settled in and are well on the way to getting back into the routines of the classrooms.
This week in Mathematics we have been learning all about direction. The students have created instructions including directional language to allow their friends to find their special ‘treasure’ and have made pictures of scenery just by listening to some instructions. Have a look at some of the amazing work students have done in the picture below. Well done Juniors!
Finally, a great big ‘thank you’ to all of the parents and carers for your support during our last remote learning period. We are truly grateful!
Foundation Unit News
Welcome back to all of our lovely Foundation students. We are so proud of the way everyone has returned to school with big smiles, positive attitudes and an eagerness to learn. We are really looking forward to watching you all thrive this term.
During the remote learning the children took home their spelling and writing books. Could we please have these returned to school as soon as possible to allow the children to complete their work in while at school?
Yesterday the children took home "The Primary School Nursing Program Information Pack & Health Questionnaire". These are very important questionnaires that need to be returned to school no later than Wednesday 14th October. This will provide the school nurse with information about your child and also gives her permission to assess them later in the year when she visits the school. If you have any questions regarding this please contact your child's classroom teacher.
Arts News
A big warm welcome back to everyone! It's so great to see all the smiling faces of of our students onsite at school again (and feel like things are a little bit normal).
This term in The Arts, we will be focussing primarily on Music. We have started this week by thinking about how different types of music can make us feel, imagine and remember various things.
Draw me a song
Here are some of our amazing Foundations students showing us what came into their minds when listening to four different peices of music. So fantastic!!
Library News
Welcome back to the Library for term 4.
This term we will celebrate Children's Book Week on Tuesday 20th October. The theme is 'Curious Creatures Wild Minds'. Students are asked to dress up as either something to do with this theme or as their favourite book character. This year our activities will be held in units rather than our whole school. Unfortunately parents and friends will be unable to attend our parade.
Also this term we are finally having our Book Fair. We will have our wish list day on Monday 26th October and books will be available to be purchased from Tuesday 27th until Thursday 29th October.
It has been fantastic to see so many students in the library borrowing our beautiful books again. Please have a look around at home for any stray library books and return them ASAP.
Thanks Marg Pongrac
Hands Up Mallee
Australian kids need to eat more veg!
Current estimates suggest that only five per cent of Australian children consume the recommended serves of vegetables each day.
Vegetable acceptance is mostly a learned behaviour, and childhood is the best time for teaching healthy habits.
Eat the rainbow!
Regularly exposing kids to a wide variety of vegetables is key. Providing and promoting vegetables in all the different colours of the rainbow is a particularly engaging way to do this. Offering a wide range of colours not only looks great, but also ensures that kids are consuming a variety of nutrients.
There are lots of fun ways that you can do this:
- Read the rainbow: Read books that introduce children to the idea of ‘rainbow vegetables’ and why we should eat them.
- Cook the rainbow: Involve children in cooking a ‘rainbow recipe’, get them to choose the vegetables you use and help you put it together.
- Eat the rainbow: Expose children to tasting new vegetables in a safe and exploratory manner.
Physical Education News
Woohoo...we're back onsite! It's so good to be outside with everyone again this week! Much more enjoyable than talking to a computer screen! We are having fun playing some games where everyone gets to choose the equipment they use. Here are some photos of our Senior students playing Rounders, using the equipment they thought would provide them with the best success. There were some creative ideas!
Choose Your Own Rounders
Magazines
The 'Australian Catholics' & 'Our Diocesan Community' Magazines are being sent home with you child today.