Newsletter #17 June 17

Principal's News

Dear St Paul's families,

Welcome to another weekly update. It's hard to believe that we only have one more week of school and then it is holidays.  It's a far cry from where we began at the start of the term. We had so many questions about remote learning and how the pandemic was going to affect us.  There were many things we have learnt about ourselves and each other along the way.  For those of us who like be to organised and have everything in its place and order, it was a struggle as we learned to go with the flow. For some it was learning to slow down and appreciate the little things every day.  For others, it was embraced with enthusiasm and excitement as we delved into a new way of learning.  In whatever way it affected us, both positively or negatively, the one significant factor in all of this was our ability to support and be there for one another. I hope that, in some small way, you have felt supported by us. 

Our existing families, who have a child starting school next, should have received an email from the office with our enrolment application form. This is a PDF form that allows you to type the information directly onto the document and when completed can be emailed back to the school. Our Formal Orientation program will continue in Term 4, however, at this stage we may not be able to run the Flying Start program for Term 3. This will depend on  CEOB guidelines regarding school operations for next term.

I hope you enjoyed our latest virtual assembly last week. It has been a lot of fun putting it together. I wonder who our next guest will be to help select our gotcha winner? Speaking of Gotcha winners, our list is growing which is wonderful to see. Congratulations to this week's recipients.  A special congratulations to Milika as she is our first student to have reached a total of 75 gotchas to date. When the children reach 50 gotcha's they have a choice of a special prize to choose from. This week some of the 50 Gotcha winners have chosen to have afternoon tea with the Principal. This should be interesting indeed.

25 Gotcha Award Winners: Nevaeh Tufuga, Malakai Stone, Olivia Smith, Issac Puleio, Anakin Nilnak, Felix Moyle, Jacob Metcalf, Rafael Mammone, Sophie Lloyd, Monica Leslie, Skylar Humphrey, Amber Echanes, Eliza Campbell, Elena Akkus, Nayte Yates, Harry Williams, Cooper Wilkens, Isaiah Tuifua, Avy Tauelangi, Harry Stanger, Zeva Smythe, Arianna Ram, Fatima Qasem, Jackson Puleio, Olivia Prescott,  Lam Nguyen, Levi Morton, Charlotte Miller, Lexie McMahon, Charlene Lion, Antonio Holani, William Hogan, Harvey Heagerty, Fletcher Heagarty, Naomi Havea, Yasmin Gill, Nicola De Maria, Emrys Clifford, Jessica Cavallo, Roman Caristo, Robert Burns, Dan Boby, Isabella Bergman, Liam Aranas, Jenny Tran, Sofia Tardio, Keelan Roper, Meranda Miller, Amelia-Mae Hunt, Shivreet Gill, Maddilyn Gibson, Ava Fidura, Christian Fidura, Isabella Edwards, Zeke Dedman, Bruce Body, Manpriya Atwal, Sam-Soni Ahotaeiloa, Jordan Schilling

50 Gotcha Award Winners: Addison Welsh, Lacey Hunt, April Nyabonda, Bianca De Maria,

75 Gotch Award Winners: Milika Ahotaeiloa

Next week is our last week of term. We will also be celebrating our St Paul's School Feast day on the last day, Friday 26th June. Traditionally school finishes at 2.30pm on that day. Our staggered finish will continue until the end of term. Therefore Foundation to Year 2 will finish at 2.10pm, Years 3-6 at 2.20pm and then Foundation- 6 Families at 2.25pm.

I will have more information to share with you in next week's newsletter regarding Term 3. I am hoping that everything will go back to normal with no more restrictions in place.

Until then
Keep the Faith
Vince Muscatello

Religious Education News

SEMESTER 1 REPORTS

Available on SIMON Everywhere - Friday 26th June

Reports for Term 1, will consist of a one page report for English, Mathematics, Personal and Social Capabilities and Religious Education that indicates if your child is:

• At standard
• Below standard
• Working towards standard or 
• Above standard

You will not see a progression point (dots) like a normal report due to the complexities of off site learning as we just don’t have the data that is required to report against the achievement standards for each learning area. We would rather be conservative mid-year and be able to show an accurate picture of the growth over 12 months at the end of the year.   Term 2 will be marked as not assessed.  

There are so many things we have valued during semester one 2020:

• Our whole staff has responded creatively and flexibly to the many challenges that faced them in providing learning experiences of excellence for all students.

• Each family supported their children in the best way they could with the time and resources available to them. 

• Every student engaged in a new way of learning. Learning that was planned for them by their teachers - and learning that the unusual circumstances offered them that none of us could have planned.

• We know that the learning that has happened this semester will positively impact on future growth for your children.

 We ask you to continue to work in partnership with us as we ensure that the second semester of learning meets the academic and learning outcomes that the Victorian Curriculum and Awakenings Curriculum describe. We commit to providing you with a full and accurate report, and celebration, of your child’s learning achievements at the end of the school year.

Please see below a letter from Audrey Brown, Director of Catholic Education regarding Semester 1 Reporting.

SWPBS - School Wide Positive Behaviour Supports Update

Students have been receiving Gotcha's both during remote learning and now back at school.  Students  are given a Gotcha's when they are caught

- Being Safe

- Being your Best

- Being Respectful.

The Junior Unit is so close to winning a prize for the whole unit.  

Senior Unit News

Our first week back to face to face learning was full of activity. With a slightly altered timetable to allow students time to settle back into the routines of a school day, we took the opportuity to engage in a range of creative tasks throughout the week. 

One of these creative tasks was the completion of a book report. The students chose their own book and then completed an indepedent review of the book. These are now proudly displayed in our classrooms. 

Showing Gratitude

Students in S13 created cards of gratitude for health workers at the Mildura Base Hospital. These gratitude cards are now on display at the hospital and will be handed out to the nurses in the emergency department over the next week. A great example of being thankful and grateful for what we have. Well done S13!

The Poor and Marginalised

During Religious Education, we have been learning about the poor and marginalised and the role that Caritas Australia plays in improving the life of individuals and their communities. To show their understanding of the poor and marginalised, students were asked to design and create a community centre/hub that provides services and facilities to improve the quality of life for a specific community. The gallery of photos below show you just how creative our students are!

Middle Unit News

This week in the Middle Unit, students had the opportunity to create works of edible art! We held a biscuit decorating competition where each child had the chance to ice and decorate a biscuit using lollies. The children had a great time and will use this experience to help them when writing their recounts. Recounts are very important for students to master and you can help at home by always asking your child what they did at school that day as it helps them practice the skills used in their writing. 

Students also got back into the swing of things by going back to their regular maths and spelling classes. In maths, we are focusing on the addition of larger numbers using mental and written strategies. See if you can find some cool online games to help your child practice these skills. In Religion, we are focusing on "The Golden Rule" which states "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". The children will start thinking about how they might be able to donate old toys or books to St Vincent de Paul's in order to help those who are less fortunate than ourselves. 

Overall, the students have had a smooth and successful return to school. They have adjusted to the school routine very well and are showing us that they remember all of the St. Paul's expectations. Go team!!

Foundation Unit News

The Foundation Unit are having a focus on learning the Camera Words. Laminated sheets have been sent home with the children for them to learn at home. The Camera Words cannot be sounded out, the children need to remember what they look like. Once children have mastered these words it makes their reading a lot easier.

Please remember that it is very important that you are supporting your child every night with reading to develop their love of reading and strengthening their reading abilities.

Thank you for supporting us and being a part of your child's learning journey.

Junior Unit News

Hello everyone and welcome to our Week 10 Junior Unit news.

All students are doing an amazing job completing their morning routine when they come in the classroom each day by washing their hands, making sure their lunch, snacks, drink bottle and brainfood are organised and borrowing their readers.  After this, students sit and read before the bell!

Look at these students reading in the morning!

Remember, if you have any questions about your child at school, please contact their classroom teacher.

Have a good week everyone!

Arts News

Wow!!! What more can I say? These crocodiles by the Foundation students are just AMAZING!

They were inspired by the story "Solomon Crocodile" by Catherine Rayner. The children drew their crocodile using a guided drawing method.

After experimenting with mixing colours, they chose two colours to mix together for their crocodile's skin. We found that when you mix some colours together, it makes a whole new colour!

The children chose a contrasting background colour that would make their crocodile stand out after studying the colour wheel and finally added spots and dots with oil pastels.

My New Gallery

Prev

Showing images 1 - 8 of 45

Next

What a fantastic result! These are now hanging in the Foundation classrooms for the children to see and be proud of. Well done everyone :)

Jess Freeman

Technology News

It was so great to have the Technology Room back in full swing this week.  Tech classes are much more fun when everyone is here learning together.

This week Foundation students continued their Food Technology unit of work, learning to make a healthy meal.  We have made a healthy snack to add to a very special and healthy lunch bag.

In the Junior Unit, we began to explore how we can be safe when on the internet.  After reading a book all about how the internet is just like a puddle, we made a poster to tell other children just like us, what they can do to stay safe online.

Prev

Showing images 1 - 8 of 10

Next

The Middle Unit continued to learn about the intricate workings of a computer and all about data.  First, we explored what data actually is.  Did you know data is information represented by these five things - numbers, text, symbols, images and sounds! Then, we discovered how one set of data can be represented in multiple ways, before challenging ourselves to sort a set of data in as many different ways as possible.

In the Senior Unit, it was also all about how computers work.  More specifically, it was all about the language of computers - Binary Code.  We had loads of fun using binary to create pixel images, convert decimal numbers to binary numbers and vice versa, coded with binary and played online binary number games.

Borrowed Devices

A reminder, if you borrowed a school Chromebook or iPad for your child to use during the remote learning period, these need to be returned to school with the charger by the end of this week at the latest.  Thank you to all the families who have already returned their devices.

Until next week remember...

Technology is cool, but you've GOT to use it as OPPOSED to letting it use YOU!

Mrs Narelle Simms

Languages - Italian News

Welcome back to all our students  ...  our Middle and Senior  ITALIAN  Kahoots Challenge is now under way.  CONGRATULATIONS  to our Podium winners for this week - As you can see there are  some impressive results and proud smiles in the photos below - more photos to come next week.

Buona Fortuna  -  Signora  Ghidinelli 

Middle Unit - photo gallery

Prev

Showing images 1 - 8 of 11

Next

Senior Unit - photo gallery

Hands Up Mallee

In this weeks’ newsletter, I have included some tips from Kids Matter, which gives us some key points for supporting children’s friendship skills that they can use throughout their life.

Provide children with opportunities to play with others

Children gain experience and learn important social skills from playing with friends. This could involve encouraging them to think about what games the other child would like to play when they arrive, or deciding whether to share all of their toys or only some.

Teach positive social skills

Little things like smiles, looking at the person, knowing names and using a confident, friendly voice can make a big difference when making friends. Teach one behaviour or social skill at a time and make sure the child is able to do it before teaching them another skill.

 Be a coach

Coaching involves prompting, reminding and encouraging children to use the skills they have learned. Support children’s learning by giving positive feedback and praise.

Help children solve friendship conflicts

Talking through problems with a supportive adult helps children to think about what happens, how they feel about it and what to do next. Thinking things through like this helps to build more mature social skills.

Australian Mathematics Competition

The Australian Mathematics Competition will be held from Thursday 30th July to Thursday 6th August.  St Paul’s invites interested students  from years 3-6 to participate in this competition.  The competition consists of 30 questions.  If you would like to register your child, please email Melissa Sutherland on msutherland@spmildura.catholic.edu.au or let your child’s teacher know by Wednesday 24^th June.   More information can be found at https://www.amt.edu.au/

Physical Education Update

This week our Foundation students are learning how to kick a soccer ball along the ground, while the Juniors are working on their overarm throwing technique using beanbags. Our Senior and Middle students are putting some of their learning into practice by creating their own warmup routines. They are focusing on making sure the whole body is included and that all exercises are completed safely. Next week they will video themselves in their groups demonstrating and explaining their warmup routines. Here are some photos of our Junior and Middle students from last week while they were practicing their punt kick.

Kyra Mitchell (PE teacher/Sports Coordinator)

My New Gallery

Continuous Raffle Draw

Congratulations to the following families who won at the Friday 14th May assembly.

• Sunbeam Pie Magic (donated by Silorio family) – won by Luo family.
• Tennis and soccer set (donated by Rebel sport) - won by Lucas Nguyen family
• Australian Map and football (donated by Moyle family & Rebel Sport) won by Fangatua family