Newsletter 2025/03 ~ 21 February 2025

As partners in Catholic Education and open to God’s presence, we pursue the fullness of life for all.

St. Patrick’s School is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all students.

St. Patrick's School is a child safe school.

We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Victoria and pay respect to the ongoing living cultures of First Peoples. 

This newsletter comes to you from the lands of the Wotjobaluk, Jaadwa, Jadawadjali, Wergaia and Jupagalk Nations.

From the Principal

Invitation to Prayer

Christ Jesus, on whom the Spirit rests, 

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope. 

Christ Jesus, bringer of Good News, 

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope. 

Christ Jesus, liberator of captives and all who are oppressed, 

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope. 

Christ Jesus, restorer of sight, 

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope. 

Christ Jesus, proclaimer of the year of the Lord’s favour, 

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope. 

Christ Jesus, in whom the Scripture was fulfilled, 

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope. 

Lead us all to be signs of your hope in our world. 

Amen.  

From https://cafod.org.uk/fundraise/parishes/jubilee-2025-resources-for-your-parish

RECENT & CURRENT EVENTS

Swimming Sports

Our Years 3-6 students achieved some outstanding results in the Nhill College Swimming sports which we were invited to participate in.  Unfortunately, I have not received a copy of all of the results as yet, however am pleased to congratulate the following students who have qualified to compete in the Little Desert Championships in Horsham next Wednesday: Daniel B, Ben, Hannah G, Tessa, Nile, Claire, Jack, Max and Marnie.

Prev

Showing images 1 - 8 of 70

Next

Opening Mass

Fr Sajan led the school community in our Opening Mass yesterday.  Thank you to those who were able to attend and to all students who had active roles to fulfil during the Mass.

During the Mass, Fr Sajan blessed Pilgrims of Hope crosses and all students will receive one of these as we celebrate this Jubilee year.  Our Years 6 students also had their badges blessed, together with the School Captains badges.

Prev

Showing images 1 - 8 of 24

Next

Unleashing Greatness: A Strategy For School Improvement

On Monday, Ms Kate Farnham and myself attended a keynote address on international best practice in School Improvement, presented by Professor Emeritus David Hopkins.  

As mentioned last week, David Hopkins is the Chair of Educational Leadership at the University of Bolton, as well as Professor Emeritus at the Institute of Education, University College London and the University of Nottingham. He has been Chief Advisor to three Secretary of State on school standards in the UK, and consultant to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and World Health Organisation (WHO). He has also been an advisor to some twenty ministries globally.

His talk, titled “Unleashing Greatness: A Strategy for School Improvement,” was a key part of the DOBCEL Strategy 2035 initiative, and it set the stage for deeper collaboration and reflection on how we can continue to elevate our Catholic schools.

Kate and I then engaged in an interactive workshop exploring innovative strategies for school improvement and leadership development.  We will continue to work with other leaders of schools who are due for review in 2026, to co-design a school improvement framework.

Parent Handbook 2025

The 2025 update of the Parent Handbook is available to read using the >Parent Links in your PAM account (SIMON Everywhere app) and on the website.

Fruit Break

The 10am “fruit break” is provided for those children who need a snack.  This is a non-intrusive break and children will continue working while eating. Staff do not have the time to prepare or cut up fruit or vegetables for students. Please provide a piece of fresh fruit or vegetable, already cut up if your child prefers it that way. Not acceptable - messy fruits, passionfruit, tinned/pre-packaged fruit/jellies, oranges should be cut into portions.

Saver Plus

Do you have a Health Care Card? You could be eligible for Saver Plus.

It’s a free education program that helps eligible families save for school expenses and rewards them by matching their savings dollar for dollar, up to $500.

Families who join not only receive up to $500 in matched savings, but they also gain practical money skills through free financial education workshops, helping them feel more in control of their finances.

To be eligible, participants need to:

• Be 18 years or older
• Have a Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card.
• Have a child in school (or starting next year) or be studying themselves.
• Have a regular income (either their own or their partner’s or centre link payments).
• Be willing to join our free online workshops.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Get To Know You Meetings

Get To Know You meetings will take place after school on Monday 24 and Tuesday 25 February.  

These meetings will provide you with the opportunity to meet with your child's teacher for a brief chat about the start of the school year and your child's progress.  

Parents may book an interview time via the Parent Access Module (PAM).  A link to Parent-Teacher Interviews appears on the homepage and you will be able to select the teacher you wish to meet with and the preferred time.  

If you experience difficulties logging on via PAM, please feel free to contact the school to arrange a meeting time.

A look at Antarctica - Senior Class Guest Speaker and excursion

Next Thursday the Senior Class is very lucky to have a guest speaker - Jorg Metz, who was the Laboratory Manager at Casey Station, Antarctica in 2011 and 2012. Jorg travels with the ICE PACT STORY LINES exhibition of artwork and photography and is currently exhibiting in the Nhill Gallery Central from 22 February to 2 March.

On Friday our class will walk to the Gallery to have a look at the exhibition.

You can read more about Jorg’s experience and the exhibition at Nhill Gallery Central here: <link to pdf>

"Tough Talks" Parent Information Session

Parent/carer information session for all students (including St. Pat's) in Years 5-10 at Nhill College (Administration Building) on Tuesday, 25 March, 5:30pm.

The session is titled ‘Tough Talks’ and is based on tips in how to talk with our tween-teen(s). Each presenter aims to provide parents/carers with the confidence and resources to start conversations around the uncomfortable topics of drugs and alcohol, social media, mental wellbeing, relationships and sex.

We strongly encourage parents/carers of our Years 5 and 6 students to attend. Please RSVP to Nhill College on 53912111 by 18 March.

Our Josephite Heritage

The Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, often called the "Josephites" or "Brown Joeys", were founded in Penola, South Australia, in 1866 by Mary MacKillop and the Rev. Julian Tenison Woods. In 1949, three Josephite sisters arrived in Nhill to open St Patrick’s School. In 1978, the Sisters of St Joseph informed the Nhill Parish that they would no longer be able to maintain their role within the school.

We endeavour to honour our Josephite heritage through the regular presentation of the Little Joey awards at our assemblies. In support of this we also include a reflection from Mary MacKillop on our newsletter each week.

Sunday’s Gospel

Luke 6:17, 20-26

In this passage, Jesus speaks to a great crowd, offering blessings to the poor, the hungry, and those who suffer, while warning those who are rich, full, and well-liked. His words challenge us to see the world differently—through the eyes of God’s kingdom, where the last shall be first and the first shall be last.

Jesus teaches that true happiness is not found in wealth, comfort, or popularity, but in trusting God, even in difficult times. Those who are poor, hungry, or mourning are not forgotten; God sees their struggles and promises them joy. On the other hand, those who rely only on worldly success risk missing out on the deeper, lasting joy that comes from following Christ.

This passage reminds us to trust in God, care for those in need, and seek true happiness in love, faith, and service rather than material things. 

How can we live with a heart focused on God’s kingdom today?

By the Numbers

122 - The length in minutes of the 2019 movie ‘Joker’.

I don’t want to elaborate, however it wasn’t a great day in A Grade cricket last Saturday against West Wimmera!   

Back to B Grade this week and in need of a win to maintain second place and qualify for finals.

God Bless you all.

Kingsley Dalgleish

Principal

Classroom and Student News

Middle Class News

We’ve had a busy and exciting start to the term and it's hard to believe we’re almost halfway already.

In Literacy we’ve started off a new term of spelling. Year 2 students are learning about long vowel sounds, while Year 3 students are tackling uncommon vowel spellings. In Maths we’ve explored data and shape and are going to be starting a new unit on Place value next week.

In Art our focus has been colour.  We’ve explored the colour wheel, and have been learning about primary, secondary and tertiary colours. We’ve been learning about warm and cool colours, and how we can use these colours to create different moods in our art work.

Our unit theme in Religion is Relationships. We’ve started off by exploring how we build relationships with our friends and what it looks like to be a good friend.

Year 3 students were very excited to participate in their first Nhill College swimming carnival last week. It was great to see everyone demonstrate their enthusiasm, determination and team spirit at the event and I congratulate them on their efforts. 

The Middles have also brought home spelling homework for the first time this week. Both these homework activities and nightly reading are a great opportunity for students to practice the skills we have been learning in the classroom and we appreciate the support you give your children to complete these tasks. I’d also like to remind everyone that diaries need to be brought to school every day.

Have a great weekend everyone and see you next week.

Warm regards, Margaret Attard 

Senior Class Upcoming:

ICE PACT

• INCURSION - THURSDAY 27 FEBRUARY
• EXCURSION - FRIDAY 28 FEBRUARY

The Senior Class will have a visit to the Nhill Art Gallery and a guest speaker, Jorg Metz, who has lived and worked in Antarctica. More information is displayed in this newsletter. 

Little Joey Awards

We continue to acknowledge the significant role of the "Brown Joeys" in the establishment of St Patrick's School, and recognised Moe with a Little Joey award.

Our Little Joeys receive a certificate, sticker and a voucher/goods donated by a local business.  We are very grateful for the contributions from our local businesses. 

School Wide Positive Behaviour Support SWPBS

Throughout the day, staff monitor for students demonstrating aspects of Respect, Responsibility
and Safety within our school. Students are issued a ticket to place in their classroom container. During assemblies, a draw takes place and those who have their ticket drawn out are invited to place a marble in their House container. The House with the most marbles at the end of each term will be rewarded.

Congratulations to all children who were recognised for their positive actions around the school. Students who were randomly drawn from the nominations for Respect, Responsibility and Safety, and have added tokens to their respective Houses' tallies, were Adoni, Marnie and Tyler.

School Advisory Council

Parent Representatives

• Clint Beattie
• Rebecca Curtis 
• Emily Gladdis
• Bonnie McEldrew
• Zanther McEldrew
• Ashleigh Meyer
  
• Courtney Taylor

Ex Officio

• Mons. Glynn Murphy - Parish Priest
• Kingsley Dalgleish - Principal

Dates

• Meeting - Tuesday 6 May 2025, 5:30pm

Dates and Reminders

School Calendar

February

Mon 24 - 3:20-5:00pm Get To Know You Meetings

Tue 25 - 3:20-5:00pm Get To Know You Meetings

Wed 26 - Foundation Rest Day

Wed 26 - Little Desert swimming carnival Horsham

Thu 27 - Senior Class guest speaker Jorg Metz ICE PACT

Fri 28 - Senior Class Nhill Gallery excursion

March

Wed 5 - Foundation Rest Day

Mon 10 - Labour Day Public Holiday

Mar 14 - 6pm St Patrick's Day Family Fun Night

Tue 18 - School Photos Day

April

Fri 4 - Last Day Term 1 - dismissal time 2:15pm

St Patrick's Nhill

Church Times

11:00am Mass each Sunday

Our Mission

Child Safe Standards

SchoolTV and eSafety

SPECIAL REPORT: The Wellbeing Barometer - 2025

The Wellbeing Barometer survey has become an essential resource for schools, providing valuable insights into youth mental health and wellbeing. By capturing community concerns and understanding the nature of these challenges, schools are better positioned to support families, foster meaningful conversations, and strengthen relationships.

Parents and caregivers are encouraged to complete either one or both surveys, depending on the age of your son or daughter and the school they attend.

We encourage you to complete one survey for each child. There is no limit to how many times you can complete the survey. This will enable you to provide more accurate responses based on individual children.

Please remember, all responses remain anonymous and should reflect observations made over the last 12 months. Survey results are only reported on an aggregated basis.

From the office of the eSafety Commissioner - some links

The following real stories show the harm and distress cyberbullying can cause and the steps the people involved have taken to deal with it.

Reminders

School Preparations for the Bushfire Season

Each year, the Department of Education runs an annual fire risk assessment of schools and early childhood services. They are allocated a category of risk (categories 0 to 4) and are published on the Bushfire At-Risk Register (BARR).

All schools and early childhood services listed on the BARR list will also close when a Catastrophic fire danger rating day is forecast in their fire weather district.  

When the Bureau of Meteorology provides public fire danger rating forecasts or fire weather warnings, they use fire weather district areas. In Victoria, there are 9 fire weather districts, which are based on Local Government Area boundaries. Our school is in the Wimmera fire weather district.

As part of preparing our school for the fire season, we have updated and completed our Emergency Management Plan and have conducted other relevant preparedness actions, such as reprioritised any maintenance works that may assist in preparing for the threat of fire and cleared our facility’s grounds and gutters.

What does this mean for our school?

Our school has been identified as being at risk of bushfire or grassfire and is listed on the Bushfire At-Risk Register (BARR).

DOBCEL, in accordance with the department’s Bushfire and Grassfire Preparedness Policy, requires our schools on the BARR list to close when a Catastrophic fire danger rating day is forecast in their fire weather district. All school bus routes which travel in or through a district with Catastrophic fire danger must also be cancelled.

Our school will close on any day forecasted as Catastrophic fire danger rating in Wimmera fire district.

Closure of the school due to a forecast Catastrophic day will be confirmed on the day prior and we will provide you with advice before the end of the school day when possible. Any information regarding potential or confirmed Catastrophic fire danger days will be communicated to you by PAM.

Once confirmed, the decision to close will not change, even if the weather forecast changes.  This is to avoid confusion and help your family plan alternative care arrangements for your child/ren.  It is also important to be aware that:

• No one will be on site on days where the school is closed due to a forecast Catastrophic day.
• All bus routes that travel through the Catastrophic area will be cancelled.
• School camps will be cancelled if a Catastrophic fire danger rating day is forecast for fire weather district in which the camp is located, or if the travel involves passing through areas that have Catastrophic fire danger.

In addition, families are encouraged to action their Bushfire Survival Plan on Catastrophic fire danger rating days.  On such days, children should never be left at home alone or in the care of older children.

For those of us living in a bushfire prone area, the Country Fire Authority (CFA) advises that when Catastrophic days are forecast, the safest option is to leave the night before or early on the morning of the Catastrophic day.

What can families and the school community do to help us prepare?

• Ensure we have your current contact details, including your mobile phone numbers. 
• Keep in touch with us by reading our newsletters, checking PAM, and by talking to your child’s teacher or any other member of the teaching staff about our emergency management plan.
• Make sure your family’s bushfire survival plan is up-to-date and includes alternative care arrangements in the event that our school is learning from home due to elevated fire danger or closed due to a Catastrophic fire danger. Further information can be found on the CFA’s website.
• Action your family’s bushfire survival plan if your own triggers are met. Our school community may be spread out across many areas and some families may be at higher risk than others. Your family’s safety is critical, so please let us know if you are actioning your bushfire survival plan and if your children will be absent on these days.
• If your child is old enough, talk to them about bushfires and your family’s bushfire survival plan. There is a link below with some activities to assist with this discussion.

You can find more information on emergencies, warnings and preparedness actions here:

• VicEmergency app – that can be downloaded on your android and iOS mobile devices
• VicEmergency Hotline (1800 226 226)
• Website https://emergency.vic.gov.au

• Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/vicemergency)
• Twitter (https://twitter.com/vicemergency)

ABC local radio, Sky News and other emergency broadcasters

School Office Hours

• M 8:45am - 4:15pm
• T 8:45am - 4:30pm
• W 8:45am - 4:30pm
• T 8:45am - 4:30pm
• F 8:45am - 1:00pm

Parent Access Module PAM / SIMON Everywhere app

The Parent Access Module PAM (SIMON Everywhere app) is our "go-to" for all parent information. Download the SIMON Everywhere app from the app store on your mobile phone and login using your PAM credentials.

Simon Everywhere delivers instant notifications to parents' mobile phones, delivering the functionality of PAM in an easy to navigate app. We will use Simon Everywhere for all important notifications.  

You will be able to manage all your day-to-day school needs from Simon Everywhere, including:

• notify us of absences;
• view the school calendar;
• provide permission for student activities;
• update medical/contact information;
• view the lunch orders menu; 
• read the newsletter.

Please contact the office with any questions.

Student late arrival, early departure, temporary absence procedures

All student late arrivals, early departures or temporary absences must be recorded in the Passtab iPad located in the foyer.  Please ask office staff for assistance.

Lunch Orders

Lunch orders should be written onto an envelope with correct money sealed inside.  Please don’t use plastic bags or waxed bags.  The writing wipes off these and the staff at the bakery find it hard to read.

You can find the lunch orders menu in SIMON Everywhere  >Home, scroll down to >School Links

Bus notes

Parents of bus travelling students please note that Nhill College has requested that any changes to travel arrangements (e.g. if you are picking up your child after school) be notified before 3.00pm on that day.  

You can do this by -

• use the Bus Change Notification Form on their website (link below) - this is a quick and easy process on your mobile phone (hint: add this as a quick link on your phone's home screen)
  • we have put this link onto PAM (Simon Everywhere) >Home, scroll down to >Parent Links
• calling our school office 53911575
• sending an email to principal@spnhill.catholic.edu.au or krintoule@spnhill.catholic.edu.au

Remember to follow us on Facebook

Those who are on Facebook are encouraged to follow our page at St Patrick's School, Nhill.  'Like' our page, enjoy our posts, and share them with your friends.  Stay connected through our Social Media page.

What you need to know about COVID-19 in Victoria

Please visit the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Victoria website (link below) for all up-to-date information about the response to COVID-19.

• All staff, students and visitors to schools should undertake regular hand hygiene, particularly on arrival to school, before and after eating, after blowing their nose, coughing, sneezing or using the toilet.
• Hand sanitiser will continue to be available for staff, students and visitors.
• The most important action school communities can take to reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 is to ensure that any unwell staff, parents/carers and students do not attend school sites, even with the mildest of symptoms, and get tested.

*Six simple steps to protect yourself and those most at risk

1. Wear a face mask
2. Take a test
3. Stay at home
4. Meet outdoors
5. Talk to your GP about COVID medications
6. Get vaccinated

*coronavirus.vic.gov.au