Newsletter 2025/07 ~ 21 March 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

Project Compassion Lenten Prayer

God of our journey

we are all pilgrims of hope

brought together by your love

and your wish that we may all be one.

We pray that in this Year of Jubilee

when we are called to greater justice

and care for our common home

that we may Unite Against Poverty.

May we work in unity for the freedom

of the oppressed and the renewal of creation.

May our compassionate minds

and generous hearts help bring about a

world where all can live in peace.

May our Lenten pilgrimage of 

fasting, almsgiving and prayer

bring us closer to your loving heart.

We ask this in the name of Jesus.

Amen.

RECENT & CURRENT EVENTS

Harmony Day

Today is Harmony Day and we marked the day by wearing orange, adding a touch of orange or by wearing our National clothing.   Harmony Day celebrates Australia’s cultural diversity. It coincides with the United Nations’ International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.  Harmony Day centres on the message that “Everyone belongs”, reinforcing the importance of inclusiveness to all Australians.

St Patrick’s Day Family Fun Night

It was great to see many families arriving at our Family Fun Night last Friday evening.  Unfortunately, I had to leave very early into proceedings, however I wish to thank the members of the SAC for organising the night which allowed the opportunity for everyone to gather as a whole-school community.  

St Patrick's Day

On Monday we were adorned in various shades of green (& blue uniforms) for St Patrick's Day.  We were fortunate to have Fr Sajan lead us, together with parents and parishioners, in our St Patrick's Day Mass.  Fr spoke briefly about St Patrick, our school's Patron Saint, and of how he spread Christianity across Ireland.  Legend tells us that Saint Patrick used a shamrock to help explain the Holy Trinity - the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

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Science and Engineering Challenge

On Wednesday our Year 5 and 6 students attended Longerenong Wimmera Field Days Centre to participate in the Science and Engineering Challenge Day.  Our students combined with students from Our Lady Help of Christians, Murtoa, and a student from each of Nhill College and Wimmera Lutheran College - Nhill Campus.  The students have provided some feedback below:

Marnie -  We participated in the Science and Engineering Day with 7 other schools. There were multiple  challenges to do, but we did 2 each. We were in groups of two or three. I was with a person from Murtoa. Mrs Bell came with us, but she wasn't allowed to help us with any of the challenges. My partner and I did the Eco House Challenge, which was where you had to build a house that was sustainable and it could survive a cyclone. We also did that Lightcoms Challenge - that was where you had to send a secret message to your partner. It was fun but hard. At the end we got some Minties that were really good and that was pretty much our day.😄

Daniel - I was with Elvi and there were 7 teams. There were 8 events and I did Launch It and Carnival Creator. Launch It was about making a plane made of wood that was very fragile. You had to cut and measure the materials to make it go as far as possible and hit the target to get points. With Carnival Creator you had to organise the timetable for a Sports Carnival. The events were all in colour squares and the point was to make sure no events clashed. We came 6/8 and enjoyed it. 😀👍

Jesinta - There were multiple challenges to do and I was with Claire. We did the Carnival Creator and Gust Buster. Carnival Creator is about timetabling a sports carnival so that the different events didn’t clash. We worked putting the block in rows but we couldn’t put it in the same rows. It was confusing at the start but the part we got up to was Scenario 3. With Gust Buster it was about designing a wind turbine. We had 7 pieces of  cardboard paper, popsicle sticks and a stick. Claire and my idea was something like a fan, but different, so we tested it out and we got one hundred and and eighty something kilometres. It was really fun and hard but we gave it a shot.😁

Adoni - My partner was Nile. There were 7 teams total. There are 8 events to play but we could only do two . The thing I did was to Build a Bridge. They gave us 6 straws, cardboard and some tape. The aim was to create a bridge strong enough to carry as many weights as we could put on it. We got to the 4th weight and we were happy. The next  task was a coding one. The coding was the hardest one for me. We got confused at first, but then I understood what to do. We had a paper to write that had messages. There were shapes that we had to describe. The first shape was a circle, a triangle and a square. The second scenario was a bunch of weird shapes. We couldn’t see the shapes so we had to guess and write down what our partner was describing. That was the end of the day.   

Ben - Rex, Tori and I were in a group and the first challenge was Gust Busters. This task was where you had to build a wind turbine that was cheap and sustainable for a wind farm. The second challenge was a bridge building one.  I can't remember what it was called, but it was fun and a little bit scary because we had to test it in front of everyone there. 🤪

Caleb - There were 8 teams participating including Tyler and I and the rest of the St Patrick’s students. We were split into groups of 2.  My group was in “It's a Trap.” You had to use 3D printed rocks, a board and some marbles. There were 6 scenarios and we only got through 3. We had to catch 12 of the medium marbles, and these represented the fish. We managed to catch 2 large marbles, 12 medium marbles and 0 little marbles. Our 2nd  activity was “Launch It.” The aim was to design an aeroplane.  You got given one thick piece of plywood, 1 thin piece of plywood, 1 metre of masking tape, art knife, ruler, scissors and 2 pairs of goggles to make a plane.  There were 2 scenarios that we had to try and work out. The 1st one we got the plane to fly to 10 metres. In the 2nd one, we got the plane to hit the target. We don’t know what score we actually got, but overall St Pat’s came 6th.😁👍

Project Compassion

Lam is 27 years old from a small village in rural Vietnam who faced significant challenges due to his short stature. Growing up, Lam often felt isolated due to limited job opportunities and difficulty moving around his community. While his friends started jobs after high school, Lam stayed home with his parents, unsure if he could ever achieve his dream of becoming a graphic designer.

Everything changed when Lam joined the I-SHINE program, supported by Caritas Australia. Through this initiative, Lam completed a six-month course developing his graphic design skills. Along the way, he built confidence, made friends and gained a sense of connection.

Today, Lam runs a successful freelance graphic design business from home, serving clients worldwide and earning a steady income. Lam hopes his story will encourage other young people with disabilities to overcome obstacles and pursue their dreams.

Lam’s journey shows how your support of Project Compassion empowers individuals to break barriers and transform their lives.

Watch Lam’s story here

Will you walk alongside people like Lam this Lent?

You can support Project Compassion 2025 through the donation boxes that were sent home.

Or online at: caritas.org.au/project-compassion
Or by calling: 1800 024 413

Thank you for standing with us, as we Unite Against Poverty this Lent. 

UPCOMING EVENTS

Cross Country

Next Friday our Year 3-6 students will be participating in Cross Country running at Nhill Golf Course.  All students will contest either a 3km or 5km course.  Our students have been practicing over the past few weeks in readiness for the local championships.  Students will come to school first and then be transported to the venue at 9.30am.  They will return to school by lunchtime and will attend their afternoon classes.

Swimming

We wish Claire well for the Greater Western Region Swimming Championships in Horsham next Wednesday.  Claire will be competing in 50m Butterfly after her performance in the Little Desert Championships last month.

"Tough Talks" Parent Information Session

Have you booked your spot yet?  This is a wonderful opportunity for parents/carers of our Years 5 and 6 students.

• Where: Nhill College (Administration Building) 
• When: 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. 

Classroom and Student News

Junior News

Wow, can you believe it? There are only two weeks left of the first term of 2025! It has truly been an amazing start for our Foundation and Year 1 students. We've spent this term getting to know one another, settling into routines, making new friends, and most importantly, engaging in fun and meaningful learning experiences.

Here’s a quick look at what we’ve been up to:

Mathematics
In Foundation, we’ve been focusing on numbers, recognising, making, and counting with one-to-one correspondence. It’s been a great opportunity for our little learners to grasp essential early math concepts.
Year 1 students have been diving into Place Value, learning to make, read, write, and compare two-digit numbers. They are becoming confident in understanding how numbers work and are building a solid foundation for future math skills.

Literacy
For Foundations, it’s been all about learning sounds! So far, they’ve mastered the sounds /s/, /m/, /t/, /a/, /p/, and /i/. They are also practicing blending and segmenting sounds to become better at reading and writing.
Meanwhile, our Year 1 students have been focusing on long vowel sound digraphs – including ‘ay’, ‘ai’, ‘ee’, ‘ea’, ‘oa’, and ‘ow’. They’ve also been learning about verbs and how they can be used in sentences to describe actions.

Auslan
In Auslan, students have been learning that the order of signs can be more flexible than the order of words in English. They’ve had a lot of fun signing about where they like to do things and with whom, practicing their communication skills in this beautiful language.

Science
This week, as we wrap up our Physical Science unit, students took part in an exciting experiment! They investigated whether raw and boiled eggs roll differently. Through the experiment, they made predictions, carried out the test, and drew conclusions based on their observations. It's been a wonderful opportunity for them to engage in hands-on learning and develop critical thinking skills.

As we head into the final weeks of the term, I want to thank all of our students for their hard work and enthusiasm, and our parents and carers for their ongoing support. We hope you all have a relaxing and enjoyable weekend, and take advantage of the warm sunshine!

Cheers,
Mel Kupper

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 Jesse, Tessa and Meena.

Little Joey Awards

We continue to acknowledge the significant role of the "Brown Joeys" in the establishment of St Patrick's School, and recognised Meena 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. 

Reading Achievements

The following students were recognised for their reading achievements:

25 nights - Noah, Srishti, Stella, Agnes, Charlotte M, Harlow, Shalom, Marina, Zoe, Adoni, Claire, Jesinta

Happy Birthday

There were no birthdays this week.

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

April

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

Tues 22 - Thur 24 - Student Free Days

Fri 25 - ANZAC Day Public Holiday

Mon 28 - First Day Term 2 for students

St Patrick's Nhill

Church Times

11:00am Mass each Sunday

Our Mission

Child Safe Standards

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