Newsletter 2022/21 ~ 22 July 2022

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.

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

The two day Workshop in Mildura this week was very rewarding and worthwhile.  Mrs Dickinson, Mrs Creek and myself attended the Positive Partnerships workshop around autism.  The workshop was very engaging and we have come away with an increased understanding and awareness of how we can strengthen positive outcomes for our students who are on the autism spectrum.  

We are hoping that this may lead to further opportunities for other staff members and parents to attend similar sessions in the near future within our own region.  I have had initial discussions with the facilitators and there is a strong possibility that we may be able to have a one-day workshop for interested parents.  

Coughs, colds and COVID cases are still significant within our Shire and whilst we would love to have all children at school every day, I thank parents for keeping their children at home when they are presenting with symptoms.  If you need to contact your child’s teacher regarding any work that they may be able to do whilst at home, please do so.

I reiterate the message in the email that was sent out on Tuesday night, face masks are strongly encouraged for students aged 8 and above to wear inside.  Whilst this has been strongly encouraged, it is not mandatory for students, or staff, to do so.

CURRENT & RECENT EVENTS

Research project invovement for females in STEM

Researchers at Swinburne University of Technology and The University of Melbourne, in collaboration with The Invergowrie Foundation, are currently seeking parents of girls in primary school within Victoria to participate in a survey aimed at increasing the engagement of female primary school students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects and activities.

Parents can access the survey by scan the following QR code or this link.

SWPBS

As we continue to introduce our School Wide Positive Behaviour Support matrix, at Monday’s morning assembly Miss Williams and Mrs Creek spoke about one aspect of the matrix.  They looked at eating and where that takes place, how we show Respect when we are eating, how we can be Responsible when eating, and some Safety aspects of when we are eating.

Staff were very pleased with the manner in which students responded this week to the small changes that were introduced.

During play times, staff have been monitoring for students demonstrating aspects of Respect, Responsibility and Safety within the school yard.  Names were collated and shared during yesterday’s assembly.  A draw then took place from the names within each category and that student’s House received a token for their House jar.  The House with the most tokens later in the year will be rewarded.

The following table shows the names of those who were identified in each category during the past week.

Congratulations to David (Joseph House), Sophie (Joseph) and Claire (Joseph) who were each randomly drawn.

As you can see above, students may receive nominations across each of the categories or even multiple nominations within any of the categories.

We look forward to having even more names in next week’s draw.

An issue that has been discussed with students on a couple of occasions recently has been around tackling in the yard when playing football.  We are asking students not to tackle in the school yard, particularly given the differing sizes of the students who are playing together.

Our SWPBS Matrix is shown below

The matrix highlights expected behaviours of all students across all areas of the school and also when representing the school off-site.  Our three key foci are Respect, Responsibility, Safety.

These three foci and the associated behaviours are discussed explicitly during class time and in assemblies.

Staff will continue to develop frameworks around monitoring and the reinforcement of these expectations.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Meerkat

On Monday morning we will have a presentation by Meerkat Productions.  All students will be attending the presentation of Meerkat’s adaptation of James Foley’s Stellarphant in the school hall.

Stella the elephant is fighting interstellar discrimination one pachyderm at a time! Stella wants to be an astronaut. There is only one problem: Stella is an elephant. Every time she applies to Space Command, they come up with a new reason she can’t join. But where there’s a will, there’s a way and Stella is determined to reach for the stars.

Grandparents & Elderly People's Day

We are looking forward to having Grandparents and Elderly Friends join us on Monday morning for the Stellarphant presentation and to join in with some activities in the classrooms.  Thank you to everyone who returned their RSVP notes by yesterday.

PSG Meetings

Parents who received an email regarding the Program Support Group (PSG) meetings are reminded that they will be held next Monday and Tuesday afternoon. Please follow the instructions on the email and its attachment in order to book a time for your child’s PSG meeting.

Parent-Teacher Interviews

Two nights have been marked for Parent-Teacher interviews to allow you to meet with your child’s teacher to discuss the End of Semester 1 reports and your child’s progress.

Please open the Parent-Teacher tab on the Parent Access Module (PAM) to book interview times for either Monday 1 August or Tuesday 2 August.  Interview times are between 3.30pm and 5.30pm each afternoon.  

Interviews run for a maximum of eight minutes each.  Should you require more time, please make arrangements with the teacher to meet at another mutually convenient time.

Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend

An opportunity to spend a weekend improving your communication.

This experience gives married couples the tools to keep your passion alive in a gentle, nurturing environment, away from pressures and distractions of daily living.

The weekend we offer is based around Catholic values but couples of all faiths are welcome.

Please check our website for more details.

Next on-line weekend is on  19 – 21 August 2022 in the comfort of your own home.

Next Non-Residential weekend is on  22 – 23 October 2022  in Niddrie.

Information/Bookings phone: Mercy & James 0409 183 676 or

Email: vicbookings@wwme.org.au    Website: wwme.org.au

School Sport Australia

I will be absent from school next week as I am travelling to Lavington, NSW, for the School Sport Australia, Australian Rules Football Championships. 

Since 2016, I have been the Victorian Umpires State Team Manager for School Sport Victoria.  In my capacity as Team Manager I will be supervising the Victorian team and providing coaching and feedback to umpires from all participating states and territories during the Championships.

Sunday's Gospel Reflection

Luke 10:38-42

Sunday’s Gospel told the story of Jesus’ visit to Martha and Mary’s home in Bethany. We heard how Martha busied herself getting a meal ready for the visitors whilst Mary sat and listened to Jesus. When Martha became upset with her sister for not helping, Jesus suggested that Mary had chosen the more important thing to do. The pace of life today is fast and hectic. People struggle to find enough time to do all the things they want to do. In the rush of life, with its endless distractions, we often lose sight of what is really important. We forget to set aside time for God, for simply being close to Him. This week, look for the opportunities to find time in your busy days to sit, be still and listen to the voice of God.

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.

Classroom and Student News

Junior Class

We began our week with a picture prompt from the shared story The Terrible Plop by Ursula Dubosarsky. During the week this writing piece was edited and re-written. Our purpose is to make sure that we know how to go back and re-read our writing to check that it makes sense and how we may add other details to our original ideas.

In Religion, we have continued to understand how a ‘call’ can relay a message. We designed message sticks and listened to the origins of a ‘message stick’ from the aboriginal culture. Mrs Kirby assisted our class, whilst I attended a conference in Mildura. She was delighted by the students' engagement with their learning throughout the two days.

In Mathematics, skip counting, and place value concepts are being showcased in a variety of ways.

In Reading, one of the rotations has been taking part in reading the play, The Three Little Pigs.

Middle Class

This week I have been very impressed with the Middle Class and their ability to adapt to change. On Wednesday they had three different teachers in one day. We started the day off with Mrs Beasley, then split into different classes for PE, Miss Williams had them for half an hour and then Mrs Kirby for the rest of the day. All the children showed me how wonderfully they know the routines of the classroom and how helpful they are when there is another teacher in the room. I was also very impressed with how respectful and kind they were to the other teachers in the room. Both Mrs Beasley and Mrs Kirby let me know that they are a wonderful class and worked very hard for them both.

In Religion we have continued to show how helpful we are with the ways we have been helping out with the Juniors. We are completing the same unit as them and have been helping out with their message sticks and by reading the symbols for them on Tuesday. On Friday after afternoon last week we showed the Juniors our name posters, and continued to discuss what our names mean with them.

In Reading this week we have been looking at verbs and the way they influence the text. In our book We’re Off to Thunder Mountain the creatures that join the witch on her trip stomp with glee and roar and do all sorts of different things which make the text interesting and exciting for us to read.

In Writing we have been looking at how paragraphs work and what they are. We started the week sorting six sentences into two categories, about a cat and about a dog. From there we organised sentences in order to make sense. Next we wrote our sentences together into a writing piece, and finally we looked at where the paragraphs would be and we re-wrote our work to show the paragraphs by leaving a space.

In Maths we have continued on with subtraction problems and have been focusing on using the jump strategy on a number line to work out the answers of subtraction problems.

Senior Class

By Jack and Tom

This week the Seniors have been busy writing narratives, and in Reading we've been learning about Treacher Collins syndrome in our book Wonder. We also made masks for Meerkat Productions and finished our door.

Little Joey Awards

This week we continue to acknowledge the significant role of the "Brown Joeys" in the establishment of St Patrick's School, and recognised Stella 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 this week for their reading achievements:

25 nights - Jonas

50 nights - Jonas

 75 nights - Max

100 nights - Tessa

Important Dates and Reminders

Term Dates

Term 3 11 July to 16 September

Term 4   3 October to 20 December

School Calendar

JULY

Mon 25

Incursion: Meerkat Productions performance & World Grandparents Day celebration 9.15am 

AUGUST

Mon 1

Parent-Teacher Interviews 3.30-5.30pm

Tue 2

Parent-Teacher Interviews 3.30-5.30pm

Tue 9

School Advisory Council Meeting 7.30pm

Fri 12

School Closure (Circuit Breaker Long Weekend)

Mon 15

School Closure (Circuit Breaker Long Weekend)

SEPTEMBER

Mon 12

F-2 Athletics

Fri 16

Last Day Term 3 - dismissal time 2.15pm

Reminders

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.

Wimmera Bakery has advised that they have recently reviewed their prices, and the price of some items will increase in the near future.  We will provide an updated price list when this happens.

Parent Access Module (PAM)

We strongly encourage parents to use the Parent Access Module PAM (SIMON Everywhere) to inform us of student absences. These notes can be set in advance (if, for example, you know that your child will be absent a week in the future). Notes written in the diary are for communicating with teachers. Absent notes need to be directed to the office.

Please speak with office staff if you have any questions about PAM.

Simon Everywhere

The Simon Everywhere app delivers instant notifications to parents' mobile phones, delivering the functionality of PAM (SIMON Parent Access Module) in an easy to navigate app.  

We request that all parents please download the Simon Everywhere app, add St Patrick's School, Nhill and login using your existing PAM credentials.  

We will use Simon Everywhere for all important notifications.  

You will be able to manage all your day-to-day school needs from the Simon Everywhere app - notify us of absences, view the lunch orders menu, read the newsletter ...

Please contact the office with any questions.

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 -

• calling our school office 53911575
• sending an email to principal@spnhill.catholic.edu.au or krintoule@spnhill.catholic.edu.au
• use the Bus Change Notification Form on their website - this is a quick and easy process on your mobile phone (hint: add this as a quick link on your phone's home screen)

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.

Coronavirus information - Term 3 update

Rapid antigen testing

• The Victorian Government is providing up to three further deliveries of rapid antigen tests in Term 3 and again in Term 4 to schools.
• It is recommended that rapid antigen tests are used by students and staff when symptomatic.
• Household contacts are required to test negative using a rapid antigen test on at least 5 out of 7 days if they are attending or working at a school onsite.
• If staff or students receive a positive test result at any time, they must report this through the Department of Health system (a link is provided below) or via the coronavirus hotline at 1800 675 398.
• Students (or their parents) must also report a positive result to their school by phone or written notification; this is so the school can support them, record that they will be absent while in 7-day isolation, and let the rest of the school community know there has been a positive case onsite and that they should monitor for symptoms.
• Students and staff who have tested positive for COVID-19, have completed their 7-day isolation period and are subsequently asymptomatic do not need to undertake surveillance testing for twelve weeks.

Face masks

• Current advice from the Victorian Government on the wearing of face masks is available (see the link provided below)
• Wearing a face mask can help protect you and those around you. Face masks stop droplets spreading when you talk, cough, sneeze and laugh, which lowers your chance of spreading or catching the virus.
• The advice also strongly recommends the wearing of face masks in indoor settings (noting that exceptions to the recommendation apply to teaching circumstances when clear enunciation or visibility of the mouth is essential).  Further, the Victorian Government is recommending that, through to the end of winter, students aged 8 and over and staff will wear masks when in class.
• Household contacts attending school who are over 8 years of age are required to wear face masks indoors unless they have a valid exception. 
• Everyone including students aged 8 years and above must wear a face mask when travelling on school buses, public transport, taxis or rideshare vehicles.
• If face masks are required, they should be worn for up to four hours and replaced after this time.

Practise good hygiene

• 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 is available at entry points to classrooms.
• Sharing of food is not permitted.

Stay home if unwell

• 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.

School Advisory Council

Parent Representatives

Helen Cannell

Moo Khu James

Zanther McEldrew

Emily Gladdis

Nathan Wheeler

Appointed Representatives

Ann Munro - Parish

Ex Officio

Mons. Glynn Murphy - Parish Priest

Kingsley Dalgleish - Principal

Next Meeting

Tuesday, 9 August 2022, 7.30pm

Our Mission