Newsletter 2022/01 ~ 4 February 2022

From the Principal

God of wisdom, we ask for your help as we begin this new school year. 

Allow us to experience your presence in the many blessings you put before us.  Open our eyes to the new challenges and exciting opportunities that this new school year brings.  

Open our hearts and mouths to new students.  

In our teaching and in our students’ learning, be our gentle guide and show us the right path. 

Give us a generous spirit to be enthusiastic with our sharing and the courage to accept new opportunities.  

Help us to be attentive to one another and let us experience your presence in our new academic year.  

Inspire us to do our best in all that we do this year!  Amen.

Welcome

Welcome to the start of a new school year. 

It certainly was exciting to be able to welcome so many Foundation students to our school, as well as seeing our Years 1 - 6 students returning with genuine smiles on their faces.

I would like to offer a warm welcome to all of nine new Foundation students - Tegan, Hannah E, Hannah G, Hser Wah, Jack, Xavier, Oscar, Liberty and Freddie.  We welcome you and your families to St Patrick's School and trust that you will enjoy your educational journey with us. 

We wish all students well for the year ahead and particularly our Year 6 students - Tom, Jack C, Maddison, Stella and Jet, who are starting their last year of primary school.  I look forward to watching you demonstrate your positive leadership qualities throughout the year.

It is so pleasing to have all staff from last year continuing with us in 2022.  Our increased enrolments have also allowed us to run three straight classes this year without the need for children to change classes and/or teachers during the day.

Our classroom staffing for 2022 is as follows:

Foundation - Year 1:  Mrs Lisa Creek and Mrs Annette Hamilton

Year 2 - Year 3:  Miss Kate Williams and Mrs Caroline Pilgrim

Year 4 - Year 6:  Ms Jo Murphy and Mrs Emma Dickinson

Mrs Tracey Bell will also teach across all three classes on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Mrs Karen Rintoule and Mrs Ann Munro are our Admin staff in the front office.

Please feel free to contact your child's class teacher or myself if you have any questions regarding your child's education.

Rapid Antigen Tests

Rapid Antigen Test kits have been made available to all families.  A reminder that you are asked to complete a test on Monday and Thursday mornings and to notify me immediately on 0419929271 if there is a positive result.

A video showing how to easily complete a Rapid Antigen Test for a child can be accessed here.

Facemasks and Vaccinations

All students in Year 3 and above MUST wear a properly fitting mask at all times when inside school buildings.  Facemasks are also recommended for children in Years Foundation to Year 2.  

Similarly, ALL PARENTS / VISITORS MUST wear a properly fitting facemask when inside school buildings.

Students (aged 8 and over) MUST wear a properly fitting facemask while travelling to and from school on school buses.

All parents must also have received two doses of the coronavirus vaccine and be able to produce an original copy of their vaccination certificate.  Parents cannot enter school buildings if not double vaccinated.

More information is provided below.

Students aged 12 and above can now be vaccinated

The Victorian Government has announced that all students in Victoria, aged 12 years and above, are eligible to book and receive their COVID-19 vaccine. 

The Victorian Government is encouraging everyone aged 12 and above to get vaccinated as soon as possible and to receive at least one vaccine dose by the end of the school year. 

COVID-19 vaccines are an essential protection against serious illness.  Vaccination is not mandatory but is strongly encouraged, except where your medical practitioner advises you otherwise. 

Visit coronavirus.vic.gov.au/vaccine or covid-vaccine.healthdirect.gov.au/eligibility to book an appointment. 

Visitors to school

All visitors to school grounds must comply with vaccination requirements, density limits, face mask requirements, QR code check-ins and practise respiratory etiquette and good hand hygiene.  

"If a person must provide verification of their vaccination status and they refuse or do not  meet the vaccination/exemption requirements, that person should be asked to leave site. This is a reasonable request and enables us to maintain our COVIDSafe processes and safeguard the health and wellbeing of the school community." CECV School Operations Guide.

QR code check-in

The following people must use the hardcopy Visitor Register and QR Code when entering the school (and therefore must enter through the office, not the side entrance):

• All visitors, including contractors and CEB staff
• All parents who enter school buildings

Parents who come onto school grounds for drop off or pick up, but do not enter buildings are not required to use the QR Code.

Summary, when entering the school building please:

• wear a mask
• sign in using QR Code and Visitor Register
• provide verification of vaccination status
• use hand sanitiser.

Opening Mass

Our Opening Mass will be held in the Church next Friday from 11.30am.  Monsignor Glynn Murphy will lead our celebration and offer blessings upon our children.  Parents are welcome to attend the Mass provided they wear a facemask, QR Code in and provide evidence of being double vaccinated.

Safer Internet Day

Tuesday 8 February is Safer Internet Day.  On Safer Internet Day the world comes together with a shared vision of making online experiences better for everyone.  We all have a part to play in protecting our children as they make they way through the internet.  Parents can access further information at the following website.

Swimming Program

Our school Swimming and Water Safety & Awareness program will take place on the afternoons of Monday 14, Tuesday 15, Thursday 17 February and again the following week on the same days. Details of the program and times will be sent home to parents later next week.

Students have been allocated to Houses for the swimming carnival and other events and activities throughout the year.  The three Houses - MacKillop, Joseph and Patrick reflect our school's heritage.  Students will be encouraged to wear their House colours on the day of our swimming carnival.

STOMP Dance

STOMP Dance Company is coming to our school. Next week our students will be participating in the incursion each day (February 7th to 11th). Professional dance teachers will run daily hip hop workshops for all students each afternoon. This incursion meets all current COVID-19 guidelines.

Students may wear their P.E. uniform every day next week. 

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)

Myanmar

Our thoughts continue to be with members of our Karen community as the one year anniversary of the military coup in Myanmar was marked earlier this week.  We join with the Catholic bishops in Myanmar who have appealed for “humanitarian assistance for the thousands of displaced people” in the country while continuing "to seek support for all Myanmar people without any discrimination.” 

Get To Know You Meetings

Parents have 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 on the evening of Monday 28 February.  Families will be advised when they will be able to book through the Parent Access Module (PAM).

Sunday's Gospel Reflection - Luke 4:21-30

In Sunday's Gospel, the people are surprised but not immediately offended by Jesus' words in the synagogue. It is the words that follow his reading from the prophet Isaiah that seem to offend them. The community reacts at first with enthusiasm but quickly they are challenged and provoked by Jesus through his referencing of how Israel had rejected the prophets. He also challenges them to respond to his message, the message of a prophet, in a way that is different from their ancestors. This call for a new response leads to his rejection. 

Did Jesus know he would never please everyone?

"When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and hustled him out of the town; and they took him up to the brow of the hill their town was built on, intending to throw him down the cliff, but he slipped through the crowd and walked away."

The second reading from Sunday's Mass was the well-known and beautiful reading from the letter of St Paul to the Corinthians.  It celebrates love as the ideal gift from God and the gift we should strive for beyond all others. In part the reading proclaims “Love is always patient and kind; it is never jealous; love is never boastful or conceited; it is never rude or selfish; it does not take offence, and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people’s sins but delights in the truth; it is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes ... in short, there are three things that last: faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is love.” 

When we hear this litany of adjectives describing love, it may seem unattainable in light of our human failings, yet we are told love never fails. Love should be at the heart of each person’s ministry. Love enhances all other gifts. Even the grandest of gifts are nothing without love.

World Cancer Day

Today is World Cancer Day and in Victoria it is Cancer Research Giving Day. Sadly, most of us know someone affected by cancer whether it be a family member, a work colleague, a fellow student, a neighbour or friend.  While today is World Cancer Day and this helps in raising awareness of the ongoing need to support reasearch programs, as the ad says, "Every minute. Every hour. Every day."  Cancer isn't a one day event - cancer never sleeps.

One of our parents, Tracey Matthews is doing the World's Greatest Shave to raise money for the Leukemia Foundation on Saturday 5 March at Jaypex Park.  Tracey is quite recognisable with her coloured dreadlocks so it will quite a transformation as she has her head shaved.  Tracey is hoping to not only raise funds but also help give families facing cancer the emotional and practical support they need.

On the day there will be a Family Fun Day from 10am to 3pm.  More information will be provided in the coming weeks.  In the meantime, please support Tracey by making donations at the Nhill Pharmacy and Mulhallens Mitre-10 or by visiting https://secure.leukaemiafoundation.org.au and search for 'Tracey Matthews'.

Congratulations also to past student Jessi Toet who has been fundraising for Cancer Council Victoria over the school holidays.  Jessi will be having 35cm of her hair cut off at her school to assist in the provision of wigs for patients undergoing cancer treatment.

Sympathies

We offer our prayerful condolences to the Gladdis family following the recent passing of Tessa and Hannah's Grandmother.  Our thoughts are with you at this time.

Book Club

Catalogues were sent home yesterday. If you wish to purchase anything, the easiest way is online. It is completely optional and the school earns commission on books sold. Orders are due by 18 February.

Library

Library books are available to borrow and can be swapped weekly during class library time. These are books students can select themselves for the enjoyment of reading. 

Mrs Dickinson is available Monday to Thursday for any Library needs outside class borrowing time.

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 News

Junior Class - Mrs Creek

Welcome to School for 2022.

Our Big Book story is called ‘Mrs Wishy-washy’. She has three animals that love the mud. The cow, pig, and duck have to go into the tub for a wash. I’ll let your children tell you what happens next.

The Foundation students are learning school routines and have a great start to their school year. There is no school on Wednesdays for Foundation students till March 16. But we have lots of activities planned for our first term.

The Junior and Middle classes have Sport on Wednesday with Mrs Bell. Mathematic specific foci has been counting, making patterns and using the 100 number chart. 

Middle Class - Miss Williams

Welcome back to school for 2022, we have had a wonderful week with an excursion and lots of settling in activities. We have spent the week looking at routine and what our class will look, feel and sound like during the year. Hopefully your child’s terrific first day photo made its way home on Tuesday.

On Thursdays Mrs Bell takes the Year 2 and 3’s for Integrated Studies, Maths and Science from 9am until 1pm. We also are very blessed to have the wonderful Mrs Pilgrim working in our room all day every day!

Our terrific Year 2 and 3 students took Thursday morning to visit places of different services around town with Mrs Bell for Integrated Studies. The student went to the fire station, post office, hospital and bank. They also went to have a look at the police station but I was told the police car left the station as they were at the petrol station!

Senior Class - Ms Murphy

Welcome to all families and friends old and new to St. Patrick’s School Nhill! What a wonderful start to the school year the Senior students have had. Well done to our five Year 6 students on reaching the final year of your Primary schooling, I look forward to seeing your leadership skills shine this year!

This week we have spent time getting to know each other, how our classroom will look, feel and sound this year and what our rules or collective commitments are.

During reading we have chosen a wide range of materials for our class and have commenced our reading by becoming familiar with reading books and digital books on Epic! and how all this works in our room. We have launched into maths with a focus on place value and once again we are committed to improving our recall and calculation skills particularly around multiplication. This year we are very lucky to have Mrs Emma Dickinson in our room from Monday to Thursday and we all welcome Mrs D to the Senior class for 2022 and we thank her for being a part of our classroom family.

Happy Birthday wishes to ...

... Tegan, Caleb, Maddison, AJ, Hannah G and Hser Wah.

Dates & Reminders

Term Dates

Term 1 - 28 January (staff) 1 February (students) to 8 April

Term 2 - 26 April to 24 June

Term 3 - 11 July to 16 September

Term 4 - 3 October to 20 December

School Calendar

February

March

April

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.

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

Wednesday, 23 February 2022, 7.30pm

Our Mission

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