17 November 2022

Newsletter Articles

FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK

Dear Parents, caregivers and friends,

Dear Lord,

Remind me daily that You have called me to be fruitful, not just busy. Give me the wisdom and strength to produce in abundance that which is most important and constructive in my life and the lives of those around me. Help me to focus on the things that are most important and keep me from being distracted by the things that try to keep me from reaching my goals and achieving the dreams that you have put in my heart.

Amen

REMEMBRANCE DAY

Last Friday, 11th November I accompanied our school leaders to the Remembrance Day Service in Maitland Park. This was an opportunity to honour all who have served our country in active service, peacekeeping missions and humanitarian efforts. As we paused to remember, we were encouraged to pray for all those who fight for freedom, live in conflict zones and make decisions that can bring peace to our world.

Today we dedicate ourselves to the cause of justice, freedom and peace; and for the wisdom and strength to build a better world.

At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month each year we pause to remember all those who have fought for their countries in war. On this day, known as Remembrance Day or Armistice Day, we honour those who have died with a minutes silence and pray for peace in our world.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
Lest We Forget.

CALENDAR EVENTS

With the end of the school year almost upon us, we have much to celebrate - our students, our year together and Christmas. Please mark the following dates on your calendar.

MISSION DAY – FRIDAY 18TH NOVEMBER

Date: Friday 18th November 2022
Time: 11.30am - 1:30pm
Location: School playground
Who: Kindergarten to Year 6 will participate, with the Social Justice and Engaging Community teams, and Year 6, responsible for planning and running the Mission Day stalls. Parents, grandparents and friends are very welcome.
Why: To raise money and awareness of the plight of children in Ethiopia, namely rural Emdibir, who are facing food insecurity and malnutrition. As members of a Catholic community, we are called to support and live the Catholic Social teachings of Caring for our Common Home, Common Good, Dignity of the Human Person and Preferential Treatment of the Poor. All money raised will be donated to Catholic Mission Australia.
Uniform: Out of Uniform – gold coin donation required

Details:

• Whole school liturgy at 11:30 led by Year 2 (COLA)
• 12:00 – a variety of stalls will be placed around the playground for children to visit and participate in – eg lolly guessing competition, coloured hairspray, face painting, 100 club, photo booth, sponge throwing, vortex throwing, bean bag toss,
• A more detailed note will come home asking for donations for the stalls – coloured hairspray, cakes/slices, face paint, temporary tattoos
• All students will have the opportunity to purchase (in advance) booklets of ‘St Pat’s Bucks’, (via the QKR app) that they can use to participate in different activities (there are approximately 17different activities to choose)
• St Pat’s Bucks sell for $5 (for a booklet of 10 tickets)
• St Pat’s Bucks are used to pay for involvement in activities and to purchase food and treat items (no cash can be used)
• Parents are encouraged to bring a picnic lunch in from home to share with their children at the conclusion of activities

How much do the activities and treat items (cake stall) cost?
Participation in activities/stalls will cost 1 St Pat’s Bucks.

How do we purchase St Pat’s Bucks?
St Pat’s Bucks can be purchased via the QKR app.

• Open the app
• Select Payments
• Please select the required number of booklets for each child in your family
• Complete payment.

The purchasing of St Pat’s Bucks will be available from 2/11/22 until the 16/11/22.

The QKR app can be downloaded from the app store and installed on your phone. Once downloaded, search for ‘Lochinvar’ and St Patrick’s will appear. You will then need to complete a profile for each child.

Children will be given their St Pat’s Bucks on Mission Day.

P & F MEETING + AGM – 2/12 FRIDAY

9.15 am
School Hall following assembly/liturgy

CHRISTMAS CRAFT DAY- 7/12 WEDNESDAY

Students wear Xmas clothes and engage in craft activities on this day.

FINAL AWARDS PRESENTATION- 8/12 THURSDAY

Our final assembly to present the End of Year Awards will be held on Thursday, December 8 at 9.30 am. All parents are welcome to gather for this ceremony to be held in the hall at St Joseph’s College Lochinvar.

YR 6 GRADUATION & THANKSGIVING LITURGY- 12/12 MONDAY

Our Thanksgiving Liturgy including Year 6 Graduation will be celebrated on Monday, December 12 commencing at 10.30am in the hall at St Joseph’s College Lochinvar. This will be our final whole school celebration for the year. The Year 6 graduation lunch (for students and staff ONLY) will follow this event and be held in our school hall. Year 6 children will engage in social activities with their peers, including the use of a photo booth and music. They will also enjoy a sit-down lunch provided by a catering company.

CHRISTMAS FAMILY NIGHT - 13/12 CANCELLED

Regrettably, due to the anticipated significant impact of building works on our playground space, we have cancelled this event. Instead, we will host a special family night in Term 1 or 2 2023, when the building work is expected to be complete, and we regain access to our playground to host large numbers of visitors.

STEP-UP DAY- 14/12 WEDNESDAY

Students will move up to the next classroom with their allocated class group for 2023.

YEAR 6 FINAL RITE OF PASSAGE- FRIDAY 16TH DECEMBER 2022

Time: 2.20pm

Detail: Staff and students in Years K-5 will assemble on the path leading from the canteen to the administration building (within the school), and from the administration building to the carpark (outside the front entrance), effectively creating a ‘tunnel.’

Parents and family members are invited to gather in single file along the concrete path which runs outside the black fence and connects the administration building at the front of the school to the base of the hall car park off Gregory Rd. Please be aware of building works in the area. The Year 6 students will continue their procession along the path, being celebrated by their loved ones as they go, completing their journey at the end of the path, where their Year 6 teachers will be waiting to meet them to escort them around the construction site, through the carpark, to the hall.

Following the procession, parents will be asked to collect their Year 6 child from the hall carpark gate and;

1. Promptly leave the school site or
2. Move to usual dismissal points to collect siblings.

NB: this is the last day of school for all students.

ADVANCE NOTICE- DATES FOR 2023

• START DATES

For 2023, all Diocesan schools will commence the school year with two pupil free Staff Development Days – Friday 27th and Monday 30th January.

The start date for all students in Years 1-6 will be TUESDAY 31st January 2023.

The start date for Kindergarten 2023 is Thursday 2nd February. Children in Kindergarten have been allocated to a specific group and will come to school each day for the first four days for ½ day only (see the table below). Group allocation is provided through the seesaw app.

• ST PATRICK’S SCHOOL SWIMMING CARNIVAL – FRIDAY 3RD FEBRUARY 2023 – Further details to be advised
• ASC REGIONAL SWIMMING CARNIVAL – WEDNESDAY 15TH FEBRUARY 2023 – Selected Students to attend
• HARMONY DAY – TUESDAY 21ST MARCH 2023
• SCHOOL PHOTOS – THURSDAY 15TH JUNE 2023
• GREAT AUSSIE BUSH CAMP YEAR 5 – WEDNESDAY 30TH AUGUST – FRIDAY 1ST SEPTEMBER 2023
• CANBERRA EXCURSION YEAR 6 – WEDNESDAY 1ST NOVEMBER - FRIDAY 3RD NOVEMBER 2023

ORGANISATION AND MANAGEMENT

LATEST COVID ADVICE

NSW Health recently advised that we are already starting to see a rise in COVID-19 transmissions within the community, with a peak of cases expected in early December. This has been reflected at St Patrick’s with new cases being reported in staff and students.

The COVID-smart measures continue to be in place and are vital in allowing us to keep our schools operational while prioritising student and staff wellbeing.

These measures include:

• staying home if unwell and/or showing any symptoms
• mask-wearing strongly encouraged, particularly when indoors and/or when physical distancing is not possible, and on public transport
• continued mandatory mask-wearing for anyone working with students at greater risk of serious illness whether they be in an specialist centres, support unit or mainstream classroom
• using rapid antigen tests (RATs) when showing symptoms or exposed to COVID-19
• encouraging all students, staff and families to keep up-to-date with their vaccinations, including COVID-19 booster shots if eligible
• NSW Health are also encouraging everyone in the community to continue to register positive RATs with Service NSW to ensure they receive timely support and advice, including access to antivirals for those eligible.
• Schools are encouraged to continue to reinforce the importance of the COVID-smart measures to students, parents, carers and staff.

Rapid antigen tests (RATs)

Families and staff are encouraged to test whenever they are showing symptoms or if they have been exposed to COVID-19.

With the expected spike in COVID-19 cases in the community early next month, parents are reminded that St Patrick’s has supply of RAT kits. You are encouraged to continue testing as needed, particularly before large end-of-year events and gatherings.

In addition we will maintain an appropriate stock of RAT kits on site to support symptomatic testing in the event of an outbreak.

This means:

• stock for at least 2 RATs per student and staff member in schools
• stock for at least 4 RATs per student and staff member in specialist centres and support units.

Risk assessment reminder before large events, gatherings and excursions

COVID-19 exposure and the potential introduction of appropriate controls will continue to form part of the risk assessment process for school activities, particularly for large events, gatherings and excursions including camps.

P&F AGM

Friday the 2nd of December at 9.15am in the hall, following assembly/liturgy

St Patrick’s P&F is now calling for your attendance at the Annual General Meeting and nominations for vacant committee positions on the 2023 Committee. (Nominations will also be taken during the meeting). Your attendance at this meeting is vital to ensure a quorum is reached (7 members including at least 2 Executive members) and the meeting can take place. The agenda includes reports on all areas of activity undertaken by the P&F throughout the year.

Nominations are welcome for the St Patrick’s Lochinvar P&F for 2023.

Please address your application in a sealed envelope to the P&F President St Patrick’s Lochinvar or return via email to admin@lochinvarsp.catholic.edu.au.

MANY THANKS

I would like to send out a big THANK YOU to the special mums, dads and grandparents who have volunteered their time helping in the school canteen. Your efforts are very much appreciated. We cannot keep up with demand without parental assistance. Due to work and family commitments, we will be needing more assistance in 2023, so please get your volunteer paperwork in order and consider helping just one day a month.

BABY NEWS

Congratulations to Mrs Megan Redman and her husband Josh on the safe arrival of Wil Stanley Redman who entered the world a little earlier than expected on 30th October at 9.46am, weighing in at just over 3kg (6 lb 14 oz). 51cm long.

CANTEEN NEWS

Once again, I would like to thank those members of our community, both parents and Year Six students for volunteering their time to support our canteen. The operation of the canteen relies on the help of our school community. Thank you to the volunteers who have offered their time this term. There are quite a few gaps that need filling to take us to the end of term. Please contact me chris.jones@mn.catholic.edu.au if you would like to volunteer for all or part of the day or have any questions.

UNIFORM UPDATE

At our last P&F meeting, the parent body voted to change the School Uniform Policy in relation to the sport uniform. The policy now includes an addition and reads “predominately black OR predominately white joggers” to reflect the difficulty some parents face in sourcing white shoes in larger sizes. Please ensure that black joggers must not replace the leather school shoes to be worn with the standard uniform.

STUDENT LEADERSHIP

“A leader is one who knows the way, shows the way and goes the way.” John C. Maxwell.

Next week our Year Five students commence their journey towards student leadership in 2023. Our students will come together to reflect on the meaning and challenges of leadership and begin the process for election.

LEADERSHIP BOOKLET INFORMATION

GOVERNANCE MATTERS

Attendance is a critical factor in any child's school success. Children should attend school every day, except in cases of illness or emergency. It is impossible to replace the learning that happens on any school day with make-up work.

Regular attendance and promptness are good habits that are expected and appreciated at all levels of schooling and in the workplace. All parents are asked to make school a priority in their household. Commit to excellence in attendance and only permit absences when your child is unwell.

WHAT IS GOOD ATTENDANCE?

Good attendance means that your child is in school at least 95% of the time or at least 195 days out of a total of 205 days.

As we enter the last half of term 4, following 2 years of significantly disrupted learning, it is timely to assess your child’s attendance patterns.

Attendance Matrix

If your child’s attendance is not as regular as it could be, you are asked to take steps now to ensure significant changes for 2023.

RE NEWS

CURRICULUM NEWS

SEMESTER 2 STUDENT REPORT REVIEW UPDATE

As a Primary school in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, we are continuing to review our Student Report document to ensure it communicates current achievement, academic strengths, areas for development and dispositions as a learner.

The reporting process, including the physical report and opportunities to meet with parents to discuss their child’s progress, is important in the cycle of feedback between home and school. Ongoing consultation with parents and carers will be key to the success of this review.

The information included outlines the changes made to the Semester 2 Student Report document as a result of the feedback from parents and teachers following the Semester 1 Reporting cycle. There will be an opportunity following this reporting cycle for further feedback.

KEY LEARNING AREAS

• Descriptors for all Key Learning Areas

Detailed descriptors within the strands of each Key Learning Area have been included to provide parents with more information about what their child is learning and what the teacher is reporting against. They include content and/or skills within the strands, and when read with the grade given by the teacher, provide a clear picture for parents on how their child is tracking.

The inclusion of descriptors allows for changes to the content within syllabus documents by the government to be included when they happen.

• Overall Achievement Grade

The Overall Achievement grade is no longer part of the Key Learning Area grading. Grades are given against the more detailed descriptors within each Key Learning Area. This change provides parents with a clear picture of their child’s achievement in the different sections within each Key Learning Area.

Achievement against the standard in each Key Learning Area is recorded using a five-point scale of words rather than letters.

Feedback suggested that the words – Limited, Basic, Sound, Thorough and Extensive, hold more meaning for parents than the previous A-E scale used. An explanation of the five-point scale can be found in the ‘Information for Parents/Caregivers’ section of the report.

• Areas of Strength and Development

Teacher comments on ‘Areas of Strength’ and ‘Areas for Development’ in Religious Education, English and Mathematics are an important aspect of student progress in these Key Learning Areas. Teachers will focus on two areas of strength and one area for development in each report. These comments provide an opportunity to celebrate what a student is doing well and to identify goals for the following semester of learning.

Standard comments have been developed from the NSW syllabus documents and are aligned to the Literacy and Numeracy Progressions used by all educators to support teaching and learning. Religious Education comments have been developed from Diocesan syllabus documents. Teachers are able to draw from standard comments to provide consistency of feedback and language across Diocesan schools, with autonomy to develop comments which reflect classroom learning.

Thank you for your support of the Report Review process so far. We look forward to continuing to work with you to develop the Student Report to meet your needs.

CLASSROOM NEWS

YEAR 4 PLAY

LIBRARY NEWS

LIBRARY RETURNS

All students should start to return their library books in preparation for the end of year stocktake.

All student books MUST be returned by Friday 25th November 2022.

SAVE THE DATE

Advance notice - The 13th February 2023 is The National Book Swap day.

For a gold coin students will be able to take home a book of their choice from the available selection. Funds raised will support the Indigenous Literacy Foundation.

To get this selection please clean out your unused books at home and bring them into the Library.

We are accepting Book Swap donations now. Please send in any books of reasonable quality that you have finished reading from your home library!

ASPIRE

Congratulations to the 2023 successful aspire auditionees. The following students have been successful:

Armani Garland-Sherbon - Vocal Ensemble
Ethan White – Junior Drama Ensemble
Millie Cronin – Aspire Actors Program
Bradley Henman – Aspire Actors Program
Sakura Nolasco – Dance Ensemble
Erin Kelly – Dance Ensemble

ABORIGINAL & TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER NEWS

SPORT NEWS

Congratulations to the following students who have been selected to take part in Diocesan trials in their chosen fields.

Basketball- Nevaya Liva, Tyson Wheeler, Sienna Proctor, Erin Kelly

PARENTING PAGE

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