Dear Parents and Carers,

This week marks a significant week in the protection of children. National Child Protection Week is a campaign held annually across Australia to raise awareness of child safety and child abuse prevention.

This week is an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to the protection of the children and young people in our care. We strive also to support all of our students to learn to develop respectful relationships with others.

Child Protection Week is an opportunity to raise awareness about child protection systems and preventative strategies for safeguarding children in our schools.

It is only fitting that this Sunday ends the week with Child Protection Sunday to be held in each parish community. It is an opportunity to come together as a community and pray. In the words of Pope Francis in his letter;

May the Holy Spirit grant us the grace of conversion and the interior anointing needed to express before these crimes of abuse our compunction and our resolve courageously to combat them.

If you would like to access further support or resources in the area of Child protection please find below some useful links.

NAPCAN | National Child Protection Week          

https://www.napcan.org.au/national-child-protection-week/

eSafety Free Virtual Classrooms as part of National Child Protection Week

https://www.napcan.org.au/esafety-free-virtual-classrooms-as-part-of-national-child-protection-week/

Resources for parents - iParent

https://www.esafety.gov.au/education-resources/iparent 

Thank you! 

Book Week and Grandparents Day 2019

Wow! Thank you for the parents, grandparents, great people and families who came to support and be a part of our Book Week and Grandparents day celebrations for 2019. Your participation and support of our school is very much appreciated. It was so wonderful to see our school community gathered together in such a positive way. As Belinda said, “The day was a day filled with an immense amount of love”. As a Catholic school community this is what we strive for - to be a community centered around faith and learning. 

Thank you to those who helped out by bringing items in for our morning tea! We had so many goodies. We very much appreciate those parents who came to set up, serve and clean up during our morning tea! Your assistance and commitment to making our day a success doesn’t go unnoticed. 

Thank you to Mrs Cecilia Medina for organising our book fair in the library as well as our prizes for our ‘Reading is my Secret Power’ competition. We thank everyone who purchased a book at our book fair - we value your generosity. 

What a wonderful day! 

The Sacraments of First Penance and Communion 

Change of date: First Penance and First Communion

The Sacraments of First Penance and Communion are celebrated when a child is in Year 2 or seven years old (or older).  First Communion is given to children who have reached the age of reason, which is accepted as seven years old, that is, when a child is in Year 2 [Canons 913, 914].  Prior to receiving First Communion, children are to celebrate the Sacrament of Penance [Reconciliation]. In order to prepare for these Sacraments, there is a preparation program consisting of the following: 

Enrolments close on Tuesday, 10 September 2019

Enrolment Forms for 2019 may be downloaded from the Parish website

Parent Meeting is on Tuesday, 8 October at 7:30pm  [not 15 October]

Penance:  Classes 1 and 2 are on Tuesdays, 22 and 29 October, 3:45pm to 5pm  

Sacrament of Penance is on Wednesday, 30 October at 7:00pm 

Eucharist:  Classes 3 and 4 are on Tuesdays, 12 and 19 November, 3:45pm to 5pm

First Communion is celebrated at either of the weekend Masses on 30 November or 1 December or 7/8 December or on any later weekend.

Vinnies Bins 

Just a reminder that our Vinnies bins are used for BOTTLES or CANS only. Anyone from our community can bring in bottles or cans from home and put them in our Vinnies bin. Please find these blue bins on the playground and add your bottles! 

The scheme guarantees a minimum of 10 cents to be given for each drink container that is returned to a St Vincent de Paul coordinated collection point. This money then goes towards supporting their agency work and helping those in need. 

St Francis of Assisi Liturgy- Hosted by Kindergarten 

Wednesday 25th September at 2:30pm 

Miss Emma Groves – Religious Education Coordinator

Term 3 Assembly dates

School Assemblies

Assemblies at St Michael’s are an opportunity for our community  to come together to acknowledge and celebrate the great learning and events that happen in our school. The school assembly allows all students at St Michael’s to be recognised for their efforts. This term we have added an additional component to our assembly which allows one class per fortnight to share some of the brilliant learning that has been happening in their classrooms. 

Week 8- Friday 13 September (Year 3 sharing their learning)

No Assembly Week 10 after the Walkathon.

A huge thankyou to all of the classes that have engaged in the work sharing component of our assembly. It has been wonderful to showcase just some of the wonderful learning that has been occuring in these classrooms.

Professional Learning- Collaborative Inquiry 

Throughout this term staff have engaged in a new collaborative process called collaborative inquiry. This process involves a structure that allows staff to gain an even deeper knowledge of their students by interrogating reading data and setting clear goals for targeted groups of learners. This term our collaborative inquiry has been based around our school priority of literacy (reading). The collaborative work that staff have already done both in formal and informal structures have already had a huge impact on these targeted groups of learners. It has been wonderful to witness the evidence already collected that demonstrates the impact this has had on student learning. 

On Friday of week 6 students and staff were given the opportunity to share their learnings as a result of the collaborative inquiry with our Diocese Head of School Improvement services (Primary). This was a powerful and moving experience that showcased the hard work our teachers have put into this process and the growth in student learning. 

Supporting your children with reading at home 

This term we have developed a new strategy to support our school goal of collaboratively engaging and working with parents to support student learning. This strategy involves providing parents with a digital resource that will assist them to support their children at home. Each term there will be a focus for the digital resource. This term our focus is on providing parents with some simple and easy tips to support their children’s reading at home. 

In the link below you will have access to a short clip developed by Mrs McLeod that gives some very useful strategies to help students ensure they use monitoring strategies as they read. This is a great way to ensure that our students maintain meaning as they read and use strategies to assist them to do this. Thank you to Mrs McLeod for her openness to sharing just one of the brilliant ways that she supports her students reading in her class. We hope these tips will be useful to support reading at home. 

PAT Assessments

In week 8 students form years 1-6 will engage in our annual PAT assessments. This is a Diocesan initiative that aims to support teachers with an additional source of data to evaluate student learning and plan targeted teaching. These assessments have been timetabled across the week. Staff will then utilise collaborative time to analyse this assessment data to review whole class and individual learning growth and utilise this information as one piece of the puzzle to plan targeted student learning experiences. 

SPB4L update 

Classroom & Non-classroom correction sequence with explanation

As a part of the school’s SPB4L procedures there is a Correctional Sequence of Behaviour that is followed by all teachers to assist students in making positive choices. This forms a part of the school’s procedures in living out the school rules and expectations. Please find a copy of the flowchart that is used in classrooms and non-classroom environments.

Mr James Bryce - Assistant Principal

COLOUR MUFTI WALK-ATHON 

We have 4 weeks to go till our first Colour Mufti Walk-a-thon event on Friday, 27 September at Thomas Gibson Park. Please find the fundraising link that can be shared via email or social media to help fundraise much needed funds for our School. Any donation no matter how big or small, will go towards creating a sacred space for our students within the School.

The link is: https://colourwalkathon.gofundraise.com.au/

For any family that raises money, you will go into the draw to win the major prize of a Lego set valued at $150 or one of three runners up prizes valued at $50.

Father’s Day

Thank you to all who donated goods and volunteered their time to make Father’s Day special for all the Father figures in our student's lives. I hope you all were able to enjoy a family filled day.

Parent Volunteers

Over the last couple of weeks we have had plenty of opportunities for parent volunteers to assist in our school community. We are very thankful for the many ways that parents are able to support the school, whether it be with time, donations or sharing of expertise. It is always welcomed and greatly appreciated. Here are a few of the recent events where you have excelled in your support and generosity; disco, Grandparent’s Day, classroom parent readers, Father’s Day Stall, donations. 

Book Fair

Thank you to all the grandparents/students who donated books to our library last week. Your continued support is always appreciated; we raised an amazing total of $1,490.00!! All books have been issued to each student donor. Thank you to the Wollongong Catholic Woman’s League -Thirroul Branch for your generous donation to our library on Book Week. We are so grateful for your kindness.

Mrs Medina – Library School Support Officer

Student Support - Injury and Medical Conditions

A reminder that the regulations and requirements from the Catholic Education Office for a school when a student has an injury have changed. When a student is at school and has an injury that requires adjustments to be put in place (this could include, broken bones, use of crutches, fractures etc) the school now requires a medical certificate to certify that the student is fit to return to school. In addition the medical certificate needs to outline what the child can and can not do at the school, for example the student is fit to return to school, they are unable to participate in any physical activity. If your child injures themselves out of school hours please keep this in mind as you receive medical treatment. 

It should also be noted that if your child requires prescription or non prescription medication, a Medical Authorisation Form must be obtained from the school office and once completed the medication is to be kept at the office. Students are not to have their medication in their school bags.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact the school.

Student Absences, Early Departures and Late Arrivals 

A student’s attendance at school is an important part of their learning journey. Not only is it a legal requirement but it also forms a critical part of their social, emotional and academic growth as a young person. 

There have been many children turning up to school late and leaving early. Please limit appointments to before or after school hours and attempt to have holiday breaks during the student vacation period. In line with the revised Diocesan Policy we will be following up with a letter to any families who are consistently late to school. If your child is running late and has arrived after 9am they MUST be signed in by an adult, please do not drop them off at the school gate and allow them to come through the office unattended.

Thank you for your cooperation with this procedure.

SUMMER UNIFORM CHANGE OVER:

Our official uniform changeover date for students to wear full summer uniform is Monday, 14 October - Week 1 Term 4. 

The Gardening Journey Continues - Year 5 Ambassadors

Prinicpals Awards

• Nieve Smith
• Imogen Villanti
• Sofia LaPolambara
• Taylen Woods
• Tylah Gearside

Gold Award

• Thomas McCarthy

Sports Round-Up 

We wish Zali Ninness all the best when she competes at the Mackillop Athletics Trials in Homebush on Monday, 16th of September in shotput!

Good luck Zali!

South Coast Basketball

Our next gala coming up is the Junior and Senior Basketball Gala Day:

19th September, 2019 Junior Boys & Girls (Years 3 & 4) 

20th September, 2019 Senior Girls & Boys (Years 5 & 6)

These will be will be held at the Berkeley Illawarra Sports Stadium.

Mr Jason Novak - Sports Co ordinator

Mufti Day

The P&F are organising a mufti day on Friday, 13 September, it will be a gold coin donation. All monies raised will be put towards supporting the school with resources.

 P & F Trivia Night