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Dear Parents and Carers,

https://forms.gle/nwoZs651afpEfa5Y6

Mrs Belinda Hughes - Principal

Holy Week Liturgy at St Michael’s!

Parents, friends & families are invited to our whole school Holy Week liturgy. It will take place on Tuesday April 9th from 2:00-3:00pm. Students from years K-6 and some of our St Michael’s parents will be involved in portraying the events of Holy Week in the school hall.

Harmony Day

On March 21st St Michael’s celebrated Harmony Day. Did you know that orange is the colour chosen to represent Harmony Day? Traditionally, orange signifies social communication and meaningful conversations. It also relates to the freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect. Harmony Day is a day to celebrate Australian multiculturalism, based on the successful integration of migrants into our community. Harmony Day is about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background, united by a set of core Australian values.

Confirmation

The Sacrament of Confirmation will be conferred by Bishop Brian on Wednesday (26/6) & Thursday (27/6) 2019 to Year 6 (or older) students.

Enrolment Forms for the Sacrament of Confirmation close on 13 May 2019. To download an enrolment form go to the St Michael’s Parish website (thirroul@dow.org.au) and return it to the Parish Office.  

Easter Masses

Easter at Thirroul Parish - Join our Thirroul Community and Father Ken for our Easter Masses:

•  Holy Thursday – Mass of the Lord’s Supper
• 7:30pm, 18 April

• Good Friday, 19 April
• Way of the Cross, 10:30am
• Liturgy of the Passion, 3:00pm

• Easter Vigil, Saturday, 20 April
• 7:00pm
• Easter Sunday, 21 April
• Easter Sunday Mass, 8:00am [with infant baptisms]

Items Needed for Thirroul Parish

These can be brought to Miss Groves or directly to the parish

Small Plastic Bottles Needed for Easter Water

At the Easter Vigil water is blessed and everyone will be given a bottle to take to bless your homes and cars. However, we need more small plastic bottles. If you have some, please bring them in by Sunday, 7 April.

Needed for Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Anzac Day

Our Parish will need palms, both large and small, for Palm Sunday, 13/14 April, and rosemary for Good Friday, 19 April and Anzac Day.

Come along to our school ANZAC Ceremony

After having discussions with Thirroul Public School this year we have decided to have our ANZAC day services at our respective schools. We have decided to trial this, so that all years from Kindergarten to Year 6 can attend the service.

It will take place on Tuesday 30th of April, the second day back at school. The service will begin at 9:00am.

Students should wear their correct summer uniform, including school hat. In the case of wet weather the service will be held in our school hall.

If you are a parent and are able to read at the ANZAC service or if have served in the defence forces/ currently serving in the defence forces could you please let the school office know.

We thank our captains & vice captains for attending the ANZAC day dawn service at on behalf of St Michael’s at Austinmer/Thirroul RSL Sub-Branch Dawn Service at William Woodward Park, Thirroul. 6am start. We would love to see more faces from St Michael’s  at this important commemoration.

Peace Poster - Year 5 and 6

The Lions Clubs International Peace Poster Contest has been conducted since 1988 in local schools by encouraging young people of the ages 11, 12 and 13 years to artistically express their visions of peace.

A variety of mediums including charcoal, crayon, pencil and paint can be used to create a unique work that expresses the young artist’s life experiences and culture and spark their imagination around a common theme of Peace. This year’s theme is “JOURNEY OF PEACE“.

We have selected our 10 School finalists and they are:

• Lawson Douglas
• Dash Barr
• Charlotte McLeod
• Charlie Lamberger
• Anabel Gveric
• Chloe Bleeker
• Jessica Smith
• Tessa Body
• Dylan Lopes de Oliveira
• Arianah Ballantyne

With a highly commended to Zoe Wilson

The School finalists will be on Public Exhibition at King St Thirroul on Saturday, 7th April, from 9.30 to 4.30pm. Judging will take place on Saturday, before the Display is opened to the public. A PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD will be voted on during the Saturday public exhibition. The overall winner and the People’s Choice Award will be announced at the Seaside Festival on Sunday, 7th April. All winning posters will be on display on the Sunday of the festival.

St Michael’s Uniform Expectations:

Recently we have noticed some inconsistencies with students adhering to school uniform expectations. Below is an excerpt from the Parent Handbook to provide some reminders of our school expectations to ensure consistency. We thank you for your cooperation in ensuring that our students take pride in their school uniform.

The wearing of the correct school uniform is an expectation at St Michael’s. It is important for students to take pride in themselves, and in their school, by being correctly groomed and wearing full uniform.

The following information from the Parent handbook outlines the school uniform policy.

Girls Summer Uniform

Blue check tunic, short blue socks, black leather shoes (no canvas shoes or boots), hat with school emblem. (Optional culottes and shirt).

Girls and Boys Sport Uniform

Unisex microfibre navy shorts, polo shirt with emblem, blue socks, sport shoes that are modest in colour, preferably blue or white. Navy microfibre sports jacket with emblem and microfibre sports pants, navy scarf (optional). School hat with emblem.

Boys Summer Uniform

Navy blue shorts, short-sleeved blue shirt, blue socks, black leather shoes (no canvas shoes or boots). School hat with emblem.

Hairstyles

Hair that is over collar length must be cut or tied back. Hair may not be dyed. Hair that is untidy (for example long in length or on top or sides, in face) must be cut, no hairstyles that are inappropriate for school (eg. rat tails, mohawks, beaded hair etc.) are allowed. Only light blue or navy coloured bands, ribbons etc. may be worn.

Jewellery

For safety reasons, jewellery, with the exception of simple watches, signet rings and plain stud or small “sleeper” earrings, is not permitted. Crosses on chains may be worn under uniforms.

Nails

Nails are to be kept short and clean.  (No nail polish or other cosmetics are to be worn.)

**A simple watch - We have had many students coming to school with watches that receive messages, make plenty of sounds or are a novelty watch. These are not appropriate for school, they are distraction during their learning. All students will be asked to remove these and place in their bags.

Reading and assessment SRI update

Throughout this term staff have engaged in further Professional Learning to continue to enhance our shared capacity of planning teaching and learning that is responsive and tailored to the diverse needs of our students. As a part of this learning, staff have used a range of assessment strategies to identify individual student and whole class learning needs. This has allowed staff to provide clear and visible learning that allows each student to identify their next steps in learning. This will be continued throughout next term as we move towards developing strategies for our students to assess their own work as well as the work of their peers.

Teaching Reading Strategies  Phase 1

On Monday five of our staff members from grades 3-6 engaged in the ‘Teaching Reading Strategies’ professional learning facilitated by our Diocesan Literacy Consultant. This professional learning replicated the learning that occured last year to ensure that all new staff in years 3-6 have had the same professional learning and support in teaching reading and comprehension. On Wednesday these staff members engaged in a planning day to put this new learning into practice. We are very fortunate to have such dedicated teachers at St Michael’s who have already gone above and beyond expectations to provide the best possible learning experiences for our students. This professional learning will be continued in Term 2 with the support of our Literacy Consultant.

Mr James Bryce - Assistant Principal

Landscape Project Update

I am pleased to share that the first phase of stage one works for the landscape project have been approved and it is anticipated that the work will be carried out in the Easter school holidays. This will include significant landscaping and planting along the fence line, a garden and landscape work at the top of the basketball court. I look forward to sharing the next stage in the project and seeing what a wonderful impact the work will have for our students in our playground.

Canteen News

Last year there was an extraordinary meeting held in relation to the canteen service at St Michael’s. After considerable consultation and discussion it was decided to attempt to open the canteen 1 day a week and have 1 day for preparation (2 days a week). If this was not viable it was decided that the canteen would become an outsourced service. Unfortunately we have been unable to open the canteen this term due to the lack of volunteers available. As a result we will begin the process of finding the right service for our school community. So that we can provide a service to our families the canteen will be outsourced and the best possible service will be explored. I will keep you informed as this progresses.

I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank all parents and carers who have been involved in the canteen, from being on the committee to volunteering. I appreciate that this is valuable and limited time that you have to give, your efforts and generosity has been greatly appreciated.

Parenting Tips Workshop - Term 2

This year we will hold a parenting tips workshop in Term 2 and Term 4.  The term 2 workshop will focus on how to help your child navigate friendship issues and conflicts in a way to that builds resilience and equips your child with positive strategies that will help them beyond primary school. It will be held on Wednesday 22 May at 2pm. We hope you can join us.

St Michael’s Uniform

As we come to the end of Term 1, it is easy to become complacent with school uniform. Thank you to all parents who support our uniform policy and ensure that their child is wearing the correct uniform at all times.

The teachers are having a focus on correct uniform in the next couple of weeks, this may mean that your child may bring home a pink slip reminding you and them of the expectations. Please refer to the SPB4L section of our newsletter for the key messages around uniform expectations.

TERM 2 UNIFORM 

The change to winter uniform next term is Monday 20 May (Week 4). If the weather becomes cooler students may wear their full winter uniform before this date.

NAPLAN  

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) assesses literacy and numeracy skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life. Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 participate in the annual NAPLAN tests in reading, writing, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. The assessment provides parents and schools with an understanding of how individual students are performing at the time of the tests. NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school’s assessment and reporting process - it does not replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance.  The NAPLAN Online assessment window starts on Tuesday 14 May and finishes on Friday 24 May 2019.

In 2019 students across Australia will sit NAPLAN online. One of the main benefits of NAPLAN Online is tailored (or adaptive) testing, where the test automatically adapts to a student’s test performance. The test presents questions of higher or lower complexity, depending on a student’s performance. Tailored (or adaptive) testing is designed to assess a wider range of student abilities and to measure student achievement more precisely. A student’s overall NAPLAN score is based on the number and complexity of questions they answer correctly. Year 3 students will complete the writing test on paper. To get an idea of what the online assessment looks like, visit the public demonstration site at nap.edu.au

We will be having the omnibus (NAPLAN Practice Test) over the next 2 weeks. Year 3 and 5 will be participating in these tests. The omnibus test is a “practice run” for NAPLAN Online, enabling schools to become more familiar with the online testing environment whilst identifying any technical issues and concerns. The test will be one 45 minute test with a range of numeracy and literacy questions.

Staff Development Day - Term 3

Monday 19 August will be a Pupil Free Day. The staff will be engaging in professional learning around teaching writing.

2020 Kindergartern Enrolments 

We are now taking Kindergarten enrolments for 2020. Enrolment interviews are usually held in May.  You will receive a letter or phone call during April informing you of a time for you and your child to come in and meet with Mrs Hughes.  Written offers of placement will follow at the end of Term 2 (usually in June).

P&F AGM

The rescheduled P&F AGM will be held on Friday 5 April at 2pm in the library. We hope you are able to join us. We are currently exploring the option of parents being able to join us via video link / skype. Watch this space!

Professional Development

Last week I attended professional learning with a focus on students for whom English is an additional language or dialect (EAL/D). It was a great day that provided me the opportunity to learn about teaching strategies, discuss ideas with other teachers in the diocese and have a chance to engage with practical resources that can be used to support learners in the classroom. Looking forward to sharing the learnings of the day with my colleagues.

Miss Emma Riolo - Year 3 Teacher

MacKillop Swimming Trials - Homebush Wednesday 27 March Results

A huge congratulations to Seamus Wood for a great swim at the MacKillop Swimming Trials! He will now go on to represent the Mackillop team to swim at the NSW PSSA swim championship. We would still like to congratulate: Will Egan-Brown, Riley McEvoy and Charlie Lamberger for representing our school at the MacKillop Swimming Trials. Great effort boys!

Touch Trials Boys & Girls - Tuesday 2nd April

Best of luck to our students participating in the Touch Trials Boys & Girls at Thomas Dalton Park, Fairy Meadow!

Catholic Legends Shield 2019 - Thursday 4th April

The St George Illawarra Dragons Community department have once again combined with the NRL Development team to host the Rod Wishart and Paul McGregor Shields. A great opportunity to have a kick around and develop your Rugby League skills! The Catholic Legends Shield will be held on Thursday the 4th of April Term 1, Week 10 2019 at Reed Park, Dapto.

Mr Jason Novak - Sport Coordinator

Cross Country 29th of March, 2019

Well it’s almost here!

Please make sure your child brings a small bag that contains a water bottle, munch and crunch and a small snack. The ‘Snack Shack’ will be popping up for the students to visit also and so the students may like to bring a small amount of money to spend.

It is very important that all student have a hat, wear sunscreen and have plenty of water to drink.

Thank you to the great response to helping at the carnival. It is always a great way to interact with other parents, friends and grandparents. We truly appreciate your involvement and it is with your help only that these events can take place.

Below is a guide to the time of events. View this as a guide only as often things run slower or faster depending on unplanned factors impacting events

Mrs Ronelle Peardon -Cross Country Convenor

Awards

Principal's Awards presented at the next assembly:

• Nate Rutledge
• Kyran Paxton
• Kalani Paxton
• Clancy Mayers
• Oscar Noble
• Lara McEntee
• Ella Foran

GOLD Awards presented at the next assembly

• Oscar Noble