FEBRUARY 15 2024 NEWSLETTER
- CHILD SAFETY STATEMENT
- FROM THE PRINCIPAL
- FROM THE RE LEADER - ELIZA DWYER
- WHAT IS LENT?
- SHROVE TUESDAY - YUMMY PANCAKES!
- SCHOOL CLOSURE DAYS - 2024
- FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM
- CLASS NEWS - YEAR 6S
- GEELONG PLAYERS VISIT ST PAT'S
- THE WELLBEING BAROMETER SURVEY - 2024
- CANTEEN
- TERM 1 PE EVENTS
- PARENT INFORMATION
- SPORTING SCHOOLS
- PARENTS & FRIENDS NEWS
- COMMUNITY NEWS
CHILD SAFETY STATEMENT
FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Dear Parents and Carers,
This week it's obvious that the classes have settled into a steady routine, as students are getting used to their new learning spaces and teachers.
There has been a lot of media coverage about the way schools teach literacy based on the release of the Grattan Institute report into the teaching of literacy in Australia. St Patrick's is committed to continually learning and trialling new initiatives in our endeavour to provide the best and latest researched based teaching practices. We are currently implementing the Structured Literacy approach to teaching reading and writing in our classrooms as recommended in the report. We have purchased new F-2 decodable reading materials to support the explicit teaching of phonics and the teachers are doing the Sounds Write professional learning. The new readers will begin to go home in coming weeks. They support the letter sounds that have been taught in the classrooms. Yes, they appear very simple; yes, they are repetitive and yes, the students will have the same reader for more than one night. This all aligns with the principle of thoroughly teaching the reading code to enable students to read words that have those sounds. This will be a learning journey for both teachers and parents. Rest assured, the students are exposed to more complex texts in the classrooms through their book/novel studies and fluency reading sessions.
The Year 3-6 classrooms are basing their literacy approach on the Ochre Education resources, which includes the explicit teaching phonics, vocabulary, fluency reading, novel studies and The Writing Revolution.
Thank you to the parents (Kristen Sheehan, Cara Coxal, Erin Parkinson, Sarah Sheehan, Anna Wagg) who cooked nearly 200 pancakes for Shrove Tuesday. They were delicious!
We celebrated an Ash Wednesday Liturgy in the Open Learning Space on Wednesday. We all had the sign of the cross made on our foreheads as a reminder of our mortality and that Lent is a time to make a new beginning for Jesus.
Olga Lyons
FROM THE RE LEADER - ELIZA DWYER
WHAT IS LENT?
Lent is a 40 day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It's a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection at Easter.
During Lent, many people decide to give something up that they love - perhaps chocolate, sweets or even using social media.
Others might decide to take up something, like helping out more with chores at home or making an effort to do nice things for their family and friends.
SHROVE TUESDAY - YUMMY PANCAKES!
SCHOOL CLOSURE DAYS - 2024
Term 1 - Thursday February 22 - Structured Literacy PD
Term 2 - Monday April 15 - ReLATE Wellbeing PD
Term 3 - Wednesday August 21 - Structured Litercy PD
Thursday 19 & Friday 20 September - RE PD
Term 4 - Thursday December 19 - Camp TIL Aquital Day
FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM
CLASS NEWS - YEAR 6S
GEELONG PLAYERS VISIT ST PAT'S
On Wednesday we were treated to a visit from 4 senior AFL players and 1 AFLW player from the Geelong Cats. They played games and did ball handling skills with all year levels. There were plenty of supporters amongst the students and staff.
Geelong Cats
THE WELLBEING BAROMETER SURVEY - 2024
The Wellbeing Barometer survey has become a crucial tool for schools, offering insights into youth mental health and wellbeing. By understanding community concerns and the nature of these issues, schools are better equipped to support families and foster meaningful conversations, thereby building stronger relationships. This survey is part of an ongoing, longitudinal study, with the results being instrumental in tailoring support for students and their families.
Participation is strongly encouraged, as it provides a comprehensive view of students' experiences, challenges and achievements over the past year. Participating in this year's survey, will assist our school in identifying areas of strength and concern, as well as pinpointing opportunities for early intervention. The survey aims to capture a comprehensive picture of young people's lives, allowing for a tailored approach to enhance mental and emotional wellbeing.
Parents and Caregivers are encouraged to complete either one or both of the surveys below, depending on the age of your children.
Please complete one survey for each child you have at St Patrick's. There is no limit to how many times you can complete the survey. This will allow you to provide more accurate responses based on individual children.
Remember, all responses remain anonymous and should reflect observations made over the last 12 months. Survey results are only reported on an aggregated basis.
CANTEEN
Our first canteen day for Term 1 will be on Friday February 16. Canteen is held only on Fridays. The students receive their lunch order at 11.30am. Orders are placed using the CDFpay App. Orders close at 8.30am on the day of canteen.
The lunch orders are placed in decompostable lunch bags. You do not need to send a container to school. The orders are supplied by the Village Bakery.
TERM 1 PE EVENTS
Moyne School Tennis - Tuesday February 27 (some Year 5/6 only)
School Athletics at the Port Fairy Showground - Wednesday February 21
Division Swimming - Thursday February 29
Division Tennis - Thursday March 7
Regional Swimming - Friday March 8
Foundation Athletics - Tuesday March 12 at 12:40pm
PARENT INFORMATION
Our Parent Handbook and Communication Guidelines have been updated for 2024. To access the documents, click on the links below.
SPORTING SCHOOLS
Sporting Schools will commence next week, Tuesday February 6th. The program will run for 7 weeks, with the final session being on Wednesday March 20. The program days for Term 1 are Tuesday and Wednesday 3.20pm-4.30pm for February. In March the days will be Wednesday & Thrusday, March 6th, 7th, 13th, 14th, 20th & 21st. You must register your child via the Schoolzine App. See details earlier in the newsletter regarding the App. Millie Kenna and Radush Mohan will be running the program.
Please only register your child/children the day of or the night before the session they will be attending. Cut off is 12pm.
PARENTS & FRIENDS NEWS
COMMUNITY NEWS
