Newsletter 30th October 2024 - Term 4 Week 3

Principal's Message

Dear Parent/Carer,

Term 4 is well underway, and the students have settled beautifully into the term.  We welcome Miss Joanna Soo, to the role of Pastoral Care Worker while Mr Adams is on University placement.  Miss Soo has been with us in the role of Youth Minister, each Wednesday, so she has worked with our students over the past 2 years.

Thank you to all the staff and students involved in our Grandparents Day celebration last Friday, especially Mr Smith, Miss Toscano and Mrs Palmer.  Grandparents Day is such a special day, where we get to spoil our grandparents and tell them how special they are to us.  It was so lovely to see so many grandparents with us, I know how excited our children were to have you here with us.

Prayers for Auburn South Primary School
Our thoughts and prayers go to the family of the young boy killed at Auburn South Primary School in Hawthorn East Victoria, yesterday afternoon at after school pick up.  We also pray for the whole school community.  Please contact the school, for support, if you or your child has been impacted by this news.  It may also be a good time to ensure all our children are safe at drop off and pick up.  Please ensure children get in and out of your car from the kerb side, and ensure you follow school speed zones and traffic rules.

Orientation Day
Next Thursday 7 November, we welcome our Kindergarten 2025 students to our community with Orientation Day.  We are also looking forward to working with our Year 5 students on their responsibilities as buddies.

Leadership Program
Our Year 5 Leadership Program will start in the coming weeks.  Information will be sent out to Year 5 Parents/Carers via Compass in the coming week.

Period Positivity
Period Positivity is a Diocesan initiative that believes in the dignity, value and equality of each person.  This initiative provides access to sanitary dispensers in toilet cubicles and provides enhanced menstrual heath education aligned with the PDHPE curriculum.  Over the coming weeks, we will be providing staff, students, parents/carers with information and education into this initiative.  We invite all parents/carers to our Term 4 PEG, where we will go through this program and provide a timeline of its implementation.  The PEG will be held on Tuesday 12 November 2024 at 6:00pm in the Hall.  All children aged from K-6, will be engaged in this program, which is linked directly to the Personal Development strand of PDHPE.  Attached is information from the Catholic Schools Office regarding Period Positivity.

Kaylene Maretich
Acting Principal

Assistant Principal's Message

Progressive Achievement Testing (PAT)

In either Week 5 or 6, all children in Years 1-6 will complete the Progressive Achievement Testing (PAT).  Year 3 and Year 4 will sit their tests in Week 5, and Year 1, Year 2, Year 5 and Year 6 will sit their tests in Week 6.
The tests are:

• PAT Reading – Years 1-6
• PAT Maths – Years 1-6
• PAT Grammar and Punctuation – Years 3-6

As PAT is completed yearly in November, it allows us to look at the growth in children across the year. We also look at the trends in data, so that as a school we set our focus for 2025. In early 2025, teachers then spend time looking at the PAT data, so that we know where to target teaching. Children do not need to “study” for PAT, it is one of the many assessments we use to gauge an understanding of where your child is at with the learning. Flexible groups in English and Maths will not occur during the testing, to allow for PAT to be administered.
Children in Years 1 -3 will use the school devices to do their testing and children in Years 4-6 will use their own devices. Please ensure your child charges their device each day and brings their device to school each day. The school does not have a bank of “back up” devices for Year 4-6 to use.

Mark Konik
Acting Assistant Principal

Catholic Identity & Curriculum

Catholic Culture News

Francis' Focus – Who better to help guide us in the true depth and meaning of our Catholic faith than the charismatic and authentic leader of our Church, Pope Francis. Below, Pope Francis reflects upon Sunday’s Gospel and one of my personal favourite passages, The Healing of Blind Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52):

‘Jesus hears,’ Pope Francis says, ‘and immediately stops. God always listens to the cry of the poor.’
The story of Jesus’ encounter with blind Bartimaeus shows this to be true. Shouting for aid, Bartimaeus evidently irritates many of those following Jesus. To an extent, this is understandable. They wanted to see and hear from Jesus, after all, and Bartimaeus was disrupting the procession.
But Jesus hears the cry of one who, as the Pope puts it, is ‘full of faith, a faith that is not afraid to insist.’
As the Pope points out, Bartimaeus keeps his prayer simple. He honours the Lord and then asks first for mercy and only secondly for sight. In light of this, the Pope suggests that we take Bartimaeus’ prayer as our own and use it to reflect on the authenticity of our prayer life.
Are we ‘content with making a formal greeting every now and then,’ or is our prayer regular and heartfelt? Are our prayers ‘anaemic, superficial, made up of rituals, without feeling and without heart,’ or do we honestly share our experiences and worries with God? Do we try to silence others, or do we try to listen to them in the spirit of the One who hears us all?

Religious Education
Later this term, the Year 4 teachers will attend a Professional Development day in preparation for the continuing roll-out of the new RE curriculum across the diocese – ‘The Pedagogy of Encounter’. In 2025, this new curriculum will be introduced into Year 4 (along with K-3 who have already been utilising this new curriculum). The curriculum is based around a 5-step process that repeats throughout each of the modules. The diagram below outlines each of the 5 steps:

Prayer, Celebration & Mission

Socktober Mission Day
We will celebrate this Mission Day this Friday - 1^st Nov. Please send your child/ren to school with a gold coin donation for coming out of uniform. All money raised on the day will go towards this important fundraiser for Catholic Mission. The students will participate in a range of activities throughout the day to raise awareness of this cause. Please also remember to keep sending in the recycled materials for your children to make a sockball to use on the day, or alternatively, make one at home with your child and send it in to school prior to Friday. The link below shows you how to make a homemade ‘sockball’:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPLnuvW7XFo

Sacramental Program 2024/25
The Sacramental Program is now under way for many of our Year 3 students. For those families preparing their children for the sacrament of First Reconciliation, please remember to send in the money for the booklet if you have not yet done so and email me to let me know of your preferred evening. First Reconciliation will take place over 2 evenings: Wednesday 13^th November or Thursday 14^th November, starting at 6pm both evenings.

Luke Smith
RE Coordinator

School Community News

Kindergartens Wild Adventure at Hunter Valley Zoo!
What an incredible day we had on our kindergarten excursion to the Hunter Valley Zoo! 
On October 15th, our little explorers experienced a day full of fun and learning, seeing a variety of amazing animals up close, from playful meerkats and cheeky monkeys to majestic lions and cuddly koalas. The zoo’s friendly staff guided us through interactive exhibits and fascinating animal encounters, making it a perfect blend of education and adventure.
Thank you to all the volunteers, parents and carers who joined us on the day. The wonder and excitement of the students as they explored the wonders of the animal kingdom were truly priceless.
We hope this day will be a cherished memory for all. Thank you for making it a success.

Poetry Club- Term 4
We are looking forward to seeing everyone at Poetry Club in Term 4, every odd week Wednesday at 8am in the library.

Poetry Performance Nights
We are thrilled to be hosting the Poetry Club Performance night again this year at Newcastle Comedy Club. Please note due to 41 students participating in Poetry Club, we are having it over two nights.
Each student and their sibling are in a group (see flyer below)
Group 1 will perform on Sunday 1st December at 6:00-7:30 pm
Group 2 will perform on Monday 2nd December at 6:00-7:30 pm
There will be snacks provided and non- alcoholic drinks for sale at the bar. A gold coin donation on arrival would be greatly appreciated.
We have compiled a collection of the student’s poetry, and this will be on sale on the night for $5- cash only.
Please RSVP by 15th November.
We cannot wait to see our poet’s shine!
Any queries about this event, please contact Mrs McNeil at patricia.mcneil@mn.catholic.edu.au

Aspire Script Writers’ Showcase Day

Congratulations to Violette S and Maeve H who attended the Aspire Scriptwriters’ Showcase Day and presented their creative pieces of writing to an audience at Civic Playhouse. They received rave reviews for their original, hilarious and dramatic piece of writing that captivated the audience.
Here are their accounts.

My name is Maeve and all of this year I got the privilege to be a part of the young Script Writer’s program. For this, I needed to write a script for actors to perform at the Civic playhouse. I attended workshops and online zoom sessions to get my script finalised. A couple weeks ago, I walked into the Civic playhouse with my friend and spent the day there. I met the actors and watched them practice my script. We also needed to prepare a short introduction about ourselves and our play. Finally, the night came. I was so nervous at the time but everything went really well that night. It was an amazing experience.

Aspire Scriptwriting Program was an amazing experience where I got to learn all about writing scripts for the stage. The classes taught us different aspects of scriptwriting such as stage direction, dialogue and different genres. Throughout the year we worked towards writing a 3-minute scene for the end of year performance at the Civic Playhouse Theatre. Aspire high school actors performed the scripts in a night of read throughs and fun! My play is called “Hairy Fish”, and it explores what fame really means. This was an experience of a lifetime, and I am so glad I got to be on it and hope I can do it again next year!  By Violette S

End of Year Carols By Candlelight Concert 

Preparations are well and truly underway in the music classroom for our upcoming Carols by Candlelight Concert - Let's Dance Christmas. Remember to put the following details into your calendars:
When - Friday 22nd November (Week 6)
Time - 6pm
Where - St Therese's Primary School Grounds
Below are flyers with detailed information regarding this whole school event. In the document you will find links to songs your child's year group are preparing. There is a PowerPoint with links to the music and backing tracks. The WORD document can be printed if your child wants a paper copy of the lyrics. Could we please request that your child commits the lyrics of the songs to memory over the coming weeks.
Further information regarding the running times of the night will be communicated closer to the event. 
All students from Kinder to Year 6 are performing in the concert. Our four stage choirs are already sounding wonderful, so we are very much looking forward to sharing our music with you in Week 6. Please do not hesitate to contact me via email if you have any further questions. 

Alina Brymora
Performing Arts Teacher

Uniform Price Increases
Lowes have notified us of a price increase on school uniforms effective this term. The increase will be applied as an average 4.6% across all Schoolware garments. Lowes will continue to offer regular '20% off' sales throughout the year.

Volunteering
Throughout the year, we welcome all parents/carers to volunteer at the school. To volunteer, you must complete the volunteer's induction. This process can take up to 6 weeks, so you are encouraged to complete this early.

School Fees
Thank you to those families that have been making payments towards their fees. Our preferred payment methods are BPay, direct debit or credit card. If you choose to use CompassPay, please double check the amount before you submit the payment. Refunds can no longer be given for incorrect amounts paid unless your account is in credit.

Wellbeing

Did you know …

We spend 49% of our waking hours thinking about something other than what we’re doing!
Regular mindfulness practice can improve our:

• Immune system.
• Energy levels.
• Sleep quality.
• Awareness.
• Memory.
• Productivity.

Why don’t you give it a go? Find a mindfulness activity that suits you and that you enjoy, everyone is different. Below are some suggestions:

• Listening to music.
• Exercise (eg: walking).
• Colouring.
• Puzzles.
• Meditation.
• Yoga.

We are excited to announce St Therese's will continue with The Resilience Project in 2025!

Check these out!

The Resilience Project app
This app is a daily well-being journal where you can identify and track your emotions, record moments of gratitude, and practice mindfulness. The aim is to develop emotional literacy, engage with the positive things in life, and be actively present.
The app is suitable for all ages, and includes the option to create profiles for each member of the family. Download via iTunes or Google Play.

The Resilience Project Wellbeing Journals
The Resilience Project Wellbeing Journals are packed with questions and reflections which encourage us to build long-lasting positive wellbeing habits. With a key focus on practising gratitude, empathy, and mindfulness (GEM), this journal sets us up to feel happier and build resilience. To see the journal options click here.

Melissa Pyers 
Primary Coordinator and Pedagogical Mentor

Sport

Regional Cricket Trials
We would like to congratulate our cricket players for doing their best at the central regional cricket trials. 
Well Done: Hamish K, Patrick H, Max C, Noah B and Mason O. They represented St Therese's with great sportsmanship. 

Term 4 Sport Days

• KN - Wednesday
• KW - Thursday
• KL - Tuesday
• Year 1 - Tuesday
• Year 2 - Wednesday
• Year 3 - Thursday Weeks 1-6 then Tuesday Weeks 7-10
• Year 4 -  Tuesday Weeks 1-6 then Thursday Weeks 7-10
• Year 5 - Wednesday Weeks 1-6 then Thursday Weeks 7-10
• Year 6 - Thursday Weeks 1-6 then Wednesday Weeks 7-10

Canteen

Important Dates

31Oct - Year 6 Pius Visit
01Nov - Socktober
05Nov - Yr6 graduation Meeting 5pm
07Nov - Kinder 2025 Orientation
12Nov - PEG 6pm
15Nov - Kinder 2025 Transition
            - Tennis & Basketball Trials
18Nov - Whole School Assembly 2:30pm
22Nov -School Carol Night 6pm
25Nov - Open Classrooms 9:30am
02Dec - Band Performance 10:30am
06Dec - Yr 6 Graduation Dinner 5:30pm - 8:30pm
09Dec - Swim Carnival
11Dec - Yr 6 Graduation Liturgy & Awards
18Dec - Final Assembly
            - Last Day School for Students