Newsletter 25th June Term 2, Week 9

Principal's Message

Catholic Identity: In 2025, we will establish pedagogical practices that improve student religious literacy and provide opportunities for encounter with Christ.

Learning: In 2025 we will establish effective and consistent pedagogical practices for all students by all teachers.

Wellbeing: In 2025 we will establish a school-wide common language in Positive Behaviour 4 Learning (PB4L) incorporating our Mercy pillars.

After Jesus finished teaching the crowd, the people were very hungry. The disciples came to Jesus - they had only five loaves and two fish and there were more than 5000 people. Jesus took the loaves and fish, said the blessing and gave them to the disciples for the people. They all ate their fill and there were twelve baskets of scraps left over.

Lord Jesus, you are the living bread from heaven.

May we live forever with you.   Amen

Dear Parents/Carers

As Term 2 draws to a close, I want to thank you all again sincerely for your support of our children and us as a school staff.

I also wish to thank my staff for their hard work and dedication to our children. It is not just the day to day running of school, programming and lesson preparation but all the extras like Athletics Carnivals and school camps that take so much time out of school hours, but that they undertake so willingly for the best outcomes for our children.

School Disco

Our 2025 school disco will be held on Thursday 31 July in our school hall.

K-2 5:30- 6:30pm

Year 3-6: 6:45-8pm

As St Therese’s executive team members will be in attendance, parents do not need to have completed a volunteer check to assist us on the night. Your help is greatly appreciated!

Please contact Kimberly Campbell or Ashley Nash if you can assist on the night.  kimberlysmall1@hotmail.com          ashleygracenash@gmail.com

St Therese’s Playgroup

Simone Slamet has been a wonderful organiser in recent years of our St Therese’s playgroup. Due to a change in her work circumstances, Simone is no longer able to give the ongoing weekly commitment to this group. Can you help? Everything is set up, we would simply need one or two people to advertise the event and set up/pack up. We at school are happy to assist you with Compass chronicles etc.

We will hold playgroup this Thursday 26^th June.

Assembly 30 June

On Monday 30 June we will hold our final assembly for term 2. This will include our end of semester one school band performance, Principal's awards and year 3 presentation. Please note this assembly will be held from 9:15am. You are very welcome to join us.

St Therese's Dance Troupes

We wish our Dance Troupes every success in their final competition at Wyoming on Saturday. Thanks you so much to Alex Toscano and all the dedicated parents.

FACE meeting

Our Term 3 FACE meeting is 6pm on Monday 18 August in our Catherine McAuley Centre. The educative component will be the new syllabi for English and Maths and ways that you can support your children with their learning in this Key Learning Areas. Children are welcome.

Term 3 Staffing

Jye Bowen will take leave for week 1-2 of term 3. Ms Brittany French will teach year 4W in his absence.

Leanne Kepreotes is on leave from Week 2-10 of Term 3. Ms Elise Kellaway will take 4L during this time.

Save the date!

On Friday 31 October St Therese’s will celebrate 100 years as a school! We will start our day of celebration at 9:45 with a liturgy in the hall lead by Bishop Michael Kennedy. You are most welcome to join us for this special occasion. We will hold a planning meeting on Thursday 3 July at 3:45pm in our staffroom.

School holiday work

During the upcoming school holidays, we will have maintenance work undertaken on all our trees following a recent arborist report.

Mercy Caring Group

St Therese’s has a Mercy Caring Group to assist families in need.  This is following in the footsteps of the founders of our school, the sisters of Mercy, who offered hospitality, food and shelter for those in need.

If you would like to be on the caring group roster, please forward your contact details to admin@newlambton.catholic.edu.au. You may like to offer to cook, provide a lift to and from school, take children to sport etc.  Any family that needs the services provided by our Caring Group (or know a family that needs assistance), can contact Sallyanne Stanbridge directly, and all requests remain confidential.

 The Caring Group is then given information about what a family might need to assist e.g., cooked meals.  If you or members of your family or friends are experiencing any difficulties, please contact me, so that we can help you.

Thank you so very much for your support this term.

Enjoy a restful break.

Kind regards, 

Sallyanne Stanbridge
Principal

Principal Awards

The following children will receive a Principal's award at next week's School Assembly, Monday 30/6 9:15am. Congratulations and thank you, children, for upholding the values and principles of St Therese’s. Please note that these children are unaware that they are receiving this award.

Hugo B, Harriet N, Bailey M, Evie P, Miller M, Violet R, Jack M, Harrison P, Kai M, Andrea P.

Melissa Pyers

Primary Coordinator

Assistant Principal's Message

As we get closer the end of Term2, we would like to wish all students and their families a happy and restful holiday.  We hope you all stay warm and have time to rest and relax.

PB4L

Our focus for the next two weeks is on showing CARE & COMPASSION by keeping our classrooms and surrounding areas clean.  We encourage all children to put their rubbish in the bin and take responsibility for their own belongings.  By each doing our own “little bit”, we will ensure St Therese’s is a beautiful and welcoming environment.

Interrelate

A reminder for all parents in Years 4-6, about the Interrelate Family Evening Program.  We will hold this online on Wednesday 23 July 2025, to explore a range of pre-adolescent and adolescent issues; including sexuality and relationship education, designed specifically for this important time in your child’s life. The program will be facilitated by Interrelate, who have over 90 years’ experience in the education of students around relationships and sexuality. The program is delivered in a professional and supportive manner, teaching students and parents to communicate with each other around fundamental emotional and social development issues. 

There will be two sessions on this evening:

• Session 1: 6:00pm “Where Did I Come From?” for Years 4-6
• Session 2: 7:15pm “Preparing for Puberty” for Years 5-6

The age groups suggested are a guide from Interrelate, however some students go through puberty earlier or later than others. If you are unsure of which session to attend, speak to your child’s teacher or Mrs Maretich. If you feel your child is not ready to attend either session, that is fine also. The Interrelate Family Evening Program is organised every year, so you may choose to wait another year.  At least one parent/guardian MUST attend the online session/s with their child and remain with them throughout the session.  If you would like to attend, please follow the registration information below, and see the advice from Interrelate.

You will need to follow the below link to register and secure your place in the session:

https://events.humanitix.com/st-therese-s-ps-new-lambton-tricky-talks-23rd-july-2025

Interrelate uses an online platform called Big Blue Button to ensure the safety and security for all participants. 

Please join at least 15 minutes before the session begins. Miss Stanbridge and Mrs Maretich will also be in the online session.

Kaylene Maretich
Assistant Principal

Catholic Identity & Curriculum

Faith Formation - 'Leo's Lens': The excerpt below, written by Nick Brodie, is a summary of Pope Leo XIV's reflection on Sunday's Gospel message and what it actually means to be, 'the Body of Christ'. May Pope Leo continue to guide us, the faithful, into an uncertain future with a sense of unity, hope and love:

The Church, Pope Leo XIV reminds us, is called to be ‘a city set on a hill’, as well as ‘an ark of salvation sailing through the waters of history and a beacon that illumines the dark nights of this world.’ A city, an ark, a beacon. Three different images, but always one thing. We are called, as Jesus prayed at the Last Supper, to be one.

Because the unity of ‘the entire mystical Body of the Church’ is critical to who we are, our Eucharistic celebrations, therefore, must never become opportunities for exclusion. Our liturgies should always proclaim to the world the healing and all-inclusive power of Christ. Indeed, as Leo suggests, the Church most authentically witnesses to Christ ‘not so much through the magnificence of her structures or the grandeur of her buildings … but rather through the holiness of her members.’ And holiness, properly understood, is a type of human wholeness. It is devout, but not dour. It is fulsome, not fanatical. True holiness, the Pope notes, reflects ‘joyful faith in Jesus the Saviour.’ We are called to be joyful because we are people of the Resurrection! As such, joy should always infuse our sharing the good news. Joyous news, after all, is most attractive when it is joyfully shared.

Religious Education

This week’s focus in RE is on Year 1:

The following blurb recounts their recent learning experience - Currently Year One have been learning to recall the ways that the Parish is a special family.

During Monday's lesson, we visited the church to complete a "Treasure Hunt". This activity helped us identify the features of a parish and how the parish church is a special place. We learnt that when we enter the church, we bless ourselves with Holy Water as a rental of our commitment to our Baptismal promises. Then, we genuflect to the tabernacle, to show respect and humility to the presence of Jesus.

The students are to be commended for their beautiful behaviour and fantastic learning during this experience.

Prayer, Celebration & Mission

Social Justice Team & Vinnies Winter Appeal – Last week's first Hot Milo Day was an incredible success. As per the Compass notification last week, we apologise to anyone who missed out. Remember, however, there are still 2 more Fridays to go (27^th June and 4^th July). On these remaining days, to make the process smoother, Infants students will be asked to line up at the Canteen and Stage 2 & 3 students at the Hall. Please remember to send your child with a safe and sealable, re-usable mug from home - available between 8:45am – 9:10am.

In addition, due to the amount of funds raised, we have decided to split the money raised between the local St Vincent de Paul chapter and contributing to the Diocese' Manning Region Flood Appeal, to assist those recently affected by the floods.

Vinnies Winter Appeal Collection – Thank you for your generous contributions thus far. For those yet to send in items, they will be collected up until Friday Week 10 Term 2 “Pyjama Day.” Grade items are listed below:

Kinder - Baked beans, spaghetti, tinned snacks
Year 1 - Pasta, Pasta sauce, noodles, tinned soup
Year 2 - Tinned vegetables, tinned fruit, instant pudding
Year 3 - Toothpaste, soap, shampoo
Year 4 - Cereal, Porridge, biscuits
Year 5 - Spreads – vegemite, jam, honey etc Sauces – bbq, tomato etc
Year 6 - Coffee, tea, milo, drinking chocolate

Coming Events– The dates below indicate some of the Faith Life and Mission events coming up for the remainder of Term 2:

• Thursday 26^th June - Stage 3 Mass (9:30am in the church)
• Thursday 3^rd July - Stage 2 Mass (9:30am in the church)
• Friday 4^th July – Mission Day: Vinnies Winter Appeal (pyjama day - gold coin donation) + Winter Warmers Stall (beanies, scarves and other items made by the crochet and knitting club available for sale)

Luke Smith

Religious Education Coordinator

School Community News

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.

Wellbeing

GEM Chats for Home- Empathy

Parent Hub- Empathy

Head over to our Parent Hub to find out more how to embed Empathy at home with Martin from The Resilience Project, using the following link (scroll down to the bottom of the home page for the video):

https://theresilienceproject.com.au/2025-parent-carer-hub-inspire-3/

Each day, have each person thank another family member for something they’ve done or said today, or give another family member a compliment.​

Working on empathy helps us to identify, understand and feel what another person is feeling.

When we show empathy or we do something kind for someone else our brain releases oxytocin. This leads to increasing our self-esteem/confidence, energy levels, positivity and overall happiness.

Classroom Spotlight-Year 2

In our Resilience Project lessons, Year 2 have been exploring gratitude, mindfulness and naming and identifying our emotions and what skills we can use to help manage them.

We have also been understanding what it is like to "walk in someone else's shoes", identifying the things that bring us happiness and developing the skill of giving and receiving compliments!

Year 2 have been loving The Resilience Project and all the wonderful tools we have been learning!

Melissa Pyers

Primary Coordinator

Sport

Yesterday, 61 St Therese's students attend the Central Region Athletics Carnival. The students competed against six other schools from our region, and they represented St Therese's with pride. The determination and commitment of all of these students are to be congratulated and our community is extremely proud of you all. Once results are finalised, those successful students that have progressed to the Diocesan Carnival will be highlighted in our next newsletter.

Thank you to the parents and carers that attended on the day and braved the downpour of rain!

Liam Ireson

Primary Coordinator (K-2), Sports Coordinator and Year 1 Teacher

Canteen

Important Dates

26 Jun  -  Stage 3 Mass 9.30 Church
26 Jun - School Photos
27 Jun - School Photos
30 Jun  - School Assembly 9.15pm, Stage 3 followed by Band Performance
03 Jul  -  Year 5 Taronga Zoo Excursion
03 Jul  -  Stage 2 Mass 9.30am Church
04 Jul  -  Mission Day -  Pyjama Day, gold coin donation
21 Jul  -  First Day of Term 3 
31Jul  -  Aspire
15 Aug - PUPIL FREE DAY - Staff professional development