Newsletter Thursday 6th April, 2023

We the staff of St Patrick’s acknowledge the traditional owners, the Kulin nations, of the land on which we learn and play.

We pay respects to the Aboriginal Elders, past and present, who are our teachers.

We thank them for taking care of children and country for countless generations.

Dear mums, dads, family members and friends,

Greetings from 4AT.

We can’t believe that we have reached the end of term 1 and what a term it has been!

We began with a focus on the rules of our school that keep us safe and help us on our learning journey. We chose the theme of superheroes and claimed that Learning was our special super power. We then went on to discuss the rules and laws of the community we live in. An incursion "Democracy, Community and Me" explained the democratic type of government we enjoy. We took part in an election and saw for ourselves how powerful our vote, our voice is. Aaron was voted in as Mayor and we held a mock council meeting to make a decision on whether dogs should be kept on a leash in parks. We had to be very persuasive if we wanted to influence the councillors. Here are some photos taken during the incursion.

 

 

 

 

On the 17^th of March we celebrated St Patrick’s day. One of the activities we did was write Limericks. A limerick is a type of poem named after a place in Ireland. After listening to limericks by Edward Lear, we tried our hand at writing our own. Here are a few we came up with.

There once was a girl named Benetti

Who loved eating yummy spaghetti

She wouldn’t stop

So they called a cop 

Oh that poor poor girl named Benetti

By Emily

There was a young boy named Balin.

Who always loved to go sailin’.

 He caught a massive fish

 Brought it home for a big dish.

Was so happy again he went sailin’.

There was an old man named Aaron.

Who was always being a ‘Karen.’

He complained all day.

I’d rather eat a sack of hay 

I wish he’d stop complaining -that man Aaron.

By: Kuei

There once was a young girl named May

Who loved the watermelon bay.

She was at a party ,

Fell in love with a smarty,

Oh that poor young girl called May.

                By Abuk

There was a gray, energetic bunny.

Who always loved to be very funny.

One day he ate a green bean.

Which made him very clean.

Next day he fell into a bucket of honey.

 By Mawi Mawi

There was young boy called Mansimrat 

Who had a pet cat and a rat.

One day his rat ran of

So he ran after him while he coughed.

So they had to take him to the vet - Mrs Splat

By Mansimrat

There was a boy named Mansimrat

Who had an unusual pet rat.

His parents got him a new pet.

He didn’t know what it was yet.

He opened it and it was another cat. 

By Aaron

There was an old orange coloured cat.

Who loved to sleep on his owner’s mat.

He wanted to nap.

But he had to do a lap.

That poor old orange coloured cat.

By Vula

There was a cat that went to school.

One day she slipped into the pool.

Everyone laughed.

She made a raft.

That silly old cat in school.

By Constance

There was a boy named Marty

Who threw a birthday party.

Marty’s friends fell on the floor.

The police yelled “Open the door!”

And arrested poor little Marty.

By Thon.

There once was a boy named Balin

Who wanted to go sailin’

He fell into a bog

Was saved by a dog

That poor young boy named Balin

By Balin

During Harmony week we celebrated the diversity in our school and how we all belong. We took part in bush dancing and drew some Mehndi hand prints

The henna hands are a custom from India. During times of festivals or celebrations the girls get their hands and their feet decorated with henna which is like a temporary tatoo. We were amazed at the speed with which they drew the intricate designs. We attempted to do the same. Here are some of our efforts at Mehndi or henna hands.

In Religion we are focussing on Jesus’ command to love one another as he loved us. We try to make sure that everyone feels like they belong by the love we share. Here are some of the posters we designed.

In Art we began to look at some basic elements – one of them being line. Here is an eye illusion caused by straight and curved lines.

At the beginning of Lent we wrote some Lenten promises inside a cocoon or chrysalis. They served as a reminder that we were going to change.

Here are some of the things we promised to do:

• Stop arguing with my friends.
• Not flipping my lid.
• Being nicer at home
• Not getting angry all the time.
• Helping with chores at home.
• Trying not to be lazy
• Being a good girl at home.
• Being a good friend by playing by the rules.
• Not talking to my friends when the teacher is talking
• Telling the truth.

Next term we will replace them with butterflies - a symbol of the new life that Christ has won for us all. Here is a short poem

Awaken sleeping butterfly

Break your chrysalis prison,

Spread your beauteous wings and fly

Christ the lord is risen!

This is a picture of us having a dress rehearsal for the Last Supper assembly.

Here’s wishing all of you a safe, happy and holy Easter.

Love,

Grade 4AT

REMINDERS

Term 2

Term 2 begins on Wednesday the 26^th April. This is a SCHOOL CLOSURE DAY and the staff will be participating in a Professional Development at Trinity Primary School in Narre Warren. On this day, the staff will be listening to speakers and participating in workshops around the area of Learning Adjustment and how we assist our students with special needs.

All students begin Term 2 on Thursday 27^th April.

Understanding Victoria’s Child Safe Standards

The Child Safe Standards (the Standards) commenced in Victoria in January 2016. Since then, we have seen how the Standards have improved safety for children and young people.

Changes in 2022 and 2023 have made our Standards even stronger.

Since 1 July 2022, organisations^[1] covered by the Standards have to comply with 11 new Standards.

The 11 Standards set out minimum requirements and outline the actions organisations must take to keep children and young people safe.

Each week, there will be a new standard for you to read about.

The Standards provide more clarity for organisations and are more consistent with Standards in the rest of Australia.

The 11 Standards include specific requirements:

• to involve families and communities in organisations’ efforts to keep children and young people safe
• for a greater focus on safety for Aboriginal children and young people
• to manage the risk of child abuse in online environments
• in relation to governance, systems and processes to keep children and young people safe.

In complying with Child Safe Standard 3 an organisation must, at a minimum, ensure:

5.1    The organisation, including staff and volunteers, understands children and young people’s diverse circumstances, and provides support and responds to those who are vulnerable.

5.2    Children and young people have access to information, support and complaints processes in ways that are culturally safe, accessible and easy to understand.

5.3    The organisation pays particular attention to the needs of children and young people with disability, children and young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, those who are unable to live at home, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children and young people.

5.4    The organisation pays particular attention to the needs of Aboriginal children and young people and provides/promotes a culturally safe environment for them.

School Uniforms

At St Patrick’s, it is important to highlight to students the message around respecting our school uniform. The uniform represents our school and is expected to be worn with pride. Please be aware that I will approach and ask students about their uniform and will follow up with parents if necessary.

Please write a note to your child/ren’s classroom teacher if there is an issue with the inform for a particular period of time.

Some reminders:

• Socks- are to be ankle socks; white for girls and grey for boys
• Students are to wear black shoes and NOT (black) runners. Runners may be brought to school for your child/ren to change into for the playtimes;
• Girls are permitted to wear the school (Summer) dress or the school shirt and grey shorts
• Boys wear the grey shorts in Summer and the long grey pants in Winter (they may choose to continue wearing the shorts.)
• Sports uniform consists of the polo shirt with the school logo and the green track pants or green unisex shorts.
• School sports jacket is optional in the cooler months.

TERM DATES

PUPIL FREE DAYS:

These 3 Pupil Free days ensure that we can manage our commitment for all staff to continue to provide activities such as school camps for our students.

Please note, these dates are separate from our 8 Staff Professional Development days. Those 8 days are for our staff professional learning which will focus on Religious Education, Learning and Teaching and Student Wellbeing.

Dear Parents, Carers and Guardians,

Welcome to the final newsletter of Term 1. What a huge term we have had, filled with so many activities. Today, Holy Thursday, we remember the Lord’s Supper and his warning to his disciples that one of you will betray me. It is during the holidays when we can stop and reflect on our own behaviour and wonder if there have ever been times when we have betrayed someone we love, made a promise we cannot keep or lie to save our own face.

Easter should be a time of forgiveness and change. As Jesus sacrificed his life for us, may we always remember his love will never stop and he will always hold us dear in our hearts.

I would like to thank my wonderful staff for the incredible work they do for our students both in front and behind the scenes. Yesterday in particular, as we came together to support Louise Breeden for Cross Country, what a pleasure it was to see teachers, ESOs and parent and grandparent helpers all there cheering and supporting our children. This is what community is about and the spirit of the day was just amazing. Thanks to Louise for her incredible work in organising the Cross Country for all grade levels. What an amazing feat!

Thanks to our P and F committee for all their efforts in putting together the Easter Raffle. Many families were leaving very satisfied yesterday with their Easter prizes. The work of our 3 P and F ladies raised $1500 for the school! Just brilliant!!!!

Unfortunately, this week, I have been dealing with cyber bullying concerns from across our students in years 4, 5 and 6. These events are happening outside of school hours, therefore as teachers and leaders, we have no control over what the students do on their devices during these times. However, what we do see at school is the fall out and serious damage that cyber-bullying can have on the children. I BEG parents to please know what your child is doing when they are on a device and to see what apps they are on. Tik Tok is for children 13+ which is secondary school age and yet I am aware of many students under the age of 13 with Tik Tok accounts. I have spoken at length with our grade 5s and 6s to try and enlighten them as to their choices when using social media. I would sincerely appreciate parent support in this matter.

Take care and God Bless

Meg

First Holy Communion

Confirmation

Reconciliation

Our Mother's Day stall will work a little differently this year. You will have to purchase a token through CDF Pay by the 4th of May, these tokens will be exchanged for a gift that you child/ren will pick out on the day. These tokens have a limit so get in quickly before they run out !

We have a recently set up a Facebook page where we post highlights of our school each week!

The link to the page is below:

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087005542953

School Fees – Government Assistance Programs

The School Fee statements for 2023 will be sent out in the next couple of weeks and an updated Fee Schedule can be found in the knowledge bank section of PAM under commonly used forms.     

However, there are some Government assistance programs for families who may be in need of this. 

CSEF

The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) provides payments for eligible students to attend activities like:

• school camps or trips
• swimming and school-organised sports programs
• outdoor education programs
• excursions and incursions.

Families holding a valid means-tested concession card or temporary foster parents are eligible to apply. A Special Consideration category also exists. Schools can receive applications from families over terms one and two.

Families can list more than one student in the one application form if they are attending the same school.

Eligible means-tested cards

Means-tested concession cards must now be valid on either:

• the first day of Term 1 (Monday 30 January 2023)
• the first day of Term 2 (Tuesday 24 April 2023)

CSEF application form   (also available in the knowledge bank section in PAM)

Conveyance allowance

The conveyance allowance is a State Government allowance that may be available to students attending government or non-government schools.

If you live more than 4.8km from your closest school you can apply for the conveyance allowance and:

• travelling by public transport or by private car, motorbike, bicycle or bus, and
• whose nearest school is not serviced by a free school bus provided under the School Bus Program

The conveyance allowance is a State Government contribution towards transport costs and is not intended to cover the full cost of transporting children to and from school.

 Application for private car travel  (also available in the knowledge bank section in PAM)

 Application for public transport travel    (also available in the knowledge bank section in PAM)

School Bus Program

The School Bus Program is an extensive school bus network that provides free travel to eligible students. Students must be attending government and non-government schools and living in rural and regional Victoria. 

* Students are expected to use public transport where a service is available within 1.6 km (measured by shortest practicable route) of their home or closer to their home than the nearest school bus service. This applies to both students applying to access the SBP at no cost and to fare paying passengers. * * 

If your child is eligible, they can travel for free.

There are different categories that decide if your child is eligible for free travel. For more information read the eligibility guide below.

School bus program eligibility guide

Click on the link below to check if a school bus is available in your area.

School Bus Management System

Have you re-set up your PAM account yet! 

We have been using PAM as our main form of communication.  All emails, Student Attendance, Sick Bay notes, School Reports, commonly used forms, excursion/camp permission notes and Family Learning conversations, will all be communicated via PAM.  

Access PAM via this link   Link to PAM 

PAM - Parent Access Module

PAM (Parent Access Module) is our Parent to School communication platform.   PAM will provide real time access to keep parents updated with their children’s progress, important dates and messages. Relevant resources – calendar events, student reports, parent notified absences, absence data and sick bay notes will all be accessed via PAM.

Parents will be able to easily book Parent Teacher interviews through PAM, and access teacher email addresses. 

PAM accounts are linked via your email address that we have in our systems. 

If you have recently changed your email,  please call or email us on office@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au

Click on the 'forget password' link to set your password and then verify your email address.  (Email addresses must be verified for PAM to work properly).  Once your email is verified, your email can be used as the username for your account.

Once you have successfully logged in, you can save PAM to your homescreen on your device.

If you have any issues or need help with PAM please contact the school via email, office@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au

PAM Instructions

Parent Notified Absences via PAM

Once you have PAM set up and saved to your home screen you can easily send in Parent Notified absences.   Please use this platform going forward as this automatically syncs with the class roll.   This will fix the issues of receiving SMS notifications even though you had already notified the school. 

Please remember to update your contact details and any relevant medical details for your child.  

Most medical profiles have now been updated. Please remember to keep them up to date and upload any asthma/allergy plans that may be relevant 

To update any contact details please contact the school office. 

Covid Update

 It is strongly recommended that students:

• Who test positive to COVID-19 should stay home and isolate for five (5) days;
• Should not attend school after five (5) days if still symptomatic;
• Who are symptomatic but have not tested positive should not attend school until their symptoms resolve;
• Parents, guardians or carers advise the school of the COVID-19 positive test result.

Student who are close contacts or social contacts are permitted to attend school but are strongly recommended to:

• if a close contact – regularly test for at least seven (7) days following their last contact with the person who has COVID-19
• if a social contact - test if they have symptoms of COVID-19
• wear a face mask when leaving the house, including on public transport, at work, school, and other indoor spaces
• let fresh air into their home or other indoor spaces by opening windows, where possible
• monitor for symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, cough, or fever/chills, and stay home and test if they present with symptoms
• Parents, guardians and carers should continue to notify the school if their child(ren) is a close contact.

Rapid Antigen Tests

It is recommended that Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT) are used by students and staff:

• if they have symptoms of COVID-19 infection, no matter how mild, or
• if they are a contact of someone who has COVID-19.

The Department of Health recommends that all Victorians report their positive RAT result to the Department of Health online, or by calling 1800 675 398.

Students (or their parents, guardians or carers) should also report a positive result to their school.

RAT kits are now available for all Victorians from most local councils. People can get two (2) free packs (10 tests) for themselves and two (2) free packs (10 tests) for each member of their household.

People with disability and their carers can get up to four (4) free packs (20 tests) in line with existing RAT distribution for people with disability.

As a result of RAT kits now being available to all Victorians through local councils, schools will no longer receive RAT kit supplies from the Victorian Government.

In addition, the DOSCEL Secretariat has a supply of face masks and RAT kits for DOSCEL schools who may be having difficulty in obtaining supplies from their local council.

Please contact the DOSCEL Secretariat via email to ohs@doscel.catholic.edu.au and assistance will be provided where possible.

John Mc Foundation's next charity event will be held on Saturday 6th May.  It is the Australian Fleetwood Mac Show and consists of dinner and a show at Montuna Golf Club.  It would be great to support John Mac who is a long-time supporter of Paddy's kitchen. Please see the attached link for further details on the show and Try Booking link to buy tickets.  All proceeds from the event go to supporting local soup kitchens.

For more details please follow the link below:

https://www.facebook.com/events/s/the-australian-fleetwood-mac-s/5541342939310932/

You can book in now via the following link:

http://www.trybooking.com/CFVYA 

Cardinia Council have arranged a free waterbug-themed holiday workshop for primary school aged kids at Deep Creek reserve at 11am on April 17.

In the one hour workshop, we’ll have a close look at some waterbugs from the Deep Creek wetland, do waterbug craft, and learn about how to help keep our waterways clean.

Families can register to attend here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/575134371387

The workshop will be delivered by Chooktopia on behalf of Cardinia Shire Council.