Newsletter Thursday 1st June, 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.

Welcome to FKG’s Newsletter!

 

In Foundation KG we have been very busy. 

The students have adapted so well to our school routines and expectations. They have been showing such wonderful progress in their learning. 

In Inquiry we have been learning about living and nonliving things. The students went for an exploration outside to find some living and nonliving things. They did a wonderful job explaining why something is living or nonliving. Here are some photos from our adventure outside.

We had some special visitors join us last week. ‘Henny Penny’ brought over some eggs so that we could watch them hatch. The students were able to experience the real life beginning of a chicken’s life cycle. Students were so excited to see the chicks hatch from the egg and watch them grow. They were very gentle looking after them. Here are some photos of the chicks enjoying their time with the students.

On Monday afternoon the Foundation students had a visitor, Scarlett from FGW’s mum, Yasmin Cohen taught our students about her Indigenous culture. She read a story and taught the students some Indigenous symbols. It was a wonderful learning experience.

Thank you and best wishes from FKG!

 

 

Donations

In order to support our P and F committee, I am asking if there are families and businesses out there who are able to donate items that can be used for future raffles and in particular for our fete that is being held later this year. Not only is this a sign of goodwill and enhance a sense of community, but it will also be great opportunities for your own business to be highlighted at St Patrick’s. If you would like to donate items, please contact the office on 5943 9000 or email office@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au

As always, we appreciate any help that is given to our beautiful school.

Social Media

Our school has started our own Facebook page where we highlight the amazing things out students do everyday at school. You can follow our page with the link below:

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

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.

Physical and online environments promote safety and wellbeing while minimising the opportunity for children and young people to be harmed.

10 Implementation of the Child Safety Standards is regularly reviewed and improved

Minimum requirements

In complying with Child Safe Standard 10 an organisation must, at a minimum, ensure:

10.1 The organisation regularly reviews, evaluates and improves child safe practices.

10.2 Complaints, concerns and safety incidents are analysed to identify causes and systemic failures to inform continuous improvement.

10.3 The organisation reports on the findings of relevant reviews to staff and volunteers, community and families, and children and young people.

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.

Dear Parents, Carers and Guardians,

Winter is here! Let’s look at the positive side of that. It is the best time to stay in and cosy up with the ones we love, watch our favourite TV shows and movies and eat yummy comfort Winter food such as soup, curries and roast dinners. It is a wonderful time for nature as the trees lose the last of their leaves and we are so blessed here at St Patrick’s to have the trees that provide these incredible pictures from Mother Nature every day.

Over the next two weekends, we celebrate our Year 4 students making their First Holy Communion. First Holy Communion is the second of the three Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism and Confirmation) which complete an individual's membership to the Catholic Community. The Eucharist Sacrament is commonly called First Holy Communion and celebrates the real presence of Christ in the bread, wine, and gathered community.

First Communion is a special day because it is the first time a child receives the Eucharist, which is the body and blood of Christ. The Eucharist is a very important part of the Catholic faith, and receiving Communion is a way for Catholics to connect with Christ. We pray for all of our students entering this Sacrament over the coming two weekends.

It is a very busy week next week with our Foundation students will head off on their very first excursion to the Myuna Farm and our Year 2 students are off to the Wetlands for their excursion.

Take care and God Bless

Meg

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.

This week we had three students representing our school at the Divisional Cross Country. All three did an amazing job coming within the top 20 in their ages divisions. Special congragulations to Alek who came 7th and is moving on to the next level !

Last week our year 2 and 5 students worked collaborativelt while playing games with their buddies !

On the 25th of May, The grade sixes went to St Francis Xavier Beaconsfield campus to experience a play. This play was a remake of the story of ‘The wizard of Oz’. It was about a girl named Dorothy who was misunderstood by her family so she decided to run far away, and found herself in the middle of nowhere with her friends that she met on the way. Scarecrow wanted a brain, Tin Man who was desperate for a heart, and Lion who longed for courage and bravery.

But there was an evil witch that tried to stop Dorothy but things didn’t end well when at the end, Dorothy tipped water on the witch and melted her after the Witch tried to trap her . We attended the play at 11:30am, and the play went for over 2 whole hours! And would you believe the actors had to remember their lines that long? Great job to them.

While watching the play some staff, and students recognised former students of St Patrick’s in the play! such as:

-Caitlin Burns, who played the main character, Dorothy

-Josh Jones, who was in the band

-Ryan Byrne- who was one of the winkies 

-Daniella Kershaw, who was a former vice captain at St Pat’s, and played some dancing roles.

-and Madeleine Goliya who also had a major dancing role

This play was great entertainment! We enjoyed watching people shift into their acting roles.

Lewis, Areng, Gabby & Heaven

First Holy Communion

Confirmation

Reconciliation

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. 

SPECIAL REPORT: Mobile Phone Separation Anxiety

The use of mobile phones and technology in schools has been a highly debated topic internationally, including in Australia. Almost all states and territories in Australia, have implemented full bans on mobile phones during class, recess, and lunch times, while allowing students to carry their phones during travel to and from school.

Critics argue that there is no evidence supporting the effectiveness of such bans, but this is a mischaracterisation. Studies have shown the positive impacts of mobile phone bans in schools. One study conducted in 2016, found that banning mobile phones led to an increase in student performance, with test scores improving by 6.4% of a standard deviation. Similar studies from Spain and Norway also supported these findings.

For parents concerned about mobile phone separation anxiety in their children, it is important to acknowledge it as a real issue and discuss the negative effects of phone addiction, such as sleep problems and mental health issues. Gradually introducing phone-free periods at home, setting clear expectations and boundaries and modelling healthy behaviours can help your child cope. It is also crucial to establish a support network and seek professional help if needed. Implementing mobile phone bans in schools allows for better focus on teaching and learning, minimising distractions and interruptions.

This Special Report will help address mobile phone separation anxiety and provide guidance on supporting your child’s wellbeing during this transition period. We hope you take a moment to reflect on the information offered, and as always, we welcome your feedback. If this raises any concerns for you, a loved one or the wellbeing of your child, please consider seeking medical or professional help.

Click on this link to view the Special Report https://stppakenham.catholic.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news/special-report-mobile-phone-separation-anxiety

Have you logged into 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. 

SCHOOL FEES

The School Fee statements for Term 2 have been sent out via email.   If you require another copy please contact the school office.  Our preferred method of payment is via Direct Debit, please download the attached form and return to the school office.  Alternatively a hard copy can be picked up from the office.

CSEF 

CSEF forms are still being accepted, however there is a deadline of 30th June! 

To be eligible for the CSEF all you need is a valid Health Care Card.  Contact the school office for more information. 

Holders of a valid Health Care Card are also eligible for a reduction in the school fees. Please contact the school office.  

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)