Newsletter Thursday 23rd November, 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.

 5RS Class Newsletter

Reading/Inquiry -

In this term, we have been reading a book called George's Secret Key to the Universe. The book is about a kid named George who had Earth activist parents and one day decides to visit his neighbours house because his dad told him not to go there. He finds himself a friend called Annie and her dad Eric, who is a scientist. He has the world's most powerful computer called Cosmos which can send them into space. But there is a common enemy between George and Eric named Dr. Reaper which seems not nice but is nice to George once he finds out that George knows Eric. Dr. Reaper plots a plan to steal Cosmos for himself.

We are reading this book because we have been learning about Space in Inquiry. We have learnt about our place in the solar system and about different celestial objects.

We have used Space as some inspiration for artworks:

Writing - Poetry

This term we have been reading and learning about different types of poems, including Limericks, Ballads, Belonging to me poems,etc. We learned that couplets are usually used in songs without us knowing. In case you didn't know, Couplets are poems that have 2 lines and the same syllables in each line. We read a poem called “The man from Snowy River, which was made by Banjo Paterson, and made in 1982. Attached are some of the Ballads that we have done.

Dear Parents, Carers and Guardians,

We are getting very close to the end of our 2023 school year! It is during this time that we begin to see a slight change in the behaviour of our students as they sense the end of the year is close. Their thoughts turn to holidays and Christmas and gathering with family. They are tired and not as patient as usual.

It is during this time, that I will continue to reiterate to all the students at St Patrick’s Pakenham that no level of disrespect, unsafe play or any other physical or verbal abuse will be tolerated. We will continue to reinforce with all of our students that the 4 values we hold close at St Patrick’s of RESPECT, SAFETY, CO-OPERATION and RESILIENCE, will be adhered to all of the time.

As parents, I ask you please to speak with your children about their behaviours and to monitor their emotions closely. I have no doubt that you may also see some changes in their behaviour at home. Please continue to support the school in the messages we are giving the students that we will always be mindful of others and to be kind to each other. That does not cost anything!

God Bless,

Meg

Christmas Concert

Once again, St Patrick’s will be holding its Annual Christmas Concert. We ask that families bring along with them a picnic basket of goodies to share with your family and friends and join in the Christmas spirit with our wonderful community. Wear your Christmas finest and get your singing voices ready!

We will begin at 5.30 sharp so please be on time.

Paddy’s Kitchen-Food Drive

Paddy’s Kitchen is an outreach program initiated by the parishioners of St. Patrick’s Church, Pakenham, to serve our community.

Students, staff and parents of St Patrick’s school have been playing an important role to reach out to the community by volunteering to help with cooking, serving and cleaning.  This year our school as a part of the Advent giving program, will be doing a Paddy’s Food Drive to reach out to our beautiful Pakenham community.

Through this program, our school community makes it evident that, ‘The person is not only sacred but also social. Moreover, we believe we have a right and a duty to participate in society, seeking together the common good and well-being of all, especially the poor and vulnerable people.’

One family - one item and we together can make a difference. Thank you.

List of items

• Cereal, oats, muesli bars
• Chocolates
• Biscuits
• 1 kg Rice bags
• Pasta
• sugar
• Pasta sauces.
• Canned tomatoes, fruits and soups
• Canned lentils, veggies, corn, chick peas
• Oil
• Vegemite
• Honey
• Pancake shakes.
• Gift cards for groceries also welcome.

Church Building Project/Church car park pick up

Thanks so much to all of the parents for your cooperation of the new arrangements in the Church car Park. It is wonderful to have the support of our parents as we endeavour to set in place new routines for getting the students safely in their cars.

The main focus will always be the safety of our students and irresponsible behaviour and dangerous driving will not be tolerated under any circumstances. Thank you for your understanding in this matter. Please continue to check updates on PAM and the newsletter.

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.

The Victorian Government is investing $1.5 million from the Recreational Fishing Licence Trust Fund to provide up to 95,000 Little Angler Kits to primary school aged children in Victoria.

The free kits provide a wonderful school holiday activity for children with their families and help ease the cost of living, providing a fun activity close to home.

Grade 5 students at all Victorian schools, including ours, will be offered the opportunity to receive a FREE Little Angler Kit. Grade 5 students have been selected based on the Victorian Curriculum focus, movement and motor development, and safety considerations. 

The program is entirely voluntary. Schools were provided with the option to opt out of the program.  Our school has opted to stay in the program so that parents can decide whether they want their child(ren) to receive a free fishing kit. 

Parents of Grade 5 students can advise the school if they do not wish their child(ren) to participate for any reason whatsoever. We support parents in making decisions that align with their family values and beliefs.

The roll out of kits will occur through the second half of 2023 (16 October – 4 December) so that all participating children will have a kit in time for the summer school holidays.

The kits include a rod, reel with line, tackle tray, some tackle and information on how to use them to catch a fish. Please note that the tackle tray includes fishing hooks. The tackle tray will be wrapped in cardboard and placed inside a pocket inside the fishing kit bag, which will be sealed with a cable tie to discourage students from opening their kits until they are with a parent or carer. 

Kits will be handed out to students to take home with them as soon as the school receives them. Teachers will tell students not to open the kits until they are safely at home with a parent or carer, however parents can contact the school and request to collect their kit from the school themselves if they prefer. 

The Victorian Fisheries Authority will create a Little Angler hub on their website, which will be live when the kits start being distributed. It will have useful information, instructional videos and online resources about where and how to fish linking to existing resources from Fishcare and new resources to be produced just for the Little Angler Kits program.

This initiative aims to grow recreational fishing participation in Victoria by actively encouraging primary school aged children to learn how to fish, as well as learning more about marine life and the natural environment.

Our school Colour Run is on Friday 8th December. Families are invited down to watch in the afternoon. 

We are asking for any parent volunteers to assist us on the day from 2:00pm - 3:00pm. If you are willing to help out and have a current WWCC please contact the school office ASAP.

You can now order your prizes through the online profile you have created. If you have any questions please reach out to Alex Taylor in the school office !

Icy Pole Wednesday is BACK! Get on CDF Pay to order an icypole for $2 !!

https://stppakenham.cdfpay.org.au

We have a box full of school jumpers and jackets located between A block and admin. Please come check if you are missing any clothing items, you can access lost property when the school gates are open.

We also have 4 sets of eye glasses at the office, if you are missing a pair please come by the office to pick-up.

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. 

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.