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Dear Parents and Carers,
It was wonderful to welcome our Kindergarten class of 2022 to the St Pius X School Community. The children have settled into routine and by all accounts they look to be enjoying life at school. I was interested to see what had captured their young minds this week and asked the question: What has been the best thing about school so far?
Here are a few of the responses:
“Going outside to play.” Maddison M
“Playing on the Adventure playground.” Evie M
“When my name goes up on the rocket.” Harrison K
“I love that I get to draw a lot.” Mia H
“I love reading stories.” Lenny O
“I love that my brother is at school.” Joelle C
It is affirming to see the children so happy and research certainly shows that when our young people feel safe and secure their learning flourishes.
This week our teachers in Year One to Six will be available for “Zoom” Meet and Greet sessions. At St Pius X we recognise that parents and families are integral members of the school community and partners in their child’s education. The purpose of these sessions is to engage in open dialogue with your child’s class teacher about your hopes for the year, any information that would assist with your child’s learning/well-being and collective goal setting. Students may attend these sessions and this is at the discretion of parents. Kindergarten will have an opportunity for a Meet and Greet session later in the term.
I will leave you with a quote, that is my hope for all children at St Pius X Unanderra.
“From the first moment that a student sets foot in a Catholic school, he or she ought to have the impression of entering a new environment, one illuminated by the light of faith, and having its own unique characteristics. Prime responsibility for creating this unique Christian school climate rests with the teachers, as individuals and as a community”
The Religious Dimension of Education in a Catholic School, n 25-26
Yours Sincerely,
Pauline Chrostowski - Principal
The following students will receive awards for Week 3 and Week 4
Merit Awards
| Week 3 | Week 4 |
|
KB: Leo P, Ebony K, Mia H KR: Charlie H, Archer M 1B: Aiden L, Karli O 1R: Kyla M, Valentina M 2B: Tristan G, Zane H 2R: Wyatt K, Kingston M 3B: Zach O, Sam P 3R: Bodhi R, Chiara C 4B: Oliver M, Orlando S, Natalie C 5B: Maddison P, Diego G 5R: Georgia C, Marley J 6B: Egan M, Kieran P 6R: Gabriel A, John C |
KB: Lenny O, Sonny M, Aubrey D KR: Edward P, Sienna C 1B: Ryley M, Rio M 1R: Jensen M, William J 2B: Chloe R, Dion T 2R: Matteo S 3B: Catherine O, Sophia K 3R: Claudia D, Emmett T 4B: Vitaliy R, Esther L, Sienna G 5B: Tiffany T, Daniel Z 5R: Hope G, Izabel B 6B: Matthew D, Ruby H 6R: Elisabeth S, Ike M |
When you have 5 Merit Awards, you qualify for a PRINCIPAL AWARD
Principal's Award
Audrey T - 1R
Scarlett M - 2B
Christian A - 2B
Bodhi-Dean R - 3R
David C - 4B
Orlando S - 4B
Micah P - 6B
Sienna C - 6R
John C - 6R
Zara M - 6R
When you have 3 Principal's Awards, you will qualify for a Mackillop Award
Mackillop Award
Bodhi-Dean R - 3R
Marlee M - 4B
David C - 4B
John C - 6R
When you have 2 Mackillop Awards, You qualify for a School Medallion
School Medallion
John C - 6R
Medallions will be presented later in year by Mrs Chrostowski.
Congratulations to all of these students.
The vision of St Pius X Catholic Parish Primary School is to be a faith-filled, contemporary learning community that is inclusive and respectful of all. We foster the education and growth of the whole person through academic excellence, genuine relationships, authentically living the Gospel and incorporating the traditions of our past and the value of their contributions to our future.
2022 TERM DATES FOR STUDENTS
|
Term 1 |
Tuesday 1st February – Thursday 7th April Friday 8th October - Pupil Free Day, children do not attend school on this day. |
|
Term 2 |
Tuesday 26th April – Friday 1st July |
|
Term 3 |
Monday 18 July – Friday 23 September |
|
Term 4 |
Tuesday 11th October – Tuesday 20th December Monday 10th October - Pupil Free Day, children do not attend school on this day.
|
BELL TIMES
Morning:
Supervision begins at 8:20am each morning.
School Commences: 8.50a.m.
Afternoon:
2.45 Kindergarten and siblings through Cummins St Administration Gate.
3.00p.m Stage One and siblings through Cummins St Administration Gate
3.10p.m Stage Two and Three through Hargreaves St Crossing gate.
Other Important Dates
Tuesday 1st March Shrove (Pancake) Tuesday. Note to follow
School Review and Improvement
It is the responsibility of all educators and support staff to continually strive for improvement of self and improvement in the communities in which they work, for the ultimate benefit of our students, 2022 will see the staff at St Pius X focus on a number of priorities including:
1.providing a range of faith and spiritual experiences so that the faith development of our staff, students and the wider community is nourished.
- a coordinated enrolment program so that the school will continue to benefit from an upward trend in enrolments.
- a strategic focus on the pedagogy of teaching numeracy in Years 3-6 and early literacy strategies in Kindergarten to Year Two. As part of this there will be a continued focus on explicit Modelled, Guided and Independent teaching experiences for children.
- Kindergarten engaging in the pilot play program 'Pedagogy in the Early Years”, so that deep and engaging learning, along with student voice is achieved.
Forms to be returned
Each year we kindly ask that a number of forms are completed at the start of the year. These forms have been sent home as a hard copy.
The forms include:
* 2022 Student Information form
* CEDoW Use of Student Image Form
* CEDoW Responsibly use of Technology from
Please return these forms as soon as they are complete. Attached to this newsletter is a copy of the Diocese of Wollongong Social Media Policy that outlines the expectation of staff, children and parents regarding Social Media within the context of school.
Literacy Interventions
In 2022 there will be two explicit Literacy Intervention programs being implemented to support the students at St Pius X Unanderra. The two programs are Mini Lit and Macq Lit and these lessons will be taught on Mondays through to Thursdays during the daily Literacy block.
Mini Lit: Mini Lit is a Tier 2 small group, structured reading intervention program for students in Year 1 and 2 who have made limited progress with their reading and who require intensive support to develop decoding skills. The program provides explicit instruction in phonemic awareness, systematic synthetic phonics for reading and spelling, letter formation and connected text reading. The lessons will be taught by Mrs Jan Poder, Mrs Louise Burke and Mrs Belinda Panto.
Macq Lit: Macq Lit is an explicit and systematic Tier 2 reading intervention program for students in Years 3 to 6, who are experiencing difficulties with their reading. Students work in small groups and participate in explicit and systematic reading intervention lessons that focus on phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Mrs Cathy Zamroz and Mrs Dianne Moran will teach Macq Lit lessons.
Sport News
Addison B in the 2022 Girls Basketball Wollongong Team
Congratulations to Markian and Addison on their selection.
Parking Update
Covid Household Contact Information
Holy Spirit College
PB4L
What is Positive Behaviours 4 Learning: (PB4L) ?
At St Pius X Unanderra the Positive Behaviours for Learning (PB4L) framework for behaviour support is implemented in order to enhance respectful relationships and the engagement of students in their learning. Based on international research, it examines behaviour and learning from a whole-school as well as an individual child's perspective.
PB4L is a proactive approach used by all Wollongong Diocesan Primary schools and consists of practises and organisational systems that help schools create positive teaching and learning environments. The PB4L school-wide management framework supports the shared mission of the Catholic Education Office and our own school vision to create an inclusive, nurturing Catholic school community where students achieve their full potential.
This is achieved by establishing school-wide management practises which:
- clearly define outcomes that relate to academic and social behaviour
- is supported by the understanding that “Adults matter”. Clear, consistent and durable systems support the work of the adults that matter to the lives of children – staff and parents
- has effective and efficient teaching practises that support student success
- uses relevant school data to guide decision making.
Clean Up Australia Day 2022
Pope Francis, in his encyclical, Laudato Si’, challenged every person living on our planet to support the building of a better future for humanity and the world.
Here at St Pius X we take this challenge very seriously. As our vision statement highlights, we encourage all through our daily actions to be carers for our common home. We believe that every small action can have a big impact on our planet Earth and on our school community. As part of accepting this challenge we are participating in the “Clean up Australia day 2022” campaign.
This will take place on Friday the 4th March. On this day classes will be required to do their bit by cleaning up a particular area of our school environment.
PARENT ACTION: Children are required to bring a pair of gloves to school on this day.
Pancake Day
On Tuesday 1st March, St Pius X will be having a ‘Pancake Day’ to celebrate the day before Lent commences. Students will be able to purchase a large pancake for $1.
The funds raised from this day will go towards our school wide fundraising for Project Compassion during the season of Lent.
If you would like for your child to have a pancake on this day please complete the note that has been sent home and return to school with money before Thursday 24th February.
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