Dear Parents and Carers, 

I would like to acknowledge the Parents and Friends Executive Committee for hosting our first “P and F Zoom” Meeting on Monday night. It was lovely to reconnect with people and reflect on our achievements during a challenging school year.

My main priority this year has continued to be a focus on supporting the faith of our children and the improvement in learning outcomes for all. I am very proud of what our community has achieved collectively in this area. In particular, it is wonderful to see our Sacramental Program being adapted to meet COVID restrictions. Staff have also worked hard to ensure a focus on quality learning and have been planning lessons that target where students are at, ensuring educational growth for all.

I acknowledge the fact that we have not been able to enjoy many of the extracurricular activities, that bring an extra sense of fun and community. However, we are working hard on ways to re think the way we do things. With this in mind, over the past week, I have met with parents, staff and student representatives to plan a few activities that students can look forward to for the remainder of the year. Hygiene measures and distancing between stage groups will be an important part of our planning so that students can enjoy themselves while remaining safe.

 Stay tuned for some exciting Term Four updates.

R u ok?

It was wonderful to see the children wearing Mufti clothes today for - R U OK? Day. This was an opportunity to acknowledge a day of friendship, kind words and fun. The mental health of our community is paramount during this time and Father Duane in his Homily a couple of weeks ago, spoke about his studies in psychology and the importance of taking time for not only our physical health, but also our mental health too.  

Yours Sincerely,

Pauline Chrostowski - Principal

The following students will receive awards for Week 7 and Week 8

Merit Awards                      

When you have 5 Merit Awards, you qualify for a PRINCIPAL AWARD

When you have 3 Principal's Awards, you will qualify for a Mackillop Award

Mackillop Award  

Amelia A(6R)

When you have 2 Mackillop Awards, You qualify for a School Medallion

School Medallion  

Amelia A(6R)

Amelia has qualified for a Medallion and will be presented with it later in Term 4 by Mrs Chrostowski.

Congratulations to all of these students.

Canteen News

Thank you to Danielle Chapman for her support with our canteen re-opening partime. The children enjoyed having a "Lunch-order" again.

Stay tuned for next fortnights canteen update.  

Staff Development Day 

The staff will be participating in a STAFF DEVELOPMENT DAY on FRIDAY 25th SEPTEMBER, centered around SPIRITUALITY.

Therefore the last day of Term 3 for students will be on Thursday 24th September. 

Children will be encouraged before break times to apply Woolworths Everyday SPF 50 sunscreen. The expectation is that children self-apply, unless special circumstances apply that would lead to consent being given for teachers to do this. 

We ask that you contact your child’s classroom teacher, if your child has an allergy to sunscreen or you do not wish them to use the sunscreen provided.

Medallion Assembly

Please note that students who are receiving a Medallion will be acknowledged in Term 4 at a Special Assembly on Friday 4^th December at 9.00am.

Given COVID restrictions, more details will follow closer to the date. 

First Reconciliation

Year 3 student’s and a few student’s from other grades are currently preparing for Reconciliation. They will be making their First Reconciliation on the 21^st of September at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church between 5:30-7:30. Reconciliation [once called Confession or Penance] is the sacrament of God’s loving forgiveness. It allows for our sorrow for wrong-doing and a desire to be reconciled with God and therefore the forgiveness of sins.  We send our blessings to the students as they make their second Sacrament in preparation for First Holy Communion in November.  

Christmas Art Competition

Our Year 5 & 6 student’s have had a focus during Religious Education and Visual Art lessons on their entries to the Diocesan Christmas Art Competition. This is an initiative of the Catholic Education Offices in Wollongong and Sydney to celebrate and explore children’s creative and artistic ability in illustrating the Christmas story. Student’s are given the opportunity to develop a deeper appreciation for their talents and recognise the value of the arts in expressing understandings of the Catholic faith. The subject matter is drawn from the Religious Education Curriculum and includes additional verses from the Gospels. Congratulations to the following students who were selected to represent St Pius X for judging - 

Giorgia T Yr 5

Eve F Yr 5 

Rose G Yr 5 

Tahlia S Yr 6 

Bronte W Yr 6 

Charlotte V Yr 6 

CONGRATULATIONS TO THESE STUDENTS!!!!!!

Progressive Attendance Test Assessments

This week we saw our Year 1 to Year 6 students engage in PAT Assessments across areas of Numeracy, Reading and Grammar and Punctuation. For those students who were absent, they will be sitting these assessments upon their return to school.

In the last newsletter we looked at the what and why when using this platform of testing. So now what? Where to from here? The results are used at a school level to inform many decisions that our teachers make.

What do Teachers do with PAT test results?

PAT results can be used to inform teaching and learning and to monitor progress. We follow these steps:

1. Make time to discuss results with our colleagues and the leadership team
2. Sort student results by scale score and check how students are grouped against the relevant PAT band
3. Sort student results by category and item difficulty to identify skills requiring further development
4. Look at the next teaching points for students based on their PAT band skill description.
5. Re-test each year to track progress and identify the skills students have now mastered.

Wet Weather Dismissal

The safety and well-being of your children is always at the forefront of what we do and decisions we make. We had an opportunity to utilise some changes to our wet weather dismissal procedure this week that we feel will help support students and families during times of afternoon rain. These changes came about from parent and staff feedback.

In the event of wet weather at afternoon dismissal, the following will occur:

Infants (Kinder – Year 2 and any siblings of these students)

1. Students will make their way to the COLA in the same order as usual (3:00pm Kindergarten, 3:05pm all other grades).
2. Infants (Kinder – Year 2) will sit under the COLA near the new astro turf where they can see their parent/carer through the school fence (Cummins Street).
3. Parents/carers will be asked to make their way to the end of the office building to be seen by their child(ren).
4. The Infants students will then exit through the gate at the office as usual after permission from their teacher.

Primary (Year 3 – Year 6)

1. Students will line up in classes under the COLA near the library steps.
2. Parents/carers will be visible on Hargreaves street.
3. Students will exit via the Hargreaves Street gate once a parent/carer is visible and they have informed their teacher.

Bus Lines

1. The students waiting for buses will assemble in the library during wet weather dismissal as per current procedures.

Thank you for your support with these changes. I have already received a lot of positive feedback about these new procedures and I welcome any future feedback on this.

Message from Father Duane

Dear Parishioners and friends, 

It has been a lovely first week of Spring – an opportunity to reflect on the “Season of Creation” which I refer to in this week’s bulletin. 

Please find attached:

• Parish Bulletin (with thanks to Sue Briscoe)

May God bless you and keep you and all your loved ones safe and well.

Fr Duane Fernandez
Parish Priest
Immaculate Conception and St Therese Parishes
0414 626 357

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