It has been a pleasure to witness the way the children have settled into the school year. A part of my weekly routine is spending time in classrooms and I am so pleased to see strong routines and teacher-student relationships being established across Kindergarten to Year Six.

The role of the teacher in the classroom is crucial, as they work to foster positive bonds with students, by creating a constructive classroom environment, treating students with respect, having high expectations and maximising success for every student.

Parents also play a pivotal role in this relationship and I was pleased to see encouraging numbers at our infant information nights and “meet and greet” sessions. Research demonstrates that when a partnership approach occurs, attitudes  and school grades improve. Students also demonstrate better social skills, fewer behavioual problems and a greater ability to adapt to situations and get along.

Thank you to all those that were able to attend the blessing of the backpacks on Sunday at the Immaculate Conception Church. We are so fortunate to have a special connection with our Church and in particular Father Duane and Sr Kerry. This makes St Pius X  an authentic Parish School.

Finally, it was wonderful to see many of you via zoom and in person last night at the Parents and Friends (P&F) AGM. The P and F is the primary formal mechanism for the engagement of parents and allows parents to be co-contributors in the faith life and educational goals of the school.

As we journey into the Lenten Season, I encourage our community to continue to work together for the common interests of our children. Our Welcome BBQ on Wednesday 6^th March will be a wonderful opportunity to touch base with old and new friends and meet our staff in an informal setting.

Whole School Mass

On Wednesday 28th February at 9.30am our whole school community will join Fr Duane at the Immaculate Conception Church to celebrate Mass together. During this Mass our 2024 Year 6 school leaders will receive their leadership badges. All parents and carers are welcome to attend.

Project Compassion 2024

A BIG thank you to our fabulous P&F members and their helpers who worked together to provide our students yummy pancakes on Shrove Tuesday. We are so thankful for their time and efforts and could not have done it without them. As a result of the funds raised on Shrove Tuesday our Lenten Project Compassion journey has begun with a schoolwide collection of $353.00. Project Compassion boxes will be collected and tallied weekly with these results shared through the school newsletter - be sure to keep an eye out to see how your class is going!

Correct formal school shoe

Online Enrolments - 2024
The CEODoW has moved all schools to a new online enrolment platform, called Funnel, removing the use of all paper forms.
Please take note, particularly for sibling applications. The online application form is accessible from the home page of our school website.
https://www.spxdow.catholic.edu.au/
Applications close Friday, 26 April 2024.

Excerpt from the handbook- Communication and Confidentiality- handbook is accessible on our website

It is essential that as members of our community we continually strive to develop open channels of communication. This can be achieved by bringing any concerns and issues related to the school to the attention of the relevant staff member. Only when we are aware of a concern can, we begin to address it in partnership. 

 Parents are urged to allow the school to follow due process when dealing with conflicts between students. At times parents meaning well, may feel the need to contact others regarding issues that may have occurred. This can result in a heightened level of anxiety between both the child and the parent involved. 

At times parents may hear of incidents within the school that involve certain students. These may relate to another child’s progress and learning or their behaviour. It is most important that the confidentiality of that student, and of his or her family, is protected.

Always treat such incidents with empathy – no one would like their own child to be the topic of discussion amongst parents. If parents have a specific concern that relates to their own child, they are welcome to address these through the classroom teacher, Stage Coordinator, Assistant Principal or Principal.

ATTENDANCE

Regular attendance is important and it is essential that children arrive at school by 8:50am and join their class lines. As per the NSW enterprise agreement for Catholic Schools, school grounds are open 30 minutes prior to the first bell.  Therefore, can we kindly ask that students do not arrive prior to 8.20a.m as there is  no active supervision.  Out of Hours School Hours School care OOHSC is a wonderful alternative for working parents, commencing at 7.00a.m.

Pick up is 3.10p.m and students catching afternoon buses are supervised until the last bus departs. At all times outside these periods on Mondays to Fridays, the school grounds and buildings are out of bounds. 

If your child is absent from school for any reason, please enter the absence including the reason via Compass. We encourage families to organise holidays outside the school term. If seeking an exemption of over 10 school days an application must be lodged at the office for Principal approval. 

We encourage parents where possible to book appointments outside school hours, if this is not possible your child is noted as a partial absence if they have to leave school early or arrive late. 

Attendance is monitored by the school and Catholic Education Office under our obligations with the Education Act.

2024 ONLINE PERMISSIONS - COMPASS INSIGHTS

As part of our commitment to sustainability, St Pius X are moving many functions that were previously communicated via paper notes, to the Compass online portal. The 2024 electronic permission notes for the Technology Use Agreement, General Consent and Use of Student Image/Work are now ready for your action. 

These permission notes can be found under the 'INSIGHTS' section of Compass – see the example images for what they will look like. There is also an instruction sheet on how to access Insights (mobile version) and complete these permissions online.

We kindly ask that these are completed for each child by 29th February 2024.

Please don’t hesitate to contact the office if you have any questions or need assistance completing these.

 Technology Reminders

We have had a few questions about technology and some breaches of the policy, in regard to technology use. I would like to just remind parents about this and ask you to speak with your child.

1. Home / School communication via devices is not allowed throughout the school day. Please do not contact your child directly, contact the office and any message will be passed on.

2. Smart Watches ARE allowed at school, but communication via these devices is not to occur. Our school handbook states “Smart watches are allowed to be worn by students with sounds switched off and no communication via the device. Breach of this will follow PBL procedures, and in the second instance the device will not be permitted at school.”

3. Students who bring mobile phones to school, must have them switched off during the school day. Phones must be handed into the office as the student arrives at school and collected at the end of the school day – student responsibility. Students and parents must use the regular methods of communication (through the school office) throughout the school day.

4. Earphones or headphones are a requirement for every student in the school. We do not have restrictions on which type students use but we are starting to see some very expensive models coming into school. Please consider how easy these can be to lose or be damaged and send in cheaper models. All K-3 devices have cord capabilities so students should not be using blue tooth devices.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           
5. If your child is absent from school can you please make sure they do not contact students at school during the school day. We have had occurrences of children away ‘Face Timing' students at school. This can be a major disruption to the classroom environment, particularly if they continue to call.

 Thank you for your support in these matters.