St Pius X Catholic Parish Primary School Unanderra eNewsletter

Dear Parents and Carers,

It was wonderful to see the splash of orange on the playground today as we celebrated Harmony Day. Throughout the day the children participated in class activities celebrating and learning about different cultures that make up our great country of Australia.

St Pius X is certainly an inclusive community and it is important during the enrolment process and subsequent years, that our families feel a true sense of belonging to a connected Catholic community.

I welcome you to the many calendar events throughout the year and encourage you to touch base with your child’s class teacher if you have any concerns or information that may assist your child. Together, as we work in partnership the communication between home and school is vital.

Sunday, commences the Great Week of our Church and I look forward to journeying through the events of Holy Week with the children.

Yours Sincerely,

Pauline Chrostowski - Principal

HOLY_THURSDAY.pdf

HOLY_THURSDAY _pdf 1.07 MB

Project Compassion at SPX

Students and staff of St Pius X have again been digging deep for our Project Compassion Fundraising efforts over the last fortnight.

We are very happy to share that the winning class for Week 7 & 8 is 5R with a whopping total of $145.45. As a school we have raised $1000. This money will make such a difference to the lives and living conditions of those far less fortunate than ourselves.

We send heartfelt thanks to every student and family who has donated throughout this season of Lent.

As we enter into Holy Week our class Project Compassion Boxes will remain in class prayer spaces for any last minute donations.

EASTER_HAT_PARADE_INVITATION.pdf

EASTER_HAT_PARADE_INVITATION _pdf 331.36 KB

St Vincent de Paul - Unanderra Chapter Easter Eggs

We would like to thank our wonderful P&F committee for organising a selection of chocolate eggs and goodies that will be delivered to St Vincent de Paul Unanderra Chapter in the name of all St Pius X students.

Students are paying forward a wonderful gift to those who may be finding things a little bit difficult at this time.

Holy Week Mass Times at Immaculate Conception Parish - Unanderra

Join with the one billion responsible ‘indulgers’ this Easter and watch what chocolate you eat. Join ACRATH’s Indulge Responsibly Easter chocolate campaign starting on Ash Wednesday, 14th February 2024.

Much of the world’s chocolate, including that sold in Australian shops and supermarkets, is produced using cocoa beans harvested by child labourers, many of whom endure enslavement and poor, sometimes dangerous, working conditions. Most are deprived of an education.

This Easter and beyond, we are all asked to indulge responsibly, select ethically sourced chocolate, and support companies working to eliminate slavery from their supply chains.

IMPORTANT AFTERNOON REGARDING DISMISSAL PROCEDURES

At St Pius X, we firmly believe that every minute of teaching and learning time is valuable and plays a crucial role in your child's education. Therefore, we kindly request your support in ensuring a smooth transition during afternoon pick-up.

Parents are kindly requested to gather their children from the designated areas at the conclusion of the school day. We understand the natural excitement children may feel upon seeing their parents through the windows, but this enthusiasm can sometimes disrupt the flow of lessons or dismissal procedures, resulting in valuable teaching time being lost while we refocus the children.

In the interest of our children's safety, we ask parents to provide classes with the necessary space to come out on the playground, so that teachers can visually confirm parents are present BEFORE releasing the children from their classes.

Please refer to the designated waiting areas on the playground outlined below.

Class	Children line up area	Parent waiting area
Kinder	Snakes and ladders game	Between the vegetable gardens and playground
Year 1 and 2	Astro patch in front of their own classes	Large astro playground or under the COLA. Not in front of the stairs or infant classes.
Year 3 and 4	At the base of the Year 3/4 stairs (near the rock garden)	Under the cola in front of the staffroom stairs.
Year 5 and 6	Under the brick wall at the bottom of their stairs.	Large astro playground

Bus lines - Under the basketball ring under the cola in three lines.

OOSH - On the silver seats to be picked up at 3:10 by OOSH staff.

Thank you for working with us in following our afternoon procedures so that we are able to maintain the safety of our children.

The new Active and Creative Kids vouchers are now available, helping to make activities more affordable for eligible NSW families. Parents, guardians and carers of eligible school-aged children will be able to use two $50 vouchers per calendar year.

About the program:

Vouchers are available to those receiving Family Tax Benefit Part A, or Family Tax Benefit Part B, or both
Vouchers can be downloaded as a QR code and used toward either an eligible physical or creative activity
The $50 vouchers will be issued in school Term 1 and term 3. Vouchers must be redeemed before their expiry date.

See the following link for information on how to apply: https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/active-and-creative-kids-voucher

MARCH
Thursday 28th	Holy Thursday Holy Week Liturgy 10.00 am BYO Picnic Lunch 11.00 am Easter Hat Parade 11.30 am All welcome
Friday 29th	Good Friday - (Public Holiday)
APRIL
Monday 1st	Easter Monday (Public Holiday)
Tuesday 2nd	Students return to school Stage Two Excursion: Science Centre and Wollongong Art Gallery
Wednesday 3rd	Easter Whole School Liturgy 11.00 am School Hall All welcome
Thursday 4th	SPX Cross Country Carnival - Kindergarten to Year Six, Unanderra Oval 9.30 am, Colour run to follow! All welcome CANTEEN CLOSED
Friday 12th	Last Day Term One Year Five assembly 2.15 pm
Monday 29th	PUPIL FREE DAY
Tuesday 30th	Students return to school
MAY
Thursday 9th	Mother's Day Breakfast 8.00am CANTEEN CLOSED
JUNE
Wednesday 12th	Athletics Carnival CANTEEN CLOSED

Online Enrolments - 2024

The CEDoW 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.

EASTER_HAT_PARADE_INVITATION.pdf

EASTER_HAT_PARADE_INVITATION _pdf 331.36 KB

Mother_s_Day_2024_Invitation.pdf

Mother_s_Day_2024_Invitation _pdf 5.77 MB

Environment Network day

Yesterday St Pius X had four representatives attend the Wollongong Environment Network day at St Paul's in Albion Park.

The students had a wonderful time making a "No Sew" tote bag from an old t-shirt and got to meet Pip Kiernan from Clean Up Australia.

They look forward to sharing what they learnt at the Week 10 Assembly as our new SPX Environmental Ambassadors.

At St Pius X, we have 3 main rules, which have all been linked to the scripture passages The Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37) and The Road to Emmaus (Luke 24: 13-35). One of our rules is Be Respectful. We honour the presence of God in those we meet, believing that everyone is created in the image and likeness of God.

We show this respect by:

using good manners
considering how our actions affect others
being an active listener
responding to people's needs
treating all people with kindness
appreciating the diversity of our community

This week is Harmony Week, so teachers will be focusing on appreciating the diversity of our community. This will be done through assisting students to:

Understand Differences: We will focus on teaching about, as well as understanding our own unique stories and those of the diverse groups within and beyond our community.
Promote Inclusion: We will continue to work on creating an environment where everyone feels valued, included and respected.
Celebrate Uniqueness: We will encourage and celebrate the individuality of each member of our community.

EARTH HOUR

SATURDAY, 23rd MARCH 2024, 8.30PM-9.30PM

Every year hundreds of millions of people around the world take part in Earth Hour. For 60 minutes people in more than 7,000 cities in over 190 countries switch off their lights as a symbolic gesture of solidarity to show they care about our planet and its future.

The SPX Community will take part in 'Switching Off' on Thursday 21st March 2pm-3pm.

For more information head to https://www.earthhour.org.au/switch-off