Newsletter 33 - October 22nd 2021
Prayer of the Week:
Principal's Report:
Welcome
Students back onsite
This week we received some good news when the Victorian Government announced changes in the roadmap due to high vaccination rates. The date for all students in regional Victoria returning to full-time onsite learning was brought forward to today Friday, October 22nd.
I take the opportunity again to thank all our families for their support during this challenging time. The strong partnerships between home and school have ensured that the students have continued their learning journey. The school will continue to work to ensure all students have a safe and successful finish to the school year.
Fullness of Life for All sessions
I recently sent out a letter and information regarding Catholic Education Ballarat’s ‘Fullness of Life for All’ resource. The school will be using this resource this term as the students will be learning about the topics of My Body, Life Cycles, and Relationships.
In all things that we do at St Patrick’s, it is vital that our school community is informed and involved. The school will be holding two online parent information sessions on Monday, October 25th at 9.30 am and 5.30 pm. We are very fortunate that one of the developers of the program, Jim Waight, will be joining both sessions. Jim held a professional development session with teachers earlier in the year.
The meeting will be held via Google Meet and the links are below. If you have any questions please contact the school office.
October 25th - 9.30am: meet.google.com/kmj-ougd-kau
October 25th - 5.30pm: meet.google.com/ogz-uxiv-qoq
Hats
Term Four is now well and truly upon us and the weather is starting to warm up. It is important that students have their hats at school to protect them from the sun when outside. From next week if a student does not have a hat they will need to play under the shade sail areas.
Gardener Position
The school is calling for expressions of interest for a Grounds and Maintenance position. The responsibilities will include gardening and general maintenance tasks. The position will be for 10 hours a week with flexible hours available. If you know of anyone who may be suitable and has a current Working with Children and Vaccination Certificate please contact the school office.
With Faith in our Future
Chris McAloon
Wellbeing:
Welcome back
We are so excited to welcome all of our students back on a full time basis. It is going to be challenging transitioning back into normal school life, so take a look at some of the strategies/ideas below.
PARENTS
By looking after yourself you are also looking after your children, no matter how old. Below are some of the areas that are important to ensure you explore for both yourself and your family.
Sleep
Sleep is fundamental to ensure one’s mental health and wellbeing and allows for the mind to create a positive outlook and maintain perspective.
It is not about the length of your night’s sleep but rather the amount of good quality “deep sleep” a person is able to get. Getting this much-needed sleep can be affected by things like stress and anxiety, which currently is an issue for most of us.
Here are some ideas to help you get that much needed deep sleep:
Calming exercises:
This could be a good time to practice mindfulness or explore breathing exercises. This can be begun hours before bed with simple things like limiting nicotine, caffeine and alcohol, as well as limiting screen time.
Consistent bedtimes:
Routine, routine, routine! This will be discussed further later in the document, but routines allow for regulation of sleep and many other mental health and wellbeing factors.
Getting out of bed:
It is recommended not to do anything other than sleep whilst in your bed. Being able to separate bedtime from other activities can assist in ensuring a good night’s sleep.
Stress:
Some stress is a normal valid response to what is going on, but when it becomes consuming it can reduce your mental health and wellbeing.
Beyond blue discuss the 7 ways to reduce stress:
- Postpone major life change
- Resolve personal conflicts
- Do the things you enjoy
- Control your workload
- Exercise regularly
- Get support
- Remember to relax
https://coronavirus.beyondblue.org.au/managing-my-daily-life/coping-with- isolation-and-being-at-home/ways-to-reduce-stress-during-the-coronavirus- pandemic.html
Relaxation:
So how does someone relax with everything going on?
There are different exercises you can do to help relax. Sometimes other activities can also help you to relax, such as physical activities (yoga, Tai Chi etc.) mindfulness, art activities or even finding a new hobby that suits your personal interests. Even if you aren’t good at it, practice makes perfect!
Beyond Blue uses a technique called “box breathing” linked below
Art:
See pictures below:
Art activities are a great way to keep preoccupied inside both alone and with the whole family. They can be used as mindfulness activities, bonding activities or just to stop boredom. The best thing about art is that you can adapt it to fit an individual and the materials you have available.
We cannot wait to see you all Friday! Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
Lillie Comitti - Wellbeing Coordinator.
Teaching and Learning:
5/6M:
It was great to see our Grade 5/6 students' faces back in the classroom last Thursday and Friday, there were lots of smiles and plenty of chatter. This last remote learning period has been a tough slog for our senior students but I am immensely proud of their resilience in such trying times.
In Reading this semester, our students have really enjoyed reading and responding to chapters from our class novel Detention written by Tristan Bancks. It is a side by side story of two teenagers, a boy named Dan and a female Afghani refugee named Sima whose paths cross in a school toilet block after Sima and her family have escaped from a detention centre to avoid being sent back to their homeland.
In Writing, we have begun a sequence of lessons on the writing of personal letters. This lesson sequence will culminate in the students writing letters to students from a school in inner-city Brisbane. Later in the term our Grade 5 students will use this knowledge to write a letter to Mr. Mac applying for leadership positions for next year.
In Maths, the Grade 6’s recently completed some assessments to attempt to identify any gaps in Mathematical concepts from the remote learning and are now working through lessons on chance and probability. The Grade 5’s on the other hand have been looking at equivalent fractions and fractions to thousandths.
In Religion, we have been discussing celebrations in our lives and working with a new Google app called Jamboard to present their ideas.
First day back to school albeit with masks.
Jack and Will make a pitch for financial support to fund their new invention in Reading.
Teaching and Learning:
I am lucky enough to be on the Family and Community Engagement Standing Committee for the Diocese of Ballarat. At our meeting this week much discussion was around how moving forward we are able to welcome and engage our families in our schools living in these COVID times. There is something special about Catholic schools that often when you ask families why they chose to send their children to a Catholic school they can’t quite describe what it is that makes Catholic schools unique. Catholic schools gather in communion with the community coming together with the common goal of educating the whole student - mind, body and soul. Please know that even though our school community has looked different throughout COVID we continue to strive to work alongside our community and use the shared knowledge that comes from our partnership to guide our decisions.
Each person’s formation takes place within a process that is implemented over many years by several educators, starting with parents.” – Pope Francis (2014)
Maryanne Comitti
Around the town:
Upcoming Events
October 22nd - All students back full time
October 25th - Monday Parent online Fullness for Life session - 9:30am and 5:30pm
November 3rd - Foundation 2022 2nd Transition day TBC
November 5th - School photos TBC
November 12th - School Closure Day - Staff Professional Development
November 15-17th- 3/4 Camp TBC
November 18th - Foundation 2022 3rd Transition day
December 7th- Statewide 2022 Transition Day
December 8-10th - 5/6 Camp TBC
December 16th- Students final day 3:15pm dismissal
December 17th-Teachers Final Day
Acknowledgement of Country
We acknowledge Traditional Owners and Custodians of this land on which our school stands.
We pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.
We thank them for sharing their cultures, spiritualities and ways of
living with the land in this place we all now call home.