Newsletter 68- September 2nd - 2022

Lord, grant us the wisdom to care for the earth and till it.

Help us to act now for the good of future generations and all your creatures.

Help us to become instruments of a new creation,

Founded on the covenant of your love.

Than you God for most this amazing

day: for leaping greenly spirits of trees

and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything

which is natural which is infinite which is yes.

Pope Francis has requested that on 1st September Catholics remember this as World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.  Catholics are called to protect people and the planet, living their faith in relationship with all of God’s creation. 

You are not your emotions - 

Please click on the podcast link below to listen:

You Are Not Your Emotions - Dr Emily

She’s back again! Our very own psychologist, Dr Emily!

In this episode, Dr Emily reflects on a very moving chat we had with comedian Steen Raskopoulos. 

She talks with Hugh, Ryan and Josh about the concept of Emotional Awareness, and explains why it’s not only important to identify your unpleasant emotions, but why it's even more important to express them when they arise.

STEAM expo next Wednesday 7th & Thursday 8th September, 2022.

St Patrick’s Primary School Hall 

Students have been busy working hard to finish their STEAM learning ready for our expo next week.  Parents and community members are invited to attend the Expo to view a variety of creative projects completed by our students this year.   

Students will be divided up into their sports house groups and rotated throughout the day Wednesday.  On Wednesday and Thursday you are able to visit the expo after school. 

Time:  

Wednesday 7th September, 2022

10.00-11.00am  - Joseph house students will be in hall

12:30 - 1:20pm - Barrett house students will be in hall

2:00 - 3:00pm - Mackillop house students will be in hall 

3:15 - 5:00 pm Expo open. 

Thursday 8th September, 2022

3:15 - 5:00 pm Expo open. 

What is STEAM? Steam is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics.  STEAM education focuses on the foundation skills of developing science, technology, engineering, and art learning, promoting problem solving, critical analysis and creative thinking skills. The expo will incorporate students STEAM learning over the course of the year.  A few snap shots of the STEAM  learning that is happening. 

Assembly:

It is fantastic to once again have our Friday school assemblies happening. Assembly starts at 2:50pm every Friday afternoon in the hall. All family and community members welcome. 

Assembly roster for term 2:

Week 8 Junior H

Week 9 No assembly

Week 10 Buddies and Foundation - Earlier time 1:50pm

Professional Development:

On Friday 9th September our whole staff will be meeting to look at our Literacy Curriculum development throughout the school. 

Curriculum development is critical to ensure teachers are able to analysis, design, select, create and review students' learning and outcomes.  We will be working through a process of:  Analysing the Victorian Literacy Curriculum, Designing learning statements to match, selecting the essential learnings and creating our scope and sequence for each year level.  Curriculum development is essential to ensure that we are taking the time to have a methodical approach to determine what students will be required to learn and when. 

Professional Development:

At St Patrick’s Primary School we are committed to Professional Development of our team.  At various times staff members will be working off site or online which may result in classroom teachers being out of the classroom.

Week 9

Friday 9th September - Whole school staff Curriculum planning day

In Inquiry, we have been doing flood proof and fire proof towns. We have been including eco-friendly things like Solar panels, water tanks, generators, windmills and Community gardens. We added some emergency services. At the start, we watched a video about what would happen if there was a disaster without the emergency service agencies. By Tom Jess

In inquiry we are building a fire proof or flood proof town. In my group we are building a fireproof town. The aim is to make it fireproof and eco-friendly and to be able to make these changes in real life to protect the environment and people from any more fires.         By Molly 

In grade 5 Math we have been learning about volume and probability. To work out the volume you do the sum length x width x height=volume. Probability is chance 50/50 is half, slim is near impossible. By Callum

In reading we have been learning about maps: Political maps, Physical maps, Thematic maps, Topographical maps, Road maps, Topological maps, and Navigation maps, these are the maps we have learnt about this week.  (Pictures below)By Maya and Catherine 

In writing we have been writing our own discussion writing piece and then we will be giving an oral presentation in front of the class. The topic: 'Is electricity essential for life?' What is discussion writing? Discussion writing is when you have an Introduction and then two to four paragraphs with pros, cons and supporting facts in it. The last paragraph is the conclusion where you put a little bit of your opinion. By Liam 

In sport, we have been learning the skills for hockey and how to play hockey. We have been learning how to dribble the ball around cones. We have been learning how to balance the ball on a hockey stick. Whoever balances the ball on the hockey stick without it falling off would win a lollipop. We did a game where you Steal the ball off people with your hockey stick but if you  leave your ball in the open people can steal the ball without you knowing so that meant you would have to keep it close to you or come up with a game plan.  So I thought it was a bit of a strategy game. Also, we did some drills where we dribble around cones and then hit it to the next person in the line.  By Ryder

In art, we have been working on our water week posters for GWM to bribe people to save our waters. Some children have been sewing, drawing, colouring, and painting on their posters. Everyone has been having a bit of fun throughout this term in art. By Bonnie 

SAVE THE DATE...

ANDREW CHINN is back  

WHOLE SCHOOL EVENING CONCERT & PICNIC

WEDNESDAY 19th OCTOBER, 2022     6.00pm

Senior F & M

Our Senior class have been exploring the Care for Creation and Laudato Si’ which is an encyclical of Pope Francis published in May 2015. It focuses on care for the natural environment and all people, as well as broader questions of the relationship between God, humans, and the Earth. The encyclical’s subtitle, “Care for Our Common Home,” reinforces these key themes.

An encyclical is a public letter from the Pope developing Catholic teaching on a topic often in light of current events. Laudato Si’ is addressed to “every living person on this planet” (LS 3). Hence, it is offered as part of an ongoing dialogue within the Catholic Church and between Catholics and the wider world.

What does Laudato Si’ mean?

The first words of Laudato Si’ are Italian and translate as “praise be to you.” They are part of a quotation from St. Francis of Assisi’s “Canticle of the Creatures” that opens the encyclical in which the saint praises God by meditating on the goodness of sun, wind, Earth, water, and other natural forces.

St Vincent de Paul Winter food appeal:  

Oodie/Hoodie/Footy Colours Day  - St Vincent de Paul Winter food appeal: On our last day of Term, Friday 16th September, 2022 Social Justice will be running a special day for our Vinnies Winter appeal.  All students are invited to wear either an Oodie, Hoodie or Footy Colours to school.  Instead of bringing a gold coin donation for casual clothes we are asking if possible for students to bring along non-perishable food or household item i.e glad wrap, tissues etc,  which we can put into our winter food collection. 

As a Catholic school support the work of Vinnies and Stawell's Interchurch council by assisting these organisations with their efforts to help those in our community who are facing difficulties at this time.  We are asking if families are able to donate any non-perishable items to the appeal (Items can range from tin food, toiletries, paper products etc.)

At the end of the Term these items will be donated to St Vincents to distribute to those in need in our community.  

Each class will have a donation box where donations can be left.  No matter how small or big the donation is, we always strive to teach our students at St Patrick’s how important giving to those in need is. 

Thankyou for your support. 

Thankyou -

Shout out to the two Sues in our school!

Two team members of St Patricks who fly under the radar are Sue.S our cleaner and Sue.G our groundsperson.  A big thankyou to both of these ladies who do a wonderful job of keeping our school clean and tidy. 

Indigenous Book Swap   Thankyou to our wonderful community for your overwhelming support of our Indigenous Book Swap.  We were able to raise a whopping  total $767.60.  This money will be sent to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation 

Maryanne Comitti  Religious Education Leader 

Congratulations to these students having their birthday this week:

James Hemley

Ethan Dunn

Molly Ratcliff

Azariah Ciavatta

Catherine Fulton

Yuhong 'Brooke' Lin

David Duxson-For the sensational work you’re doing with your reading. You are a very dedicated and devoted learner, keep it up David.

Charlie Matthews-For the wonderful work you’re putting into your writing. You display the attributes of a great learner Charlie. Keep up the hard work!

Emila Jones-For challenging yourself with your writing and adding adjectives to your sentences. Keep up the hard work!

Marianne Duxson-For accepting learning challenges with a positive attitude.  You always try your best and you are a wonderful role model to others.  Well done!

Lilly Hine-For using excellent strategies when working out worded subtraction problems. Well done Lilly!

Sophie O'Callaghan-For producing excellent writing which include adjectives to make your writing interesting and entertaining! Well done Sophie!

Jack Duxson-For the great work you have been doing distinguishing between fact and opinion. Well done!

Ally Smith-For the consistent dedication and effort you put into all your learning tasks. Well done Ally!

Jayde Lowe-For your great work during Writing investigating the structure and features of an explanation text.  Keep up the wonderful work!

Charlie Sullivan-For your valuable insights during Science lessons on the Earth's surface.  It has been wonderful hearing you share your experiences and knowledge to your peers.  Well done!

Callum Reading -For the fantastic work you have been doing with your discussion writing and the positive mindset you have had.

Teepika Jones -For the fantastic achievements you have had with your maths, you are a superstar!

Xavier Larkin-For achieving 23 out of 25 in your recent Stepping Stones Maths assessment. Great job Xavier!

Torah Pickering-For the amazing results you achieved in your Stepping Stones Quarterly test. Well done Torah!

Thankyou - Book week Morning Tea and Fathers Day Stall 

We are fortunate enough to have a dedicated school community that supports us.  This is something which we are truly grateful for.  Evident by the wonderful morning tea and fathers Day Stall.

The children love being able to go and purchase a gift for their dad or special person. 

Northern Grampians Shire Council are currently recruiting Swim Teachers and we are taking a different approach to recruitment. 

We will be recruiting up to 3 new teachers one in St Arnaud and two in Stawell on their attributes not their qualifications, we will cover the costs for successful applicants to gain their first aid and Austswim qualifications and also pay them to undertake their supervision hours. 

We are hoping to attract parents returning to the workforce and semi-retired community members, this is why I thought your newsletter would be a great place to advertise the role. 

Please see attached Flyer or contact Sam Winter at the Stawell Sports and aquatic centre for further information.

Email: samantha.winter@ngshire.vic.gov.au 

Good morning,
We are hosting a creative workshop with local artist Jade Kahle on Saturday 10^th September - please could you include the attached flyer in your school newsletter?

Don't hesitate with any questions. 

Thank you from the Ararat Gallery TAMA team!
Kim DearnleyArarat Rural City CouncilE: kdearnley@ararat.vic.gov.auP: (03) 5355 0220