Dear Parents/Carers,

Just over a week ago I had one of our students tell me how proud he was of his work because he had made great achievements when completing his assessment tasks.  This was happening on the playground as I was out there observing the dynamics after an incident we had the previous day.  This particular student is the type of child who never wants a fuss made of him and prefers to just slip quietly under the radar.  However, it was obviously important to him to share his good news with me.  At the time I didn’t think too much about it, but now after time for reflection, I could have really made a mess of this!  Thank goodness I invited him to meet with me and bring his assessment tasks along so that he could share his good work with me. 

He dutifully came to the office and made an appointment to show me his work.  I talked up his achievements and again told him how proud I am, and his parents would be, about his work.  This particular student is not “sporty” but he sees learning incredibly important and his efforts, whilst not shared in public, needed to be acknowledged.  If I had been too busy to give him the time, this would have been a lost opportunity that I am sure, the child in question would remember.

After we met, I then put my dad hat on and remembered back to the times when my now 23 year old daughter was a toddler.  I never walked into the house during the week until about 7.00pm each night because of travel for work and the nature of my work responsibilities.  My daughter, most nights, as a two year old, would want to sit on my lap and would share my dinner with me.  At the time, I felt quite privileged that she did this and my wife and I would laugh at the fact that she would have two dinners most nights.  At the time it never occurred to me that what she really wanted was some time with her dad.  Unfortunately, the reality was that Monday to Friday, when my children were little, I just wasn’t there because of my work commitments.  Twenty-one years later, I see this as a missed opportunity and I have some personal regret about this.  However, this story has made me truly present to the children now, and I need to thank my daughter for this.  I am a better principal because of her behaviour when she was two years old.  

Maybe there might be just one parent who reads this and is given a timely reminder too.

I’ll leave you with this saying:

It is one of the most beautiful

compensations of this life

that we cannot sincerely

help another without

helping ourselves.

Thank you to the student who reminded me about how important being present is.

Finally, I wish the children and teachers a restful vacation where perhaps a sleep in or two may be possible.

Go gently,

Michael Reardon
Principal

Principal Awards

Congratulations to the following students who have recently received a Principal Award. 

Valentina Saliba, Daniel Vella, Leila Jarvis, Victoria Togias, Emaleigh Kelly, Daniel Ristevski, Kyah Graham, Lincoln Tulich, Lewis Danjoux, Ailyah Moon, Sofia Cocco, Ava Galea, Rocco Vecchio, Monique Spinks, Lucas Galic, Audrey Buda, Josephine Luck, Mason Alexoulis.

Please note: There will be no assembly on Monday, 18 July 2022. Any Principal awards scheduled to be presented that day will be moved to the following weeks assembly, Monday, 25 July 2022.

Parent/Teacher Interviews

The teachers are obviously finalising their parent/teacher interviews held via zoom.  We are keen to hear how this approach went.  We chose to go this way to test whether it gave greater flexibility to parents.  It was our hope that maybe some parents, if need be, could then zoom in from their workplace.  We are keen for any feedback, so please send through any suggestions and thoughts.  Please note, that if a face to face interview works best for you, the teachers would always accommodate your request.

2023 NAPLAN Test Window Dates

As of next year, NAPLAN will be held in Term 1 from Wednesday, 15 March to Monday, 27 March 2023. During Term 4, 2022, students in Year 2 and 4 will be taught how to navigate the online NAPLAN assessment platform. 

Industrial Action - Thursday, 30 June 2022

The Independent Education Union (IEU) has informed Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong that their members will engage in protected industrial action this Thursday, 30 June 2022 for the entire school day.

What this means for you and your child on Thursday, 30 June 2022

• Limited supervision will be provided at school, but classes will not run as normal.
• You may wish to keep your child at home.
• Any absence from school on this day will not impact your child's attendance record.

Catholic Missions

This term we have linked our Catholic Mission fundraising with St Paul’s Feast Day being celebrated on Wednesday, 29 June 2022. We focused on teaching our children the true meaning of ‘giving’ during Week 9, Term 2. We did this by encouraging our students to make some personal sacrifices to raise funds followed by celebrating our efforts with some activities on St Paul’s Feast Day this week.

Activities planned for this year’s St Paul’s Feast Day will include: -  

• a lesson about our patron saint, St Paul
• a Mass during which we will reflect on our efforts to help the missions, and we will offer the money raised by the children. The children will also receive a little gift blessed by Fr Michael at the conclusion of this Mass
• Fun activities will be organised by our Year 6 students and teachers, in a fair like atmosphere, for our students to enjoy

Students are to wear their normal school uniform this day.

We look forward to celebrating St Paul’s Feast Day and our good work of supporting the Missions as a school community.

NAIDOC Week

This year, NAIDOC Week will be celebrated from the 3 July to the 10 July 2022. NAIDOC Week marks the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal people. Though NAIDOC Week falls in our school holiday period, as a school, St Paul's will celebrate this event on our return to school in Term Three.

On Monday, 18 and 19 Tuesday, 19 July 2022, the students at St Paul’s will participate in an incursion coordinated by ‘Wandana’. This group coordinates a program that educates and entertains students about Aboriginal culture. They provide a range of unique and interactive programs covering many areas of Aboriginal culture and its people in song, dance, didgeridoo, art, history and storytelling.

We look forward to giving our students this opportunity to connect with and better understand our local Aboriginal culture.

The Power of Reading - Holiday Reading Challenge (K-6)

It goes without saying that reading to your child on a regular basis can help you forge a stronger relationship with them. When it comes to children, one of the most important things you can do to positively influence their development is spend time with them. Reading to your children provides a great opportunity to set up a regular, shared event where you can look forward to spending time together. Reading a favourite book to your children not only helps you bond with them, but also gives your children a sense of intimacy and well-being. This feeling of intimacy helps your child feel close to you, and the feelings of love and attention encourage positive growth and development.

Reading aloud together and having a shared activity gives you and your child something to talk about, which in turn supports the development of reading and writing skills. And down the road, reading together can be used to discuss real-life experiences and issues. A children’s book can provide springboards to meaningful discussions about many different topics which can further develop a child’s critical thinking skills.

For these reasons, I'm promoting students to participate in a Holiday Reading Challenge. Kinder to Year 2 will be provided with a copy of the Reading Challenge and for students in Year 3 to 6, the challenge will be posted to their Google Classroom under the classwork tab Library with Mrs Martin. Students are to return their recording sheet before Friday, Week 1, Term 3. Happy Reading!

Premier's Reading Challenge Reminder for Year 3-6

Students in Year 3-6 are responsible for recording their own books to their PRC Student Reading Log via the PRC website. Students have been shown how to login to the PRC website, they have been provided with their username and password and have been shown how to add books to their Personal Reading Log. Each primary student can view the 'Premier Reading Challenge' document via their Google Classroom - Classwork - Library with Mrs Martin which outlines the steps to add books to their Personal Reading Log. The Premier’s Reading Challenge for 2022 closes on Friday, 19 August 2022.

Life to the Full Inclusive Texts

Life to the Full is a document informing you of the shared and consistent approach for CEDoW Schools in reference to inclusive resource and text collections. Next term, we will be adding inclusive texts to our library collection. These texts are stories of hope, integrity, justice and compassion. These texts have been approved by Bishop Brian Mascord. It is important to understand that any text selected for the library collection undergoes a process (below) before a final decision is made. However, if your child borrows a text that you wish to seek clarification about the selection process, please don't hesitate to send an email to info@spcdow.catholic.edu.au 

Guiding Principles for resource selection 
Collections that reflect the universal acceptance of all - Made in the image of God 

School library collections should be balanced with print and digital resources that are diverse and informed by learning and teaching requirements. Leaders and educators should use the following guiding principles when deciding on individual texts and/or resources to be included in their collections: