Dear Parents/Carers,

After years of COVID we finally had a whole school event with Grandparents and Great People Day being celebrated. Every so often in school life, situations arise that “jolt” a school community back into an awareness of why we exist.  This was one of those moments. These special moments invite the community to gather, to remember and ritualise such happenings. Creative rituals are now needed more than ever and remind us all that the school community is all about a God of compassion who reaches out in mercy to those who call upon God. The type of witness given to this special day by those who came does not mean just speaking about God or religious matters but being a presence that is uplifting and affirming. Grandparents day was a day that esteemed “experience” rather than “theory” about the nature of our Catholic school where the message was: ”Don’t talk to me about Jesus - show me how to live his spirit”. That is in fact the message of St Paul heard frequently in the readings at mass and is our message to the children whose spirituality we nurture.

A special thank you to the P&F, who have worked so hard to bring back this spirituality into the lives of the children. 

The fete again is another example of gracing the moment.  The saying “God comes to us disguised as life” reflects  more faithfully the belief that God is present in the ordinary happenings of school and community life.  The Jesuit Anthony de Mello, tells a story to illustrate the presence of the divine in the daily lives of people:

Grandparents and Great People Day and the St Paul’s fete  calls us all to “go into our heart” to show the face of Christ to others in a different way.

Go gently,

Michael Reardon
Principal

Principal Awards

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

Isla Richardson, Brooklyn Leahy, Georgia Cahill, Bellany Bartolo, Jemma Bartolo, Amelia Meekin, Logan Hall, Marcus Galluzzo, Lincoln Kemp, Sofia Hatcher, Laura Waltisbuhl, Braxton Russell, Mitchell Jarvis, Grace Tidy, Kiana Gutierrez, Ethan Lynch, Laylah Gray-Green, Gisele Gandola, Owen Van Der Linden, Hannah Andreuzza, Cooper Smith, Ava Marano, Carla Marci, Thor Taylor, Patrick Waters, Sienna Barone, Samuel Clancy, Jessica Mikhail, Isla Maurer, Lily Vella, Jennifer Waltisbuhl, Ella Caudle.

Semester Two Student Leaders

• Sophie  6F
• Zac       6T
• Georgia 6H

School Fees

August school fee account statements have been generated by the CEDoW School Fee Liaison Office and emailed to families.  If you are having difficulty paying for your school fees we ask that you do not ignore your fee statements and make contact with the school immediately via email info@spcdow.catholic.edu.au

Closure of Larkin Place Gate

The school has been advised by Camden Council that they will be upgrading the Larkin Place carpark from 16 August - 30 September 2022.

During part of this time the Larkin Place entry will not be accessible.

From Tuesday, 16 August - Tuesday, 23 August 2022 (inclusive) the Larkin Place entry gate will be closed to parents and students. During this time the school will open the Heritage Hall gate on Larkin place and this will become the entry and exit point whilst these works are undertaken.

Student Birthday Celebration/Cakes

A reminder that if your child is celebrating a birthday and you wanted to send in a treat for their class, the school asks that only sealed lollypop's be sent in to share with your child's class. Allen's lollipops are ideal.

With student allergies and the need for parent permission, it is not possible to distribute any other items.

Resilience

Resilience is the ability to ‘bounce back’ after challenges and tough times. Children learn resilience through experience. Each time your child overcomes a problem, it builds their confidence in their ability to handle the next challenge.

Here are some ways you can build your child’s resilience:

• Support your child but try not to solve every minor problem or disappointment. For example, if your child doesn’t get invited to a birthday party or didn’t get what they want for their birthday, you could talk about how they feel instead of trying to fix the problem.
• Avoid predicting and preventing problems for your child. This might mean letting your child hand in homework that’s wrong or not replacing a broken toy. Overcoming small challenges builds your child’s resilience for bigger setbacks.
• Help your child to identify and manage strong emotions. For example, your child might be worried about a family member who’s sick. You could say, ‘I can see you’re really worried about Grandpa. It’s OK to be worried. But remember we’re doing everything we can to help him get better’.
• Encourage your child to have another go when things don’t work out the first time they try something. Praise your child for trying, no matter the result. You could say ‘I’m proud of you for finishing the race’ or ‘Well done for giving it another go’.
• Make it a habit to recognise and acknowledge when things are going well. For example, during family meals you could each share one positive thing from your day.
• Help your child to develop problem-solving skills in an age-appropriate way. For example, if a child at school says or does something unkind to your child, brainstorm how your child might respond next time.

Children develop resilience over time, so try to be patient and supportive while your child works out how to respond to challenges. You might want to make everything all right for your child, but sometimes your child has to go through uncomfortable feelings so they can work things out for themselves.

New Library Space

One of my visions for the library has been to make it a place that helps instill in students a lifelong love of learning and reading, and has a direct influence on positive learning outcomes. I believe the library should be the heartbeat of the school. A place children want to visit and engage in. With this in mind, Miss Meek and myself had been making changes from the first day of the school year.

Many of the students had begun realising the small changes. We couldn’t believe our luck when Mr Reardon granted us a generous budget to redesign our library. With my vision at the forefront, I spent a significant amount of time sketching, measuring and redesigning the dream student-centred library. Changing the complete layout and incorporating flexible learning furniture. I would like to thank Mr Reardon for trusting me with this large project. It was evident at Grandparent’s Day the impact the refurbished library has already had on the students. The number of students who said “We have to see the library before we go!” Thank you to all our visitors who expressed their opinions. Most importantly, thank you to the group of boys who previously were reluctant to visit the library, your comment “The library is now my favourite place in the whole school”. You made our day! Thank you!

From Mrs Martin and Miss Meek.

Before...

After...

Premier's Reading Challenge - Closing soon!

This year, K-2 students will have 30 books read to them in class for their PRC and these will be recorded by the PRC Coordinator and assistant. 

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 seen how to add books to their Personal Reading Log. 

Please encourage your child to log on and complete the challenge so they can be acknowledged for their achievement. At this stage, we have a minimal number of students complete their online reading log. Below reflects the number of students who have successfully completed their online digital reading log. Final day to register your reading log Friday, 19 August.

Book Character Parade 
Book & Blanket Afternoon

St Paul’s Book Character Parade will be held on Tuesday, 23rd August 2022.

Students can come to school dressed as a favourite book character. Be creative and use items you already have at home... no need to go shopping for an outfit!

The Book Character Parade will begin at 1:30pm. Families are invited to come along and watch the parade. Please note the lunch times have been amended for this day. 

At the conclusion of the Character Parade please join us for our first Book and Blanket afternoon starting at 2:15pm. Bring some favourite books to share with your child, a blanket and a picnic snack. Parents will be directed to collect their children from their classrooms and then find your spot to throw out the picnic blanket across the playground. 

If you wish to take your child home with you at the conclusion of our event at 2:45pm we ask you to sign your child out from their classrooms. 

In the event of rain, a COMPASS alert will be sent out to parents advising you of any changes to the day.

We look forward to seeing you share your love of reading with your children! 

Western Region Athletics

On Friday, thirty-one students represented St Paul's at the Western Region Athletics Carnival with pride. We achieved some fantastic results throughout the day with thirteen students and three relays teams qualifying to attend the Wollongong Diocesan Selection Trials on August 16. 

Congratulations to the following students for their age champion results: 

1st - Harry - Senior Boys 

7th - William - 11 years Boys

8th - Tayla - 11 years Girls

10th - Georgie - Junior Girls

Our School placed 4th in Overall School Championships

Waste Free Wednesdays

Thank you to the families within our school community, who continue to support Waste Free Wednesday. St Paul’s is committed to encouraging the students to develop a better understanding of sustainable practices, and packing a waste free lunch is one way to achieve this. 

Each Wednesday, we ask that your child’s lunch is waste free with items packed into containers, within a bento style lunchbox, or packaged in reusable wrappings. Students are encouraged to participate and rewarded with a token for their house, adding the term House Cup. 

Fete Preparation Mufti Day – Friday, 19 August (Week 5)

On Friday, 19 August 2022, students will be able to wear mufti/regular clothes to school in exchange for bringing in the following items for the Fete. Please ensure all food items are within use by dates otherwise these items can not be used and will need to be disposed of. Thank you for your support!

**Please ensure items are within used by dates**

Other items you might like to donate include a slab of water bottles, salt and pepper and  white serviettes.

 Fete Volunteer

We are in desperate need of volunteers to help run the Fete on the day. All of our stall coordinators are back again to coordinate their stalls, but they need volunteers on the Fete Day. We also need some help on the morning of Friday, 19 August 2022 to collect all the items being donated, before the Fete Day on Friday, 2 September for set up and after the Fete Day on Sunday, 4 September to pack up.  

All that is needed is 1 HOUR OF YOUR TIME to help make a successful Fete. 

Please fill out the section below and return it to the school office

The White Elephant & Book Stall

It's time to organise an early spring clean. Donations are needed for the White Elephant and Book stall. Over the next couple of weeks, clean out your cupboards and drop off pre-loved goods to the fete shed. Crockery, appliances, homewares, knick-knacks, sporting goods, toys, games. If you no longer need them, the White Elephant stall wants them! Please ensure that goods are clean and in working order. Note: No CRT televisions or monitors are accepted.

If the fete shed (located on Area 1) isn't open, please ask the teacher on playground duty to unlock the shed for you. The shed can be opened prior to school 8:30- 8:55am or afterschool 3:00-3:45pm.

Gift boxes update

We have been overwhelmed with the generosity of our families. Many families have returned their gift box already which has assisted us (behind the scenes). At the moment, we don't have any spare gift boxes. However, if you are unable to fill the gift box, please return it to your class teacher as we have other families who would like to fill another box or two. 

Week 4's All-day ride pass winner is Samuel Clancy.

Return your gift box this week to have the final chance to win an all-day ride pass for free!!! Drawn at Week 5's assembly.

Ride ticket Link