24 October 2024

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Hello St Patrick’s families, I hope you are all well! 

Safe Roads at St Pat’s 

Earlier this week I sent out a letter asking families to support the school in providing a safe environment for the students to travel in when crossing roads and moving in and out of the school. We have had instances recently of people driving through pedestrian crossings while families are crossing, parking in no standing zones and travelling at speeds above the school zone limit of 40km an hour. Can I please ask again for your support in following the legal and moral responsibilities we all share on the roads around our school to ensure our children make it to school and home, safe and sound. 

Master Plan 

Last week, the school’s newly updated Master plan was presented to the school staff and parent body, too much excitement. Although nothing is guaranteed, I am hopeful that with grant applications being submitted next year, the school will hopefully be starting some exciting building projects in the next 12-18 months. If you did not make last week’s presentation and would like to know more about the master plan, please come and see me and I will be happy to tell you more. 

‘The Art’s at Dusk’ – A Celebration of our Students Artistic Achievements – Tuesday 19^th November 

This year, the school will be hosting ‘The Art’s at Dusk’, a celebration of all the artistic achievements and endeavours of our St Patrick’s students in 2024. The brainchild of Miss. Daly, Miss. Rathie and Mrs. McDonnell, they have already put in a tremendous amount of time and effort to bring together students who have performed at the Goondiwindi Eisteddfod and the Public Speaking competition, students who train with Miss Nia, and works of art the students have produced in class, into what will be a spectacular night of celebration. An invitation with information regarding the evening can be found in the newsletter below. It’s going to be great!

Fete Helpers Required 

Our fete is only two weeks away! The fete is a great event that brings our community together, but it doesn’t just happen by itself. It takes the effort of volunteers who give their time on the day to set up and run stalls and again on the Sunday to help pack down and pack away. If you are free to help on Saturday or Sunday, and would like to give some of your time, please contact the Fete committee chair, Harry North, and he can find you a role for the day. Thank you in advance. 

Day For Daniel 

Tomorrow (Friday 25^th October) the students of St Pat’s are invited to wear the colour red to school to help raise awareness for ‘Day for Daniel’. Day for Daniel is Australia’s largest national child safety education and awareness day and is a great opportunity for us to remind our children and young people about how to stay safe in physical and online environments. Something we remind our students of on Day for Daniel is that we have designated adults at school, titled Student Protection Contacts (SPC), that they can talk to any time they feel unsafe or concerned about something at school or outside the school. Although all staff are trained in the appropriate processes to follow if they become aware of a situation where a child has been harmed or is at risk of being harmed, the role of the SPC is to be a very visible and known face that the children know they can talk to at any time. 

Another message that we reinforce with the students on Day for Daniel is that they can play an active part in keeping themselves and others safe. In all circumstances, if a student is feeling uncertain or unsafe about a person or situation, they can use the 3 R’s:

• Recognise – Recognise the clues your body is giving you that something isn’t right 
• React – React by getting away from the danger 
• Report – Report by letting a trusted adult know what has happened to make you feel unsafe. 

Remember, child safety is everyone’s responsibility. Find out more information at https://danielmorcombe.com.au/

Loving Our Community – Mr. Wren’s Office Trucker Hat Collection 

My collection of St Pat’s community trucker caps is slowly continuing to grow. If you or an organisation you’re involved with have a unique cap of your own that you would be happy to share with me, please drop it in to the office and I’ll pop it on my office wall! 

 Looking Ahead 

Have a great weekend, 
Jim Wren
Principal

THE ARTS AT DUSK

A celebration of ‘The Arts’ at St Patrick’s.

Pre-order food via the link below.

PARENT PORTAL

Download & Use the App Now!

St Patrick’s Parent Portal is now up and running for more streamlined communication with parents. The transition took place on Monday 5^th February, so if you haven’t already, make sure you follow the instructions below on how to register. If you are having issues registering, please contact the school office so we can help with the process.

Warm Regards,
Jim Wren

OUR PRAYERS…

Let us support each other in Prayer, especially for the Sick and the Deceased and those who are suffering Hardships, in our Parish and School.

MASS TIMES

St George-Dirranbandi Parish

Priest Administrator: Fr Anthony Samy 0409 278 968 Email: balonneparish@bigpond.com

MLCC News

This year, we have spoken in detail about the importance of reading and literacy skills. Numeracy skills are also important to a child’s learning and development. You might think this is counting to 10, but numeracy is so much more than just numbers. It helps us recognise and use shapes and space, work out the chance of something happening and understand the data we see in the media. Numeracy is necessary for everyday living and as children move through life’s stages, the numeracy demands become more complex. Here are some fun activities that you can try with young children based on your child’s interest and experience: 

Cooking 

• Talk about recipes and ingredients
• Set the table and have children copy the setting for others
• Share out food/snacks – how many does each person receive?

Are we there yet? 

• Mark important dates on a calendar
• Time how long it takes to do things like brush your teeth or drive to the shop.
• List your daily schedule showing the time you will do things

Reading books 

• Highlight and model words like “under”, “over”, “between”, “behind”.
• Conduct a shape search in a book
• Count objects on a page and look at the page numbers.

Shopping 

• Count the number of fruits as you put them in a bag
• Weigh the fruit and vegetables
• Identify the prices of items

Out and about 

• Find and read numbers in your environment
• Measure things – how far can you jump? How tall are you?
• Compare the size of objects you see
• Play “I spy” with shapes – eg. Something that is shaped like a circle

Games 

• Make patterns with blocks or beads
• Fold and cut paper shapes
• Play card games like Snap! Or Go Fish
• Play guess and check games – how many beans/buttons/pegs in a jar.

Stayed tuned for the next newsletter for easy and engaging ideas for older children. 

Annette Colley 
Middle Leader/Curriculum Coordinator 

ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

Students of the Week

CLASS News

Health & Music

Hope you are all well and enjoying the term. Please find the following information on what we have been learning in Music and Health. 

Music 

We have continued the Aural, Sing & Play untuned & tuned percussion instruments with each song. We are singing the following songs from different countries. The students will continue the following songs until week 5 with new songs starting in week 6. 

Prep - Wee Hee Nah. 
Year 1 - Haru ga Kita / Year - 2 La Cucaracha. 
Year 3 - Tideo / Year 4 - Aququa dela Omar.
Year 5/6 - Marimba Bands & Crome Music Lab composing. 

Term 3 Health 

In Health, across the school we have continued with learning more about Making Safe Choices- Protective Behaviours. 

Lower Prep 

We have continued with looking at safe and unsafe situations and our safety network. Students participated in discussions about keeping ourselves safe, utilising the Daniel Morcombe Student Protection resources leading up to Day for Daniel on Friday 25^th October. We identified Safe Adults and Safe Places and our Safety Network on hand, to identify people they could talk to, so they are safe.  We Identified Safety people- (Police Ambulance and Fire) in the community that protect and support their safety. 

Middle Years 3-4  

Students explored protective behaviours utilising Danial Morcombe Student Protection resources leading up to Day for Daniel on Friday 25^th October - React, Response and Report. Students looked at the how we can protect ourselves and help-seeking strategies that they can utilise for themselves both online and offline and when helping others. We discussed what a digital footprint was and how we can protect our profile online. The students will commence their assessment tasks from Week 5.  

Upper Years 5-6  

Students participated in discussions and learned about protective behaviours and help-seeking strategies that can be used in a range of online and offline situations. Leading up to Day for Daniel Friday 25^th October the students utilised resources on React, Response and Report and establishing their safety network. Students looked at their privacy and protecting their identity/digital footprint, the impact of online culture and help-seeking strategies that they can utilise for themselves and when helping others. The students will commence their assessment tasks from Week 5. 

Enjoy your day! Keep Smiling! 
Mrs Jane Webster

Sport & Library News

LIBRARY

I would like to take this opportunity to commend one class within the school who has consistently borrowed and returned all year.  This class of students also showed great respect and care for the books upon returning them each week.  Congratulations to year 3.  Your care and consideration for our library books has not gone unnoticed and Ms Pike and I would like to say, thank you.  😊

This term the last week of borrowing for the students is in week 6.  They will still visit the library for week 7, however, there will be no more borrowing.  Please ensure that all books are returned prior to week 8 as Ms Pike and I will be carrying out the annual stocktake of our Library books.  Thank you for your understanding.

Reading is Power and Knowledge.

Happy borrowing and reading,

Binnie Eley & Julie Pike
(St Patrick’s Library Staff)

OSHC News