NEWSLETTER 4 - 22nd February 2022

Three quick questions:

1. What do you consider to be the most difficult part of being a parent?
2. What do you consider the most difficult part of being a son/daughter?
3. What do teachers consider to be the most difficult part of being a teacher?

I believe we would all have variations on the following theme when answering these three questions: balancing our needs with our wants; balancing our needs and wants in the context of our relationships with others. As parents and as educators we appreciate the value of education in the context of the future. The conundrum for we adults is that children live very much in the ‘here and now’, and our vision for them by their engagement in education is based on their future. Arguably one of our most important tasks is to tap into the child’s greatest gift; their appreciation of the here and now, in order to try to maximize their education for a preferred future.

If you were given the opportunity to ask the person beside you, whether it be whilst shopping or waiting for an appointment, to spend 3 minutes summarising their dreams and aspirations, their redeeming and not-so-redeeming habits, we would undoubtedly find that we share some common ground, whilst recognising, hopefully, that we also have our differences. However, one thing would be common in our summaries; we have all been, and continue to be, influenced by educators and we all should accept our own important role as educators. We all influence others, none more so than a parent’s influence of his or her child. Intrinsic to any educational process is change, hopefully positive and affirming. Guiding and facilitating change, as any parent would attest, can involve times when one’s patience is tried. However, when we frame a challenge as not being an obstacle, we are teaching resilience. At such a busy time of the year where many of us find ourselves ‘juggling many more balls’ than we had expected, our own efforts of framing an ‘obstacle’ as a ‘resolvable challenge’ provides our children with appropriate modelling for their own growth of resilience.

I take heart from the following passage from the book of Psalms, “Test me, Oh Lord, and try me; examine my heart and my mind”. Our actions and decisions do not always bring about happiness for all, however, if we recognize a need to reflect from both our ‘heart and head’, hopefully others can come to understand the reasons for decisions that may be difficult for some to accept, and allow ourselves and others the opportunity to appreciate that some essential ingredients of resilience are exhibiting perseverance, being informed and being compassionate. A key value of our school is being thankful, the big ‘T’ in ‘WEST’. It is timely as we enter the beginning of the middle stage of term 1, that we stop, look and appreciate those who add to our collective sense of self that comes from being part of a community, in this sense, the St Patrick’s School community. As such: 

• I thank the many members of the wider community who assist our school so readily in our efforts to continue to make a positive difference in the life of our students, which then hopefully extends a positive influence on the wider community.
• I thank the many parents for trusting us to provide some aspects of their child’s education. I especially thank those parents who complement what we endeavour to achieve in the formation of character, as well as the formation of intellect; the effectiveness of our policies and many programs owe their success to the support from parents and care-givers.
• I thank our staff who have often worked tirelessly in their individual and collaborative endeavours that have the intent of truly engaging children in quality learning opportunities; the success of our whole-school initiatives is very much a reflection of our staff support and commitment.
• I thank our wonderful group of students who are generally so cooperative, courteous and considerate in their appreciation of what it means to be a student at St Patrick’s Catholic School Latrobe. I am certainly proud to be part of such a learning community. Our WEST & PBS programs can only be successful if we have students ready to accept their part in its implementation.

Regards,

Rod Linhart

(Principal)

Wednesday 2^nd March: Ash Wednesday

Friday 11^th March: School swimming trials Years 3 to 6 – bus to Devonport ‘Splash’

Monday 14^th March: Eight Hour Day holiday.

Thursday 17^th March: St Patrick’s Day - NW Swimming Carnival, Burnie.

Tuesday 22^nd March: School Photo Day.

Term 1 - Thursday 3rd February - Thursday 14th April

Term 2 - Monday 2nd May - *Friday 8th July

Term 3 - Monday 25th July - Friday 30th September

Term 4 - Monday 17th October - Thursday 15th December

*Student Free Day Friday 8th July 2022

Our school photo day will be held on Tuesday 22nd March. Photos will only be available to order online this year. All families have received the online ordering information today as per the below link. The access key is the same for every student, you must use your child/rens enrolled name when ordering photos. Family photos must be ordered by NO later than Sunday 20th March at 5pm. 

Congratulations to the following students who have received Student of the Week.

Prep: Bentley McCrostie for demonstrating the Mercy Values of Respect and Compassion.Thank you for looking after your classmates, Bentley.

Year 1: Eliza Radich for her positive engagement and contributions towards learning tasks. 

Year 2: Isaac Banks for listening well and contributing to class discussions and always asking for assistance when needed. 

Year 3: Miami Bronson for demonstrating an excellent application and attitude towards completing her work.

Year 4: William Hawkins for his positive attitude and application towards information report writing. 

Year 5: Dekota Brumby for her amazing 'can do' attitude towards catching up on her work.

Year 6: Suraya Khan for her insightful reflections on how to improve collaboration.

Congratulations to our House Raffle winners this week: 

Dooley - Zarli Dolega    Martyn -  Ross Crawford  

Byrne - Chloe Johnson

2022 Soccer registrations are now open to families. Registrations and payment need to be completed online this year at https://www.playfootball.com.au/ The cost per child to register for 2022 is $70.00 - Ticket to Play will also be available for families to use this year. Please provide the school office with a copy of your Ticket to Play voucher once you have redeemed it. Please contact Tameka if you have any problems with the online registration process. Registrations close on Monday 14th March.

The 2022 soccer season will commence on Saturday 2nd April with an initial two week roster as per previous years. All teams will be required to have a nominated coach, who holds a current WWVP card prior to teams being entered into the competition. 

Thank you to our school chaplain, Mr Angliss, and his Year 6 helpers who provide us with a wonderful start to the day each Friday. We are grateful!

Due to a clash in timetabling, our primary (Years 3-6) swimming carnival/trials will now be conducted at the Devonport swimming pool. Students in Years 3, 4, 5 & 6 will travel to the pool by bus, leaving at 9.00am, participating in events that will be used for selection in the Catholic Schools Regional Swimming Carnival, which is proposed for Thursday 17^th March. Both the school and Inter-school swimming events are closed to the spectators/public– a reflection of the COVID Safety Plan. Permissions and details regarding these events will be communicated to families via Compass.

The School Canteen
 will be operating Thursdays (FROM THURSDAY 3rd March)

Due to Mrs Anthony’s absence this week, the school canteen will commence NEXT Thursday 3rd March and, until otherwise notified, only be operating Thursdays at this stage until we secure family support. Information on the menu, including prices, is included in this school newsletter and is also available via our school website. To support the operation of the school canteen at the commencement of the school year, the school has allocated some hours that will provide Mrs Anthony and Mr Angliss the opportunity to prepare the lunch orders, however, we welcome assistance with this initiative if it is to be sustained and opened to two days – Thursdays and Fridays. Ideally, we are hoping for a parent or family member to make themselves available to assist with the coordination to help relieve the workload on Mrs Anthony who has worked hard (a considerable amount of time in a voluntary capacity) to prepare both the canteen facilities, and in ordering and preparing many items that will be available this Thursday. For the canteen to work as part of a school-parent initiative, and to extend to two days (Thursdays and Fridays) we need volunteers who can commit to assisting on the day. If you consider that you have some time available on Thursdays (or Fridays) please confirm your availability via the below Google document link. At the time of distributing this newsletter, we only have four nominations for the canteen roster, two of whom are school staff members – we can operate the canteen on Thursdays using school staff and one or two parent helpers, however, if families would like to extend the canteen hours to include Friday, please consider if you could assist with a time of canteen support. Thank you.

Shrove Tuesday

Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday which marks the beginning of Lent. Shrove Tuesday is a day when people traditionally used up all the extra food in their cupboards such as fat, eggs, milk and flour in preparation for the 40 days of fasting during Lent. It is believed that fasting helps to free us of earthly distractions and open our hearts fully to Jesus.  

Mini Vinnies will be selling pancakes and offering homemade jam and cream for 50 cents each on Tuesday 1st March. 

Ash Wednesday

On Ash Wednesday we receive the mark of the ashes. The ashes are the blessed burnt palms from the previous Palm Sunday. The Ashes are a symbol of repentance and are placed on the forehead of Catholics around the world. The Ashes are a physical sign that Lent has begun. Ash Wednesday is a day of abstinence (going without meat) and fasting. Lent is a time to rediscover the meaning of life and prioritise what is important in how we live our lives. We try to simplify our lives (fasting), take time out to reflect and pray (prayer), and listen and respond to those in need (almsgiving). Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are concrete ways in which we can demonstrate our relationship with God. It is a time where we focus more fully on making good and better choices. We begin the journey of Lent to become more like Jesus.

The Mersey Leven Catholic Parish has begun preparations for the Sacraments of Initiation this year. The preparation is Parish-based, Family-centred and School-supported. Parents meet at Our Lady of Lourdes Church with Fr Steven, Fr Jaison and the sacramental team to discuss the commitment and the process involved in preparing to celebrate the sacraments. The candidates have begun their preparation with a Mass of Welcome and Commitment in the parish. The Confirmation candidates celebrated last weekend. The Reconciliation candidates Welcome and Commitment Mass will be celebrated in a Mass this coming weekend on the 26th and 27th February. We ask the community to pray for these children and families as they continue on their faith journey.

We pray, Lord Jesus, for your guidance and love for our children on their faith journey. Assist them Lord in being open to change and challenge, teaching and learning.

Help our community as we share our faith and love with our children as they commit to this journey.

Amen

Catherine Dunn

Religious Education Co-ordinator

The theme for this year’s Project Compassion is ‘For All Future Generations’. It reminds us that the good that we do today extends far beyond the present, impacting the lives of vulnerable people for generations to come. It encourages us to continue to work together to create small changes each day that will create a lasting impact for people living in poverty.  The school launch of Project Compassion will coincide with Ash Wednesday, 2^nd March.

Thank you to families who have made time to Zoom, accept phone calls or complete online forms regarding their child's new learning plan.  We really appreciate the valuable insights you can provide about your child, from the person that knows and loves them the most.

Teachers are close to completing the draft copies of learning plans and these drafts will be sent home during next week for your consideration.  You will then have the option of signing this document or making contact with your child's teacher to discuss any particular areas that may need further discussion.

Melissa Marshall

Student Support

Karlie will be on leave this week 24^th, 25^th February.

Last Friday Amaja Scott cut off her lovely long locks in her 'Hair for Heart' cancer research fundraiser. In support of Amaja, we held a casual clothes day and raised just over $250 towards Amaja's fundraising. Well done, Amaja! 

Please contact the school office – ring, email, or note in your child’s diary – if you would like to be included in a list of families who would like to receive a weekly print copy of the school newsletter.

Rationale

Mobile online digital devices (mobile phones, smartwatches or any device that allows digital mobile communication at school or during school events) offer effective and quick means of communication. Where unforeseen events occur, these devices provide students and their families with a ready means of communication.

Aims

This policy aims to set clear guidelines in relation to the appropriate use of mobile online digital devices at school and/or during school events. Compliance with these guidelines will avoid unnecessary interference with teaching and learning, and respect the right to privacy of others.

Guidelines

• Mobile online digital devices must be left in the school office at the beginning of the school day and collected at the end of the school day; it is the student’s responsibility to leave and collect the device at the office, and the device should be muted. • In normal circumstances, parents or caregivers wishing to leave messages for their children should do so by telephoning the school; school staff endeavour to ensure that messages are passed on during class breaks.

• School office staff may also assist students who need to contact family or other persons in an emergency.

• The camera function (available on most mobile phones) must not be used without the school permission as it does not comply with the rationale and aims of this policy and the use of the camera may breach Privacy Act rules.

• Unless in exceptional circumstances, mobile online digital devices may not be taken on school camps or excursions; parents, caregivers and students may communicate using the school phone contact if necessary.

This policywill be reviewed as part of St Patrick’s Catholic School’s policy review cycle.

Ratified by the School Board:March 2019

VISITING SCHOOL

Schools are no longer required to have staff or visitors use the Check-In App. The State Government made the decision to close the App last Saturday evening at 6pm. We ask all visitors to continue to use our normal check in requirements through Compass (‘sign-in’ at the school office if staying longer than 15 minutes). We understand that there will be times when parents will need to attend school, however, it is important that we minimise the number of visitors to our schools at this time to minimise the potential for transmission. To support the safety of our school all visitors are required to wear a mask whilst indoors.

MAINTAINING ISOLATION

Advice for confirmed cases should your child test positive for COVID-19 using a rapid antigen test:

• Your child must not come to school.
• You must register the result with Public Health using their online declaration form or phone the Public Health Hotline 1800 671 738.
• Your child must isolate from other persons including family members for a minimum of seven days.
  • If your child still has symptoms on day seven then he or she must continue isolation for a further three days.
• Family members living in the same house are deemed to be close contacts.
  • Close contacts need to quarantine for seven days and to maintain isolation integrity between themselves and the confirmed case.
• The seven days of isolation starts the day after your child tested positive.
  • The seven days of quarantine for close contacts starts on the same day as the isolation period provided there has been no close contact between the confirmed case and other family members after receipt of the positive test result.
  • If the confirmed case and other family members can maintain isolation integrity for the seven days of isolation then quarantine will also end when isolation ends.
• Having completed isolation, should your child come into contact with someone with COVID-19 in the four weeks following completion of isolation and your child is not immunocompromised or symptomatic, they will not need to quarantine or isolate.

  RAPID ANTIGEN TESTS

  The school has received some additional supplies of rapid antigen tests for distribution to families on a needs basis – to ascertain whether symptoms are indicating a COVID-19 infection. If you require rapid antigen tests to be used for this purpose (have a test at home in case a child displays symptoms) please communicate with the school office by phone (6426 1626) or email(stpatslat@catholic.tas.edu.au)

  SCHOOL ASSEMBLIES

  Zoom assemblies conducted by our school student leaders will be our only form of assembly this week and next week, with our class gatherings (Mondays – Years 4, 5 and 6; Tuesdays – Years 3, 2, 1 and Prep) beginning again on Monday 7^th March.

• Online learning will only be provided for students who are required to isolate as a result of a positive COVID test, have been directed to isolate by Public Health or have been deemed a household close contact. More information on how this will be accessed will be provided in due course.
• Online learning will not be provided if parent/carers choose to keep students at home where there is no underlying medical or educational reason for their absence. 

• Your child is an important part of our school community and is expected to attend school.
• If your child has a medical condition that limits them attending school, your school will support you to ensure that you have appropriate support to meet your child’s educational needs considering the medical advice that has been provided. 
• If you choose to keep your child at home without an underlying medical or educational reason they will be marked as absent.

The 2022 Devonport Basketball winter primary school roster commences on Wednesday 23^rd March for grades 1 and 2 and Friday 25^th March for grades 3 – 6. For further information on the upcoming rosters and to register please go to www.devonportwarriors.com.au Registrations close Wednesday 9^th March 2022. Should you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact the DBC Office on 64242440.

A reminder to parents that St Patrick's is a Nut Allergy School and that we ask that parents not pack nuts or nut products in their children's lunchboxes.

‘Inquiring Minds’ Birth to 5 program - a ‘Set-Up for Success’ Catholic Education Tasmania initiative.

our ‘Inquiring Minds’ birth to 5 program operates each Friday during school term time from 9.00am to 10.30am;This program involves a considerable focus on communicating to parents the learning intentions of important activities that are associated with early years learning. Mrs Klug will be working to engage parents in early years learning experiences that will ensure children who are enrolling in Kindergarten, will be informed in regards to developing key social, emotional, physical and cognitive skills and understandings.