Newsletter 19/02/2024 Term 1 Week 4

Our Prayer

From the Principal

Dear parents and carers,

After the very calm, settled beginning to the year, the business now begins. Grade 3 to 6 swimming commences today and children will be required to attend the pool for the next 7 school days. This is a vital part of the curriculum but it can be quite taxing on both students and staff, so parents are asked to be aware of how tired their children will be over this period. It looks like the weather will be perfect over most of the program.

Change to School SMS number

A notification has been sent to all contacts with an updated phone number for SMS notifications sent from school. This is only for SMS messages sent from the school to you. The school landline number remains the same, so for any phone communication please contact us on 55931962. 

LEARNING AND TEACHING

Production News

Our school production this year will take place in the final week of Term 2 in the Mercy stadium.

The dates ore as follows

 Matinee - Tuesday 25th of June
Evening 1 - Wednesday 26th June
Evening 2 - Thursday 27th June

If you intend being away from school at this time, please contact the school office.

Parent Teacher Chats

Parent Teacher Chats will continue tomorrow Tuesday the 20th February from 3.30pm - 4.40pm.

You will need to book a suitable time on PAM with your  child's teacher. These chats are designed for parents and teachers to discuss your child's needs and how they have settled into their new class. These chats will be face-to-face at school.

Please note that due to Foundation parents and students having an interview late last year you will not need to book in for a chat time.

Specialist Timetable

The specialist timetable for Term 1 is attached below. Please use this to find which day your child/children have PE classes and need to wear their PE uniform.

3-6 Swimming Program

Our Grade 3-6 Swimming Program started today at the Camperdown Swimming Pool.

Swimming lessons will continue  Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of this week with our Swimming carnival to be held on the Friday 23rd of February. Our Grade 2 children will visit this activity in the afternoon to familiarise themselves for the event for when they will be competing next year and to cheer on their house team. 

Swimming lessons will continue on Monday the 26th and Tuesday the 27th February.

A PAM permission has been sent, please fill this in as soon as possible. The timetable is below for your information.

Young Leaders Day

Our four school captains Rhys, Steph, Vince and Grace attended the Young Leaders Day last Friday at the Melbourne Convention And Exhibition Centre. They enjoyed presentations from Australian Memory Champion Anastasia Woolmer, Ninja Warrior Superstar Bryson Klein, Meteorologist and TV Presenter Jane Bunn and former Matildas captain and goal keeper Melissa Barbieri. It was a wonderful day full of learning and fun and the children represented the school beautifully in every way.

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Grade 5 Portsea Camp

Our Grade 5 Portsea Camp will be held on Wednesday the 28th,  Thursday the 29th of February & Friday the 1st March.

Two notes have been sent home already and another with exact details will be sent home soon.

The Week Ahead

Foundation Parent Information Session

Thank you to all the parents who came to the Foundation Parent Information Session last Thursday.

For those that could not make it please find attached the slide show that was presented on the day.

Wellbeing

CATHOLIC SCHOOL CULTURE

Parish Bulletin

LEADERSHIP AND STEWARDSHIP

Meet Your SAC Members

We begin 2024 with a new-look School Advisory Council with 3 new members joining the group. We will include a brief biography and photo of the whole team over the next few weeks. Our next SAC meeting will be held on Tuesday 5th of March.

Andre Martin

Grateful to be a part of the SAC, I look forward to being more involved with the local community with my spare time. A Parent to Billie-Violet and Jude Martin, residents of Camperdown since 2020 and currently working as a Wind Turbine Technician out at Berry Bank wind farm.

Katie Mahony

Katie and her husband Chris are both Cobden locals now living at Laang with their three boys. Seb their oldest is in Grade 2. Katie is a local lawyer who on her days off enjoys going on adventures with her kids as well as a hot cuppa with a good book.

Ashley Couch

A little bit about me is that I am a father of two - Eleanor (7) and Fred (4). I am married to Sarah and we both have small businesses locally and I also work two days a week at Mercy Regional College as an LSO which I really enjoy. I joined the SAC as I thought it would be a great opportunity to have a positive impact on the school and greater community.

Nicole Foster

I have had five children go through St Patricks, including Bryce who is in grade 6. I am a Registered Nurse in a local hospital, with post graduate studies in Family Violence Prevention. My passions are diversity and inclusion of marginalised people. In my down time I love to be active in nature.

Nina Pasque

Hi, my name is Nina Pasque and I'm mum to Essi (Yr5), Roux (Yr3) & Orla (Yr3). From my Primary School teaching background I feel strongly about Education and Staff & Student Wellbeing. I see being on the School Advisory Council as a privilege and a confidential link between families and the school.

Paula Atkins

A teacher at St Patrick's School since 2007. I have been a classroom teacher at most levels and a specialist teacher in the Library, Science and now STEM subject area. The wonderful thing about being a specialist teacher is the opportunity to build relationships with every child in our school.

Hollie Theodore

I have a daughter, Charlotte, who is in grade 2. I have worked at St Patrick's since 2020 as an LSO. Through this, I have had the pleasure of working across all areas of the school. I am also a pre-service teacher, studying a Bachelor of Education Primary.

Uniform Review

We have had a strong response to our uniform review with 93 people taking the time to complete this survey. We will be closing the survey and analysing results this Friday the 23rd of February so please take a moment to have your say if you have not done so yet.

Family Assistance Scheme

Family Assistance Scheme ~ are you eligible?

The Family Assistance Scheme introduced by the Catholic Diocese which reduces your Tuition fee to $520 will continue this year. To be eligible you must produce a Commonwealth Health Care Card to the office (which we are required to photocopy) and complete an application form. This needs to be done by Thursday 29th of February at the latest as no late applications are accepted.

If you received this last year, we do not require to see your HCC again, your details will roll over.

Conveyance Allowance

There is funding available for families if you have to travel more than 4.8km to pick-up or drop off students at Contract or College Bus pick-up points. Parents should apply for the reimbursement applicable through the Private Car Conveyance Allowance Application.

Please contact the office if you think you may be eligible.

School fees

Our preferred options for payment of school fees are an upfront payment or for families to set up a direct debit through the school.  Direct debits can be done weekly, fortnightly or monthly.  Please contact the office to arrange this.

School fees are payable by the end of October each year.

Building Program

The works are moving along quickly and the demolition of the Art House is now complete. We begin excavation today to level the block, ready for the completion of the foundation works. The children are loving the chance to watch the machinery at work. We had a visit from Tom Sexton, Executive Director of the Ballarat Diocese last week and he enjoyed a photo opportunity with our school captains as the demolition commenced.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

P&F Fundraising Events 2024

After our first meeting of the year, the St Patrick’s Parents and Friends have created an outline of the fundraising and community events for the 2024 school year. There has been a change to the structure of events away from just one per year level to two activities for our Junior, Middle and Senior years. Each of these requires some parents from that level to either coordinate or volunteer to help on the day. If you can spare some time for any of the following fundraisers that would be great!

Junior School Activities

1. Easter Raffle - Each family is asked to donate some easter eggs to be made into raffle prizes that are drawn on the last day of 1st term (Thursday 28th March)

Thanks to Claire Harkin who is taking on the role as Co-ordinator, with Pru as her trusty helper.

2. Father’s Day Stall - On Friday the 30th of August parents are needed to sell presents to the students to give to  their father’s or significant others on Father’s Day.

I volunteer to be:

The Co-ordinator -

A helper -

Middle School Activities

1. Major Raffle - St Patrick’s is planning to begin an annual raffle to assist with our fundraising needs.

I volunteer to be:

The Co-ordinator -

A helper -

2. Movie Night - We will be hosting a Movie Night to see Minions 4 at the Capital Cinema in Warrnambool in late June or July.

I volunteer to be:

The Co-ordinator -

A helper -

Senior School Activities

1. Trivia night for an evening of fun and quizzes later in the year.

I volunteer to be:

The Co-ordinator -

A helper -

2. Mother’s Day Stall - On Friday the 10th of May parents are needed to sell presents to the students to give to  their mothers or significant others on Mother’s Day.

I volunteer to be:

The Co-ordinator -

A helper -

If you you can help in any of these positions, please contact the school office.

Container Deposit Scheme

We have registered our school for the container deposit scheme that has now commenced in Victoria. The nearest deposit machines are located at Cobden, Timboon, Terang & Warrnambool.

How to claim your refund at a CDS VIC Return Point;

Charity Donation
You can donate some of your 10c refund directly to St Patrick’s School.
You can donate via:
 -the CDS Vic West app
– select your preferred “Charity” as your active payout
– scan your app barcode at the machine
– insert your 10c drink containers and select “Transfer” directly on the screen of the machine when finished. 100% of the donated refund will be transferred to the donation partner you selected within the next 5 to 12 days.

Birthdays

Happy Birthday to the following students who celebrate their birthday this week.

No birthdays this week!

Community Events

Spriggy Canteen Ordering App

This is the new app to order online from the Mercy canteen. It takes a moment to sign up for the process, however it is quite easy to use. When registering, please search for St Patrick's Primary School, Camperdown and select your child's class.

Noorat to Terang Fun Run and Walk

Parenting 101

Free Parenting Session at 7:30pm on Monday 4th March in an online format. This was to be a session at school but it has moved to an online presentation. Simply scan the QR code below and register for the event. 

Girl Guides 2024

Terang & District Swimming Carnival

Corangamite Lions FC