St Paul's Bulletin Term 2 Week 7 2024

Principal's Message

"To what shall we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade" 

(Mk 4:30-32). 

 Dear Parents and Carers,

The Gospel this weekend tells us of the tiny mustard seed that grows into one of the biggest trees. As teachers and caring adults, we often talk about planting ‘seeds’ in the hearts of our children. We provide them with opportunities and learning experiences but usually don’t know the long-term effects on our children. Sometimes we receive feedback from our children as they grow older that they have done something amazing because of a comment, experience, or encouragement from a teacher or parent. Let's keep planting ‘seeds’ that will blossom into loving, caring and curious adults! 

As you read this, I am in Canberra with our Year 6 students. I am pleased to report that Year 6 are great ambassadors for our school. Highlights of the trip include Parliament House, The War Memorial, Questacon and the Dinosaur Museum. Many thanks to our Year 6 teachers, Abbey Edwards and Izy Sofianos, as well as our Pastoral Care Worker, Mary Price, who are giving up their valuable family time to be with our Year 6s. Teachers do not get paid overtime, so without the dedication of these teachers, overnight excursions, such as Canberra, would not be possible. 

Now that the weather has cooled down all children must now wear their winter uniforms from Monday to Wednesday. Please ensure your children are wearing their ties. Our children look so smart when they wear our uniform correctly, showing pride in oneself, one’s family and one’s school!  

Please note that we have a number of staff and students with severe allergies and anaphylactic reactions. Please be mindful that we are a Nut Aware School and ask that you avoid packing any nut products in your children’s bags. 

In the last month, with the extra rainfall, our grassed playground, The Field, has been closed more regularly due to its poor drainage. The field has a concrete drain on the western side, but this has been slowly covered with soil over many, many years. If any of our parents have a Bobcat and are willing to donate a couple of hours of their time to clear it, we would be most appreciative. If you can help out, please see me. 

COVID, the flu, RSV, and the teacher shortage are continuing to impact St Paul’s. We currently have many children and staff away sick. At times we are unable to replace teachers and are forced to split classes across the school. We try to minimise this where possible, but sometimes these things are out of our control. Please do not send your children to school if they have ‘flu-like’ symptoms. Thank you for your understanding. 

On Friday new enrolments for Kinder 2025 should receive their official offer via email. In the offer are the dates for our Kinder Yaama transition program. If you know of a family seeking a Catholic education, please let them know limited spaces are still available in some grades for 2025. 

Tomorrow, we farewell Mrs Tess Jacobson as she commences maternity leave and prepares for the birth of her first child. We wish Tess and her husband, Sam, all the best during this exciting time. I am pleased to announce that Tess’s replacement on Year 3G will be Mr Ben Diamond until the end of the term and then Mrs Belinda Mayall for the rest of the year. Belinda is a very experienced teacher who has recently returned from teaching in London. Tess will have an extensive handover to Ben and Belinda to allow for consistency of learning. Welcome Ben and Belinda. 

Please note that Monday, June 24, is a pupil-free day. The staff will be off-site for the day at a one-day conference deepening their personal spirituality. OOSH is available on this day. 

With every blessing, 

Greg Cumming 

Principal 

Important Dates

Assistant Principal's Message

Attendance 

It is important to prioritise advising the school of an absence for your child. There are two categories outlined below, the most common being the first. The information below applies to general routines for absence.

Full-Day Absences—Less than 10 days
How to inform the school:  Please advise your child’s absence before 8:45 am by one of the following methods: 

1. Use the COMPASS app under your child’s own profile to complete an absence notification. This is the preferred method as your information updates the student management system automatically and the teacher is informed through that same system.
2. Should you be unable to use the preferred COMPASS app, please email the school and the administration staff will complete it on your behalf. Please do not email the teacher about the absence as they are likely to be teaching and not receive the email until after school when the day has already passed. 
3. If the school does not receive a notification of absence, it will be marked as unexplained after the day has passed.  
4. If no explanation of your child’s absence is received after 7 days, it is archived as an Unexplained Absence.  

Longer Absences (over 10 days)

The basic premise regarding school attendance is that “It’s not ok to be away.”  However, if you intend to take leave from school for more than 10 days, parents are to required to complete an Application for Extended Leave on Compass.  These days of leave will still appear as absences in school documentation and reports. They will be recorded as per your explanation, for example, family holiday, business, or bereavement but they will still count as absences. Any extended absence requires a commitment from parents to support the student’s education while absent from school, particularly in English and Maths.

Partial Absences (Arrive Late or Leave Early)

If you arrive after 8:45 am or leave before 2:45 pm you must attend the school office to electronically sign your child in or out. This is a requirement by law. It is important to stress that only an adult can complete this process as it is a legal document. We understand that if you are running late, it is tempting to drop children at the gate BUT we are required to have an adult sign them in. 

Please do not record partial attendance in the COMPASS app. 

Similarly, if you are signing your child out early for the day, please go to the office and we will contact the classroom and your child will come to you. Please do not go directly to the classroom. 

Jessica Moulder

Assistant Principal 

Catholic Culture at St Paul's

Sacrament of Confirmation

Last week, Students in Year 4, 5 and 6 from St. Paul's received the Sacrament of Confirmation at St. Mary Immaculate Church in Charlestown, administered by Bishop Kennedy. This significant event marked a culmination of their spiritual journey, demonstrating a commitment to Catholic beliefs. The newly confirmed students are now empowered to live out their faith with courage and compassion, carrying the strength of the Holy Spirit into the world. 

Mission News!

St Vincent de Paul's Winter Appeal

Our First Friday morning in winter was a huge success! over 50 cups of warm milo in bellies and a great start to our Fundraising for Vinnies Winter Appeal.

Thanks for all those who remembered...and if you missed out don't worry. We will be filling cups every Friday during winter. Special thanks to the Vinnies Crew, a group of dedicated year 6 students who are comitted to make a difference.

Vinnies NSW supports tens of thousands of individuals and families each year who are experiencing financial and housing insecurity. This year, their Winter Appeal focuses on the Working Homeless, an emerging group of people who are experiencing housing hardship and disadvantage despite being in employment.

St Paul's will support the work of Vinnies to help rebuild lives by hosting Milo Mornings, every Friday during winter. Bring your own (travel type) mug and $2 and our Mini Vinnies Crew will fill your cup.

If you, or someone you love, is struggling right now, please call the helpline on 13 18 12. Vinnies is there to help.

St Paul's Celebrates 60 Years of Catholic Education

During week 9, St Paul's Community will celebrate 60 years of Catholic Education. On Wednesday 26 June the P&F will host a party BBQ lunch and we will have our annual Mission Day. More details to follow.

On Friday 28 June we will celebrate with Mass in The Josephite Centre at 9am followed by Morning Tea, a stroll down memory lane and the burying of a time capsule. ALL past students and staff are warmly invited to attend. Please RSVP to mary.davison@mn.catholic.edu.au (or scan the QR code). We are looking forward to a wonderful week of celebration.

MISSION DAY - Wedneday Week 9 - June 26

Students from K-6 are busy preparing and planning their class stall. From milkshakes to tattoos.... dance parties to footy tossing there is sure to be something for everyone... even Sister Pat is making a return with her lucky numbers. Start collecting your change now! 

In the meantime, the Vinnies Crew are seeking donations for their Trash and Treasure Stall. Any new, or like new items that are not needed by you, but might be perfect for someone else, are welcome. Please do not send broken, damaged or 'well used' items. Please do not purchase items to be donated. We are supporting the environment by living sustainably, choosing to reuse unwanted items, instead of things ending up in landfill. 

Mary Davison

Religious Education Coordinator

Sports News

Regional Athletics Carnival

The Lakes Region Athletics Carnival will be held on Wednesday 3rd July (Week 10). Those students who were successful in being chosen to represent St Paul's following our school Athletics Carnival have now been given a note outlining their events. Please indicate via the Compass Event if your child will be attending. Please carefully consider participation, as we may be able to offer a spot to other students should you child not wish to attend. A hard-copy note also went home, with a code of conduct for students and parents to sign. These notes must be returned to Mrs Edwards prior to attending the carnival.

If your child attends Little Athletics and is seeking to represent St Paul's in the 1500m and/or high jump at the Regional Carnival, please submit formal qualifying times and heights to us via email so we can match against qualifying times and potentially register them for these events. These are additional events to the school carnival, and students must attend Little Athletics and have these qualifying numbers to be submitted. Please send to abbey-jane.edwards@mn.catholic.edu.au

If your child attends Little Athletics and is seeking to represent St. Paul's in discus, this event is not held at the Regional or Diocesan levels, and applications are considered for the Polding level. Applications must be submitted with a validated, supporting documentation from an official meet. If you believe your child could participate in the discus event at the Polding carnival, please see Mrs Edwards for a form to complete with their distance from an official meet.

Kinder and Year 1 Sports Carnival

The Kinder and Year 1 Sports Carnival was postponed last week due to the weather and the field conditions. Parents will be notified when we have a new date set for this.

Polding Cross Country Championships

Congratulations to Maeva Clifford and Eve Carter, who competed at the Polding Cross Country Championships  in Sydney last week. 

Eve placed 12th in the Under 8/9s girls race, and Maeva placed 5th in the Under 11s girls race. Both results are an incredible achievement.

Maeva now progresses with the Polding team through to the NSWPSSA Cross Country Championships in Sydney in late July. Well done, Maeva!

Abbey Edwards and Tess Jacobson

Koori News

Creative Arts News

Thank you to those students who have already returned their band interest notes! There has been a lot of interest so Mrs Tantos and Mr Ward are currently collating the instrument preferences and will be in touch soon to let everyone know about the instrument selection they have been given and when we will get started with the program.

A reminder that students will be given instrumental lessons during the day on Wednesday in small groups with Mr Ward to learn their instrument. We will hold Band rehearsals on Wednesday morning from 8 am. Please get in touch for any other clarifying questions. We can’t wait to get started! 

P&F News

Parish News

Children’s Liturgy is held every Sunday at 9:30am during Holy Mass. We have a beautiful, dedicated room at St Paul’s Gateshead where we hear and discuss the Gospel each week, working our way through the Liturgical Calendar.

There’s always lots of friendship and fun activities.

Safeguarding is our highest priority. Children’s Liturgy will only go ahead if there are two volunteers with current Working With Children Checks.

All are welcome, we look forward to meeting some new friends!

Jacqui Wilson (school mum at St Paul’s Primary) and the Children’s Liturgy Team. 

Please note, while St Paul’s Gateshead Catholic Church is undergoing renovations Children’s Liturgy is at St Mary Immaculate Charlestown 9:30am.

Office Messages

IMPORTANT - School Fees

Just a reminder that parents who pay annually need to finalise payments by 30th June, 2024

Thank you to the families who have commenced their regular payments. A reminder if you are paying by installments these payments need to have commenced to be paid in full by 30th November, 2024.

Anyone wishing to continue with a special Fee Agreement in 2024, please contact the office 4943 6369 to make an appointment with the Principal to discuss. It is necessary to reapply for an extension of the agreements into 2024

Complaints, Resolution and Feedback

St Paul’s Primary School, The Catholic Schools Office (CSO) and Schools in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle are committed to providing a positive, safe environment for all staff and students. There are occasions, however, when members of our schools and wider community are concerned about something happening at a school that appears to be unsatisfactory or unreasonable.

If you have a complaint, please follow this procedure.