Sacred Heart Primary School Mildura eNewsletter

Principal / Executive Leadership Team

Dear Parents, Carers, Staff, Students and Friends,

Welcome back for Term Four. I hope you had some sort of a break over the school holidays and were lucky enough to get away for a few days.

Mission Month

We are off to a great start with Mission Month with a fantastic Mission Month Mass, Casual Clothes day and Staff Bucket Dump this week. We have our Whole School Crazy Hair Day on Thursday and various Unit Fundraisers are happening throughout the week.

Mrs Sharon Matthews last day at Sacred Heart was yesterday. Sharon is finishing to care for her parents, both of whom are facing health challenges. We thank Mrs Matthews for her contribution to the Sacred Heart school community over the last two terms and wish her all the best in her new role. Mrs Regan Zaxos has been appointed as the new teacher in Illawarra. Regan has also been appointed as a teacher for the 2024 school year.

Schools Sports Victoria (SSV) Events

We have a number of different SSV events occurring in week two:

Regional Athletics in Bendigo on Monday 9th October with 15 students travelling to Bendigo to compete.
Year 5/6 Boys Division Volleyball at the Mildura Sporting Precinct on Wednesday 11th October.
Year 5/6 Boys & Girls Division Tennis at the Mildura Tennis courts on Wednesday 11th October.
Year 5/6 Boys & Girls Division Basketball at the 8th Street Stadium on Friday 13th October.
Year 5/6 Boys & Girls Softball at the Aerodrome Ovals on Friday 13th October.

We wish all students and staff who are attending all the best.

Sacrament of Reconciliation Information Night

Sacrament of Reconciliation Information Night is being held at the church on Wednesday 11th October at 7pm. This is for parents who have registered their child for First Reconciliation and will outline the requirements of this Sacrament.

2024 School Advisory Council (SAC) Parent Representatives

We are asking for interested parents to nominate as parent representatives for the School Advisory Council (SAC). Please consider taking an active role in this body. Nomination forms are available from the Office, and we ask that any nomination be handed into the Office by Tuesday 18th October.

School Crossing

It is extremely important that all students cross the road at the school crossings on 11th and 12th street before and after school. It is a very busy area, particularly after school hours. Please remind your child that they must always cross at the crossing, as it is for everyone’s safety.

Kiss and Go

A reminder for parents that when picking up your child at Kiss and Go, you must enter the Kiss and Go line from 11th Street, into Olive Grove then turn onto Twelfth street. There have been some instances where cars have cut off other cars by driving straight down Twelfth Street into the Kiss and Go line, almost causing an accident. If you are unsure about how Kiss and Go works, please contact the school for further information.

Have a great weekend everyone and God Bless!

Mark Gibson

SWPBIS BLITZ - MANNERS

Over the next few weeks, we will be launching a special focus from our Matrix on the value of MANNERS. We firmly believe that good manners are crucial in creating a respectful environment for everyone.

During this period, students in all classes will be engaging in discussions and activities centred around the concept of manners. We will be exploring various ways to demonstrate manners, including:

Being polite: Students use kind words and gestures such as please, thank you, greet others politely and create conversation.
Listening: Students listen actively, which involves giving your full attention, making eye contact, following instructions and not interrupting.
Kindness: Students show kindness by being generous, showing compassion and being thoughtful towards others e.g. holding door.
Empathy: Students consider the feelings and perspectives of others and how their actions affect others.

As we introduce these behaviours, we encourage our students to actively model them within the school environment. Our dedicated teachers will be on the lookout for instances of manners, providing constructive feedback, and acknowledging those who embody this expectation.

To make the process even more engaging, classes and units will have the opportunity to work towards a collective goal. Rewards such as free time, movie afternoons, or other fun activities will serve as incentives for demonstrating consistent acts of acceptance.

We are enthusiastic about the potential of this initiative to further enrich our school community and strengthen the bonds between students, teachers, and staff. Together, we can create a school environment where manners thrive.

Religious Education

2023 Sacramental Dates

First Eucharist - Year 4 & Above

Sacrament of First Eucharist - Friday 20th to Sunday 22nd October 2023

Thank you to parents who attended Wednesday’s information session. Everything for this Sacrament has been outlined in the green folder. Please contact the school or email Ryan O’Callaghan (ryocallaghan@shmildura.catholic.edu.au) if you have any questions.

Reconciliation - Year 2 & Above

Parent Information Evening - Wednesday 11th October 2023 7pm SH Church

Sacrament of Reconciliation - Wednesday 22nd November 2023 7pm SH Church

Learning and Teaching News

SEL (Social Emotional Learning)

Some year levels this term are focusing on gratitude during SEL lessons.
Gratitude is the practice of being thankful for and focusing on what we have in our lives, not what we don’t. It has been shown to have numerous benefits for our mental and physical health, including:

Less likely to get sick
Higher levels of energy
Feel happier
More enthusiastic, focussed, disciplined and optimistic
Better quality sleep
Can have lower levels of anxiety/ depression

When we are feeling down or overwhelmed, it can be easy to get caught up in negative thoughts and emotions. By focusing on the things we are grateful for, however, we can shift our attention away from these negative thoughts and towards a more positive outlook.

DIBELS – Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills

Throughout Term 4, all students across the school will be assessed on their reading skills using DIBELS assessment. DIBELS is an evidence-based assessment that allows educators to accurately assess the skills needed for literacy acquisition. Educators can then understand the processes involved in learning to read, therefore designing and delivering evidence-based best practice methods for teaching reading and spelling. Once DIBELS testing is complete, the data will lead to high quality instruction utilising the evidence-based structured synthetic phonics program, Structured Literacy.

Prep Unit News

Welcome back to Term 4! We are looking forward to a very busy term ahead! This week has seen the Prep students return to school rested and refreshed and ready to continue with our learning. In class we have been some reminders for the beginning of term:

Please cover the Term 4 reading diary in clear contact.
2 small lunch boxes: 1 for recess snacks and the other for lunch… this is so that they fit into our fridge containers.
Students need to be at school on time each day (beginning of school is (8.45am). This allows them to settle into the morning routines and avoids disruption to learning. If you are arriving later than this time you need to come through the office and sign in.
Show and Tell needs to be small enough to fit into the small container (if you need to know how big these are please ask) and into school bags!
Monday = Enhanced Comprehension Book Pocket comes home and stays at home until Friday.
Monday - Friday = Students borrow and read each night a ‘Home Reading Book’. The book is returned to school each morning for the selection of a new book. If you don’t return your book your child/ren will not be able to borrow a book.
Monday - Friday = Reading Diary is to be at school each day. You will now need to record the ‘Home Reading Books’ in the diary each night.
Continue practising the letter sounds with your child at home.
Learn all the tricky words at the back of the reading diary.

Show and tell reminder for Term 4

Wahroonga and Cooinda are preparing for their turn at hosting an assembly. Wahroonga’s assembly will be on Friday 13th October and Cooinda Friday 27th October. Please remember to practise the students’ assembly words every night after they do their reading. Wahroonga students have brought home their words along with a note suggesting how to help children learn their words. The Wahroonga children have also been asked to practise the following dance: Please see Mrs Collins if you have any questions regarding our assembly.

For Mission Month, the Prep Unit is holding a ‘Guess the lollies in the Jar’. Students are able to purchase a guess for 50 cents. The competition will begin in Week 2 (Monday 9th October) and the winners will be announced on Tuesday 24th October. All proceeds will be going to the overseas Missions in Peru. Students can see each teacher before school to have their guess.

Preps will also be having a Missions “Silly Socks” day on Wednesday October 18th. On this day children are encouraged to wear a pair of weird and wacky socks to school, with their school uniform, for a gold coin donation. Please see the Mission table for events for whole school fundraisers!

We have had lots of fun already this week with new learning in Math and Integrated Studies. The children have been discovering more about teen numbers, started learning about materials and have made their own sets of binoculars which will come in handy over the following weeks! We look forward to another great term of learning!

This week we are saying goodbye to Bella Mosalski of Cooinda as her family moves away. Bella has been a valued member of her class and great friend to all the prep children. All the best to Bella and her family!

Prep Unit Team Contact Details

Unit Leader: Mrs Rebecca O'Callaghan
Cooinda: Mrs Rebecca O'Callaghan - bocallaghan@shmildura.catholic.edu.au
Wahroonga: Mrs Wendy Collins - wcollins@shmildura.catholic.edu.au

Junior Unit News

Welcome to the final term for 2023. We excitedly celebrate MISSION MONTH with numerous fundraising efforts happening over the next few weeks. Please ensure that all dates have been recorded to ensure our little people are dressed with ‘silly socks, crazy hair and change of clothes for the colour run. ’

On Friday 3rd November, all students will have the opportunity to participate in the Colour Fun Run. We ask that students have a white shirt, change of clothes and shoes, organised for this day.

For Mission Month, each class in the Junior Unit is holding a ‘Guess the Number of lollies in the Jar’. Students are able to purchase a guess for 50 cents. The competition will begin in Week 2 (Monday 9th October) and the winners will be announced on Tuesday 24th October. All proceeds will be going to the overseas Missions in Peru and in particular, Yanaoka where Fr Michael McKinnon is currently working.

The Junior Unit will also be having a Missions “Silly Socks” day on Wednesday October 18th. On this day children are encouraged to wear a pair of weird and wacky socks to school, with their school uniform, for a gold coin donation. Please see the Mission table for events for our whole school fundraisers!

Junior Unit Team Contact Details

Click on the teacher's name if you wish to email them.

Unit Leader: Mrs Katrina Groves
Karinya (Year 1): Mrs Katrina Groves (Monday-Thursday) & Mrs Christine Sherry (Friday)
Bundaleer (Year 1): Miss Hayley Moore
Barramunga (Year 2): Mrs Chris Carmichael
Nangare: (Year 2): Mrs Maree Irvin

Middle Unit News

Welcome back to Term 4! We have an exciting term planned with lots of fun activities on the calendar!

Mission Month

The Middle Unit will be holding our unit fundraiser on Friday 20th October (Week 3).

This will be a Pyjama Day where students are encouraged to wear their PJ’s or comfortable casual clothes to school for the day. Students will bring a gold coin donation for this. We will also be creating Coin Lines on the day so students are encouraged to bring in any extra coins (silver and gold) so we can see which class can create the longest line. All proceeds will be donated to our school’s Mission efforts supporting those in need in Peru.

Also don’t forget to bring in any items to donate to our hamper raffle and we are looking forward to our Crazy Hair Day next Thursday 12th of October (gold coin donation).

Year 4 Term 4 Homework

In Term 4 Year 4’s will have a slightly different expectation for homework. Students will have a wellbeing based task to complete, spelling words to segment and a reading log to fill in. This will be provided on a single sheet each week, handed out on a Monday and to be returned on a Friday. We would ask that all homework folders are returned to school.

Hats

All students are required to have their own hat at school. We are really discouraging the sharing of spare hats so please ensure your child has theirs packed.

Middle Unit Team Contact Details

Click on the teacher's name if you wish to email them.

Unit Leader: Miss Sophie Price
Amaroo (Year 3): Mrs Sarah Beckwith
Yongana (Year 3): Mrs Georgina Whitehouse
Mootwingee (Year 3): Mrs Jaimi Willersdorf
Minga (Year 4): Miss Sophie Price
Eumeralla (Year 4): Miss Rosie Lennox

Senior Unit News

What a great week the Year 6 students had in Melbourne last term for their very last school camp at SHPS.

Year 6 Graduation

As we prepare of Graduation, we are asking any student who did not begin their primary schooling at Sacred Heart please provide a Prep photo emailed to lthompson@shmildura.catholic.edu.au at your earliest convenience. Thank you to those who have emailed this is already.

Parents that would like to be a part of the Graduation Dinner committee, please email Loretta lthompson@shmildura.catholic.edu.au. A catch up will be organised in the coming weeks to begin organisation.

Senior Unit Team Contact Details

Click on the teacher's name if you wish to email them.

Unit Leader Year 5: Mrs. Natalee Johnson
Unit Leader Year 6: Mrs. Loretta Thompson
Illawarra (Year 5): Mrs. Cathryn Rowles
Kyema (Year 5): Mrs. Natalee Johnson
Myalla (Year 5): Mrs. Emma Kotsiakos (Monday-Thursday) & Mr. Corey Barbary (Friday)
Narooma (Year 6): Mrs. Jo Campbell
Dourim (Year 6): Mrs. Loretta Thompson
Illawarra (Year 6): Mrs. Amelia Pacher (Monday-Thursday) & Mr. Jacob Burford (Friday)

Library News

Welcome to Term 4!

We look forward to progressing in making better book choices, enabling and encouraging the students to keep enjoying their reading and learning journey.

A big thank you to all the students who made a conscious effort to return or renew their books, especially those in the year levels who borrowed extra for the term break.

For all library enquiries and borrowing/returning history, please contact me anytime.

Ms Zema at azema@shmildura.catholic.edu.au