Sacred Heart Primary School Mildura eNewsletter

Principal / Executive Leadership Team

Dear Parents, Carers, Staff, Students and Friends,

Welcome to the Term 3 Week 9 update. Only one week left until school holidays. Like you, I cannot believe how quickly the term has progressed.

2023 Prep Orientation Session - Buddy Playtime

2023 Preps will be visiting on Monday for the Buddy Playtime. Sessions will be held in the Library at the following times: 9am, 9.30am, 10am & 10:30am. During this session the Prep and their buddy will play in the Library, supported by one of the Prep teachers. Parents are invited to stay with their child or have a cup of tea in the staffroom during this session.

We still have four available spaces for 2023 Prep enrolments. If you know of anyone who is interested in enrolment at Sacred Heart please get them to contact the school.

SHPS Showcase

The Sacred Heart Showcase is being held on Tuesday from 5pm to 6.30pm. We look forward to this event as we haven’t held it for a few years. It is a great opportunity to showcase to families the learning that happens in Specialist lessons at Sacred Heart. Each class has produced an art piece that will be auctioned throughout the event. This will be a ‘Silent Auction’ where parents can write down their bid. Money raised will go towards next term’s Mission Month fundraising.

Evelyn Smith Writing Awards

The Evelyn Smith Creative Writing Awards began in 1995 with the support of past teachers Mrs Evelyn Smith and Mrs Rosemarie Zalec. Evelyn Smith had a great interest in developing the writing skills of students at Sacred Heart Primary School and along with Mrs Zalec felt that these awards would encourage and develop writing in our school. After a hiatus due to Covid, we are pleased to announce the winners for the 2022 Evelyn Smith Creative Writing Awards. At assembly today, both Mrs Smith and Mrs Zalec were on hand to present the awards. One student from each year level has been awarded a Certificate of Excellence, along with a voucher to Collins Bookstore. Certificates of Merit have also been presented to a number of students. The high quality of writing this year can be seen at the Showcase on Tuesday night. Well done to all students and a special congratulations to the winners listed below!

Prep: Certificate of Excellence - Sienna Dean. Certificates of Merit - Sevanna Panuccio & Stella Seaton-Stewart.
Year One: Certificate of Excellence - Gracie Durie. Certificates of Merit - Antony Sajeevan, Emily Cirillo & Austin Fox.
Year Two: Certificate of Excellence - Olivia Fraser. Certificates of Merit - Ted Cleary, Harlow Landkroon & Scarlett Coleman.
Year Three: Certificate of Excellence - Margot Miller. Certificates of Merit - Agnes Sajeevan & Kasey Waters.
Year Four: Certificate of Excellence - Johnny Guthrie. Certificates of Merit - Victoria Cirigliano & McKenna Farley.
Year Five: Certificate of Excellence - Freya McClaer. Certificates of Merit - Violet Manfield, Baxter McCoy & Nicholas Cavallo.
Year Six: Certificate of Excellence - Lachlan Farley. Certificates of Merit - Kate Ryan & Cameron Beggs.

AFL Day

Our last day of Term Three is our AFL Day. Students are encouraged to wear football colours. Football clinics will be run by local AFL Game Development officers throughout the day.

End of Term Arrangements

Please note that students finish at the earlier time of 2.10pm on Friday. Students will eat lunch at 12:30pm and Assembly will commence at 1:30pm.

Assembly - Karinya

Thank you to Waminda for hosting today's Assembly. Karinya will host our last Assembly for Term Three, which will be held in the Stadium at 1.30pm on Friday.

Parish Mass - Bundaleer

We have Bundaleer participating in the Parish Mass at the church this Thursday 15th September. This celebration will begin at 9.30am and parents are welcome to attend.

Finalising school numbers

It is at this time of year that we begin to forecast how many students will be attending our school in 2023. These forecasts are very important as it tells us how many classes will be required for 2023. This of course impacts on how many teachers we need and how many classrooms we need. Subsequently, I ask that all parents advise me if children will be leaving Sacred Heart at the end of this year. Thank you.

P&F Social Event

On the evening of Friday 7th October from 6:30pm-11:30pm we are planning to hold a parent social evening at the Mildura Rowing Club with supper included. The cost of the event is $25 per person and should be a great way for families to meet other people and to have some fun together. Nibbles will be provided by Solunar and The Italian and drinks will be at bar prices. Our organising committee met yesterday to start planning for the event. We are seeking more volunteers so please let the school know if you can assist. Tickets are limited to 120 people and are going on sale from today.

Administration News

A reminder that all school fees are now due and payable prior to the end of this Term (next week). Unless special arrangements have been made, all other unpaid accounts will be followed up by myself with a phone call. Unpaid fees are of a concern to our school as we rely on these monies to cater for the student’s programs and needs. We encourage families to make contact with the school if they will have difficulty with paying their fees.

RU OK Breakfast

We had a very successful RUOK Breakfast on Thursday. It was great to see families gathering at school to enjoy catching up and enjoying a bacon & egg roll. A very big thank you to David and Cassandra Circosta from Banjo’s for donating the rolls, to Frank and Montanna Simonetta and Knights of the Southern Cross for cooking the eggs and bacon and to the staff and parents who volunteered to set up and pack up. Well done everyone!

Congratulations to our Year One students who had their stayback yesterday and participated in offsite activities and had dinner at school. Thank you to Mrs Groves, Mrs Pacher, Miss Huddleston, Mrs Scott and Mrs Pollifrone who supervised students during the stayback and to the Prep and Year Two teachers for helping with preparation of tea and activities.

School Sports Victoria (SSV) - District Summer Sports

Congratulations to our Basketball, Softball, Volleyball & Hot Shots Tennis teams who competed at the District level this week. Many teams have qualified for the Division Finals. Thank you to the teams for displaying good sportsmanship against their opponents and to the staff who coached the students.

Sports Star Academy - Expression of Interest

Who is Sport Star Academy?

We provide Skill based Sport Programs to children teaching the Skills of Sport in a Professional environment
Our Coaches are Qualified, Vaccinated and WWC
We are passionate about getting Kids Active, Promoting Physical Literacy and Developing a love of movement
We work with over 250 Schools across Australia and in the last 12 months alone over 500,00 children “Got Active” with a SSA Program
Our Purpose is to Create a Movement of Change for Tomorrow’s Grassroots Leaders

Former AFL star and Assistant Coach Ben McGlynn and his team of coaches are offering football sessions to be held at Sacred Heart Primary School from Term Four onwards and into 2023. Please fill in the expression of interest form below if you would be interested in these sessions for boys & girls of any age. https://forms.gle/fNtfo689krbYQqed8

Have a great weekend everyone and God Bless!

Mark Gibson

COVID Update

COVID is still out there in our community and we can expect that this trend will continue for some time. We would encourage families to continue with twice weekly testing at home to help prevent the spread. RAT tests can be collected at any time from the front office. We will still send these home at times throughout the term.

The COVID Schools Operations Guide has been updated to reflect that:

Visitors and staff are no longer required to meet COVID-19 vaccination requirements to attend school.
Staff and students must inform the school if they have tested positive to COVID-19 and isolate for 7 days.
If a student or staff member tests positive through a RAT test, but they don’t have symptoms or have not been in contact with anyone who has COVID-19 it is recommended getting a PCR test within 48 hours and staying isolated at all times until they receive their result. If the subsequent PCR test is negative, you can return to school.
Household contacts are required to test negative using a rapid antigen test on at least 5 out of 7 days if they are attending or working at a school onsite.
Household contacts are required to inform the school that they are attending during the 7 day period.
Social distancing, good hand hygiene, air purifiers and use of outdoor spaces for teaching are still recommended.
Students and staff refrain from returning to school if they remain symptomatic.
Parents/carers who are positive to COVID are able to leave isolation if other arrangements cannot be made to transport someone they live with to and/or from school.
After having COVID you do not need to be tested if you have been re-exposed within 12 weeks of ending self-isolation.
It is recommended that face masks are worn in indoor settings (except for close contacts, who must wear a mask indoors unless an exception applies).
Everyone including students aged 8 years and above must wear a face mask when travelling on public transport, taxis or rideshare vehicles.

Religious Education

Sacrament of First Eucharist

Thank you to parents who attended Wednesday night’s Information session. Information packs have been sent home with any families who weren’t able to make it. Please read carefully all of the requirements for this Sacrament.

The celebration of this Sacrament will be held at the following masses:

Friday 21st October 6pm Sacred Heart Church Mildura

Saturday 22nd October 9.30am Sacred Heart Church Mildura

6pm Sacred Heart Church Mildura

Sunday 23rd October 8.30am St Francis Xavier Church Irymple

9am Sacred Heart Church Mildura

10am St Joseph’s Red Cliffs

10.30am Our Lady’s Merbein

5pm Sacred Heart Church Mildura

Program Dates:

Week One – I am Welcome Wednesday 7th - Sunday 11th September

Week Two – My Family Celebrates Monday 12th – Sunday 18th September

Week Three – We Share Meals Monday 19th – Sunday 25th September

Week Four – The Parish Family Listens Monday 26th – Sunday 2nd October

Week Five – Parish Family Celebrates Monday 3rd – Sunday 9th October

Week Six – Parish Family Sends Me Out Monday 10th – Sunday 16th October

Please note that the worksheets are due on the following dates:

Week One and Two Sunday 18th September

Week Three and Four Sunday 2nd October

Week Five and Six Sunday 16th October

All booklets need to be completed and handed into the office or in the church foyer by the due dates, failure to complete will mean the candidate is unable to celebrate the sacrament.

Candidate Passport:

Each candidate will be given a passport and they are asked to attend three masses over the preparation time. The candidate is asked to present this to the priest at the end of mass.

The parish has the following masses:

Tuesday 9.30am Red Cliffs 6pm Mildura

Wednesday 9.30am Mildura

Thursday 9.30am Mildura and Merbein 5.30pm Red Cliffs

Friday 6pm Mildura

Saturday 9.30am Mildura 6pm Mildura

Sunday 8.30am Irymple 9am Mildura 10am Red Cliffs

10.30am Merbein 5pm Mildura

2022 Sacramental Program Dates

Sacrament of First Communion (Eucharist) 2022 Year 4 students

Celebration of Sacrament Friday 21st Saturday 22nd Sunday 23rd October

Sacrament of Penance (Reconciliation) 2022 Year 2 students

Parents Information Night Wednesday 12th October 7pm Sacred Heart Church

Celebration of the Sacrament Wednesday 23rd November 7pm Sacred Heart Church

Learning Diversity News

Maggie Dent and Mona Delahooke, Ph.D. are offering a wonderful class on Challenging Behaviour, with a focus on toddlers to tweens. September 20th at 11am. You can check it out here!

Common Sense Parenting

In this very special masterclass for parents and teachers, Maggie Dent is joined by internationally renowned clinical psychologist and author Dr Mona Delahooke for a paradigm-shifting guide to understanding and responding to ‘difficult’ behaviours.

Click on the Common Sense Parenting link above to register. The masterclass is $35. Once you sign up you will receive access to the participant area where you'll find the special link to join the webinar via Zoom and where you can later access the replay and handout.

Learning and Teaching News

NAPLAN Student Reports

NAPLAN Student Reports will be posted out to families on Friday. Please ensure you carefully read the cover letter and information about how to read the report. Should you have further questions about how to understand the report access the Frequently Asked Questions Brochure for parents. These reports provide a small snapshot of your child- your child’s teacher can provide further information about their success and challenges in learning using a range of in-class assessments if you have any questions or concerns.

Sacred Heart Showcase

The Showcase is next Tuesday September 13th from 5:00pm-6:30pm. All funds raised from the sale of sausages, drinks and the auction of class art pieces will go towards our Mission Fundraising. We hope to see many of you there!

Prep Unit News

This week in Prep we have investigated 2D and 3D shapes. We have learnt that 2D shapes have sides and corners and 3D shapes have faces, edges and vertices. Talking with your child at home about this new learning or going on 2D and 3D shape hunts around the home will extend their knowledge. We have moved into reading Bible stories from the New Testament. These stories are about Jesus. Ask your child to retell you a story they have heard from the New Testament

Some reminders:

Sounds to continue practising with your child/ren at home: s, a, t, p, i, n, m, r, f, o, c, d, h, e, n, g, l, k, u, b, j, w, ck, ll, ff, ss, sh, ee, qu, z, ch, y, v, x.
Learn all the tricky words at the back of the reading diary.
Library day is Monday however due to change with Mrs Collins timetable ALL prep students need to return their library books each FRIDAY.
Show and tell reminder for this coming Thursday = even week.

At our SHPS Showcase on Tuesday 13th September both Prep classes will be performing their Junior Unit Social dance up on the stage… we are pretty excited and have been back to practising!

Prep Unit Team Contact Details

Unit Leader: Mrs Rebecca O'Callaghan
Cooinda (Year Prep): Mrs Rebecca O'Callaghan
Wahroonga (Year Prep): Miss Courtney Sheridan

Junior Unit News

Happy Friday!

R U OK? Day,The Year One Stayback and Waminda’s Assembly were all highlights of the week. The students enjoyed breakfast with their family and friends as well as showing family members their classroom and work from the year.

Our Year One’s swam, ate, created, designed, played, explored and cheered on Thursday and then were a little puffed on Friday Morning! We thank all staff and parents for your support in making this Camp experience super memorable.

Congratulations Waminda on your superb AFL Assembly. The excitement was high and all children were prepared with their reading so therefore should be very proud of their efforts. We enthusiastically await next week's Karinya Assembly where the winners of this term's Principals awards will be announced.

On Monday next week, we have Tracy from Responsible Pet Education bringing in her dogs to share her knowledge of Pet Safety with our students. https://www.pettown.vic.gov.au/
Tuesday our SHPS Art Show will showcase students learning from specialist subjects as well as provide you with a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity to bid on class art pieces.

Students will be dismissed at 2:30 on Friday next week

Isolation Portal

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 Amilea Pacher (Friday)
Bundaleer (Year 1): Mrs Maree Irvin (Tuesday-Friday) & Mrs Amilea Pacher (Monday)
Barramunga (Year 2): Miss Georgina Hewitt
Waminda (Year 2): Mrs Chris Carmichael
Kyema (Year 2): Mrs Kim Taylor

Middle Unit News

End of Term Celebratory Shared Lunch - NEXT WEEK!

To celebrate our learning in Religion this term about Hospitality, the Middle Unit is going to hold a shared lunch on Thursday 15th of September (Week 10 - Next Week). We are asking the following Year levels to bring the following type of food to share, on a plastic or paper plate so it can be thrown out afterwards.

Year 3’s to bring a plate of sweet food.
Year 4’s to bring a plate of savoury food.

Please do not send any food that contains any nuts.

Year 3 Isolation Portal

Year 4 Isolation Portal

Middle Unit Team Contact Details

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

Unit Leader: Miss Sophie Price
Minga (Year 3): Mrs Cathryn Rowles
Eumeralla (Year 3): Mrs Sarah Beckwith
Amaroo (Year 4): Mrs Natalee Johnson
Yongana (Year 4): Mr Corey Barbary
Mootwingee (Year 4): Miss Sophie Price

Senior Unit News

No news this week.

Year 5 Isolation Portal

Year 6 Isolation Portal

Senior Unit Team Contact Details

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

Unit Leader: Mrs Jo Campbell
Myalla (Year 5): Mrs Danielle Gunn (Monday-Wednesday) & Mrs Emma Kotsiakos (Wednesday-Friday)
Illawarra (Year 5): Miss Belinda Zappia
Narooma (Year 6): Mrs Jo Campbell
Dourim (Year 6): Mrs Xana Priestley

Library

This week during Library time, the Prep students began to work on making their own book using the Book Creator app on their iPads. The Junior Unit students have been learning about the non-fiction section of the library; the Middle Unit students have begun a research task on a topic of their choice and the Senior Unit students have been working hard to finish their Passion Projects. These Projects will be on display at the Showcase next week where parents and family can find out about the different Passions our Senior Unit students have.

All students in Years 3-6 will need their devices during library days over the next few weeks. Please remind students in Year 4-6 to charge their devices and bring them to school.

Timetable:

Monday - Illawarra, Eumeralla, Preps, Waminda

Tuesday - Amaroo, Minga, Karinya

Wednesday - Bundaleer, Barramunga, Year 6, Mootwingee

Thursday - Yongana, Kyema, Myalla