Dear Parents and Friends of St Kevin’s,

Term 3 has started with a bang!

Staff engaged in Professional Development in week 1 to upskill their practice and knowledge in the art and science that is teaching. Aboriginal Education – Learning for Justice and Empowering through Education, along with planning and implementing strategies to promote student efficacy, competence and expertise, were the main concepts for staff to learn more about. As teachers we are just like any other profession and realise the need for and importance of being upskilled to always be at the forefront of our profession and its enormous responsibilities – the education of our children. This is not a role we take lightly.

The students are back into the swing of learning. Kindergarten students are to be congratulated on their work in learning to read. Progress assessments indicate great knowledge of taught single sounds and recognition of sight/tricky words such as the, is, was, they, were, you. Keep up the great work Kindergarten. On my walks around the classrooms, Year 5 could share their learning around writing and constructing “Information Reports”. The students could link this learning intention to the real world where many professions are required to write or submit reports with information and data and even analysis. Year 2 were busy with mastering their skills in addition and subtraction, while Year 6 were busy preparing and giving speeches. All classes are full of engaged learners, trying their best and always striving to improve.

Last week the Federal Government released the first “Well Being Budget”. We here at St Kevin’s have always been aware of the need to have a budget or framework that incorporates the well-being of our students. We have a Learning Support Teacher 3 days a week to assist with those students who require additional help at school. We have a school-based psychologist 1 day a week to assist students with their mental health. We have a Gifted Education teacher to meet the needs of our students who present as Gifted and require different approaches to what and how they learn in order to reach their full potential.

St Kevin's “Well Being Budget” aims to meet the individual needs of our students. Student wellbeing, academic competence, spiritual and faith formation, creativity and sporting expertise, together with the social and emotional development are all part of our day-to-day work here at St Kevin’s. Sometimes, however, this can be tricky as you can well imagine. At times the needs of one child can cause issues with another child. Children are learning to engage in a world that is at times for them very confronting or confusing. Children experience triggers that can make them anxious and nervous. Children are learning to understand and manage conflict and friendship issues. Children are learning about how to persist and work through tasks in class that are hard to master such as reading and mathematics. Children are learning that we are all different, and that we think and act differently and come from different families and that’s OK.

So sometimes all this learning can cause conflict. As the village raising these children, we must work together and trust each other so that when conflict arises, we acknowledge the different and diverse individual needs of all children to ensure that relationships and learning are not impacted, and that we continue to support the school vision statement. Not an easy task...but vital if our children are to grow and flourish into productive members of society.  

Lastly, I would like to share the following from The Catholic Bishops Conference statement released on May 11 this year:

The Voice

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have lived in this land for many thousands of years. Their custodianship, however, is not recognised in the Australian Constitution. This is an omission which needs to be rectified... To guide all Australians at this important time, we encourage everyone to read and discuss the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which we endorsed in 2021 and which the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia endorsed in 2022. In particular, we recommend that Catholic parishes, schools and agencies arrange opportunities for people to come together to read and discuss the Uluru Statement.  

The link to this document can be found here:

Have a great term.

Mary-Anne Jennings

Principal

Dates to remember for August:

August 2 DIO Athletics at Glendale. Year 4 helpers plus competitors.

August 4: National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day

August 8: Public speaking at school 12 noon in hall.

August 9: P&F meeting 6pm

August 10: Netball gala day.

August 11: Year 4 Sacramental Retreat Day at St Philip’s Kotara 9-1:30pm

August 15: Bishop Michael visiting Blackbutt South Parish. Confirmation Liturgy for Year 4 at St Philip’s Kotara.

August 17: Lakes Regional Public Speaking

August 18; Year 5 visiting St Paul's Booragul

August 23: Year 6 Orientation Day at St Paul’s Booragul

August 24: Book Week Parade and Book Fair

August 25; Meet and greet Kindergarten 2024 10 am school hall.

August 29: Father’s Day stall $10 gifts

Staff changes for Term 3.

Kindergarten: Mr Anton Van Zeeland

Acting Religious Education Coordinator: Mrs Amy Arthur

Year 1 Executive release teacher: Mrs Rebecca Malwhinney (Fridays)

Year 5 teacher: Ms Olivia Duggan

Library teacher: TBA

RFF (HSIE Teacher): Mrs Erica Keating (Tuesday and Wednesday)

Year 6 Executive release teacher: Mrs Emily Hogan (Thursday and Friday)

SUPERSTAN – THE MUSICAL

Our school musical will be held on Wednesday 13^th September. We will have a matinee performance commencing at 1pm.  Our evening performance will commence at 5:30pm – children need to be at school by 5pm.   Children need to have their costume at school by Monday week 7 (28^th August).  I sent home the list of cast member costumes last term.  Below is the list of costumes for the rest of the school.

Kindergarten – dress as a superhero

Year 1 & Year 2 – school sports’ shorts, white T-shirt, long /crew white socks & thongs, glasses

Year 3 – citizens:children dressed to go to a park

Year 4 – citizens: children dressed as shopkeepers , hospitality workers, tradies

Year 5 /6 - citizens: children dressed as professionals – doctors, lawyers, nurses, judges, teachers etc

We have been rehearsing daily.  Children need to be reading over their script nightly and making themselves aware of the lines that surround the entry and exits of their character from the stage.  Below is a list of props that we require ASAP. If you think you have something that could be used, can you please send it with your child, or, email Mrs Albury –courtney.albury@mn.catholic.edu.au to check whether someone has already provided this resource.

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday period with your child(ren).  See you all in Term 3

God Bless

Kim Hogan

Assistant Principal

LIST OF PROPERTIES

Costuming

The characters in SuperStan are straight from a comic book – so we need to achieve a fun and colourful set. Characters are grouped and need to look as other cast members in their group. If at all possible please liaise with other parents when costuming a * group character – as indicated below.

Faith Life, Catholic Identity and the Liturgical Season

Welcome back to Term 3. In the Liturgical Calendar, we celebrated the Feast of Sts Joachim & Anne, the Patron Saints of Grandparents on July 26. This coincided with our Grandparents’ Day Celebrations. What a fun morning it was honouring the “never say no” or “you can always have that at Grandma’s house” people in our lives! Thank you to all the Grandparents who came to our celebrations!

Our Liturgical Calendar still remains in Ordinary Time. Throughout the school & in places of worship, sacred spaces will be draped in green, the symbol of Ordinary Time.

We congratulate our upcoming candidates for Confirmation who were presented at the All Saints Blackbutt South Parish Commitment Mass on Saturday 22^nd July.

Learning about the importance of the Sacraments in Religious Education is located within learning sequences from Kindergarten to Year 6. We recognise that the celebration of the candidate’s journey of Reconciliation, Confirmation and First Eucharist marks a chapter of their faith journey beyond that of Baptism. Interestingly, many Eastern Orthodox Christian faiths celebrate these Faith Milestones far earlier than the Western Christian Traditions. It is a reminder of the ecumenical, evolving nature of Christian faith. Faith Formation of the child is supported and developed holistically in Catholic Education settings.

Please save the date for our Feast of Mary Mackillop Celebrations. We will be hosting the Sisters of St Joseph’s Lochinvar for community morning tea. Mass will be celebrated as a whole school on Thursday 10^th August at 9:30am. We invite you to join us for this celebration.

Mini Vinnies

We are seeking motivated students to join our school Mini Vinnies chapter.

Students interested are invited to attend a meeting with Mrs Arthur either Friday of Week 2 or Friday of Week 3 at 2^nd half Lunch. Information packs will be distributed to interested students and a Mini Vinnies Team will be established in Weeks 3-4.

Upcoming Liturgy Celebration

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day – Friday 4^th August at 2:15pm in the St Kevin’s School Hall

Amy Arthur

Acting Religious Education Coordinator

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day is our national day dedicated to celebrating our children. Children's Day is celebrated across the country each year on 4 August. 

Children's Day is a time when Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities and all Australians celebrate the strengths and culture of our children. It is an opportunity for us to show our support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, as well as learn about the crucial impact that culture, family and community play in the life of every Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child.

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Children's Day has been run annually since 1988 and is the initiative of SNAICC – National Voice for our Children.

Why is it important?

The majority of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are thriving and growing up strong in their cultures, with support from their families and communities.

However, a significant number of our children continue to face ongoing challenges stemming from colonisation and its effects. This includes discrimination, poverty, systemic removal, intergenerational trauma, dislocation from land and culture, and community disempowerment.

To achieve equality, we must approach these challenges through a holistic approach, considering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children’s wellbeing, safety and development.

© SNAICC – National Voice for our Children (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation) 2020 – 2023

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At school next week the children will learn about Children’s Day and have some fun activities to do in class including colouring a Children’s Day worksheet, creating a deadly book cover and a handprint and listening to a children’s Dreaming story.

Our NAIDOC Week theme was For Our Elders. Our Children’s Day theme is Little Voices, Loud Futures.

Just as we celebrate the contributions of our Indigenous Elders, we also celebrate Indigenous children who learn so much from the Elders in their lives and whose voices we will hear as they work together with all Australians for a better future.

We will also be celebrating the day with a Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day liturgy at 2.15pm in the hall. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Phil Taylor

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Teacher

Book Club

Orders close 7 August 2023, with free books available depending on the amount spent. 

Premier's Reading Challenge

Premier's Reading Challenge ends 18 August 2023 and all books must be recorded by midnight on the 18th. Parents can add books to their children's reading lists online. If you need help with entering the books, please send the reading lists to the library, but please do not wait until the last day!

The number of books required are as follows 

 Book Week

Book Week parade is Thursday 24 August 2023 so start thinking about costumes! This year's theme is Read, Grow, Inspire.

Thank you to those families who have either paid their school fees or are continuing to make regular payments. School fees are a critical aspect of the partnership between schools and families and being able to meet the educational needs of all students depends on the commitment to fee payments made when each student is enrolled.

School fee statements will be emailed again in August to all families. Please take the time to review your account and make any adjustments necessary to settle your account by the due date of 30th November 2023. To work out if your current repayment amounts are going to cover your fees, simply divide your balance according to the schedule below (commemencing this week):

* if you pay weekly, you will have 18 weely payments until the due date (divide your balance by 18)

* if you pay fortnightly, you will have 9 fortnightly payments until the due date (divide your balance by 9)

* if you pay monthly, you will have 5 monthly payments until the due date (divide your balance by 5)

I encourage families to contact the school if there is any reason they are unable to meet full fee obligations. Then arrangements can be made to meet with the Principal to establish a suitable fee agreement.

Kirrily Corbett

Senior School Officer

Canteen

The canteen will be open in Term 3 on Wednesdays and Fridays only. This is due to having insufficient volunteers to open more often. If you can spare some time to assist with volunteering, please complete the volunteer registration via the link below

Uniform Shop

The uniform shop is open on Friday's only between 8.30am - 9.30am. Orders can be placed online via the QKR app or you can pop in and see our volunteers during this time. Please note that any orders placed during the week, will only be sent home with children on Fridays. Please do not ask the school office to obtain orders earlier as they do not have access to QKR reports to verify payments. 

Safeguarding information for parents

The Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle has an absolute and abiding commitment to promote the safety, welfare and wellbeing of children. As a parent sending your child or children to a Diocesan school, you should be aware of your rights and obligations in protecting your child and all children in our schools.

St Kevin’s has implemented a Safeguarding Promoter to ensure that our families are provided with information about the school’s approach to safeguarding children and its compliance with the Church and State child safe Standards. Kirrily Corbett is currently in this position.

The Children and Young Person’s (Care and Protection) Act 1998

In NSW we can report certain information to the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ). If we are concerned for one or more of the children in the school, we can discuss our concerns with a teacher, Assistant Principal or Principal. We can report our concerns to the Child Protection Helpline (Ph. 132 111, 24 hrs/7 days) if we have reasonable grounds to suspect that a child or young person is at risk of significant harm and our concerns are current. Risk of significant harm may occur from a single act or omission or to a series of acts or omissions.

When determining how serious your concerns for a child may be, always consider whether that child has any particular risk factors, including:

• age, the younger the more dependent
• physical disabilities, developmental delays or medical conditions
• social isolation
• culturally diverse background
• diverse sexuality and gender
• nobody looking out for the child they could depend on.

It is better to be safe than sorry, so if uncertain, talk to a staff member at the school.

As parents we are entitled to contact the Office of Safeguarding directly about any concerns we have about the safety, welfare or wellbeing of a child or if we are concerned that the school isn’t addressing allegations of reportable conduct or abuse. (Ph. 4979 1390 Mon-Fri).