Dear Parents and Carers of St Kevin’s,

It is now the time of year that teachers are writing Semester 1 reports. These reports will be like the ones last year. Religion, Mathematics and English will all identify 2 areas of strength and 1 area for development for each student. These are individually identified according to data and analysis of student work by the teacher throughout Semester 1. These goals or areas for development are something you can discuss both with your child and their teacher, and how they can be best achieved in Semester 2.

In Years 1-6 all subjects are graded against a 5-point scale – limited, basic, sound, thorough and extensive, together with a commitment to learning graded scale of emerging, developing and high.  

Kindergarten reports are scaled At, Above or Below Grade level for all subjects. They also have a 3-point scale of commitment to learning of emerging, developing and high.

The general comment at the end of the report will speak to your child’s behaviour and social interactions at school, again identifying areas of strength and areas for development.

The reports we complete are a Diocesan-wide school report template completed by all primary schools, using the same protocols and guidelines. All reports must be made available to parents by the end of Term 2.  St Kevin’s reports will be available to parents on Monday July 1. Parent–teacher interviews will be conducted on Wednesday July 3 from 3:30-6:30pm in our school library. A parent booking sheet for these interviews will go live on Monday June 24.

Now for the long weekend! May it be a time of family fun and relaxing for all. Thank you to King Charles III for sharing his birthday with us! Travel safe.

Mary-Anne Jennings

Principal

Dates for your Calendar

Friday June 7: Pupil Free – no school for students.

June 14: Lakes Regional Spelling and Maths Bee at Kilaben Bay

July 1: Reports live to parents.

July 3: Parent /Teacher interviews 3:30-6:30pm

July 3: Lakes Regional Athletics Carnival Glendale

July 4: NAIDOC school celebrations

July 5: Diocesan Spelling / Maths Bee at Singleton

July 6-21 Winter school holidays

Uniforms

All students should now be wearing full winter uniforms. Please ensure you have the correct uniform for your child to wear. Wearing the correct school uniform promotes self-respect and pride in our school. Students will be also reminded to have top buttons fastened, ties worn correctly, and shirts tucked in.

Thank you to the parents who, if required, provided navy blue beanies and puffer jackets to wear on those very chilly mornings that seemed to pop up during the last few weeks. These are fine additions if required.

Our school uniform shop still has some items of winter uniform at good prices. LOWES should have supplies of anything we don’t have in stock. By the end of this year our school based uniform shop will no longer be operational.

Faith Life, Catholic Identity and the Liturgical Season

This week, students and staff celebrated the Feast of St Kevin as a school community. Backing onto Catholic Schools Week, we decided to keep these celebrations low key, while still honouring our Patron Saint. Year 3 led the Prayer Service with a delightful poem about St Kevin and the Blackbird.

Staff and Students alike participated in Endurance style activities to connect to the legend of St Kevin’s outstretched arm holding a blackbird’s nest for a long period of time. Check out some of these wall sits!

Moving into the Long Weekend, teachers and some support staff will travel to North Sydney to stay at Mary MacKillop Place where Formation Officer, Adam Frost, will facilitate a workshop to build efficacy in delivering Student Formation. This is a response to the previous TTFM survey which indicated a need to grow within this space.

Student formation is built upon developing a relationship with faith and being able to nourish one’s faith. It is a critical component of the Catholic Identity of both schools and the students, and forms deep connection and understanding of faith based education and the ways in which students receive the content they are learning.

St Kevin’s school population is 62.8% Catholic, and so with that comes a responsibility to a significant portion of our student cohort to develop efficacy in facilitating purposeful Faith Formation for students.

Students in Grades 3-6 will head to North Sydney in August to participate in Faith Formation experiences as a response to Staff Development.

Kaayi (Hello – Awabakal)

Yaama Ngindaay (Hello everyone - Gamilaraay)

Nungamanladi (Hello - Bardi)

Te bandola nginak (Hello, how are you? – Yorta Yorta)

Thank you for commemorating National Reconciliation Week with us at St Kevin’s. What the children learn and their participation in the prayer service during this important week stays with them and builds on their knowledge, awareness and understanding of our shared history and commitment to reconciliation. Today, tomorrow, next week, next year and beyond, as the theme says, Now More Than Ever.

As always, we turn to our God and seek His guidance when we have important things to do and relationships to heal and strengthen. Here is a beautiful prayer for National Reconciliation Week.

Prayer for Guidance

Creator of all things,
Both seen and unseen.
Speak to us in your great wisdom.
Make us strong as we seek
Your help and guidance.
Teach us to love all people
Regardless of race or colour or belief.

May we listen with great care
To the heartbeat of this land
And to its people
Who cared for it so well
And for so long.

May the peace these people and their land
Have always enjoyed
Continue to be strengthened and preserved
By all who wish to come and be part of
This country and its ‘Ancient Dreaming’.

(Used with the permission of Elizabeth Pike,1998).

Yaluu

Embracing the magic of reading

Reading is magic. Reading can be a well-thumbed novel enjoyed under comfy blanket or tucked away in a nook, a family read aloud (and children are never too old for a good read aloud!), a curious perusing of pages to explore the wonders of our world, or an engaging story shared with a class at school. A good story provokes discussion and connects us with other readers (in the school library at St Kevin’s, a not uncommon conversation starter is ‘Would you rather…spend a day at Hogsmeade Village or Diagon Alley?’

Reading is magic is also this year’s CBCA Book Week theme. The talented creators of this year’s shortlisted books all use their powers of language and illustration to engage young readers in a world of magic. There are many familiar names, too. Last year, author Katrina Germain enthralled us with Bev and Kev, a charming story of friendship, and this year has created a fun twist on the song ‘Five Little Ducks’ with illustrator Danny Snell (well-known illustrator of Jackie French’s gorgeous wombat books). Another early shortlisted favourite at St Kevin’s is Every Night at Midnight, by Peter Cheong (the illustrator of Anh Do’s Pow Pow Pig series). Every night at midnight, Felix turns into a wolf, and we join him on a beautifully illustrated night-time adventure. Felix wistfully embraces his uniqueness and solitude until he eventually finds friendship and understanding in unexpected places. St Kevin students will have many opportunities to engage with these and other CBCA shortlisted books, through weekly borrowing and in the lead up to Book Week in August.

In the words of Dr Seuss: you can find magic wherever you look. Sit back and relax, all you need is a book.

Thank you to all families who have been making regular weekly, monthly or fortnightly payments off their school fees. Fee Statements were emailed to families this week by the CSO. If you have not received yours, please check your inbox or junk mail for your Statement. Now is a good time to asses if your regular payments are enough to cover the balance of your account being paid in full by the due date of 30th November 2024. If you need assistance in this calculation, please contact me.

Those who have elected to pay the fees annually, you are reminded that you are required to settle you account in full by the end of the financial year 30 June 2024. This is at the end of this month so please commence making these payments. 

It is the commitment of the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle that no student will be denied a Catholic education due to financial hardship and that in consultation with the principal and with supporting documentary evidence, fee adjustments can be applied. Conditions of enrolment for all student’s state that any barriers to meeting the financial obligations of school fees be discussed with the principal to come to a suitable arrangement that is reasonable for all parties. The Diocese ensures that no student is refused enrolment because of an inability, as distinct from unwillingness to meet financial obligations.

Should you be experiencing genuine financial difficulty in meeting your fee obligations, please contact the school to arrange a meeting with Mrs Jennings or Mrs Hogan. Contact can be made via emailing admin@cardiff.catholic.edu.au or phoning the office on 4954 0036.

Oz Tag Kicks Off!

Hi I'm Penny, Cierra and I have started to teach the kindergartens, Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4 and Year 5 the basics of Oz Tag, along with the help of Matilda, Indiana, Elliana, Emerson and Zara. Cierra plays Oz Tag at a regional level, and I participated in teaching year 1 and year 2 how to play and show good sportsmanship whilst playing at the gala day last year.

Hi, I’m Cierra, Penny and I are very keen on not only teaching younger students how to play but also teaching them to have fun whilst playing. Penny and I thought it would be an amazing opportunity for our younger peers to give it a go and try something new. After the first 2 days of the program, we have seen many happy faces and all students participated to the best of their ability.

We hope to see more St Kevin’s students taking part in the next few weeks.

By Penny and Cierra

Please find attached the parish bulletin for this Sunday. 

Wishing you all a safe and warm weekend.

God bless!

Parish Team

ALL SAINTS PARISH BLACKBUTT SOUTH