Dear Families, welcome to Term 3 Week 5!

I wondered why somebody didn’t do something.

Then I realised, I am somebody. (unknown)

There’s a few things to get through this week, first off is Obstacool this Friday! Everyone is very excited, it should be a great day. Please remember to return sponsorship forms. If you need to collect money or are still needing to pay via Qkr, the form will be returned to you to finalise payments. All parents and carers are welcome throughout the day at any time. Teachers will notify their class of the allocated timeslot.

Revue – A really big thank you to Monica Campbell for organising a wonderful night. You are absolutely amazing for pulling together such an event. I don’t want to sound surprised, but it was really fun! This was my first Revue and without a doubt I’ll be back for more next year. It was relaxed, funny and entertaining. The night wouldn’t have been so wonderful without the technical talents of Steve Nano, so thank you Steve for all the behind the scenes tech stuff. Thank you also to Phil and your staff for coming along and joining in and being wonderful judges! Last thank you to all the performers, you were wonderful and so talented. For anyone a little hesitant about the Revue, please think about it for next year. There is no pressure to dress up or be involved in a skit. It’s a really great night to relax and chat with some wonderful school friends. It was really fun, honest!

Upcoming events/activities

Father’s Day Breakfast and Stall – a reminder we have this very special event next Friday. Each child is asked to bring in a small gift for the stall (worth about $7-$10). For a gold coin donation, children will be able to select a gift from the stall. Please send your gifts in as soon as possible so we can make sure there are enough gifts for all the children to purchase. Breakfast is in the Kitchen Garden from 7.30am. For catering purposes, please RSVP via sZapp. Cost is $5 per person or a maximum of $15 per family. Payments can be made via Qkr. A great way to thank all our wonderful Dads just for being them.

Working Bee – we have another working bee coming up in Week 8. We will soon be calling out for anyone who is able to spare some time after school to lend a hand. More details to follow in the coming weeks.

Tuckshop Red Day – there’s been lots of discussion about the Red Day held every Term. Red Day is where the Tuckshop offers lollies for sale, and is held on the last Thursday of the Term. We want to hear from parents/carers on whether you would like to see Red Day continue, or perhaps you have an idea for a different ‘special treat day’. Please complete the quick survey here. Your thoughts are much appreciated thank you. The survey will remain open until Friday 30 August.

Supporting businesses within our community – we have such a lovely community here, and there’s been talk about pulling together a business directory next year where families can advertise their businesses. The P&F love supporting local, so if your business can offer something to an upcoming event we would love to hear from you. The P&F do not expect parents who own businesses to provide free services and/or products. Sure, ‘mates rates’ are a bonus, not going to lie, but it is not an expectation. We would love to support you and advertise your business as well. When we spend money on a product or service, we would much rather give it to you!

Fete – next year is Fete Year! ‘Woo Hoo’ I hear you scream. At this stage we are still forming a Fete Committee. If you have the slightest interest in bonding with fellow parents while you organise all things fete related, please let me know.

As always, thanks for reading to the end. Until next time.

Cath

P&F President

RE NEWS

Confirmation Presentation Mass - 24th August 6pm

This weekend we will be celebrating our Parish School Mass for Term 3. During this Mass, candidates for the Sacrament of Confirmation in our Parish will be presented. We will join together as a community to pray for them all as they continue along their faith journey. All are invited to join us on this special day and supper following in the Parish Centre. Thank you to our 3/4 families who will be catering this term. 

Transfiguration Youth Group

A message from our Youth Minister, Sarah Pearson:

This weekend, on Sunday 25th of August we will be having our first youth ministry gathering for Term 3. It will be from 4:30pm – 5:30pm at the Transfiguration Parish centre in Curtin. The youth group is open to all students from Years 4 -6, and it is a chance for students to grow in personal faith with friends. I invite you all to come along, and hope to see you there.

Reconciliation Dates 2019

15th October 6pm - Parent Information Night

16th November 6pm - Reconciliation Presentation Mass

26th November - Reconciliation Retreat Day

28th November 7pm - Sacrament of Reconciliation

Gradparents Day - Save the Date!

On Friday the 13th of September, we will be celebrating Grandparents Day. Kindergarten will be presenting the Prayer Celebration with support from the school Choir and Mrs Fletcher. Save the date! You don't want to miss it!

Upcoming Dates

Sunday 24th August 6pm – Parish School Mass- presentation of candidates for Confirmation 

Sunday 25^th August 4:30-5:30pm - Transfiguration Youth Group (TYG)

Monday 26th August 2:20pm - Prayer Celebration - KG

Friday 31^st August – Father’s Day Breakfast, followed by a Prayer Celebration led by ELC

Tuesday 10^th September– Stole Night for Confirmation Candidates

Thursday 12^th September– Retreat Day for Confirmation Candidates

Friday 13th September 9:30am - Grandparents Day Prayer Celebration

Quality Improvement in the ELC

The ELC is committed to continual quality improvement. We value your opinions and input and ask you complete the following survey. click here

Lids 4 Kids & Bread Tags for Wheelchairs

The ELC is collecting milk bottle lids to be recycled to make prosthetic limbs for children using 3D imaging.

Bread Tags for Wheelchairs: The bread tags are repurposed into a range of products such as seedling trays, picture frames, door knobs, coat hangers and more. The money earned from selling the tags is used to buy wheelchairs for people who can’t afford them.

Collection jars are located in the ELC foyer and can be dropped in at any time.

Collection of lids and tags also saves this resource from going to landfill.

Stay and Play

Playgroup for pre-preschoolers and their families. Wednesday mornings from 9am-10.30am in the ELC Playground (weather permitting). Parents, grandparents, carers and children are all very welcome.

Last week the children and staff at Holy Trinity were lucky enough to have a drama performance entitled “Big Dreams” visit our school.

We had two performances, one for the infant school and one for the older students. Each show went for an hour and covered three books that have been shortlisted for Book Week 2019.

The performances included dancing, singing and much audience participation. The theme running through the performances was about being confident and facing fears – don’t let the ‘Dream Snatcher’ spoil your day.

Below are a few responses but together by 5/6 White…

BOOK WEEK PARADE
Don’t forget that the Book Week Parade is on next Wednesday @9.30am….(we encourage the children to bring in the book that they are dressing as and be able to tell us a bit about it)

How much is too much to tell our kids?

by Dimity Sharpe

In a world where transparency is the new black, does modern day parenting need to follow suit? Do our children need to know explicit details about relationship breakdowns, disability or themselves?

Culture of transparency
As a teacher I am increasingly being challenged by children who tell me they can’t engage in particular activities because of ailments or labels that they throw across the desk like a fidget spinner. Truly out of the mouths of babes comes very adult language and concepts like ‘diagnosis’, ‘ADHD’ and brain problems. There are also relationship observations such as “Dad’s too busy for us, my parents are separated”.

We seem to have created a culture where discussing these often complex issues is done openly and in great detail. Perhaps this is reflective of the greater transparency we see in the world today, with personal information being shared on social media and reality TV.

Our society has evolved to favour transparency in most aspects of life. It’s the new norm. But is it in the best interests of our children’s wellbeing that our parenting follows suit?

My gut says no. When a child says these things, I find my heart skipping a beat. I can see by the way kids casually deliver these terms and labels that they don’t – they simply can’t ­– understand what they are saying and what it means for their own identity.

The dangers of labelling
I’m sure that most adults can remember a time when they were given a particular label as child. You’re the “clever one”, you’re “not good at sport”, you’re “better at maths”. How many of those things stayed with us into adulthood and continue to change the way we perceive ourselves? Were those thoughts responsible for us not attempting things, a subconscious block to our learning and development?

This issue becomes even more difficult in relation to a disability or difficulty. When we tell a child about a disability of difficulty that they are experiencing, we are potentially giving them a story to follow. We are telling them ‘this is what you are’. Of course we don’t mean for this to have a negative effect, and we are for the most part trying to help the child. But disability is difficult. Often as adults we are left without concrete answers and we struggle to cope, so how then do we expect a child to be able to effectively deal with these issues?

Children’s brains are poor processors
The problem is, and this has been beautifully articulated by Michael Grose, that children are essentially poor processors. Their brains do not process information the same way as an adult brain does.

How many times has a child told you “everyone hates me” or “I did nothing on the weekend”? They see things in absolutes, black and white. Of course they did things on the weekend, and often with structure and encouragement targeted at the children’s developmental level you will find out that the events of the weekend were vast.

We don’t teach six year olds about calculus because their brains are not ready for that. They don’t have the mathematical building blocks to understand those higher order concepts. How then do we expect that children will be able to weed through the true facts and ramifications of delivering news like, “We are going to the doctor to see why your brain isn’t working properly”.

As adults we often find solace in more information, more details. But as adults we can sort this information: our brains and bodies can let go of things we know are not important. We can seek the support of other adults. We can google things. Children aren’t equipped the same way. They are told something and it becomes a fact. Real. It becomes a part of who they are.

By tailoring the narrative you give your children to better suit their developmental age and stage in life, by telling them just enough to get them through, you give their minds and bodies a better chance to process complex issues.

How much is enough?
The question then becomes how much is enough? When children ask where babies come from, we don’t tell them the intricate details of reproduction. We tell them just enough to satisfy their curiosity. “Mummy’s tummy” is enough for some young children. Then as they grow developmentally and their mental faculties expand, their questions evolve and so can our answers.

Schools are increasingly adopting the Growth Mindset philosophy, that is, that intellect is not finite, it’s a growth process. We work at things, we make mistakes and we progress.

I encourage you to try to tailor what you are telling your children to align with their developmental age and abilities. Support them and in time they may seek further answers. Be confident that you have told them enough and that you aren’t swamping them with too much information for them to accurately process!

(Source: Parentingideas.com.au)

Parents,

It's that time of the year again where we provide you with information regarding our BYOD program for 2020. This is particularly important for those parents who have children entering Year 3 next year.

Please click on the link below to indicate how you would like this information presented.

https://forms.gle/i6yKX24EwHtLRTFw9

7 ways to manage web-connected devices in the home

Click the link below for more information

https://www.esafety.gov.au/about-the-office/research-library/7-ways-infographic

Regards,

Rebecca Casey

ICT Coordinator

rebecca.casey@cg.catholic.edu.au

Our students arrived at Merici and were split into smaller groups. Each group donned lab coats and safety glasses, participating in different rotational activities. These activities focused on how living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment. The students dissected different plants and examined them more closely under microscopes. We then headed out to the school glass house and chicken coop to inquire into sustainability practices. It was a very exciting day!

Rebecca Casey

rebecca.casey@cg.catholic.edu.au

South Weston Cross Athletics

A large number of students represented our school proudly at the South Weston Athletics Carnival. Thank you to Elizabeth Busby who helped out at the carnival with officiating long jump. Congratulations to Charlotte S who placed 2nd for 11 year old girls and to Miriam S who place 1st in 70m and 100m events 8 year old girls. 

Catholic Schools Netball Carnival

Rosary is delighted to host the 2019 Catholic Primary Schools Netball Carnival.

Venue: Tuggeranong Netball Association Courts, Were Street Calwell ACT 2905

Date:     Saturday 19 October 2019

Registration Fees

A fee of $35 per competitor is required to enter the carnival. The registration fee includes a food voucher (a sandwich, a fruit drink, a piece of fruit and a bag of chips) per competitor. If your child has any dietary requirements, please ensure you let the school know on the registration form for catering purposes. Competitors will also receive information to assist them and their team in participating on the day.

In the event that the safety of participants is perceived as being placed at an unacceptable risk or the grounds are closed due to wet weather, the event will be cancelled. If this occurs, it is not practical to reschedule or refund team registration fees. 

Whilst there will be plenty of netball, there will also be other activities on the day to keep the young at heart entertained. For your convenience, there will also be food stalls selling a range of sweet and savoury items so remember to bring some cash along on the day. 

There will be several water refill stations around the grounds on the day, though we recommend each child brings along a drink bottle and plenty of water.  It is also advisable to bring a hat and sunscreen as it could be a warm spring day. 

Rosary Primary School community is looking forward to hosting this exciting event for the primary schools of the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn. We hope to see many of our school communities at this fun-filled day. 

Registrations close on Monday 26th August 2019.

Registration forms are available through via Schoolzine.

Dear Parents/carers,

Thank you so much again to all those who come into our school and volunteer their time.  I thought it may be timely to remind volunteers about requirements to hold a current WWVP (Working With Vulnerable People) card when in the school with students present. 

As you would all know, a requirement of volunteering at the school is that any volunteers must hold a current Working With Vulnerable People (WWVP) card, the details of which must be provided to the school (front office) to be held on file.  A recent audit of the current records held by the school show a large number of volunteers have either not provided the WWVP details to us, have expired cards, or no card at all.  Parents who do not hold a current WWVP card are unable to volunteer in the school. Fines of up to $7000 may be granted to those without a WWVP card if we were audited. i.e. we were visited and a spot check done as all volunteers must have the WWVP card on them. 

 Can I ask that all volunteers check that they:

1. have a current WWVP card;
2. have provided the front office with a copy (we require a copy of both the front and the back of the card);
3. ensure you have this card on you when you are at the school.

For volunteers there is no cost for applying for a card or for renewing an expired card.

If you do not hold a WWVP card, you can apply for one online using the below link.

https://form.act.gov.au/smartforms/servlet/SmartForm.html?formCode=1318

If your card has expired, you can renew it online via the below link:

https://rego.act.gov.au/regosoawicket/public/renewal/WwvpOnlineRenewalPage?0

Thank you so much for your help with this and thank you again for all you do to help us here at school, it is very much appreciated.

Philippa

Regretfully, this year is the final year for the ACT Catholic School Soccer and Netball Carnivals.

This decision was carefully considered and was made unanimously at the recent ACT Catholic Primary Principal’s Meeting.

Although these are great community days and have been going for many years, the huge workload on staff, increasing costs, complexity of indemnity and insurance and a lack of volunteers to assist has necessitated the decision to no longer host these events.

Schools are rostered on to coordinate, run and volunteer these events and are run, entirely, by the host school, irrespective of the school size. Parents volunteer on the day and staff work all weekend on these events. In the past few years, some executive staff have worked nearly fulltime in the lead-up to pull off these carnivals, along with many staff who commit their time to support the planning and preparation, all of which is impacting on the teaching and learning agenda of the host school. 

ACT Principals acknowledge that there may be some parents and students disappointed by this decision, however, we have agreed that the future of hosting and leading an event such as this is untenable.

This year, Holy Rosary Watson will host the final ACT Catholic School’s Netball Carnival.

ACT Primary Principals

TERM 3, WEEK 6 - WED 28 AUG

Team Leader: Kim/Anthony Hoffmeier, Steve Pashalidis, Stephen & Nicole Carberry, Tanya Elliott