God our Father,

You sent you Holy Spirit upon the apostles,

And through them and your successors

You give the Spirit to your people.

May Christ's work begun at Pentecost continue to grow in the hearts of all who believe.

We ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen

Dear Friends,

What a wonderful end to Term 3 we are having, especially with the Sacrament of Confirmation celebrated on Tuesday night in our Parish Church, with the Archbishop. Thank you to Emily Capper our REC, the 5 /6 teachers and to all parents and children involved in the preparation and celebration together. Such a wonderful and prayerful night for our Parish school community.

Thank you also to all those who were able to attend the Learning Journeys, Grandparents Day, Book Fair and Working Bee last week!!  The Learning Journeys gave our students opportunities to share and celebrate their learning and development of individual goals set throughout the year.  We were so blessed to have so many grandparents then join us for a very special prayer assembly hosted by every Kindergarten child. Grandparents then visited classrooms and shared a morning tea of scones out in the sunshine in our Kitchen Garden.  A huge thank you also to all the parents at the end of the day who came and gave of their time for a few hours at the working bee. During this time, we were able to finish landscaping the front of the school, clean up gardens and complete some work at the ELC.  We have planned to concrete a path down the side of the new sloped area out the front to meet up with the existing pathway as the weather becomes hotter.  This will be a much safer option for parents escorting their children to and from cars on Theodore street.

This week we acknolwedged the very generous money raised from the Obstacool event earlier this term. The students who raised significant amounts of money were treated to a special lunch with Cath Day and myself- lots of fun!!  

Obstacool

  

Learning Journeys and Grandparents Day

Working Bee

School Board

Thank you to parents who have nominated for our School Board for 2020.  We will be having a meeting in Week 10 to discuss these.  I would like to finish today by thanking Natalie Roche, who has made significant contributions on our School Board over the last two years.  We farewell Natalie, Brendan and her family (Charlotte Yr 2 and Sophie Yr 6) who will be leaving in the school holidays for a posting to Hanoi, Vietnam.  Thank you for all you have given to our community and we wish you every success and happiness on your new adventures! 

We now look forward next week to sharing all the learning that has been happening throughout the term in our Inspiring Connections Magazine! 

With every best wish for a holy and peace-filled week ahead with your beautiful families,

Philippa

Confirmation

On Tuesday, 17^th September, a number of our Year 6 students from our Parish celebrated their Confirmation. Congratulations to these students, it was a very moving celebration as these young people were confirmed in our faith.

Uniting us firmly with Christ, the Sacrament is a sending out; pouring into us the powers of the Holy Spirit to help us respond to God's call. We continue to keep these candidates in our prayers, that the strength of the Holy Spirit's Grace will pierce their hearts and work in meaningful ways throughout their life.

As Catholics the Sacrament of Confirmation is a time when we can all ask ourselves 'Are WE living our lives to the full, with the Grace of the Holy Spirit poured out to us at Confirmation?'

A special thank you to all the parents, staff, families and parish who supported the children through this Sacrament; and to Monsignor John Woods and Archbishop Christopher Prowse, who have guided the children through the past few weeks.

Confirmation Retreat Day

Leading up to the Sacrament, students in Year 6 at Holy Trinity, Saints Peter and Paul, Marist and other Parish schools came together for their retreat day in preperation for Confirmation. I would especially like to thank Marie Manning from St Clares College and the 4 girls who came and ran a session with the students.

Holy Trinity is Magic

This FRIDAY the 20^th of September is Holy Trinity is Magic! The talent show will be raising money for Feel The Magic. It will be a gold coin donation to watch and $5pp for those who will be performing an act.

It will start at 1:40pm SHARP! As we have several fabulous acts to get through. This is something not to be missed, parents and guest are welcome to attend. 

Reconciliation

Don't Forget! Enrolments close next Friday the 27th of September!

The Sacrament of Reconciliation will be celebrated in the Parish of the Transfiguration, North Woden on Thursday 28^th November 2019. Registration is now open for Reconciliation. Students in Year 3 and above who have been Baptised are invited to register.

To enrol your child, please access or download the Qkr! App.

• Search ‘North Woden Transfiguration’.
• You will then create a profile. One your profile is completed you can click into Parish (2^nd collection, Sacraments) and follow through to Reconciliation.

Grandparents and Special People Day in the ELC

We enjoyed two beautiful mornings with our very special visitors at the preschool this week.  Grandparents and special friends had the opportunity to visit the classrooms, share the children's learning, visit the chicks and share a morning tea together. Thanks to all those who came and made the morning so special. Photos below.

Hatching Chick program

The preschoolers have been engaged in the hatching chickens program over the last two weeks. This has linked with both our Religious Education unit on sensing God and learning about God's creation and our unit of inquiry on Understanding our Social Responsibility in the Natural World. We farewell the chicks and ducks tomorrow and welcome any families who would like to continue raising the chicks and/or ducks at their home, to collect by 12pm Friday.

Working Bee

A HUGE thank you to our families (and extended family) that assisted at the working bee on Friday. The sandpit is super clean and topped up, the playground is tidy, we have new vegie garden beds, some beautifully installed trellis and plants along our entrance. Photos below

Before School Care end of term breakfast

Next Tuesday 24 September, Natalie and Rachel invite the BSC children for a celebratory breakfast from 7.45-8.40. Healthy banana bread, assorted fruit and cereal will be on offer.

Woolworths Discovery Garden

If you shop at Woolworths and have no use for the Woolworths Discovery Garden seed kits that you receive when shopping, we'd be most appreciative of any spare you have. We will raise the seeds and plant them in our new garden beds. Please feel free to drop them into the ELC office.

Paper Donations

If your work place disposes of clean, single sided used paper (all sizes), please consider saving it and donating to the ELC for our drawing, writing and craft projects. 

School Holiday Program in the ELC

The ELC is now taking bookings for the school holiday program that will run from 30 September to 11 October. The program is open to children from the ELC, Kinder and their siblings in Year One, with priority given to current ELC families. Bookings can be made by clicking 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.

Helping your child avoid being cyberbullied

by Martine Oglethorpe

Cyberbullying of children and teenagers is one of the greatest fears facing parents today. The thought of their child being subjected to heinous words, threats to their physical safety, as well as their social and emotional wellbeing, is something no parent wants their child to experience.

Most of the bullying behaviours we now see are happening from behind a keyboard, playing out in social media feeds and gaming chat rooms. It is little wonder parents feel overwhelmed and out of their depth, especially when for most, online is an environment that is relatively unfamiliar.

So what can we do to help our kids avoid these types of behaviours, as well as give them the skills to deal with cyberbullying behaviours should they be exposed?

• Remind them of all of the things they have control over: While it may not feel like it, we have a lot of control over what happens online.  We can determine who we talk to, what we ignore, what we share, how we comment, who we follow, who we block or hide from our feeds. All of that, helps us determine who is allowed to play a role in our online experiences and ultimately what behaviours we accept on our feeds
• Give your child time away from the screens: Everyone needs a break from screens. We want to encourage regular times when a child doesn’t need to be tethered to their device. Building a wider community away from the screens helps a child or teen build their sense of self worth. Keeping devices away from the dinner table also gives them a break from being socially switched on and allows the to connect with family without a device. Removing devices at night helps their active brains to switch off, and prepare for sleep.
• Role play possible responses:  Discuss with your child whether whether they should respond to bullying or nasty online comments, If they do, then consider how they could respond. Consider the statements or types of people they ignore, block or report.
• Regularly check the privacy settings: Every app, game and social network has a settings button that enables you to determine how positive an experience your child can have on that platform and how much control they have.  Visit these settings regularly to look at the options available

While nothing is guaranteed particularly when it comes to the online world, we can certainly be taking steps to help our kids. We can give them skills, encourage positive behaviours and thinking that allow them to minimise their exposure to the bullying behaviours of others.

(Source: Parentingideas.com.au) 

BYOD info night

Tuesday 24th September

6:30pm in the school Library. Please RSVP via SZAPP.

Online safety basics

Advice for parents and carers

Help your children safely navigate their digital world and educate them to avoid harmful online experiences. Explore websites, games, apps and social media together and set some rules.

Your support and guidance can give your children the confidence to make sound decisions online — and ask for help when they need it.

Kids (5 to 12)

As children start to navigate the online world and interact with others more independently, they are more likely to be exposed to risks of bullying or unwanted contact, accidentally coming across inappropriate content or racking up bills through in-app purchases.

Your guidance can help them be aware of the risks and understand what is expected of them. And let them know you are always there to support them.

• Keep the computer or device in an area of your home that can be supervised. And check in regularly with your child to see what they are viewing.
• Stay engaged with their online activity. If they agree, consider setting up your own accounts with the sites they use most so you can see how they work and understand the risks.
• Explore the online world with them to help establish that this is not just a solitary activity. Play games with them. Do a creative project together.
• Think about social media readiness. Most social media sites require users to be at least 13 years of age before they can register, although some sites are created especially for children under 13. See are they old enough?
• Encourage respect and empathy. Teach them to avoid sharing or posting things that may upset others. See good habits start young.
• Start building resilience. Teach your child that there are ways they can deal with material that worries or frightens them. This includes immediately telling you or another trusted adult of any concerns or uncomfortable material. See good habits start young.

• Be clear about how much time they can spend online, the apps they can use, the websites they can visit and what they can share or post online.
• Refer to our advice about time online and online gaming if these are of concern.

• Ensure your own devices are protected by a password or pin, so your child cannot accidentally come across inappropriate content.
• If you are thinking about giving them their own tablet or smartphone, check out are they old enough?.
• Use parental control tools appropriate for the age and experience of your child. Be upfront about this and get your child on board. Let them know that these can be reviewed and changed as they get older and they continue to demonstrate responsible behaviour.
• Consider installing a ‘child-friendly’ search engine that will allow them to explore a limited number of sites. See taming the technology.
• Check out Raising Children Network’s healthy screen time and quality media choices: 6-11 years.

At Holy Trinity,  we understand that the NAPLAN results are but one sample of how a school’s students are performing and that good schooling is about a lot more than scores on a single test, held on a single day.  The NAPLAN assessments are designed to provide schools with ongoing feedback about the effectiveness of their teaching practices and the impact of the curriculum and, as such do provide some good longitudinal data on school wide development.  The individual student reports also give parents and teachers a ‘snapshot’ of how each child is performing compared to those around the country in each of the five areas tested.  It is important, however, for parents to remember though that the test examines a fairly narrow band of concepts and our school reports combined with parent teacher interviews provide a much richer picture of each students’ overall development.

Individual Student Reports and Additional Student Reports for all NAPLAN students were sent home on Tuesday 17th September. 

Please contact your child's class teacher if you wish to discuss this report. 

This week our team visited St Francis of Assissi in Calwell and presented their debate to three year 6 classes. Sophie R, Audrey H and Hannah B each spoke clearly and overcame nerves to deliver a number of very persuasive arguments. Our girls worked quickly and as a team to construct rebuttal, a skill that is much more difficult than it sounds! We could not have been more proud of the girls, in particular Audrey who we were sure would secure the "Best Speaker" award for her confident and seamless contribution. The highlight for us was the moment that the girls stood up and together walked over to congratulate their opponents.

Some feedback from the girls that may inspire other students to consider participating next year - 

"I felt that it was very nerve-racking and exciting in one. Although we didn't win, I am very proud of myself and our team. I feel it is a great skill to have and it was an amazing erperience. I hope I can continue debating in high school."

Sophie R

"Debating is scary and gives you a surge of adrenaline but in the end it's really fun. I recommend it to everyone."

Hannah B

"Debating is a very fun experience, that improves your public speaking, but also lets you go to other schools and meet new students. Overall it was amazing and exciting."

Audrey H

TERM 3, WEEK 10 - WED 25 SEP

Team Leader: Michael Kane, Doug Ridd, Anthony Friend, Christie Woods