Newsletter Term 1 Week 11 (Wednesday 10th April 2024)

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CATHOLIC EDUCATION WEEK: 

This week is Catholic Education Week. We held our celebrations today to acknowledge the students, staff, parish and families that makes St Brigid’s such a wonderful place of Catholic Education. We joined together for a liturgy followed by morning tea and open classrooms. Thank you to all of our visitors who came along and made this morning a wonderful celebration. The readers, dancers and musicians also added so much to our liturgy- thank you. 

Celebrating Catholic Education Week

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Our Gospel Reflection

This Sunday is the third Sunday of Easter and we continue to hear Gospel accounts of Jesus’ appearances to his disciples following his Resurrection. Sunday’s reading, taken from the Gospel of Luke, follows immediately after the report of Jesus' appearance to his disciples on the road to Emmaus. This is the event being recounted by the disciples in the opening verse of Sunday’s Gospel. Many of Jesus' time with his disciples is recorded when sharing a meal with each other.

Family life is strengthened through storytelling and shared meal times. In a similar way, Christian life is sustained by God’s word in Scripture and by Christ’s presence in the Eucharist. We are especially sustained in our faith through our weekly celebration of Mass. Sunday’s Gospel reading reminds us that the Scripture and the Eucharist are given to us so that our acts of bearing witness to Christ might be strengthened.

As you gather as a family, ask each person to share their favorite story about your family. Talk about the importance of these memories about your family life and the importance of the meals you have shared together as a family. Recall that these stories and meals strengthen the love you share. In a similar way, our Christian life is strengthened by sharing God’s Word and the Eucharist at Mass. Read together Sunday’s Gospel, Luke 24:35-48. Discuss the mission that Jesus gave to his disciples after their shared meal. The Eucharist also sends us to be Christ’s witnesses in the world today. Conclude by praying together that we will be strengthened by God’s word and by Jesus’ presence in the Eucharist to be witnesses to Christ. 

From Our Principal

This week, our final week of Term 1, our school joins with 45 other schools across the Lismore Diocese and hundreds of Catholic Schools across Australia, to celebrate Catholic Education Week.

This year's theme is "Innovation and Faith". The transforming power of innovation and faith working in unison to ensure our students experience the fullness of life (John 10:10).

For many of the great innovators throughout history, their faith motivated them to explore and understand the wonders of the universe. Our Catholic schools walk alongside clergy, parishioners and families to prepare and nurture our future innovators and faith leaders on their journey. This week, particularly, we give thanks to those religious men and women who gave their lives in the vocation of Catholic education to ensure our Catholic schools thrive. I would also like to acknowledge the parishioners and Parish Priests of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish over the 110 years our has been operating, whose generosity has allowed our school to flourish in the way it has. We are so very fortunate to stand on the shoulders of the giants who were here before us.

Last Monday our School Captains, Belle and Parker joined with the other School Leaders of the Richmond Region to celebrate the beginning of Catholic Schools Week with a mass at St John's College, Woodlawn celebrated by Fr Bing. It was great to see so many of our young leaders come together in thanks for the great contribution that Catholic Education has had on so many lives. 

Rewards Day

Tomorrow, Thursday 11th will be our end of term Rewards Day and all students are reminded to be in sports uniform for our fun way to end the term. Our Rewards Day activities are free and will take place at school, therefore permission notes were not required.

Cross Country

Our Cross Country Version 3 will be held on Tuesday 30th April at the Kyogle High School Oval.  This is the second day back in Term 2. All students will walk down to the oval following the marking of rolls here at school. The format will be the same as was published in last week's newsletter.

ANZAC Day March

Looking forward to having a nother representation of students and staff represent St Brigid's at the Kyogle RSL Sub Branch ANZAC March on Thursday 25th April. All details are further below in this newsletter.

Term 2 Calendar

A paper copy of our Term 2 Calendar will be given to every student today. Please keep it in a safe spot and refer to it and add special dates and times as we move through the second term.

Parent Assembly Conference

All parents are warmly invited to attend the upcoming Parent Assembly Conference to be held on 15th June at Opal Cove where we'll delve into the theme "Your Child Our Schools: Nurturing Hearts and Minds." Discover valuable insights and strategies to support your child's holistic development. Register soon as places fill quickly. Please see the attached flyer

Year 6 Sydney and Canberra Excursion

The Year 6 Sydney and Canberra Excursion is booked for Monday 14th October to Friday 18th October (Week 1 of Term 4). A parent information session has been set for Wednesday 1st of May at 6pm in the Year 6 classroom. It would be great if at least one representative from each family is in attendance.

Parent Contact Details

At all times, we ask that parents keep your contact details up to date.  Phone numbers and email addresses can be amended, by you, through the Compass portal.  Please advise the office, in writing/email or a phone call, of any other change in details.

We wish all families a safe and restful Term 1 holiday break and we look forward to welcoming all students and staff back on Monday April 29.

Richmond Region Catholic Education Mass

Assistant Principal News - Teaching & Learning

Holiday Reading

Reading at home is important. Research shows that the effects of reading and a general culture of reading is good for personal development, intellectual growth, literacy and even numeracy development.

There are lots of opportunities to read during the school holidays.   Here are some basic tips to support the habit of reading during the holidays:

• Continue with a daily reading routine with short sessions of around 10 minutes per day. The child doesn’t always need to be reading during this time but it could be you reading to them.
• Spend some time with your child revising their letters, sounding out difficult words, chunking the text, making predictions and inferring meaning from the text. Discuss the illustrations or make a new story from the illustrations.
• Engage young children by giving them the agency to choose books for themselves. Take them to the library or a bookshop and let them find the books/ magazines that interest them.
• Find stories that relate to your child’s interests or, if you’re travelling somewhere, find stories or travel brochures about the destination or activities you’ll be doing.

One of the very best things that parents can do is to show their kids how much pleasure they get from reading. So grab yourself a book, settle down to read and enjoy the holidays!

Vanessa Walters                                                                                                                                                                                    Assistant Principal Teaching and Learning

Assistant Principal News- Mission

CONFIRMATION: 

Year Three students will be making the Sacrament of Confirmation on the 22nd of May at 6.00 pm in the Church. There will be an information night for parents Monday, May 6th at 5.30 pm for parents to attend. If your child will be making the sacrament and you are unable to attend the information night please email me at kelli.bugden@lism.catholic.edu.au. 

CATHOLIC EDUCATION WEEK MASS:

Belle and Parker represented our school at St Johns College Woodlawn on Monday for a Catholic Education Week Mass. School leaders from schools across the Richmond region joined together to mark the start of Catholic Education Week in the Lismore Diocese. Bella and Parker are to be congratulated on the way in which they represented our school. 

Kelli-Ann Shedden                                                                                                                                                                     Assistant Principal, Mission. 

ANZAC Day 2024

The members of the Kyogle RSL sub-branch have invited all staff and students to join them in the commemoration of ANZAC Day 2024. All students are encouraged to represent our school by marching in the parade, wearing full school uniform on Tuesday 25th April. Students are also encouraged to wear the medals of family members who served in the Defence Forces or carry a picture.  

ANZAC Day allows us to remember and reflect on the service and sacrifice of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) landing on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey on 25 April 1915, during World War I. It also allows us to recognise and acknowledge the sacrifices of servicemen and servicewomen who have participated and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations. 

ANZAC DAY CEREMONY PROGRAM

5.30am  Dawn Service at the Cenotaph

9.15am   Assemble for March, Geneva Street (opp Exchange Hotel)

9.30am  March commences through town

10am      Service and Wreath laying at Cenotaph

From the Wellbeing Team

Happy holidays and stay safe

Hooray for holidays! The Wellbeing Team wishes all St Brigid’s students and families a wonderful Autumn school holiday!

Without wanting to dampen the end-of-term excitement, it’s also important to be reminded that holidays can also be a time of increased risk of injury.

To help keep you and your loved ones safe during the next two weeks, the NSW Police Legacy Child Safety Handbook is packed with useful information and resources. Follow this link to the Child Safety Hub to access a copy of the handbook.

The Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne also has some helpful information on how to safely get the most out of your holidays here.

We look forward to seeing everyone’s well-rested faces back at school in Term 2. 

 Wellbeing Team

School Community Forum Fundraiser

Our  Fundraising Team is seeking support for the catering at the Kyogle Garden Club Flower and Foliage Show to be held on Friday 19th and Saturday 20th of April. This is the middle weekend of the School Holidays.

This  fundraiser promises to benefit every child in our school. But to make it a success, we need your help! Please consider volunteering your time or donating good by clicking in this link.

Many thanks to all who have already indicated their support for this fundraiser.

If you have offered to donate cooking supplies these can be left at the office tomorrow.

Those who indicated that you are able to drop of cakes and/or slices and would like some cooking suplies please collect from the school office. 

Please find attached the updated roster that has been added to each day of this week. We will continue to send out updated lists.

Canteen Helpers Needed

We're reaching out to ask for your support with our school canteen operations. Your assistance, whether for one day in the term or more, makes a significant impact on our school community. Join us on Mondays and become an essential part of our students' school experience. Your involvement not only supports our canteen but also strengthens our sense of community. Please sign up today and help us make Mondays a day to remember! Link to sign up 

Thank you for your ongoing support.

Reminder

The last day of term, Friday 12th April will be a pupil free day. Staff will be working with Jessica Rixon on learning KeyNote Sign to further support our students at St. Brigid’s. We appreciate your support by keeping your children home from school on this day.

Sports News

We will be holding our Cross Country Carnival on Tuesday 30th April.

The program for the day is as follows-

Date: Friday 5th April

Venue: Kyogle High School Oval (whole school)

Uniform: Students will need to wear their sports uniform or coloured house shirt to school, please also send any bike pants or spikes that students require to compete in.        

Time: The carnival will commence at 9:45 am. The students must then return to school for a normal school day.

Transport: Students are to arrive at school at the regular time (8:30am – 8:50am). Attendance will be checked and students will then walk down to the Kyogle High School Oval with their classroom teacher. At the conclusion of the event all students will walk back to school with their classroom teacher.

Parent Helpers:  Would be greatly appreciated at cross country at the High School Oval.

We welcome all parents/carers to cheer on the students on the day.

Fruit/Recess: Students will be required to bring their lunch to school as normal.  Students will take their fruit/recess down with them to the Cross Country and eat when they are not participating in their event. 

Program for the day:

St Brigid’s Primary School Cross Country Rules

1. Ages for each race will be taken as the age the runner has turned or will be turning this calendar year.  
2. For each race, up to three competitors can be selected to attend the Richmond Zone Cross Country.
3. Competitors are to compete in their school sports shorts and must wear appropriate footwear. They are encouraged to wear an appropriate coloured shirt that matches their colour house. If this is not possible they will be required to run in their school sports shirt.
4. Trophies – The John Cahill Shield will be awarded to the House that receives the most points overall. 

 Yours in Sport                                                                                                                                                                                             Lee Love

NSW Police Legacy Child Safety Handbook

We received a letter from the Commissioner of Police, Karen Webb, AMP asking us to distribute the NSW Police Legacy Child Safety Handbook.

The “NSW Police Legacy Child Safety Handbook” is a comprehensive and free resource to assist parents, carers as well as teachers on a range of topics essential to child safety.  

The updated digital edition includes important content updates from:

• Fire and Rescue NSW (home fire safety),
• Transport NSW (school bus and seat belt safety),
• NSW Department of Communities and Justice (keeping children safe),
• eSafety Commissioner and NSW Rural Fire.

Link to handbook  Please keep this as a reference .

Stars of the Week

One of our school goals this year is to have an average weekly attendace of 90% and above. The class with the best average each week receives the  “Stars of the Week” trophy and certificate to display in their classroom.

Last week the class with the best average attendance was Year 4 with 88.1% and the whole school average was 83.5%. 

Remember our whole school goal is 90%. The whole school average weekly attendance for this term is as follows:

Week 2: 91.1% - Kindergarten (98.3%), Year 3 (96.4%), Year 1 (94.5%) 

Week 3: 89.7% - Year 6 (95.5%), Year 1 (93.3%), Year 4 (92.9%) 

Week 4: 92% - Year 3 (94.05%), Year 6 (93.4%), Year 2 (93.1%)  Year 4 (92.66%)

Week 5: 89.7% - Year 6 (94.6%), Kindergarten (93.6%), Year 1 (92.8%)

Week 6: 86.9% - Year 1 and Year 3 (91.4%), Year 2 (90.5%), Year 4 (90.1%)

Week 7: 86.9% - Year 3 (95.5%), Year 4(89.4%), Year 6 (88.2%)

Week 8: 88.7% - Kinder (95.6). Yr 4 (95%), Yr 2 (87.6) 

Week 9: 86.75% - Year 6 (90.8%), Year 1 (90.3%), Yr 4 (89.2%)

Week 10: 83.5% - Year 4 (88.1%), Year 1 (87.5%), Yr 3 & Kinder  (85%)

It is essential that every student is at school every day as attendance matters to support your child's learning.

Attendance Matters

Absences Add Up 

5 days absent per term means that your child misses 10% of their learning.

The impact of school absences, even seemingly small ones, can accumulate and affect a child's learning significantly. 

The cumulative effect of absences over time can lead to gaps in knowledge and understanding. 

Consistent attendance is vital for academic success, as each day in school provides valuable learning opportunities.

If your child is expressing reluctance to go to school regularly, it's essential to address the issue promptly. 

Watch My child refuses to go to school, what can I do? for some simple strategies – Problem solve, Validate and Hope.

Student Awards Week 10

Congratulations to the following students who have shown tremendous effort and were presented with their awards at our assembly last Friday afternoon:

• Kindergarten - Harvey, Delilah, Khiyanne 
• Year 1 - Will, Angus
• Year 2 - Zion, Igziah
• Year 3 - Mabel, Stanley
• Year 4 - Morgan, Caden, Caius
• Year 5 - Elsie, Ted 
• Year 6 - Emmelyn, Parker
• Principal Awards - Callie, Frankie

MJR Awards

 Week 11 Focus: I Am A Steward of Creation

God created the world and everything in it, and He chose us to take care of His creation! Just like how you take care of your toys or pets, we have a responsibility to look after the earth and all the living things on it. We are stewards of creation, which means we are like helpers of God in taking care of His wonderful world. Let's remember to be kind to the earth, to the animals, and to each other, because it's our special job given by God!

Positive Behaviour 4 Learning (PB4L)

Term 1 Week 11 Focus:

I am seated and quiet by the second bell at line up. 

Happy Birthday to You

Wishing the following children all the very best for their special day in the coming weeks.

Upcoming Dates

Term 1 Week 11

• 11th - Last day of term for Students 
• 12th - Staff development day 

Term 2 Week 1

• 29th - Students & Staff return
• 30th - Cross Country 

Community News

🌸🌿 Join Us at the Flower & Foliage Spectacular! 🌿🌸

We're thrilled to invite you to immerse yourself in a world of botanical wonders at our upcoming Flower & Foliage Spectacular! 🌺🌿

Step into a magical realm where the beauty of nature comes alive, and don't miss our enchanting fairy garden designed especially for children. 🧚‍♂️🌼 It's a whimsical space where imaginations can soar!

Best of all, children enjoy free entry, so bring along the whole family for a day of exploration and delight. 🌟

Mark your calendars and join us for a blooming good time! 🌸✨