St Bernadette's Primary School

NEWSLETTER | TERM 2 | WEEK 7 I 31 May 2024

Dear parents,

It has been a wet and wild week here at school, however, our students have coped very well and I have been very impressed at the way they have listened, followed instructions and remained calm out in the playground, especially when we have had to rush inside due to the rain!

This Sunday our Year Four students will celebrate their First Holy Communion - a very special day for children, their families and our whole school and parish community. As parents, our ongoing challenge is to help and support our children to ‘live out’ the Eucharist in their daily lives –experiencing being ‘bread’ for one another, through our kindness, our care, our love and forgiveness.

Congratulations to our Year Four students and families - we hope Mums and Dads will organise a day that is filled with much love and gratitude for all the good things your children have to enjoy – faith, family, friends, a healthy body, a safe home and so much more.

This week I have had a range of students come to show me some of the learning in their classrooms. From Talk for Writing samples, Maths games, comprehension activities and even a couple of Indonesian PowerPoints that were very impressive from our Year 6’s.

Over the next few weeks our teachers will be involved in reporting and moderating meetings in preparation for our reports going live later this term. Our goal is to have clear and transparent communication so there are no surprises on you child’s report. If your child is receiving a D Grade or is on an IAP in English or Maths, you will be contacted prior to the end of term. Those students who are currently on an IEP will have received information on the timing of these meetings – if you haven’t, please be in touch. Likewise, if there are any issues or concerns you have with your child’s learning, please get in touch with the teacher.

When meeting with your child’s teacher, can I please ask parents to call through to the office or send a quick email to make a time. At the bell before school, our teachers are welcoming students, listening to their stories, ideas and concerns, clarifying homework questions and getting everyone ready for the day. If you need to discuss anything more than a quick FYI, please make a time.

Finally, we have recently had a few instances where parents are calling through to change pick up plans for the afternoon. We always do our best to get the message through, however, if we receive a call close to the bell then there are times where we have not had the time to get the message to the class or the bell has already gone. Please have a chat to you child, especially older students, and have a Plan B. For example, if I am not outside the classroom, go to the drive through and chat to Mr T or the teacher on duty. This will help them problem solve and take the stress away if you are not there. We (especially me) are always on duty to help students and will make a call if we are unsure or you are late!

Enjoy the long weekend, we will see you all Wednesday!

Geordie

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National Reconciliation Week

Reconciliation needs to live in the hearts, minds and actions of all Australians as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

We all have a role to play when it comes to reconciliation, building relationships and communities that value Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, histories, cultures, and futures.

It is important that we, as parents, and significant role models in our children’s lives, be mindful of everyday opportunities to discuss how important respect, tolerance, kindness, generosity, understanding, justice and reconciliation are when it comes to building relationships with others. Weeks like this one are a good springboard for these conversations, however, also seizing on other times when children perhaps listen to the news, see a billboard advertising a Reconciliation event or message, or join in a family chat about our Aboriginal and Torres Islander brothers and sisters.

From little things, big things grow.

It’s been a vibrant Wellbeing Week this term, with a focus on showcasing OUR STRENGTHS! We opened the week with a beautiful Art Display for our Flag Artwork Competition where the students have created some ideas for our Faction Flags. On Tuesday the whole school participated in a Lolly Jar guessing competition and the Wellbeing and Performing Arts Captains hosted a Wellbeing Show over two glorious days. We had over 60 students perform their talents in the show to entertain us, and they were all AMAZING!

Jacqueline Deshon

Wellbeing

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Lolly Jar Competition

One of the activities this week was to guess the amount

of lollies in a jar and this created big debates across

the school! 😆

Congratulations to the following students

for guessing the amount of lollies in the jar!

Bernie's will be participating in the Catholic Education Performing Arts Festival later in the year and would love to send a strong choir to represent our school. If your child loves to sing or would like to give it a try, please encourage them to join our school choir!

We have been notified that Hip Pocket now have all uniform items back in stock, apart from the size 14 track pants. Please ensure that your child is wearing the correct and up to date uniform, particularly the new school jackets. The old style jumpers should now not be worn to school.

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Save the date - Week 11

Cultural Week is all about celebrating the amazing cultures that make up our school community.

Our cultural diversity is a great strength and brings with it a whole host of traditions, religions, languages,

different clothing and of course, food!

Seeing photos and hearing stories about people’s culture can be super interesting, and we’d love to hear from you!

Ibu Kristy and the Mission captains are looking to compile a cultural video filled with as many cultural photos or stories to be shared during our Cultural week assembly in week 11. If you would like to share a photo or something interesting about your culture (a story or fun fact) then please email the office by the end of week 9.

Terima kasih banyak (Thank you very much)

Lost Property

Please check the lost property box in the Library, it is full of all sorts of items! Jackets, water bottles, lunchboxes and shoes! Please remember to clearly mark all items that come to school.