PRINCIPAL - PAULA MACKENZIE

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Last Friday night Deacon Liam was ordained in the Cathedral in Perth. Deacon Liam has been preparing for this for the past ten years. It was a wonderful celebration and a very memorable evening.  The Cathedral was overflowing and Arch Bishop Costello ensured it was a night to remember for all present.

Then on Sunday at St Brigid’s Parish Father Liam celebrated his first Mass it was wonderful to see so many of our school families present. The choir was outstanding on the day and Father Liam’s homily was very humble and honest. We look forward to having father Liam as part of our Parish for the rest of this year.

 

Orienteering State School Championships

On Wednesday are intrepid team took on the Orienteering State School Championships and our team were marvelous. Every member of the team pushed through the pain barrier and completed the course. As a school we are so proud of all our students and their great sportsmanship on the day. We had Erin Caldwell,  Imogen Vakulcyzk and Hamish McLennan take out the ribbons on the day but I know every one of our students ran their very best which saw our school take third place in the competition. So congratulations to our entire team and our great parents who joined us on the day to show their love and support awesome job. Thank you also to Mr Sam Harris and Mr Mike Sibbald for helping to train our sporting hero’s.

 Running on the Footpaths

 Unfortunately we are seeing many of our children running on the footpaths around the school. This is a very unsafe practice and I ask that parents talk with their children and help them to see this is not a safe practice. We have seen a number of children being knocked down and a few close calls with parents. Please take the time to walk around the school and keep the running for the grassed areas of the school.

Book Week

This week we celebrated Book Week during the week the students enjoyed coming to the Library at lunch time to listen to teachers reading their favourite books. Children also had the opportunities to go to another class and listen to different teachers reading. Book Week brings out the love of reading in us all. On Thursday we had a wonderful dress up day and children came as their favourite characters I loved the way that some of our children even bought their favourite books. A big thank you to our wonderful parents for helping to dress up their children it was a delight to see such creativity and diversity on the day.

 Reading is an important skill which is developed through experiences with a wide variety of texts. This includes reading books and magazines, posters and charts, pamphlets and packets, letters and postcards. It also includes viewing multimedia texts such as movies and documentaries.

Children make progress at their own pace; some pick up new skills quickly and some need more time for learning and practicing the new skill. All children need to be ready to learn and to have the best conditions for learning new skills. At school, teachers create safe, happy and stimulating environments where children are encouraged and praised for ‘having a go’.

You can create a similar learning environment at home with the following ideas:

• Make a regular time to read together and don’t stop reading to your child when they can read themselves; they love listening to a competent reader.
• When you introduce a new book to your child, discuss what it could be about, talk about the pictures or text and then read it to each other. With older children you can encourage them to make predictions and pause occasionally to confirm or reject their original thoughts.
• Read and follow directions together such as when making a recipe or instructions for playing a game or assembling a new piece of furniture or toy.
• Read magazines and newspapers together and talk about the pictures as well as the text.
• Listen to audio books or story tapes and watch movies together. Once you’ve seen the movie, discuss it and then read the original book together.

Most importantly…..make sure your children see you enjoying reading.

 

Literacy Research

We can safely predict that those individuals who can read and write (and numerically calculate) are most likely to be long-lived, healthy individuals who will enjoy a satisfying life on this planet and contribute positively to society; so making sure that everyone has the best possible chance to learn to read well has to be a major goal for all school communities.

 

Parent and family involvement and contribution to the development of oral language and associated literacy learning is vitally important, as reflected in an extensive range of research around the world. One study concluded that “… the likelihood of a child succeeding in first grade depends, most of all, on how much she or he has already learned about reading before getting there.”

 

Parents of young children who encourage and support the development of their child’s literacy skills from the earliest years, give them greater chances to become students who achieve their potential and go on to lead effective, satisfying and productive lives in our communities.

Similarly, studies show that parents, who present the experience of reading as a mutually enjoyable experience with an emphasis on reading as a source of pleasure and personal fulfilment, will be more effective than an emphasis on the skills acquisition and academic aspects of reading development.

 

 A UK study demonstrated the positive benefits in the development of literacy skills in families where parents agreed to read with their children and encourage their children to read aloud to them. The results showed that children who read with and to their parents made significantly greater progress in reading than those who did not engage in this kind of literacy sharing. In fact, the gains achieved through parents working with their children, were shown to be significantly greater than could have been achieved through small-group instruction conducted by an external professional coach.

Parents introduce their children to the pleasure and satisfaction of reading together and reading aloud. Elder siblings and grandparents can also productively share that role of reading mentor and guide. The ideal of parents having quiet, dedicated time with their children sharing a book has positive learning, personal, cognitive, connective and social development benefits. This later develops into a productive partnership between parents and schools working together to build a community that loves books and values literacy.

 Midvale Hub Parenting Service

We are very fortunate to have the Midland Hub Parenting Service come to visit our school and provide some free information with our parents. There is the plan to hold a number of discussions with our parent community on topics that our parents would like further information on. Our first meeting will be held on Friday 13^th September at 11.30am following the playgroup sessions. There will be a crèche being run from our Kindergarten classroom so that parents are able to listen and participate in the discussions.  The service will provide more information on your child’s development, behaviour, social and emotional needs. They will enhance parenting skills to assist you feeling more confident about parenting. They will aim to develop social networks and connections with your community and much more. There is no cost and if you would find this helpful please join us on Friday 13 September at 11.30am in the Three Year Old room. Depending on the needs of the group further discussions will take place on topic that would be helpful. Parents with children in the early years are encouraged and those that are just beginning school life.

 

May God bless you

                                               

Paula MacKenzie
PRINCIPAL

 

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL - MIKE SIBBALD                               

CONFIRMATION CANDIDATE, SPONSOR & PARENT MEETING

The Confirmation Parent, Sponsor & Candidate Meeting is on Tuesday 27 August at 7.00pm at St Brigid’s Church. Candidates are encouraged to have their Sponsor accompany them to this evening as part of their overall preparation. Please keep all our Confirmation Candidates in your prayers during their time of preparation. 

SACRAMENTAL DATES 2019

Year 6 CONFIRMATION – Sunday 8 September 2019 (11.00am)

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL - LUKE SHAW

 PUNCTUALITY

As a school, we are aware lateness can severely impact achievement. Our classroom teachers open the doors at 8.30am, with formal instruction beginning at 8.50am. Teachers plan activities to begin the day from 8.30am that go towards establishing routine and settling the students for the day. It is in each child’s best interest to be at school at 8.30am as this allows them to greet their classmates, say hello to their teacher and settle in before formal instruction begins. While we understand that, at times, lateness is unavoidable, we do ask all parents to ensure that their children are at school on time. Our timetable is created to ensure that minimal disruption takes place in the morning block, during literacy dedicated time. When students enter the classroom late, it disrupts the learning process. At this time, I would also like to remind parents and caregivers that the time our classrooms open, 8.30am, is not the time to hold lengthy meetings with your child’s teacher. Sure, touch base and let your child’s teacher know of anything that is impacting their wellbeing on the day, but please refrain from initiating lengthy conversations at this time. Please be aware that our teachers may politely ask you to schedule a meeting for another time for certain conversations, and they are entitled to do so. Thank you for your continued efforts in getting your children to school on time – missed minutes = missed learning = missed opportunities.

FATHER’S DAY BREAKFAST

A reminder that breakfast will be served for our fathers and father figures in the MacKillop Hall on Thursday 29 August from 7.30am. Thank you to the families who have registered their attendance. If you have not yet done so, please RSVP by Monday 26 August via this link https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=Iy-FxTM2KU-zhlHaU-NeIwSak1hXJxdBk0lRNXJGtCxUODEzVFhDQjRISjhRTzZCVElXQVRZTDBTSy4u

1-2-3 MAGIC PARENT WEBINAR

As mentioned in The Link last week, our school adopted the 1-2-3 Magic and Emotion Coaching behaviour management system at the beginning of this year. All staff have been trained in this school-wide approach, which is proven to be effective and is backed by research. If you would like more information about this program, please go to https://timelinemedia.wistia.com/medias/z8dupkkd88

SCHOOL NEWS

WA Orienteering Primary School Championships 2019

On Wednesday, 58 of our talented students travelled to Manning Park in Spearwood, to compete in the WA Orienteering Primary School Championships. Our students were excited for the challenge that lay ahead, and with a number of students attending the competition for the first time, there was lots of nervous energy on the bus when we departed for the day.

The courses which were plotted by the organisers this year, were challenging for all students across the competition, with the average time of races being slightly slower than previous years due to the gruelling hill climbs which were experienced throughout the course. Our goal was to achieve a 90% return on the number of correctly completed courses for the day, which we achieved as a team and was even more impressive due to the tough nature of the courses. Overall, we placed 3^rd in the final points classification, with Christchurch Grammar School taking out 1^st place. Amongst the achievement of our team goal previously mentioned, there were some strong individual performances. Erin Caldwell took out 1^st place in the 9/10 Year Old Solo Category, Hamish McLennan finished 2^nd by the finest of margins in the 11/12 Year Old Boy Solo Category and Imogen Vakulcyzk received a bronze medal in the 11/12 Year Old Girl Solo Category. To go with this, we also had a number of promising parts to our team’s day, including the inclusion of two Year Three students who were competing for the first time, a number of top 10 finishes and a few students who overcame their nerves at the beginning of the race to complete their course with terrific accuracy. Well done team!

I’d like to say a big ‘thank you’ to all of the parents who supported the team on the day and ensured that our students were well prepared and taken care of with whatever needs needed to be met. Your support is something which is valued by our school and I look forward to working with everyone involved in the years to come.

I hope that our students had a great day and that they are proud of the way that they went about their work. Their behaviour was exceptional and their sportsmanship could not be faulted. Congratulations to the whole team and all involved and I am excited at the challenge of competing again in next year’s competition.

Mr Samuel Harris

Physical Education Specialist

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 Don't forget to follow the St Brigid's Primary School Facebook Page!

https://www.facebook.com/stbrigidsms/

 

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CANTEEN ROSTER

Monday 26 Aug           CATHOLIC DAY

Tuesday 27 Aug          P.D. Day

Wednesday 28 Aug     C.TURNER

Thursday 29 Aug         S.SOEMYA

Friday 30 Aug              K.PURCHASE

 

PLEASE CONSIDER VOLUNTEERING IN THE CANTEEN AND AS A THANK YOU, LUNCH AND ENDLESS CUPS OF TEA/COFFEE ARE ON US........

 

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 SEQTA ENGAGE FOR STUDENT REPORTS: PRE-PRIMARY TO YEAR 6

To access your child's report, you need to go to the following site: https://stbrigidsms.coneqt-p.cathednet.wa.edu.au and use your current username and password.

If you have remembered your username but have forgotten your password, please click on the ‘Forgot your Password?’ link and an immediate email will be sent to you. THIS EMAIL WILL EXPIRE WITHIN ONE HOUR, so please action this immediately. Please note that for security reasons, the school does not have access to parent passwords.

If you have any issues, please contact the school by sending an email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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 ST BRIGID'S RUNNING CLUB

WHEN: EVERY TUESDAY 3.15PM - 3.45PM

WHERE: ST BRIGID'S PRIMARY SCHOOL

YEAR GROUPS: PRE - PRIMARY - YEAR 6  

 

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ST BRIGID'S SWIM SQUAD Come along and join the St Brigid's Swim Squad.  Training takes place every Thursday morning at Swan Active, Morrison Road, Midvale, commencing at 7am.  Entry is $3.30 (no spectator fee for parents).   Swim Squad is for students in Yrs 2 to Yr 6 whom are at swimming level 5 or above.  Students can then take advantage of Breakfast Club at school which commences at 8.15am in the MacKillop Hall.  If you have any queries, please contact Deanna (DJ) on 0419 943 901.  

 

 

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 AFTER SCHOOL SPORTS

Application Forms must be completed before children can attend. 

Forms are available from the school office.

P & F NEWS

                                                                                      

Other ways you can continue to support your school by shopping locally -

Orders can still be placed for Hair accessories through Ponytails and Fairytales anytime

Simply go to  www.SchoolPonytails.com.au -> Select Shop by School -> then click on St Brigids Primary School Logo (We are under Schools North of the River). Once you have picked your accessories, in your cart, you will be asked "Is this order a fundraising order for your school? Pick YES, and complete your child's name, class and the School name. Another Pre-order will be sent out shortly for anyone looking to grab some gorgeous Faction coloured accessories as well (for boys and girls!)

 

Upcoming Events

 The next P&F meeting will be held on Tuesday 9am 10th September.  

SCHOOL BANKING

HELPING HANDS

 BEFORE & AFTER SCHOOL CARE 

  

UNABLE TO MAKE IT IN TIME TO PICK UP YOUR CHILDREN? 

BOSS ASKED YOU TO STAY LATE OR COME IN EARLY? 

NEED TO HAVE SOME TIME FOR YOURSELF? 

Parents, we are here to support you and your children in before and after school hours! We offer a secure, safe and exciting environment for your children to thrive and be a part of a socialized group while you are busy. 

Please note an enrolment form and 1 days' notice is to be given to make your casual bookings for your children. 

We are here to help! Enrolment forms are available from the School Office.

Vacancies Available Now!

P: 0484302073

E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

COMMUNITY NEWS

St Vinnies are very soon having their Annual Street appeal in Midland.

The date is Friday the 13th September 

Our collection points will be Gilberts, Centrepoint, Bunnings or Supa IGA

We normally start from 8am through to 5.30pm and we operate in pairs so you won't be on your own.

If you have interested in donating a little time, please ring Nancy 0417 955 956 or call into the School Uniform Shop and see Jo-Anne Vellis.

 

This year the PLC Foundation is thrilled to offer two scholarships; and after receiving a generous annonymous donation earlier this year, the Foundation is able to offer a third scholarship. These three scholarships commence in 2020 and are offered to a student for whom a PLC education is financially out of reach.
The successful student will commence at PLC in Year 7 and the scholarship covers full tuition fees from Year 7 to Year 12.
Applicants are required to be a citizen or permanent resident of Australia residing in Western Australia.
Applicants must also demonstrate:
- Sound academic achievement;
- A commitment to the community;
- Participation in co-curricular activities; and
- A commitment to participate in the life of the PLC.
Applications close on 23 August 2019.

Information on the PLC Foundation can be found on the PLC website or you can contact Suzanne Pelczar, Executive Officer, PLC Foundation on 9424 6534 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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LITTLE ATHLETICS

The count down is on everyone!!! Registration day for Eastern Hills Little Athletics is nearing.

Saturday 7th September 10-12pm at the Mundaring Recreation grounds pavilion.

To become an athletic member athletes must be between 5-16 years old on the 31st December 2019.

If your little one is new to Little Athletics you will need to bring their birth certificate. 

Correct uniform is a must for Little Athletics, which will be available for purchase on registration day.

We can't wait to see all your smiley faces.

For further information please call 9388 2339 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

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PILATES

Monday mornings in the MacKillop Hall

9am - 10pm

All are welcome (Men & Women)

For further enquiries please contact Elaine Pollock - 0433 900 703 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.