PRINCIPAL - PAULA MACKENZIE

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

During my career as an educator I have participated in many early years conferences and discovered the importance of play. I have been inspired by many speakers at the conferences who were passionate and knowledgeable about the topic of the way our children learn and develop. I came away with many insightful ideas and thoughts but I think what struck me the most was the common sense ideas that at times we forget in our busy lives. We were encouraged to be advocates for our children and to realise the importance of play for our children’s development.

We know about the importance of children playing and using their imagination and creativity. They require this stimulus to develop into citizens in our world that have the ability to think and create and lead our society. Our children are losing the time to play and be outside with nature and explore their world in depth.

It always makes me think about my childhood and how we spent our spare time at home. I thought of my childhood and sure enough my brother and sisters spent much of our time outside on our quarter acre block, we had trees and a homemade tree house that on reflection was high of off the ground and by todays standard not safe but we knew how to climb and stay safe sixteen foot off the ground with no walls and a few planks straddled over two larger uneven branches. We played in the sand and dirt and created hills and make forts. Neighbourhood children visited and we rode to the park that wasn’t at the end of the road. During holidays you were rarely inside but constantly outside playing in wet and dry seasons. When it rained you had the opportunity to see if the fort you built was able to stand up to the ravages of water or had you built the sand walls strong enough to withstand the water that fell in the yard. We had fun and were never bored; television was restricted to one movie a day that everyone had to agree to or no movie. They were simple times but filled with imagination and creativity and most of all fun.

Maggie Dent spoke of how times have changed now most of our gardens are stunning they are filled with decks and alfresco areas, with artificial grass and magnificent pot plants and barbeques and pools. We now live on very small blocks and the outdoor area is part of the indoor entertainment. Children now occupy places in the media rooms and their bedrooms are fitted out with televisions and many devices that connect them to the internet. Times have changed but children still need to have the opportunity to play and explore the outdoors and nature.

When was the last time as a family you ventured outside into the bush to explore and see what is out there. To walk on a path and see a spider web hanging from a tree, to sit and watch as it spins its home and catches an insect, or look at ants as they scurry along to the nest. To collect sticks and make a fort or walk in a river bed and feel the uneven ground under your feet and the cold water flowing along. Maybe soon you could take the time to explore nature and see what is waiting for you; it may surprise and delight you. Listen to the rich conversation that takes place when we turn off our devices and talk with each other. And join in the fun of play for the sake of play you may even surprise yourself. The school holidays are fast approaching it may be the ideal time to stop and discover play with your child.

THREE YEAR OLD PROGRAM

We are very excited as a school to be able to provide a Three Year Old Program for our families. Last week we mentioned this program in the newsletter and a number of parents have responded. To run the program we require 16 children presently we have 11 children. We were hoping to begin the program at the beginning of Term Two but may need   to begin later in the term depending on numbers. The requirements are that your child has turned three and is toilet trained. There is a cost to the program of $550 a term. The day will begin at 8.50 am the doors will open at 8.30am and the day will finish at 2.50pm. If you are interested please let the front office know.

FAMILY MASS

What a wonderful celebration we had on at Mass on Sunday we had so many of our beautiful families joining us at the Mass. A huge thankyou to Mrs Alison Yeo for organizing the Mass and our wonderful Year Six teachers, Miss Footman and Mr Pendlebury and to our wonderful families for making the time to come and participate so reverently. We had over 80 children join us on Sunday so this truly was a blessed time. Our choir sing like angels and the song selection was outstanding.

YEAR SIX CAMP

I was very fortunate to join our Year Six campers for the first day and night, it was a great adventure. I must say how impressed I was with our amazing students. They were so well mannered and so helpful and I look forward to hearing of all the adventures that took place. I know they are keen to share their stories with us at assembly in the very near future. To see the joy on their faces and the laughter was just perfect.

CARPARK SAFETY

On Thursday we had a car choose to drive from the gravel carpark over the pavement to the Kiss and Drop carpark as children were entering the school just before the bell. This was extremely dangerous and puts our students at risk. Please remember to drive safely at all times. It is disappointing when people choose to do the wrong thing and disregard safety.

PARENT INTERVIEWS

It is very powerful to have the home and school involved in interviews so that everyone is clear about future directions and the effort that will be required. As a school we aim to encourage students to take control of their learning and to recognise the growth they are achieving in both social and academic areas. The ‘interview’ is an important opportunity to discuss your child’s progress and to build communication and understanding between home and school. If everyone is well prepared, even a short interview can be productive and very worthwhile. Interviews will begin next week for most classes with a few classes beginning this week. Times were made available online so please take the time to make an appointment and meet with your child’s teacher.

• Keep a list of questions you want to discuss with the teacher.
• If you want to discuss a specific matter, email in advance so the teacher can be prepared with the information you are seeking.
• Ask your child if there are matters they would like discussed.
• Be ready to ask questions, or admit you do not understand.
• Share helpful information about your child or family circumstances. Teachers are appreciative of anything that helps them to know their students better.
• If you disagree with any judgements the teacher may have made about your child, listen carefully and ask for examples.
• Remember the interview is a valuable time to discuss your child, not share your experiences at school or philosophies about modern education.

 Please don’t hesitate to contact the school to arrange a follow up interview.

Some questions:

• How is my child progressing?
• Are there ways I can help at home?
• How does my child get on with other members of the class?
• Does my child have a sound work ethic in class?
• What is my child’s behaviour like in class and at school?
• How well is my child doing on formal assessments?

After the interview:

• Discuss the interview with your child, including any points of action.
• Stress the good things that were said and be direct about any problems.
• Act on any suggestions made by the teacher.

Keep working with your child’s teacher by staying in touch.

Children respond positively in knowing that the important adults in their life are working together.

God Bless

  

Paula MacKenzie
PRINCIPAL

 

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL - MIKE SIBBALD

PRAYER

Please continue to encourage your children to keep practising their Lenten promises and to work towards filling the family or classroom Project Compassion box.

PARENT RECONCILIATION MEETING

Thank you to the parents and family members who attended the Parish Parent Reconciliation meeting on Tuesday evening. Fr Greg Donovan provided most informative presentation of Reconciliation, the meaning of the Parable of the Prodigal Son and presence in our lives today. I would also like to thank Fr Benny for welcoming everyone. Please continue to pray and support your child as they prepare for this sacrament of peace.  For those parents who were not able to attend Fr Benny has scheduled another meeting for next Tuesday 2 April, starting at 7 pm in the Parish meeting room.

SACRAMENTAL DATES 2019

Year 3 RECONCILIATION – Tuesday 7 May 2019 (5.00pm)

Year 4 FIRST EUCHARIST – Sunday 23 June 2019 (11.00am)

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

Please note that the First Eucharist Mass is at 11.00am, not at 9.30am as previously advertised.

 

NATIONAL YOUNG LEADERS DAY 2019

Mr Shaw and I had the wonderful privilege of taking our four student leaders, Xeline Dequina, Luke Firns, Mikylla Bravo and Thomas Lupica, to the 2019 National Young Leaders Day at the Convention Centre on Monday this week. They along with 3000 other young students shared the delightful opportunity of listening to aspirational presenters providing their insights on what leadership meant to them through their own story. Our students were a great credit to themselves and their respective families, while being pleasing ambassadors for our St Brigid’s School, through their participation and reflections. We look forward to their continue leadership development throughout this year and beyond!

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL - LUKE SHAW

PARENT/TEACHER INTERVIEWS

As you are aware, our parent/teacher interviews will be taking place over the next two weeks. A link to an online signup website was sent to parents last week (https://sobs.com.au/pt3/parent.php?schoolid=1677). Parents simply need to follow the prompts to select their preferred meeting time. Meetings will last for 15 minutes and teachers have been asked to ensure that they stick to this timeframe. We ask that all parents book a meeting as this is a wonderful opportunity to engage in a conversation about how your child is travelling in all facets of their school life. Teachers will share information about how your child has started the school year and how they have performed in recent testing. If you have anything in particular that you would like to discuss with your child’s teacher/s, please email them and let them know. By providing your child’s teacher with a brief outline of any particular issues you would like to discuss, they are able to prepare and answer any questions in the best way possible.

ST BRIGID’S FACEBOOK AND TWITTER PAGES

I am excited to announce that we now have St Brigid’s Primary School accounts on both Facebook and Twitter. These platforms allow us to share the wonderful learning that is happening at St Brigid’s not only with our school community, but also the wider community. You can join our pages simply by clicking on the links below. We encourage you to like and comment on our Facebook posts and like and retweet our Twitter posts. It would also be appreciated if you could write a review on our school Facebook page, which will help spread the word about our school to the wider community, including prospective parents. Please see below for some guidelines relating to our Facebook and Twitter pages. If you are yet to return your media permissions form, please do so by Wednesday 3 April.

ST BRIGID’S PRIMARY SCHOOL FACEBOOK AND TWITTER GUIDELINES

We encourage past, present and future families, friends and staff of the school to interact with us through our Facebook and Twitter online forums. We welcome your thoughts, news and experiences. By following the guidelines below, all members of our online community will feel welcome and valued.

Family-friendly: Our pages include users of all ages, including young adults. Explicit language and images have no place here.

Respectful and Appropriate: All members of our community deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. These pages are for supportive conversations and they are not a forum for hostile language, or debating controversial or personal issues. Please do not make negative comments about students, families of the school in these forums.

On-topic: Please stick to the topic of discussion and keep personal off-topic conversations off these pages.

Legal: Please be aware of copyright laws, intellectual property rights and the privacy law when posting, sharing and commenting. The school will delete posts/comments that contain discriminatory or defamatory posts. All actions on this page are subject to the Facebook/Twitter Terms of Service.

We encourage open and positive conversations as part of our St Brigid’s community. We welcome your feedback and will endeavor to respond to your comments when you’d expect us to.

Please follow our guidelines so that every member of our community can engage with these forums. Our Facebook and Twitter pages are moderated and any post that violate our guidelines will be deleted. Whilst we moderate this site we do hope to create an online community that is built on respect, and over time develop a culture of self-moderation. We reserve the right to delete comments at our discretion.

We look forward to interacting with you and thank you for liking our Facebook and Twitter pages.

If you have any queries please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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

@stbrigidsms

 

SCHOOL NEWS

 

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If you have any spare tiles from the Disney Words Promotion being run by Woolworths please drop them into the

Jean Ellison Centre (Ed Support)

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LIBRARY HELP REQUIRED

If any parents are interested in taking small bundles of books home to contact cover for the library, please see Mrs Darling before or after school in the library.

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PLAYGROUP

Just a reminder Playgroup has started and it is every Friday 9am – 11:30am. Breakfast is offered in the morning. We are operating in the Early Childhood Room (next to Kindy). We have had a lot of kiddies join us in the past 2 weeks and that is lovely to see. So if you are a parent, grandparent, aunty or uncle of a child aged 0-4 yrs please come and join us.

Remember to bring a water bottle, a piece of fruit and a hat!

 

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CANTEEN ROSTER

Monday 1st April           HELP NEEDED PLEASE

Tuesday 2nd April         H VRANJES

Wednesday 3rd April    HELP NEEDED PLEASE

Thursday 4th April        K PURCHASE

Friday 5th April             C KIRBY

 

NO MEAT products will be sold in the Canteen every Friday during Lent.

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR CANTEEN MENU                                                

 

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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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FOR SALE

Extra Large Trampoline.

Vuly 14ft Classic. Good Condition.

Can be delivered and assembled locally for a family of the school.

Only $250-  over $1000- New.

Please call Mr Peter Constable 0412 980 004.

 

 

SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS

HALOGEN NATIONAL YOUNG LEADERS DAY

 

 

                                                 

 

SWIMMING CARNIVAL

 

 

 

 

 

 

            

 

 

       

 

                 

 

 

 

                

 

 

 

 

P & F NEWS

St Brigid’s Parents and Friends Association

EASTER EGG RAFFLE

It's Easter Egg Raffle time again. Help us to contribute to school resources by participating in our first FUNdraiser of the year by donating and/or buying raffle tickets.

There will be a prize per class to give everyone a chance to win and raffle tickets will be sold for a chance to win some sweet bonus prizes. Tickets will be sent home next week to buy if you would like to enter the bonus drawer. We will also be selling tickets before and after school in the coming weeks.

If you would like to help we are seeking donations from families of Easter Eggs or Easter themed gifts to help us create some special prizes. Please deliver your donations to the box in the front office by Monday 1 April.

The raffle will be drawn on Friday 5 April, giving us an opportunity to distribute prizes in the last week of school if any winners are not available on 5 April.

NEW: Guess How Many game

The person who guesses the correct number of Easter eggs in the jar will win! $1 per guess. Guesses can be made alongside the raffle ticket table before and after school. Winner announced 5 April.

Funds raised from the Raffle and Guess How Many will be put towards the purchase of new literacy resources such as take-home readers and classroom novels. 

We are also hoping to gift some of the donated eggs to families in need through St Vincent de Paul. 

PASSION PLAY COFFEE and CAKE - Thursday 11 April

The P&F will be running a coffee and cake stall before the Passion Play. Join us from 8.30am before the Year 5 students host the Passion Play at 9.30am in MacKillop Hall on 11 April. 

PARENTS AND FRIENDS MEETINGS

The next P&F meeting will be held on Tuesday 9 April at 9am. If you are able to attend or have anything you would like to share or suggest it would be wonderful to see you there. Young children are very welcome to come along if that makes it easier to attend. 

P & F CONTACT INFORMATION

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

Karryn - 0409 293 198

Joanne - 0418 954 821

 

SCHOOL COMMUNITY NEWS

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 Education Support Room.  During out of school hours and weekdays. 

Vacancies Available Now!

P: 0484302073

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

 

COMMUNITY NEWS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PILATES CLASSES

Commencing Tuesday 19th February in the MacKillop Hall 

Then every Tuesday thereafter

From 5.15pm to 6.15pm

$12.00 per session or $60.00 for 5 sessions

All proceeds go to Cambodia

All equipment supplied, just bring a water bottle

Enquiries to Elaine 0433 900 703