Dear Families,

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend in the glorious Melbourne sunshine!

**Reminder that Friday 7 June is a school closure day and Monday 10 June is the King's Birthday** 

Year 6 Confirmation

Last Friday 24 May, the Year 6 students celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation at St Paul’s Church. It was a beautiful celebration led by Bishop Tony Ireland. The Bishop visited the Year 6s on Thursday to speak with them about the Sacrament and to ask them about their chosen Saint. Throughout the term, each child chose a saint for the Confirmation name, and learned all about them. The children learned about the Gifts and Fruits of the Holy Spirit. His main message to the children and all of us present at Church was that a gift cannot be forced on you. A gift is something you either receive and accept, or something you choose not to take (and throw in the bin, to use the Bishop's phrase). The Gifts of the Holy Spirit are much like that. Fortitude, knowledge, wisdom, piety, understanding, good counsel, and fear of the Lord are gifts that you can choose to take and accept, or choose not to take and follow. 

Thank you to our Year 6 teachers Gabrielle Berends, Kat Gardiner, and Kassy Wira, for preparing the students for this special sacrament. And thank you to Marg Mitchell and Margy D’Rozario for liaising with the Bishop’s office and preparing the Mass for Friday. 

Special visitors for the Preps and Grade 1's

Last week we had some amazing visitors from our community (paramedics and the fire brigade) who taught our students so much about safety.  Here are some snippets about how much fun the children had and how much they learned!

Staff News - Welcome to Ben Griffin

We welcome Ben to our Learning Support team. Ben is in his final year of his teaching degree at ACU. He has hit the ground running, working with students across many levels. Ben will be working Thursdays and Fridays across the school to help meet the needs of many students. Welcome to St Paul’s, Ben!

Child Safety before and after school

At St Paul’s the children’s safety and wellbeing is paramount. While we often focus on safety inside the school grounds, it is a timely reminder for families to be aware of safety to and from school, particularly for students who walk or ride on their own.

It is important that students who are at the park before or after school are with an adult or guardian for safety. For students who ride or walk to school on their own, we have been speaking with them regarding not walking or riding too early and waiting at the park or the school gate on their own. A reminder that school gates open at 8:30am. Children waiting for gates to be open need to be supervised by parents or an adult. School staff are on morning duty 8:30 - 8:50, and after school from 3:30 - 3:45. 

Communicating with staff

Communication is one of the key drivers for success between home and school. There are many opportunities and ways for our parents to communicate with us. For communication to be successful and timely, it is important that it is directed toward the correct person. If at any time you have a concern about your child, the first person to contact is your child's classroom teacher. They work very closely with your child on a daily basis and know them the best. 

Teachers are best contacted via email. Phone calls are often difficult to put through or return during school hours. As teachers are busy teaching our children during the day, emails will be replied to within a 48 hour period.  It is in these emails that you can express any concerns or clarifications you may have, or make time to meet in person. There are times when families may have concerns that may not need to involve the classroom teacher, but leadership at the school. Parents are welcome to contact myself via email at any time or phone, where I can help and support any concerns or queries you may have. We value our connections with families and our St Paul’s staff work hard to best support children and families.

Class Awards for Term 2

Lost Property

We have an incredible amount of clothing and containers in Lost Property.  We do our very best to return items to their owners but this can be a hard task when property is not named clearly or at all, or has a past family name on it.  Please come and check for any items that you feel you may be missing.

Upcoming Events

Monday 3 June - Whole School Assembly 3.00pm

Thursday 6 June - School Disco Prep - Year 3: 4.30-6.00pm

                                              Year 4 - Year 6: 6.30pm - 8.30pm

Friday 28 June - casual clothes day. Finish 2.30pm

2024 School Closure Days

Friday 7 June - School Closure Day

Monday 10 June - King's Birthday Public Holiday

Monday 9 September - School Closure Day (new to our list)

Monday 4 November - School Closure Day

Tuesday 5 November - Melbourne Cup Public Holiday

Friday 29 November - School Closure Day

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Kind regards,

Freda

Last Wednesday, our Year 6 Community Leaders visited the Baptcare Southaven Day Centre. The students spent time playing games and demonstrating community service by interacting with elderly residents. They learned stories about the older generations, fostering meaningful intergenerational connections and leaving a positive impact on both the students and the residents.

Title:                          Newsletter Article

By:                            Meggie Willers

On Wednesday, the 22nd of May, the Community Group walked over to the local aged care, to visit them. This was a great thing to experience because when you get older you might find that you don't get visited as often by friends and family so we thought it would be good to give them some company. There were three people there, Ban, Lida and Bernie. Lida was an Italian lady who didn't speak English but managed to participate in Guess Who. Bernie was a retired soccer player and police officer. Ban was a retired doctor, who managed to remember everything from being a doctor, but not my name. Overall, it was truly an amazing experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Hello! My name is Loretta Wise and I am in 5K.

I am raising some much needed funds for Sacred Heart Mission. Sacred Heart Mission are a not for profit organisation supporting those experiencing homelessness. I will be raising money by recycling plastic bottles and aluminium cans at the depots of the Victorian Container Deposit Scheme (VCDS). Each bottle, can and juice-box have a ten cent refund. 

I am asking you to collect these containers and place them in the labelled caddy which is located outside the Year 5 classrooms.

Thank you for your support.