Our Lady of Grace Newstetter No Images? Click here
TERM 2 WEEK 4 MAY 23RD, 2018 OUR LADY OF GRACE NEWSLETTER PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE Transistors are tiny switches that can be triggered by electric signals. They are the basic building blocks of microchips, and roughly define the difference between electric and electronic devices. They can be made so small nowadays (100 million will fit on a pin head) that it is estimated that there are now more transistors on earth than there are leaves on all the trees on the planet. Livingstone (2015) argued that for Australia to succeed in a digital age, we should be starting the digital education of our students in the beginning years of primary school, introducing skills such as computational thinking, problem solving and computer coding. This is a giant leap from where Australia is now, and will require determined policy and a great deal of teacher professional development. “We are currently preparing students for jobs and technologies that don’t yet exist… in order to solve problems that we don’t even know are problems yet.” Primary school students need to be using computers. A computer is a tool - just as a ruler, calculator, or pencil is - and students need to learn to use today's tools. An emphasis on what students can do with knowledge, rather than what units of knowledge they have, is the essence of 21st-century skills.
Within the Australian Curriculum, 21st century skills are called general capabilities to avoid any unnecessary implication that they are unique to the 21st century while still recognising that they are important in the 21st century. For Fullan, deep learning is captured by the concept of the 6Cs - creativity, communication, critical thinking, citizenship, collaboration and character. Mastering the 6Cs is a student's best preparation for a successful and meaningful life. At OLG we currently do a lot of classroom work in this space but a more widespread and standard approach to student devices at OLG will aid the further development of classroom practice which reflects the many benefits to learning that are brought through the use of technology. This in no way suggests a move away from traditional, hands-on learning experiences, for these are crucial to developing a child’s physical and cognitive development and deep understanding to Fullan’s 6Cs. Rather, use of technology where and when it provides a better learning experience than traditional approaches – a careful and research-based melding of the two. Child Safety Comes Before Convenience “Playground duty” is a lovely opportunity to interact with the children and sometimes, their parents, all while attempting to ensure the wellbeing of those students. I actually enjoy it – most of the time. With the closure of the eastern gate for most of this year greater pressure has been placed on the Kiss and Drive and a higher demand for parents to walk into the school to collect their children and walk them back to the family car. “As a general rule, children up to the age of 10 should not be in traffic situations without an accompanying adult, as they have not yet developed the knowledge, skills and behaviour necessary to keep themselves safe.” file:///C:/Users/chris.kenworthy/Downloads/Parents_book_school_road_safety.pdf Given the many reports of questionable driving behavior in the car park surrounding OLG, I would choose to extend the above ‘general rule’ to all OLG students, regardless of age. Email from a Staff Member Hi Chris, As I was down for back car park duty after school I assumed that this would now be front car park. I situated myself by the big tree and was astounded at what I saw and had to police while down there. There were Kindy kids and little ones running down the ramp and straight across the road, the parents were quite far behind them. Some I managed to stop but others slipped by as I was knocking on car windows telling parents that this was not the kiss and drive and they would have to park or drive up the parish driveway to collect their kids. A child was very close to being hit by the driver of a 4WD, as the child ran across the road to catch up with his parent, who was ahead of him and chatting to another parent. I was picking up glass from a child who had dropped a bottle on the curb where all the families cross the road. I let X know and was told I was supposed to stay at the top gate due to duty of care. I assumed front car park duty would mean being down at the car park. Can this be clarified. This was a very stressful duty, but thankfully no one was hurt. The potential danger is ever present down there! It's chaos!!! Clarification After school, supervision by OLG staff is provided: · Pre Kindy, Kindy and PP class teachers only permit their students to leave the classroom into the hands of a recognised carer · Bike riders and walkers make their way down the footpath between the Parish Centre and B1 without school supervision after they pass through the school gate. · Bus travellers are escorted to the bus stop by a teacher, who ensures they board the bus safely. · The children of families using the Kiss and Drive gather at the main gate under the supervision of a teacher. Drivers are asked to move as far along the yellow markings as they can. This way it is possible to load three vehicles at a time. o Children who have not been picked up by 3.05 are escorted to the office. o If the child(ren) matching the vehicle have not turned up within a minute or so, the driver will be asked to ‘go around’. · Older students whose carers will be coming up the ramp to collect them, will be gathered between the K&D and the ramp gate waiting for you, under the supervision of a teacher. · Students whose parents want them to negotiate the car park, when it is at its busiest, have the right to make that choice but I sincerely believe it is unwise. Allowing children to negotiate that northern parking area, filled with 4WDs that have limited vision of short people walking behind them; drivers in a hurry, drivers harried by the process of getting their children on-board, strapped in and the need to be somewhere else, is a high risk activity. The school is incapable of providing effective supervision of these children once they have started walking down the ramp. The existing K&D is a safe and relatively quick method of transferring our students from the school’s care to that of their parents. Please either use the K&D or personally meet your child within the school grounds and walk them back to your vehicle.
Community Relations Coordinator Reporting to the Principal, the successful applicant will work across the School and is responsible for identifying and utilising marketing, communications, media and public relations opportunities to raise our profile and promote Our Lady of Grace School to identified stakeholders. Consistency of our key messaging and promotion of our brand will be paramount, as will be growing our digital platforms. The successful applicant will need to plan, create, repurpose and distribute content in external and internal communications, both hard copy and online, as well as maintain our social media platforms and website. This position is offered at 8 hours per week which are flexible and will be negotiated with the successful applicant. This position would suit someone with a media or journalism background and/or qualifications. The position involves working with children and the applicant must hold a current Working with Children Card. Applications should be addressed to the Principal, PO Box 383 North Beach 6920 or sent to admin@olg.wa.edu.au Applicants must submit a curriculum vitae, addressed to the Principal, including the names and contact numbers of three referees, one of whom must be the current employer. Applicants must be fully supportive of the objectives and ethos of Catholic education. Applications close 25 May, 2018.
Mrs Schenk will be absent from school as she has sheared off a piece of bone from her ankle after tripping down a stair. Her doctor advises two weeks off. She wants to return after one! (She gets the guilts about missing days). Hopefully, she will abide by the doctor's advice so the the bone heals properly, even though this is to the detriment of her class. We wish Mrs Schenk a speedy recovery. God bless Chris Kenworthy Principal Please contact Peta Taylor on 0419 260832 if you can help out with volunteering. To access our online order system please visit www.ouronlinecanteen.com.au. Instructions for signing up are on the website or you can contact the Support line on 1300 116 637 for assistance. IMPORTANT NOTICE - Please read There are an increasing number of online orders that are not being captured due to parents not confirming their orders. Once you have placed an order please check your confirmation email or your "active orders" section to ensure your order has been placed, as we are getting numerous children at canteen quite upset that they haven't received their lunches. Canteen News ** New Muffins ** Banana/Choc Chip $2.00 Mixed Berry $2.00 Available Monday, Wednesday and Friday recess ** Soup on Mondays ** - from 14th May for Year 5 & 6 $4.00 cup $4.50 with a roll Italian Meal Deal Day - Wednesday 30th May All orders are to be in by Friday 25th May please. Pizza and Arancini supplied by Anatachi Sapore. ** Note: Pizza is different to the Canteen Menu Pizza ** This week's assembly will be presented by students in 1G. Parents of 1G children are invited to the staff room after assembly for a cuppa with Miss Kate Wrobel. Congratulations to the students who received Merit Awards at last week's assembly. Cake Stall The Year 2 classes will be holding a cake stall in the multi purpose area on Friday 25 May. Please come along and help support their fundraiser. A reminder to the parents who will be baking for the cake stall that OLG has a Nut Free policy. Library Roster Sunbeams and Rainbows 2018 The ‘Sunbeams (for pre-schoolers) and Rainbows (for primary school aged children)’ programs commence here at OLG in Week 5 this term. The programs are designed for children who are grieving and trying to cope with traumatic loss or painful transition in their lives. ‘Rainbows’ has been an integral part of the pastoral care at Our Lady of Grace School since 1997. The program will be conducted in small groups with children from Years K-6 meeting weekly for twelve weeks during school hours. Through ‘Sunbeams/Rainbows’ children are helped to verbalise their feelings, build a stronger sense of self-esteem, dispel their worries, and rise out of their pain over the changes in their family. They are no longer alone with their grief when they gather with other children who are facing similar situations. Children in the ‘Sunbeams/Rainbows’ program are guided through the grief process by trained facilitators. If you think your child would benefit from participating in ‘Sunbeams/Rainbows’, please complete the form and return it to school as soon as possible. For any enquiries please see Sr Joseph. Thank you. Sister Joseph School Counsellor Term Statements Last week term statements were sent out via the eldest child. Please check their bags if you have not received it. If you are already on a payment plan these are just for your records and no action needs to be taken. If you believe there is an error please contact either Kate Corkill or Kathryn Climo in the office. ITALIAN DAY Republic Day, also known as Festa della Repubblica in Italian is a national holiday in Italy and held on June 2nd each year. It celebrates the day when Italians voted to abolish the monarchy in 1946 so their country could become a Republic. We will be celebrating this day on Wednesday 30th May. The children will be able to wear free dress to school on this day, dressing in the Italian (flag) colours: green (verde), white (bianco) and red (rosso) or light blue (azzurro), the national football team colour. Children will be able to purchase a slab of pizza, drink and icy pole combo for $6 or arancini, drink and icy pole combo for $7 for lunch on the day. Orders need to be in by Friday 25th May for purchasing reasons. Uniform Shop The Uniform Shop is open Tuesday from 2.15pm - 3.00pm and Friday from 8.15am - 9.00am. Thank you to everyone who has donated so far, we thank you for your generous support. Jake is only a few weeks away from representing Australia in the UCI World BMX Championships in Azerbaijan on June 5. To add to the prizes on offer we also have a framed signed West Coast Eagles jersey kindly donated by Gary Stocks of the West Coast Eagles and the President of the North Beach Football Club. Included in the prizes worth over $1000 are a White iPad mini 4 with cover (SH), a selection of Movie and Candy Bar Prizes at any Grand Cinema (including, Family Pass + Candy Bar Voucher, 3 Adult/child passes) and six Toddler Tints (the funky kids car shade). For each multiple of a $10 donation will entitle you to an entry in the draw (ie: $30=3 entries) Click here to support Jake's off to the BMX World Champs organized by Adam Poat Year 3 student Jake Poat has been selected to represent Australia in the UCI World BMX Championships in Azerbaijan on June 5. Together with OLG, Grand Cinemas, Cash Converters and Toddler Tints we are assisting with fundraising to help with his expenses. With this Go-Fund-Me campaign, some fanta... P & F Announcements
Please save the date as we will be holding a special P & F ‘wine & cheese’ night, with presentations from the P & F Committee and our School Board. This is a great opportunity to meet your School Board members in person, and hear directly from the P & F and School Board on major things that are happening within the school. We welcome you to voice your ideas and ask any questions of the P & F and School Board to help you understand what we are aiming to achieve and how we can do things better. Come and enjoy a relaxing wine & cheese on the night. We look forward to seeing more new faces so bring a friend along who hasn’t been before! This special meeting will be held in the OLG Parish Hall. REMEMBER, every parent is already a member of our P & F so we want to keep you informed, and be interested in what’s happening at OLG!
Please note the above meeting has been cancelled as the P & F committee are in planning for the above P & F ‘wine & cheese’ night. Upcoming Important P & F Dates and Events - Term 2
Tickets are still available for the school disco on this Friday! Book through TryBooking www.trybooking.com/VQBE. Carla Christou and Emma Clementi are also urgently in need of parent helpers for both the Junior and Senior discos so please put your name down on the list in the office or get in touch with Carla or Emma directly. Any amount of time you can offer is appreciated.
Get your friends and family together for this fun event, and book a table using the try booking link www.trybooking.com/376251. There are only a handful of tables left, so make sure you don’t miss out. We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at our special P & F meeting in June! Tony Papotto Be Bright Disco and Dress Up Day - Friday 25th May OLG MPA Junior (Kindy-Year 2) - 3pm-4.15pm Senior (Year 3- Year 6) - 4.45pm-6.45pm Tickets $5 (includes glow sticks, treats, drinks, snacks and prizes) Tickets available at www.trybooking.com/VQBE Dress up day at school all day Friday 25th May for the Spiritual Ministry, wear anything bright and cheerful! Volunteers needed for the disco. Please put your name down in the office or contact Carla Christou (0413567462) WALKATHON There are still a number of walkathon cards outstanding, can you please keep bringing your cards and money into your classrooms/office. There are a few classes close to winning the prize so get in quick to have a chance at winning Any queries please contact Linda D’Vaz on 0411125787 or Carolyn Halleen on 0413591810
Help us raise funds for our School by buying an Entertainment Membership from us. You'll receive hundreds of valuable offers for everything you love to do, and help our fundraising at the same time. Hurry, Entertainment Memberships sell out quickly. “OLG Run for Fun” is a free running club where kids of all ages and fitness levels can come together before school to run and exercise in a positive and supportive environment. Parents and grandparents are encouraged to run with the kids and have fun. We all know running is a great way to get fit, but it offers so much more. Kids who exercise in the morning are generally more engaged and focused during lesson time. Running clubs enable kids to build friendships and have fun. Running builds healthy hearts and minds and brings joy to children. OLG Run for Fun is run by volunteer parents each Tuesday and Thursday morning during school terms and has now commenced. The more parents, the more fun! OLG Run for Fun will include some warm up activities and games and there will be a couple of running courses, of different lengths, around Charles Riley Reserve to suit different ages and fitness levels. There will be no free breakfast or awards - it’s just for fun. As the club is run by volunteer parents, students in Year 3 or below must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to ensure adequate supervision. A permission slip for all students must be completed before your child can participate. Permission slips will be available for signing at the first session your child chooses to attend. Days: Every Tuesday and Thursday morning The body achieves what the mind believes. Entertainment Books Now is the perfect time to order a NEW 2018 | 2019 Entertainment Membership because, for a limited time, you’ll receive over $180 of valuable Early Bird Offers you can use over the school holidays! Here are some valuable Early Bird Offers you can use over the school holidays! Our Lady of Grace North Beach SACRAMENTAL PROGRAMME CONFIRMATION - 26th/27th MAY On the weekend please arrive 20 mins before your mass in order to collect your Confirmation Card, pin, booklet and find your seat. These can be collected from the table at the back of the church. Everyone needs to be seated 5 mins before mass begins. Reserved seating is for the children and their sponsor. All other family members will need to sit elsewhere in the church. Due to the large number of candidates being confirmed please be aware that the mass may be about 30 mins. longer. On Saturday at the 6 pm mass, 44 candidates will be confirmed and at the Sunday mass at 9.30, 36 candidates will be confirmed. Please remember these children and their families in your prayers during the coming week. Sacramental Timetable - click here WEEKEND MASS TIMES DAILY MASS TIMES
Centre for Faith Enrichment - Are you searching for ways to enrich your understanding of the Catholic faith and tradition? Would you like to find out more about a particular sacrament which your child may be receiving? Then the Centre for Faith Enrichment is for you! We offer a wide range of face-to-face and online courses and events on topics ranging from spirituality, Church history, theology, scripture, Christian living and much more. No exams or assignments, just a relaxed and friendly learning atmosphere. To know more visit our website www.cfe.org.au where you will find our courses and events page and explore our new sacraments website. At Nutrition Force, we are seeing an increasing number of children for eating disorders and I wrote this article in response to a story I read on Humans of New York. I really want to reach out to families to remind them of the importance of communication at the dinner table and including children in the planning and preparation of family meals. Here is the link to the article http://nutritionforce.com.au/nourish-your-family/ We are also seeing more families with food insecurity so have reached out to some charities to link them with those who need help providing fresh food for their children. If any of your families could benefit from food assistance please feel free to pass them my personal details and I will direct them to the closest charity where food hampers and vouchers can be arranged on a regular basis. Relationships Australia Courses WEST LEEDERVILLE: · Mums Raising Boys (up to 12 years) Thursday, 31 May 10am – 12.30pm $30 more… · Understanding Stepfamilies w/end Fri/Sat/Sun 8 9 10 June 6.30 – 9pm/1 – 5 .30pm/10am – 1pm $75/$120 more… · Rock & Water Saturday, 9 June 8.30am – 12.30pm $70 pair more… · Parenting After Separation Tuesday, 19 June 6.30 – 9pm $30 more… · Successful Single Parenting Monday, 25 June 6.30 – 9pm $30 more… · Dads Raising Teenage Girls Monday, 25 June 6.30 – 9pm $30 more… MIDLAND: · Survival Kit for Separating Dads Tuesday, 26 June 6.30 – 9pm $30 more… WAAPA Winter School 2018 WAAPA at ECU is offering an exciting performing arts program for children and young people these July school holidays. For the first time, we are including courses for students from Years 1 to 12. The Winter School includes classes in drama, acting, screen acting, dance, musical theatre and RAP. For information about the many courses on offer please visit Winter School or contact Gabrielle Metcalf at g.metcalf@ecu.edu.au or 9370 6775.
We acknowledge the original custodians of this land, the Nyungar people, and show our respect for their ancestors and traditions. Our Lady of Grace School |