Newsletter No. 27 | Term 3 Week 9 | Thursday 8th September 2022
Prayer
Lord,
We pray for everyone who is not ok.
Help them to know that there are people who care.
Help us to respond to their needs
with open and compassionate hearts.
This we pray.
AMEN
Principal's Message
Dear Families and Friends,
Today is RUOK Day. RUOK Day is a National Day of action when we are reminded that every day is the day to ask ‘are you ok?’. It reminds us to take the focus of ourselves and start a meaningful conversation with someone around us who we notice may be struggling in some way.
At St. Brendan’s, it is important to us that all children feel safe and know that they belong. On RUOK day we show the children four steps for starting conversations and supporting our schoolmates who we notice may be feeling a bit down. We remind the children that it is important to let people know that we care about them.
Never be afraid to speak to those who you feel are in need.
Always remember the power of the simple smile,
A helping hand, a listening ear and a kind word.
Thomas Carr Country Campus Family Day
On Sunday, Thomas Carr will be hosting their Open Day. It is exciting to be welcoming visitors from Thomas Carr to Coragulac and very special to be celebrating Mass with them. The last time that this happened was before my time at St. Brendan’s, but I have been told many times how amazing the school choir is, it will definitely be worth coming along for a listen.
The choir will be singing at Mass which begins at 11am. This will be followed by an Open Day at the Good Samaritan Campus. All families are invited to come along and join in the festivities. Attractions include a Petting Zoo, College Choir Performance, Food Vans, Stalls, Archery Activities as well as Historical Tours of the Good Samaritan Campus and Tours of Red Rock. Hopefully you have the opportunity to come along to the Day. It should be a wonderful celebration.
Cake Stall
Thomas Carr have invited us to run a cake stall on the day, with all profits going to St. Brendan’s school. Thank you to families and parish members who have offered to make some baked goods for the stall. On the day, please drop the cakes to the school between 10.30 and 11.00am or directly to the cake stall on the oval after 12.
I will be manning the cake stall. If there is anybody who would like to help out just let me know.
Bush Excursion
We are looking forward to our Bush Excursion to Lake Elizabeth tomorrow. A reminder that children will be making salad wraps for lunch. If this will not be something that they would eat please send a packed lunch with your child.
The possibility of rain has been forecast for Friday so please make sure that your child has a coat. A spare set of dry clothes might also be handy.
Footy Gate - Thank You!
A BIG thank you to everybody who offered to help out with the footy gate fundraiser. Through the generosity of your time, we were able to raise $2000 for the school. I would like to especially thank Pat O'Shea, a member of the Parish Committee, who generously dontated his time on each of the three weekends. We really appreciate your help Pat. Thank you!
Lastly, another big thank you to Mark Robb for coordinating the event. Mark has said that we have been offered the chance to do the gate again next year so that’s great news for the school.
Rotary Club School Visit
Over a number of years Trish Hickey from the Colac Rotary Club has made an annual visit to St. Brendan’s to read stories to the Prep/1 students. This year Trish read three stories and the students each voted on their favourite story. The Rotary Club is ordering the books chosen by the students and generously giving each child a book as a gift. We thank Trish for taking the time to read to our students and the Rotary club for their generous donation. The children are excited about receiving their books. The most popular book of Choice was “Don’t Forget’ by Jane Godwin.
Trinity Band
Unfortunately the visit from the Trinity Band was postponed due to Covid restrictions. The Trinity Band will be re-scheduled to visit us in Term Four. We look forward to seeing them then.
Sport
This week the Year 3-6 students rode their bikes down to the Cororooke Tennis Courts for Sport. We are fortunate to have the tennis courts close by and it was clear that the children enjoyed the experience. Thanks to Kate Parker for providing this opportunity for our students.
I hope everyone is going ok. There is always a listening ear here if you need. Have a great weekend.
Leanne Eastman
principal@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au
Student News
S.T.E.M. Projects
On Wednesday mornings we are studying STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). For our STEM Unit we are creating expanding books. These books will be full of information about places that families can go within the Colac & District that are fun for families and free. Our completed books will then be given to Fr. Michael who will gift them to new families from overseas who come to Colac to live. We hope that our books will help these families settle into Colac and get to know all of the wonderful things to see and do in our district.
During the holidays we would love if you ask your child to explain to you the place or activity they have chosen to write their book about and then visit that place as a family to assist your child in taking a photo there. For example your child may have chosen the playground at the Alvie Recreaction Reserve, the Botanical Gardens, the Colac Library or Meredith Park. If your child has chosen somewhere that is further afield such as the Redwoods or the Torquay beach there is absoloutly no expection for your family to travel that far and we will help these students find a photo of their activity online that they can use.
As the books will be gifted to members of the general community we would recommend that your child is not in the photo that you take, unless you would like to get creative and just have the back of their head in the photo or them looking away from the camera, something along those lines. Please email your photos to either kparker@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au (Grades 4/5/6) or lmcguane@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au (Grades P/1/2/3).
With thanks,
Liz & Kate.
Mobile Library - Overdue Book
We are fortunate to have the mobile library visit St Brendan's each fortnight which gives us an opportunity to borrow a wide variety of books not available in our school library. Generally we leave these borrowed books in the classrooms so we can ensure they are returned the following fortnight but earlier in the term a few of these books crept home in school bags, this has meant one of the books is now overdue and we don't have a record of which student borrowed it.
The book is called "The Palomino Pony Steals the Show" and we are wondering if families could please have a good look through their shelves at home and see if they have it somewhere? If you find it please return it to the school office. Thank you.
SchoolTV
In this edition of SchoolTV - SCHOOL TRANSITIONS
As we quickly approach the final term of the year we are starting to think about 2023 transitions. Whether it is starting school for the first time, moving up to a higher grade or embarking on a journey through to secondary school, there is no doubt that any school transition is a very exciting time for children and parents. It means your children are growing up!
However, transitioning is an ongoing process. It can continue long after students have entered their new environment and may encounter difficulties at a number of different stages. These stressors may appear as anxiety and frustration and result in negative or disruptive behaviours. Such behaviours can become problematic making the transitioning process even more difficult for children and parents.
In this edition of SchoolTV, parents will learn practical strategies to assist your child during the transition process and reduce stress and anxiety levels.
We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this edition of SchoolTV and we always welcome your feedback. If you have any concerns about your child, please contact the school counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Here is the link to the School Transitions edition of SchoolTV
https://sbcoragulac.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/school-transitions
Prep/1 Classroom News
Week 9
The end of Term is fast approaching. The Prep/1’s have been working hard in the classroom and been producing some incredible work.
Literacy: This week students put their writing skills (and imaginations) to the test when they wrote their very own procedure titled, “How to Make a Disgusting Sandwich.” There were some truly awful recipes containing exceptionally vile ingredients. They did a wonderful job.
Maths: This week we have continued learning about time. A highlight was making our own analogue clocks using paper plates. Students were required to write the clock numbers in the correct positions and then read and make various on-the-hour and half-past times.
Religion: We have been learning about the Baptism of Jesus in Religion. After hearing the story enacted through Godly Play, the Prep/1’s then had the chance to don colourful costumes and act out the account. They have also been considering the symbol of the dove and creating artworks containing this special symbol.
Integrated Curriculum: To summarise our Integrated learning in two words, I would say: bubbles and rocks. This week, students thoroughly enjoyed exploring the properties of bubbles through a hands-on investigation. They completed a scientific report on the effect of adding glycerine to bubble mix. The Prep/1’s have also developed a keen fascination with rocks. They have been collecting them from the yard and bringing them in from home. As a result, we have set up a ‘rock station’ in our classroom equipped with magnifying glasses, scales and a wash basin to further explore our earthy findings.
Allira Kluver
akluver@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au
2/3/4 Classroom News
Welcome to Week 9.
It is hard to believe we have only week to go until holidays!
Portfolios will be sent home the last day of term for you to view some of the work completed during Term 3.
Literacy: In Literacy we have been revising our spelling words using strategies from our visit to Camperdown where we looked at the Sounds Write program. The children have really enjoyed doing this and have been totally engaged in the activities.
Writing: We have been revisiting inferencing and creating inference riddles in writing with great success.
Religion: In R.E. we have been working on our Portfolio sample and investigating the qualities that Jesus possessed.
Maths: In Maths this week we have been working out the amount of time between events and investigating and comparing right angles, acute angles and obtuse angles.
Homework: Homework has been sent out with new spelling words to learn and basic mathematical skills to practice.
Integrated Curriculum: In Integrated Curriculum the class conducted an experiment focused on force. They created a catapult and used different items to see how far they could launch them. There was lots of excitement and friendly competitiveness as they aimed to get the longest distance.
A few reflections from the experiment were:
"Hold the sticks in the centre then angle the spoon and it goes further."
"Put your finger on the spoon and it will launch further."
"Different angles make it go to different places."
"If you take out the 6 sticks it will launch further."
"Using smaller spoons make the object goes further."
Some photos of the experiment are below.
NAPLAN results have arrived at school so parents can collect them from me at a time that is convenient.
The Star of the Week award goes to Ava D’Altera. Congratulations on your excellent work and effort!
Cheers,
Mandy Sutherland
msutherland@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au
5/6 Classroom News
Welcome to Week 9 of Term 3! One more week of Term 3 to go!
NAPLAN: Our NAPLAN results have arrived. Can Year 5 parents please come and see me before or after school to collect them, thank you!
Plastic bottle lids: One week left! If you could please remember to collect milk, soft drink and water lids we would appreciate it. There is a Lids4Kids box near Gracesyn’s office.
Writing: This week in Writing we have been creating our multimodal advertisements (magazine poster, audio and video advertisement). Take a look below at our awesome products!
Maths: In Maths we have been working on our Measurement learning cycle and have been learning how to calculate the area of shapes. Year 5 students are calculating the area of squares and rectangles and Year 6 students are calculating the area of triangles and compound shapes.
Religion: This week in Religion we have been focusing on the Catholic Social Teaching: The Common Good. Students identified someone from school, home and in the community who promotes the Common Good and how they do this. Here are some of our examples:
“Jimmy promotes the common good because he shares things with me and is kind to me” - Joe
“My mum promotes the common good because she cooks me food so I don’t starve and she helps people get better at the hospital” - Abbey
“My neighbours promote the common good because when we’re sick they bring us food or groceries” - Davina
Integrated Curriculum: This week in Integrated Curriculum we have been creating slideshows to present our experiment findings. We have been practising typing and learning how to insert pictures and videos. Keep an eye out on SeeSaw to see our finished presentations!
I hope you all have a great week, please don’t hesitate to email me if you have any questions or concerns.
Tahlia Whytcross
twhytcross@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au
Important Dates
SEPTEMBER
9th - Whole School Bush Excursion to Lake Elizabeth
11th - Thomas Carr Open Day: Mass 11am (St Brendan's Bake Stall 12pm - 2pm)
14th - 3/4 & 5/6 Tennis Excursion to the Cororooke Tennis Courts
14th - Division Basketball at Colac West for selected students
16th - Final Day of Term 3 Early Finish at 2.15pm
23rd - AFL Grand Final Eve Public Holiday
OCTOBER
2nd - Daylight Savings Time Begins
3rd - Term 3 Begins
10th - Advisory Council Meeting
14th - Swimming Session 1 (12 - 1pm)
18th - Cororooke Open Space AGM
21st - Swimming Session 2 (12 - 1pm)
26th - Warrion Flower Show
28th - Geelong Cats 'Healthy Heroes' Session
28th - Swimming Session 3 (12 - 1pm)
31st - School Closure Day
NOVEMBER
1st - Melbourne Cup Public Holiday
4th - Swimming Session 4 (12 - 1pm)
11th - Remembrance Day
11th - Swimming Session 5 - Final Session (12 - 1pm)
18th - Mission Day
DECEMBER
13th - Wide Smiles Dental Visit
16th - Last Day of Term for Students
Acknowledgement of Country
At St. Brendan’s Primary School we pay our respects to the traditional owners of the land, the Gulidjan people and pay our respect to their Elders past, present and emerging.
We will respect the land, animals and waterways, from the roots of the earth to the tops of the trees. Through the example of our first Australians, we understand that if we look after the country, then the country will look after us.
About Us
School Vision: 'For you I have a destiny and a hope.'
PARISH PRIEST: Fr Michael O’Toole PRINCIPAL: Mrs Leanne Eastman
SAC CHAIRPERSON: Ms Gayle McNabb CHILD SAFETY OFFICER: Mrs Leanne Eastman