Newsletter No. 6 | Term 1 Week 6 | Thursday 9th March 2023
Principal's Message
Dear Families and Friends,
Last week our Prep students attended school on a Wednesday for the first time this year. They were able to take part in our Specialist classes and, as the Preps have done with everything so far, they took it all in their stride. The smiles on their faces and their positive comments at the end of the day said it all. Wednesday Specialist classes are much loved by our students and it looks like the Preps are no exception!
Whilst children enjoyed a day at home last Thursday, our staff joined Sacred Heart staff for a Professional Development day focused on the Maths proficiencies: Reasoning, Problem Solving, Fluency and Understanding. The day was presented by Michael Minas, an extremely knowledgeable and engaging presenter.
During our first warm-up activity of the day, Michael asked the question:
‘In what year did the first female mathematician win the Fields Medal’ (a medal awarded for outstanding achievement in Mathematics)?
We were required to work with a partner to reason our way through the problem. It led to some interesting discussion, and in light of yesterday being International Women’s Day, the answer was also very interesting. I won’t give away the answer but you may want to have a guess and then see for yourself.
Michael teaches Maths in a way that encourages students to think deeply about Mathematics and also articulate their learning. He engages students in their learning through games which make Maths fun. You can check out some of the games on Michael’s website: https://www.lovemaths.me/about Maybe you can try some of the games at home, guaranteed fun for all the family!
Some comments from staff included:
- It was exciting to see that enthusiasm and excitement for Maths might be built through the use of games and problem-solving.
- Conversation and talk should be encouraged in the Maths classroom - we are social creatures and learn through discussion with peers
- I found the warm-ups, games and challenges engaging and stimulating. I could see the students being really motivated by learning in this way.
- To remember that kids can surprise us with their understanding, and to keep in mind, and ensure, that girls feel equally able and empowered in the mathematical domain.
We keep Rita Winter in our prayers. Rita passed away last week and was a strong supporter of our school, she regularly shared resources with us when we had special events happening. Rita was especially passionate about the Melbourne Cup and supplied lots of decorations for our Cup visit last year. We are thinking of her family; daughter Trish and granddaughters Gemma and Jacqueline at this difficult time.
Warm Regards,
Leanne Eastman
principal@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au
LONG WEEKEND
A reminder that next Monday, 13th March is a long weekend.
We will see you all at School on Tuesday.
SPORTS DAY
School sports is happening next Wednesday and we would love some parent helpers!
Our School Sports will be held next Wednesday, 15th March, beginning at 9.30am. This is an exciting event on the school calendar. It is always great that we can have families, extended families, friends and ex-students some along to join in the fun.
A barbeque lunch will be provided.
We hope to see you there!
Parent helpers needed for:
- Setting up for the barbeque, scorers table, etc. (9am)
- Cooking the barbeque. (12-1pm)
- Any help would be greatly appreciated. If you are able to offer assistance please contact Gracesyn or Leanne.
**A BIG thank you to Mark Robb who has marked out the lanes and will be addding the final touches on the long weekend. We really appreciate you helping us out Mark!
HARMONY DAY
Harmony Week is the celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from all different backgrounds.
It’s about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone.
Harmony Day is technically celebrated on Tuesday, 21st March.
As the 5/6s are on Camp at this time, we will be celebrating on Thursday, March 23rd.
There will be a special Assembly at 2.30 and everyone is encouraged to wear a touch of orange. All Welcome
CLEAN UP AUSTRALIA DAY
On Friday, students participated in Clean Up Australia Day. In our classrooms, students discussed and learnt about the ways in which it is important to care for our environment and how correctly disposing of items also benefits our environment.
Students and staff worked together to clean up the school. We discussed the types of rubbish we found in our environment and why it is important for us to dispose of rubbish responsibly. Litter has an effect on the physical environment, as well as on the animals and birds in our environment.
Of course, Australia's environmental challenges can't be solved in just one day, however, this is one step to providing education and practical experience for our students in the simple things we can all do to care for the amazing place we live in.
KANA
KANA is fast approaching!
There will be a meeting tonight (9th March) at 3pm. There is a fair bit to organise and only 10 days left to get sorted. We hope to see some of you at the meeting.
If we all share our ideas and talents we should be able to put something pretty impressive together!
HAY BALES WANTED: If you can access some hay bales for us to use on the truck it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Please remember to RSVP on PAM if you can or cannot be apart of the KANA Parade on the day.
TENNIS
On Thursday, Brennan, Jimmy, Joe and Lexie took part in the Colac Primary Schools Tennis Competition. For children who had very little experience playing tennis, they did amazingly well. Well done to you all for giving it a go and showing great improvement and great sportsmanship throughout the day!
NAPLAN
NAPLAN testing will be undertaken a lot earlier this year. The testing window is between the dates, 13th - 25th March.
NAPLAN testing is for students in Year 3 and Year 5. The Test dates for St. Brendan’s are as follows:
- Writing: Thursday 16th March at 10am
- Reading: Friday 17th March at 10am
- Language Conventions: Thursday 23rd March at 10am
- Numeracy: Friday 24th March at 11.30am
If you have any questions about the testing please see Leanne.
SWIMMING
A reminder that our fourth swimming lesson is taking place tomorrow at Bluewater Fitness Centre in Colac from 1.30pm until 2.30pm. Please remember pack a swimming bag and extra water.
SUSTAINABILITY
A reminder that we are collecting plastic bottle lids. We will be using them to create an artwork to brighten up our school environment.
We are also collecting plastic bread tags. The tags will be donated to Aussie Bread tags for Wheelchairs who sell them to specialist recyclers and then tun the cash into wheelchairs for people who can’t afford them. It takes around 200kg of plastic tags to fund a wheelchair.
CHILD SAFETY
The eSafety Commissioner has some great short videos about online safety for families. They cover topics such as ‘helping your family stay safe online’. ‘getting started with social media’ and ‘safer online gaming’. The link is here if you would like to give them a watch.
The updated Child Safe Standards (eleven in total) came into effect in July last year and are a vital part of what we do here at Brendan’s. More information about these standards can be found here:
Catholic Culture
What is Project Compassion?
Project Compassion is Caritas Australia’s main annual fundraising campaign. It mobilises Australians to raise much-needed funds to help alleviate poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity in the most vulnerable and marginalised communities in the world.
Held during Lent, the six-week period before Easter, Catholic schools, Parishes, and the wider Australian public participate in a diverse range of fundraising activities and events to support Caritas Australia’s programs both overseas and here with our First Australian partners.
The theme of Project Compassion is For All Future Generations. This year, we focus on the stories of four remarkable, resilient people from Nepal, Australia, Zimbabwe and Vietnam.
Prep/1 Classroom News
Welcome to another week! We’ve been working hard in the Prep/1 room.
Literacy: For writing, we’ve been exploring the focus text, “The Three Wishes.” This story was a hit with the children for several reasons. The characters are exciting and there’s lots of funny moments along the way. We’ve been using the story as inspiration when practising sentence writing. Students are doing a wonderful job of identifying the different parts of a sentence as well as sentence punctuation.
Word work: Grade 1’s are learning the four most common spellings of /ee/ like in tree. These are <ee> <e> <y> and <ea>. The Preps are working on the letters b, c, g and h this week. They have been reading and writing 3-letter words containing these sounds.
Maths: Last week, the teaching staff were lucky enough to attend a PD day with Michael Minas. Throughout the day, we learnt a range of strategies, games and activities we can use to enhance Maths teaching. This week in class, we have been playing some of those games as well as tackling some problem-solving.
Religion: Students considered the ritual of ‘The Sign of the Cross’ this week and how it is used to begin and conclude prayer. They also learnt about the use of prayer as means of communicating with God.
Integrated Curriculum: Our theme of ‘Community’ led us to explore the different people who make up our school community this week. Students identified all the teaching staff and their roles. Over the next few weeks, we will begin to explore other people within the wider community and how they contribute to society.
Keep up the home reading!
Allira Kluver
akluver@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au
4/5/6 Classroom News
Welcome to Week 6 of Term 1! We have had a busy couple of weeks! Thank you to everyone who made it to the Parent Information Night, it was fantastic to see you all.
Homework: A reminder that homework is due back on Friday 10th March.
Spelling: In Spelling Year 4 students have been working on common homophones and Year 5/6 students have been working on the digraph /ti/.
Maths: In Maths we have been working on Geometry. All students have been revising different types of angles. Year 4 and 5 students have been using 180 degree protractors to measure and create angles and Year 6 students have been using 360 degree protractors to measure and create angles.
Writing: This week we have been finishing our narratives. Most students have been writing a good copy and then typing their narrative on their Chromebooks.
Religion: This week in Religion we have been getting ready for our liturgy based on the theme ‘Commitment’. We are presenting our liturgy on Thursday afternoon, all welcome.
Integrated Curriculum: In Integrated Curriculum we have been learning about elections, leaders and followers and how laws are created. While learning about elections we held our own mini election and voted for a class game.
The Resilience Project: In the Resilience Project we have been focusing on Character Strengths. Students discussed different character strengths and then created a personal logo that represents their strengths.
Have a great week and please don’t hesitate to email me if you have any questions or concerns.
Tahlia Whytcross
twhytcross@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au
School Photos
Annual school photos including sibling photos will be taken by Arthur Reed Photos on
Friday 24th March 2023
There is no need to return any forms or money to school.
Unique image codes will be issued to all students on/after photo day so families can register online to view images when they become available in the webshop.
Registration is simple, just follow the 3 simple steps on your child’s personalised flyer once you receive it and remember to add the codes for all your children attending this school.
Even if you registered last year, it’s important that you do again this year using your child’s 2023 image code to link their images for the current year with your contact details.
When images are ready to view and in the webshop, all parents who have registered will be notified by SMS and email.
Once registered, please wait for notification that 2023 images are online to view before making your purchase.
ORDERING PHOTOS
We understand that last year there was some confusion when ordering photos around what packages were available and if individual photos could be ordered instead of packages.
We have been assured there are many ordering options available that definitly allow families to purchase individual photos in whichever combinations they prefer.
If you find yourself faced with the same issues when ordering this year please pop in to the office and we will work with you to order the photos that you would like, without making you feel as though a package is the only way to go.
Important Dates
MARCH
10th - Swimming 1-3pm
13th - Labour Day Public Holiday (No School)
15th - School Sports Day (ALL Welcome)
17th - Swimming 1-3pm
18th - KANA Festival in Colac
20th - 22nd - 5/6 Sovereign Hill Camp
24th - School Photo Day
27th - School Advisory Council Meeting 7pm
APRIL
5th - Whole School Bush Excursion
6th - Last Day of the School Term
7th - Good Friday (Public Holiday)
8th - Easter Saturday
9th - Easter Sunday
10th - Easter Monday (Public Holiday)
24th - Pupil Free Day (Staff AUSLAN PD)
25th - ANZAC Day (Public Holiday)
26th - Term 2 Begins
COLLEGE OPEN DAYS
Trinity College and Colac Secondary College both have upcoming Open Days for prospective new students. This is an excellent opportunity to have a close look at both schools and the fantastic things they have on offer. If you are unable to make either day please contact the schools to arrange a private appointment.
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: Mark Robb CHILD SAFETY OFFICER: Mrs Leanne Eastman