St Paul's Catholic Primary School Newsletter 2022 Term 1, Week 6

Principal's Message

Dear St Paul's families,

This week we celebrated International Women’s Day – a day to acknowledge the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. We still live in a society where many men dominate roles that hold power or require wide-spread decision-making. We need to encourage our young women and our girls so that they feel empowered to achieve their dreams. I love that many of our girls here at St Paul’s are not yet aware that they will face these challenges in their teenage years and adult lives and I pray for the day when their gender will not restrict them. 

As a Catholic school, this is also a time to reflect on the role women played in the scriptures. We often think that due to the biblical era, women were not considered an important part of daily life. But take Phoebe for an example – she was named as a deacon in the bible. There were possibly many more female deacons during that time period. In fact, women were an extremely an important part in Jesus’ life and it was the women, his mother Mary, his friend Mary Magdalene and one (or two –depending on which gospel account you read) other female friend who are named as discovering and sharing the news the empty tomb!  In the Catholic tradition also we place great emphasis on the role of Mary (mother of Jesus) and she is a fine example of courage and unconditional love. 

So, this week, give thanks to an inspirational woman in your life! To all the women who make our St Paul’s Community, a wonderful place to be – thank you. Give yourselves a pat on the back for all that you have achieved and for those you have inspired.

And in case you’re wondering, yes, we also celebrate International Men’s Day on November 19^th. 

May the spirit of Jesus fill your hearts, 

Ms Megan Evans

Upcoming Events

RE NEWS

Dear Families,

We have begun our Lenten journey and students are involved in activities that explore the important days of Holy Week.  Lent is a time of prayer, fasting and good works which strengthens our relationship with God. We will have a free-dress day on Friday, week 9 to raise money for missions and to celebrate Harmony Day.  Students may wear traditional cultural dress and donate a gold coin.  

A number of students have begun their sacramental journey and will celebrate the sacrament of Reconciliation on 29^th March.  There is still time for those wishing to enroll in the sacramental program.  Please email Dee for further information:  dee.cois@nt.catholic.edu.au

The MJR focus for this week is having an Attitude of Gratitude which reminds us that we are in charge of our attitude.  It is alright to feel hurt or discouraged when things go wrong for us.  How we react to these things is the most important.  Focussing on the positive things in our lives will help us realise how fortunate we are. Happy people are thankful for what they have.  

I invite you to pray this lovely prayer that Fr John provided at last week’s Mass.

A Prayer for Ukraine

Gracious God, we pray for the people of Ukraine suffering from war.

May they be held in your loving care and protection and given the strength to endure their suffering and hardship.

Transform the hearts and minds of those who perpetuate violence and oppression.Grant wisdom to world leaders in advancing efforts towards peace;

May they not be compromised by self-interest and blind indifference.We ask all this through the intercession of Our Lady of Perpetual Help

And in the name of your Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, now and forever.

Amen.  

Classroom News ROOM 13

Kids News

OSHC & ELC NEWS

The ELC is calling for empty tins!

Please donate any empty coffee or baby formula tins to the ELC - any size is helpful :)

School Counselling Program

Hi, my name is Sarah and I am the School Counsellor from CatholicCare NT. I am located St Paul’s Catholic Primary School one day a week on Wednesdays and I'm here to provide students with support and emotional well-being. Through the School Counselling Program during a counselling session I conduct Child Centred Play Therapy modality which is a developmentally appropriate, evidenced based, therapeutic intervention for school aged children from 3-11 years old. This approach is based on the belief that "play is therapy" for children, like when adults talk through their problems to solve them, here children play through their problems to solve them.  

What is Play Therapy?

Play therapy builds on the child’s inner resources and strengths, which are supported by the therapeutic relationship to bring about growth, development and healing in the child. Play therapy helps children develop confidence and positive self-esteem, find healthier ways of communicating and can promote resilience and coping, in ways that are appropriate to their developmental stage.  

Here are some of the following referral reasons that your child may be struggling with and that Play Therapy can be an effective therapeutic approach by referring to the School Counselling Program; divorce & separation of parents, anxiety & depression, low self-esteem & self-confidence, social difficulties, angry & aggressive behaviour, trauma & abuse, grief & loss, autism spectrum disorder, attachment issues… and more… 

Play therapy is a gentle intervention that provides a safe and secure space for children to process their thoughts, feelings, and experiences through their first and most natural language; play! 

Referrals can be made through completing the form below and sending to admin.stpauls@nt.catholic.edu.au

General Information/News

OFFICE HOURS:

The school office is open 7:50am to 3:30pm Monday to Friday during term time. 

LOST PROPERTY: Please check the names on your children's hats and other property as we have discovered that children are accidentally taking other children's belongings home.

SCHOOL UNIFORMS:

Green Polos, Sport Polos, Shorts and hats are available to purchase and there are plenty in stock!

There is currently no need to make an appointment, families can come in anytime during office hours.

Unfortunately we are still waiting on a delivery date for our Culottes (skorts) and Formal Shirt orders. Thank you for your patience with this.

The school office is open Monday to Friday 8am to 3:30pm.

UNIFORM CARE INSTRUCTIONS:

Washing:

• Wash Sport Polos inside out to aid in damage prevention from other items in load
• Wash colored and white garments separately
• Use cold water
• Use a mild soap or detergent
• Remove garments from washer promptly

Drying:

• Hang dry on wooden or plastic hangers (strongly recommended)
• If machine dried, set for AIR or Low heat ONLY
• Remove promptly when cycle is completed

DO NOT:

• DO NOT use metal hangers, they may leave rust marks
• DO NOT wash in hot water
• DO NOT iron
• DO NOT dry clean
• DO NOT use chlorine bleach or a bleach substitute
• DO NOT use a fabric softener, i.e. Downy, Woolite, on MXS Moisture – Management Garments – it reduces wicking properties.

SCHOOL FEES: Families will be invoiced for school fees via email during approximately Week 5 of Term 1. If you do not receive your invoice by Term 2 or there are any issues please email finance.stpauls@nt.catholic.edu.au

When paying fees please ensure you include a reference for what the payment is for, either 'School Fees', 'OSHC Fees' or 'ELC fees' in the name.

SIBLING DISCOUNT: If you have more than 1 child studying at a Catholic School in the NT, you will be eligible for a sibling discount. Please contact finance.stpauls@nt.catholic.edu.au to inform our finance team of which schools your other children attend.

PARENT CONTACT DETAILS: Please advise the office of any changes to your contact details. This includes phone numbers, address details and emails. Please also keep all information up to date on Operoo. It is vitally important that we have the correct contact number in view of any emergency. Thank you for your assistance in this area.  

SCHOOL START TIMES:

Please do not drop your children at school before 7:45am

(school gates open 7:45am) as they are unsupervised until this time. We request that families drop their children off at school as close to 8am as possible.  Should you arrive prior to this time please wait with your child until the school gates open. 

PICKING UP CHILDREN at the end of the school day:   School finishes at 2.35pm and children must be picked up from steps within the school ground or at the express carpark lane which is supervised by a teacher. Any students not picked up by 3.00pm will be sent to our Outside of School Hours Care (OSHC) located on the school grounds and families will be charged. Our OSHC operates from 2.45pm to 5.30pm every day. We ask that all parents/carers who will be picking up their child from school please wait in the area outside the office and staffroom.

CARPARK PICK-UP: In an effort to move the traffic along more quickly and freely we ask that parents safely follow the appropriate procedures.  Should you need to get out and buckle your child in—we ask that you use the car spaces available to do so and not the pick up area. 

 LUNCHES:  Lunch boxes are taken to the coolroom each morning between 8.15 and 8.30am.  It is important to be at school on time for the smooth running of this program and it is important that all recess and lunch boxes are labelled with your child’s name and Room No.

CANTEEN INFORMATION: 

The Canteen will provide recess and lunch through quickcliq.com.au (account set up required).

It seems that some children are choosing not to eat food brought from home and are instead requesting snacks and food from the canteen. Please note that families will be invoiced for this so please ensure your child is aware of what food is packed for them each day and that all food is labelled clearly (including packets of snack foods as it is confusing when children have the same snacks).

OSHC INFORMATION:

Public Holidays: As per prescribed policies and procedures, if a child’s booked day falls on a Public Holiday (when the centre is closed), families will still be charged as per normal for this day. This allows businesses to pay staff whom are scheduled to work on public holidays as is required by Fair Work. 

Absences: OSHC absences require written notice to admin.stpauls@nt.catholic.edu.au by at least 8:30am on the day of absence, if this written notification is not received by 8:30am the daily fee will still be charged. This also aligns with the procedures of other schools and services in the area. If a child goes home sick from school during the day, families will still be charged their regular daily fee for that child. This is to accommodate the pressures associated with staffing, resource and catering arrangements. The government entitles each child to 42 allowable absences per year (inclusive of public holidays) before it affects the Child Care Subsidy (CCS). These days can be used as holidays, sick days or just days off.Please also note that written notification is also required at least 2 weeks in advance of the last day of care prior to a planned absence of 3 days or more. We ask this as it is required to assist with staffing, resource and catering arrangements. When no notice has been given, parents will be charged. For this reason we would also like to remind families that as per our policy, payment of all accounts should be maintained two weeks in advance.

Casual Days: From the start of 2022 we are implementing some changes to help with the strain on the OSHC team when last minute changes occur. We ask that families give the OSHC team at least 24 hours notice when booking children into OSHC for casual days. We would also like to note that families will be charged the casual rate of $30 for these days regardless if they have other regular booking days.

Late Fee: Please be reminded that a late fee of $2.50/min for each minute that a child is picked up after 5:30pm.

Fee Payment Reference: When paying fees please ensure you include a reference for what the payment is for, e.g. 'OSHC Fees' so we can promptly assign your payment to your OSHC account.Please do not hesitate to contact us should you have any questions or concerns.

INSTRUMENTAL LESSONS: Instrumental lessons will take place again this year with Andrew Arthur, Violin lessons with Kirsty McCullum and Woodwind lessons with Eliza Tobin.  Instrumental lessons will take place each Friday and Violin lessons each Wednesday during school hours.  Contact details for Andrew are – dapa@live.com.au 0428153355 and Kirsty McCullum-  kirstymac@bigpond.com and Eliza Tobin for Woodwind lessons - elizatobin@hotmail.com.

BOOK CLUB ORDERS: Book Club orders are sent out from Scholastic through the school twice per term.   We use the “LOOP” system which means online ordering only.  For more information on how to do this please see the link below www.scholastic.com.au/LOOP

Please remember to use your child’s classroom number when ordering.

SCHOOL DENTIST:  St Paul’s does not have on onsite dental clinic, however you can use the Dental Clinic at Nightcliff Primary school. Parents are asked to contact the clinic on 89226466 to arrange an appointment. Parents are to accompany their child to the appointment. There is no charge for this service and it is highly recommended that children’s teeth should be regularly checked. This also includes pre-school children.  

Community Flyers

Over the next few weeks,

parents of 2-10 year old children with eczema are able to access Healthy Living Triple P  FREE OF CHARGE

as part of a research project through the Queensland Children’s Hospital, Griffith University, and the University of Queensland. For more information, please visit us at https://exp.psy.uq.edu.au/eczema/, contact Dr Amy Mitchell on 0401 512 035, or email healthyliving@uq.edu.au.