St Canice's Primary School Newsletter

18th May 2022 Term 2 Week 4

Address: 158 Katoomba Street Katoomba

Phone:     4780 6800

Email:    stcanices@parra.catholic.edu.au

Website: stcaniceskatoomba.catholic.edu.au

Facebook: St Canice’s School Katoomba

 

A Message from Ms Miriam

Dear Parents, Carers and Members of the St Canice’s Community,

Welcome back sunshine! It is a great lift for us all to have the brisk bright days of late Autumn to enjoy. Long may they last.

My thanks to Mrs Wedesweiler and Ms Morley for the enthusiasm and energy they bring to our community around actively living and loving our faith. Our Chalk Day today, Bubbles Day in Week 6 and Pyjama Day in Week 7 are opportunities for our Mini Vinnies members at St Canice’s to support St Vincent de Paul by helping all to think of those people in our Katoomba community with few options. I would love to think that the children themselves make the $5 to these events from their savings so that they feel that they are helping others. Feel free, Parents, as you make your contribution via QKR, to quote me on that!

Mrs Wedesweiler and Mr McCarthy will accompany our Faith in Action Team (FIAT) to the Lifted Live concert at Rooty Hill tomorrow Thursday, 19th May. The children will experience a unique, dynamic, large-scale faith-based event that merges the faith with their love for popular music. 

In Term 1, we had a Maths learning goal across the school, focused on developing in students the language of Maths, their capacity to talk about their thinking in Maths and their capacity to identify what Maths they need to use in a Maths problem. This term, our goal focuses on Writing. We are encouraging the children to develop their ideas for writing so that their writing takes one idea forward. We are using literature with the children where authors write about just one idea and develop that idea. In some classes, children are keeping Writer’s Notebooks, where they have time to collect ideas for writing. Then on those days when the idea is not coming to them, they can go to their Writer’s  Notebook for inspiration!. 

Reading is the key to learning. Every child needs to read every day, both at home and at school. Every child in K-2 needs to be read to regularly and quite honestly, there is no age limit to reading with your child. Ensuring that your child understands the importance of reading is ensuring that your child has the key to learning and a lifetime of joy as a reader. The pattern needs to be established now. So Parents, your children read at school every day. Your children are read to at school every day. This also needs to happen at home. If you need help encouraging your child to read, please talk to a member of your child’s team.

Student-Led conferences are happening on Tuesday, 31 May between 3:00 and 6:30pm. Instructions related to booking a time with a member of your child’s team will be provided to you in the days ahead. As the name suggests, the students will lead the discussion, showing you their learning, explaining how they are going and where to next in their learning. It is a great opportunity for students, teachers and parents to share the conversation about your child’s learning.  

This week is National Volunteers Week. My thanks to those in our community who volunteer where they can. There has been great energy around our upcoming Election Day barbecue and cake stall. Thank you to those parents and children who are helping on the day and also to the parents who are making cakes to sell. A reminder that the cakes need to list ingredients to ensure the safety of our community. You can bring cakes on the day or you can drop them to school on Friday this week, 20th May. A very big thank you to Lucian Keegel,  Alex and Elizabeth’s grandfather, for running this event for us via Rotary. Lucian is the Community Service Chair for the Greater Sydney Rotary e-club and we are very lucky to have his support. 

My thanks to Ms Kylie and her team for two wonderful days of Futsal at the Katoomba Sports and Aquatic Centre. We are currently working on organising our upcoming Athletics Carnival. In addition, we look forward to having a Soccer Blitz in Week 10, on Tuesday 28 June at St Canice’s to compensate for the gala days we are not able to manage. We will provide more details about the Soccer Blitz in the upcoming weeks.

I am looking forward to seeing many of you on Saturday 21 May at our Election Day Barbecue! If your child can help with school tours, that would be fantastic. A COMPASS message has been sent with all of the details and a hard copy note will be sent home today.

God bless,

Ms Miriam

mmeaney@parra.catholic.edu.au

Upcoming Events

Week 4

Wednesday 18th MayChalk Day FundraiserPayment via QKr!
Wednesday 18th May NAPLAN Breakfast8:20am
Thursday 19th MayLifted Live Concert
Week 5

Monday 23rd MaySydney Writers Festival
Thursday 26th MayNational Sorry Day

Art with Ms Morley

Music with Ms Frazer

This term in music with Ms Frazer, stage 2 are learning bass guitar fundamentals. Since the first 4 strings of the guitar are the same as the bass, we will be using the school’s acoustic guitars for these lessons, so if the students have their own guitar at home, they are welcome to bring them in for their lessons on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Stage 2 will also continue with their Wednesday string class with Ms Frazer and Ms Emma Grennhill.

Kinder reading with their buddies!

A special visit!

Photography Exhibition 2022

We are so excited to be able to run our Annual Photography Exhibition this year. The Exhibition was started in 2018 by our previous Principal Mark Geerligs, a keen photographer himself, his vision was to encourage all children and adults to explore the art of photography.This year we have the opportunity to showcase some of our photos at the Catholic Schools NSW Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander State Education Conference which will be held at the Fairmont Resort in October 2022.  So please take this opportunity to explore our local area with your children and capture something that relates to our beautiful Blue Mountains, in particular our Totem area of the Three Sisters. We would like a wide variety of subjects to display so let your creativity flourish! 

St Vincent de Paul Winter Appeal

As part of our school's fundraising this year our school has chosen to support St Vincent de Paul's Winter Appeal.

Throughout the term students will be encouraged to pray for and be aware of those in our community who are homeless and struggling through this cold winter.

Students will have the opportunity to be involved in several activities throughout this term.

These activities will include:

1. Chalk Day - Wednesday 18/5 ,Week 4 (weather permitting)

2. Bubble Day- Wednesday 1/6 , Week 6 (weather permitting)

3. Pyjama Day - Wednesday 8/6, Week 7

A one off donation of $5 or above to cover these activities above can be made through the schools Qkr! app. Please consider donating to this cause to help those in our community who are less fortunate than ourselves.

Stage 3 will also have the opportunity to be involved in our annual games night on Friday 24th of June. Students participating in this event will be asked to experience a little of the hardship that some members of our community live through in these cold winter months. More information will be sent at a later date about this event.

Thanking you for your continued support of such an important cause

Ms Morley

Any activities canceled due to poor weather will be rescheduled. 

Qkr! Instructions

As we move forward in the cashless environment, we have a new program that the school will be utilising for fund raising and events.  Attached are instructions on how to download the App and setup registration profiles for your children.
Download

Students with Allergies / Anaphylaxis

A reminder to all families that we have students at St Canice's who have severe allergies that result in anaphylaxis.

We ask that no nut / nut products be sent to school.

As a strategy to reduce risk, we ask that you remind your child not to share their food with other students.

Student learning in Term 2

My thanks to the teachers for getting Learning Overviews home to you early in Term 2. Please take 20 minutes to go over the term overview with your child. It will be exciting for parents and students to consider what will be learned and what your child already knows. It will also give you great opportunities to keep the conversation going about learning throughout the term. 

Teachers and students K-6 will be putting the spotlight on Writing this term and in particular their capacity to develop ideas so as to engage an audience. The connection between what they read and what they write will be prioritised. As they read picture books in class, they will see that writers narrow down their ideas and generally develop one good idea rather than many. They will also realise that authors write about what they are interested in and write about that in a way that engages the reader. We encourage you to also talk to your child about the ideas in books you share and to discuss what they like to write about. 

Meet Kelly - Our Very Own School Crossing Supervisor.

We are very privileged to have Kelly, who has been assigned by Transport NSW as the school crossing supervisor.

The School Crossing Supervisor program is a state-wide program that contributes to the safety of infants and primary school students. School crossing supervisors help students use the crossings on roads adjacent to or nearby schools. 

School crossing supervisors are provided to increase mobility and safety around schools by enhancing the performance of pedestrian traffic facilities. School crossing supervisors provide additional measures for the safe and efficient movement of primary and infant school children.

The School Crossing Supervisor program is an important component of the Safety around schools program.

Please say hello to Kelly when you see her and remember to follow her instructions for the safety of all.

Building Community

My thanks to the group of parents listed below who have formed a community-building group, charged with encouraging participation from all families in the life of the school following COVID.

The group has formed chat groups and is seeking permission from parents to add them to the group if this has not already happened.  Please contact the parent from your class to connect with the chat group. Being a part of the group enables you to keep updated on what is happening at school and to help where you can. It also enables the group to find ways of getting together outside of school, perhaps for a coffee or for a play date at a local park. If you have more than one child at the school, you will have two people to contact. Many thanks to all parents for helping these parents to build our community!

NameStageChild/renGrade
Nicole GoldEarly Stage 1IsyK
Ying TangEarly Stage 1HeidiK
Kerry Salsbury-TaitStage 1JasperYEAR 1
Amy O'KeeffeStage 1SeamusYEAR 2
Lisa AltavillaStage 1Leo , KeitahYEAR 2
Rochelle BarnesStage 2HarryYEAR 4
Diana BasedowStage 2LeonardYEAR 4
Natalie TolhurstStage 2Elizabeth, AlexYEAR 3
Maya BellinghamStage 3Elodie, SofiaYEAR 6
Naomi LjubicStage 3Mia, PoppyYEAR 5

Staff Development Day Friday 10th June 2022

St Canice's students are not required at school on Friday 10th of June.

Staff will be completing their First Aid Training Refresher.

No student supervision will be available on this day.

Katoomba Adoration Chapel

KATOOMBA ADORATION CHAPEL 10:00am Monday - 8pm Friday.

The chapel is at the back of St. Canice's church. Entry is from the outside. You are invited to sign up for an Adoration hour. Please contact Catherine Gale 0420 337 033. “One cannot know the Lord without the habit of adoring in silence (Pope Francis).”

Mary Gale

St Canice’s Parish

Contacting your child’s teacher and other school staff

We value our strong relationship with families and welcome opportunities to communicate with parents and carers. We also recognise that email is a fast and convenient way to contact your child’s teacher or other school staff.

Although staff will read their emails at various times throughout the school day, they are not expected to respond to emails outside of normal working hours. Staff will try to respond to emails within 24 hours.As some staff work part time, it is reasonable to expect an email response from part time staff on their next working day.

In the case of an emergency, do not rely on email.  In such situations, please contact the school office on 4780 6800. Our caring team will return your call as soon as possible.

If you wish to contact the office via email, please email stcanices@parra.catholic.edu.au

If you need to contact a staff member and are not sure of the staff member’s email, you can also send your email to stcanices@parra.catholic.edu.au It will then be directed to your child’s teacher or another relevant staff member.

Thank you so much for your assistance and understanding.

Ms Miriam Principal

Library News

Welcome to Mrs Sue Kondek, who has returned to St Canice's in our Library.

The borrowing of Library books for students will be on Mondays from the begining of term 2.

If students have a library bag, please bring it along each week.

Thank you to all the parent volunteers who have informed me of your interest. I will be in touch early term 2 to chat about how you can help.

Happy reading.

Ms Sue

Sports Update

Diocesan Cross Country

Mr Okladnikov  and I are extremely proud of the 24 students that attended the carnival on Tuesday 3rd May at Eastern Creek. The children all competed with enthusiasm and sportsmanship. A big congratulations to Marshall Field who came First in his race and will now be competing in the NSWCPSCCC Cross Country Carnival at Eastern Creek on the 7th of June, 2022

Results for the day can be found here Parramatta Diocese Primary Cross Country (2022) Results | MultiSport Australia. Many thanks to Rochelle Barnes & Wanita Selvarasa for your assistance as parent helpers and to all  the parents that took the time out of their busy schedules to drive their children down so they could attend the carnival.

Stage 3 & Stage 2 Futsal Gala Days

Stage 3 & 2 had such a fantastic time playing Futsal against many local schools within the Blue Mountains  at Katoomba Sports and Aquatic Centre. There were lots of nervous children at the start of the day but well into game 2 they nailed it, all teams passing  skills developed quickly and they became quite the competitive bunch of children. The children were all willing to try out different positions on the field including goalkeeper. Many thanks to our parent helper, team managers on the day - Darren Parrott, Naomi Ljubic, Rochelle Barnes and Kathleen Linehan.   I look forward to watching these children develop more skills during our sporting schools futsal program which will start shortly on Fridays this term. 

Stage 2 & 3 Diocesan Soccer Gala Days 

Unfortunately these days had to be  cancelled as we didn’t have the numbers to fill teams. 

Kind Regards, 

Kylie Ranson 

Stage 2 Futsal Gala Day

Stage 3 Futsal Gala Day

Would You Like to Volunteer at St Canice's?

Now that we can, we are seeking volunteers for a number of events. Please click on this link to fill in a form indicating which events  you can help out with and we will be in touch to confirm. 

Volunteering at St Canice's

We look forward to welcoming parent / carer volunteers into St Canice's in the future.  If you are interested in volunteering your time either in the classroom or at any of the exciting upcoming events, please ensure your Building Child Safe Communities training is up to date.


This module must be completed every two years and is mandatory for anyone wanting to volunteer regardless if you hold a WWCC number or not.

Please follow the link to complete your training

https://www.parra.catholic.edu.au/About-Us/Building-Child-Safe-Communities

Uniform Orders are made through The School Locker

All students should be wearing full school summer uniform.

Uniform can be purchased through The School Locker

Delays in processing uniform orders may occur - please ensure you order several weeks before items are needed.

Download

School Uniform

Please see attached document with school uniform images
Download

Term 2 School Fees

Term 2 Statements have been posted to all families.  If you have not received your Statement, or if you have any questions, please call the office on 4780 6800 or email jmacpherson@parra.catholic.edu.au

Compass Parent Portal

Compass is the school management system that St Canice's will use to communicate with parents and carers about our school and your child’s progress.

Compass includes many different features, including the ability to:

• Monitor your child’s attendance and enter an explanation for absence or lateness.

• Download and view your child’s academic reports – as there will be no paper reports distributed.

Compass is accessible on any modern web browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari) or by using the Compass iOS or Android apps.

To access the parent portal, you will require your unique family username and password. Upon first login, you will be required to change your password and confirm your email address and mobile phone number.

You can download Compass App on iOS and Android devices, search for Compass School Manager in the store

Download

Enrolling NOW!!!!!


We encourage parents and carers to contact us at any time to arrange a tour of our school, meet our staff and see our learning in action. Please phone 4780 6800 during our office hours 8:30am - 3:30pm or email stcanices@parra.catholic.edu.au

Please share this post with our community -

Everyone is welcome at St Canice's

Katoomba!https://youtu.be/TNhJBt6ofY8

Kinder Enrolments 2023

We are now taking enrolments for Kindergarten 2023, if you know of people looking for a school for their child (even if it is for the other grades), please let them know about St Canice’s. The power of your words of recommendation has an enormous effect on our enrolments. Let’s keep working together to make St Canice’s that great school that has been in operation for the past 120 years.

Subscribe to Calendar and Newsletter

Subscribe to the Parent Calendar and Newsletter

www.stcaniceskatoomba.catholic.edu.au

Select “Current Community” click on Newsletter

 

What's New at St Columba's Catholic College

New Calves!!!

Students studying agriculture will be caring for and training them so they're ready for the Penrith Show in August.

St Columbas College is a top co-educational Catholic College set in the beautiful Blue Mountains that equips each student with the skills and passion to make a difference in the world. Enrolments are considered at any time throughout the year, however, the Year 7 enrolment process commences in February each year. If necessary, your application will be held on a waiting list until a position becomes available.

You are welcome to contact the College Enrolment Secretary at any time to help you obtain further information or guide you through the enrolment process.

NSW Police Legacy Child Safety Handbook

The Child Safety Handbook has been produced by NSW Police Legacy, together with its partners, for over 11 years. It aims to raise awareness about risks to children and steps that can be taken to protect and keep them safe.  The Handbook has the support of the NSW Government and of the NSW Governor, Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AO QC, the Patron of NSW Police Legacy. 


Child Safety Handbook

ESafety Free Webinar

In partnership with the eSafety Commissioner, CEDP would like to remind schools about the availability of the following free webinars for parents and carers in Term 2: 

  • Parental controls

Designed for parents and carers of young people aged 4-13

Tue 10 May 2022 7:30pm - 8:30pm

Thu 19 May 2022 12:30pm - 1:30pm

Tue 31 May 2022 12:30pm - 1:30pm

Register now 

  • Online gaming

Designed for parents and carers of young people aged 8–13.

Thu 9 June 2022 12:30pm - 1:30pm

Fri 17 June 2022 12:30pm - 1:30pm

Tue 21 June 2022 7:3pm - 8:30pm

Register now 

The full 2022 parent and carer education schedule is available here.

Follow this link to access details of dates and instructions on how to register. 

Yarn Up

Bringing the Yarn Up into the Catholic community allows for further opportunities to connect with traditional waysof sharing cultural knowledge, building relationships and understanding our role in the community.

Bishop VincentLong, Greg Whitby, the Executive Director of Schools, and Maura Manning, the Director of Learning, will be joining us for an open forum and discussion.

The Jarara Indigenous Education team invites you to share in this experience.CathWest Innovation College - Loyola Campus 91 North Parade, Mount Druitt 2770Tuesday 3rd May, 9am to 12pmA light lunch will be served, please let us know if you have any dietary requirements.

Please RSVP to Sam Forbes at sforbes@parra.catholic.edu.au or call 0428 365 489 to confirm your attendance no later than Wednesday 27th April.

Download

Cultural Yarning Circle

you're invited to come and join us at our cultural yarning circle with Aboriginal Elder Aunty Marie Clegg & Kamilaroi woman Lana Leslie. This gathering is for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander young people to yarn and strengthen their cultural identity in a culturally safe space. Free pizza included

when & where

Wednesdays 3:30pm to 5:00pm

25th May, 1st June, 22nd June, 29th June, 6th July at

Blue Mountains Cultural Centre

&

15th June at Headspace, Katoomba

contact

Debra at headspace Katoomba 1800 478 626

rsvp

Reserve your attendance via email to

headspacekatoomba@uniting.org or call on 1800 478 626

Download

Springwood East Timor Support Group Trivia Night

Saturday 21 May 2022

7:00 pm for a 7:30 startSt Thomas Aquinas School Hall

168 Hawkesbury Rd, Springwood‘

Join us for an evening of fun and flashes of brilliance

Download

Mass Times

St Mary of the Cross MacKillop Parish

Parish Priest Fr John McSweeney

 Presbytery Contact  Ph: 02 4782 2804

                                     Fax: 02 4782 6090

Website: marymackillopupperbluemountains.org.au

Mass

Monday 9.30am, Tuesday 5:15pm, Wednesday 9:30am, Thursday 5:15pm Friday 12.00pm Saturday 9.00am Sunday 10.00am

Confession

Saturday 9.30am Confession outside this time is available on request

Rosary

Saturday Cenacle Rosary and Consecration following benediction after 9am Mass

Stations of the Cross

1st Friday of month, 12.30pm

Exposition of Blessed Sacrament

Fridays (Except 1st Friday) 12.30pm

Benediction

Benediction Saturdays following 9am Mass

Weekly Divine Mercy Hour

Sundays 12.00pm to 1.00pm

Vespers

4th Monday of month - 6pm

Active & Creative Kids Vouchers

Parents of school-age children are reminded to register for their Active Kids and Creative Kids vouchers. The NSW Government’s Active Kids program provides  vouchers for parents, guardians and carers of school-enrolled children to use towards sport and active recreation costs each year and also vouchers that can be redeemed for creative activities  such as drama & visual arts. Creative Kids vouchers are also available to be redeemed for creative activities and craft supplies.

To find out more information on how to apply please visit https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/transaction/apply-creative-kids-voucher

Your creative kids voucher can be used to purchase items via approved websites, check out the links below.

Creative Kids Wonderland
Artzee Kids

BrickTastics


Katoomba Neurodiversity Hub

Facilitating pro-neurodiversity peer support networks
Download

Mini Majik's

Futsal Skills Training and Game

3-5 year olds

Tuesday's

10am - 11am

Katoomba Sports & Aquatic Centre

For more information, call Sue 0419 434 725

Katoomba Junior Futsal Returns

Thursday Afternoon Juniors: 5 - 15 year olds

Cost is $80 per player per term.

Plus yearly registration fee wit Futsal NSW

Girls and Boys / Registration of teams and individuals welcome

Competition held at Katoomba Sports and Aquatic Centre

Contact Sue Kindek

0419 434 725

kondek2@bigpond.com

Competition commences Term 2 Thursday 28th April 2022

Gracie Jiu-Jitsu

Zany Yare Youth Circus

We offer a variety of class from primary to adult, teaching aerial, acrobatics, props, stilts, unicycle and performance skills.
Download

Blue Mountains Kyokushin Karate

Kyokushin Karate is a traditional Japanese Martial Art, or Budo Karate. In Kyokushin Karate emphasis is placed on discipline of the mind, body and spirit, the result is both effective self-defence and personal development.

Interested? Contact Sensei Darren 

m: 0412 507 051 or                         

e: bluemountainskyokushin@gmail.com

f: Blue Mountains Kyokushin Karate or visit us at, St Canice's Parish Hall, 158 Katoomba Street, Katoomba NSW 2780 and Wentworth Falls Lake 

Download

KOOSH

KU Bilya Gulyangarri Preschool Enrolling Now


KU Bilya Gulyangarri provides high quality, community-based preschool education for children aged 3 - 5 years old, including: 

An educational, play-based curriculum Qualified, caring and experienced staff A large outdoor environment promoting sustainability Located next to North Katoomba Primary School Rated as ‘Exceeding’ the National Quality Standard 

To learn more, visit www.ku.com.au or contact: 

KU Bilya Gulyangarri Preschool Cnr Verdun and Barton Streets, North Katoomba T 4782 5847 E ku.bilyagulyangarri@ku.com.au
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