St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Wandal Newsletter

As the season of Lent commences today our Year 5 students reminded the community of the three focuses for Lent; prayer, fasting and alms giving. In taking up these challenges we grow as people and be the best versions of ourselves. As a school we are accepting this challenge. Our alms giving has commenced with the donations for pancakes, sale of ice blocks, Prep's purple necklace stall and the classrooms have Project Compassion donation boxes. Many students and staff have been considering and writing Lenten promises that may involve 'giving up' or 'taking up' something to grow their relationship with God and those they encounter. 

This year we are having a House Cup Competition that will continue throughout the entire school year. The House Cup is designed to build some house spirit and fun. The Year 6 class as student leaders have made many suggestions for events that could be included in the challenge and designed the points structure. Many of the regular annual events may become part of the house points system. For example, points might be awarded for participating in Wandal's Got Talent. Some of the suggestions from the students included points for returning library books, handing in homework and holding round-robin sports competitions at lunch time. While not every idea is going to make the cut, the student leaders are having agency to voice their ideas.

The annual bake-off was a huge success. Congratulations Mackillop for your exceptionally well presented green pancakes. This event was the first for the House Cup. Donations were collected by house groups and totalled. Penola raised the most money and has been awarded 100 points. Tenison came second and is awarded 50 points. Mackillop came third in the fundraising and is awarded 25 points. An extra 20 points is awarded to Mackillop for winning the bake-off. A points tally board will be created and displayed in the school soon.

Have a great week

Bernadette Brennan

Rheanna Starr

Yesterday we celebrated Shrove Tuesday as a school, a day that is sometimes known as Pancake Day! It is the last day before Lent begins and a time to use rich foods up, such as eggs, sugar, and milk. We cheered on our year 6 leaders as they competed in the annual Pancake competition. Miss Godbaz had a difficult time choosing a winner, but decided on MacKillop’s pancakes. They all looked delicious! We all brought in a donation for Project Compassion and enjoyed a yummy pancake. 

In prep we have been learning about Project Compassion, and someone named Lexmi. Lexmi lives in Nepal but she did not have enough money to go to school - thanks to Project Compassion, Lexmi is now able to go to school and help others on their learning journey! We have been thinking of different ways we can raise money for Project Compassion, and after a brainstorming session, we decided to commemorate Ash Wednesday with a ‘purple pasta necklace’ fundraiser. Purple is the liturgical colour for Lent, and pasta necklaces look very fashionable. Thank you to everyone who donated and wore one of our beautiful handmade necklaces.

Janette McLennan

The NCCD – What do I need to know as a parent?

The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) is a yearly count of students by all Australian schools across the country. The aim of the NCCD is to provide the Australian Government with information about the number of students with disability in Australian schools and the type of adjustments they need in order to access and participate in education on the same basis as other students. From 2018, the NCCD has been used by the Australian Government to inform funding for schools, known as the ‘student with disability loading’.

If you are a parent, guardian or carer of a child with disability who requires ongoing adjustments at school, a teacher or another school staff member will consult with you to understand your child’s needs. This collaborative approach ensures the most appropriate adjustments are chosen to support your child’s learning and participation at school. A personalised learning plan (PLP) will be developed to document specific educational goals and to review your child’s progress over time.

Your child will be included in the NCCD if they require ongoing adjustments at school due to a disability as defined by the Disability Discrimination Act 1992. This is a very broad definition of disability, which includes physical and intellectual disabilities, learning disorders such as dyslexia and dysgraphia, and mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression. The Disability Standards for Education 2005 set out the obligations of schools towards students with disability. Under the 2020 NCCD Guidelines every effort should be made to inform parents/guardians/carers that a student has been included in the NCCD. Where this is not possible, the reasons should be documented.

If your child has a disability, your child’s school will provide information about them for the NCCD, including:

●       your child’s year of schooling

●       the category of disability that best describes your child’s difficulties (one of four categories is chosen by the school team to reflect your child’s greatest area of need: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional)

●       the level of adjustment your child receives at school (one of four levels is chosen by the school team to reflect the type of support your child requires: quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary adjustment, substantial adjustment, or extensive adjustment).

The information collected by schools for the NCCD will ultimately be provided to the Australian Government Department of Education.

While it is not possible for schools or families to ‘opt out’ of the NCCD, the privacy and confidentiality of all students and their families is treated with utmost importance. Data is collected within each school, and personal details, such as student names and other identifying information, are not provided to local or federal education authorities.

Related resources:

Fact sheets for parents, guardians and carers about the NCCD

NCCD Website - https://www.nccd.edu.au/for-parents-guardians-and-carers