St Bernadette's Primary School Dundas Valley

Newsletter 2022 Term 2 Week 4

FROM THE PRINCIPAL...

Dear Families of St Bernadette's

What amazing weather we have been having this week!

The sun is out and we can enjoy the outside areas once again. This past fortnight has been filled with many firsts for our younger students, our first whole school Mass, our return to Monday morning assemblies and our first week back in full winter uniform. Making sure that we are dressed appropriately and in the correct uniform is a part of learning how to show pride in our appearance and demonstrate how we belong to our school community. 

As you may be aware, we no longer have access to a school lunch order provider. This has been an ongoing search to no avail. If you know of anyone who has a cafe who may be interested in undertaking an online lunch order service please contact the office or give them our details, as I would be happy to discuss this with them. 

Coming up this weekend is our Federal Election. Once again we will provide our hall for voting. The staff have kindly volunteered their time to run an election BBQ, so if you are in the area please drop in and try our bacon & egg or sausage sandwiches.

Stay well and take care.

Love & Light  

Lisa Gerrard

(on behalf of the St Bernadette’s staff & students)

FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL...

As the weather cools down, we have moved to our Winter School uniform. Having and wearing the correct school uniform is an important part of our school as it shows that we are proud of belonging to our St Bernadette’s community. Many students are wearing their uniform correctly and with pride, however, some students are choosing not to wear part or all of the uniform. 

The correct Winter School uniform is: 

Girls- 

Winter Tunic

Long Sleeve shirt

Tab tie

Stockings or Long socks

Black leather school shoes

Boys - 

Long Sleeve shirt - tucked into pants, top button done up. 

Long Pants

Tie

Black leather school shoes

Have a wonderful week, 

Jackie Willard

Assistant Principal

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION...

Sunday 22nd May 2022

The new city of God is built on the foundation of the apostles, but on its gates are inscribed the names of the tribes of Israel.  These names represent the openness to all nations, races, peoples and tongues.  The resurrection of Jesus has radically transformed the way we live together and the way we live with God.

What must we do to be saved?  The question put to Jesus centuries ago is still asked today, and the answer is still the same.  We must believe and we must love God and love one another.  We will be recognised as resurrection people by our active faith and by our unselfish love, not by an exterior mark, regardless of how sacred.  This change in requirements for membership does not diminish the rigour of our religious obligations.  Rather, it suggests that we may always have to reinterpret the law, for what is appropriate at one time and in one place may be inappropriate in another.  With the early Christians, we will need the guidance of the Holy Spirit in this very delicate process.  This is why the departing Jesus assures us that the Spirit will come to us to teach us all things.

The final gift that Jesus promises to give is his own peace, a peace that he has won by overcoming sin and death.  This peace issues from the union that Jesus enjoys with God, a union which we are now invited to share.

Parish Mass

We are delighted to once again be attending Mass with the parish, both as a school and in class groups. As parish Masses begin at 9:00am, the classes involved will assemble at 8:45am, in order to be seated in the church before Father enters. Your extra effort to be at school by 8:45am on these days would be greatly appreciated. Please see the roster for when your child will be attending Mass and/or Reconciliation.

Vinnies Winter Appeal - Stage 3

Pyjama Day

During Term 1, Stage 3 reflected on the significance of Jesus’ Passion, Death and Resurrection to answer the Driving Question: “How can we, as prophets of hope, respond with mercy to the suffering and hardship of others?”

To put their faith into action, the students have collaboratively proposed a project to apply the spiritual and corporal works of mercy to the suffering in our world today. They have decided to conduct the Vinnies Winter Appeal, to support people experiencing homelessness. 

For the Vinnies Winter Appeal, Stage 3 is collecting the following new items:

  • Beanies

  • Gloves

  • Scarves

  • Socks

  • Hand warmers

  • Feet warmers

  • Blankets

To remind ourselves of how blessed we are to have a safe, warm home to sleep in at night, we will have a Pyjama Day on Friday 27th May. All students (and staff) are invited to wear their pyjamas on the day and bring along one of the winter items listed above. These items can also be brought in prior to the Pyjama Day.

Please note that, for safety, closed in shoes must be worn.

Thank you for supporting Stage 3 in their social justice initiative.

Sacramental Program

Term 2

1st Practise – Sunday 29th May 3.30 – 5pm. (Please meet in the church – Compulsory)

Final Practise – Sunday 5th June 3.30 – 5pm. (Please meet in the Church- Compulsory)

 First Holy Communion – Sunday 19th June at 11.30am.

Stage 1 Religion work

In religion this term, Year 1 & 2 are learning about communities and identity. Last week both classes created these beautiful puzzle drawings that represented the different parts of their identities. Different puzzle pieces could be: what makes me happy, I like to help others by..., my talents are, my hobbies are and listing the communities they are part of. Well done Stage 1!

SCHOOL NEWS...

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER

Week 4:

Friday 20th May : Sausage Roll Meal Day

Saturday 21st May : Democracy Sausage Sizzle at School (8am-1pm)

Week 5:

Friday 27th May : Vinnies Winter Appeal (Pyjama Day for all students and staff)

Week 6:

Tuesday 31st May : Athletics Carnival (At Barton Park)

Wednesday 1st June: Parent Committee meeting 

Thursday 2nd June & Friday 3rd June : Stage 3 Canberra Excursion 

Week 7:

Friday 10th June : Staff Development Day (This is a pupil free day)

Week 8:

Thursday June 16th : Canteen Morning Tea 

Parent Committee Meeting

We would like to hold our Term 2 Parent Committee meeting in Week 6. All are most welcome to attend this meeting. If you are unable to attend but would like to join via zoom please let the school office know by the end of next week so we can send you a link etc.

Date: Wednesday June 1st

Venue: School Hall

Time: 9.30am

At this meeting we will discuss the following:

  • Upcoming Canteen Morning Tea (Thurs June 16th)

  • Continued fundraising / Canteen Days

  • Possible ideas for the upcoming A-Thon Day

  • Possible Cookie Dough fundraising ideas

  • Father’s Day event

Enrolment for 2023

We are currently finalising Kindergarten Enrolments for 2023.

If you have a child who you wish to enrol please download the enrolment form from our website or pop into our office to pick up one.

Attendance

Attendance Rate: 72%  - To unpack this a little more, this means that 72%  of our students have an attendance rate of 90% -100%. 

A reminder that classes commence at 8:55am.

To help your child have a positive start to the school day it is important that they are at school on time.

Being at school a little before 8:55am allows them to have time to calm themselves and be confident in knowing they are prepared and ready to learn. It also gives them time to say hello to their friends and classmates.

Arriving late can cause stress to the child entering a class that is already working and it can cause disruption to the lesson that has started.

If we were 5 minutes late every day x 5 days = 25 minutes lost each week. 25 minutes x 10 weeks of each term = 250 minutes each term.

That adds up to a lot over the course of the year.

So please be mindful of what time your child  is arriving at school. It is important we establish good routines as it sets our children up for success.

If your child is late, they must come to the school office to be signed in by their parent or carer. They are not to be dropped late and left to run through the school gate unaccompanied.

A Gentle Reminder

Being situated in a very narrow street can pose a number of challenges when dropping off and picking up our children. Some of our smaller students are so full of news about their day that they take a little longer to get into the car and buckle up. Here are a few pointers that may make this process a little easier:

  • Ensure that the children enter from the footpath (passenger) side of the car.

  • Dont ask your children to put their bags in the boot.

  • Make sure that the children know how they are supposed to be going home.

A few issues to consider:

  • Be mindful of not blocking our priests or neighbours driveways. This can stop these people from entering or leaving their residence which can result in frustration and complaints.

  • Please don't block the pedestrian crossing as this can impede the view of other drivers so that they don't see people crossing.

  • Try to be patient and considerate and take turns in allowing people to turn onto Cox Crescent. This will alleviate congestion on Evans Road.

Using the parish car park to pick students up from the back gate continues to be an issue. Recently a staff member approached a parent who was parked in the wrong spot to ask them to move their car to a designated spot and they were met with a verbal attack. The staff take their duty of care (the safety of your children) very seriously and do not deserve to be spoken to in a disrespectful manner. 

 A few pointers to consider:

  • Do not park in the centre 4 car spots as it is unsafe and blocks the flow of traffic.

  • Reverse park into the marked spaces.

  • Get out of the car to collect your child/ children, hold their hand or walk closely beside them until you reach your vehicle.

  • Do not allow children to run between the cars or play on the grass. The car park is not a place to gather as it is unsafe for children with so many cars moving around.

I hope that these ideas will resonate with you and that you will work with us to keep everyone safe.

Clothing Pool

If you wish to purchase any items from our clothing pool please email the school office via dundasvalley@parra.catholic.edu.au . The items are to be paid for via EFTPOS only in the school office. Another option is to order and pay via the QKR! app.


Happy Birthday

Shane - 09/05

Liam - 12/05

Giordeio - 13/5

Leilani - 16/5

Michael - 17/05

Kara - 19/05

Kayla - 21/05

Riyanshi -21/05

Just a reminder that any treats sent in are kept to a minimum and individual.

Our Digital Sign

We would love to advertise events in our community so if you know of an upcoming event please email the details to dundasvalley@parra.catholic.edu.au.

Don't forget to collect your Bread Tags!

COMMUNITY NEWS...

Community Health Advice

St Bernadettes Primary School

St Bernadette's Primary, Dundas Valley is a community focused, Catholic parish school catering for boys and girls from Kindergarten to Year 6. The school strives to build a Christ-centred community where faith is integrated with daily life. We provide learning and teaching experiences which enable the children to deepen their faith understandings, investigate, solve problems and explore their learning. We recognise the importance of creating a learning environment that provides opportunities to develop 21st century learning. Technology is integrated into the learning at St Bernadette’s in all Key Learning Areas.