Dear Parents,

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of one of our Casual Teachers, Emma Wallace. Emma taught a range of classes from K-6 and was a valued member of our casual teaching staff. Our thoughts and prayers are with Emma’s family and friends. This coming Friday 25th October we will hold a liturgy in our Mercy Hall to remember Emma and the contributions she made to our school community. This will take place at 10.25am.

Please be reminded that the “Keeping our children safe online” workshop is this evening from 5.50pm-7pm at St Anne’s, North Albury. Although the content of this session is aimed at older primary school students, we welcome all parents from all year levels who are interested in educating themselves about their children’s online safety. Year 5 and 6 students are also invited to attend this meeting with their parents and are asked to bring their devices from home. 

Fete preparations are well under way and we thank all of you who are so willing to give of your time and support this major fundraiser. Please see the notes going home today and also our fb page and website notes page for all info. 

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A very big thank you to Margy Brown for all the work she did as Religious Education Coordinator in Term 3. I have heard wonderful accounts of the Confirmation preparation, Reflection Day and the Mass and the many other RE events that took place. Margy’s expertise, hard work and commitment was appreciated by all.

The first day of term was a fruitful day for all staff. Thank you very much to Margy for organising and running this very special day. The Spirituality Day began with prayer during which we considered our role as Missionary Disciples. We creatively expressed and shared our commitment to being the hands and feet of Jesus in our school community. 

Eight car loads of teachers then delivered Meals on Wheels to the elderly in our community. This was a most rewarding experience for us all. Many heart-warming conversations that took place with our very grateful recipients were shared over lunch. We provided physical nourishment; our elderly provided spiritual nourishment for us.

The afternoon was spent at Mercy Place with our staff forming a choir to sing a repertoire of “Golden Oldies” for the residents. There was a lot of foot-tapping, singing along and happy smiles. It also was a heart-warming experience for us all. Thank you to Sarah Hibberson and Margy Brown for playing and leading the singing. This was indeed, a spirit-filled day.

FIRST RECONCILIATION

Our Year 2 students will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time on Wednesday, 20th November. The First Reconciliation meeting for parents and children will be held in the church on Wednesday, 30th October at 6.00pm (next Wednesday). Our picnic with Fr Joel is always a highlight of preparation for Reconciliation. All Year 2 families are invited to this happy, lay-back gathering on Thursday, 14th November. A separate note with more details will be coming home soon.

MISSION MONTH

October is Mission Month. The theme of World Mission Month 2019 is “Do not fear, for I am with you.” Our focus country is Ghana, where the Church seeks to provide shelter, food, education, and life fulfilling opportunities for children in need, especially those with disabilities

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Good luck to all children participating in the Catholic Primary Schools Basketball Carnival this weekend. A big thank you to all our parents and teachers helping out across the weekend to make this big event on our calendar a success.
St Patrick's Basketball trial will be held for students in Year 4 and 5. This will be held on Tuesday of Week 5 by Mrs Hilton and selected students will then register for the Diocesan Basketball Trial in November. 
Diocesan Tennis Trials will be held on November 14th at the St Patrick's Tennis Centre for nominated Year 4 and 5 students.

Dear Parents

Sport across St Patrick’s School has had a long and proud tradition. Our students enjoy playing sport across many disciplines from K-6 as part of the Physical Education, Health and Personal Development (PDHPE) curriculum.
When looking at current practice and how this fits into the future direction of sporting activities at St Patrick’s, the staff have taken a great deal of time to reflect on what is best practice leading into 2020. 
In the past PSSA has been a great part of this but as new Work Health Safety regulations are in play it is becoming more difficult to address supervision compliance. The expectations of staff to be with students on every field at all times, in case of an accident or injury is paramount. In the past we have had an understanding of shared care with other teachers from competing teams or parental supervision. Time allocation is the other big factor, as a full primary curriculum no longer allows for two hours and bus travel to encroach our timetable. As this is no longer possible, students will not be attending PSSA.
In the light of this decision some changes will be made to our sporting program during the school week to still cater for team sport and friendly competition. This will be determined by staff and students and will involve some input from local development officers and the other Catholic schools. All other existing sporting commitments will be retained as per normal.

We will continue to honour
*  Deanery and Diocesan Trials participation for Cricket, Netball, AFL, Soccer, Rugby, Tennis, Basketball, Hockey ,Softball, Touch for Year 5 and 6
*  Sporting School funding will still be sought for our very successful  K-2 Swimming program.
*  Blue Earth Funding commitments for Years 3 and 4
* Whole School Athletics, Cross Country carnivals, Swimming Carnival Yrs 3-6

Consultation has taken place with the School Parent Council to determine what this will look like for the future and staff are committed to building positive physical education experiences across a variety of disciplines as students move through the school.

Regards,

Liz Johnston & Rob Unsworth

PICK-A-BOX: Bags have been sent home.  If you can please fill and return to the office by Tuesday 29th October. Suggestions for items include – bouncy balls, hair accessories, stationery, small toys, lollies, stickers etc. Thank you for your support. Example below:

     *  If you have any unused bags, please return them to the office.