Newsletter - Term 4 Week 7

Calendar

From the Leaders

This Sunday at Mass we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King,  the last Sunday of Ordinary Time and thus to the end of the liturgical year.

As the final days of Jesus’ life draw near in Matthew’s Gospel this Sunday, Jesus’ preaching takes on a growing sense of urgency and clarity. The story Jesus tells - sometimes referred to as the parable of the ‘sheep and the goats’ - cuts right to the heart of authentic Christian discipleship. On Judgement Day, only one thing will matter: how did you treat the person who came to you in need?

2024 Student Representative Council

We are thrilled to announce the Year 5 students who have been selected to be the Year 6 Student Representative Council for 2024! We look forward to their leadership and representation of the student body for the year ahead. As we celebrate this achievement, we now turn our focus to students aspiring for House leadership roles. This is an exciting opportunity for students to share how they contribute to our school community and how they intend to lead next year. Boronia, Flinders, Clarence and Kennedy Houses will be listening to candidates next Wednesday.

We would also like to congratulate our two School Captains for 2024:

Emily Lonergan and Joseph O'Brien

Our 2024 Student Representative Council:

Josh Abraham, Theo Ding, Grace Judge, Elloise Gleeson, Sienna Harrison, Arthur Hough, Braxton Stewart and Flynn Wehlow

Emergency Management Planning

The safety of our students, families and staff is our highest priority. In order to best ensure this, the St Agnes' leadership and staff, supported by the Catholic Schools Office, plan for a number of possible incidents, emergencies or natural disasters that could take place at school or during the school term. The events of recent years have reinforced how important this planning is and we all have a role to play when it comes to emergency management, including families.

Our students participate in various safety drills and staff participate through training and safety drills. We’d like to share with you the role of parents and families in emergency management.

School Lockdown

A number of the situations we plan for include a school lockdown as one of the immediate safety actions to ensure the safety of our students and staff. We understand that some may understand the word ‘lockdown’ to mean there is an immediate safety risk to all students. It is important to understand that when a school initiates a lockdown this may not be the case.

Depending on the situation, the purpose of a school lockdown will differ. A school lockdown may be a preparation step for an evacuation, or a school lockdown may allow emergency services access to an area of the school without having to navigate past students. Regardless of the purpose of a school lockdown, no one can be admitted to the school grounds other than emergency services.

Should we initiate a school lockdown, parents and families will be informed via text message and Compass notification. We will also inform parents and families as soon as the school lockdown has been lifted or if there are any actions required of parents and families. It is important that you do not attempt to attend the school during a school lockdown. We understand that you may be concerned however attending the school may also add risk to a possible emergency situation, block emergency services or impede an evacuation.

Natural Disaster

In the event of a natural disaster, such as flood or bushfire, the school leadership, supported by the Catholic Schools Office, will determine if it is safe for the school to open. If there is a probability the school may have to close part way through the day, the school will not open for that day as it is extremely difficult to evacuate a school site and ensure all students are able to go directly home safely.

In a bush fire or flood event it is important that parents and families have a plan to get your child/ren home from school, or into your care, at short notice. Please be aware that school buses may not be running and the school can not allow your child/ren to go home to an empty house or home with another parent without your permission.

Family Preparedness

How can you help us prepare for emergency situations? Please ensure that:

• You have downloaded Compass and have allowed notifications.
• Any changes to your contact details or custodial arrangements have been updated with the school.
• You have a bush fire/flood plan in place that all members of your family understand.
• In the event of a school lockdown or evacuation, directions in the parent notifications are followed

It is always our hope that these measures will never be needed but it is also our responsibility to ensure our school community is prepared and informed should the need arise. We thank you in advance for your support and cooperation.

Ginaya Yarnold and Nigel McIntyre
Principal     and      Work Health and Safety Manager, Catholic Schools Office

World Children's Day

Our Year 6 students shone as they hosted a vibrant fair for the entire school in celebration of World Children's Day! This dynamic event showcased the creativity and leadership of our sixth graders, who organised engaging activities, games, and treats for fellow students. The fair not only brought joy and laughter but also fostered a sense of community and camaraderie among students of all ages. Kudos to our Year 6 stars for making World Children's Day unforgettable for everyone at our school!

2023 Christmas Hamper Appeal

Thank you to all families who have already brought in their Christmas Hamper items. Tuesday 28 November will be an out of uniform day and the day to bring in your hamper item if you haven't already. The SRC will work with volunteers to pack these on Thursday 30 November, ready for delivery this weekend. 

2024 High School Orientation

Last week our Year 6 students embarked on an exciting journey to the High Schools as part of their transition experience. This invaluable visit allowed them to explore their future academic environment, meet high school staff, and gain insights into the opportunities that await. The transition day was filled with enthusiasm and anticipation, paving the way for a smooth and positive progression into the next phase of their educational journey.

Year 6 Transition Gathering and Mass

Today our Year 6 students had a fantastic opportunity to mix with other Year 6 students attending MacKillop or St Joseph's Regional Colleges in 2024. They will also be learning more about their faith, gain a greater understanding of the Mass and participate in a workshop run by the Wildfire Band.

Congratulations Joe

Joe O'Brien in Year 5 has won our school a prize in the Kind Kids Design a Mascot Competition, organised by the Kindness Factory. This competition encourages children aged 4 to 13 to design mascots representing 12 attributes of kindness. Joe's winning mascot is called "Putting a Smile on Your Dile" (pictured below). The Kindness Factory is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to promoting kindness and offers educational programs for schools to create a kinder community. The organisation was founded by Kath Koschel, a former elite cricketer who experienced personal challenges and believes in the power of kindness. Well done Joe!

2024 Library Monitors

Introducing our Library Monitors for the beginning of 2024. Marlie B, Makayla D, Raquel R and Emme C, will be assisting Mrs McEntyre with returning books and promoting their borrowing. Mrs Mac is so excited for their help.

End Of Year Mass

Don’t forget to lock into your calendars our Mass on Friday 8 December at 12:15pm to celebrate the end of the 2023 school year. We look forward to having our families join us.

International Day of Persons with Disabilities

IDPWD is a United Nations observed day held on 3 December each year that aims to increase public awareness, understanding and inclusion of people with disability. One in six Australians – or 4.4 million people are living with a disability. At St Agnes’ Primary we will be raising awareness for some of these in class during Week 9

Each grade will learn about a different disability and on 5 December will wear the colour representing that foundation. During Social Circles each child will teach their group something they have learnt about their foundation. 

Kindergarten - Hearing loss (Dark Blue)
Year 1 - Visual loss (Green)
Year 2 - Autism (Blue)
Year 3 - Dyslexia (Red)
Year 4- Tourettes (Dark Green)
Year 5 - Mental Health Conditions (Green) 
Year 6 - Down Syndrome (Blue and Yellow)

Year 2 Chapel Visit

Year 2 and many of their parents joined Father Roland at Christ the King Chapel yesterday. The theme was Advent, in preparation for the season beginning next week. 

The students then returned to school and did amazing writing.

Learning Conversations

Have you ever wondered what to ask your child at the end of a school day? Instead of asking ‘How was your day?’ perhaps try the following:

• What did you learn today?
  
• How did you do?
  
• What did you do if you didn’t understand?
  
• How can you improve on your learning?
  
• What are you most proud of?

We hope that this sparks some conversations about your child’s learning in Writing in particular! At St Agnes’ this has been a continued focus to ensure our students feel their learning is meaningful and they know how to improve.

Aggies Christmas Carols

We look forward to having families join us to participate in the St Agnes’ Carols by Candlelight on Tuesday 5 December.

Family and School Partnerships

It was wonderful to have some of our families join us for our recent 'Come and Be Cyber Safe with Me', education sessions. These sessions have been developed by both the Australian Government's E-Safety Commissioner and Google's new online and safety and wellbeing program.

PBS

This week our PBS focus is 'I am respectful when talking to friends, classmates and grown ups'. The purpose of this lesson is to help students' be respectful when they talk to friends, classmates and grown-ups. Student’s will recognise and understand how the tone of their voice and what they say changes the meaning of a sentence. Student’s will also gain an understanding of how tone can make us feel different emotions. 

Learning intention:

We are learning to communicate respectfully with friends, classmates, and grown-ups.

Sports News

Diocesan Summer Sports Trials

Four Aggies students attended the Diocesan Summer Sports Trials in Lismore this week. On Wednesday, Flynn Wehlow attended the Basketball trials. Flynn played with the Hastings squad in four games and was drafted into the final game for selection. His strength on the ball and attack impressed selectors, and now Flynn will travel with the Lismore Diocese Team that will compete in the Polding trials in Term 1, 2024.

On Thursday, Stella Donahue, Bailey Ackroyd and Harley Cadden trailled for touch football. All three participated in four games and played well. Unfortunately, none of our touch players will progress to Polding. What an outstanding achievement to make it this far into selections.

Well done Flynn, Bailey, Harley and Stella.

2024 House Captain Speeches and House Meetings

On Wednesday 29 November at 11:40am, our nominated Year 5 students will present their speeches to their individual sporting house. Years 3 - 6 will attend the speeches, and voting will occur at the house meetings. Parents of nominated students are invited to attend on the day. Following the speeches, the current Year 6 house captains will hold a house meeting with information about the carnival and house chants. The speeches will be held in the following rooms:

• Flinders - 6 Hope (Mr Jones)
• Kennedy - 5 Faith (Mr Behan)
• Boronia - 3 Love (Mrs Tydd)
• Clarence - 4 Faith (Mr Brazel)

St Agnes' Swimming Carnival

Time is quickly running out for families to register for competitive events at next Friday’s school swimming carnival. In order to organise heats, the registrations (schoolinterviews.com.au event code drnt5) will close on Tuesday 28 November. 

Students should come to school normally, and we start transporting students to the pool at 9:00am. Kindergarten will use the toddler pool, and Years 1 and 2 will use the 25m pool. Competitive races will begin around 9:40am with the 8yrs 50m freestyle. If any parent wishes to help on the day, please get in touch with the school.

Attached are the program of events for the kindergarten, infants and primary carnivals. Please note we will do our best to run to schedule, but times are a guide only. Also attached is a social story you can share with your children about what the day includes. This will be shared in classrooms, but it might also help to have a conversation as families.

Coached Sport - Tennis

Thank you to Greg Alchin, who has been at our school for the last two weeks, delivering tennis coaching to all students. It was great to see students involved in the lessons and learning skills needed to play and enjoy tennis. This coaching was provided through the Sporting School Grants from the Australian Sports Commission, and we are grateful for this opportunity for our children.

KM Club 2024

It’s official! The KM Club will return in Term 1, Week 2, 2024.

Student Awards

Aadi P, Aaron V, Addison E, Addison H, Angus D, Anna G, Archie M, Aston G, Aurora P, Billie B, Bryce L, Charlotte E, Chase O, Cohen T, Darcy T, Dominic R, Eliza W, Ella R, Emily K, Enzo W, Flynn N, Harrison F, Jake G, Jaxson F, Jayden C, Jeffrey W, Josh A, Kaiden O, Lacey W, Lachlan F, Mahli N, Mahli-Lee W, Micah V, Nicholas B, Olivia C, Sienna H, Skylah N, Slayter G, Sophie W, Tate A and Tiger Lily R.

P&F

 P&F Meeting Minutes

Canteen News

Upcoming Events and App Alerts

Please remember to check your Compass app for any upcoming events requiring permission:

• Year 1 Liturgy
• Year 2 Liturgy
• Year 4 Excursion
• Year 5 2024 House Captain Speeches
• SRC Leadership Dinner
• Year 6 Graduation
• Year 6 Gathering and Mass
• Swimming Carnival Permission Notes

Parish News

Community News