Newsletter - 2024 Term 4 Week 6

Calendar

From the Leaders

This Sunday is the Solemnity of Christ the King. This is the last Sunday of the liturgical year. Next Sunday is the First Sunday of Advent, the next liturgical year will begin.

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Pilate and Jesus discuss kingship. Both have a very different idea of what a king is. Jesus lived his life showing us how to live on earth. We are called to live as disciples of Christ so we can enter God’s Kingdom.

2025 School Captain and SRC Announcement

We are excited to introduce the Year 5 students who have been selected to be the Year 6 Student Representative Council for 2025!  We look forward to their leadership next year.

Our School Captains for 2025: Georgina Foot and Kitt Quirk

Our 2025 SRC Members: Alex Anosh, Wyatt Banyer, Reagan Clarke, Noah Fraser, Emily Krizanec, Chloe Leonard, Lilyana Packer and Jada Ustariz

Year 2 Youth Ministry Retreat

Year 2 enjoyed spending time being grateful for everything in their lives with Jaz and Jacob this week during their Year 2 Retreat. 

Year 1 will have their turn on Monday next week to learn more about being nourished through the scripture reading of Feeding the Five Thousand.

World Children’s Day - Out of Uniform and Gold Coin Donation

How many times have we all said “It’s Children’s Day every day??”

Next Wednesday 27 November, the SRC will be organising fun activities for St Agnes’ students. This initiative has come from our student voice and will also be an out of uniform day with a gold coin donation to go towards the Starlight Foundation.

Annual Parish Christmas Hamper Appeal

Come out of uniform and bring your hamper donation on Tuesday 3 December.

Each class has been allocated items to donate for the Christmas Hamper appeal. Please see the note below for further details.

Year 6 High School Gathering and Mass

Year 6 students attended one of their transition days on Wednesday with students from the other catholic primary schools in our cluster. They started with a Mass with the Wildfire Band and moved into activities with students grouped with others attending their prospective high schools next year.

Little Muzo's

We were treated to a wonderful showcase of talent at this week’s Little Muzo’s concert.

Congratulations to Amanda O’Brien and Melissa Stanmore on their preparation of the students. We look forward to watching these budding musicians continue to flourish

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Attending School Regularly Helps Children Feel Better About School and Themselves.

Help your child to learn that going to school on time, every day is important.

Reinforcing the idea that attending school regularly is crucial for a positive school experience. Foster a love for learning by encouraging your child's natural curiosity. 

Help your child to see school as a place to explore new ideas, discover interests, and develop a lifelong passion for learning. Foster positive social connections at school by encouraging friendships. Knowing that they have friends to look forward to can motivate children to attend school regularly.

This week Kade Wilson in Year 3 attended the Homeless Collective along with some of our staff. Here is his record of his events.

On Tuesday, I went to Sister Marjorie’s Soup Kitchen with my dad, Mrs Post and MrsTodd. The Soup Kitchen is at the Youth Hub and gives people in need a chance to get some food, clean clothes and even a haircut. There were a lot of people helping and they came from all different places, like St Agnes’ Parish, St Vincent De Paul and the Salvation Army.

This year, in Year 3, we collected toiletry items to give to people in need. It was cool to see all the things that our school does through our out of uniform days and charity events and how they help people.

The food they were serving looked so yummy, and I even got to eat a cream pastry. They get a hot breakfast and lunch, and all of the food is donated. I got to talk with Sister Margie, who told me she will be turning 90 years old this week. She was one of the Josephite Nuns who built schools and started Catholic Schools in Port Macquarie. I helped out a little bit by sweeping up the floor around where people were getting hair cuts.

From visiting the Soup Kitchen, I have a better idea of how our food drives and money raising events are not just chances to wear cool clothes to school. They are a chance to help people.

We also wish Sr Marjorie a wonderful 90th birthday for this weekend.

St Agnes’ Primary School Annual Golf Day Fundraiser

Next Friday night is the St Agnes’ Parent Community Forum Golf Day/Night, held at Port Golf Club. It looks ready to be a great event with all teams filled. Come along for the raffle and auction prizes and share a drink with members of our community. All the fun begins at 4:30pm.

We would like to thank our generous sponsors:

Major Sponsor - McIntosh Distribution

Hole Sponsors - Doppio or Nothing Espresso, Construction Sciences, Ultra Tune – Port Macquarie, Joyce Constructions, Paragon Accounting, Prestige Electrical & Data Services and Harelec Solar

Team Sponsors - Peter Jacka Electrical, Coastal Commercial Linings and Fresh By Design

Other Sponsors/supporters - Tall Orders, Strive Financial, The Local, Morris Succession Lawyers, Saxby's, Cassegrain,  Burger Urge, Kenny Littles, Little Shack, Brows by Willow, Aqua Vitae, Mid Pacific, Salty Crew Kiosk, Taronga Zoo Sydney, Sea Life Aquarium Sydney, WildNets Port Macquarie, Thomas Foods, Pietres Mitre 10 and Super Cheap Auto

Green Team

The rain has slowed progress on the Aggies’ Veggie Patch, however, both the Year 4 and Year 5 Green Teams have worked hard this week making up for lost time, shifting the enormous structures into place and concreting the corner posts into the footings.

Both teams spent their Tuesday session learning about concrete, how to use it safely and effectively and how to ensure all posts are level and straight before the concrete sets. 

Now the patch is in place, the installation of the sleepers can begin which means we can also start filling our beds with planting medium. The great folk at Port Tree Fella have agreed to donate eight cubic metres of leaf mulch which we will put into the bottom of the garden beds. We also received an enormous donation of seeds last week from the wonderful people at Mrs Fothergill’s.

Once completed, Aggies’ Veggie Patch will be an extra learning resource, as well as a place for students to connect with nature by means of planting, mulching, weeding, watering and harvesting, all wholesome activities that ground many students and get them better prepared for their classroom learning.

If you would like to become a financial sponsor and donate towards the Green Team’s major project this year, it would be greatly appreciated not only by all of the Green Team members, but also the wider school community.
Donations can be made directly at the front office, and sponsorship packages start from as little as $25. The Green Teams hope to be welcoming you as a financial sponsor soon!

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Parish Community Celebration

We look forward to joining with over 700 Community Parish Celebration this Sunday 24 November. Join us at St Joseph’s Regional College from 10:00am for Mass, followed by amazing food and fun activities for all.

Encounter Youth – Who dun it?

‘Who did it? It was Jesus, with a miracle, in Jerusalem! It’s time to unmask the workings of God in our lives.’ Join us at Encounter Youth for a mystery night with food, fun, and more.

• Friday 22 November
• 5:30pm-7:30pm @ the Youth Hub
• $5 for Dinner

Sports News

Diocesan Summer Sports Trials - Basketball and Touch Football

Next week, six students will represent our school at the Diocesan Summer Trials in Lismore. On Tuesday, Mila S, Emily K, and Macy C will participate in the basketball trials, while on Thursday, Mia B, Ivy G, and Stella D will take part in the touch football trials.  

These athletes have already excelled in school and Zone trials to earn their place at the Diocesan trials. They will now compete against the top players from Catholic schools spanning the region from Laurieton to Tweed Heads.  

We wish all six girls the very best of luck at the trials.

Aggies Swimming Carnival

Don't miss your chance to register for the Aggies Swimming Carnival! Students aged eight and older are eligible to participate in competitive events, including 50m freestyle, breaststroke, and backstroke for each age group. Additional events include 100m races for Junior students (ages 8–10) and Senior students (ages 11–13), as well as an all-ages butterfly event.  

To register your child for these events, please visit https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/ and use the code ca2ty. Event bookings will close on Monday 2 December.

Before signing up, please ensure your child is able to swim the selected distance without stopping, as this helps us maintain a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone. The carnival is designed to be fun and inclusive, encouraging all students to participate. For those who prefer not to compete in the main races, there will be a variety of other swimming activities, including 25m races, novelty events and free swim sessions.

To help families plan their day, event programs for Kindergarten, Years 1 and 2, and Primary are attached below. We understand that many parents take time off to attend, and we’ll do our best to keep events running on schedule. Permission notes for the carnival will be sent out next week via Compass.

We extend our gratitude to community members who have already volunteered to help. If you're interested in supporting our students during this event, please contact Drew Wilson at andrew.wilson@lism.catholic.edu.au or Renee Shaw at renee.shaw@lism.catholic.edu.au.

Future Dates

• Tuesday 26 November: Diocesan Summer Sports Trials (Years 4 and 5 Basketball and Tennis)
  
• Thursday 28 November: Diocesan Summer Sports Trials - Touch Football - Lismore
  
• Friday 6 December: St Agnes' Swimming Carnival - Port Macquarie Town Pool

2025

• Thursday 6 February: School Swimming Trials - Wauchope Pool
• Friday 7 February: Polding Summer Sports Trials - Tamworth
• Tuesday 18 February: Zone Swimming Carnival - Macksville

Positive Behaviour Support

This week we continue with our focus on being Responsible: I am a responsible leader. In our previous lesson students created goals to ‘finish Term 4 strong’. Our goal is to help our students achieve this by teaching them about the importance of leadership, growth mindset and responsibility.

Catholic Social teaching: We should commit ourselves wholeheartedly to the good of all, to stand in solidarity with our one human family.

Family Resources: 

Therapy Works

Big Life Journal

Books to Share:

St Agnes' Primary School Community Forum

Canteen News

Parish News

Supporting healthy tech use as your child transitions into high school. This webinar explores the social pressures, peer influences, and technological challenges young people face as they transition into high school. It also offers practical strategies for navigating online friendships and connections to help minimise negative experiences. It is suitable for parents and carers of children in upper primary school (ages 11 to 12) and Year 7. This Webinar will be on 28 November at 12:30 pm Registration link - https://register.gotowebinar.com/rt/5292449078565496666

eSafety 101: how eSafety can help you. An overview of The eSafety Commissioner and supporting programs and resources for parents and carers, children, and young people. It is suitable for parents and carers of children and young people in primary and secondary school and will be on Wednesday 4 December at 12:30pm Registration link - https://register.gotowebinar.com/rt/4429149931214716000

Community News

Getting to School by Bus in 2025

Will your child be catching the bus to school next year? Applications are now open for a Bus Travel Pass.  As it’s a busy time of year, we highly recommend you make this application before the end of the year. It’s also good to check the bus timetable to make your child’s journey to school as easy as possible.  Here is how it works:

Bus passes

• All students catching the bus in 2025 will need a school travel pass.
• Under the School Student Transport Scheme (SSTS), eligible students can apply for free or subsided travel between home and school.
• For more information about the School Student Transport Scheme and how to apply for a school travel pass, visit https://apps.transport.nsw.gov.au/ssts/#/ from a desktop computer.

Bus timetables
Busways is the school bus operator that runs your schools’ bus services. To find your child’s school bus timetable visit the Busways website by using the following steps:

1. Go to busways.com.au/nsw 
2. Click on ‘school services’ in the navigation bar and then proceed to ‘school timetables’
3. Enter the school’s name in the field that says ‘enter a school name’
4. Select the school’s name and the timetable should open on your device. If you are unable to find or search for the school’s name, use the drop-down menus on the same web page to find the school.
5. Once the timetable is opened, you will be able to identify which school bus services are available in your area for your child to use.