St Bernard s Catholic Primary School

Transcription

1 St Bernard s Catholic Primary School PO Box 367 Berowra Heights 2082 Phone: Fax: sbb@dbb.org.au Term 1 Week 4 19th Feb Fr Jinto Administrator Fr Thomas Assistant Priest Deacon Kevin WEEKEND MASS TIMES St Bernard s Berowra Heights Saturday Vigil 5.30pm Sunday 9.00am From the Principal Ku-ring gai Chase Catholic Parish Peat Island Chapel Lane, Mooney Mooney Saturday Vigil 4.00pm St Patrick s Asquith Saturday Vigil 6.30pm Sunday 8.00am 10.00am &6.00pm God our Father, as we begin this holy season of Lent, help us to see that your merciful love is with us always, even when we wander far from you. We ask you to change our hearts, that we might become better followers of your Son Jesus. With your grace, may our prayers and sacrifices over the next forty days lead us to welcome Him in each other, in the poor, sick and lonely so that together, we can greet Him as one family at Easter. We ask this in Jesus name, Amen Dear Parents and Students, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, the season of the church year of penance, reflection and fasting. It gives us a time to prepare for Easter and the Resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday. The school will be focussing during Lent on how we can support the many social justice initiatives of Caritas.

2 Avenues for encouraging parent involvement at St Bernard s: 1. School Advisory team (SAT) The School Advisory Team has been operating now for 12 months. The SAT meets once a month and its role is: To provide a forum for discussion of relevant matters and assist the Principal and the school to make informed decisions To keep momentum and continuity going in school community priorities To encourage the voice of all stakeholders To highlight the core purpose of providing the best possible learning opportunities for the young people in our care Over the past 12 months the group has: Shared information about Privacy Principles Investigated school communications School APP Discussed School building developments Members of the School Advisory Team include representatives from the Parish Pastoral Council, the school staff and the parent community. We are seeking new parent representative members for this Team. Please contact Mrs Cheryl Walsh for more information 2. The Parents and Friends association The role of the P&F is to organise social events and fund raising events for the school community and is made up of members of the school community. This group has a different role to the SAT. The P&F meet once each term and the AGM is held in term 4. All parents are invited to attend the P & F Meetings Our next P&F Meeting is on Wednesday 11 th March Parent Teacher Interviews In Week 6 the school will be holding Parent Teacher Interviews. These interviews provide a valuable time for parents to meet with teachers to discuss their child/children. We will be using the School Interviews online Booking system. It is important that parents make an appointment to meet with their child/children s teacher/s. We will be sending home a short questionnaire for parents to complete and return to school. This will be sent home on Monday. New School APP Our new School APP has been operating now for two weeks. The school will be using this new APP as the main form of communication with parents from the beginning of Week 7, Monday 9 th March. Please follow the instructions on page 6 of the newsletter to download the APP. Catholic Schools Week Sunday 8 th March to Saturday 14 th March We have a number of activities planned for Catholic Schools Week and a timetable will be sent home shortly. Our enrolment period also begins in Catholic Schools Week. Children who turn 5 before 31st July 2016 are eligible for enrolment in Kindergarten. Student Representative Council (SRC) The students in Year 3, Year 4 and Stage 3 are currently nominating a student representative from each class to be part of the SRC. The role of the SRC is to raise the profile of social justice causes by organising fund raising activities during school to raise money to support these causes. Caritas is our focus for Term 1. Our 2015 SRC members will receive their badges at Assembly on Friday 6th March. Take care and God Bless Cheryl Walsh

3 Calendar 2015 Wednesday 18th February Monday 23rd February Thursday 26th February Week 6 Friday 6th March Friday 13th March Week 7 Tuesday 10th March Ash Wednesday 6pm SAT meeting Swimming Hornsby pool Diocesan staff Mass Parent Teacher interviews 2.30pm Assembly presentation of SRC badges Staff development day (pupil free day) Catholic Schools Week am St Bernard s Open Day Wednesday 11th March 7pm P & F meeting Saturday 21st March Friday 27th March Wednesday 1st April Thursday 2nd April REC News (Narelle Cartwright) 5.30pm Year 2 Family Mass Cross Country: Infants 9 10am Primary pm cross country backup date Holy Thursday Last Day of Term Term 2 commences Monday 20th April 2015 On Wednesday this week we marked the beginning of Lent with Ash Wednesday. The primary children attended the 9:10am Parish Mass and the infants children had their own special liturgy in the hall. We all received the ashes on our forehead and heard the words, Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel. The season of Lent goes for forty days and is a time for Catholics to prepare for Easter. Lent is a time of fasting and repentance as well as a time for reflecting on Christ s suffering and sacrifice for us. During Lent we are committed to raising childrens awareness of the needs of others who are marginalised in our world. Fundraising is vital to the work of Caritas Australia and the Broken Bay Diocese has committed to supporting them strongly. At St Bernard s we strive to develop the children s growing understandings of social justice. The theme this year is Food for life. As a community, we aim to fundraise in an authentic heartfelt way with a focus on the importance of compassion and Pope Francis call for us to live with mercy and compassion. We ask that you support us in our mission by talking with your children about the importance of reaching out to others in need and by supporting our commitment to fundraising for Project Compassion. PBL News (Therese Cohen) To encourage our school values each week the children are taught a PBL (Positive Behaviour for Learning) rule to encourage them to be respectful and responsible learners. These rules are revisited throughout the year. Our Rule for this week is RESPECT FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT

4 Library News (Maria Richards) Books Light Up Our World Thank you for reading, discussing, signing and returning the Book Borrowing Policy. I really wanted to impress upon the children the importance of stewardship and of the need to take great care of our resources. Thank you also to those who were able to take and cover books last week. The 2015 Premiers Reading Challenge opens on 2 March. The 2015 Challenge runs from 3 March to 29 August (11:59 pm). Students (parents) must complete their online Student Reading Records by 21 August (11:59 pm). Last year 55 children completed the challenge at St Bernard s. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to support the Challenge to promote the development of literacy skills and a love of reading and to encourage your children to continue reading when they have finished the Challenge. All information can be accessed at and please feel free to ask me if you have any unanswered questions. RULES: Challenge Number of books needed to complete the Challenge Minimum number of PRC books for your Challenge Maximum number of personal choice books PRC booklist selection K , 7-9, K-2, , 7-9, , , Students, whose online entries are received by the closing date of 21 August 2015, and following validation by the school, are eligible for certificates. 2. Only one certificate per year will be issued to each student regardless of the number of books read. A student who completes 1 year receives a completion certificate. A student who completes 2 years receives a completion certificate. A student who completes 3 years receives a completion certificate. A student who completes 4 years receives a Gold certificate. A student who completes 5 years receives a completion certificate. A student who completes 6 years receives a completion certificate. A student who completes 7 years receives a Platinum certificate. A student who completes 8 years receives a completion certificate. A student who completes 9 years receives a completion certificate. The more you read, the more you know, The more you know, the more places you ll go! Dr Zeuss

5 from the office PRIVACY LAW ADVICE At the direction of the Catholic Schools Office, please be advised that if you take photos at school functions and then post them on social media, you are in potential breach of privacy laws. You may not post photos which contain children other than your own, even if they only appear in the background. Parents, be aware that parking on driveways across footpaths to drop-off and pick-up endangers young pedestrians. It is preferable for parents to drop their children further down the street so they can walk to the school gate in safety. Traffic Rangers may issue infringements to motorists obstructing footpaths. Source: Hornsby Shire Council Road Safety Resources. Parents, We have witnessed and received reports of several near misses recently. Please keep our children safe. Drive slowly, park legally, be very aware of your surroundings. A driver must not stop on a driveway or footpath in a way that blocks pedestrian access. St Bernard s Catholic Primary School, Berowra Heights STUDENT ABSENTEE NOTE We are required by law to record all absences for children enrolled in our school with an accompanying note. My child of class was absent from school on the following date/s: Please sign below to indicate that your permission was given for this/these days absent. I, verify that my child was absent from school with my permission on the dates above. Reason: Signature: date:

6 Get school news via our free app AND receive instant alerts! 1. iphone, ipad and ipod Touch app: a. Open the App store, search for st bernards 2082 OR b Android app: a. Open the Play store, search for st bernards 2082 OR b All other phones visit: a. Open the app and search for St Bernards Student Banking Subscribe for updates 1. Visit our website at 2. Click the News & Events heading (left menu) 3. Under the Subscribe heading, tick on the Newsletters List and the appropriate year lists 4. Enter in your name and address. 5. Click Subscribe 6. IMPORTANT: An will be sent to your address, you MUST click the Activate Now inside this that is sent to you. The choice is yours. Subscribe to receive s or simply receive alerts via the APP. St Bernard s School Banking Next date for school banking is Thursday 26th February Students can of course also bring any additional banking into the branch at other times

7 Scholastic Book Club (Janice Wright) Thanks to the many families that ordered books from Issue 1. I will give an update in future newsletters on the rewards earned. Remember for every $1 spent, 20cents goes to your class teacher to spend on new books and resources. NEW PAYMENT OPTION From Issue 2 a new option will be available to pay and order Book Club online. It is called LOOP. (Scholastic Book Clubs Linked Online Ordering & Payment platform for Parents.) Refer to either the flyer in this newsletter for more details or the back page of every issue (student order form) has payment information also. Cash and cheque will still be accepted, however you will need to return the order form with your payment by the due date. From Issue 2, there will no longer be a stapled note to the front of the brochure. This note had due date and payment methods. The due date will now be stamped on the top of the brochure and payment details are on the last page the student order form. Any queries please do not hesitate to send via the office. Introducing

8 Messages From the Community HALF PRICE PIANO /KEYBOARD LESSONS! For new students in Yrs 3-6 starting in Term ! Limited Vacancies Learn a variety of musical styles in a fun, relaxed environment from a very experienced teacher who is passionate about music! Beginners to Advanced (Exams or Leisure) Mrs Sue Norrington BA (Mus), Grad. Dip Ed Book Now: HEALTH WARNING Please advise the office if your child has exhibited signs of a gastro-intestinal virus. MERCY CATHOLIC COLLEGE OPEN DAY Sunday 8 March 2015, 11am 2pm Celebrating 125 Years of Excellence in Teaching and Learning Mercy Catholic College 101 Archer Street Chatswood NSW mercy@dbb.catholic.edu.au