IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY CATHOLIC SCHOOL NEWSLETTER McCann Crescent, Lenah Valley Phone 6228 3335 email: ihms@catholic.tas.edu.au web: www.ihms.tas.edu.au PO Box 429 Lenah Valley 7008 No 6 3 rd May 2018 For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, "Do not fear; I will help you." Isaiah 41:13 Dear Community Members, Next Sunday (13 th May) is Mother s Day. This is a special day where we celebrate our Mother s. Our Mother s are a gift from God that help mould us into the humans we are. Please pray for all Mums both living and deceased. I hope all students do something very special for their Mother next Sunday. Anzac Day Service On Wednesday 25 th April over 25 students and staff represented Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic School at the ANZAC Day Parade and Service at the Lenah Valley RSL. I thank the students for making the effort to wear their school uniform and represent our fabulous school during our school holidays. I also thank the parents for making this happen. I was extremely pleased and humbled with the outstanding turnout. Parish Mass - Sunday 27 th May - 6pm On Sunday 27 th May, Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic School has been asked to represent the Parish Masses at the Cathedral at 6pm. We will be responsible for the readings and the procession of gifts at all the Masses. We would love to see as many students as possible at this Mass. Please return the note that will be distributed if you can assist. Gymnastics - Prep and Grade 1 Starting next week the Prep s and Grade 1 s will be beginning a Gymnastics unit at the PCYC - Bridgewater. They will be going every week for the next four weeks. I would like to thank Mrs Therese Kelly for her excellent organisation in applying for grants to allow these programs to happen. Over the past 5 years, classes every term are involved in special sporting activities (organised by Mrs Kelly) that are outside the regular school curriculum. Some of these activities have been: table tennis, gymnastics, hockey, athletics, basketball, netball, surfing, etc. Hear and Learn Technology in Grade 3/4 The Grade 3/4 classes are very fortunate to trial a new technology called the Activate System. The Activate System is a series of microphones and speakers in the classroom. The Activate system addresses three main challenges for learning: 1. Engaging the whole class. The technology improves speech intelligibility and provides an even distribution of sound so that students hear the teacher s voice, understand, and gain insights even in a less than perfect acoustic environment. In other words, ensuring that every student can hear every word.
2. Activating group learning. Teachers must be able to listen to learn as well. This is particularly difficult in today s active, flexible classroom. Activating learning can only come from receiving important feedback from students on how they are progressing. The Activate System gives teachers the tools to listen in on student groups, while teaching out of earshot of these groups, providing them with the insights they need to assess student needs in real-time. Audio and Video of discussions of these student groups can be digitally recorded by the Activate System. These files can then be stored in a school s reporting system or in student electronic portfolios and used for assessment, or evidence of learning. Teachers can also record student interactions to facilitate assessment (including student self-assessment) and reporting of important aspects of the Australian Curriculum: English (Speaking and Listening) which are currently difficult to capture and report on effectively. 3. Collaboration. Teachers need the ability to listen to their own teaching for self-reflection and listen to the teaching of others to apply effective strategies. Insights shared amongst teachers through coaching, exemplars and professional learning communities help to build collective efficacy. We will be trialling this throughout Term 3 and providing feedback on this system. We are one of nine schools Australian wide trialling this system. University Student Teachers Next week we have three University Student Teachers beginning their first teaching Practicum at our school. During these three weeks they will mainly observe and assist the class teachers. These students are: Alexandra Harvey (working in Grade 6), Dominique Matuszek (working in Grade 5) and Sam Duigan (working in Grade 4). We welcome them to Immaculate Heart. NAPLAN During Week 3 of Term 2, the Grade 3 s and Grade 5 s will be participating in the NAPLAN test. The tests consist of a Numeracy, Reading Comprehension, Language Conventions, Spelling and Writing. Every Grade 3, 5, 7 and 9 student in Australia sits these tests on these days. I encourage all students in these grades to have early nights during this week so they can give themselves the best preparation possible. School Uniform Changeover The changeover to winter uniform is this week (Monday 30th April Friday 4th May). All students will be required to be in winter uniform by next Monday 7th May. A reminder that our uniform can be purchased from our Uniform Store every Wednesday from 2pm to 4pm (during school terms). New Student We welcome Clair Denehey to our Grade 4 class. I am sure the entire school will make her feel welcome. Soccer - 2018 Soccer will begin this Saturday 5 th May. This year we have 8 teams, ranging from Under 6 s (Prep s) through to Under 9 s (Grade 3 s). All players will receive their uniform by the end of this week. I would like to thank the parents who have volunteered to be the coach and the managers of these team. Information regarding on-line registration is being sent home today. This will need to be completed before the first game. All payments are due to the Office by next Wednesday 9 th May. Please see Casey if you require further information.
Please note - our next newsletter will be distributed on Friday 18th May (instead of Thursday 17th May) Take care and God bless Mr Nick McGann Principal Tech Tip Thursday Did you know That it is possible to turn off the annoying ding sound for imessages on the ipad? Go to Settings > Notifications > Messages > Sounds and then select None. Ta-dah, peace and quiet! It is also possible to restrict the use of imessages by following these easy steps outlined in this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cstpftbm4e4&t=17s At Immaculate Heart we do believe that children should also be learning to be responsible users of technology and understand that they are not a faceless name behind a screen, however we do understand that some parents may like the choice to restrict the use of imessages. When following the above steps it is imperative to record the restriction code, as if it is forgotten the device will need to be erased. Next Newsletter: Setting parental controls. Do you have a Tech Tip suggestion? Email it to stephanie.bruce@catholic.tas.edu.au
CALENDAR OF EVENTS Friday 4 th May G5 Excursion Saturday 5 th May School soccer begins Monday 7 th May Community Consultation Meeting 6pm Tuesday 8 th May G3 G6 TSO Excursion G5 Liturgy 12.40pm Prep & G1 Gymnastics Session Mother s Day Stall Canteen orders due today (for lunch tomorrow) Thursday 10 th May Canteen Day Saturday 12 th May Auslan for Families session in School Hall - 2pm Wednesday 16 th May G4 Mass at SHC 9am Wednesday 16 th May Cross Country Carnival Thursday 17 th May Prep & G1 Gymnastics Session Sunday 20 th May City to Casino Fun Run Wednesday 23 rd May School Photo Day Wednesday 23 rd May Canteen orders due today (for lunch tomorrow) Wednesday 23 rd May Assembly G4 Prayer, K, G1, G3 & G5 to share 1.50pm Thursday 24 th May Canteen Day Thursday 24 th May Prep & G1 Gymnastics Session Friday 25 th May P G6 North Melbourne Footy Clinic Saturday 26 th May Auslan for Communities session in School Hall 2pm Subway dates will be added when they have been confirmed
Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic School Board will be holding a Mother s Day Stall on. Gifts will be priced from $1.00-$5.00 All funds raised will be going towards our playground upgrades. A small donation of gifts such as soap, chocolates, candles, stationery, keyrings, wrapping paper, gift bags or ribbon would be greatly appreciated if possible. You can leave your donation at the office prior to the day. Thankyou Samantha Ransley - IHMCS Board