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Newsletter No 1 Term 3 15th July 2021

Fr Steve’s Sunday Mass:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6WCu-KKil0

Dear Sacred Heart families and friends,

One of the key groups in the Sacred Heart Primary School community is the School Advisory Council (SAC). The SAC is the key advisory body to the School and Parish Leadership representing the parent community. This year the members of the SAC are: Andrew Campbell (Chairperson), Jamie Ross (Secretary), Libby Audley, Colleen Hunter-Zwarts, Maddi Jones, Maree Madden and Ronan McIlroy representing the Sacred Heart community, Fr. Dixon represents Fr. Steve and the parish community and Gina Murphy representing the school staff.

The SAC met last Tuesday evening and discussed a broad range of matters. The first item was focussed on the work of the Uniform sub-committee, the current status of the elements of the school uniform and whether the school uniform fulfilled the requirements of registration as a Sunsmart school. Gina Murphy reported that she had discussed our Sunsmart status with Sunsmart Victoria and their view was that we did meet the relevant criteria for ongoing registration.

However the SAC members felt that it was important for us to be able to provide the best possible Sunsmart uniform for our students within a detailed set of criteria and adopted specific Terms of Reference for the future work of a Uniform Committee. There is a note regarding this in this newsletter.

The SAC was also briefed on the previous work of the existing Uniform Committee and the current status of the uniform. Members of the SAC believed that there had been a confusion amongst the members of the Uniform Committee as to the purpose of the committee and to the place of the new sports jacket. I informed the SAC that this had probably arisen through me allowing students to wear their school tracksuit tops when they refused to wear the woollen school jumper (for a range of reasons). My feeling was that at least it was a part of the school uniform and not just some random piece of favourite clothing. Since that time we have discovered that the supplier of our woollen school jumper makes the same jumper in another material, therefore eliminating the complaint about the woollen jumper, we will now provide both types of school jumpers as part of the school uniform. The new sports top is just that, a sports top, and is not to be worn as part of the normal school uniform.

I apologise to all members of the Uniform Committee and to the wider school community for this error and hope that this clarifies the matter. Of course there will be a transition period while we arrange for the alternate jumper to be available through the Uniform Shop. The School Leadership is now going through a process of discerning what conditions will be placed on the wearing of the sports top throughout the school week.

Investigating Improvements to the Sun Protection Level of School ‘Tops’ Sacred Heart Diamond Creek is a SunSmart School, and we know the importance of protecting young skin and bodies from the impacts of the Australian sun. Our school uniforms currently meet the requirements for us to be a SunSmart School, but we are always looking for ways to improve our management of sun exposure. As a result, the School Advisory Council is reviewing if there are better options for school uniform ‘tops’ (shirts, dresses) which might provide an even higher level of sun protection than our current blue shirts, sports polos and summer dresses.

A parent committee is being formed to assist with this review, and we are currently seeking three parents to be a part of the committee, working with two parents who are already investigating some ideas. If you’re interested in helping identify and assess options for uniform ‘tops’ with improved sun protection, and you can spare a couple of hours per month between August and November this year, we’d love your input and help.

If you'd like to nominate to help out for the next few months, or like to know more about the committee's plan, please CONTACT - Jamie Ross (0408432930)

Other matters on the SAC agenda were:

 Before School Care program - towards the end of last term, OSHClub informed me that they were considering dropping the Before School Care program due to low attendance numbers and the increasing cost of running both Before and After school care programs. After lengthy discussions OSHClub agreed to continue both programs for the duration of Term 3 while reviewing the numbers attending Before School Care. I encourage any families that might need the Before School care program in the near or distant future to begin utilising it as soon as possible.

 Survey of School Photographs - Gina Murphy presented a summary of the parent and staff responses to the school photographs. Thank you to all families that responded to this survey as this enables us to receive feedback and respond to this feedback. There were many families that made very valid comments that have been considered but the data has shown us that the majority of families would prefer the traditional photo in the school uniform. With this feedback we will revert in 2022 to traditional photos in school uniform. Thank you again for this feedback.

 Representation on Combined Parishes Safeguarding Committee - Father Steve has established a committee to oversee the implementation and review of policies and practices promoting child safety within the communities of the combined parishes and to foster and promote an awareness of the importance of child safety in the church community. If anyone is interested in joining this committee, further information is available from the school office.

 Railway land leased by the school - The school currently leases a small section of the oval alongside the railway line from VicTrack, this has been ongoing since the school was first started. Initially the rent was a fixed amount however about 5 years ago the lease was reviewed and the rent was set at a much higher amount with an annual percentage increase and a regular rental review. We are considering ceasing to lease this land, partially because through the rental agreement we are responsible for repairing any damage to the perimeter fences caused by the public, and are seeking the support of a land surveyor to clearly identify where the boundary line for the leased land is. If you can help us with this please contact the school office.

Jim O’Sullivan

The Eucharist is central to the Catholic faith and the Church teaches us that it is 'the source and summit’ of the Christian life. By recalling what Jesus did with his disciples, and by drinking the wine and eating the bread, we mimic his actions. This action emphasises what Jesus was, said, and did. Through the Eucharist we are united as a community and our clarity of what is right is strengthened. As Catholics we believe that the bread and wine which we receive is the actual body and blood of Jesus and that it is another form of his sacrifice for us. This further proves the point that receiving the Eucharist is the most important act of worship. Students attend Mass several times throughout the school year, and for those who have undertaken their First Eucharist, they are encouraged to receive communion at least once a month.

Good luck to those students who will be participating in the Confirmation Commitment Masses this weekend on Saturday 17th July at 6:30pm at St Peter’s Hurstbridge and Sunday 18th July 9:00am at Sacred Heart Diamond Creek.

Claire Molina Religious Education Leader

SCHOOL CLOSURE: On Monday 9th and Tuesday 10th August there will be a school closure as the staff attend a conference.

CONGRATULATIONS: Congratulations to Helen and the Pendry family on the arrival of their first grandchild, Noah.

STUDENT NEWS: Congratulations and good luck to both Madeleine Arvaji and Miller Burns who will be competing in the Regional Cross Country carnival on Tuesday 20th July.

Congratulations also to Claire Waddington and Alice Brunnen who are in the Grand Final for U12 Girls Basketball this Saturday at CBS. Their team is Creekers U12 Girls Team 1 and best of luck to any other students that may be competing in Grand Finals this weekend. Also congratulations Caitlin Waddington who won an award for her U10 Girls Basketball Team 2, Best Team Player. Well done to all these students.

SENIOR HOOP TIME - CHANGE OF DATE: Due to COVID restrictions earlier in the year the Year 5/6 Hoop Time date has been postponed until Monday 30th August.

PARKLIFE: Parklife is an exciting new initiative designed to increase social sport opportunities for the community. With support from a Vichealth Reimagining Health grant, ParkLife were able to partner with Cricket Victoria, Football Victoria and 4 other councils to deliver this program. These Councils include Nillumbik Shire,Darebin Council, Monash Council and City of Cardinia.

This message is to inform members of our community who often use the oval on weekends that each Sunday a Parklife group will be utilising this space from 1:30-2:30pm from July to November 2021

CLASS LEADERS: Congratulations to the following students that received Class Leaders positions for Term 2.

FOUNDATION Eloise Ross & Beau Foster 1/2 CN Rupert Berriman & Finn Ohlsen 1/2 PA Benji Collins & Jacob Sciberras 3/4 NJ Madison Lewis & Isaac Sciberras 3/4 RM Miller Burns & Macy Liddiard 5/6 JD Noah Hosking & Leo Liu 5/6 MM Charlie Rowley & Zara Campbell

These students will be presented at the assembly on Monday.

TERM OVERVIEWS: Each year level sends home an overview of the term ahead. This has dates, routines and expectations of students concerning learning, uniform and general day to day routines. Please take the time to read this.

ASSEMBLY: Our first assembly for Term 3 will be held on Monday 19th July. Parents are welcome to attend this event, however, you will need to sign in and wear masks. We ask that parents enter via the door on the driveway side of the community centre and all parents must practise social distance during this time.

SPORT UNIFORM: Sport Uniform days for Semester 2: F-2 Monday & Friday 3-6 Tuesday & Friday

WORKING WITH CHILDREN CHECKS (WWCC): Just a reminder to all families that if you intend to help out in any capacity at school, excursions, classroom help, tuck shop etc. you must have a current working with children check. This is a free application and can be found at http://www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au/

FREE DRESS MACKILLOP HOUSE: Congratulations to Mackillop house on winning the house points for Term 2. You will have a free dress day on Monday 19th July – flyers have been sent home to these students.

LOYOLA PRODUCTION - MARY POPPINS: On Wednesday, 18 students had the opportunity to attend the Loyola School Production - Mary Poppins. This was a great experience for the students and an amazing production for those that have the opportunity to go and see it.

YEAR 5/6 STUDENTS: Earlier in the year we were fortunate to receive a grant through the Nillumbik Council to support our students in regards to Gender Equity and Year 6 Transition Lessons.

Program Aims:  To work with Year 5/6 students as a whole to teach concepts of gender equity, respect, empathy and ‘using your voice’  To work with students in single-gender groups to address gender-based issues within a Respectful Relationships Framework  To provide transition support to grade 6 students in preparation for transition to secondary school in 2022

More information has been included in the overview but if you want to know more please contact the office.

THE RESILIENCE PROJECT: As we continue to work with our students on The Resilience Project, the following clip from Martin Heppell (our Resilience Project partner) contains some salient advice for parents and carers regarding the importance of sleep with our wellbeing. Sleep and School Students - Why it's important and setting good routines

ONLINE SAFETY WEBINARS FOR PARENTS: Earlier this year CSPV conducted research of parents to understand areas of concern for them when it comes to their children's learning. One of the areas of concern was online safety. The eSafety Commissioner provides opportunities for parents to be more engaged in their children's safety online through a series of webinars on specific topics that are challenging for parents to monitor and manage.

Below are some resources to support our community in their efforts to keep their children safe online. eSafety’s parent guide to online sexual harassment and image-based abuse Free webinar for parents and carers of secondary school students. 1 in 3 young women and 1 in 5 young men have experienced online sexual harassment. When young people experience this type of online harassment and abuse it can have serious impacts. This webinar is designed for parents and young people to attend together to learn how to report and where to go for support.

Visit esafety.gov.au for more information on parent webinars and to register. eSafety’s parent guide to popular apps Free webinar for parents and carers of primary and secondary school students Understand the risks when using apps like Tik Tok, Snap Chat, YouTube and Instagram. This webinar also covers strategies for staying safer on social media and how to report if something goes wrong. Visit esafety.gov.au for more information on parent webinars and to register.

USING SENSORY TOYS TO IMPROVE LEARNING AND BEHAVIOUR: Often children seek out sensory activities, they find specific sensory experiences calming. We have a number of students that use sensory toys to support their learning and behaviour in the classroom. We also have a number of students with these toys but that are not needed for support in the classroom. If your child has these toys we ask for them to be kept in the student’s bag and only used during play breaks. We have also had a number of students ‘trading’ these toys. To the best of our abilities we will enforce a no trading policy but ask for your support with this. Please take the time to read the article below.

https://suelarkey.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Using-Sensory-Toys-to-Improve-Learning-and- Behaviour.pdf

Gina Murphy Wellbeing Leader

Prep NC Alfie Harte 1/2 CN Sebastian Zagami 1/2 PA Jacob Sciberras 3/4 NJ Madison Lewis 3/4 RM Eva Parker 5/6 JD Ella Burton 5/6 MM Charlie Rowley PE Hilton Christian LOTE Ruby Vassallo STEM Meliz Hoe Performing Arts Liam O’Reilly Visual Arts Alexander Hernandez

Term 3 Dates 2021

July Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 12 WEEK 1 A 13 14 15 16 17 18 TERM 3 Start of Term ISS v Green Confirmation Confirmation COMMENCES School Advisory Mass 9.15am Parkways Commitment Commitment Plastic Free Council 7.30pm (home) Mass St Mass Sacred Month Loyola Peters Heart 9am Production - 18 Kate Wilde 6.30pm (2020 and Parents students Year 5/6 (2020 and 2021) Association (together) 2021) 7.30pm 2.20-3.20pm 19 WEEK 2 B 20 21 22 23 24 25

Assembly Cross Country - ISS v Apollo B Madi & Miller (away) Free dress day for Mackillop Jess Clark last House day

Kate Wilde Year 5/6 (together) 2.20-3.20pm

26 WEEK 3 A 27 28 29 30 31

Assembly Confirmation Confirmation Aeroschools ISS v Green Faith Night for Faith Night for Competition Parkways Year F-2 2020 and 2021 2020 and 2021 (home) Scienceworks candidates St candidates St excursion Thomas Thomas 5.30pm Kate Wilde 7:30pm or 7:30pm Year 5/6 Year 3/4 (together) Taskworks 2.20-3.20pm incursion

August Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 1 2 WEEK 4 B 3 4 5 6 7 8 Assembly SACRED 2 Dream ISS v Laurimar C HEART Music (home) 100 Days of Prep ATHLETICS Concert CARNIVAL 2.20- Kate Wilde Year 3.15pm 5/6 (separate gender) 2.20- 3.20pm 9 WEEK 5 A 10 11 12 13 14 15 STAFF CONFERENCE STAFF ISS v Diamond Feast of the School Closure CONFERENCE Creek (away) Assumption School Closure Kate Wilde Year 5/6 (separate gender) 2.20- 3.20pm 16 WEEK 6 B 17 18 19 20 21 22 Assembly Hoop Time ISS v Green BOGAN Year 3/4 Parkways BINGO - Confirmation (away) Parents Reflection Day - Mary School Association Mackillop Centre Advisory Kate Wilde Year Year 6 Council 5/6 (separate 7.30pm gender) 2.20- SCIENCE WEEK 3.20pm

Sacrament of Confirmation 7pm 23 WEEK 7 A 24 25 26 27 28 29 Assembly District ISS v BYE Athletics BOOK WEEK Kate Wilde Year Book Week Parade 5/6 (all 9.10am together) 2.20- 3.20pm Hats to be worn 30 WEEK 8 B 31 Assembly

LITERACY/ NUMERACY WEEK

Spring into Prep Program begins

MACSSIS School Improvement Survey to be completed over the next three weeks

Book Fair this week September Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 1 2 3 4 5 Father’s ISS Finals FATHERS Day Stall DAY Family Day Breakfast

Kate Wilde Year 5/6 (all together) 2.20-3.20pm 6 WEEK 9 A 7 8 9 10 11 12 Assembly Division Kate Wilde transition Year Athletics 6 only 11.40am-1.30pm Spring into Prep Program

13 WEEK 10 B 14 15 16 17 18 19 Assembly School Advisory Footy Day Council 7.30pm Spring into Prep MACSSIS closes Program Kate Wilde transition Year 6 only 11.40am-1.30pm

TERM 3 FINISHES 2.30pm