Principal's Message

Welcome back to Term 3.

I hope that you had a chance to enjoy the holidays with your children. Even if you still had to work yourself, I hope you enjoyed watching your children unwind and relax. 

Last term was an eleven week term and you could tell both the students and staff were really looking forward to a break. The weather was not the best, but everyone has returned looking as if they too are rested. Perhaps when the wintry conditions make us stay indoors, read books and watch old movies, the body really does get a chance to re-energise itself!

GRANDPARENTS AND GRANDFRIENDS DAY AT SMDP

This Friday we will celebrate Grandparents and Grandfriends Day at SMPD. It is a special day for our school community. It's an opportunity for these special people to visit our classrooms, join us in prayer and conclude with a morning tea. 

The relationship between grandparent and grandchild is a sacred one unique in its own right. When a newborn comes into the family, they usually have at least two generations' unconditional love. Grandparents are there for their children's children as they grow up from wanting to curl up in grandpa's lap, to asking grandma for life advice. 

After all, being a grandparent is like a second round of parenting, but now they can always say "yes" and not have to be responsible for the disagreements that follow when you say "no." 

Providing emotional support is a crucial way in which grandparents can positively impact the development of their grandchildren. By offering a listening ear, guidance, and a sense of safety and security, grandparents can help their grandchildren develop greater self-awareness and emotional intelligence, better emotional regulation skills, and improved mental health outcomes. 

Grandparents can serve as role models, confidants, and friends, providing a source of love and support to help their grandchildren navigate the ups and downs of life with greater ease and confidence.

Friday is a day for us to recognise and celebrate the importance of our grandparents in our children’s lives. To the grandparents that are still active in our lives, who might live long distances away from us, who are not with us or have died recently, we say thank you. 

IMPORTANT CYBER SAFETY MESSAGE FOR PARENTS -  TIKTOK 

More and more student's social media experiences outside of school are entering school classrooms and playgrounds. What was once the experience of secondary schools is now commonplace in primary schools.

TikTok is a popular app within our society for creating and sharing short videos.

We are aware that despite being a primary school where children are younger than the 13+ years intended user age, and the 12+ App Store rating, many of our students have access to this platform.

Like many social media apps, while it has many appropriate educational videos and entertaining content, TikTok is also a source of viral "challenges," in which users share videos of themselves performing pranks or stunts. Often these involve targeting specific groups in the community. The content and actions are offensive, involve 'put downs' and ridicule and vilify certain categories of  people.

Social media platforms like TikTok can enable peer-to-peer bullying, enforce stereotyping and normalise disrespectful language and actions. TikTok's algorithm can expose users, including young children, to videos with profanity, violence, or sexual themes that are not suitable for their age.

Yesterday, we became aware of a TikTok viral video that has been viewed by students outside of school but the challenge to use put down language and apply labels as a way of ridiculing was enacted in the playground.

We have spoken with our Year 3/4/5/6 students about their responsibility to be critical viewers of social media and to seek help when they see or hear something that doesn't feel right. We are working with the students involved to learn about the impact of their words and actions.

I am sharing this information to be proactive about the health and safety of our school community, as well as help you initiate a discussion with your children about responsible and particularly, critical use of social media. 

Your most important consideration should be ensuring your child's wellbeing and protecting them from potential harms. For us as a school, this extends to their peers and classmates as well.

For more information about TIK TOK see this guide for parents

SPECIAL VISITOR TODAY

Today, we had some special visitors to our school. We welcomed Caoimhe and baby Grace. There were so many excited faces when Caoimhe took Grace around the school to meet the students. 

We wish them both good luck as they travel back to Ireland for a visit, to introduce Grace to her extended family. 

Happy start of Term 3. 

Keep warm and God bless.

Dan Ryan

Principal

St Martin de Porres Primary School is committed to creating an environment where the safety, well-being, and participation of all children within our care is paramount. 

2024 - School Closure Days

Listed below are our school closure days for 2024. These are student-free days. Staff use these days to develop their learning further and keep informed with current practices and procedures. 

NOTE: These dates may be subject to change that may be outside of our control.