What a hectic time of year!

I was reminded recently that we are quickly approaching the middle part of the year, as our Uralla community prepares to celebrate the winter equinox this Saturday afternoon—marking the shortest day of the year. It is a timely reminder of how fast the year is flying by.

Welcome to the end of Week 9. We have had a remarkably productive fortnight, and I am incredibly pleased to announce that we can finally and officially tick the school athletics carnival off our list! After several frustrating weather delays, it was fantastic to see all the remaining events wrapped up and our students' hard work celebrated at last Friday's presentation.

This week has also given us the opportunity to witness the profound spiritual and personal milestones that make our school so unique. I extend my warmest to Angus, Freddie, and Jack, who received the Sacrament of Holy Communion for the first time last Friday. It was a special occasion for these students and their families.

Looking ahead to next week, I also wish the absolute best of luck to Josie and Archie, who will be traveling to Sydney to compete at the Polding Cross Country Trials. I am proud of your efforts and know both of you will be great ambassadors for St Patrick's Primary on the big stage.

Behind the scenes, our classroom teachers are currently busy finalising the Semester 1 Reports, which will be released to all of our families next Friday. These reports are a great reflection of the dedication, progress, and achievements your children have shown over the first half of the year.

Anyway, I'd better leave you all at it. Take care and I hope to catch up with you soon.

Athletics Carnival Wrap Up!

After a rain-affected delay and a washout with our high jump event a fortnight ago, we finally experienced a spectacular, sun-drenched day for the running of our main school athletics carnival last Wednesday The entire event officially wrapped up last Friday afternoon with the final completion of the high jump, followed by our formal sports presentation. It was a wonderful way to celebrate the sportsmanship, house spirit, and talent of all our competitors, bringing our 2026 athletics season to a highly successful close.

This year’s carnival will certainly be remembered for the number of long-standing school records that were absolutely shattered. A massive congratulations goes to Thibaud, who smashed the Junior Boys High Jump record by an amazing 13cm with a clearance of 1.24m. The previous record of 1.11m had been jointly held by various former students and was last equalled by Angus Greig back in 2011. In the field events, Josie put on a dominant display to set a new record in the Senior Girls Discus with a massive throw of 28.60m, comfortably eclipsing the previous record of 20.10m set just last year by Jessica Patterson-Kane.

Meanwhile, Lucy Rizzi put on an equally stellar performance in the 11 Years Girls Shot Put; her distance of 7.21m was over half a metre better than the previous record of 6.58m, which was also set last year by Josie Wauch.

We also witnessed an extraordinary day of competition from Phoebe, who managed to break two individual school records. First, she blazed down the track in the 11 Year Girls 200m with a spectacular time of 34.41 seconds, overtaking the previous record of 34.97 seconds set by Tempe Macarthur-Onslow back in 2018. Phoebe then took to the pit and jumped a fantastic 3.36m in the Long Jump, breaking the 2024 record of 3.21m previously held by Jessica Patterson-Kane.

An event of this scale simply cannot happen without a massive team effort behind the scenes. We would like to extend our sincere thanks and gratitude to Mrs Pittman and Mrs Rizzi for their tireless coordination, as well as the wonderful army of parent and community helpers who stepped up to assist in various ways across both days. Your support ensured our students had a carnival to remember!

Congratulations also go to all of our age champions and runners-up as well as the winning house for 2026.

Winning house - Blue

Senior Girl - Josie Runner-up Senior Girl - Ellody

Senior Boy - Benji Runner-up Senior Boy - Rebee

11Year Girl - Phoebe and Lucy Runner-up 11 Year Girl - Airlee

11Year Boy - Will Runner up 11 Year Boy - Hudson and Isaac

Junior Girl - Harriet Runner-up Junior Girl - Eve

Junior Boy - Archer Runner-up Junior Boy - Levi W

Juvenile Girl - Poppy Runner-up Juvenile Girl - Tess

Juvenile Boy - Finn Runner-up Juvenile Boy - Alistair

Finally, congratulations to Benji, Shaun, Rebee, Josie, Airlee, Phoebe, Lucy, Will, Harriet, Audrey, Mila, Eve, Archer, Oscar, Levi, Archie, McKenzie, Harper, Jack P, Angus, Harry M, Harry K, Tallulah and Thibaud who have qualified to represent St Patrick's at the Diocesan Athletics Carnival at Tamworth on Wednesday 5th August.

P and F Meeting this Tuesday

Our next P&F Meeting will be held this upcoming Tuesday, 23rd June, commencing at 6:00 pm. The meeting will take place face-to-face in the Year 3/4 classroom, and it will also be broadcast live via Google Meet for those who wish to tune in from home. Everyone in our school community is warmly invited to join us—I would love to see you there!

Semester 1 Reports

Reports will be sent home electronically via the Compass parent portal on Friday 26th June. If you would like a paper copy of your child's report, can you please let us know? If parents have any questions and/or would like to have a meeting with their child's class teacher, they can contact them to arrange a suitable time to meet or discuss any matters in regard to their child's learning during Week 11.

How to view your child's report on Compass

Log into Compass

To view the Semester 1 report either click on the link in the newsfeed or select your child's profile (photo) and click Reports, select 2026 Semester 1 Report.

ICAS Assessments 2026: Key Dates Approaching

The annual International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) are just around the corner for 2026, offering students an opportunity to challenge their academic skills in various subjects. These online assessments are designed to recognise and reward academic excellence, encouraging higher-order thinking and problem-solving abilities.

ICAS Assessments cover a range of subjects, including:

Digital Technologies
Writing
English
Science
Spelling Bee
Mathematics

For many subjects, the main sitting windows will occur in August 2026.

ICAS provides a valuable benchmark for students, allowing them to see how their performance compares against peers nationally and internationally. All participating students receive a certificate, with top performers also eligible for Distinction, High Distinction, and even medals.

How to participate in ICAS 

If you wish for your child to participate in ICAS this year, please: 

read about ICAS subjects and prices here: (icasassessments.com/products-icas) 
go to Parent Portal to purchase tests here: https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/parent-payment/YHA639 
enter the parent’s access code – YHA639
enter your child’s details, select the tests you would like to purchase, then proceed to payment.

Upcoming Event Term 4 - New England Sings 2026 Term 4 for Years 3-6

NEW ENGLAND SINGS! 2026 COMBINED PRIMARY CHOIRS REHEARSAL SCHEDULE Armidale and surrounding schools – outreach schools will have rehearsals scheduled at their own school. However, outreach schools are welcome to attend the Armidale workshops if possible.

This event is quickly beginning to take shape. It promises to be a massive celebration of music, with over 1,000 students participating from 36 different schools across the New England Region.

Ian Jefferson will attend the workshops throughout the year and conduct the Primary choirs at the final weekend of rehearsals and concerts.

St PATRICK’S WALCHA REHEARSAL with Ian Jefferson

Date: Wednesday 29th July

Time: 9.30am-10.45am

FINAL REHEARSAL (all schools, including outreach schools to attend):Date: Saturday 31 October (directed by Ian Jefferson) Time: Primary Choir 1 9:00am – 10:45am

Venue: Lazenby Hall, UNE

CONCERT:Date: Sunday 1 November Time: Primary Choir 1 11:00am – 1:00pm (arrive at 9:30am)

Venue: Lazenby Hall, UNE

St Patrick’s School is an outreach school for the rehearsals but we will attempt to attend two of the rehearsals in Armidale.

Parents will have to commit to the Saturday 31st October - Final Rehearsal and Sunday 1st November Concert. If they wish their child to participate in New England Sings.

A short video on what New England Sings! is all about is included below:

School Hours & Supervision

Teachers commence duty at 8:30am and finish duty when the last bus leaves St Patrick’s approximately 3:10pm.

Supervision begins at 8:30am in the COLA

School starts: 9am (Bell - 8:50am)

Recess: 11:00am – 11:30am

Lunch: 1:30pm – 2:10pm

School finishes: 3.00pm.

SCHOOL OFFICE HOURS

The school office hours are 8:30am to 3:30pm

Contacting Your Child's Teacher

Teachers welcome contact from parents, if you need to talk with staff please either contact the class teacher by phoning the school – 67772328 or email the school at spwadmin@arm.catholic.edu.au.

Classroom Gallery

Harry King's oral history with his Great Grandmother Colly King.

Colly is nearly 96 years old.