St Kevin's School Newsletter

Principal's News

Our theme for this year

Jesus said to those that hear …

 

Over the last couple of weeks, Jesus has said some very strange things… ‘throw out your nets’ - even though the disciples had been fishing all day and caught nothing… ‘I will make you fishers of people’ - which did not make sense to the people… ‘Blessed are the poor, the hungry, the downtrodden, the weak’ - when God’s kingdom was believed to be for the holy and the faithful… 

This week he tells us to love our enemies - even those who hate and despise us and say terrible things about us! In other words, he is asking us to love like God does - unconditionally, without reward, even when it is hard! 

Who do you need to love this week?

 

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

 

A special welcome to Tommy  N. Tommy is a new student in Year 6 for 2022.

 

EUCHARIST CELEBRATION FOR YEAR 5 STUDENTS (2021 COHORT)

 

A  warm congratulations to all Year 5 students who are receiving the Sacrament of Eucharist or special blessing this weekend.  You and your families are in our prayers at this most blessed time. 

 

 

 

 

 

13th  February  - An Apology Day

On 13 February 2008, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd publicly apologised, on behalf of the Federal Government, to the Stolen Generations – the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were forcibly removed from their families and communities by successive colonial and Australian governments.

The Stolen Generations refers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who were forcibly removed from their families and communities as children.

10 things you should know about National Apology Day  

I have had many conversations with Vicki Clark (founder of FIRE Carriers Initiative) about the Apology Day and Reconciliation Week.  She always stresses the importance of not placing guilt on students for what has occurred in the past.  In her words it is about educating students about the  history of the first peoples of this nation and changing mindset across generations.  She is a strong advocate of recognition and ensuring equity for all peoples.  

 

School Advisory Council (SAC) Update 

The SAC needs YOU!

Congratulations Julia Kennan on accepting the position as Chair and Laura Mangiavillano for taking on the position as Secretary.  I would also like to welcome Glenn Cannon, Laura Mangiavillano & Eva Tomazos.

There is one vacant position on the SAC (formerly SAB) Council members positions available in 2022.  St Kevin’s SAC is looking for an enthusiastic person, who is interested in providing assistance with school policies,  reviewing communication to parents, report structures and school goals. This is a team effort and at the heart of all we do are our students.  The time commitment required is minimal, attending meetings on the second Tuesday of the month from February to November, approximately 1-1/2 hours in length. We will soon meet in person at St Kevin’s but at the moment the meetings have been via Google Meets.

Please contact me, (gleone@sktemplestowelr.catholic.edu.au) and give your expression of interest. I will pass on information to the new chair Julia Kennan.

 

SUSTAINABILITY

The aim is to go paperless at St Kevin’s but this is a process and there needs clarity around the distribution of information and communication.  At the moment Robyn distributes information to parents via email, text message, school app and hard copy notes for documents that need to be signed and returned. 

WATCH THIS SPACE! Moving forward, the school will be going completely paperless.  This will be supported by an online parent portal in the future.

 

GOAL SETTING

There were a few minor hiccups on Wednesday with parents being able to log on to the Google classroom and some goal setting interviews  took place over the phone.  My first hope is that we can meet face to face in June but I also would like to reassure you that we will be modifying the process in the future to ensure greater ease of accessibility and clearer log on instructions.  Your feedback is most welcome.  In the last few weeks I have heard and been a part of ongoing conversations about learning between parents, staff and carers.  This is how it should be - conversations about learning need to be ongoing and addressed as needs arise.  Please make an appointment to touch base with us if you have any questions, need clarification or require assistance to support your children with their wellbeing and learning.

 

TERM OVERVIEWS 

Term Overviews were emailed last week.  These will guide you through the terms learning and I encourage you to have conversations about the learning with your children.  Please email me and let me know your feedback on what you believed worked well with this style of overview and any suggestions for improvement.  I will discuss your feedback with staff.

 

SCHOOL REVIEW 2022

This year our school will undergo a review through MACS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools). Throughout Term One and Two, Staff are working on collecting evidence to align with a School Improvement Rubric for each sphere.   We have one closure date to formulate our Implementation plan and one date to continue collating information for VRQA and review.   We look forward working with MACS. The reviewer  will recognise the many strengths and features of our school as well as our areas of improvement.   At the conclusion of the review three broad priorities will be articulated and form the School Improvement Plan for the next 4 years. 

SWIMMING 

Year 3 - 6 Students  were offered the opportunity to participate in swimming trials. This was an optional event. The fastest students across each stroke - Freestyle, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Butterfly were selected to represent the school at the District Swimming. Congratulations to all students who participated in the trials and moved through to the District.  I believe that it is in having a go that we build resilience and knowledge.  

Well done Lennix N for progressing to the next stage.  Thank you Vanessa Dal Santo and Andrew Puls for organising and ensuring all students were safe, supported and respectful represented St Kevin’s. Thank you to all parents that assisted with this event.

RELATIONSHIP BUILDING

In the last three weeks I have had one to one meetings with each staff member to get to know them all and discuss their strengths and goals for 2022.  I have totally enjoyed this brief chat and feel that we all know each other a little better.  

 

 

 

Camps, Sports, Excursion Fund

Who can apply

Families holding a valid means-tested concession card or temporary foster parents are eligible to apply. A Special Consideration category also exists. Schools can receive applications from families over terms one and two.

Families can list more than one student in the one application form if they are attending the same school.

Payments amounts for 2022 are:

  • $125 per year for eligible primary school students

The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) provides payments for eligible students to attend activities like:

  • school camps or trips
  • swimming and school-organised sports programs
  • outdoor education programs
  • excursions and incursions.

Please see application link below or call the school for a hard copy form.  Please submit the form to Robyn in the office.

 

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/CSEF_application_form.pdf

 

Note:  Applications can be entered from 31 January 2022. Parents/carers wishing to apply for CSEF payments for 2022 must submit their application form to the relevant school by 24 June 2022.

However, a parent/carer will only be required to submit an application form to the school in the following circumstances:

  • the parent/carer is applying for the CSEF payment for the first time – i.e. an application form was not lodged with the school in the previous year; or
  • circumstances have changed – e.g. there has been a change in the care arrangement of the student, a change of name or CRN, or a new sibling has commenced at the school and the parent/carer wishes to apply for the CSEF payment for the new sibling.

ENROLMENTS 2023 

Fulvia Gerosolimo and I have commenced the fruitful task of visiting Kinders in our local area.  I really enjoyed the tours, walking through learning spaces of 3 and 4 year olds, not to mention the warm welcoming smiles and greetings we received.  St Kevin’s has a great reputation in the community.  

You are our best marketing strategy so If you know of families who have children for Foundation (Prep) next year please alert them that enrolments are now open, I would love to meet them. Please head to our school website homepage and click on the ‘Enrolments’ tab for details or use this link to head to the form: https://www.sktemplestowelr.catholic.edu.au/enrolment-information/introduction/

Existing families who have 2023 Foundation students are also asked to complete the form at this link. Please contact the Robyn and Fiona in the front office if you have any queries or email me gleone@sktemplestowelr.catholic.edu.au

Sincere thanks to Jo Antoniou for assisting us with designing the pamphlets and advertising material. Top job Jo!  

In addition,I would really like to form a Marketing Team so if you are interested let me know.

PARENT REPRESENTATIVES 2022

Congratulations!  All classes have at least one parent representative and that was achieved with ease.  Thank you to all the parents who have taken up this opportunity.   I look forward to working with you in 2022

 

Junior G – Venessa H

Junior F – Fil N

Middle C – Marey N

Senior C – Jane M

Senior P – Alessia C & Azadeh

PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY

Last Friday I attended a Professional Learning Day at Flinders with the North Eastern Principals.  The day’s learning was about the importance of developing Psychological Safety.  We explored the work of Amy C. Edmondson.  She is an author of the book entitled ‘The Fearless Organization’.  She has compiled research from various organisations and discusses the importance of Psychological Safety when building highly effective leaders and teams.  My learning in this area about the importance of Psychological Safety commenced last year and as I read more about Psychological Safely I have come to understand that in any organisation fear inhibits creativity,  stifles risk taking and sometimes can have devastating consequences if stakeholders do not speak up.  Just as I want to hear the voice of all the students and staff, I hope that we can develop forums that give opportunities to parents to bring forward your ideas and suggestions for school improvement.

PARENT SUPPORT AND EDUCATION

Each Newsletter I will endeavour to share an article, research or even a quote to support you in your parenting journey.  If you have topics that you would like covered let me know.   Conversation is so important in developing literacy skills. Here are some ideas to open discussions about the day's learning.

Link How to get kids talking about their school day

 

SWELL DAY REFLECTIONS

Mira- I really liked the mindfulness and acro-balance. The mindfulness was fun because we made these really cool colourful rock and leaf mandalas. In acro-balance we got to make lots of human pyramids including a large one with the whole class! The whole day was really fun but one thing I would take out is probably hula hooping because it wasn't really as fun as the others. 

  

Poppy- I loved  the acro-balance and mindfulness. The acro-balance because it was cool when we were balancing on each other. I also loved mindfulness. It was very calming and we made nice rock mandalas.  

      

Charlotte- I loved mindfulness because it was calm and very relaxing.
Renee - I mostly enjoyed the acrobalance and the mindfulness. I like mindfulness because it is very relaxing, fun and  calming. I enjoyed the acrobalance because it was a challenge and you had to work hard to achieve balancing on top of each other and balancing on top of each other without using our hands. 
Tigger- I loved mindfulness because it made me feel very calm and relaxed. I also love the way they taught me to eat my fruit and think about how it tastes and get us to lay down and relax to make us calm. I LOVE IT!! 
Abigail- I liked when we did the meditation it made me nice and calm!

Felix- What I liked about SWELL DAY  was the acrobalance classes. It was really fun and I loved it. It really helped my boredom and it was great. 

 

Michael - I loved hip hop and the acro balance. It was so much fun doing the human pyramid and the cat pose.  Hip hop was  a bit better because  we did a sequence and at the end we did a dance circle where there is a circle and then it was free dance. I did break dancing and that was so much fun, sadly no one else did breakdance.
Lani ~ I really enjoyed acrobatic balance and hula-hooping. They were so much fun, and I didn’t even know how to hula-hoop that well. Acrobatic balance was my favourite, and I balanced on Ruby and Maeve. I really liked hip hop as well. The yoga was also super fun!! 
Bridget- I enjoyed the acrobalance because building the human pyramid with the whole class was really fun. I also enjoyed the meditation because it calmed me down and it was enjoyable. I loved SWELL DAY!
Susie- The things I enjoyed most about SWELL Day were Meditation, Acrobalance, Hip Hop and Yoga. All the workshop teachers were really friendly and helpful. Overall, it was 9/10.
Sarah ~ The thing that I liked about SWELL DAY was when we did some acrobats. I really enjoyed it and we got to show everyone our pyramid act. It was kind of  fun, including the balancing.
Sophia ~ I quite enjoyed doing the meditation/mindfulness because we could express ourselves with rocks and leaves and I also liked yoga because it was calm and fun. Acro balance was hard but fun. I was so tired at the end. Overall SWELL Day was fun!
Miss Costa - The activities that I enjoyed the most were Yoga and Hula Hoops. I love Yoga, it makes me feel so relaxed and I couldn’t believe that I could still swing the Hula Hoop around my waist, even at my age!

Mrs Leone

FUN FIT staff provided the whole school with amazing varied opportunities, filled with fun and challenges!  I witness students and staff working together all building their skills and confidence.  I found the acro-balance difficult but absolutely loved the hip hop and meditation sessions..  

Thank you Bianca, all the staff and respectful students for getting involved and promoting wellbeing.  The challenge now is to stay strong, support each other and continue to step out of our comfort zones to stretch our brains, to take risks with our learning and always put our best foot forward.

 

RAPID ANTIGEN TESTS (RATs)

The second supply of RATs were distributed this week, and each child should have received a box of 5 tests. Parents/Carers are asked to visit the school office to collect their packs. I was made aware that some students are not testing twice a week.   I would encourage you all to be vigilant with this test for the safety of your children and that of each other and the school community.  This process will continue till the end of Term 1.  The school only needs to know if a test is positive.  

 

AIR PURIFIERS

MACS has provided the funds for 4 air purifiers and the school has purchased another 4 to ensure all spaces are covered.

 

Condolences to the McNeill Family 

Condolences to  McNeill Family and on the passing of Evelyn’s Great Grandfather.  Our prayers and thoughts are with them at this time.  May Thomas rest in peace.

 

 

Congratulations Anderson Family

Congratulations to Penny and Tim. We wish you a world of happiness, love and good health.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With God’s Blessings

 

Gabee Leone

PRINCIPAL