2nd Week of Lent

God of the Journey,

may this Lenten season

challenge us to a

change of heart:

to live gently,

to love generously,

to count blessings and

walk paths of peace

and inclusion.

Amen

Dear Parents and Carers,

It is hard to believe that we are coming to the end of Week 5, Term 1. We are aware that it has been very busy with communications from the school. Please remember to check the Newsletter and Reminders Newsletter as they often have information to keep you current with what is happening around the school.

Parents Teacher Interviews

Thank you for making the time to meet with your child/ren’s teacher this week. We appreciate the opportunity to speak with you and get to know more about your child so that we can work together during 2023 to enable growth and development.

A gentle reminder that it is extremely important for parents to contact teachers when they have questions or concerns as we cannot address what we do not know. 

Kindergarten Introduction to the first Year of Primary School Education

The Kindergarten teaching team presented an informative session for parents last Tuesday evening. It was wonderful to see so many families represented at this important introduction to primary school. Welcoming parents to connect with the school onsite, after so many years ruled by COVID restrictions, was delightful.

We extend gratitude to the staff for their time and effort to provide these opportunities for our families.

Community Council AGM 

Congratulations and thank you to parents who attended the Community Coucil AGM following the Kindergarten Information evening.

The following parents who have been elected to Esecutive Roles in the 2023 Community Council:-

• Chair – Jac Hrast
• Deputy Chair  - Danielle Hartnett
• Secretary – Elsa Heitbrink
• Treasurer  - Andrew Thomson
• Parent rep coordinator – Vanessa Miller
• Fundraising co-ordinator –nomination welcome
• Communications Officer – nomination welcome

We thanked our 2022 CC Executive Team and look forward to a year with less restrictions on school activities.

Parent Reps - We are seeking nominations for Parent Representatives in most class. Year 3 Red has a volunteer already. Please email the office if you would like information about the role or are able to fill the position for a class.

Book Fair

Thank you to Mr Fox for organising the 2023 Book Fair for SHPS. Your support of this event is much appreciated. It provides valuable resources for the library to improve your child's learning experience at Sacred Heart and brings a great deal of joy to your child/ren.

Athletics Carnival

Thank you to Mrs Stumbles for organising our school athletics carnival today. Our thanks to the many staff who helped in so many ways and thank you to all of the parents, carers and friends who volunteered to help. These wonderful occasions are not possible without your help. This was a fabulous community event, highlighting the school spirit and our virtues in action. We understand that not all families are able to attend so the school facebook will post some of today’s action.

First Reconciliation

Please keep in your prayers the candidates who are receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation tonight.  Preparation for the First Eucharist will begin on Wednesday evening.

We have engaged Mrs Christina Hill and Mrs Donna Gordan to teach STEAM for the remainder of Term 1. 

Retreat

Please keep me in your prayers as I attend the Annual Principal's Retreat in the Southern Highlands next week. 

Take care and keep safe

Are  you the person for the job?

School Janitor. Janitor is a paid position averaging 5 hours per week. Assist the staff to maintain the school - empty bins, balls off roof, small repairs. Tasks and hours are negotiable. Please talk to Anne or Kerry if you or someone you know could fill this position.

Lost Property Expert! We are looking for a volunteer to support us with sorting the mountain of lost property which grows each week. Contact Kerry or Tash.

Classroom helper for STEAM. Kerry is looking for someone to occasionally sharpen pencils and wipe the tables. Contact Kerry

Website Update

Our website is a valuable first-point of call for potential enrolments and current families. We have updated most of the content and have a photographer coming next week to generate a bank of new photos. 

If you have visited our website and found a broken link, typo, out of date information or maybe didn’t find something you expected to find there, could you please let Kerry know.

NAPLAN

Students in Years 3 and 5 will sit the Australian NAPLAN tests over the coming weeks. The timetable has been placed in the calendar below. All families with children in Years 3 and 5 should have received full details of tests and preparation steps via COMPASS.

The NAPLAN website has Parent and Carer Information for general community reference.

Yours faithfully,

Compass Notifications

Please refer to Compass for the following notifications:

• NAPLAN locked down browser
• Important dates and information for all families
• 2023 TERM 1 WEEK 4 REMINDERS
• Come and join a netball team at SHPS 2023

   

  

  MHoC Website

  Please see in this week’s bulletin details for:

  • The RCIA/Adult Faith Formation starting on Thursday 2 March in the hall from 6pm
  • The Friendship Group thanks you for your donations of stamps
  • The Parish calendar is available to view on our website.

  MHoCFebruary_25_26_2023.pdf

  MHoCFebruary_25_26_2023 _pdf 1.45 MB

  First Reconciliation

  Congratulations to the following children from Sacred Heart who will receive their First Reconciliation tonight Thursday 3 March.

  Edward.B, William.B, Maxx.B, Sophie.B, Aivan.C, Arkin.C, Isabella.F, Josephine.F, Noah.F, Harriet.J, Joesphine.K, Lucy.Mc and Riley.W

  These children have preparing for their First Reconciliation over the last few weeks under the guidance of Fr Richard. Thank you to the team at Mary Help of Christians Parish - Fr Richard, Christina, Melanie and Colleen and to the children’s families for their support.

  

  Sports News

  Sport Uniform Days

  Kindergarten: Tuesday & Friday

  Stage 1: Wednesday & Friday

  Stage 2: Tuesday & Friday

  Stage 3: Wednesday & Friday

  Sport Dates for your Diary

  Swimming Carnival - Wednesday 22^nd March, Stromlo

  Cross Country - Term 2, Week 1, Friday 28^th April, On site at school. 

  As with any community events, we always need help to run these, so if you could spare a few hours with any of these events, it would be greatly appreciated.

  All permission notes and information regarding these events will be sent out through the COMPASS App.

  Swimming

  Students who turn 8 years of age in 2023, and all ages above, will have the opportunity to nominate to swim in 50m races of all strokes and 25m of all strokes prior to the swimming carnival (the note will come out early March). Younger students (Kinder, Yr1 and some Yr2 students) will participate in water-based novelty games. 

  If you would like to nominate your child for any of these events please make sure they are confident and comfortable in the strokes of choice and the distance. Practising at a big pool is a great way to build confidence. Some swimming pools offer swimming carnival practise so look out for those at your local pool. The swimming carnival permission note will be out next week via COMPASS.

   

  WE NEED PLAYERS

  Come play Netball with a SACRED HEART team.

  Are you in Year 2, 3 or 4 and interested in playing Netball in a school team?

  New and experienced players welcome.

   

  Games:      Saturday mornings, Arawang netball courts, Stirling

  Training:       Convenient coaching held either on the school grounds after school or before the game at the Stirling courts. TBC by coaches once teams are established.

  Uniform:   School sport uniform.

  Season:      Apr 29 – Aug 26 (plus finals weeks)

  Cost:          approx. $165

  Email Brooke for more info.

  Sacred Heart Netball Coordinator

  (Mia’s mum from year 3)

Year 6 students challenging their problem solving skills this week.

Leadership Roles at Sacred Heart

Year 6 have confidently taken on leadership roles at Sacred Heart. Here they are practising a speech about Project Compassion the for younger students; producing slides for implementing sustainability in their community; and working through communication and problem-solving board games to develop strategic thinking and positive team work skills.

Kenny Koala and his helper David, always make learning how to be safe so much fun.

GWS Giants

The GWS Giants visited us last week. The lucky weekly award recipients were given a signed souvenir to keep and the players spoke to our Stage 2 and 3 students about leadership. They then showed us a thing or two about AFL during our clinic.

Congratulations to the following students celebrating their birthday this week 

Rhys M, Hope O, Sreya G.