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Newsletter Week 3
OUR SCHOOL PRAYER
School Prayer: God, Our Father, you decided your Kingdom was for those who were humble. Help us to imitate the ways of St Therese and remember that ‘Love can do all things’. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen
Morning Offering: O God, my Father in Heaven. I offer you myself and all I do this day. Mary, my Mother, help me to love God and look after myself, and those around me, today. Amen.
Good to be back!
After a whirlwind 4 weeks through 3 African countries, I feel like I now need a rest! It was an awesome cultural experience and an amazing interaction with nature. The first part of the trip took us back in to the sad history of South Africa’s Apartheid regime. While this officially ended nearly 30 years ago, there is still an awful lot to be done to rectify the wrongs of the past. We then travelled north into Botswana and Zimbabwe for an unforgettable experience of getting back to nature - I will never again be able to visit a zoo! Seeing ‘the Big 5’, as well as many other amazing animals, up close and personal is indescribable. Photos remember the occasion but fall short of capturing the true picture of what we experienced.
It was lovely coming back into the school on Monday seeing staff and students who, mostly, seemed happy to see me! I will get around to all classes this week to share some of my experience and to touch base with how everyone is travelling. It was great to see all the improvements that occurred during the holiday period. Thanks to Dimitra & Louise for enabling this to occur and also to the whole leadership team for leading the school so well over the past few weeks. I know I have a lot to catch up on but looking forward to the great things planned for this term.
A WORD FROM ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL - DIMITRA VEZINIAS
Dear Parents and Carers,
Hope that you are well and are enjoying your week.
Welcome back Mr Thorne!!
It was lovely to see you looking relaxed and hearing about your well deserved holiday and all about the rhinos!!
On Monday, our Year 4 students participated in the annual Religious Literacy Assessment. Thank you to Mrs Calvert, and Year 4 teachers for their work in preparing Year 4 for this assessment.
NAPLAN results were released last week. St Therese’s results show Year 3 and 5 Above National Average in each Domain - Reading, Writing, Spelling, Grammar/Punctuation and Numeracy - a wonderful result! We will further explore students and school data.
Personalised Planning Meeting Term 3 2023
Personalised Planning Meetings are being scheduled for Term 3 (beginning 7th August) to discuss your child's individual Personalised Plan. This plan is aimed at supporting your child’s specific needs whether they be medical, emotional, social or learning support. Meetings are scheduled for 30 minutes. To facilitate these meetings the interviews will be held via ZOOM or face to face. An Invitation only Letter and link has been sent to those parents who have a PP Meeting.
Looking forward to our meeting.
Mrs Dimitra Vezinias
Assistant Principal
Congratulations First Place!!
Last Friday our squad of 13 girls travelled to Ulladulla to compete in the Regional Final of the Paul Kelly Cup.
Congratulations!! The team came FIRST Place and will travel to Sydney on Tuesday, August 29, to compete in the State Final. This is an amazing effort and a wonderful opportunity for our girls to make it to state level. I’m sure Mr Thorne is very proud!!
Thank you Mrs Dominique Hogarth who accompanied the team.
WELL DONE!
CONGRATULATIONS STWW STAGE 3 GIRLS AFL TEAM REGIONAL CHAMPIONS - PAUL KELLY CUP 2023
On Friday the 28th of July 2023, Mrs Hogarth accompanied the St Therese Stage 3 Girls AFL Team to the Paul Kelly Cup Regional Championships in Ulladulla.
The Stage 3 Girls AFL Team consisted of: Amari, Zara, Alara, Eve, Pippa, Isla, Jessica, Layla, Alexandra, Jagg, Indee and Liana.
They played four Round Games in Pool A against Bega Valley Public School and Berry Public School where they excelled and were undefeated!
Our St Therese Stage 3 Girls Team then progressed to the Finals against Shellharbour Anglican School, who were also undefeated in their Round Games in Pool B against St Peter’s of Broulee School, Huskisson Public School and Bermagui Public School. They continued their winning streak and won the Final against Shellharbour Anglican School, remaining undefeated after five games!
Our St Therese Stage 3 Girls Team were crowned as Regional Champions from the Paul Kelly Cup Tournament and now progress to the State Championships in Sydney at the end of August.
The St Therese community congratulates our St Therese Stage 3 Girls Team on their outstanding efforts and achievements!
Mrs Hogarth would like to commend the St Therese Stage 3 Girls on their exemplary behaviour, sportsmanship and talent demonstrated on the day. Mrs Hogarth would also like to thank the parents and carers for their support on the day!
Soccer Gala Day
Last Friday our Years 3 & 5 students represented St Therese at the Soccer Gala Day. Thank you to our parent helpers and staff who attended this day and made it such an enjoyable event. Sportsmanship and having fun were the key elements of the day. We are very proud of our students representing our school.
St Therese Catholic
School Core Values
Inclusion Excellence Respect
Collaboration Community
The Zones Of Regulation
SEL
Healthy Lifesyle Unit
Principal's Awards
Billy Sopher 1G
Gold Medallion
Daisy Maxted 6B
St Therese School Facebook Page
www.facebook.com/westwollongong.sttherese
School Vision Statement
“Immersed in faith, pursuing excellence in learning
and the positive wellbeing of all”
REC NEWS
Class Parish Masses: Fridays at 9:30 in the Church
This week we resume our Class Masses with Father Duane. Parents are very welcome to attend Mass and encouraged to stay for the Q&A (Question and Answer) Session with Fr Duane after Mass. Mass begins at 9:30 in the Parish Church.
Please see the timetable below for when your child’s class is attending:
Parish Community Fun Day - This Sun 6 Aug. EVERYONE is Welcome!
We are ready to celebrate our Community Fun Day this Sunday 6 Aug from 11:30am, at Edmund Rice College. Everyone is most welcome and please invite anyone you think would like to join us – whatever their faith. Come along and enjoy a fun day with the rest of our parish and broader community!
Mary of the Cross (MacKillop) Feast Day Liturgy - 8 Aug 11:20 in the Church.
Year 5 students will be presenting our Mary MacKillop Liturgy joined by the whole school on Tuesday 8th Aug in the Church at 11:20am. Parents and Carers are welcome to attend this special Liturgy marking this incredible woman and celebrating Australia’s First Saint.
Sacrament of Reconciliation - Try Booking Link for Registered Students
An email with the TryBooking Link for the Sacrament of Reconciliation has been sent out on Friday to all registered participants (please make sure to check your Inbox and Junk folders). The link went LIVE on Saturday 29th July at 9 am. Please ensure you use the link to secure your preferred time slot.
Regards,
Mrs Kirralee Calvert
Religious Education Coordinator.
WEN
GARDENING CLUB
Gardening Club is run every Wednesday at lunchtine with Mrs McGoldrick - all are welcome - PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN GLOVES.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
BOOK WEEK 2023
PRC 2023
ESafety Resources
https://www.esafety.gov.au/educators/classroom-resources/mighty-heroes/mighty-heroes-student-page
"Take It Down" Platform - Preventing the Unwanted Spread of Intimate Child Images Online.
A powerful new tool has emerged to safeguard the online privacy of young people who have unwillingly or unknowingly shared intimate images or videos of themselves with malicious recipients.
The Take It Down platform empowers individuals under the age of 18, regardless of their location, to remove or prevent the online sharing of nude, partially nude, or sexually explicit images or videos taken of them.
This service is provided anonymously and does not require the uploading of any images or videos to the platform's system.
Take It Down sends a unique fingerprint of the intimate content to their participating social media/content distribution platforms who use the fingerprint to block the content.
The participating platforms include Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Pornhub, OnlyFans, Clips4Sale and Yubo.
Instances of image-based abuse can also be reported to eSafety or the police.
Please feel free to share this information with your school community and through your newsletter.
The eSafety Commission website has resources to help parents and carers be positive role models and online safety advocates.
For online safety information for parents and carers, visit eSafety.gov.au/parents.
For advice on how to set parental controls across home Wi-Fi, devices, software, and more, visit: eSafety.gov.au/parental-controls.
For online safety webinars for parents and carers, visit eSafety.gov.au/parents/webinars.
For advice on the latest games, apps and social media, visit eSafety.gov.au/esafety-guide.
eSafety Commissioner’s Online Relationships and Consent webinar
The Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT, in partnership with the eSafety Commissioner, is offering all parents, carers, teachers and support staff the opportunity to join a 30-minute free webinar designed for parents and carers of young people in secondary school.
It will cover:
- The impact of sharing nude images without consent
- practical suggestions for starting the chat about respectful relationships, consent and pressure to send nudes.
- Where to get support for a young person who has experienced abuse.
- The impact of sharing nude images without consent
Webinar details:
Date: Tuesday 15 August 2023
Time: 7.30 pm – 8.00 pm
Register at: https://register.gotowebinar.com/rt/5491931265697591563
Extended Leave (10 days or more)
For extended leave for holidays, parents are asked to complete an ‘Application for Exemption from Attendance at School’ form. This is available from the office.
HOW TO LODGE AN ABSENCE USING THE COMPASS APP
WHO DO WE CONTACT?
To assist with the leading of initiatives and the general running of school activities each stage is allocated a leader. For 2023 the following staff have been allocated to the four stages:
Early Stage 1 (Kindergarten) Mrs Trish Staff
Stage 1 (Year 1 and Year 2) Mrs Trish Staff
Stage 2 (Year 3 and Year 4) Mrs Bethany Tirchett
Stage 3 (Year 5 and Year 6) Mrs Dimitra Vezinias
Should you have any questions or concerns, your first port of call should always be your child's teacher. Should you require further clarification you can make contact with the Stage Leader.
OUR SCHOOL
What is the meaning of our School Motto?
Our school motto, ‘Love Can Do All Things’ comes from a quote in a letter by Therese after entering the Carmelite convent at the age of 15 in 1888. The letter was to her sister, Celine. “Love can do all things, and the most difficult things don’t appear difficult to it. Jesus does not look so much at the grandeur of actions or even their difficulty as at the love which goes to make up these actions…”
What does our School Badge mean?
Our badge shows Saint Therese holding a crucifix and flowers,
encircled by the brown of the Carmelite order. Therese loved flowers
and saw herself as the ‘Little flower of Jesus,’ who gave glory to God
by just being her beautiful little self among all the other flowers in
God's garden. Therese said, “My mission - to make God loved - will
begin after my death." "I will spend my heaven doing good on earth.
I will let fall a shower of roses." Roses have been described and
experienced as St Therese's signature in times of intercession.
The crucifix is significant because Therese wanted to save the souls of poor sinners with Jesus on the Cross.
OUR SPORT HOUSES
Lisieux - This is the birthplace of our patron saint, St Therese
Benedict - This honours St Benedict from whom part of our charism comes
Samaritan - This honours our founding order of nuns - the Good Samaritans
Keira - This reflects where our school is nestled - in the foothills of Mt Keira (Geera)
and honours the Indigenous of our area.
EDMUND RICE GALA NIGHT
UPCOMING IMPORTANT EVENTS
Year 3 Excursion - Science Centre
- 4 August
Year 1 & Year 4 Parish Mass
- 9.30am in the Church
South Coast Athletics Carnival
- 8 August
The Athletes Foot - Tying Shoelaces Workshop
- 8 August
P & F Meeting in Primary Building
- 8.00pm 8 August
BOOK WEEK PARADE
- 9.00am 25 August
STUDENT BIRTHDAYS
Birthdays
2 August 2023 - 8 August 2023
Chole M - 1G, Eva W - 5B, Kosta S - 6G, Eve J - 6B, Russell N - 3G, Divine A - 6B.
PARISH INFORMATION
BAPTISMS
For any new requests please contact Kathy at the Parish Office (email: westwollongong@dow.org.au any time or call 4243 9610 on Tuesdays 9am-3pm).
God bless you all,
Fr Duane
Calendar Dates 2023
2023
August 2023
2 - Year 5 Excursion to Taronga Zoo (Overnight)
4 - Census Day
Year 3 Excurion - Science Centre
9.30am Year 6 & Year 1 attending Parish Mass
8 - Feast Of Mary of The Cross Mackillop
South Coast Athletics Carnival
The Athletes Foot - Tying Shoelaces Workshop - Year 1 & Year 2
8pm P & F Meeting in Primary Building
15 - Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
21 - Book Week - Read, Grow, Inspire
22- 5pm First Reconcilation in the Church
24 - 5pm First Reconcilation in the Church
25 - 9.00am Book Week parade CHANGE OF DATE
September 2023
1 - World Day of Prayer for Creation
8.50am Father's Day Prayer - Year 6
12 - 7pm P & F Meeting in Primary Building
22 - Last Day of Term 3
October 2023
9 - Term 4 Commences - Students Returns
15 - School Fete
25 - 9.15am - 10.45am 2024 Kinder Playgroup
12.00pm - 1.30pm 2024 Kinder Playgroup
31 - 7pm P & F Meeting in Primary Building
November 2023
1 - 9.15am - 10.45am 2024 Kinder Playgroup
12.00pm - 1.30pm 2024 Kinder Playgroup
All Saints Day
2 - All Souls Day
4 - 11.30am First Holy Communion - St Therese Church
2.00pm First Holy Communion - St Therese Church
8 - 9.15am - 10.45am 2024 Kinder Playgroup
12.00pm - 1.30pm 2024 Kinder Playgroup
15 - 9.15am - 10.45am 2024 Kinder Playgroup
12.00pm - 1.30pm 2024 Kinder Playgroup
22 - 9.30am 2024 Kindergarten Orientation Day
December 2023
15 - Students Last Day of School 2023
11.30am End of Year Assembly
18 - Staff Development day
19 - Staff Development day
End of Term 4 2023