REMINDER 

2024 SEMESTER 1 PARENT/TEACHER INTERVIEWS

Annual Improvement Goal (AIP)

All Catholic schools in the Diocese of Wollongong are working with a revised School Improvement Framework that is linked to the Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong’s Lighting the Way 23+ Strategic Plan. This year the staff of St Therese are focusing on one improvement goal as part of our strategic intent for 2024. The annual improvement goal is — All students will demonstrate personal learning growth in the areas of Mathematics and Reading.

Class Assemblies

Class assemblies are an opportunity for students to showcase some of the great things that are happening in their classroom for their parents and the other classes across the school. Some grades have opted to work together and will therefore present 2 assemblies over the course of the year. In other cases, classes will present alone which will be one assembly each. Assemblies will be in the hall commencing at 2.10pm. Parents are welcome to attend any of these assemblies. This term, class assemblies will be:

• Week 7 (Friday, 14 June) - Year 4
• Week 8 (Friday, 21 June) - Year 5 Gold

Staff Professional Development Day - Monday, July 29

As stated earlier in the year, Catholic Schools in the Wollongong Diocese have been granted 8 Staff Development Days each year. So far we have accessed 3 of these days with the fourth being scheduled for Monday, 29 July (Term 3, Week 2). This is a Pupil Free Day. The focus will be on the Environment and, in particular, Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato Si’.

The other planned Professional Development Day are:

• Friday, 27 September - ‘The Berry Street Education Model’ (Day 2)
• Monday, 14 October - ‘Vision for Learning’
• Thursday, 19 December - ‘Educating with a Mission Lens’
• Friday, 20 December - ‘First Aid’ training

Raincoats

As winter is here and wet days ahead, a raincoat is needed to keep students dry. Thank you for your continued support.

Students Keeping Safe in the Digital World

As we are aware many of our students are immersed in the digital world, it is important to support our students to learn the skills to keep themselves safe online and the importance of safe and positive digital use and citizenship. Parents play an important role in teaching these skills. Recently the Premier called a state summit to assess the effects of social media on children and teens. Chris Minns says that he's concerned about the harm apps like Instagram and TikTok are causing. The summit is in response to calls to ban children under sixteen from accessing social media.

Here are a few simple tips parents can put into place.

Set limits and encourage playtime. Media use, like all other activities, should have reasonable limits. Unstructured and offline play stimulates creativity. Try and make unplugged playtime a part of your child's day. 

Screen time shouldn't always be alone time. Co-view, co-play, and co-engage with your children when they are using screens—​it encourages social interactions, bonding, and learning. Play a video game with your child. It's a good way to demonstrate good sportsmanship and gaming etiquette. Watch a show with them; you will have the opportunity to introduce and share your own life experiences and perspectives—and guidance.

Understanding the Apps your child is using. Common Sense Media is an excellent site for reviews about age-appropriate apps, games, and programs to guide you in making the best choices for your child. The Carly Ryan Foundation also helps unpack various apps- this week's feature app for our newsletter is SNAP CHAT.

It is important to remember there are many factors to consider when determining if a child should be allowed to use an app. The age restrictions are guides on the minimum age a child should be exposed to the content of the app. There are many other factors that need to be considered such as the chat functions. See some tips listed below.

Consider setting a family contract to help children understand their responsibilities when going online.

Find out how to protect your personal information and report harmful content on common social media, games, apps and sites.

https://www.esafety.gov.au/key-topics/esafety-guide

Throughout the year teachers have access to a variety of quality professional development opportunities. Casual teachers are employed to cover classes with the teacher ensuring the teaching program and routines are followed.