Fathers’ Day

Last week was a great celebration of fathers and father figures in the lives of our students. Thank you to the mum’s who planned, organised and ran the Fathers’ Day stall on Wednesday. Once again, this was such a success and cause of great excitement for the children. The sausage sizzle, liturgy and open classrooms was a wonderful way for us to connect with dads as well as dads having that time where children show them around ‘their territory’. A great day all round!

Grandparents’ Day

After Book Week & Fathers’ Day, Grandparents’ Day completes the trilogy of having visitors onsite. These are wonderful occasions that are always highlights on our calendar. The liturgy tomorrow will be in the church.

Student Inappropriate Language

Across the school we are hearing of more incidents involving language with racist connotations. Incidents involving students as young as Year 2 right through to Year 6. For some students, there is no malicious intent and they refer to songs, raps, memes, tik tok, youtube, etc where they see and hear these words. Racist words are not acceptable in our society and it is a very clear message we are delivering when speaking to students. Where students are repeat offenders or the words are used to specifically target another student, parents are contacted. Once again, I urge all parents to be aware of what children are accessing online. First time offences are a learning curve however repeated use is a concern.

Phones / SmartWatches

Parents are asked to remind children that these devices need to be handed in at the office upon arrival at school and then collected at home time. These are expensive items that are a distraction. Where possible, they should be left at home.

Wollongong Brass Band - Congratulations Molly B (6B) & Enrique M (5G)

For the past couple of years, Mrs Hogan has arranged for the Wollongong Brass Band to attend St Therese to run a workshop where Primary students could trial several brass instruments. Over that time we have had a number of students take up a brass instrument. Two of these students are Molly and Enrique. Molly has written the following regarding a recent competition they entered and had great success:

“I’m so excited to share that I recently competed with the Wollongong Brass Band in Penrith! I played in the State Junior B Grade Championship and the Open D Grade, where I was one of the few kids among mostly adults. Our Junior Band did amazing, placing us first in the Grade B category! Plus, we were Highly Accomplished in the Open D Grade. It was a lot of hard work, but seeing it all pay off felt good!” (Molly B)

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.