Newsletter Term 3 Week 1

Dear Families

It has been great to see all the children back at school on Tuesday, the excitement was very evident with the buzz of conversation going on in the yard at drop off.  Personally, I have had a great last month travelling across the Nullarbor to Perth with my caravan.  Margaret River was quite a highlight too, and I recommend this for anyone heading that way.

NO INCREASE IN SCHOOL FEES

We are pleased to inform our school families that there will be no increase in school fees for the 2023 school year.  See the article in this newsletter for further information.

STAFFING CHANGES

During my break, we negotiated for Matt Perry to remain as Acting Principal of our Catholic School at Warradale and we’re very pleased that Narelle Sandercock will remain as Acting Deputy, here at Star.  Both these roles will continue for the rest of the year.  We are also happy to announce that Jhovana Fenu will remain as REC until the end of the year as well.

The Mid-Year Reception class has 27 delightful youngsters that we welcomed for their first day of school.  Skye Llewellyn and Abbey Hinge are teaching the children, with the assistance of ESO’s Meg Fuller and Morgan Taylor.

Then on Wednesday we had two groups of Little Stars begin.  Little Stars is where the 37 children come once a week for a pre-entry program, this is run by Tania Condelli and Kyle Casey.

COVID RESTRICTIONS

Information was shared, via SkoolBag, on Monday about the current situation in relation to schools.  We are keen to bring to the attention of families this paragraph…

In relation to children who are deemed to be close contacts of cases (where other family members are positive for COVID-19), it remains mandatory to wear a mask outside of the home, and this includes school, along with undertaken testing in accordance with SA Health advice.

PARENT/TEACHER INTERVIEWS

In Week 3 of this term, parents will be given the opportunity to meet with their child’s teacher if they wish to follow up from their Semester 1 report.  Information about the interviews will be sent out on SkoolBag tomorrow.

R-2 LITERACY MEETING

Last term we held a meeting for Reception and Year 1 families during the day to share information about the literacy program at our school.  We are repeating this meeting on Monday August 8th, 7:00pm in the Stella Maris room for any R-2 families that would like to attend.  This 45 minute session will be held in the Stella Maris Room and will cover:

• The science behind what we do
• The components of our classroom teaching
• Where whole school testing and monitoring fit in
• The intervention programs that we run
• The results that we have been achieving

LLL PARENT AND CAREGIVER SURVEY

In this newsletter you will find information about how you can participate in the yearly school survey about our school’s performance.  This survey as an opportunity for parents and caregivers to tell the school staff how things are going for them and their children. The survey only takes 3-5 minutes to complete. Please at the end of this article.

CHILD PROTECTION INFORMATION

Over the year Catholic Education encourages us to share summaries of specific documents, in this newsletter you will find information about this.

NEWSLETTERS THIS TERM

This term we will be publishing newsletters this week and next week, then weeks 5 & 8.

Regards,
Damian Weeks

We are pleased to inform our school families that there will be no increase in school fees for the 2023 school year.

As South Australians continue to feel the impact of COVID-19, Catholic Education SA has announced it will freeze fees at its 86 Diocesan schools for the 2023 school year.

“These decisions are part of our continued COVID 19 response as we seek to support families at a time when they are being impacted by rising costs and inflation,” says Dr Neil McGoran, Director, Catholic Education SA.

Since 2019, Catholic Education SA has been implementing the Making Catholic Education More Affordable Initiative to ensure our schools are accessible to any family who wants their child to have a Catholic education.

Dr Neil McGoran said the fee-freeze would not impact the quality of education.

“We’re committed to keeping school fees as low as possible and ensuring a Catholic education is affordable and accessible to all.”

In addition to the fee-freeze, further fee remissions are available to any family who is struggling to pay school fees due to financial pressures. Families should contact Jane Leonard for more information.

Over the year Catholic Education encourages us to share summaries of specific documents.  Below are this term’s documents.

Bullying and Harassment Procedures and Concerns

The school will provide a positive culture where harassment/bullying is not accepted, and in so doing, all will have the right of respect from others, the right to learn and to teach, and a right to feel safe and secure in the school environment. At Star of the Sea School we celebrate our individual talents, skills and differences. We will all try to live as God wants us to...

“Love one another as I have loved you.” John 13:36

·  To reinforce within the school community what bullying is, and the fact that it is unacceptable.

·  Everyone within the school community to be alert to signs and evidence of bullying and to have a responsibility to report it to staff whether as observer or victim.

·  To ensure that all reported incidents of bullying are followed up appropriately and that support is given to both victims and perpetrators.

·  To seek parental and peer-group support and co-operation at all times.

Policy for the Care, Wellbeing and Protection of Children and Young People 2017

South Australian Catholic schools place the highest priority on the care, wellbeing and protection of children and young people.  In South Australia Child Protection policy and practices support a proactive role in the care, wellbeing and protection of children and young people, the provision of child safe environments and intervention procedures for responding to abuse and neglect.

These responsibilities include:

• a duty of care to students
• responsibilities as mandated notifiers of child abuse and/or neglect the provision of child protection curriculum for every student
• a code of conduct to promote respectful and caring relationships

Responding to Online Safety Incidents in South Australian Schools

Children and young people have the opportunity to learn and thrive through the use of digital technology. Positive and safe engagement in the digital world can support healthy development, creating positive opportunities for children and young people. However, it may also introduce risks. Children and young people are developing their skills in assessing information, weighing up risks and taking steps to protect themselves. Until these skills are fully developed, they have an increased level of vulnerability online and need adult guidance and support.

The purpose of these guidelines is to help school staff to:

• respond consistently to online safety incidents
• recognise which online incidents need to be escalated for additional support
• identify which online safety incidents need cross sectoral and interagency coordination.

Wellbeing for Every Child – A Reminder.

We know that happy children learn well and can adjust to life’s challenges in positive ways.  All School staff and volunteers are mandatory notifiers meaning they are obliged by law to notify Families SA, if they suspect on reasonable grounds that a child or young person has been, or is being, abused and/or neglected.  At Star of the Sea, Matt Perry and Damian Weeks are the contact people, especially for volunteers, who may need support with this process.

Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum

Throughout the year students will be engaging with the Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum. The curriculum is an evidence based, best practice curriculum developed collaboratively with child protection specialists, teachers, educational leaders and other professionals. It covers a range of concepts including new additional material on contemporary issues such as bullying and cyber safety. 

The curriculum is divided into 5 documents specific to the year level of the students plus 2 additional documents for educators working with students from cultural or linguistically diverse backgrounds and for students with a disability. 

There are 2 main themes:

• We all have the right to be safe
• We can help ourselves to be safe by talking to people we trust

There are 4 focus areas:

1. The right to be safe
2. Relationships
3. Recognising and reporting abuse
4. Protective strategies

The Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum fits primarily within the Health and Physical Education learning area of the Australian Curriculum but can also be incorporated across other Learning Areas. Within the Health and Physical Education curriculum two focus areas Relationships and Safety outline the learning.

Additional information about the broader protection policies of Catholic Education SA can be found on their website:

http://www.cesa.catholic.edu.au/our-schools/safe-environments-for-all

The website also includes links to online resources for parents and students on a range of topics including anxiety, depression, bullying and how to support your child.

Congratulations to Sophie L (Year 5) on being selected to represent South Australia at the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Border Challenge held on the Sunshine Coast. After 2 days of competition with gymnasts from New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia and Queensland, Sophie earned South Australia’s only medal, a silver on floor and was South Australia’s highest scoring gymnast. Congratulations on your hard work and dedication Sophie, you are role model to all at Star of the Sea!