St Raphael’s Catholic School Term 3, Week 3/A Newsletter 6 August 2018
Dear Parents, Yesterday Cowra marked the 74th anniversary of the POW breakout. All these years later we are still in desperate need of peace in our world … it was good on Sunday to join communal ceremonies that raise the awareness and grow peace. HSC Trials begin today with two hour papers in English Standard and Advanced. Your prayerful support is called on to guide Year 12 students to find and maintain focus in this challenging time. Thank you to Mrs Bennett for the investment into making the Shiroishi City visit so successful. The visiting Japanese students and their carers thoroughly enjoyed their Aussie visit. Thank you to those who generously welcomed these visitors into your homes and families. Some of the VET Hospitality and Construction students from Year 11 are away on the second week of their Work Placements this week. We are most grateful to the businesses which so generously host our students. CSYMA (Catholic Schools Youth Mission Australia) volunteers joined with representatives from five other Catholic secondary schools from around the diocese last Friday at Orange for “Rise Up”. Yet again our students proved to be outstanding ambassadors for their school and their families. Congratulations to the Primary representative athletes who competed on Friday at Bathurst and to Year 10 students who braved the challenges and rugged terrain around Deep Pass (near Lithgow) last week in their Outdoor Education. In line with accountability expectations, schools are required to publish reports annually. You will find the 2017 Annual Reports from our school along with other Diocesan Schools on the website: http://www.bth.catholic.edu.au
‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never be hungry; he who believes in me will never thirst.’ (John 6:35)
Monday 6 Year 11 Work Placement – Hospitality and Construction SES Cadets Tuesday 7 Happy birthday to Jayden Azzopardi, Abigail Partridge and Emma Tremble Year 11 Work Placement – Hospitality and Construction Primary Schools Cup Netball Final - Orange Wednesday 8 Year 11 Work Placement – Hospitality and Construction Mary MacKillop Mass – 9-30am Secondary Schools Cup Netball Final – Orange Year 6 Transition Thursday 9 Happy birthday to William Fleming and Samuel Harris Year 11 Work Placement – Hospitality and Construction Year 9 Retreat Friday 10 Year 11 Work Placement – Hospitality and Construction
Happy birthday to Matthew Prescott for the 11th and Toby White for the 12th. Michael Gallagher Principal P.O. Box 7, Cowra 2794 Tel: 6342.2940
Email: straphaels@bth.catholic.edu.au School Website: www.straphaelscowra.catholic.edu.au
Diocesan Information Network Update Media Statement: Help available for those suffering financial hardship To assist those most affected by the severity of the current drought gripping most of NSW, the Catholic Diocese of Bathurst has offered practical support to those experiencing hardship. Bishop of Bathurst, Michael McKenna travels widely throughout the Diocese and is well aware of the devastating results the drought is having on communities whose livelihoods are dependent on rain. The Bishop said, “The provision of affordable Catholic schooling should not be an added burden to the financial strain of families, especially for those in need in this time of drought.” Bishop McKenna reminds families who are in difficult financial circumstances, for any reason, that they are always able to approach their school principal to arrange relief of their school fees. “We certainly do not wish to add to the financial burden families are currently experiencing, as money should not be a barrier to children attending Catholic schools”, he said. This practical initiative is in addition to the request from Bishop McKenna for a Day of Prayer for rain and for those suffering from the drought. “As people of faith, we are already praying for rain and for everyone whose lives and livelihood depends on this blessing. Last Sunday, the Diocese was united in a Day of Prayer for those intentions”, said Bishop McKenna. If your family is suffering financial hardship for any reason and finding it difficult to pay school fees, please contact your school principal for assistance. Laudato Si - Living without Plastic? Last term our Newsletter focused on the Pope’s messages that came through Laudato Si looking at how we can do our bit to care for our common home. This term we will be looking at one of the burning questions that is out in the world at the moment, can we live without plastic? During the holidays a number of our students featured in the paper giving their support for the banning of single use plastic bags from our major supermarkets. This is one great step towards what might seem like an unimaginable goal. Although when you stop and think of the small things we can all do, such as giving up bottled water and bringing our own from home, it may make the goal seem that bit more attainable. Could you live without plastic?
P.O. Box 7, Cowra 2794 Tel: 6342.2940
Dates for the Calendar Wed 8th Aug: Feast of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop Mass 9.30am Wed 15th Aug: Feast of the Assumption Mass 9.30am Altar Servers’ Roster Sat 11th Aug: Poppy Starr and William Pearce Sun 12th Aug: Cowra Volunteers Please School Eucharistic Ministers for Weekend Parish Masses: Sat 11th Aug: Renae Downes Sun 12th Aug: Peta Bischof
National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) School Readiness Test 20-24 August 2018 In the week 20 - 24 August 2018, students at our school will complete the National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) School Readiness Test (SRT) online. You may recall that our school participated in the SRT in 2017. The NAPLAN SRT is conducted in August and September 2018 and will help inform the technical readiness of NSW schools for the transition to the online assessment. Schools in our Diocese are aiming to sit NAPLAN Online in 2019. The SRT will assist the School, Catholic Education and State and Federal Government to assess readiness for planned participation in 2019. In the SRT, Students in Years 3,5,7 and 9 will complete an ‘Omnibus’ Test which has a mixture of the Numeracy, Reading, Grammar and Punctuation questions. Students in Years 5, 7 and 9 will also sit an online version of the Writing Test. There will be NO individual student results from these tests. The data collected will be aggregated school data to assist in the planning for successful implementation of NAPLAN Online in 2019 and beyond. The experience of sitting the test online will be of benefit to students in a general experience only. Should you wish to see a demonstration of the online environment, you may access a relevant year demonstration test at https://www.nap.edu.au/onlineassessment/public-demonstration-site If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to make an appointment to talk to your child’s Class Teacher or Curriculum Coordinator. Kylie McNamara Lenise Tidyman-Crawley Primary Curriculum Coordinator Secondary Curriculum Coordinator
Email: straphaels@bth.catholic.edu.au School Website: www.straphaelscowra.catholic.edu.au
Book Week Parade We are celebrating book week in Week Five on Friday the 24th August. This year's theme is, Find Your Treasure. We are looking forward to immersing ourselves into the treasury of books and dressing up as a book character. To allow working parents to attend, our book parade will now begin at 12.45pm. Prior to the parade, we invite parents and Carers to visit our classrooms from 12.15pmuntil the start of the parade - 12.45pm. We also extend a warm welcome to parents if they wish to share a picnic lunch with their children. In summary, 12.15pm - 12.45pm Open Classrooms 12.45pm - 1.10pm Book Character parade 1.10pm - 1.50pm Picnic Lunch with parents Please Note: The canteen will be taking lunch orders for students only. Parent are welcome to bring a picnic lunch to share. Library News Chess Knockout Years 3 and 4: Students have completed the knockout with Cohen Howden the overall winner and Imogen MCCormick and Alex Cucchiaro equal second. Congratulations and thank you to all the participants for their enthusiasm and fair play. Our Year 5 and 6 Knock out will commence next week . A little more on Book Week We are looking at the short list texts in class as we focus on the theme Find Your Treasure and discover the features that make these texts winners. Students can see me if they need some suggestions for their dress up character for the Book week parade in Week Five. For new parents the students come dressed as a book character to celebrate the announcement of the 2018 Books of the Year winners. K. Skinner Librarian
P.O. Box 7, Cowra 2794 Tel: 6342.2940
Phones Phones continue to be a source of concern. All secondary students were reminded of the rules during homeroom last week and again at the assembly. No student is to have their phone on their person during the school day. Phones if taken to school must be handed in to the front office. If a student is found using their phone during school hours it will be taken from them and handed into Mr Gallagher, the phone must then be collected by a parent/caregiver NOT the student. There have been a number of instances involving the social media app Snapchat. On both occasions it has involved group chat messages. The group chat has caused great stress on some members of our community and has also played out in the school yard. It would be helpful if you could have a conversation around the responsible use of your child’s device and their online behaviour. It is also a timely reminder that it is a criminal offence to use a phone or social media to harass and intimidate others. This sort of behaviour will not be and cannot be tolerated and our young people must learn how to appropriately use their phones, the internet and social media. Steve Carroll and Tahni Isedale Secondary Wellbeing Breakout Commemoration Thank you to the students who represented St Raphael’s so beautifully at the 74th Anniversary of the Cowra Breakout. It was a lovely commemoration with two countries coming together in peace.
Email: straphaels@bth.catholic.edu.au School Website: www.straphaelscowra.catholic.edu.au
Head Lice Unfortunately from time to time we have an outbreak of head lice at the school. Please be vigilant in checking your child’s hair and treating where necessary. Your assistance in the matter will ensure the outbreak is short-lived. Thank you. Canteen Update This week’s roster is as follows: Tues 7
Wed
Thurs 9
Fri 10
Mon 13
Melinda Curtale
CLOSED
Ammie Broad
Kylie Kollas
Sally Bruncher
Jessica Newcombe
Cindy Langfield
Mistie Hodder
Carol Lynch
Soup of the Week- Pork Meatball
WELL DONE Congratulations to the following students who have achieved the next level . Bronze Award Tristen Ryan-Hartwig 3 Green Charlotte Tindall
Brodie Whitty 4 Green Mathew Graham 4 Gold William Leatherland 4 Gold Lachlan Partridge 4 Gold Amelia Cranney 5 Gold Sarah Shady 5 Gold George Kollas 6 Green
Rylee Frazer Maria Kollas Imogen McCormick Jack Campbell Imogen Ousby Madison Anthony Jacob Cayfe
Level 7 Ava Broad 3 Green Georgie Pearce Sophie McLennan 6 Green Charlie Graham Georgia Williams 6 Green
4 Green 4 Gold 4 Gold 4 Gold 5 Gold 5 Gold 6 Green 6 Green
3 Green 6 Green
Your Teachers are very Proud of You!
Following this we also had 2 more students that were awarded a Silver Certificate. To date this year, these students have obtained over 60 green stickers! This is a fantastic achievement and I encourage all students to continue to work in a positive manner with the Gold Level as a goal for 2018. The 2 students were: Michael McNamara and Depp Ryan. Our senior students had the chance to nominate themselves to Gold Level. The students went through a nomination process gaining feedback from all of their teachers and their homeroom teacher. They received a Gold Award and a Senior Leaders Badge. This is a fantastic achievement and all students should be proud of their achievements. I also encourage all senior students to work towards this award as it is another point to add to the resume! Students successful in their application were: Matthew Terry, Ben Price, Brian MacCabe, Matthew Mood and Samantha MacCabe.
Secondary Wellbeing This week at our secondary assembly was a chance to recognise the positive efforts of many students. The following students were awarded with Bronze Awards for obtaining 30 green awards: Tianna Azzopardi, Archie Brown, Monique Chang, Melissa Mood, Kate Statham, Jack Webb, Grace Whittaker, Phillippa Elwin, Olivia Parish, Amelia Thomson, Louis Carson, Charli Hubber, Raziq Shaji, Charles Williams, Aedan Leatherland, Ethan Thomson, Olivia McLennan, Bill Statham, Isaak Dawes, Jack Harper and Kate Price.
Steve Carroll and Tahni Isedale Secondary Wellbeing P.O. Box 7, Cowra 2794 Tel: 6342.2940
Email: straphaels@bth.catholic.edu.au School Website: www.straphaelscowra.catholic.edu.au