Newsletter Term 1, Week 1 2023

Principal's Welcome

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome back to St Brendan’s for 2023!

I hope you have had a wonderful school holiday period. This is my first year as Principal at St Brendan’s and I am looking forward to getting to know you and your families.  Some families I have met before when I was a teacher/coordinator at St Brendan’s many years ago.  It’s lovely being back at Lake Munmorah and it’s great to see so many of my ex-students back too!

I would like to welcome our new families and staff to St Brendan’s also. Our new classroom teachers include:

Mr Jesse Schasser – Kinder Yellow

Ms Tannae Mill – HIVE

Miss Taylor White - HIVE

Ms Kimberley Ashford – Year 2 Green

Ms Caitlin De Lemos – Year 3 Red

Ms Suzanne Shiu-Haskins – Year 3 Blue/Digital Technology

Mr Matthew Chandler – Year 5 Red

Ms Teagan Ross – Year 6 Green

Mrs Peeta Gainsford – Year 6 Red

Mrs Amanda Obajdin – Front office

Mrs Nicole Anderson – Parent Engagement Coordinator

Mr Peter Coombes – Aboriginal Education Coordinator

Welcome to all our lovely Kindergarten 2023 children and their families:

Congratulations to our Miss Lily Lonergan who is getting married this weekend …. who will now be known as Mrs Lily Anderson.  All the best to Mr and Mrs Anderson.  Lily has decided not to take any leave right away, she wants to be sure her Kindergarten children are settling in before taking leave at the end of this term.  Thanks Lily for being so dedicated.

Parent Forum

I would like to invite you all to meet with me at a Parent Forum on Tuesday, 7 February at 1pm. We will meet in the hall after our Opening School Mass and bite to eat.  At this forum you will have the opportunity to be part of the discussion surrounding the vision for St Brendan’s.  I too would like to hear from you about what is working well and where there is room for improvement.

Parent Advisory Group (PAG)

Our first Parent Advisory Group (PAG) meeting will be held on Tuesday, 21 February 2023.  It will be held at 6:00 pm, after the Parent-Teacher-Student Goal setting interviews.  All parents and carers are welcome to join us.  The Parent Advisory Group Meetings are an opportunity for parents to contribute to upcoming events and discuss the direction of the school. We have a Parent Event Team who support different projects.  We would love to expand this group and you are more than welcome to come along!

Communication

Our main form of communication is through your Compass app.  Please be sure to log onto your app on your phone to stay up to date.

All classes will give you access to the Seesaw platform.  Through this platform your child’s teacher will share 2-3 posts per week displaying the class learning and celebrations.  This will not be used for messaging.

All parents will receive their child’s teachers email for correspondence however if something is urgent please call the office as teachers will not check their emails during teaching time, 8am-3pm.

All families will receive a curriculum overview from your classrooms with relevant information about your child’s classroom.

Sport Uniform Days

Opal cards

I sent out an urgent plea to all families to apply for their free Opal card for bus travel.  We are encouraging all children to tap on when entering their bus.  This gives the bus company important data indicating the large numbers of children catching the buses.  Yesterday we had a bus that  was so overcrowded a relief bus had to be called.  If the bus company has this important information this situation could be avoided.  Please apply for your free Opal card asap.

Welcome Family BBQ

We are looking forward to a casual Welcome BBQ on Thursday, 16^th February at school from 5pm-7pm. We would appreciate if you could please RSVP via this link for catering purposes. 

Afternoon Dismissal

Our afternoon dismissal has changed to provide all children with supervision and alleviate the afternoon rush.  The children will now be supervised from the classroom to the silver seats allocated for “walkers”, “kiss and drop”, “parent pick up”, “walkers and bikes/scooters”, “buses” and “OOSH”.  If you normally wait for your children past the church you are welcome to remain there and your child will walk down after the kiss and drop line.  You are also welcome to join us for our afternoon assembly at 2.25pm. If you are joining us please wait behind our silver seats to allow our lines to leave without congestion.

Our new Positive Behaviour for Learning Discipline looks like “SBLM”!

SBLM acronym = St Brendan’s Lake Munmorah and also:

Strive High, Be Alive in Christ, Let's Learn and Make Good Choices.

This poster displays what each expectation looks like:

123 Magic and Emotion Coaching

Our 123 Magic and Emotion Coaching rubric in our classrooms is currently being implemented.  This allows children and teachers to utilise their learning and teaching time without unnecessary disruptions. Children are identified (counted 1,2,3) when displaying behaviours that is not allowing themselves or others to learn. If these behaviours continue a child may find themselves in the reflection room, currently known as long time out. If a child is in the reflection room 3 times in one term, they will unfortunately miss the end of term reward day. You will be notified if your child is in the reflection room and the reason why. Of course, some major behaviours won’t be counted, they will be directed straight to the reflection room on the same day as the behaviour at lunch time. Within the reflection room there will be time to discuss the child’s behaviour, allow time for reflection and discuss alternative more appropriate ways to behave. Classes are currently discussing what the end of term reward may be e.g. inflatable obstacle course, bike day etc. I can share further information at the Parent Forum, however, if you have any questions please contact me or your child's teacher.   

SBLM REWARDS

We have implemented our dojo awards to recognise and celebrate positive behaviour.  Children are already accumulating dojo points in class, on the playground and on lines.  Congratulations to all who have received dojos!

As well as our end of term reward day each term, the children will also have an end of year reward day.  When children accumulate dojos throughout the year they will receive rewards:

EXAMPLE ONLY:  50 dojos = wear crazy socks to school

               120 dojos = Principal’s award at weekly assembly plus a lucky dip

               150 dojos = 10 mins technology time

               200 dojos = teacher’s choice

               250 dojos = Principal’s award at weekly assembly plus sitting next to a friend for the day

               300 dojos = End of year reward plus Principal’s award at weekly assembly

The above dojo rewards for positive behaviour are examples only because I would like to speak to the Year 6 leaders for their suggested rewards before I publish the SBLM rewards.  Watch this space!

God Bless,
Charlene Reid
Principal

Religious Education

Opening School Mass

Please join us for our Opening School Mass on Tuesday 7, February at 11am.  This marks the beginning of a new academic year and serves as a celebration of our community, faith, and mission.

As a valued member of our school community, we would be honored by your presence and participation in this special occasion. During the Mass the 2023 Student Representative Council and Student Leadership Team will receive their badges. The Mass will be followed by light refreshments in the Hall, offering an opportunity for you to be part of the discussion surrounding the vision for St Brendan’s. 

Painting with Parents

Sacrament of Reconciliation

Is your child ready for the Sacrament of Reconciliation? We invite you to a Parent Information Session on 15 February at 3.30pm at St Brendan's Church. Enrolment for the Sacramental Programme opens on the 6th February through to the 17th February 2023.

To book please visit www.trybooking.com/events/landing/997684

Upcoming Events

Athletics Carnival

The sports carnival will be held on the 13th of March 2023 and will be for K-6. The digital permission form for the Athletics Carnival will be pushed to you in the Compass app on Monday.

Groovin the Green

St Brendan's & St Brigid's Lake Munmorah are very excited to invite you to the 2023 Groovin the Green Event! We are currently calling all businesses and creative people! 

We are reaching out to the community to invite expressions of interest for:

- Stall Holders
- Food or Beverage providers
- Games, entertainment providers

Groovin the Green is going to be a fun-filled night for our community and a way we can support people with suitable businesses by providing a venue to showcase their products or services. 

If this sounds like you, please complete the form below and we will be in contact with you!

Important Updates

School Assemblies

School assemblies this year will be held every Friday at 1:40 pm.  We would love you to join us!  This year each grade will have a special assembly where they showcase what they have been learning. These special assemblies will commence at 1:20 pm.  Year 5 have their special assembly on Friday, 31 March 2023.  All assemblies for Term 1 have been added to the Compass calendar.

Four legged friends on school grounds 

A friendly reminder that we cannot have dogs and other pets come on to school grounds, including during the morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up times. As you may know, we have Vic the St Brendan's Therapy Dog as a staff member most days, therefore we unfortunately cannot have other animals on school grounds. We thank you for your understanding!

Canteen Volunteers

Our school canteen is always needing volunteers for the canteen, we appreciate as much or as little help as you can provide. If you would like to volunteer in the canteen, please call the office on 4358 1501, outside recess & lunch times so that Tracey (our canteen manager) will be around to have a chat! 

Clothing Pool

If you weren't aware, St Brendan's has a clothing pool which comprises of very generous donations of pre-loved uniforms. From 2023, we have a parent volunteer available in the clothing pool from 2pm to 2.30pm on Wednesdays and 8.15am to 8.45am on Fridays. The clothing pool is a gold coin donation for uniforms. In addition, if you have any unwanted or wrong size uniforms at home and you would like to donate, please feel free to drop them into the office at anytime. 

We have also listened to feedback about starting a forum for parents to buy and sell uniforms. So, we have created a Facebook Page for the community to buy and sell pre-loved uniforms. Feel free to join this group and connect with other parents!

Photography and Video Permission 2023

You will have received a digital note this week seeking permission for us to use your child’s image in photographs and videos.  Please ensure you provide your consent or otherwise. If you select “I do not consent” in any category, we will not display your child’s image in any schools or CSBB publications.  If you do, we will be able to share images and videos of your child in our newsletter, on our Facebook page and groups.

St Brendan's Open Day 2023

Do you have a friend or family member who may be interested in attending St Brendan's? Let them know we are having our Open Day on:

Session 1 Tuesday 28th March 2023 9am to 10.30am
Session 2 Tuesday 28th March 2023 5pm to 6.30pm
Session 3 Thursday 30th March 2023 9am to 10.30am
Session 4 Thursday 30th March 2023 5pm to 6.30pm

Please register via this link .

St Brigid's Open Day 2023

Is your child currently in Year 6, or do you know somebody in Year 6? If so, get them to come along to the St Brigid's Open Day! You will be able to immerse yourself into the St Brigid's Community and gain an insight into the unique learning spaces St Brigid's has to offer. 

Local Sporting Champion Grant

Round 4 of the Local Sporting Champion Grant will close 31 March 2023.

The Local Sporting Champions program is an Australian Government initiative designed to provide financial assistance for young people aged 12-18 towards the cost of

• travel
• accommodation
• uniforms or equipment when competing and
• coaching or officiating at an official national sporting organisation (NSO) endorsed state, national or international sporting championships or a School Sport Australia state or national championships.

The $500-$750 grants are designed to help athletes, coaches and officials achieve their sporting goals.

Central Coast Family Support Services

Compass Calendar