St Cecilia's Newsletter Week 4, Term 4

A word from the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers, 

As you may know, this time of year is dedicated to the important task of assessing and summarising your child's progress and achievements throughout the second half of the year (semester two). Our dedicated teachers are culminating all their data and have commenced the process of  and  writing comprehensive end-of-year school reports for the students.

Crafting these reports is a meticulous and thoughtful process, as we aim to provide you with a comprehensive view of your child's achievements, areas of improvement, and their development as a student.

We want you to know that these reports are not only a reflection of your child's academic performance but also a testament to their personal growth, character, and contribution to the school community. We are proud of each child's journey and look forward to sharing their accomplishments with you. We believe that the partnership between our school and parents is essential for a child's success, and we hope these reports serve as a foundation for productive conversations and collaborations.

You can expect to receive your child's report in week 10 of this term. 

Simultaneously, we are gearing up for the upcoming school year by initiating the process of class groupings for 2024. The team's (class teachers, learner diversity team and executive) primary goal of class groupings is to create well-balanced and supportive learning environments for all students. Rest assured that careful consideration is given to each child's unique strengths, needs, and social dynamics when forming class groupings.

Teachers meet with their grade partner and consider children’s progress, the academic, social and emotional needs of all students, as classes are created. Behavioural and learning needs, as well as personal circumstances are also considered. Please be reassured that your child’s teacher will address all these parameters when placing children into their 2024 class. The rigorous process strives to have classrooms of the same grade heterogeneous and balanced. Teachers know students well and just like you, want the best for every child. There is no need for parents to submit requests for staff, unless there are exceptional circumstances that we are not aware of. If this is the case, please send your requests in writing via email to me (not class teachers) at scw@dbb.catholic.edu.au

We greatly appreciate your ongoing support and partnership in fostering a positive learning environment for your child. Together, we can ensure that they continue to thrive academically and personally.

Thank you for entrusting us with your child's education.

Marta

Staying Connected

END OF YEAR AWARDS CEREMONY

Our End of Year Mass will take place on Monday 4th December starting at 9:30am (venue; hall or assembly TBC, pending on building works). Following the mass, we will distribute our End of Year Awards. The teacher/s of each class will choose one student for each of the following awards.
• Academic Progress - This award recognises a child who has made significant gain, growth or increasing proficiency along a continuum of learning in a specific learning area or across the board.
• St Cecilia’s Creative Arts Award - This award recognises a child’s personal creative development, 
as an artist or art leader, building creativity, leadership and communication skills. The child who 
receives the Arts Award could be recognised in any area of the arts, including dance, drama, music 
or visual arts.
• ACE (Attitude, Commitment, Effort) Award- This child displays a positive attitude towards their 
learning, shows dedication and has given the best of their ability throughout the school year. Their 
strong work ethic has seen the child reach their potential and they have encouraged and enabled 
others to do the same.
• Discipleship Award - This child follows the example of Jesus by helping others and leading a life 
of peace, joy and love. The child reflects Jesus’ love and goodness to others by being a good citizen, 
showing that they are a productive and caring member of society, treating others with respect and 
respecting their environment.

FLIP #8 MEETING - 15th November @6:15pm

Please RSVP below for the final Families Leading In Partnership meeting for the year. We will host a light supper at 6:15pm in the staffroom for the meeting. https://forms.office.com/r/DrL0FAFNSe

The agenda for the meeting will be as follows:

YEAR SIX GRADUATION TICKETS ON SALE NOW! 

A reminder to all year six parents that graduation tickets are now avaialable for purchase on QKR. Ticket prices include dinner, drinks, photo booth ($550), decorations and student cupcake costs. 

Congratulations Mrs Harrison

We are delighted to welcome a very special new member to the St Cecilia's community. Louis Lee Harrison was born on the 20th October. We would like to extend our warmest congratulations on the arrival of your beautiful baby boy, Louis. It's a precious moment in your life, and we are sure you are all overjoyed with your new bundle of joy.

School Service Team Updates

2023 Leavers

If you know your child is moving to another school in 2024, please email the office to inform us of these details. 

New Camp Disclaimer

A new disclaimer from 2024 will be noted on all future permission notes for camps where a supplementary fee is charged to parents. 

The supplementary fee for the camp is non-refundable except in the case where a student falls ill prior to the camp. A medical certificate covering the dates of the camp will be required if your child is unable to attend the camp. A credit will be provided in this instance.

Compass Personal Details Update

Parents please ensure all of your personal information is up to date on Compass. You are able to check and edit this.

Thank you.

Teaching and Learning Matters

Last week, 15 of our staff were lucky enough to attend a full-day workshop with Dr. Lorraine Hammond. Dr. Hammond is a highly accomplished educator and researcher who travels the country sharing her wisdom and walking the walk with educators and students. During our day with her, we engaged in learning around the Science of Teaching and high impact instructional strategies to provide best outcomes for our students.

Part of the day of learning involved teachers engaging in learning around Cognitive Load Theory. This theory states that the human brain can process a small amount of new information at any time. This new information is held in the working memory, which can only hold around 4 or 5 pieces of information. When our working memory is overwhelmed, or full of too much new information, there is a risk that our learning will be slowed or ineffective. The long-term memory on the other hand is infinite.

Dr. Hammond demonstrated explicit teaching strategies that teachers can use in their classroom practise to ensure students are allowed the time and opportunity to practise and revise skills and concepts regularly. These strategies ensure the teacher is working alongside students and providing immediate feedback. The strategies we examined on the day included a number of classroom routines integrated within quick daily review sessions, which reduce the load on working memory and assist the brain in organising information in the brain so that it is able to be transferred to the long-term memory and easily recalled.

Teachers were enthusiastic about their day of learning and have already begun implementing these strategies and routines into their classrooms. As a team of educators at St. Cecilia’s we look forward to continuing our professional development around the Science of Learning, Cognitive Load Theory and the use of high impact instructional strategies across the curriculum.

Religious Education Update

ST CECILIA’S CHRISTMAS CONCERT

On Tuesday, the 5th of December, Australian religious songwriter and singer, Andrew Chinn, will be visiting our school to lead a Christmas Concert with our children. Andrew’s songs, such as “These Hands”, “Rainbow”, “An African Blessing” and “Rise Up!” are used in classrooms and liturgies around Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada. Parents and parishioners are warmly invited to be a part of the celebration of faith and fun. There is no charge for adults. The concert will take place in the assembly area, at 5:30 pm. We look forward to seeing you there.

St Vincent de Paul Christmas Appeal

It's that time of year again where we come together as a community to support those in our community who are less fortunate. 

From the Parish:

1. CECILIA RELIC.

Over the next twelve months a Parish Committee will be working to prepare a Reliquary for our relic of St Cecilia. The final step in this process will culminate on 22^nd November 2024.

It is very important everyone understands the significance of this process. Three questions need to be answered to help in this understanding.

1. What is a Relic? A relic is the tangible remains of a saint, or any object that has been in contact with the saint.
2. What is a Reliquary? A reliquary is the container that stores and displays the relic.
3. Why do we venerate relics? Relics are physical, tangible, and concrete reminders that heaven is obtainable for us. We express gratitude to God for those members of our spiritual family as we recall their holy lives, ask for their intercession, and pray to achieve what they have achieved—eternity with God in Heaven.

Our relic of St Cecilia is described as sacred pearls from the veil of blood and its authenticity has been signed and sealed.                                                                 The relic was donated to the parish by a parishioner’s relative who visited St. Cecilia’s, Wyong for her weekend Mass when she was in the area.

Why is our Church named in honour of St Cecilia?                                         Our Church was named in memory of Cecilia Ann Woodbury. Cecilia was a young woman who was highly respected in the town of Wyong in its early days. She raised much of the money necessary for the building of the church but died at the young age of 33, on 27 April 1905.

What will be happening in our parish over the next month?  The Church bulletins for the next three weeks will record the life St Cecilia and at the 9:30 am Mass on Sunday 26 November, the official launch of our journey will commence.

Staff Spotlight

This week I had the pleasure of announcing to our teaching staff that our own Learning Support Aide (LSA) Mrs Sartor will be appointed to a classroom teacher job at St Cecilia's in 2024. We congratulate Mrs Sartor on not only completing her university degree (while working as a full time LSA) but on her new job appointment starting from 2024.

Mrs Sartor has been a full time LSA in our school for two years and worked across all classes K-6, however predominantly in infants. She has a wealth of knowledge in learner diversity, is well known to our community and has a natural ability to bring out the best in each child.

PEC Update

Central Coast Family Support Services is hosting GRANDmatters Forum on Friday 10^th November at Mingara. This forum is free for Grandparents with the FULL-TIME care of their Grandchildren living on the Central Coast. This will be an opportunity to listen to a number of guest speakers providing information, resources, and support to assist in navigating the complexities of raising grandchildren.

I have attached the flyer for this event.

Blessings,

Jo Helm

Parent Engagement Coordinator

PBL - Positive Behaviours For Learning

Classroom Connections

Science and experimenting with the light:  Students in Year 4 have been hard at work conducting experiments in our Science unit on the properties of light. Great work young learners!

Awards & Acknowledgements

Congratulations to the following children for their achievements! The listed award recipients will receive their award at Friday morning's assembly at 8:45am!

Academic Achievement Award

PBL Award

Personal Best Award

Upcoming Events

Term 4, Week 4

Thursday 2nd November ~ Year 6 Leadership Camp

Friday 3rd November ~ Year 6 Leadership Camp

Term 4, Week 5

Monday 6th November ~ Year 2 Parish Mass at 9.15am St Cecilia's Church

Wednesday 8th November ~ Kinder Orientation Session 1 at 9am

Thursday 9th November ~ Cricker Clinic year 3- 6

~ East Timor Mission presentation in the hall at 11.30am

Friday 10th November ~ Remembrance Day whole school liturgy in the hall at 8.45am

~K-2 Swimming Program 11.30am

Term 4, Week 6

Monday 13th November ~ Year 1 Pasrish Mass at the church at 9.15am

Tuesday 14th November ~ Final Year 6 Debate St Cecilia's vs Mackillop

Wednesday 15th November ~ K-2 Swimming Program 

Thursday 16th November ~ Cricket Clinin Year 3-6

~ Bright Beginnings 9.30am

Friday 17th November ~ K-2 Swimming Program