15th March 2022

Principals News

Dear Families 

This week is the second week of Lent and we celebrate the feast days of two very famous saints. Saint Patrick’s Day on Thursday 17th March and St Joseph’s Day on 19th March (which we will celebrate on Friday 18th at school). We can learn much from both saints. From St Joseph we see and hear about his patience, obedience, selflessness, compassion, care and faithfulness in his role as the husband of Mary and the foster father of Jesus Christ. Joseph was referred to as a carpenter, however we know he was more likely a stone mason given that at that time in history, there was more work done in stone than wood. Whatever the materials Joseph worked with, he used his hands, he made things and like many fathers who teach their sons, Joseph taught Jesus those skills. Our school which began in 1908 saw many Sisters of St Joseph teaching the children from all around Abermain and surrounding districts. The Sisters had St Joseph as their patron and St Joseph is the Patron Saint of the Universal Church. We will celebrate St Joseph’s Day on Friday with a school liturgy and a tabloid sport event.  

School Challenges 

Thank you for the many messages of support last week as we faced some more challenges at Holy Spirit Infants with many of our staff becoming unwell due to contracting the covid 19 virus. The students managed so well by making the most of our Wellbeing Week and enjoyed meditation across the week; wacky socks Wednesday with a free ice block and of course our “Free Choice Friday” afternoon session was a big hit. The students have shown great resilience as they have had different teachers across the week and we reminded them that at times, things change and that we can all manage that change and help others. I enjoyed teaching both Year 2 classes and getting to know the students even more and help them with their learning, whilst having fun as well. As the students who have been unwell do return to school, several have been struggling with fatigue, likely it’s a result of having had covid 19.  Our teachers are aware and have adjusted lessons so that those subjects requiring a greater cognitive load are taught before recess eg English and Maths. I have asked our staff to continue to wear a mask whilst indoors and teaching this week as a protective strategy and we will also ask all parents to please remain outside the school grounds this week. If all goes well this week and we see a drop in case numbers, we will look to welcome parents back on site each morning from Monday 21st March. I will keep you informed.  

Welcome to New Students 

Welcome to the new students Ryka Tipper 1W and Rory Muller KB and to their families. Both boys have been spotted around the playground having fun making new friends and settling in to the school routines at Holy Spirit. We are hopeful that soon we may be able to have a parent gathering to get everyone to meet one another and share the "Holy Spirit" spirit of belonging and welcoming that our school is so well known for. 

One of our families has returned to their former home. We will miss Lucah Diaz from 1W very much. Lucah made lots of friends in his short time at our school and was a great learner. We wish Lucah and his family all the very best. 

Building Works Update

Our staff have moved across into the refurbished and much more spacious Staff and Admin work spaces. Whilst we are still waiting on some furniture, and some final items to be put in place, we are certainly enjoying being able to move around and to sit on adult sized chairs!  We plan to have a blessing of their new building and an official opening as soon as we can get past these covid numbers across the school.  We are excited to be able to welcome parents in and to meet with you in the new interview room which is large enough to meet with a family. The Phase Two outdoor learning space and walkway have certainly stalled given the wet weather. I hope to have an updated completion date to you shortly. 

Parent Information Night Survey Responses

Our sincere thanks to the 81 parents who were able to jump online and share their responses via the Survey Monkey we shared about the Parent Teacher Evening format that you would prefer. We outlined the issue we had of wanting to meet parents but not being able to do so safely given the current circumstances. The responses were as follows: 

Kindergarten  43% of parents responded

Year 1                 32% of parents responded

Year 2                 25% of parents responded 

The choice that proved the most popular at 48% of respondents was that teachers send home a letter to parents with key information about the class this term and then, covid permitting, we schedule a "Meet the Teacher" face to face evening in Term 2. 

We hope to have all teachers returning to work at some stage this week and we will send home a printed copy of the letter to parents about your child's class and the things they have been learning and will be learning across the remainder of the year.  We plan to send this home on Friday 18th March with every child. 

Our sincere thanks for letting us know what works best for your family at this time. 

Parking is not permitted in the Church Grounds

A reminder to parents and carers that there is NO PARKING in the church grounds please. Fr James our Parish Priest has expressly requested that no parents drive in and park in that space. His concern is for the young children who wander across the driveway without looking, or who run across it to meet their waiting parent again, without looking. I have recently seen a vehicle reverse out of the driveway - which is beyond dangerous. We all need to keep our children safe so DO NOT park in the church carpark.

Please notify grandparents that this is not an option for pick up.

Thank you for your support of this. 

Complaints and Grievances Processes at Holy Spirit Infants 

Office of Safeguarding: In term 1 it is important that all parents/carers are aware of the school and diocesan Complaints and Grievances Procedures and policies. As the Principal of the school I do always encourage you to make an appointment to discuss your concerns with me please in the first instance. I am always keen to listen to your feedback, to hear about the things we get right and to hear about the things we can likely do better.  Communication between Home and School or parents and teachers is highly valued at our school as are the relationships we build with one another. 

Complaints and Grievances

Staff make decisions every day and many are directly concerned with your child. Professional judgement, educational guidelines, school policies and experience are just some of the factors used to frame these decisions. However, what is consistent in all decisions is the genuine care the staff have for your child and the fact that they always have their best interest at heart; regardless of whether it is rewarding a positive action or giving a consequence to an inappropriate choice.

With that said I accept that not all decisions, although made with every good intention, are absolutely 100% correct and from time to time disagreements and conflict may arise which may result in complaints and grievances being expressed. Holy Spirit Infants School, like all schools – in fact most workplaces has a “Complaints and Grievance’ Policy. In short, it outlines appropriate and acceptable procedures to express dissatisfaction, so that mutual respect and fairness are ensured and that the dignity of those involved is maintained. I stress that the office foyer is not the place to display anger and frustration. All matters should be dealt with in a calm manner and preferably in a quiet place. A copy of the Complaints and Grievance Policy is available on the school website and by request from the school office.

Procedures for Investigating Complaints at Schools

It is not uncommon for children to have accidents or to get into the odd argument or fight. Such incidents can lead to high emotions both at home and at school. We ask children and parents to apply the following guidelines:

For Children

1. Tell a teacher when you are injured, upset or feeling insecure.
2. If the teacher is busy, go to the school office and tell another teacher or tell your classroom teacher when you go to class.
3. Tell the truth, even if you may be at fault.

For Parents

1. Step: Complaints and grievances should be raised at the earliest possible time. Classroom based complaints and grievances should be raised with the student’s class teacher. All other complaints and grievances should be directed to the principal and/or their delegate.
2. Step: If the classroom-based complaint and grievance is not resolved by the teacher, direct the complaint/grievance to the principal and/or delegate.
3. Step: If a complaint or grievance is not resolved by the principal after all efforts have been made to do so, or the complaint or grievance is about the principal, the parent/carer should refer the concern to the Catholic Schools Office (phone 49791200).
4. Step: If a complaint or grievance remains unresolved, the parent/carer or the assistant director may refer the matter to the Director of Schools for review. A formal avenue of appeal is available in accordance with the Diocesan Pastoral Care Policy. All such appeals should be made to the Director of Schools in writing and in a timely manner.
5. Step: If, ultimately, the parent/carer is not happy with the way their complaint or grievance has been dealt with by the school or the Catholic Schools Office, they may wish to go to an external agency or legal advocate for advice and assistance.

Notes

There may be several investigations proceeding that you are unaware of, all of which require care and thorough attention. Simply because a result is not immediately forthcoming does not mean that the issue is not being dealt with. Investigations do not happen in a vacuum.

Schools are busy places, and your patience is appreciated. Decisions about discipline that are made in haste can be the wrong decisions. The way we deal with issues in school teaches children skills about how to make better choices in real life. It is about choice and consequences, not damning children. You may wish to express your indignation, but all children make mistakes. It could be your child tomorrow.

Copies of our Pastoral Care and Discipline Policy are available on our website or on request from the office. The Catholic Schools Office Complaints Resolution for Parents and Carers Procedure can be found on the Catholic Schools Office website.

Hunter Water "Let's save water" performance 

Today the children all enjoyed a performance by JollyBops presented on behalf of Hunter Water aimed at encouraging all students to conserve and value water as our most precious resource. The performers had the children laughing and giggling with delight at the on stage antics of the characters. The message of conservation of water was well received. Be aware parents that some of you may soon be reminded not to spend too much time in the shower! Uur thanks to Hunter Water and Jollybops for an excellent performance that was enjoyed by all. 

Science Incursion

We are excited to have booked JollyBops for an interactive Science performance next term for K-2. The show will be focused on the Weather and will be a terrific way to end the units of work on Weather being studied across Stage 1 this term. They will return again in May!

God Bless You all

Diane Murphy

Principal

Acting Assistant Principal News

PBL

Our school is a Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) School. PBL brings together the whole-school community to contribute to developing a positive, safe and supportive learning culture.

Our Positive Behaviour for learning focus for week 7 and 8 is ‘I Wait Patiently’. This focus contributes to becoming a RESPECTFUL learner. All staff have been working with students discussing and role-playing ways we can wait patiently in the classroom, at the canteen and on the bus. This week students displayed this beautifully whilst waiting for their ice blocks on Wacky sock Wednesday.

Home Reading

Most students have settled beautifully into class routines, with both Year 1 and Year 2 beginning to send reading folders home. I thought I would take this opportunity to show why ‘home reading’ is so important in your child’s development. I have included two infographics to explain both the benefits and later success with just 20 minutes a day of reading together or listening to someone read.

Reading with your child allows you to build a beautiful relationship with your child or children. I know that many families are very busy after school to help slow this pace, create a routine around bedtime that allows for 20 minutes of shared or independent reading. Regular reading allows students to practice fluency and comprehension skills needed in the classroom (not just at reading time). Regular reading allows you to spend quality uninterrupted time with loved ones. Regular reading builds confidence in children giving them the courage to try new learning in the classroom.

Year 1 classes have very carefully tailored their Home Reading folders to each individual student. Reading just doesn’t mean a book, early reading success focuses on the sounds of each letter, or group of letters so that students can decode and blend new words. With this in mind, any reading is beneficial to each and every student. For more information on home reading or home readers please don’t hesitate to call or email. Happy reading adventures!

Heather Porter-Kay

Acting Assistant Principal

Religion News

We have now entered into the season of Lent in preparation for Easter. This is one of the most important seasons of the liturgical year and a great opportunity for us as Catholics to reconnect and grow closer to God and our faith. During the 40 days of Lent, we are encouraged to reflect on ourselves and our actions, to seek forgiveness for our wrongdoings and to prepare our hearts and minds for the upcoming new season. Most people associate Lent with a time of giving up something whether it be meat, alcohol, social media, etc. But what many do not know is that it is not only a chance to give up something to grow closer to God but a chance for us to take up something which can in turn also help us grow closer to God. We can do this through donating, acts of service, etc. By observing the 40 days of Lent, Catholics are replicating Jesus Christ’s sacrifice and withdrawal into the desert for 40 days.

Please find below a ‘40 days of Kindness to do in Lent’ that families can complete during Lent to help bring them closer to God. As Lent is not always just about giving up, but also taking up things.

Welcome to Kinder Mass

On Sunday 6^th March we celebrated our Welcome to Kinder Mass with the Vineyards Parish. Thank you to the families and staff members who were able to come along on the evening, it was beautiful to see so many excited Kinders to be in the church! At Mass, students were welcomed into the Parish community by Fr James and Fr Graham with a special blessing and the students loved coming up the front of the church to do the actions to ‘These Hands’. Well done, Kindergarten, we commend you for your wonderful participation in the mass!

Welcome to Kinder Mass

Shrove Tuesday

Last Tuesday 1^st March, we celebrated Shrove Tuesday at school. Our Kindergarten and Year 1 students were able to enjoy a pancake at lunch with either butter or jam, with our Kinder students also enjoying their first experience of going to the canteen. Despite our Year 2 friends learning from home, it was great to see so many of our families taking up the challenge to make some pancakes together as a family as well. We discussed how it is not just ‘pancake day’ but an important day in preparing for lent to start. During the Lenten season, Catholics would not usually eat fat or egg products. They often made pancakes as they were the perfect thing to make to use these products before the start of Lent to prevent wastage.

Ash Wednesday

And with Shrove Tuesday finished, we now come to Ash Wednesday which we marked last Wednesday 2^nd March and is the start of the Lenten season. On this day, each grade came together for a shared liturgy in their classrooms. During the liturgy, they set their sacred space with a purple cloth, they listened to the Gospel reading, found out about what Ash Wednesday and Lent is all about, and shared in a song to finish. We had some great discussions after the Gospel about what we could do during Lent to bring us closer to God. Some of the great ideas that students came up with included helping a friend when they are hurt and saying something kind to someone. We were unable to have the ashes this year due to covid, but we symbolically made the cross on our foreheads to mark the occasion.

Yours in faith,

Miss Jessica Laczkowski, Religious Education Coordinator.

School Fees

School fee statements were issued to families recently.  Please check your statement carefully and advise if there is anything that you are unsure of.   With the new system, data matching occurs externally with Holy Spirit Kurri and ASC Maitland.  The building levy should be charged to the eldest child in the Diocese only.   Tuition and Resource Fees are student based and each child will be charged for these fees.  Please note that the Resource Fee now includes technology and maintenance fees, incursions and excursions as well as all other classroom resources that your child needs.  For valid health care card holders, a discount of up to 50% off Tuition Fees is available per student but all documentation must be supplied before a credit can be approved and processed.  Compass Pay is an option for payment of school fees however it is not recommended as it attracts hefty administration costs.    BPAY remains the easiest and most popular way to pay for your school fees.

Kinder Enrolments 2023

Do you have a child ready to start school in 2023?   The official enrolment period for Kindergarten 2023 is now open (1st March to the end of May 2022). Please contact Holy Spirit Infants School within this time frame for your enrolment information pack.  Office hours are  8:30am – 3:30pm Monday to Friday.   If you are unsure if your child is ready for school, please talk to your preschool director and teachers.  If you think your child has a disability, please discuss this openly with your child’s preschool professionals and see your doctor for the appropriate health professional referral.  This information will assist us to have the necessary measures in place at time of enrolment. Early intervention is vital to give your child the support they need to succeed at school.   Families will be contacted regarding tours, interview times; playgroup opportunities and Transition to School session dates. Consider starting your child's educational journey with us!

Harmony Day Tuesday 22nd March - Wear Orange or Rainbow!

The theme for Harmony day 2022 is "Celebrating Harmony".  Harmony Day is a day to celebrate Australian multiculturalism. Harmony Day is about exclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background, united by a set of core Australian values. Holy Spirit will commence our celebrations with a Poster competition that the students will complete in class. For all of those artists out there, you can start to think of a design for your poster using the theme for 2022.

On Tuesday the 22nd of March we will have our main Harmony Day Celebrations. All students will participate in a range of activities including crafts, games, songs and stories that celebrate the wonderful cultural diversity we have in Australia and at Holy Spirit.  This day will be an out of uniform day where students are encouraged to wear orange or rainbow colours. Orange is the representative colour of Harmony day. It signifies social communication and meaningful conversations. It also relates to the freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect. If you do not have any orange clothes for your child to wear on this day, please wear rainbow colours. Let's brighten up our playground on this day!

Successful Foundations

Please see attached a Letter for Parents of Kindergarten students explaining the ways Play provocations stimulate response from children and promote curiosity, social interaction and imagination. Our Successful Foundations program for 2022 has been very successful again and has ensured our Kinders have settled quickly to being independent learners in our school environment. They are thriving! My thanks to our Kinder Team - Mrs Edwards, Miss Laczkowski, Mrs Focic and Mrs Shakespeare for their wonderful ways in ensuring every child feels special and belongs at Holy Spirit. 

Want to become a Volunteer at our school?

We thank you for offering to volunteer at our school.   Our canteen requires volunteers so we can resume offering this service to our school.  Please click on the link below and complete the online application.  Apparently, this only takes about 10 minutes to complete.   Once you submit the form the process should take approximately 5 business days to complete.  When you are approved you will need to be inducted at the school site.   We thank you for offering your valuable time to volunteer at our school, you are welcome and appreciated.

Please click on the link to register:    Volunteer Registration Form   

Road Safety around Schools

Parking around schools – Illegal and unsafe parking/driving behaviours are considerable issues around schools during the peak drop off and pick up times.  Please assist communicate to your school community the importance of compliance to the road rules.  There is zero tolerance for breaches around schools as it compromises child safety and demerit points together with considerable fines apply for driving/parking offences. .  The key messages are No Stopping means NO stopping, Bus zones are ONLY for buses and No Parking is as easy as 1.2.3 – one car, two minutes, driver no more than three metres from the car.  

Keeping our kids safe around school – It is important to keep reminding your school community about road safety as people will tend to fall into habitual behaviours that suit their own circumstances but fail to consider the safety of the whole school community.  Transport for NSW, Centre for Road Safety assists schools to educate both their students and parent/carers on correct road safety behaviour.  At https://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/stayingsafe/schools/backtoschoolsafety.html you will find considerable information for your newsletters, social media, and noticeboards including a series of fact sheets.  These can be used to keep the safety around schools message active throughout the year.  Covering off on walking safety to school, bus safety, occupant restraints, riding a bike, and driving in school zones, regular and continuous road safety updates to your school community are made easy.

Traffic congestion – There is a heavy reliance on private transport for getting students to/from school.  This has only increased over the past two years with COVID restrictions.  With the increase in use of private transport compliance to road rules around schools is so important for safety.  As we return to more pre-COVID behaviours, to reduce congestion around schools, use of public transport school buses should be encouraged.

Primary Schools with Children’s Crossings – A reminder that the orange ‘Children Crossing’ flags are ONLY to be on site to activate the crossing during the school zone times of 8.00am to 9.30am and 2.30pm to 4.00pm (school days).  Outside these hours they are to be removed from the roadway by an authorised adult as per the Transport for NSW requirements for the installation of these facilities.  Having the flags out all day with no pedestrian activity reduces their effectiveness during the school zone times when it is essential for drivers to be alert for child pedestrians. Random audits will be conducted throughout the year to ensure the placement/removal of the Children Crossing flags is being correctly managed by schools.

For Primary Schools the Safety Town https://www.safetytown.com.au/ website/portal has information and activities for teachers, students and parents and is an extremely valuable resource for road safety education.

For Secondary Schools there are some additional teaching and learning resources for Stages 4,5 & 6 at https://onthemove.nsw.edu.au/

Library News

Issue 2 of Book Club will close on Thursday 24th March.  All orders need to be processed online. Thank you for your support.

Year 2 borrow their library books every Tuesday. 

Year 1 and Kinder borrow every Thursday. Thank you parents for encouraging the life long skill of reading and listening to stories. 

Canteen News

Canteen opened successfully last Friday.   Thank you to our volunteers who generously give of their time to make this happen.   Parents are reminded to update their QKR details for their child etc correct class when placing their lunch order.   QKR is a wonderful covid safe way of ordering your child's lunch online.

Dates for your Diary

Community News