23rd February 2023

Principals News

"The 24th February 2023 will be the first anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia which has seen the deaths of tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians.  There has been major infrastructure damage in many cities around Ukraine.  People are suffering there.  

The Ukrainian Catholic Church around the world will organize many actions to support their nation in its efforts to defend the freedom of its people and the sovereignty of its borders.  Bishop Mykola Bychok, Eparch for Ukrainian Catholics in Australia, New Zealand and Oceania, invites you and your communities to join them on that day in prayer.  I invite you to pray the attached prayers and to invite your people to light a candle for peace, shining a light in the darkness that war, conflict, and violence of any sort brings. "                                                          Fr Greg Barker Diocesan Administrator 

Dear Families,

The above prayer has been shared today, Friday 24th February by Fr Greg Barker. Please keep the people of Ukraine in your prayers. Please pray for the people of Turkey and Syria who have been desimated by recent earthquakes.                            Thank you. 

For us in Abermain, we began our journey to Easter on Ash Wednesday which marks the beginning of the church season of preparation which we call Lent. Pope Francis reminds us of the importance of listening to Jesus through the words and his actions in the scripture. Pope Francis said “Lent is a time of grace to the extent that we listen to him as he speaks to us.” (2023) and so over the 40 days of journeying toward the joy of the ressurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday, we are called to make time to pray, to give to others and to make sacrifices. The children were invited to make a donation to Caritas for the 2023 Project Compassion campaign which administers aid in many forms to people all over the world, including here in Australia. The children purchased pancakes and some even had jam on them! That was on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Lent begins when traditionally all those centuries ago, people used up all their sweet ingredients and enjoyed a feast together before the sacrifice and idea of "going without" happened during Lent.

At staff prayer this week I shared with staff a link to a mobile App for the 40 days of Lent. The app provides scripture meditations and quiet reflections and invites us to pray and to make time in our day for prayer. https://catholicapptitude.org/2023/02/14/top-recommended-catholic-lent-apps-for-2023/  As a staff we listened to an invitation to prayer called "Spiritual Steps" and the premise was that no matter where we are in our busy lives, by taking a deep breath and centring ourselves, we can pray and God will listen. The app is free.  https://pray-as-you-go.org/discover

 The children will learn more about the season of Lent in their daily Religious Education lessons and as a school we will be encouraging them to pray using different ways to invite them to pray. Children do love formal prayers such as The Lord's Prayer and the Hail Mary, however it is their spontaneous prayers, drawings, ideas or models that are a beautiful representation of their love of God. Your child may be keen to talk to you about Lent and if any parent has questions about Lent or would like to know more, please feel free to contact me at school as I'm always happy to help. 

Opening School Liturgy

We inducted our new school leaders for 2023 on Friday at our Opening School Liturgy and they were supported by their families who were able to proudly present their badges to them. The leaders made a pledge to be a good role model for others, to work together as a team guided by our teachers and to try to be kind and caring like Jesus was. The team were given a special blessing by Fr James earlier in the day and we talked a little about who this person called Jesus was and why people followed him as a leader. The children spoke about Jesus being baptised by John the Baptist; that he was always kind; that he helped others. I was very proud of them and I know they will each do all they can to be great leaders at Holy Spirit Infants. 

We had a lovely liturgy as we all came together for the first time as a school community in the church. Our Kindergarten students were terrific and everyone sang very well. Thank you to the parents and grandparents who were able to join with us for you are very much part of our school. We are looking forward to a terrific year of learning and growing together in 2023. 

All families are invited to come along to the Welcome to Kinder Mass on Sunday 26th February. Mass is at 4.30pm but we are suggesting families may like to come to the school from 3pm for a play and a catch up with other families on our playground.

All welcome. Bring a picnic blanket and afternoon tea if you would like to. 

Professional Learning for Staff

Our school has a focus on Mathematics in 2023, which is aligned to a system focus on Numeracy,  we have been able to send four staff members to Professional Learning provided by Peter Sullivan who is working with our diocese supporting schools with their pedagogy to improve mathematics teaching and results. Other schools have nominated to focus on Literacy which we will be able to do in 2024 as we have had a successful literacy focus for 3 years. 

Other staff will soon attend PL for Initialit Training; Impact Coaching; Early Career Teacher PL and Leadership Courses. These PL courses are an important part of every teachers' role as we are committed to be lifelong learners. It will likely mean that at some stage over the next few weeks your child will have a casual teacher for a day/days whilst their class teacher attends the PL. 

All are settling in well 

The children have settled well into the routines of school life and are beginning to make new friends as well as enjoy the surroundings of their school. Thank you for sending your child in their school uniform each day.

A gentle reminder that hair ribbons need to be royal blue/navy or white please; a child's hair needs to be pulled back if it is shoulder length as this helps them to focus on their learning rather then on moving the hair out of their eyes. No jewellry other than a gold/silver bangle or stud earrings. Valuable jewellry can easily get lost at school which causes unnecessary tears. Thanks. 

Recycling Plastic bottle tops

Thank you to the families who have been collecting the lids off their milk, juice, flavoured milk and sending them in. It will take some time to collect enough of them to reuse them in a beautiful artwork, but we do have plenty of time. This is a project to foster an awareness in children about recycling and the importance of minimising waste. We are caretakers of this planet and we need to act to ensure it is cared for and nurtured through our efforts. We have other projects in the pipeline and thank you for supporting our initiatives. So send them in! 

Parent Information Sessions

It was terrific to be able to catch up with so many parents whon came along to our PT Sessions last week. Thank you to our teachers for preparing their presentations and a handout for parents/carers about the class routines and the planned learning for the year ahead. Having parents visit our classrooms is also a great experience as you can be in the room where your child learns and grows each day at school. For parents unable to attend, a handout was sent home on Monday in the note folders. If you didnt get one, please contact the office. 

Parent Engagement Group Meeting 14th March

Our first PEG Meeting with Holy Spirit Kurri executive staff will be held on Tuesday evening 14th March. As we have OOSH in the hall until 6.30pm we will need to schedule the meeting for 7pm.  Due to the dissolution of the P&F due to covid we are keen to invite our parents/carers in to meet together with teaching staff under this new model. We envisage it will be an hour of your time. It is not all about fundraising, its about listening to our parents/carers and providing some input for you around our educational focus in our schools. We would like to gather ideas from our parents in the first instance and we can respond to those ideas moving forward. So please, save the date and come along. You'll get to meet other parents, perhaps share a great idea we can all benefit from or else just come along and listen.  

Have a wonderful week ahead! 

God Bless you, 

Diane Murphy 

Principal 

Assistant Principal News

Assistant Principal News 

Positive Behaviour for Learning 

Our PBL focus for weeks 5 and 6 is part of “I am Respectful” it is: 

“I wait my turn.” 

This week the students participated in a PBL lesson all about waiting our turn. The lesson focused upon the situations they may encounter at school where they will need to show patience and wait for their turn. The students were asked to think of times when they’ve had to wait in the classroom, on the playground, at the canteen or on the bus. Students may receive GOTCHAS when they can wait their turn.  

Rebecca Kearns – Assistant Principal 

Sharing Our Faith

The Season of Lent

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. 

Opening School Liturgy

Last week, we held our Opening School Liturgy where we marked the start of the school year and welcomed all students, new and returning. On this special occasion we also commissioned our Student Leadership Team for 2023 and they were presented with their badges. 

Shrove Tuesday & Project Compassion

On Tuesday 21st February, we celebrated Shrove Tuesday at school. Our students were able to enjoy a pancake at lunch with either butter or jam. 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. Hence why we mark the day with pancakes.  

Our School Leaders on this day attended the Project Compassion launch. They were able to represent our school at the Cathedral in Newcastle with many other school leaders from across the Diocese. They found out about the great work Project Compassion does for those who are not as fortunate as us as well as enjoy some pancakes afterwards in the Southern Cross Hall. 

Ash Wednesday

And with Shrove Tuesday finished, we now come to Ash Wednesday which we marked on Wednesday 22^nd February and is the start of the Lenten season. On this day, each grade came together for a shared liturgy in their classrooms due to the wet weather changes. 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. 
Father James visited each of our grades and blessed us with the ashes, marking a cross on our foreheads. I commend the students on their flexibility in changes to the day and for their reverence during the classroom liturgies. 

Welcome to Kinder Mass

Invitations went out last week to our Kinder families, inviting them to our Welcome to Kinder mass on Sunday 26th February at 4:30pm. With a 3:00pm picnic on the school grounds. This is a great opportunity to come together and join the School and Parish community for mass. The Kinder students will be preparing a song to perform on the evening, and we would love to see as many of you there as possible. We welcome all families, but especially our Kinder families, to join us for this celebration.  

Parish Mass Times

Saturday 25th February

9:00am Mass, St Joseph's, Cessnock

6:00pm Mass, St Joseph's Cessnock

Sunday 26th February 

8:30am Mass, Holy Spirit Kurri Kurri

10:30am Mass, St Joseph's Cessnock

4:30pm Mass, St Francis Xavier Abermain (Welcome to Kinder Mass)

Saturday 4th March

9:00am Mass, Holy Spirit Kurri Kurri 

6:00pm Mass, St Joseph's Cessnock

Sunday 5th March

8:30 am Mass, Holy Spirit Kurri Kurri

10:30am Mass, St Joseph's Cessnock

4:30pm Mass, St Francis Xavier Abermain

Yours in faith,

Miss Jessica Laczkowski

Religious Education Coordinator

Opening School Liturgy

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Student Leaders

On Tuesday 14th February we had a special blessing from Father James for our School Leadership Team in the morning prior to our Opening School Liturgy. Father James blessed both the leaders and their badges, wishing them a great year being role models to our younger students and sharing the fruits of the spirit with all that they meet.

Kindergarten Successful Foundations

We are very proud of how our Kindergarten students have been settling into school here at Holy Spirit. Kindergarten has continued their journey with the Successful Foundations research project, and we have loved every minute of getting to know our students’ strengths and how they learn. 

This is what our students have said:  

KB –  Pippa - "I like to play outside because there is fun activities like fixing the car and playing in the kitchen"

KB - Henry - "I enjoy fixing the car because I like to take the screw out. I liked working together with my friend Egan, it was fun!"

KW- Holly - "School is the best! School has the best toys. I like playing in the supermarket and the vet with my friends. I also get to dance!"  

KW- Riley – "I like school because I have made so many kindy friends and I like friends. I get to build things and cut things with wheels. Today I made a truck for Dani and Isabelle out of cardboard."  

After our students participate in play provocations, they have the opportunity to share the wonderful things they did with the class and then complete a recount in their play journals – this is helping them develop their verbal and written literacy skills. Have a look at what they can do already!   

Some reflections students have made:

Finance News

School fee statements will be issued to all families in the first week of March.   Statements are emailed monthly to all fee payers with balances owing.  Please note this is not a demand for payment, merely an update of your fee status.   Thank you to those families who have already paid or have commenced a payment arrangement.  In 2023 school fees are invoiced for the full year.   Please check your statement carefully and notify the office if you are unsure of the details.

If any family would like a hard copy of their statement please email admin@abermain.catholic.edu.au and a copy will be sent home via the student note folder.

Payments can be made either weekly, fortnightly, monthly or annually.   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 and checked 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.   Payments should commence prior to 31^st March and are expected to be finalised by 30^th November 2023. 

If you are experiencing financial difficulties, please contact the school to make an appointment to meet with the principal to discuss payment options. 

Dot Seamer, Admin Officer.

Volunteering at our school in 2023

Do you want to volunteer at our school in 2023?  We would love to have you.   Please click on the link below to 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 be notified by the school office.

https://www.mn.catholic.org.au/people/volunteer/ 

Thank you

Enrolment Packages for 2024 Kindergarten Open 1st March for our Region

Do you have a child ready to start school in 2024? The official enrolment period for Kindergarten 2024 will open on Wednesday 1st March 2023.  Please contact Holy Spirit Infants School 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!

Easter Egg Raffle Fundraiser

Families are asked to kindly donate Easter eggs for our much loved Easter raffle which is a fundraiser for our school.   These donations can be left in the office.   Thank you for your generosity.   The Easter raffle will be drawn on 5th April.   Tickets will be $1 each and will be available for purchase via the QKR app.

School Photos MSP 20 March

We're excited to capture new memories for Holy Spirit Infants School - Abermain on your upcoming photo date(s):
Main Photo Day: Monday, 20 March 2023
Your 2023 school photos are now ready to order through the Compass Portal. To place your order, make sure you have your login details handy!
If you're unsure of your login details, please contact the school for assistance.

Click here to get started!

Once you've logged in, you'll need to follow a few easy steps!

Click here for our simple, online ordering guide.

Once you have placed your Individual Photo order you can place your Sibling photo order, these MUST be ordered before midnight prior to photo day.
Please remind your child that they are having their photos taken. If they are having a sibling photo, all siblings will need to be ready for their photo at the allocated time set by the school.
Please note that after 29/03/2023 an archive fee of $20.00 will apply.
If you have any questions regarding the photography service or packages available for purchase, please contact our friendly team on 02 4966 8292 or by email orders.hcc@msp.com.au
Get your smiles ready!

Harmony Day Tuesday 21st March - Wear Orange or Rainbow!

The theme for Harmony day 2023 is "Harmony - Everyone Belongs". Holy Spirit will commence our celebrations with a Poster competition that the students will complete in class on. For all of those artists out there, you can start to think of a design for your poster using the theme for 2023.
On Tuesday the 21st of March we will have our main Harmony Day Celebrations. All students will participate in a range of activities including crafts, games 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.More information to come.
Nikki Fredsall, EALD Teacher

Uniform Shop News

Pre-loved School Uniforms   If you would like to enquire about second hand uniforms, please call Danielle on 0423 291 166 and she will assist you if possible.   The second hand uniforms are held at Holy Spirit Primary School in Barton Street, Kurri Kurri.  

Canteen News

All lunch items are to be ordered through the Qkr App and orders need to be placed BEFORE 8.30am on canteen day. Please make sure you have selected the correct date for the order.  On canteen day please send in your child's Lunch Wallet for their order.   Ice blocks will be available for sale for 50c and $1, these are not available for purchase via the App.  Thank you to all our volunteers who assist in  our canteen.  

Awards: Congratulations to...

Class Awards

Dates for your Diary

Community News

NETBALL REGISTRATIONS

We have registrations open for 2023 and are looking for 5-9 year old players to fill teams.  Both boys and girls are welcome. Pls contact Lisa on 0437993798 or via the Majestic Netball Club Facebook page.
Provisions can be made for fee help where required.