Dear Parents

Welcome to the 2020 school year.

I hope that you all had a wonderful break and are ready to start the new school year. It was a delight to see all the children so eager to meet their new classroom teachers and catch up with their friends on the first day. There was definitely a lot of excitement in the air! The children looked so smart and fresh in their uniforms on their first few days. How lucky are the children to get a little respite from the heat with swimming lessons commencing this week! Thank you to all parents for assisting your child to be so prepared and organised for their first week back. A very special welcome to all new families who have joined our school community this year. I am sure that it will not take you long to enjoy the wonderful Padbury CPS spirit.

At PCPS we are very blessed to have such a dedicated and professional staff who are totally committed to providing the very best education for the children as well as nurturing and caring for all children on a pastoral care level. Special welcome to new our staff members for 2020:

Mrs Loretta Hutcheson (Assistant Principal), Mrs Kathryn Carter (PP teacher), Miss Emily Buckingham (Yr1 teacher), Miss Rebecca Vester (Yr2 teacher) and Mrs Ali Fisher (Social Worker). I know you will make them feel welcome. We look forward to them sharing their special gifts and talents within our school community.

The 2020 Leadership Team consists of Mrs Margaret Williamson (Principal) and Assistant Principals, Mr Ryan von Bergheim and Mrs Loretta Hutcheson. We are always available to meet with you at any time should you have any concerns or queries regarding your child’s education.

We welcome back Father Cyprian, Parish Priest at Our Lady of the Mission, and Father Francis, Assistant Parish Priest. We look forward to their spiritual guidance throughout the year. (Please see the staff list at the end of the newsletter).

This year we welcome Mrs Ali Fisher, our Social Worker. Mrs Fisher will be at PCPS on Mondays. As she is here only one day a week at this point in time, referrals to meet with her will need to be made through the classroom teacher. She will be able to assist with such pastoral care concerns and issues such as Dealing with separation and family conflict; Grief and loss; Child protection; Refusal to attend school; Behavioural concerns at school or at home; Bullying issues; Cybersafety; Building resiliency and self-esteem; Learning to express feelings and emotions; Managing anger; Peer issues at school; Establishing positive friendships; Conflict resolution; Respecting differences; Dealing with anxieties and fears; Organise welfare assistance and information for families in financial distress; Support the implementation of the Rainbows Grief and Loss programme; Assist with Protective Behaviour programme; Facilitate small group work, organise guest speakers/workshops for children/parents/staff; Make referrals to other professionals.

Please place Tuesday 25 February in your diary as we will be celebrating our whole school Welcome Mass on this evening at 6.00pm at Our Lady of the Mission Church, Craigie. It is a wonderful way in which to celebrate being together for the New Year and to ask God’s blessing for each and every one of our children, staff and parents throughout this year ahead. It is an expectation that all students attend this special mass and as it is an official school event, students from Yr 1-6 are to wear their summer school uniform and PK-PP are welcome to wear their PCPS shirts. All children will be seated with their families. We will remind the children and ask for your support in ensuring that this Eucharistic celebration is a reverent occasion.

The Parent Teacher Information evening at the beginning of the year forms the basis of our school/family communication process. Thank you to all parents who came along last evening and thank you for the wonderful feedback we have received in regards to having the sessions all on one night and for the availability of the child minding. Your continued support of the classroom teachers and our school is always very much appreciated.

You will have noticed that the renovation of the east wing of the administration building and the children’s toilets is now complete. The children are the luckiest in the state to have such wonderful toilet facilities. One child even commented that they felt like they were in a hotel!

We had our first assembly on our first day back at school after recess where I welcomed the children back, introduced them to the new staff and chatted about the exciting events coming up in the next couple of weeks. Our Friday assemblies commence in a couple of weeks next week in the Hall at 2.30pm. All parents and extended family are most welcome to all our assemblies throughout the year.

Next week, the Year Six children will be going to Woodman Point for their camp. Mrs La Galia and Mr Randazzo have planned an educational and fun programme, which will enable the children to develop their team building skills and spend time bonding with each other. The Year Six children are so excited! Thank you to Mr Hignett, Mr von Bergheim and Mrs Williams for giving generously of their time to assist on the camp. I would like to thank all the teachers for giving up their time and being away from their own families so that the Year Six children can enjoy this wonderful opportunity. I will be visiting the camp site during the week to see how they are all travelling. Safe trip everyone and I pray that God looks after you during your time away from school.

Have a wonderful weekend with your family.

Mrs Margaret Williamson

Principal

Mornings - Parents may park along these bays.

Afternoons - NO PARKING. These bays are for KISS & RIDE ONLY.

Thank you for your cooperation.

The school day will run as follows:

8:30am - Doors open

8:45am - Morning block classes begin

10:30am - Recess (20 minutes)

10:50am - Middle block classes begin

12:35pm - Lunch (40 minutes)

1:15pm - Afternoon block classes begin

3:00pm - Bell for end of the day

* Pre-Primary will continue to finish at 2:50pm Monday-Thursdays.

Welcome back to the 2020 school year! We hope you enjoyed a relaxing holiday break with your families. It has been lovely seeing the students back at school this week, so eager to learn and excited to see their friends. We know 2020 is going to be a fantastic year at PCPS and look forward to seeing you around the school in the coming weeks.

Have a great fortnight ahead!

Ryan von Bergheim & Loretta Hutcheson

Assistant Principals

We will be running the RAINBOWS PROGRAM again this year. It is a peer support program designed especially for children who are experiencing painful transitions, such as a separation , divorce, death or a parent working away (FIFO). This program is also beneficial for children who have moved from other countries, states or schools.

Please see the Information Sheet below (file), which includes an enrolment slip to be returned to the office, should you be interested in this program for your child.

- Georgina Bertoldo (Rainbows Coordinator)

Congratulations to the Carty family, who have just welcomed baby Sean into the world, brother to Seamus (K) and Finn (Yr4). Wonderful news!

Please place this date in your diary as it will be a fun evening!

The first icy pole day will be held on Friday,14th February . The Pre-Primary children order within their classroom with the Teachers which is delivered to them on the day. If parents/guardians could please bring in small change please to order. The icy poles are sold to children from Years 1 to 6 in the hall during lunch time. The children bring $1.20 in small change and can choose from a vanilla bucket, calippo, lemonade icy pole or paddle pop (streets). There is also a small number of gluten free vanilla cups (Everest) for the children with dietary requirements. Please contact Maggie Gallagher on 0424408622 or Romina Cangelosi 0417959347 if you have any questions.