Please check the community calendar for upcoming and future dates as the calendar is regularly updated.

https://www.padcath.wa.edu.au/community-calendar

Dear Parents

May this Lenten season be a time for discovering what we can experience through fasting. As well as fasting from food, we might also:

· Fast from mindless entertainment in order to experience the Word of God in scripture

· Fast from shopping for something new and needless in order to share what we can with others for whom simple everyday survival is a constant struggle

· Fast from overly demanding schedule in order to rediscover the love of family and friends

· Fast from anger, impatience and our need to be in control in order to recognise our humbleness before God.

· Fast from whatever keeps us from being centred fully in the love of God that is especially present to us during this Lenten season

If a family would like to place a note in the Pastoral Care section of the newsletter in relation to a birth or death, or if a family would like the whole school community to pray for any special intentions e.g. a family member who is ill, please send a message to let your child’s class teacher or Mrs Ellen at the front office know or send an email to admin@padcath.wa.edu.au

On Tuesday Father Cyp celebrated a Leaders mass for the Year Six children and their families. He blessed the special councillor badges as well as the leavers shirts and asked God to bless each and every Year Six student as they undertake their roles in the different ministries this year, being of service to PCPS in their final year.

What a wonderful day we had at our School Swimming Carnival today. The Year Three to Six children competed with such great sportsmanship, comradery and had loads of fun. It was fabulous to see children striving to achieve their personal best, other children challenging themselves to swim outside their comfort zone and children being encouraged by faction as they chanted from the stands. Congratulations to John Paul II faction who won!

I would like to thank Mr John Hignett, our Sports Teacher, for his thorough planning and organisation enabling the day to run so smoothly and to all the parents and staff who assisted on the day. Your help was truly appreciated. Fortunately, this year we were able to have our swimming carnival, albeit with restricted spectators due to COVID regulations however it was terrific to see Year Six parents in attendance to see their last PCPS carnival.

I wish our interschool swimmers all the best as they compete in the Interschool Swimming Carnival next week. I know that they will represent Padbury CPS with pride.

Tuesday Pre-Kindy (3-Year-Old) has some vacancies this year. If you have a child who is 3yrs old or is turning three this year please enquire at the office regarding enrolling your child into our fabulous programme or click on the following link for further information - https://www.padcath.wa.edu.au/early-childhood-education. If you have friends or neighbours who have children who are 3 years old, please talk to them about our exciting Pre-Kindy programme and encourage them to enrol.

Enrolments are now taking place for Pre-Kindy and Kindergarten 2022, 2023, 2024. Please ensure that you have completed an enrolment form for your child and see Mrs Ellen at the office should have any queries.

What a fantastic evening we had at our Family Fun Night on the 5 March. There were stalls galore and loads of entertainment for the children. There was a great buzz in the air and a beautiful community spirit as families gathered, COVID safely, on the oval. Big thank you to Cat and Clint Rudd for coordinating the P&F event and thanks also to their band of parent helpers who helped to make this evening such a fun night for all, bringing families together for the new school year. Thank you also to our P&F President Mrs Susan Kadak and all P&F Committee members for their support and to all the families, staff and Father Francis who came along on the night to share in the fun.

The children are continuing to enjoy their P&F Icy Pole days for the term. Big thank you to Elva MacDonagh for coordinating this for the children.

Thank you also to Natalie Bullen for organising the P&F URSTRONG social and emotional well-being workshop for parents last week. It was very well attended. Our Social Worker Mrs Fisher is currently looking into undertaking some training for this and then sharing this with the staff.

The PCPS Leadership Team and Staff provide parents and our wider community, various channels to keep them informed of life, activities and information at PCPS. These have been streamlined as follows:

Parent Teacher Information Sessions– Pre-Primary to Year 6 Parent Information sessions are shared early in the year to discuss the year's programme and expectations in each class. These were shared electronically this year. The Pre-Kindy and Kindergarten meetings are held in December so that information provided can be of benefit in the transition period of the Christmas holidays, in order to prepare the younger students for their commencement at Pre-Kindy and Kindergarten.

Interviews – Parent Teacher interviews are held for all children in Term One and these can be booked via our online service. Teachers welcome parents to make appointments to discuss their child's progress at any stage of the year.

Seesaw - Each class from PK-Yr6 has a Seesaw App where families can gain a window into their child’s learning. The children and/or teacher can capture learning that is taking place and share this with parents.

SEQTA emails and notices- Teachers and office administration use email as their primary source of communication with parents when dealing with administrative information.

Progress Reports – Evaluation and reporting are important elements in the teaching/learning process. Teachers provide written reports at the end of each semester for K-6. Parent-teacher interviews during the year provide opportunities for the exchange of information regarding the child and his/her development.

Wider Communication

Weekly Newsletter - emailed once a fortnight on Friday afternoons via a newsletter link to each family. The newsletter is also uploaded to our school website - https://www.padcath.wa.edu.au/newsletters

Electronic Annual Calendar – to inform parents of events for each term and assist with forward planning - https://www.padcath.wa.edu.au/community-calendar

Social Media-Facebook Page and Instagram - Padbury Catholic Primary School has an official Facebook and Instagram page. These modes of social media allow us to celebrate all things PCPS, with the intent to build upon our strong community spirit. They are great ways to share information with our community about events, fundraisers, sporting and academic achievements. Our social media is also part of our Marketing Plan.

School Website – https://www.padcath.wa.edu.au/ contains school information, including newsletters.

General Meetings – Meetings are scheduled during the year to ensure cooperation and understanding of current topics such as sacramental programmes, curriculum and learning activities.

P&F Meetings – These provide a good forum for gathering information about school happenings and are a way to make a real contribution to your children's education as well as involve yourself in friend and fund raising.

It is always wonderful to hear positive feedback from the school community. Thank you to those parents who have chatted with me recently and/or or sent an email/letter about what they love about Padbury CPS. I always love to hear your good news stories! Also a big thankyou to families who are spreading the word about our fabulous school and encouraging friends, neighbours and relatives to enrol. Word of mouth is the best publicity so keep it up!

The classrooms teachers are in the midst of having meetings with all parents this term so I encourage you to take the time to schedule a meeting with them to discuss your child’s progress thus far. This is such a valuable opportunity which supports the education partnership that we believe to be a vital component to student success.

Enjoy this gorgeous weather.

Kind regards

Mrs Margaret Williamson

Principal

If you do not hold a permit for these bays please DO NOT park in them.

Please also ensure you are not parking in any bays marked as 'staff'.

We thank you for your cooperation.

Early next term we have been lucky enough to secure 2 presentations from Paul Litherland from Surf Online Safe (https://www.surfonlinesafe.com.au/).

Paul was a WA Police Officer for 20 years with his last 6 years spent at Technology Crime. He was involved in a large number of investigations where kids were caught up in the risks the online world presents. Paul started educating kids about those risks in his local area and decided to leave the police to start Surf Online Safe. Since then Paul is now presenting to over 500 schools and organisations across Australia. He is considered one of Australia’s leading educators in this area.

These presentations will take place on Wednesday 5th May - Term 2, Week 3 and attendance is free.

Presentation #1 - Parent Presentation (night time). All parents in the school are invited to come along, no matter the age of your child.

Presentation #2 - Year 5 and 6 students (during the school day).

Further information, including times and an RSVP form, will be featured in the next Newsletter.

Having been to several of Paul's Parent presentations in the past, and hearing first hand the feedback from school parents, I strongly encourage you to attend this parent session. It is certainly eye-opening!

- Mr von Bergheim

Mr Ryan von Bergheim & Mrs Loretta Hutcheson

Assistant Principals

As I speak with students in the playground and in classrooms, I am aware of a number of students, both boys and girls, within the school who have TikTok (app) accounts. Paul Litherland, who will soon present to our parents, and Year 5 and 6 students, has recently posted an article on this particular app.

In the article, Paul states "I do not recommend TikTok to anyone under the age of 13, as it can expose users to bullying and predatory behaviour."

I encourage you to read this short article to further educate yourselves on TikTok and it's potential dangers.

https://www.surfonlinesafe.com.au/article_tiktok.html

Mr vB

Assistant Principal

24:7 Whitfords Youth Group For all youth in Years 6 to 12 1st and 3rd Friday @ Whitfords Parish Hall, 7pm Coming up: (Next week for Friday youth groups) Friday 19th February

Call Luke 0401822932 for more information.

Rev Fr Cyprian M Shikokoti - PP

Our Lady of the Mission, Whitford Parish

Website : www.olm.myparish.net.au