Notre Dame Catholic Primary School
Foundations for Life Long Learning 21 November
Dear Parents and Staff
Our Year Five students spent today participating in a range of activities in preparation for their prospective roles as Leaders at Notre Dame in 2020. This is an important day for both the students and our school as these students will play a pivotal role in setting the standards for all children to follow, both in their behaviour and the way they wear their uniform. Bro. Stephen and the Year Six teachers have organized an excellent range of activities that will both challenge the students and provide them with a virtual toolkit of strategies that they will be able to call upon during next year. During the afternoon session the students were very privileged to have Brodie Mack, a former student of our school who went on to be Head Boy at Ursula Frayne Catholic College, speak about his time in this role and also about his passion for working in youth suicide prevention. He is a wonderful young man who is an inspiration to us all and he just happens to be the son of a very proud Education Assistant in PPM, Mrs Kim Mack and her husband Warren. Brodie is a credit to his family and an amazing role model for our students. I hope all of the Year Fives take onboard the lessons from today and wish them well with their speeches on Wednesday 4 December.
As mentioned in last week’s Newsletter the Year Four students will present their Awesome Aussies displays for parents tomorrow afternoon in the Year Four classrooms from 2.10pm onwards. I invite all parents from our school to visit to see the wonderful efforts of the children.
CHOIR
Next Thursday the members of our School Choir will perform at Faulkner Park Retirement Village in Cloverdale and then at the Little Sisters of the Poor Nursing Home in Glendalough as part of our school outreach programme. We are very proud of our choir and their dedication to attending a number of events throughout the year, many of them on weekends. As a thankyou they will have a pizza lunch and play in the nature playground at Braithwaite Park in Mt Hawthorn between their singing engagements.
AGM
A reminder that the Annual General Meeting for both the School Board and the P&F will be held next Tuesday commencing at 6.00pm. All members of our school community are welcome to attend.
TERM 4 UPCOMING EVENTS
FRIDAY 22 NOVEMBER
Year 4 Awesome Aussies
Year 2M Assembly
TUESDAY 26 NOVEMBER
AGM Meeting @ 6.00pm
THURSDAY 28 NOVEMBER
Yr 6 Elevate Program
Choir to visit Faulkner Park Retirement Village and
Little Sisters of the Poor
FRIDAY 29 NOVEMBER
Colour Fun Run
EVENTS DURING TERM 4
FRIDAY 6 DECEMBER
Class Transition Day
Year 6 Graduation
Reports Online
TUESDAY 10 DECEMBER
Carols and Awards Evening
WEDNESDAY 11 DECEMBER
Thanksgiving Mass (Kindy - Yr 6)
STUDENTS NOT RETURNING TO NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL YEAR 2020
If your child/children will not be returning to Notre Dame in 2020, it is important that you advise the school office immediately.
TERM DATES
TERM 4
End of Term for Students Friday 13 December
End of Term for Staff Friday 20 December
YEAR 5 CLASS NEWS
Last term, we were lucky enough to have the incredibly talented Mrs Flexman show us how to make water birds and I'm sure you'll agree they turned out beautifully. Thank you, Mrs Flexman!
This term, in honour of Remembrance Day, we have completed two pieces or art that depict poppies. Poppies have become the symbol of Remembrance Day due to the red poppies that grew in Flanders Field.
The first piece of art was a guided drawing activity. Students followed a set of verbal instructions to create a field of poppies. They drew them onto the "Ode to Remembrance," ripped the edges for effect and glued them onto card. We think they look great!
Our second piece of poppy art was done in groups. Students created a free-hand drawing of one quarter of a poppy and coloured it using oil pastels. They could represent it how they chose, but had to create a blue background to unify the different poppy quarters.
Next, we will be working on a water colour Christmas painting depicting the star of Bethleham over the baby Jesus.
We certainly have some incredible artists in Year Five!
OPEN NIGHT
On Wednesday 6 November there were many parents, grandparents, students and other siblings touring the school from 4pm to 6pm during our annual Open Night. Each student had a passport on which they would receive a stamp after visiting each classroom, library and the hall. This enabled them to enter into a raffle which was drawn at the assembly on the Friday. There was a very positive “buzz” and excitement as everyone strolled around the school.
Each classroom held its own interactive activity and in the Library, Hall and in the Mother Mary Piazza there was our magnificent Art Exhibition which contained an art piece from every student which had been completed during their art sessions in Terms 2 & 3 with Mrs Flexman, the Art Specialist. But this was not a typical art exhibition as it included:
· A working windmill and Don Quixote riding thorough a field of sheep and small windmills.
· A garden with of a variety of birds amongst the plants, a frog croaking and a small waterfall .
· A pathway of stepping stones leading from Kindy to Pre primary.
· A display of hand woven mats and then showing on a tv screen, the students riding on the mats they had made, and looking at various landmarks in Australia and around the world.
· A pathway of painted watercolour trees with the crest of the schools the current Year 6s will be attending next year at the end of it
· An arrangement of very interesting coloured animals which had been modelled from clay and included a painting of them.
· Handmade jigsaw puzzles with bright coloured characters and scenes painted on them
· Trees made from cardboard and newspaper in an area where bubbles were floating around.
· To capture an interest in books, there was a Book Fair in the Library.
During this time there was lots of conversation and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves and contemplating on the interesting artwork displays and being involved in the fun activities to do in the classroom.
Brother Stephen Barker
COLOUR FUN RUN
NEXT WEEK'S ROSTER
Monday 25 November: Mei Lie 8.30-9.15
Wednesday 27 November: Karon Russell
Friday 29 November: Ros Lovick
Hope to see you at the canteen soon.
Kayleen McLean
Canteen coordinator
UNIFORM SHOP
The Uniform Shop will be open on Mondays and Wednesdays in Term 4.
Opening times : 1.30pm-3.30pm
Danielle Lawrie
Uniform Shop Coordinator
SCHOOL BANKING
Every Wednesday 8.00am - 8.30am in the School Library.
P & F NEWS
2020 NIGHT MARKET
The 2020 Notre Dame Night Market will be back again on Friday 14th February.
Are you interested in hosting a food stall on the night? If so, please express your interest to Nicole Beresford (Notre Dame P&F member) via email by Thursday 5th December.
P&F CONSTITUTION UPDATE
The Notre Dame P&F Executive Committee are currently updating the P&F Constitution. The Class Liaisons will be emailing a copy of the current Constitution and the new draft Constitution to their classes. A hard copy of both of these documents is also available for viewing in the school’s administration. The P&F is happy to receive feedback and comments via the Class Liaison, or directly to P&F member Nicole Beresford up until the end of the school year.
SCHOLASTIC BOOK
PARENT TV
When does a boy actually become a man?
With numerous bushfires burning across the country today, our stress levels as a community are high. Even those of us not in immediate danger are upset about what’s happened and worried about what lies ahead.
Our kids are not immune to this.
As adults, it can be hard to know how to keep our children feeling safe when there’s danger around them. We can’t just pretend it’s not happening, but what can we do or say that will actually help?
Read the expert advice on how we can help kids feel safe during the bushfires.
Sam, Britta and the ParentTV Team.
COMMUNITY NEWS
MERCEDES COLLEGE 2020 ENROLMENTS
A sound education is an investment in the future of your daughter. Mercedes College is committed to providing an affordable education for those families seeking an all girls’ Catholic education in the Mercy tradition. For those families wishing to explore options, the Principal is always available to speak with you. Vacancies are still available for 2020; for more information please contact the Enrolment Officer on 93231323.