St Lawrence & Mary Immaculate Parish Balcatta: Parish Priest: Fr Emil Ciecierega SDS Assistant Priest: Fr Leonard Macionczyk SDS

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1 St Lawrence Primary School 386 Albert Street Balcatta WA Telephone: Fax: Home Page: Newsletter No April 2018 School Vision Statement The vision of St Lawrence Catholic Primary School, Balcatta is to share the message of God s love and friendship in a community of learners, developing the full potential of each child. St Lawrence & Mary Immaculate Parish Balcatta: Parish Priest: Fr Emil Ciecierega SDS Assistant Priest: Fr Leonard Macionczyk SDS Loving Lord, thank You so much for holiday times and the wonder and excitement that they engender in all our hearts, and we just want to praise You for all the goodness and grace You generously pour out on us and all people and specially we thank You for the many blessings we gained from the first Term at school. May we enjoy our holidays, spend time with loved ones and return to school renewed and refreshed. Amen Learning is what we do-we are committed to learning at every level. NAPLAN TESTING: All Australian schools conduct annual testing of reading, writing, language conventions and numeracy using national testing - National Assessment Programme in Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). All Year Three, Year Five, Year Seven and Year Nine students will be assessed between the 14th and the 18th of May. Results will be forwarded to the school later in the year and will be issued to parents one they have arrived at schools. An information brochure has been sent home to our Year Three and Year Five families. If you have any queries regarding NAPLAN testing please see your classroom teacher. Whilst on the topic of NAPLAN I received a letter recently which commenced with the following I am pleased to advise that ACARA has identified your school as having demonstrated substantially above average gain in reading and/or numeracy achievement, as measured by NAPLAN. The letter comes from ACARA The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) which is an independent statutory authority that aims to improve the learning of all young Australians through world-class school curriculum, assessment and reporting development. Much debate surrounds NAPLAN, its validity, its outcomes, its impact and its general relevance. But currently it is one tool used to gain data on school. Using solely the NAPLAN results St Lawrence has been identified as having achieved substantially above average in certain areas.

2 Engagement is essential-we are committed to Catholic Education s mission through relationships with all. Accountability is not optional - we have a personal and collective responsibility for our system s success. Parking Reminder: Children s parents and drivers both have a duty of care to watch their children diligently to ensure their safety at all times. Drivers need to be equally vigilant to ensure the safety of those around their cars on the school grounds. School Uniform: I wish to thank all children and families who have been diligent in supporting our school s uniform policy. A reminder that winter uniforms are required to be worn in second and third terms. Please ensure your children have the correct winter uniform. I also wish to commend our students for being well groomed and presented. One item of concern has been noted. Not all students are wearing the correct sports shoe: All black sports shoes must be worn, no logos or white stripes Please ensure that you always purchase the correct shoe that is in line with our Uniform Policy requirements. Excellent grooming and presentation habits are formed young in life, by coming to school well presented, in the correct uniform and with high personal grooming standards our students are laying the foundations for good personal hygiene and presentation standards that will stay with them throughout their lives. Well done to you all. Discipleship is our calling - we are committed to deepening our relationship with Jesus. There are so many incredible stories of the generosity and compassion of Mother Teresa, but one sticks especially in my mind: The story goes that Mother Teresa was once sitting in a gutter, holding a dying leper in her arms, when a tourist walked past and remarked, I wouldn t do that for all the money in the world. To this, Mother Teresa replied, Neither would I. It was her great love of people, endless compassion and drive to be of service to others that has so epitomized her life s work.

3 Mother Teresa once famously said, Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love. While each of us may never reach the level of selflessness of Mother Teresa, we are challenged by these words in our own lives. We should never underestimate the impact of small acts of kindness that we are able to do each day. Let us continue to remember the wonderful example shown to us through this extraordinary life. God bless for the holidays, keep safe and looking forward to seeing you all next term. I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious. Albert Einstein Sheldon Carey. M Ed, B Ed, Grad Dip Principal PASTORAL CARE A prayer this week for all of those who will be travelling over the school holidays, may you return to us safe and sound. Prayer for Safe Travels Lord, be our guide and our protector on the journey we are about to take. Watch over us. Protect us from accidents. Keep us free from harm to body and soul. Lord, support us with Your grace when we are tired. Help us be patient in any trouble which may come our way. Keep us always mindful of Your presence and love. Amen.

4 Learning at Home Tips Philosophical Questions There is significant evidence that engaging in philosophical debate can have significant cognitive benefits for children, encouraging open-mindedness, rational thinking and developing the ability to articulate an argument. Here are a few questions you might like to discuss as a family to get you started: Can happiness exist without sadness? Why do we treat some animals better than others? Why is it so difficult to imagine a brand new colour that does not already exist? If you could make one rule that everyone in the world had to follow, what would it be? Can a person think themselves happy? Term Dates Term One ends on Friday 13 April Term Two commences on Monday 30 April Term Two ends on Thursday 28 June Pupil Free Days in Term Two: Monday 4 June Friday 29 June

5 FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS DANCE PRODUCTION Over the duration of Term 1, students from Pre Primary to Year 6 have been participating in weekly dance lessons. Their hard work and effort will be displayed in a performance on the last day of Term Friday 13 th April at 2pm. Parents are asked to assemble on the oval opposite the church by 1.50pm. NAPLAN For all our Year 3 and 5 students NAPLAN assessments will take place from Tuesday 15 May to Thursday 17 May All catch-up testing must be completed by Friday 18 May. All schools are to administer the tests as indicated in the table below. Year level Tuesday 15 May Wednesday 16 May Thursday 17 May Friday 18 May 3 Language Conventions 40 minutes Writing 40 minutes Reading 45 minutes Numeracy 45 minutes CATCH-UP DAY 5 Language Conventions 40 minutes Writing 40 minutes Reading 50 minutes Numeracy 50 minutes. FIRST EUCHARIST Parents of children who are receiving their First Eucharist next term are invited to attend an information evening on Wednesday 30 May and a family workshop on Wednesday 6 June. It is an expectation that all families will be represented at this meeting to learn more about their child receiving this special sacrament. EUCHARIST EVENT DATE TIME/LOCATION/PRESENTER Parent Meeting Wednesday 30 May pm School Hall Family Workshop Wednesday 6 June pm AND 7.00pm - School Hall Retreat Monday 11 June am 3.00pm (School Hall) FIRST HOLY COMMUNION MASSES Saturday 16 June 2018 Sunday 17 June pm Mass* 8.30am Mass We hope all staff and families enjoy a well deserve break through the school holidays and look forward to seeing everyone in Term Two on Monday 30 April. Mrs Jacki Tucker and Mrs Gabrielle Brennan, Assistant Principals

6 CLASS NEWS PRE KINDY Term One has flown by and we have had wonderful days together. I truly look forward to the rest of the year working with the children and Mrs Fiorenza. The children have been wonderful and have truly settled into Pre Kindy and our routines. I hope you will enjoy your holiday break and look forward to seeing you all in a couple of weeks. My only advice for the holidays is spend time together, play and read to your children during quiet moments the precious time you share with your little ones is very important for you all. God Bless, stay safe and be happy! Mrs Kaylene Bozich, Pre Kindy Teacher KINDERGARTEN We cannot believe it is the final week of Term One! We have had tears, laughter and laughs over the term and we are so proud of how far the children have come with their learning and social skills. Next term as we focus on Our Families we ask all children to bring in a photo of their families to discuss. Please pass these photos on to Mrs Thompson or Mrs Seragusana. Mums get your pencils out and lock in the afternoon of 11 th May in your calendars to celebrate all of you wonderful Mums with a Mother s Day High Tea. As we move into the cooler months now is a good time to check your child s spare change of clothes and swap over to appropriate clothing for the cold weather. Please ensure your child has a warm jumper in their bag and a clean hat for term two. We wish everyone a safe and happy holiday and are excited to see all the well-rested little faces back at school for a fun filled term two! Keep up on the Reading Eggs program as everyone should have a login by now and keep reading to your child. This is so important in the early years. Mrs Rachel Wake, Kindergarten Teacher PRE PRIMARY Wow! Term One is over, and it was just fantastic. We have had a wonderful first term of learning, playing, making friends and learning how to talk to our peers when there is a problem. I would like congratulate all the students and their families for settling so well into the first term of the year. Please take the time now to relax and spent time together as a family. Please remember to read to your child every day, even in the holidays! I would also like to promote the importance of allowing your child to make mistakes and take risks. Some ways to allow this would be providing the opportunity for your child to build a cubby, climb a tree, try new foods or go to new places. I look forward the seeing everyone in two weeks and hearing about what all the children did in the holidays. Mrs Laura Talbott, Pre-Primary Teacher

7 YEAR ONE The children are very excited about the dance production on Friday and cannot wait to show everyone what they have been learning with Mrs Tana. The children are to bring their costume in a bag, clearly labelled with their name, to school on Friday. We will be changing just before the concert. To make this process easier, the children are allowed to wear their Sport Uniform to school on Friday. We have had a wonderful term of learning in Year One. The children have come so far and should be very proud of their efforts and hard work. We have had a busy term with an excursion, incursion and even an Assembly. The children are well deserving of some time to relax. Please remember to read every day with your child. The local library is a great place to visit during the holidays or you can log on to Reading Eggs and go into the Library section. This section has many books aimed at your child s reading level. Thank you for all your support during the term. I hope everyone has an enjoyable break. Year One Assembly Mrs Roselyn Pizzino Year One Class Teacher YEAR TWO The upcoming two weeks are a wonderful opportunity for families to visit a local library so children can choose their own reading materials and read for pleasure. Libraries also often have holiday programmes that are a lot of fun for children to participate in. We are looking forward to the dance production on Friday and the students may wear their Sports Uniform on this day. I would like to take the opportunity to wish everyone a relaxing break with their family. I am looking forward to seeing our class members rested and recharged for great learning in Term Two. Mrs Jacki Tucker, Year Two Teacher The children have worked very hard and have settled well into Year Two they have adapted to the Wednesday routines so very well. We have many wonderful times ahead during the rest of the year and I look forward to helping the children in their learning journey with Mrs Tucker. Have a very wonderful holiday enjoy the time together and relax and have fun times. Mrs Kaylene Bozich, Year Two Teacher (Wednesday) YEAR THREE The children have completed a very busy term. Thank you to the parents who have helped each morning listening to reading. Next term promises to be another busy one, so hopefully the children will have a lovely relaxing holiday. We will see everyone back on Monday 30 April. Mrs Marie Heavey, Year Three Teacher YEAR FOUR Year Four have had a wonderful term of learning. In Geography, we have been learning about Natural Environments and how plants and animals depend on their environment. The Year Four students have enjoyed researching, designing and creating their chosen natural environment. The students are now busy inventing an animal that would adapt and survive living in their natural environment. In Science, the students have worked hard to complete our Biological Science unit on Plants. They have been learning about flowering plants and pollination. The students are looking forward to our excursion tomorrow at Naturescape which will integrate their Science and Geography learning from this term. The students have completed some new assessments over the past two weeks so I will send home their Assessment Books tomorrow for you to view over the holidays. I hope all our families an enjoyable and relaxing break over the school holidays. Miss Emma Reid, Year Four Teacher

8 YEAR FIVE We enjoyed our visit to ANZAC HOUSE on Monday and were very appreciative of Mrs Mannino coming to help us. I will leave the photographs in Dropbox for a week or so. The students did a wonderful job in presenting their Australian animal or plant Keynote this last week. They will have a further opportunity to present to the class next term. A reminder that NAPLAN will be conducted for Year Five students on Tuesday 15 th May to Thursday 17 th May. We have a couple of assessments to finish this week. I will be asking a few parents for interviews when we return in Term Two. Please let me know if you would like to meet with me in the first two weeks of Term Two. I hope you enjoy the holidays with your children. Mr Phil Haydon, Year Five Teacher YEAR SIX The Year 6 class has worked very hard this term and should be proud of their efforts. We have had a hectic week, finishing off assignments and assessing Science and Geometry units. The class has continued to work hard on their dance routine and are looking forward to the dance concert on Friday, it should be fantastic! We are also looking forward to watching Wonder on Friday and comparing it with the novel. Have a wonderful and safe break over the holidays, I look forward to seeing students refreshed and recharged for Term 2. Miss Anna Brenkley, Year 6 Teacher FATHERING PROJECT The following dates have been secured for to 9 March Information to follow. Patrick King LIBRARY NEWS Last week I attended a teachers preview of the Horrible Histories Pirates exhibition at the Maritime Museum in Fremantle. The exhibition is now open to the public, and is well worth a visit during the holidays as it has a lot of fun, interactive activities for children to enjoy. I hope you all have a relaxing holiday break. The children are most welcome to borrow books to read from the library. Mrs Jane Stanton, Teacher Librarian

9 Congratulations everybody on completing Term One. MUSIC NEWS This term in music we revised and furthered our knowledge of music theory: sol-fa, pitch and rhythm notation, tempo, dynamics, nature and timbres of different instruments; music styles and genres. We also incorporated some drama and acting elements in our songs and rhymes. We always enjoy using un-tuned percussion, xylophones and glockenspiels for reading and improvising music. Next term we will work on creative tasks and projects, as well as learning about the history of music and the various artists representing musical eras and styles. We shall also extend our skills by playing the recorder starting with the students from Year 4. Therefore, I ask the Year 4 parents to please purchase and label a simple soprano (most common) recorder. These may be purchased from any music store for the cost of around $10. Thank you in advance! I wish everybody a relaxing and creative holiday. Mrs Svetlana Zenkina, Music Teacher UNIFORM SHOP NEWS WINTER UNIFORM Students in Year 1 to Year 6 return back to school in Terms 2 & 3 in their full winter uniform. The last day that the Uniform Shop will be opened this term is Thursday 12 April and will re-open next term on Wednesday 2 May. Year 1 students and any new students who have commenced this year, please purchase winter uniform ready for next term. Girl's winter skirt should be worn at the correct length (on knee). Boy's blue shirts must be tucked in grey trousers. Sports track jackets only to be worn with sports uniform. Woollen jumpers worn with school uniform. Track pants are optional to wear with sports uniform. All black sports shoes must be worn, no logos or white stripes. School ties are worn with school uniform. Sport school socks and white & grey school socks to be worn, girls have option to wear navy blue tights worn with school uniform. NETBALL UNIFORM With the netball season approaching, please note that Black/Gold Netball Singlets are available for purchase in sizes 6-16 at $22.00 each and Girl's Red Skorts in sizes 4-14 at $23.00 each. Wishing all families a safe and relaxing holiday! Uniform Shop Opening Hours Wednesday 8.30am to 9.30am and Thursday 2.30pm to 3.30pm Mrs Angie Miola, Uniform Shop Manager

10 NETBALL NEWS The Winter Netball season is almost upon us. Please wish our teams well as Game1 is played at the end of the school holidays on Saturday the 28th of April at Kingsway Sporting Complex. A reminder of game times: Year 2/3 (Firebirds, St Lawrence 4): 8.30am Year 4 (Cats, St Lawrence 3): 9.45am Year 5 (Division 2, St Lawrence 2): 9.45am Year 6 (Division 5, St Lawrence 1): 1pm Fixtures with court numbers should be available on the MyNetball app by the 18th April. Please make sure you are following St Lawrence Netball Club and refer to the Division/ team names above and season Winter 2018 when searching on the App. A reminder also that Thursday afternoon will be your last opportunity to purchase the netball singlet if you have not already done so. They are $22 available from the uniform shop. THANK YOU A huge thank you to the P&F who generously purchased four much needed new Gilbert Kit bags with wheels which will replace the tired old bags used on Saturday mornings used by teams. Your donation will make carting around our gear so much easier! Thanks also to Kathy Vu for picking them up and help sorting them out. Thank you also to the two families who donated netball singlets to the club for us to lend any players who need to fill in for any games. Mrs Leah Ferolla, Netball Club President CANTEEN NEWS THANK YOU To Sue Del Borrello for her help on Friday, much appreciated! Thanks in advance to Michelle Millard for her help this Friday, hope you are ready to smell like a sausage! Big thanks to Mr Tonge for cooking the sausages, we could not do it without you! Please find attached a new look menu and a reminder to check for daily menu items. It has been great to see many new faces at the canteen and thanks for your continued support. Hope you have a wonderful break and see you back in Term 2 with new specials and a Mother s Day raffle. Christina Russo, Canteen Manager Frances Caccamo and Antonella Crupi, Assistants

11 P&F NEWS THANK YOU Thanks to everyone who has supported the fundraising efforts this term, it all goes to ensuring the best outcomes for our children. Our first fundraiser will be the Mothers Day Stall 4 May Children will get the opportunity to buy a gift for mothers and grandmothers. We hope you have a safe and happy holiday and look forward to seeing everyone in Term 2. Mrs Penny Godfrey, P&F Vice President pandf@stlawbal.wa.edu.au