Dear Parents and Carers, 

Thank you to everyone who attended the P & F Return to School BBQ last Wednesday. It was a beautiful afternoon and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting and connecting with the Nazareth families. A special thank you must go to the P & F executive for organising and running this wonderful, community building event. 

As we continue the season of Lent, we are invited to consider the ways in which we prepare for the greatest time of the Church year - Easter. Lent is a time of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and for doing so with quiet humility. It is a time for us to practice good habits and to become more Christ-like in our interactions with others and with our world. All students at Nazareth are learning about Lent in their Religious Education lessons. I invite you to engage in conversations with your child/ren so that they can share their knowledge with you, and to share time in prayer with your child during Lent, perhaps via attendance at one of the weekend masses.

We are currently accepting applications for Kindergarten 2025. If you know of a family with a prospective Kindergarten enrolment, please encourage them to enrol now via the link below. School tours for prospective new families will be held next Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The school tours are targeted towards those interested in enrolling their child in Kindergarten 2025. For more information, please view the flyer attached below.

This week’s historical focus is on the naming of the Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2 building as the Mary Ward Building. Mary Ward was born in 1585, enlightenment came to her in 1611 and she heard the words: ‘Take the same of the Society’, by which she understood the ‘Society of Jesus’ founded by St Ignatius of Loyola. The rest of her life was spent in developing a congregation of religious women on the Ignatian model. For many years Mary worked in disguise to preserve the Catholic Faith in England before founding a community of active sisters in France. She and her companions educated young women, helped persecuted and imprisoned Catholics, and spread the word of God in places priests could not go. At Nazareth we also embrace the spiritual tradition of St Ignatius.

During Week 10 and 11, Tuesday 2 April to Friday 12 April, Learning Conversations (previously known as parent teacher interviews) will take place for all students in Years 1 to 6. Both parents and teachers play an essential role in educating a child. When teachers and parents work together, students are more likely to succeed and have a positive school experience. Children in Years 3 to 6 are strongly encouraged to attend the Learning Conversation and be active participants in sharing their learning goals and achievements. Bookings for Learning Conversations will be made available to parents at the beginning of Week 8. 

I wish you all a wonderful week. 

Mr Matt Downes 

(Acting Principal)

Sacrament of Reconciliation

This week is the third workshop for students preparing for Reconciliation. Please make sure your child brings their book to the workshop.  It is to be completed at the workshop in discussion with your child.  The only activity to be done beforehand is the ‘Home Activity’.  Last weekend at Mass your child was given a card of prayers that they are required to know and we ask that you work through these so that they are familiar with them when it comes to their Reconciliation. Students will make their Sacrament of Reconciliation on Saturday, 16 March 2024 at 11am. Thank you for supporting the spiritual life of your child. 

Wednesday Mass and Faith & Learning visits

This Wednesday (Week 6) Year 1 will be attending mass at 9am and then will have their classroom visit with the parents directly after.  The following week (Week 7) Year 2 will celebrate Wednesday mass.  We look forward to seeing families join us for mass and then a visit to the classroom afterwards. A big thank you to the parents and families who do come along. 

Project Compassion Boxes

Just a reminder to keep donating to your family Project Compassion boxes that were sent home with the oldest child at the commencement of Lent.  All money raised goes to Caritas Australia to bring justice and dignity to those in poverty. Your child can bring in their box at the beginning of Holy Week in Week 9 and we will send them to the church.  If you are at mass the weekend of 23/24 March, please feel free to bring them with you to be left at the church.

All mass times can be found in the All Saints Parish Bulletin and all other important information. A link can be found on the Parish Website:  https://www.dow.org.au/parish/all-saints-catholic-parish-shellharbour-city

In Year 1, we have been listening to and discussing the Parable of the Mustard Seed.

Jesus taught this parable to others to help them understand that the tiny mustard seed is just like God’s Kingdom- even though something starts as a small thing (or action) it can grow into the biggest tree.

Seeds need rain and sunshine to become what they are meant to be. God’s Kingdom also has ‘needs’ to become what it is meant to be- acts of love, compassion, forgiveness, and kindness. Everything that Jesus demonstrated in his life!

2E have been very productive engaging in various learning tasks over the past 6 weeks. 

Recently, our Mathematics focus has been on describing duration using units of time. We have explored a definition of duration and discussed how we measure days, weeks, months and our year. We have also sorted various daily activities and classified them by duration of either seconds, minutes or hours.

Students enjoyed estimating how many star jumps and claps they could do in a minute, then using a stopwatch to formally measure and record.

Please note that the Term 3 staff development day has moved from Monday 22 July to Monday 12 August. This change has come about because Shane Chapman from NESA has been secured to run professional learning for staff around quality assessment. 

Parent / Carer Information Videos

Last week parent / carer information videos were shared via Compass. These videos outline specific information for the year ahead. If you are yet to view your child’s parent  information video the link can be found below: 

Kindergarten - https://youtu.be/3DsHbnR8ipA 

Year 1 - https://youtu.be/W9ap_cbpllA 

Year 2 - https://youtu.be/9XGRd-vuCnc 

Year 3 - https://youtu.be/oQgboZmosuc 

Year 4 - https://youtu.be/uBQdA-ffk8A 

Year 5 - https://youtu.be/xAdDeiks3uY 

Year 6 - https://youtu.be/nYku4p_8Mys 

The NSW Premier's Reading Challenge is now open and Nazareth is excited to be participating!

What is the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge?

The PRC is a statewide Challenge that encourages students to develop a love of reading for leisure and pleasure in students and enables them to experience quality literature. It is not a competition, but a challenge to encourage each student to read, to read more, and to read more widely.

All students who complete the challenge and have their reading record validated by the school’s PRC coordinator will receive a certificate signed by the Premier of NSW.

How many books do students need to read?

Students in Kindergarten to Year 2 are challenged to read or experience 30 books. These books will be read aloud and logged for the children then submitted by the coordinator.

Students in Year 3 to Year 10 are challenged to read 20 books independently. At least 10 of these books must be from the relevant Challenge booklists, and up to 10 books can be personal choice books.

If a book is from an approved PRC series, students can enter up to 5 books as Challenge books, and can read up to 10 other books from the same series as Personal Choice books. More information on the rules of the Challenge can be found on the PRC website.

Books must be added to a student’s online reading record by Friday 23 August 2024 in order for their reading record to be validated and receive a certificate. This will be done by the Library Manager.

How can students find books on the NSW PRC challenge lists?

Books are clearly marked in our Nazareth Library and have codes supplied in the front cover of each book.  If you choose to read books from outside our school library they will need a PRC code found on the PRC website

PRC Coordinator - Michelle Crinnion

Nazareth Swim Squad

Congratulations to the squad of 21 students who attended the South Coast Swimming event this past week. The entire team represented Nazareth so well and tried their absolute best. We were lucky to have some students place within the top 4 meaning they will attend the Diocesan Swimming Selection Trials on Monday at Corrimal Pool. Congratulations to the following students

-Morrison Cocksedge

-Iyla Horsey

-Raven Nguyen

-Aubrey Pepper

-Ana Keelan

-Kaley Gibson

Congratulations to Morrison Cocksedge and Iyla Horsey who were both named Age Champions at the South Coast Swimming Event, what a fantastic achievement for them and for our school!

Training Sessions:

Rugby Union Training: each Wednesday morning from 7.45am with entry via the Hall/Church car park gate. Please note that children should not be in their sports uniform as the ground is wet each morning. Please ensure that children are wearing alternate appropriate clothing and have their uniform to change into after the session. This session is for children in the Nazareth Rugby Union team or the stage 2 students who have signed up for the Rugby Union Gala Day. We encourage all students who have signed up to come and train to help them understand the rules of the sport.

Cricket Training: each Thursday morning from 8.00am with entry via the Hall/Church car park gate. Please ensure students are in appropriate cricket clothing for the training session.

Run Club: each Friday morning in the lead up to the Cross Country Carnival in week 8. From 8.00am with entry via the Hall/Church car park gate.

Upcoming Events

Cross Country Carnival, 22nd March.

The Cross Country Carnival will be held on site at school. Please note this day will run much like it has in the past with students younger than 8 years being involved in a fun run with children being 8 years + having the option to nominate for either the fun run or the competitive race event. If your child wishes to possibly progress to the Diocesan Cross Country Carnival in early May, they would need to enter the competitive race for their age group. These nominations will occur on the Compass event. 

Kiama Rugby 7s touch & tackle, April 10th. 

This day is for students in stage 2 and the 11s & 12s Nazareth Rugby Union team. Students have already expressed their interest in this event, if your child wishes to withdraw their interest, please contact Mrs Mobberley through the front office. If your child has expressed interest it would be great if they could attend the training sessions each Wednesday morning from 7.45. This will allow students to develop their knowledge and skills of Rugby Union.

NAZARETH AWARDS

Oliver Sandona

Mason Redfern

Romeo De Ornelas

PRINCIPALS AWARDS

Aditi Vaisakh

Caden Keenan

Isla Telfer

Oliver Sandona

Spencer Tanevski

Aria Phillip

Ava Sirijovska

MERIT AWARDS

Jack Kauter, Raven Nguyen, Ruby Capelo, Tommy Dafkovski, Ana Keelan, Zayn Esteves, Archie Wigmore, Isabelle Cassanego, Boston Hunt, Luke Bachetto, Felix Forlano, Ethan Carters, Evelyn Stephenson, Blake Boje, Vincent Harrod, Olivia Walton, Sammy Benavente, Cohen Garbayo Vergan, Ariana Gigliotti, Bonnie Scofield, Sebastian Maksovic, Harrison Lyons, Bowdi Begley, Selene Timpano, Aisha Farrimond, Michaela Saveski, Cruz Kellermann, Hendrix Munn, Hugo Garcia, Matilda Mackenzie, Treazure Williams, Nate Reid, Adithya Vaisakh, Hudson Hart, Archie Dimovski, Hannah Calvert, Katie Sarin, Olivia Dimitrieski, Nixon Jonovski, Austin Clark, Zane Howlett, Leo Hicks, Airley Hatcliffe, Christian Ioannou, Azariah Ioannou, Marisa Bugeja, Zoe Jader, Tori Marden, Ashton Hopgood, Bella Mcauley.

During Week 7 our PB4L focus will be on Toilet Behaviour.

Each class will revise the various safety aspects of toilet protocols. These include: waiting in line outside the toilets and taking turns to enter vacant cubicles, ensuring cubicle doors remain unlocked, toilet paper is deposited in the toilet and hand towels in the bins provided.

Each class will be reminded to ensure others feel safe by using their quiet voices whilst in or outside the toilets. The children will be encouraged to use the toilets throughout the breaks to ensure a smooth transition to class once a break ends.

NAZARETH PROMOTIONAL FILM

The film captures a day in the life of a Nazareth student.
Click https://youtu.be/olug9FWvZQI to view the film

FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM PAGE FOR NAZARETH

If you haven't already please follow our school pages to keep up to date with events at school and for photos and updates from across the school. 

Please click on the direct links to follow our pages:

www.facebook.com/nazareth.shellhabour

www.instagram.com/nazareth.shellharbour

SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY 

Please click on the below link for a direct link to the social media policy.

https://www.dow.catholic.edu.au/about-us/policies/social-media-policy/