Dear Parents and Carers,

As another hugely successful school term draws to a close, I would like to thank you for your continued support and involvement in our wonderful school and I wish all families an enjoyable, restful and well-deserved holiday break.

In recent weeks, teachers have been meeting with parents and carers of children requiring personalised plans. These plans support children who require additional adjustments to the curriculum. I would like to thank those parents and carers who were able to meet with their child’s teacher and thank our teachers for their professionalism and knowledge of their students and their precise learning needs. 

Congratulations to Lin (6R) and Aria (6R), whose artworks and reflective written responses have been shortlisted and entered into the Diocese of Wollongong Exhibition of the Christmas Story Art Competition. The chosen artworks were works that were judged to best respond to the criteria and were exemplary of Stage 3 reflective writing and artistic skills. Their artworks will now be part of the exhibition and will be on display at the Wollongong City Art Gallery from Friday 4 October.

I'm excited to announce that upgrades to the kindergarten playground will begin during the holidays. These enhancements will introduce imaginative play spaces that foster learning, dramatic play, and social skills development. This project is made possible through a combination of Wave FM School of the Year prizemoney and school funds. I look forward to sharing photos of the progress early next term.

As a reminder, the official change over to summer uniform will take place at the start of next term. Please take some time during the holidays to review the uniform policy and ensure your child has the necessary items, including their school hat, which is essential for sun safety.

This afternoon i received the wonderful news that Mrs Stephanie Rowles (6U teacher) and her husband, Josh, welcomed their baby boy, Tatum Jay Rowles. Congratulations to the Rowles family on this beautiful addition!

I would like to wish all families a safe and relaxing holiday. School will resume for staff and students on Monday, 14 October.

Kind regards,

Mr Matt Downes 

(Principal)

Catholic Mission Month 

When we come back to Term 4, October is Mission Month and the theme this year is “Go and Invite Everyone to the Banquet”. The aim is to  build a more just world for people everywhere. By supporting missionaries in their work, we can create life-changing opportunities for countless children, families, and communities worldwide. Join us in making a difference for our sisters and brothers.  In Week 3 we will have our Socktober kick off with each class making a soccer ball from recycled materials and testing their skills against Mr Edwards.  More information to come next term.

Core Values

As part of our Annual Improvement Goal being a shared understanding and a lived experience of the vision, mission and values of the school, this week Gary Quinn from the Catholic Education Office will visit each grade to get student voice and feedback on the students'  idea of core values here at Nazareth. 

First Holy Communion

This weekend at mass, parents will be advised of the workshops to which you have been allocated. Remember, these workshops are an integral part of the sacramental program and are an opportunity for you and your child to sit and have a conversation over the weekly workshop activities and to ask any questions that you may have.  It is important for you and your child to attend  each of the four workshops with the student workbook. The first workshop will commence on Tuesday in Week 1 of Term 4.

Reminder:  First Holy Communion will be held on Sunday, 24 November 2024.

Wednesday Mass and Faith & Learning visits

This week Year 4 attended mass at 9am on Wednesday.  There was no classroom visit this week.  Returning in Term 4, Year 3 will be the first class to attend Wednesday mass in Week 1 and then a classroom visit after mass.  We encourage all families to come with your child to mass and then visit the classroom.

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

Kindergarten have been learning about God’s wonderful creation by reading the story of Noah and the Ark. God chose Noah to build an ark and gather two kinds of every animal to survive a great flood. God looked after Noah, his family and all the creatures in the ark. When the rain stopped, God put a beautiful rainbow across the sky. The rainbow was a sign of God’s promise to protect and care for all of creation, and to make sure nothing like that very big flood over the whole world happens again.

We said thank you to God for the gift of creation.

We promised to take care of God’s creation.

Here are additional links where the digital handbook can be viewed:

NSW Police Legacy – https://www.policelegacynsw.org.au/resources/

Child Safety Hub website – http://nsw.childsafetyhub.com.au/handbook/

Key Dates – Term 4
October
14	Term 4 commences (staff and students)
16	Faith and Learning (Year 3)
16	Transition to School Playground #1
17	Transition to School Playground #2
18	Celebration of Learning (6R)
22	Year 6 Night of the Notables
23	Faith and Learning (Year 2)
23	Transition to School Playground #3
24	Transition to School Playground #4
25	World Teachers’ Day
25	Celebration of Learning (5O)
29	Oz Tag Gala Day
30	Faith and Learning (Year 1)
30	P & F Meeting (8:30am)
30	Transition to School Playground #5
31	Transition to School Playground #6
November
1	All Saints’ Day Mass
2	All Saints' Parish Dinner Dance
5	Year 1 Excursion (Symbio)
6	Faith and Learning (Year 5)
7	Kindergarten 2025 Parent Information Night
8	Celebration of Learning (KS)
11 - 15	Life Education Van
11	Remembrance Day
12	Dragon Tag Gala Day
12 - 13	Year 5 Camp (Stanwell Tops)
13	Faith and Learning (Kindergarten)
14	Step up to Corpus (Year 5)
14	Kindergarten 2025 Orientation #1
15	P & F Colour Fun Run
15	CDF Sports Awards
20	Faith and Learning (Year 6)
21	Kindergarten 2025 Orientation #2
22	Celebration of Learning (1H)
24	First Holy Communion (11:00am)
27	Faith and Learning (Year 4)
27	Year 6 Excursion (Jamberoo Action Park)
28	P & F School Disco
29	Celebration of Learning (2L)
29	Advent Liturgy
December
4	Year 6 Graduation
6	Summer Fun Day
6	Celebration of Learning (4R)
12	Meet and Greet (2025 Classes)
13	Gold Awards Presentation
14	Parish Christmas Carols
18	Last day for students
19	Staff Development Day (Pupil Free)
20	Staff Development Day (Pupil Free)

It has been an exciting and productive term in 2L. We have been learning about 3D objects including terms such as faces, edges, vertices and boundaries. Students have the opportunity to build their own 3D shapes, using playdough and matchsticks here are some examples of their superb efforts.

Congratulations

Congratulations to Brody J & Logan T who attended the MacKillop Cricket Trials in Wagga Wagga. Six students from the Diocese of Wollongong were selected in the MacKillop team and Logan was one of those six students selected. We wish him the best of luck at the beginning of next term as he will be attending the NSWPSSA State Championships in Armidale.