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Lord, teach me to be generous,
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
To give and not to count the cost,
To fight and not to heed the wounds,
To toil and not to seek for rest,
To labor and not to ask for reward,
Save that of knowing that I do your will.
Amen
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
A warm welcome to our new and existing families to the 2023 school year.
As many of you know, I am fulfilling the role of Acting Principal in 2023 while Peter Dempsey is working in the Catholic Education Office, Wollongong. I thank the Director of Schools, Mr Peter Hill, for this opportunity and look forward to working with our students, staff, parents and the All Saints Parish as we support all students to experience growth in faith and learning.
I extend a warm welcome to the new families who have joined the Nazareth community. I also extend a warm welcome to our new staff members; Mr Andrew Edwards, Miss Amy Scurr and Mr Timothy Messner. We welcome back our Aboriginal Education Assistant, Mr Mark Mongta.
I am confident that our new students and their families, and the new members of staff, will experience the warm welcome and hospitality of our Nazareth community.
Each year, our school sets a clear and explicit improvement agenda. Our goals for 2023 will focus on the following four key areas:
- Re-established parental involvement in the faith and learning life of the school, with particular focus on belonging to a Catholic community.
- The efficient use of reading comprehension skills to develop all students as proficient readers for their stage of learning.
- The provision of effective teaching in Mathematics so that all students experience growth in their learning throughout the year.
- Improved attendance data so that all students are able to learn, develop friendships and build skills within the school environment.
As we commence 2023, please note two new initiatives:
- Faith and Learning Visits
Each Wednesday, one grade cohort attends the parish Mass at All Saints Church at 9:00am. In 2023, an invitation will be issued to parents/caregivers to join us in the celebration of the Eucharist, and to then walk with their child’s class to their classroom where they can join in or observe some class learning. Please refer to the calendar of events to see when your child’s grade is attending the Parish Mass. Faith and Learning Visits will commence in Week 4
- Celebration of Learning
In 2023, our Friday afternoon assemblies are going to look slightly different. We will continue Acknowledgement of Country, praying our school prayer, singing our school song and distributing school awards, but now we will also include a presentation of an aspect of learning from one class each week. We hope that sharing current learning activities with the whole school community will enrich the already strong learning culture of our school. Please refer to the calendar of events to see if/when your child’s class is presenting their learning this term. The roster commences in Week 5 with 5B.
Home/School Communication
Please refer to the following protocols regarding communication between home and school;
- COMPASS is the “font of all” information - please refer to it regularly.
- The school newsletter is also a valuable source of information (if you are reading this now, you’ve probably already figured that out!)
- If you haven’t already done so, please follow our social media sites.
- If you need to contact the school urgently or in a time-sensitive way, please phone the school office.
- If you have a question or concern, you can call to speak with one of the staff in the office, or please email the school office at info@nscdow.catholic.edu.au. A response will be delivered by either return email or phone call when the intended addressee is available.
- You are able to organise a meeting with your child's teacher by phoning the office, emailing the office, or sending a note to school with your child.
- See-Saw is a fabulous tool that is used to show-case and share the learning that takes place in your child’s classroom. We ask that you please limit your use of See-Saw to comments on their work. It is not intended to be used as a two way communication tool, as the teachers are teaching throughout the day and do not have the ability to read and respond to messages sent directly to them.
in Faith and Learning,
Lisa Tyson
Reconciliation
For all students preparing for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, workshops will commence on Monday, 20 February at 3pm. The other workshops will be held on Tuesday, 5pm and Thursday 3pm. These workshops will run for four weeks. This is the time for you and your child to come together to have a conversation about the topics in the workbooks and to ask any questions that you may have. Please be on time to the workshops and remember to bring the workbooks with you that you were given out at mass.
Class Masses
This week Year 6 attended Wednesday mass at 9am and next week Year 4 will be attending. We warmly welcome any parents, family members or friends who wish to join their children at any of the Wednesday masses.
Whole School Mass Dates
We have three dates this term where we will be celebrating Mass as a whole school. They are:
- 9:00 am - Beginning Year School Mass, this Friday, 10 February (Years 1 - 6)
- 11:30 am - Ash Wednesday, 22 February (Years 1- 6)
- 9:00 am - Feast of the Annunciation (School Feast Day), Friday, 24 March (Years K - 6)
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
The Learning Centre have had an amazing start to the 2023 school year. Over the past two weeks, the students have been revising the school rules and what it looks like to be Respectful, Responsible and a Life-Long Learner.
We decided that to be Respectful we:
- Listen
- Use our manners
- Put up our hand
- Look at the teacher
To be Responsible we:
- Walk in the classroom
- Help people who are hurt
- Keep our hands and feet to ourselves
- Look after resources
To be a Life-Long Learner we:
- Stay on task
- Never give up
- Try our best
- Ask 3 before me
6U have been learning about Jesus’ mission to reveal the Reign of God, in particular how he taught his followers what they should do to bring the Kingdom of God in their hearts. The teachings he presented are called the Sermon on the Mount and it is here where he told the people the secret to happiness, which are known as the Beatitudes. 6U have been learning about the Beatitudes and used our knowledge to create these word arts.
Creations by students; Natalia T, Kaiden M, Anton D, David S.
Naplan 2023
The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a point in time assessment of literacy and numeracy skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life. Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 participate in the annual NAPLAN tests in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. All NSW schools will sit NAPLAN online in 2023.
The test window for NAPLAN is between 15th and 27th March 2023 (Weeks 8-10 this term). Exact dates for each of the 4 tests will be shared with parents in the coming weeks.
Please view the 'Information for parents and carers' sheet for more general information. The public demonstration site is also an excellent tool to see some of the different types of test questions for each of the tests. It can be accessed through the following website: www.nap.edu.au/default.aspx?
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Mr Edwards through the office.
School Uniform
All students at Nazareth are expected to wear the full, correct uniform at all times. All uniforms should be neat, clean and tidy. All clothing needs to be clearly marked with the student’s full name. Sports uniform should only be worn on the day required. All students are to wear the school blue hat while outdoors. There is a 'No Hat – No Play' policy in place.
Dogs in School Grounds
Parents are reminded that dogs are not alllowed on school grounds unless they are small enough to be held.
Resource for Parents
Free webinar: Navigating Online Friendships - Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT and eSafety Commissioner
In partnership with the eSafety Commissioner, the Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT will run the free webinar for parents and carers of students in secondary school.
Date: Thursday, 23 February 2023 at 7:30 pm
The webinar will focus on:
- how to support young people to have safe and respectful online relationships
- what to do when something happens at school and ends up on social media or private messaging apps
- how to report to social media platforms and eSafety
Register at: https://attendee.
Please promote this webinar within your community. Files to assist with promoting the webinar are available here.
10th February - Beginning of School Mass (Years 1 - 6) followed by open classrooms and recess with your child/ren
Week 4
15th February - Year 4 Grade Mass 9am (+ Faith and Learning Visit)
16th February - Back to School BBQ
17th February – Swimming Carnival at Warilla Pool (Competitors only)
Week 5
20th February – Parent information sessions Years 1 – 6
(repeat sessions at 4:45 – 5:30 and 5:45 – 6:30)
21st February – Shrove Tuesday
22nd February – Ash Wednesday
24th February – 1:55pm Celebration of Learning – 5B
Week 6
28th February - Stage 1 (Years 1 & 2) Parent reading helpers’ session (repeated: 8:25 – 9:00am and 2:10 – 2:40pm)
1st March - Year 5 Grade Mass 9am (+ Faith and Learning Visit)
3rd March - 1:55pm Celebration of Learning – 4A
Week 7
8th March - Year 3 Grade Mass 9am (+ Faith and Learning Visit)
10th March - 1:55pm Celebration of Learning – 3H
Week 8
15th March - NAPLAN commences (Year 3 and Year 5)
15th March - Year 1 Grade Mass 9am (+ Faith and Learning Visit)
17th March - St Patrick’s Day
17th March - 1:55pm Celebration of Learning – 2L
Week 9
22nd March - Year 2 Grade Mass 9am (+ Faith and Learning Visit)
24th March - celebrations for Nazareth school Feast Day – Feast of the Annunciation
24th March - 1:55pm Celebration of Learning – 1H
Week 10
29th March - Year 5 and Kindergarten Grade Mass 9am (+ Faith and Learning Visit)
31st March - 1:55pm Celebration of Learning – KN
Week 11 - Holy Week
5th April - Year 6 Grade Mass 9am (+ Faith and Learning Visit)
Swimming Carnival
At Nazareth we are excited to be holding our competitors only swimming carnival on Friday the 17th of February. Just a reminder that the event is only for competitive swimmers who can swim a minimum of 50m who are turning 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 or 13 this year. The carnival will be held at our usual location or Warilla pool at 11 Benaud Crescent. Please note the following information
- Children are to be at the pool by 8.15am
- Children are to present themselves to a teacher to have their name marked off
- Events will begin from approximately 8.30am
- Children are not to be in the pool before the carnival begins
- The carnival is scheduled to finish between 11.30am-12.00pm (Compass notifications will be sent out in the event of the carnival finishing prior to 11.30am)
- Children are to see a teacher and have their name marked off before they leave the carnival
- Please ensure that children have all required equipment (food, water, swimming gear, sun protection etc)
To ensure that our carnival runs smoothly, we require the help of parent volunteers. If you are able to assist on the day in any way, please indicate this when answering the questions on the Compass event. For further information and to register your child, please see the Compass event.
Diocesan Sport Trials
Thank you to all the parents who nominated their children for the Diocesan Sport Trials. All notes have been distributed to students who have been invited to trial in their particular sport(s). Please ensure that these notes are returned to the office as soon as possible.If your child’s note has been lost or misplaced please contact the office.
The PB4L team would like to welcome all of our students and their families back to school! We hope you and your child/ren are settling in well and have had a positive start to the new school year! A special welcome to our Kindergarten students, new students and their families.
The children have made an excellent start to the year!
During the first couple of weeks this term, the PB4L focus has been on teaching and revising classroom rules, routines and procedures. This ensures that all students know the rules, routines and procedures for the various activities in their classroom and can show the appropriate behaviours for each activity. Classroom teachers have also been introducing the rewards they have in place for when the students are showing appropriate behaviours in the classroom and the consequences that are in place if they are unable to display appropriate behaviour after a rule reminder.
We look forward to a positive and successful year here at Nazareth.
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/