Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Welcome back to a brand new term which suddenly looks completely different to the challenges and difficulties we faced last term with the Covid restrictions now being mostly lifted. I must say, it was wonderful being able to see everyone’s faces again as I walked around the school. With most restrictions being removed, we should be able to get back to a more normal school routine. This means we can now have our weekly assemblies where parents are welcome to attend. The same applies for whole school and class Masses on Thursday mornings and interschool sport. Parent and teacher meetings can proceed without restrictions. I think most parents are happy to hear that you can now go back into the classrooms. I did feel really bad for our Kindergarten parents at the start of the year not being able to participate in the morning routine of reading to their child or playing a game to help settle them for the day. Excursions and the camp can proceed once again which is wonderful.

Please note that whilst you no longer have to wear masks, it is encouraged to do so where social distancing is not possible. Those people who choose to continue wearing masks are welcome to do so for as long as they like. There are a few of important points for you to be aware of.  A close contact is someone who has spent greater than 4 hours of cumulative contact with a person in a 24 hour period in a RESIDENTIAL setting. Schools are not considered as residential settings. Asymptomatic close contacts are still required to take daily RATs and should avoid high risk settings. Schools are no longer required to issue correspondence to parents concerning positive cases or close contact requirements.

 Resilience Reflection Between stimulus and response there is space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom. Viktor Frankl

Mother’s Day Mass The first thing that we can do in our ‘new normal’ setting is to celebrate Mother’s Day this Friday morning at 8.45am in our Church with a whole school Mass. Once Mass is finished, mothers and grandmothers are invited to come back to the school staffroom for a coffee or tea and something to nibble. The P&F have swung straight back into action and are holding their Mother’s Day stalls in classes this Wednesday and Thursday so your children have the opportunity to buy our mothers a small gift. A separate note has been sent out with all the details.

NSIT (National School Improvement Tool) Every couple of years, all members of our community are invited to participate in an online survey where you have the opportunity to provide feedback on how well you think our school community is travelling. The surveys will be sent out on Monday 9 May and you have until Friday 20 May to submit your feedback. This data is then used by the school to see where we can improve the services we offer to you.

NAPLAN Things are definitely getting back to normal as the annual NAPLAN tests will commence next week! The students in Years 3 and 5 will participate in Writing, Reading, Language Conventions and Mathematics tests. Please remind your children that these are just one off tests that they can’t really prepare for. The data is used at school and system level to see where our strengths and weaknesses lie. Over the years, our students have always done well and I’m sure they will do well this year too.

First Holy Communion Parent Information Night This will be held on Wednesday 11 May in our Church from 7pm, starting with a parish Mass. After the Mass, Fr John will speak to the parents for around 45 minutes. Please make every effort to come along and find out what is happening as there have been a few minor changes this year.

Code of Conduct Please be aware that the Code of Conduct section on our school website has been updated so that you can report any breaches. The Code of Conduct has been in place for a number of years now in all CEWA schools as it provides a minimum standard of conduct in all behaviour and decision making to ensure the safety and well being of everyone in our community. All members of our community are expected to conduct themselves in a manner that maintains public trust and confidence in our school and Church. Please note that if you do report a breach of the code, that you will need to leave your name so that you can be contacted so the complaint can be followed up.