Last Sunday we celebrated the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C. The reflection by Loyola Press outlines that the Gospel is about who Jesus is and who people believe him to be.  The people are surprised but not immediately offended by Jesus' words in the synagogue. It is the words that follow his reading from the prophet Isaiah that seem to offend them. Jesus challenges and provokes the people of Nazareth by referring to examples in which Israel rejected the prophets. He also challenges them to respond to his message, the message of a prophet, in a way that is different from their ancestors. This call for a new response leads to his rejection.

After Jesus' words of challenge, Luke reports that there was a movement to kill Jesus by throwing him over a cliff. This differs from the reports found in Mark and Matthew's Gospels, where Jesus is said to be unable to perform miracles in Nazareth because of the people's lack of faith. Luke says that Jesus walks away from the crowd that intended to kill him; it is not yet his time. The animosity of the people of Nazareth prefigures and prepares the reader of Luke's Gospel for the cross. Luke wants all to understand that it is through his death on the cross that Jesus offers God's salvation to all.

Dear Parents and Carers,

A warm welcome back to the 2022 school year. I hope that your Christmas was faith-filled and you were able to spend time with your loved ones during the pupil vacation. I have spoken with many parents and carers and students over the past two days about their break and the wonderful time they had during January. 

It was such a pleasure to see our students enter the school with such happy smiles and greeting their teachers and friends with much enthusiasm. This is certainly testament of the supportive and caring culture at St Paul’s, a school where sincere care is shown constantly by students, staff, parents and carers. 

I would like to extend a warm welcome to all the new families who have joined our school community in 2022, especially those parents who will commence the journey with their child at St Paul’s for the very first time. Welcome to St Paul’s!! We also welcome our new staff members; Mrs Melanie Knight SSO School Office, Miss Samantha Ryan Year 3 Blue Teacher, Mrs Amy Lyons Physical Education Teacher. We also welcome back Mrs Annalise Hastings Year 4 Blue Teacher.  I am sure our new staff, students and families will experience the beauty of the St Paul’s hospitality which was so very evident when I came to the school at the beginning of 2020.

As we begin another school year in a COVID smart way and last week you received communication regarding the COVID smart measures put in place at St Paul’s to ensure the safety and well being for our community. I would like to thank parents, carers, students and staff for the way in which they are supporting the St Paul’s COVID smart measures and also a thank you to our parents and carers for your commitment as parents to preparing your child for the new school year. Our students were presented so well yesterday and today in their full uniforms, hair cuts, equipped with all of their classroom resources.  

Over the next few weeks our teachers will be focusing on classroom procedures and structures that support learning. This is an opportunity for students to engage in establishing routines for learning which will optimise student engagement.  This includes organising the learning space, establishing classroom procedures and introducing routines and structures that guide student behaviour and learning engagement. 

Please see a video of our 2022 School Captains Oliver and Charlotte welcoming the St Paul's school community to the 2022 school year.

Throughout the January pupil vacation St Paul’s school underwent some significant maintenance work including:

• Replacement of carpet in the Year 5 and 6 classrooms 
• Refurbishment of the Year 3 and 4 corridor space with new paint and bag hooks
• Refurbishment of the demountable with new carpet, glass screens and painting 
• Refurbishment of the library space with the inclusion of 2 purpose built spaces for the delivery of Tier 2 Intervention. 

The movement of the western fence on the Top Oval will be finalised in the coming weeks. The upgrade to the Central Playground will begin in the April pupil vacation period. 

On Tuesday 1st February we welcomed students and staff from Aspect. This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to recognise the importance of diversity and inclusion.  The students from the Aspect support classes will become an integral part of our school where they will undertake learning experiences provided by Aspect, that will support them for a period of time to prepare them for a transition to a regular class setting. On behalf of the St Paul's community I warmly welcome the students and staff from the Aspect to St Paul's.

2022 will see the staff at St Paul’s focus on a number of School Review and Improvement priorities which I have briefly outlined below. 

1. We will provide a range of faith and spiritual formation experiences for our students and staff which offer an encounter with Jesus through prayer and gospel reflection.
2. There will be a focus on the pedagogy of teaching reading comprehension in Years 3 to 6 and a focus on Early Literacy Teaching Strategies in Kindergarten to Year 2.  As part of this focus will be a continued emphasis on modelled, guided and independent teaching.
3. St Paul’s plans to continue our focus on parent and carer engagement in student learning.  It is our intention to create more effective opportunities for parents and carers to be engaged in the growth of faith and learning of their child so that they are knowledgeable of their child’s needs and growth.

On Friday 4th February Grade Curriculum Overviews will be distributed to parents and carers via Compass. The Grade Curriculum Overviews outline the core content in each Key Learning Area that students will focus on for Term 1. 

In weeks 3 and 4 parents and carers will be invited to a Zoom Parent and Carer Information Evening. Please see the article in the newsletter outlining the date and time for each grades Zoom Parent and Carer Information Evening. Last year parents and carers requested that Parent and Carer Information Evenings are held early in the school year, therefore the evenings have been booked for the upcoming 2 weeks. 

As parents and carers are still unable to attend liturgies, assemblies and school based events, St Paul's will continue with our Virtual Assemblies every fortnight and student awards will be captured along with student learning. The first virtual assembly will be published at the conclusion of Week 4, Friday 18th February. 

On behalf on the staff at St Paul's we look forward to working with our parents and carers to provide a supportive and caring learning environment whereby every St Paul's students experiences continual growth in faith and learning. 

Yours in Faith and Learning,

Michelle Rodwell

Principal

Acknowledgement to Country

St Paul's Albion Park acknowledges and pays respect to the Dharawal people past and present, the traditional custodians of the land on which our school is built.

This year the uniform policy will be revised in consultation with the parents and carers.

The St Paul’s school uniform is available for purchase at Hazeltons on Tongarra Road, Albion Park. The school and sport uniform should be worn in full by all students. We have a second-hand clothing pool from which parents can select used uniform items left in good-condition. Please contact the office regarding access to the second-hand uniform pool.

A reminder that the summer uniform

GIRLS’ SUMMER UNIFORM

• Check dress
• Short white socks, black shoes
• Navy jumper, cardigan or school sloppy joe
• Red ribbon

BOYS’ SUMMER UNIFORM

• Short sleeve open necked blue shirt
• Short grey trousers
• Short grey socks
• Black shoes
• Navy jumper, cardigan or school sloppy joe

UNIFORM REQUIREMENTS

• Wear the correct school/sports uniform at all times
• In extremely cold weather a navy blue parka, overcoat or coat may be worn – no other colours permitted
• School/sports uniforms are to be worn in a neat manner
• School shoes are to be black leather (for safety at school); with no brand names are to be visible
• All sports footwear must be athletic jogger style with laces or Velcro. No 'Vans', 'Converse' or high top shoes are permitted as they are not supportive.
• All sports socks must be plain white, ankle-length socks; with no brand names
• No coloured hair decorations – girls may wear headbands, ribbons, scrunchies in red or royal blue
• No jewellery except for studs or sleepers (one per ear lobe), watch, signet ring or religious medals
• No nail polish or make-up
• School hat is to be worn at breaks, PE and sport. We have a 'No hat, no play' policy – children will be asked to sit in the shade if they do not have their hat
  

HAIR CUTS

• The emphasis is on 'neat and tidy'
• Girls' long hair or hair below the shoulders is to be tied back
• Boys' hair should be no longer than collar length
• Extreme hair cuts and coloured hair are not permitted
• The emphasis is on evenly cut hair
• Extreme use of gel or products of that nature are not permitted

Each year a number of forms need to be completed at the start of the year. These forms have been sent home as a hard copy and have been added to a Compass post for your information.

The forms include:

• 2022 Student Information Form
• CEDoW Use of Student Image Form
• CEDoW Responsible Use of Technology Agreement
• Seesaw Parent Code of Conduct

Please return these forms promptly.

According to the CEDoW Social Media Policy students must engage in modules that teach Digital Citizenship. At the start of each year teachers explicitly teach the expectations of technology use at St Paul's.

Tuesday 8th February is Safer Internet Day. The theme for 2022 is -

#Play it safe online

This Safer Internet Day, the eSafety Commissioner is "calling on everyone to play it safe and fair online."

The website encourages us to "join the global initiative that brings families, schools, organisations and governments from 170 countries together to raise awareness about online safety.

There is no place for online abuse. We can all help to make life online enjoyable by being kind and respectful to each other."

Check out the 2022 schedule for Parent workshops to help support children being online safely.

For more information see the site

2022 Sacrament Dates

Please see below the proposed dates for each of the Sacraments at St Paul’s Parish next year.

CONFIRMATION

For Year 6 students or older who have been baptised.

Confirmation Parent Information Night: Tuesday 22 February, 7pm.

Four weekly lessons begin on Saturday 12 March or Monday 14 March

Confirmation Ceremony: Early May Date TBC.

FIRST RECONCILIATION

For Year 3 or older students who have been baptised.

Reconciliation and First Holy Communion Parent Information Night: Tuesday 3 May, 7pm.

Four weekly lessons begin on Saturday 14 May or Monday 16 May.

First Reconciliation to occur Tuesday 14 June or Wednesday 15 June.

FIRST HOLY COMMUNION

For Year 3 or older students who have made their First Reconciliation.

Four weekly lessons begin on Saturday 13 August or Monday 15 August.

First Holy Communion Masses: Sunday 18 September 

A Story: “We are the body of Christ!” When attending a youth group event or gathering with other believers, you can enjoy a strong sense of community and belonging as you boldly proclaim your identity in Christ. Being Catholic is a bit like being part of a family- we’re all different, we all bring unique gifts, yet we are all one family, one body in Christ.

Jodi Marsh

Religious Education Coordinator

As a response to parent and carer feedback last year asking that Parent and Carer Information Evenings are held early in the school year, the Parent and Carer Information Evenings will be held in Week 3 and 4 via Zoom. The Parent and Carer Information Evenings will outline key information pertinent for the grade including key learning content, PB4L classroom procedures, home reading and home learning opportunities and other relevant information. Parents are also warmly invited to make a time for an individual zoom meeting with their child's classroom teachers to discuss individual student needs. Please see the dates and times for Grade Zoom Parent and Carer Information Evening Details.

A Zoom link will be sent to parents and carers for the Grade Zoom Parent and Carer Information Evening via Compass the morning of the Zoom. All Zoom meetings will begin at 6:30pm. 

Kindergarten are about to start big school on Tuesday!  Tuesday is normally Kindergarten's Sports Uniform day, however as this is their first day they can wear their Full Summer School Uniform.

Below are images of the school uniforms:

Full Summer School Uniform

School Hat

Thank you to all students who are trying their best to follow our school rules in the playground and classroom

The Positive Behaviours for Learning (PB4L) framework is implemented at St Paul's to help create vibrant and positive learning environments in which all students are supported to reach their full potential.

PB4L is an evidenced-based, organisational framework for behaviour support to enhance respectful relationships and engagement of students in their learning. It encompasses a broad range of systemic and individualised strategies and agreed practices for achieving important social and academic outcomes for all students.

This framework is an integral component of the CEDoW Student Pastoral Care and Wellbeing Policy, which articulates the need for schools to ‘play an active role in building a positive learning environment where the whole school community feels included, connected, safe and respected’.

All staff at our school work together to explicitly teach, affirm and correct agreed behaviour expectations across school-wide, classroom and non-classroom settings, based on our school rules that underpin who we are and what we do at St Paul's.

Students at St Paul's follow explicit behaviour expectations based on the following school rules:

• BE RESPECTFUL

• BE RESPONSIBLE

• BE SAFE

Positive Behaviours for Learning (PB4L) provides students, staff and the community with a structure, processes, tools and a mindset for personal wellbeing and improvement in learning, based on:

• An emphasis on operationally defined and valued outcomes for all students across all school settings;
• Established behavioural science principles including:
• behaviour is learnt and therefore replacement behaviours can be taught;
• behaviour is lawful and predictable;
• behaviour occurrences are affected by system and environmental factors that interact with biophysical characteristics of the individual; and
• adult behaviour significantly influences student behaviour;
• Research-validated practices, interventions, strategies and curriculum to achieve goals and outcomes;
• Multiple sources of data to guide decisions and priorities regarding systems and practices staff should select and/or adopt to achieve outcomes; and
• Multiple opportunities for ‘student voice’.

Parent and carer support is an integral part of the success of PB4L at our school, and we thank you for your ongoing cooperation and support.

Read more about our Positive Behaviours for Learning (PB4L) Framework.

The PB4L Focus Areas for the beginning weeks of Term 1 will be learning about some of the changes in expectations students will experience moving to a new classroom with a new teacher.  Teachers will explicitly teach and revise the following daily:

• Class rules, responsibilities and expectations
• Rules regarding a minimisation in mingling across cohorts, including split break times
• Morning Arrival Procedures
• Eating areas and expectations
• Play areas and expectations 
• Where to line up after playtimes
• Afternoon Dismissal Procedures

We will look forward to continuing to reward excellent behaviour at St Paul’s with classroom-based rewards system, playground raffle tickets, St Paul’s Merit Awards and our Weekly Green Zone rewards. 

Bree-Anna Fogliada

Diverse Learning Support Instructional Leader

Our annual School Swimming Carnival will be held at Albion Park pool on Thursday 17 February. A compass event will be communicated to parents this week. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the swimming carnival will only be for students in Year 3-6. 

Mr Brian McCann

Sports Co-ordintor

St Paul's Catholic Parish Primary School has a duty to take reasonable care for the safety and welfare of our students.  This care extends to assisting students manage their medical condition that requires medication, where medication cannot be administered outside of school hours.

If your child requires staff to administer prescription or over-the-counter medication at school, you will need to complete a Request to Administer Medication Form.  

School staff will only administer prescription medication that: 

• Has been prescribed by a qualified medical practitioner (e.g. doctor, dentist)

• Is in its original container 

• Has an attached pharmacy label to the container

• Has been delivered to the school by the parent / carer and is accompanied by a completed Request to Administer Medication Form 

School staff will only administer Over-The-Counter medication that: 

• Is in its original container 

• Has been delivered to the school by the parent / carer and is accompanied completed Request to Administer Medication Form including the signature and stamp from a qualified medical practitioner

If your child requires more than one medication, you will need to complete a form for each medication.

ASCIA ANAPHYLAXIS ACTION PLANS / ASHTMA MANAGEMENT ACTION PLANS

If your child is at risk of anaphylaxis, asthma or an allergic reaction, it is important that the school is provided with a current ASCIA Anaphylaxis Action Plan / Asthma Management Plan completed by a doctor.  This plan provides up-to-date information for the school regarding the medical management of your child’s condition.  

If there are any changes in your child’s health care needs, please inform the school as soon as possible.

The St.Pauls 2nd hand uniform shop is run by the P&F with all proceeds going directly to the school. We are always seeking donations of good quality uniform items, no holes or large stains. All items may be purchased for only $5 (EFTPOS only).  We accept and sell the following items: