PRINCIPAL NEWS

Dear Parents,

I remember several years ago being down at the local park with two of my children, Jack and Tom. At the time they were both in primary school.  When it was time to leave the boys asked me if they could walk home for the first time by themselves.  Whilst we were not that far away from where we live their journey involved crossing roads and negotiating a few different streets. 

Initially my immediate thought was that I was going to say no and take them in the car. However, once I thought further about their request I reminded myself that my wife and I had been consistently talking to them about road safety, being responsible and looking after each other.  I recall being presented with a real opportunity for them to demonstrate this to me.

An enormous pleasure of parenting is watching your children learn, develop and grow.  One of the most difficult tasks as a parent is getting the balance right between protecting your children and allowing them the opportunity to learn from experiences with an acceptable amount of risk.  If we over protect our children we can actually be hampering their growth. Real learning involves challenge and taking risks. 

Consider how you feel when you are in your comfort zone; safe, relaxed, not challenged, going through the motions.  Now reflect upon how you feel when you are out of your comfort zone; alert, active, challenged, stimulated, excited, energised, a little stressed, curious, just to name a few.  When you travel along in your comfort zone not much is happening, conversely, when you are out of your comfort zone you are most definitely in your learning zone.

As parents and educators of our children our role is to create a safety net so that our children have the opportunity to survive, and then thrive, out of their comfort zone.   In order to assist them we need to be there to support them and talk them through the different experiences of life, not shield them away.

An analogy might be when you are teaching your child to ride a bike.  At some stage you have to take the training wheels off and let go of the bike. You know that there is a real risk that they may fall, however, you will help them get back up, talk them through what went wrong, give them the strategies required, build up their confidence again and support them to have another go.  The joy then comes as the smile engulfs their face and they have that wonderful satisfaction of learning and achieving.

As for Jack and Tom all those years ago, they got home safe and sound, very proud of their efforts to be responsible and walk home by themselves.  Completely unaware that Dad was following along several hundred metres back just keeping them in view!

Safety Around the School Grounds

The following rules are in place for the safety of all students in the school.  We ask that parents please respect the following rules;

• Children should not be arriving at school before 8.25am as they are not supervised.
• All cars leaving the roadway must turn left into Ridgemont Drive.
• Students waiting for siblings from SFX must wait inside the school grounds near the entrance gate. They are not to wait out the front of SFX.

Staffing Update

Last week Mr Jason Lester resigned effective as of Thursday the 21^st of July.  We thank Jason for his time at St Catherine’s and wish him all the best for his future endeavours.  We are currently recruiting for a replacement for Jason.

Mrs Ann Eggens has also tendered her resignation after 22 years of service to St Catherine’s as an ESO.  We thank Ann for her commitment and efforts over many years at St Catherine’s and wish her all the very best in retirement.  Ann will finish up at the end of the term.

FLC’s (previously Parent / Teacher Interviews) will be held on the 19^th and 20^th of July (Week 2 Term 3).  They will be via Google Meet, invites will be sent out to parents in Week One next term.

Drop Off / Pick Up

A reminder that classes commence at 8.50am.  Gates will be locked at 8.50am and children arriving after this time will need to come through the Office to be signed in. 

Parents need to ensure that they have appropriate arrangements organised for their children at the end of the day, particularly students that are waiting for siblings from SFX.

Signing Students in/out 

If your child is arriving late to school due to an appointment etc. or being collected early, you will need to sign them in or out using the Ipads in the school office.

Parents and Friends Bunning BBQ

The Parents and Friends are running another Bunnings BBQ at Clyde North on Saturday the 25^th of June. If you are able to help with a shift please email Melissa  melissaknight40@hotmail.com or Jo  joanne_riley@bigpond.com

Important 2023 Prep Enrolment Dates for Your Diary,

School Fees

Families who hold an eligible Health Care Concession Card, may be eligible for CSEF (Camp, Sports and Excursion Funding).  If eligible, this would also entitle families to make an application for a fee remission, which effectively would see a significant reduction of fees to be paid for the year.  For more information, please do not hesitate to contact Margaret Lonergan in the Office.

For any queries, either ring Margaret Lonergan on 9702 1466 or email accounts@stcberwick.catholic.edu.au

SCHOOL FEE STATEMENTS

School fee statements will be sent out this coming Friday.

Contact Address

If you have changed your address recently, could you please contact the school office on 97021466 or alternatively info@stcberwick.catholic.edu.au

A reminder that school concludes for the students next Thursday, the 23^rd of June.  Friday the 24^th of June is a School Closure Day. On behalf of all the staff we wish all families a relaxing holiday and we look forward to working with you again next term.

School Closure Dates

Listed below are the 2022 School Closure Dates for your diary;

Friday 24 June

Kind Regards,

Simon