Dear Parents and Friends,

Welcome to our Term 2 Week 10 newsletter. We have had a wonderful term two filled with lots of learning experiences and many fun events for the students and their families. A highlight was certainly our World Parents Day Picnic and sharing of our Mathematics journey here at St Michaels. As mentioned previously, Mathematics and Religion are our key focus areas for 2023. 

Next term will again be very exciting for our students with major highlights being: 

• Year 6 Mass with Bishop Brian and other schools from our Diocese
• NAIDOC activities
• Mary MacKillop Feast Day
• Our Gymnastics program which will run each week on a Thursday for all students K-6
• Book Week -visit from a travelling performance group called G’Day Asia (including a Chinese Dragon), Book Week Pyjama Day and shared stories
• Book Fair
• Wakakirri performance in Wollongong
• G Day concert and morning tea for our Grandparents and Great People

I have included a calendar of events in this newsletter to cover most of the activities that you will need to be aware of. 

REFLECTION

This year, the 2023 National NAIDOC Week theme is For Our Elders. It is very timely for all peoples to stop and think about the role our elders play in our lives. All our elders, such as our grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles and mentors are very important in the lives of our families and especially our children.

Across every generation, our elders have played, and continue to play, an important role and hold a prominent place in our communities and families. Our elders help support us and encourage us and are there for us when we need them. They are also there in times of celebration and this is so very special to them. They pave the way for us to take the paths we can take today.

In religious writings, we hear very little about the role of St Joachim and St Anne, who were Mary’s parents, however we do know that their strength and support for Mary, Joseph and Jesus, certainly would have made an amazing difference in their lives. 

Later next month, we will acknowledge St Joachim and St Anne’s Feast Day. They are the patron saints of grandparents. Along with our NAIDOC activities and our GDay events, Term 3 will be a time to highlight the importance of our elders and the love and care they give to their families and the community we live in. 

Let us reflect upon the elders in our lives as we pray,

Dear Lord

Please bless our elders with long life, happiness and health.

May they remain constant in your love 

and be living signs of your presence to those they love and hold dear.

We ask this through Christ our Lord

Amen

SEMESTER ONE REPORTS

As mentioned on Friday, Semester 1 Academic Reports are now available in COMPASS. To access reports click on your child's  photo in the COMPASS app and click on the report tab. When you look in COMPASS news feed you will see a link like below, that will take you to an instructional video, to show you how to access the reports.

Click here to see instructional video 

In the instructional video, it shows the Semester 2 2022 report being clicked on. As of last Friday, you can click on the Semester 1 2023 report as the most current report for your child.

From 2023 all reports are only available digitally through the COMPASS app and parent portal. If you have any questions in regards to your child’s report, please do not hesitate to contact our school office. 

KINDERGARTEN 2024

Over the past term, Mrs Bourke-Nash and I were blessed to meet with our Kindergarten 2024 Cohort students and their parents. It was a wonderful experience meeting these families and especially hearing how well respected our school is, within our local community. Again this year, we had many applications and we have tried our absolute best to accommodate the families. We have now sent out the offers of enrolments to prospective students, so if you are one of the 20 sibling families, please check your mail or else contact our office if you haven’t received the letter this week. 

PIZZA DAY 

A big thank you to our Parents and Friends for the wonderful Pizza Day that was held last Friday. The children really enjoyed them.