2023 Week 9 Newsletter - Term 3

WEEKLY FOCUS - How to support your child online.

From the Principal - National Child Protection Week

Dear Families

Happy Father’s Day to all our Dads for last Sunday.  I hope you all had a special day and felt the love from your family.  I am sure your children loved giving you the gifts they found at our Father’s Day Stall and I extend a massive thank you to the P&F and their team of volunteers who helped put together such a great shopping experience.

Speaking of special experiences, our inaugural Combined Band/Bells/Choir tour took place yesterday and the children had a great time entertaining our school and local community.  Many thanks to Miss Richards, Miss Erin, Mrs Mallet and Mrs Sedgwick for organizing such a successful day.

This week is National Child Protection Week which reminds all of us of the important role we play in creating school and home environments that keep our children safe and happy.  

An added pressure to protecting our children is trying to guide and support them in the online world they are often very keen to explore.

It is true that children can learn, explore, play and make friends online. But there can be risks. Your child might accidentally see upsetting content, be contacted by strangers or experience bullying. They might also miss out on important things like spending time outside.

I strongly recommend you refer to the E-Safety Commissioner Website regularly for advice on how to support your child online to try and lessen the risks your children face.  If you are going to give your child time on a device that can access the internet, you cannot leave them to navigate it alone.

Here are a few general pieces of advice from the E-Safety Commissioner to get you started:

Talk about online safety as a family 
Let your child know they can always come to you if something happens online that makes them feel scared or upset. You can ask your child to show you the games and apps they use. Use eSafety’s conversation starters to help you get started. 

Set up family rules together 
As a family, you can choose some easy rules to help keep everyone safe online. You can include things like where devices can be used, what games and apps your children can use, and how much time can be spent online. Most devices and apps have features to set limits on how they are used. Watch this video to learn more about parental controls and settings. 

Know where to get help 
If you need help with an online issue and you are not sure what to do, talk about it with someone you trust. You can also speak to someone at Parentline for help with parenting challenges. The eSafety Commissioner (eSafety) helps to keep all Australian families safe online. Their website also has more information about reporting online abuse and staying safe online.

We sadly see first hand the damage and upset that can come from unsafe online interactions.  These E-Safety resources are a great help in this important role you have in protecting our children whatever they are doing online - playing games, chatting, watching videos etc.

Have a wonderful week everyone!
God bless you.

Jennett Mullane
Principal
jennett_omullane@rok.catholic.edu.au

Parent Teacher Meetings - Use of Courts & Terrace after school

A reminder that the Courts and Terrace are licensed for use by our Outside Hours Care children after school.  Parents are asked not to gather or let their children play here after school.  This is especially so with Parent /Teacher Meetings keeping people at school for longer.  Your support in keeping this area clear for our OSHC Service and helping us comply with the Service Legislation is greatly appreciated.

2023 School Goals

From Our APRE

Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.' Matthew 16:23-24

The Gospel reading from Sunday was one that can leave one feeling quite confused.  Being a disciple of Jesus’ is not easy. It doesn’t help that the world is filled with all kinds of temptations and negative messages, right alongside the support and the positive messages.

Father Andrew can always bring the message to life in his homily and connects the readings to the here and now.  I have included part of his homily from Sunday below.

The danger of getting the wrong idea about Jesus and who he is and what he is on about, is a real possibility for anyone, not just Peter. History shows many examples of people getting mixed up ideas about Jesus – this is what we call heresy when it becomes extreme. 12 years ago at WYD in Madrid, Pope Benedict spoke about this in his homily to the young people gathered there.  He said:

“…make Christ, the Son of God, the centre of your life. But let me also remind you that following Jesus in faith means walking at his side in the communion of the Church. We cannot follow Jesus on our own. Anyone who would be tempted to do so “on his own”, or to approach the life of faith with the kind of individualism so prevalent today, will risk never truly encountering Jesus, or will end up following a counterfeit Jesus. Having faith means drawing support from the faith of your brothers and sisters, even as your own faith serves as a support for the faith of others.”

In other words, if we try to be a lone ranger Christian, it becomes that much easier to get off track – we need the guidance and the assurance of the church that Jesus has given us. 

Part of the uniqueness of our faith is that our God has loved us so much that he united himself to us fully by becoming human and sharing all of what it means to be human. And suffering, whether we like or not, is part of being human……..Being a Christian disciple means sharing our suffering with Jesus and uniting our own suffering with his, and offering it to God as part of the holy and perfect sacrifice of Jesus. Perhaps we can make that our prayer this week as we go about our daily work and life.  If we can honestly pray, “Father, I offer you my sufferings and hardships and I ask you to join me with Jesus in his suffering,” then we will find that our hardships become bearable and our life will start to take on new meaning and we will experience the Lord’s closeness in a new way.

We often talk about the importance of our community.  We draw strength from each other and we keep each other honest. 

Remember, you are not alone.

God bless,

Kellie Richardson

Assistant Principal: Religious Education

Kellie_richardson@rok.catholic.edu.au

School Feast Day

The Most Holy Name of Mary

Everyone is invited to join us for our Feast Day celebrations on Tuesday 12^th September.  Our day will begin with Mass in the church at 9am, followed by morning tea where we will cut our Feast Day cake.  Everyone is welcome to join us on this day to give thanks for our guiding light – Mary, Star of the Sea. 

Liturgies and Assemblies

WEEK 9

6A invite you to their assembly presentation on Friday 8^th September at 8.35am in the Covered Courts Area.

WEEK 10

Year 4 invite everyone to attend our Feast Day Mass on TUESDAY 12^TH SEPTEMBER at 9am in the Star of the Sea Church. 

Year 3 invite you to their assembly presentation on Friday 15^th September at 8.35am in the Covered Courts Area

Sacrament of Reconciliation

Children in Year 3 or above and baptised Catholic are invited to join the Sacramental Program of Star of the Sea Parish. Preparation to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation begins in October. For more information contact Kellie Richardson or Hayley from the Parish Office at adfaithsos@rok.catholic.net.au.

Enrolments are due by 15 September 2023

Who is eligible to receive this Sacrament?

Children who are baptised Catholic and in Year 3 or above can enroll to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation

In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, God grants us forgiveness and we receive his infinite mercy. This Sacrament is also called Penance or Confession. Because God loves us so much and desires a fruitful relationship with us, we are given a lifetime of second chances and can receive this Sacrament many times.

Please note that reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation is required before your child can begin preparation for the Sacraments of Confirmation and First Holy Communion.

In Our Prayers

From the APC

I have really good news to share with you all!!!!!

Our Star of the Sea school community has for the second year running – had the highest number of students participate in the Port To Park Fund run.   We had 228 students and adults walk or run the 3km or 10 km event.

Due to the number of participants from our school community we will receive a cheque for $ 2,010.00.

This money will be used to purchase a range of sporting equipment to continue to support and encourage the students in our school to be active and healthy.

Have a great week.

Anthony King

Assistant Principal: Curriculum

anthony_king@rok.catholic.edu.au

Capricornia Track and Field

Congratulations to Annalise G and Myeisha M on being selected to represent Capricornia at the 2023 Queensland Schools Athletics Championships later this year.  Congratulations!

Cricket Gala Day

Last Tuesday 4 teams travelled to Clinton Sport Field to compete in the Woolworths Cricket Blast.  The teams consisted of 2 girls and 2 boys teams from Year 5 and 6.  It was a glorious day in the sun to put the student’s Cricket skills to the test. The students have been learning the rotational skills and how to bat and bowl in their PE lessons.   The teams did very well with a special shout out to the Star of the Sea girls team 2 who won their division.

Adults attending were very proud of how the students conducted themselves, their skills and efforts as well the wonderful sportsmanship demonstrated during the day.  The students were very appreciative of being able to extend and put their skills to the test. 

Thank you to Mrs Blake for all her efforts organsing this day, staff who attended- Mrs Smyth, Mrs Smith and Mrs Stef along with the awesome help from parents who assisted with scoring on the day - Mrs Asher, Mrs Kendrick and Mr Lamberton and all those parents who transported these students to the venue.   A wonderful day had by all!  

Multi Draw Raffle to Support the Quoin Island Rehabilitation Centre

As a Reef Guardian School we are always looking for ways to care for our Reef and its wildlife. 

We are pleased to announce a multi draw raffle that will assist us in raising funds to help support the  Quoin Island Turtle Rehabilitation Centre.  The cost to run this centre each year is close to $500 000 with donations not reaching anywhere near the level needed to cover these costs.  They definitely need our help.

We are grateful to Amarni Thetford and her family who have donated the major prize for this raffle.  It is wonderful to see our students so passionate about caring for our environment and we strongly encourage your support to help raise as much money as possible.

Tickets are $1 each and all proceeds will go directly to the Sea Turtles at Quoin Island.

You can send money into the office in an envelope clearly marked with your child's name and class.  Tickets will then be placed in the envelope and returned to you.

Tickets will also be sold by Amarni on Tuckshop days and during our Feast Day activities.  Tickets can also be purchased through the front office.

Book Week Fun

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Star of the Sea P&F 50/50 Fundraiser Raffle Tickets

P&F 50/50 Fundraiser Raffle tickets have been sent home  for each family. Tickets and cash are due back to school on Monday 11th September. No EFTPOS available.

The winning ticket will be drawn at our Caulfield Event on Saturday 21st October.

An Invitation to some Family Social Events

Real Talk Puberty Information Zoom Session for Parents - Tuesday 12th September

Real Talk are an organisation we have been collaborating with for a number of years to support the implementation of our Personal and Social Education Curriculum.  The team will be visiting our Year 5 and 6 classes in the last week of term and we strongly encourage all Year 5 and 6 parents to attend this Zoom Information Session if possible.  More information about student sessions will be sent home this week.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL PARENTS ARE MOST WELCOME TO ATTEND THS ZOOM INFORMATION SESSION NO MATTER WHAT GRADE YOUR CHILD IS IN.  

Please feel free to contact us with any questions.

Parish Feast Day Invitation

Parent Education Sessions

Please Update Your Media Details

Dear Parents

We are asking your assistance in updating media consent for your child/ren.

Our system has been updated with more options that give us clarity with the myriad different ways your child's details can possibly be used.  If you completed a paper copy of the enrolment form, you will definitely need to update these media consent details please.  Parents who completed an online application are also asked to check their child's current media permissions to ensure it is correct.

This is a very quick task completed through Parent Lounge and below are some instructions to guide you with this task.  You will need to complete this task for each child you have at Star of the Sea please.

We appreciate your help in ensuring we have the correct information for your child/ren.

Student Absentee Line

If your child is not attending school, you can call us, 24/7, to leave a message to report the absence. The  phone number is 4994 8301.  

This designated phone line gives you the opportunity to call the school at a time that is convenient to you.

As always, absences can be reported using Parent Lounge or by emailing your child’s classroom teacher  and                                                                                                                SOSG_Absentee@rok.catholic.edu.au).

Thank you to our Caulfield Sponsors