“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Matt 5: 3

(from the Gospel of the solemnity of All Saints, Year A)

Dear parents and carers

We have certainly had a busy few weeks. It is great seeing the children working so well and enjoying being together at school. We have some school events coming up in the next few weeks starting with the Book Parade on Friday next week. We hope that the children will enjoy these activities we have planned. We are trying to bring some joy!

BOOK PARADE “Curious Creatures, Wild Minds”- next Friday 6 November

We will conduct a modified book parade on Friday 6 November. This year’s theme is “Curious Creatures, Wild Minds”. We’re delighted to be able to offer this event. The children certainly love to dress up and thoroughly enjoyed the book parade last year. 

Regrettably, parents, family and community members will not be able to attend.  If this changes we will notify you. We will conduct the “parade” on a class by class basis in order to comply with social distancing requirements. 

We will film and photograph the children and share this with you via facebook. It should be a wonderful day for the children.

ATHLETICS CARNIVAL Thursday 12 November 

We will be conducting some of the athletics carnival events on Thursday 12 November. This will be a modified event. We need to continue to observe the “no mixing” social distancing precautions. This means that we will not have children of similar ages from different classes competing in the same heats. All events will be conducted on a class basis. We will keep times and relevant records to be able to determine age champions.

Unfortunately, events such as marching and the war cries, which rely on children mixing to be in their colour houses, will not be possible. The children will remain in their class groups throughout the day. They will not be able to sit in their colour houses.

We have begun field event trials. Children will have the opportunity to both learn skills and compete in heats for the field events over the next four weeks ahead of the carnival day. Finals for the field events will be held on the carnival day. 

Observing COVID-19 restrictions and social distancing is critical in being able to offer this event for the children. At this stage, parents will not be able to spectate or attend. If this changes we will certainly let you know. 

We will film events and make a carnival movie to celebrate the children’s achievements. This will be shared on our school facebook page. 

After the carnival we will be able to award age champions and the winning colour house. This too will be filmed and shared.

WATER SAFETY PROGRAMS for INFANTS in Week 6

In Week 6, we will be conducting the annual water safety program at Moss Vale pool. This year Kindergarten to Year 2 will participate in this program. We will bus the children to and from the pool. The program will run for four consecutive days commencing on Tuesday 17 November and concluding on Friday 20 November.  Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the children will not be changing at the pool. The change rooms are only to be used for the toilets on a needs basis. The children will therefore change at school. We will send more detailed information closer to program commencing.

WATER SAFETY PROGRAMS for PRIMARY in Week 7

We are going to do something different for our primary children this year. Given we are heading into summer and many families will be going to the beach, we thought safety on the beach and in the surf was a more important water safety need. Our Year 3 to Year 6 children will participate in a surf safety and awareness program. On Friday 20 November, surf life savers will visit the school to provide an introductory theory program to the children. This will involve general beach safety as well as learning about rips and how to “read” a beach.

During Week 7, the children will travel by bus to Sandon Point near Bulli, where they will work with a company called Sea Australia. Our school will attend in a supervisory role. The program will be delivered by qualified instructors. The instructors will teach the children how to dive under waves, recognise rips and what to do if they are caught in a rip. The instructor to student ratio is at a maximum of 1:8. When the children are in the water in their small groups, the ration is closer to 1:2. This company and their program are well regarded and used by a number of Catholic schools within our diocese. Year 5 and Year 6 will be attending on Wednesday 25 November. Year 3 and Year 4 will attend the next day on Thursday 26 November. We will travel to Sandon Point by bus. We will provide further information closer to Week 7. For now, you can visit the Sea Australia website for further information regarding the company and the range of programs they offer. 

https://www.seaaustralia.com.au/

Next week, we will send the permission, “waiver” link for you to complete online.

Both programs are included in your resource fees and are at no additional cost to families. We anticipate that this program will be both helpful in developing the children’s water safety skills as well as fun in what has been a pretty drab year due to COVID-19!

CHICKEN POX

Today, we have had a confirmed case of chicken pox at school. I have reproduced below some of the advice from NSW Health for families regarding chicken pox for your information.

Symptoms: Chickenpox (varicella) begins with a sudden onset of slight fever, runny nose, feeling generally unwell and a skin rash. The rash usually begins as small lumps that turn into blisters and then scabs. The rash appears over three to four days. At any one time, the lesions of the rash vary in stages of development. 

Management: People with chickenpox should avoid others (and not attend childcare or school) until at least five days after onset of the rash and all the blisters have dried. People with chickenpox should cover the nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, dispose of soiled tissues, wash their hands well and not share eating utensils, food or drinking cups. 

More detailed information regarding chicken pox is available on the NSW Health website at the link below.

https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/factsheets/Pages/chickenpox.aspx 

STAFF PLANNING DAY- pupil free day FRIDAY 13 NOVEMBER

We will be conducting a staff planning day on Friday 13 November. This will be a pupil free day and no classes will be conducted. We need to review the year, name our achievements and challenges. We need to plan for 2021 especially given the contingency that COVID-19 restrictions will likely remain in place.

EATING PROCEDURES FOR SECOND BREAK

For our revised Second Break procedures, we ask that simple snacks or fruit be sent to school. Ideally, children should be able to carry their snack in their hands along with a drink bottle, leaving their lunch boxes inside. Teachers will manage this especially with the younger classes. The children will be seated outside for a few minutes to eat their snack before washing hands and going off to play.

TERM 4 CLASS OVERVIEWS ON PARENT PORTAL CLASSWORK PAGE 

At the beginning of each term, the class teachers provide an overview of what the children in their class will be learning. These overviews are uploaded to the “Classwork” class page on the Parent Portal. Once you have opened the landing page, you will see a link to each class. There are other resources and messages from teachers on the class pages as well. Take a moment to review your child’s class page to learn about what your child is learning about in Term 4.

Check the CEDoW COVID-19 website for updates

Stay up to date with the latest information regarding COVID-19 and its implications for our school by visiting Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) COVID-19 Information centre available here. This site has been created and regularly updated with COVID-19 specific advice for all our school dicosean communities. 

Thank you everyone for your ongoing understanding, patience and support as we move through time this together. As difficult and often inconvenient as it is, this is how we do our bit in keeping everyone safe and continuing to manage the pandemic. 

SUMMER UNIFORMS IN TERM 4

All children will wear the summer uniform from the beginning of Term 4. Our uniform suppliers are Whytes Tailoring and Clothing in Argyle Street Moss Vale (02 4868 1911 or visit https://www.whytesclothing.com.au/)and  NSW Uniforms (0400 805 596 or email ethne@drewdesigns.com.au). Both suppliers have our summer uniforms in stock.

Sport Uniform Days by Class 

Your child will need to wear the sport uniform on the following days each week.

Kindergarten- Friday

Year 1- Thursday & Friday

Year 2- Wednesday & Friday

Year 3- Wednesday & Friday

Year 4- Wednesday & Friday

Year 5- Wednesday & Friday

Year 6-Wednesday & Friday

DAYS AND DATES FOR TERM 4

Given recent changes to COVID 19 restrictions, we are now in the position to plan events. The dates for these event are listed below. I would particularly draw your attention to the Week 10 arrangements with Tuesday 15 December being the last day of the year for the children. Staff will continue to work on site until Thursday 17 December.

LOLS: Lessons and Liturgy and Scripture

Please stay tuned for the LOLS video dedicated to our wonderful Grandfriends, due to be released in Week 4. Thank you to everyone for sending in lots of great photos of your child/ren with their Grandparent/s.

Confirmation Program

St Paul’s Parish, Moss Vale will proceed with the sacrament of Confirmation this term. Students should have completed their enrolment forms by now. Please get in touch with Helen Brearley to select the times for the three classes. These will take place in Weeks 4, 5 and 6.

Thank you

Catherine du Bois

Religious Education Coordinator

The term overviews have been posted on the St Paul's Parent Portal. These overviews provide you with information about the topics the children will be learning and other information relevant to each class. The parent portal also has links to online applications we use at school and links to websites that offer support for parents. Please take some time to have a look and feel free to use the feedback form. We would love to hear further suggestions on how the parent portal can support you.

https://sites.google.com/dow.catholic.edu.au/st-pauls-moss-vale/home

This link takes you to a fact sheet on popular apps.

https://www.esafety.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-09/Parent%20guide%20to%20popular%20apps%20-%20Summary%20sheet.pdf

This link takes you to a checklist for parents about apps for children

https://www.esafety.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-09/Parent%20guide%20to%20popular%20apps%20-%20Checklist.pdf

The orders for the final Book Club for 2020 are due back by tomorrow - Friday October 30th.

No late orders can be accepted.  This is so we can process the orders and have them back to distribute by the end of term.

Please find attached PDF with all of the details on the Bundanoon Swim Club: