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Kingston Council Award
St Catherine’s playgroup has been nominated for Kingston’s Council’s Community Group of the Year Award.
For families who have not visited our playgroup on a Tuesday or Thursday, our school offers a free playgroup to 25-30 students and their families twice a week. Kath Barca runs our playgroup, setting up equipment, liaising and supporting families to make connections and build friendships. Kath embodies our Catholic call to mission and service to others as she welcomes all families within our local community. The announcement of the award will take place on Tuesday 21 May.
Kingston Council Road Safety Audit
Last week members of Kingston Council road safety team worked with Mrs Carmel Donlon and year 6 students, Lachlan, Carmeron and Lily Mae, looking at ways the council can support road safety around our school. The students share their experiences of walking, riding and driving to school and possible solutions to issues they have encountered as they travel to and from school. We spoke at length to the Kingston staff about possible improvements to parking around the school. We will keep you informed as we continue to consult with the council on possible changes to improve safety.
Families are reminded to please not use the driveway at the front of the school to drop off students. This is unsafe as students and parents use this area as one of the main access points to enter the school.
Reminders about school expectations for students
Students are not permitted to access phones or other personal technology devices during school hours. Personal phones must be handed into the school office before school and collected after school. If there is an urgent matter that requires a parent to contact their child, they must call the school office.
Students are reminded to keep their hands to themselves. We ask students to not touch other students (putting arms around each other, linking arms).
Teachers have reminded students about using appropriate language while playing. We have a zero tolerance to the use of swearing and language that offends or hurts others.
Next week our year 6 student leaders will be looking for students who are exhibiting our school values of being respectful, responsible and kind. They will be awarding students who demonstrate these values with a kindness sticker. Students will also receive house points.
To ensure everyone is safe students must walk their bike on the school grounds.
School Camp
Plans are being finalised for year 5-6 camp and students are getting excited about all the adventure activities on offer at camp. I will be attending year 5-6 camp from Monday 20- Wednesday 22 May. In my absence please contact Carmel Donlon. carmel.donlon@scmoorabbin.catholic.edu.au
Mother’s Day
Wishing all our mothers, grandmothers and friends who love and care for our students, a very happy Mother’s day on Sunday. We thank them for the role they play in the family unit, for their love, wisdom, patience, and understanding.
Thank you to our P & F and staff and students from OLSH for once again organising the Mother’s Day stall. Students will attend the Mother’s Day Stall on Thursday 9 May.
Confirmation- Year 6 Students
In 2024 the students will receive the Sacrament of Confirmation on Sunday, 26th May at 3.00pm.
(St Peter’s Church, 844 Centre Road, Bentleigh East)
Presentation to the Parish Community
On Sunday the Confirmation candidates attended the 10.30am Parish Mass at St Catherine’s. Father John welcomed the students and their families. Thanks to Megan Moore who came to mass to welcome and support the candidates and their families.
After communion the students read this prayer to the congregation...
Holy Spirit, you are the giver of many gifts which God wants to give me personally.
Open my heart and my mind as I prepare for Confirmation.
Help me to know that you are confirming all the goodness that I am, and all the goodness that I will become.
Increase my desire to know and follow Jesus as his disciple with a grateful and courageous heart.
Amen
Confirmation Reflection Day for students- Wednesday 15th May
Venue- St Catherine’s Learning Hub
All Confirmation Candidates & Year 6 students (even those not making their confirmation) will participate in a Reflection Day at school. Students may wear casual clothes to school.
Bishop Tony Ireland- School Visit
9.15-1.12.15pm Friday 24th May
Venue: St Peter’s Church (844 Centre Road Bentleigh East)
Parents are asked to drop students at St Peter’s Office at 9.15am, pick them up at 12.15pm and drop them back to St Catherine’s. St Catherine’s staff (Sandra Renehan & Carmel Donlon) will meet the students and parents at St Peter’s School Office at 9.15am. Students will return to St Catherine's in time to participate in interschool sport.
Eucharist 2024 - 10.30am Sunday, 25th August
All eligible students will celebrate their First Eucharist on Sunday, 25th August.
Detailed information and an Enrolment Form will be sent home at the end of this week.
Important dates for your diary:
Eucharist Family Workshop- 6pm Tuesday, 16th July (Learning Hub)
Presentation Mass- 10.30am Sunday, 4th August (St Catherine’s Church)
Eucharist Reflection Day- 9.00-3.30pm Wednesday, 7th August (Learning Hub)
First Eucharist Mass- 10.30am Sunday, 25th August
Classes attending Parish Mass- 10am Wednesday
Families are welcome to attend.
Wednesday, 8th May- 3/4JB & 3/4DK
Wednesday, 15th May- 6MR & FMH
Wednesday, 29th May- 1/2AT & 5JH
Wednesday, 5th June- 3/4JB & 3/4DK
Wednesday 12th June- 6MR & FMH
Wednesday 19th June- 1/2AT & 5JH
Please contact me by phone or email if you have any questions or require clarification.
Carmel Donlon- Religious Education Leader
The Kingston Youth Services is hosting an upcoming free online parent information session on cultivating a body-positive environment at home. The following is an outline of the online session provided by the Youth Service Team Leader Tanya Marques.
Empowering Your Teen: Building a Body-Positive Home
Raising a teenager comes with unique challenges, and navigating body image can be one of the toughest. This informative session equips parents with practical tools to cultivate a body-positive environment at home.
We'll delve into strategies for promoting healthy self-esteem, preventing eating issues, and fostering healthy behaviours in your teen. Learn how to:
- Encourage Body Kindness: Discover ways to promote positive self-talk and appreciation for all bodies.
- Navigate Negative Thoughts: Equip yourself with techniques to respond effectively when your teen expresses negativity towards themselves or others.
- Focus on Wellbeing: Shift the focus from appearance to healthy habits and overall well-being.
This session goes beyond simply understanding eating disorders; it empowers you to proactively cultivate a supportive and nurturing environment for your teen to thrive.
Reserve your spot today and join us in raising confident and healthy young adults!
The Resilience Project
Classes are continuing to identify and recognise the GEM principles: gratitude, empathy, mindfulness and emotional literacy in themselves and in others at school and beyond. We would like to extend an invitation for families to use GEM chats at home. Each newsletter we will include some GEM chat ideas you might like to share as a family. The chat needs to only be 2-5 minutes long and can be done at any time eg: in the car on the way home, at the dinner table or while doing homework. Developing these chats at home helps to continue to make connections with sessions completed in the classroom. Each principle has a matching colour to assist in identifying the focus. Gratitude is orange, mindfulness is purple, empathy is green and emotional literacy is pink.
Have a great week.
Maree
Privacy Awareness Week 6th - 12th May
Privacy Awareness Week runs from the 6th - 12th May. During this week use the opportunity to discuss with your children about online privacy risks. Check in with them to ensure they have the knowledge and skills they need to keep their personal information safe and the safety of others in relation to uploading photos. The following link is from the eSafety Commissioner website in the eSafety kids section. Sharing photos & personal info online
St Catherine’s Read More In May
ONE WEEK TO GO!!
Scholastic Book Fair
Pace: Foundation
Sebastien: 1/2AT
Martin: 3/4DK
Haley: 3/4JB
Cooper: 5JH
Lachlan: 6MR
Courtyard Activities
The Student Voice team has done a great job organising courtyard activities for their peers.
Activities so far have been:
- Chess
- Origami
- Drawing & colouring
- Construction with giant Jenga and greenhouse wooden blocks
- Reading bus
- Lego
Homework Survey/Opinions
This week the students will survey their classes to get some feedback/opinions about homework. The students' responses will be considered as part of our Homework Policy update this term.
These are the 3 questions the students will ask their classes;
- Why do you think teachers assign homework for you to do at home?
- What work should you be doing at home?
- How much work should we be doing at home?
Carmel Donlon (Student Voice Facilitator)
FMH
Place Value
This term we have had a focus on counting and place value. Each lesson we have been counting to 20 forwards and backwards, then moving on to starting our counting from different starting points to and from 20. We have been developing our number sense by subitising numbers to 10. The students love to call out when we use our quick pace Google slides where they need to work out the number being represented in a variety of ways eg: tally marks, images, dots. We have had a big focus on writing the numbers 1-20 using the correct starting and exit points.
We have been working on our estimation skills to identify a collection of counters. They were very engaged and quite serious when grabbing their handful of counters to estimate. Estimations were recorded and then they counted them and to check their answers, they used tens frames to place their counters on. Their estimation skills have improved greatly in the last 3 weeks.
We have used a variety of games to consolidate their understanding of place value, a favourite being the Great Space Race where each player turns over cards and identifies who has the largest number. The highlight of this game is when the students play against me and they win.
1/2AT
Addition and Subtraction in 1/2
In 1/2, we have been learning how to solve addition and subtraction problems involving 2-digit numbers. We have been trialling different strategies to become more efficient problem-solvers. We have been practising how to solve problems using visual representations such as using 10’s frames and following the Jump Strategy, using number lines. The 1’s and 2’s have also been practising the Split Strategy, using our knowledge of place value.
3/4
Time
In year 3 and 4 we have been working on time. Some students have been exploring the concept of time by understanding the relationship between minutes and hours. Students enjoyed creating clocks outside with chalk and hula hoops and making different times. Other students have been working on planning trips to Sydney to help them with their understanding of elapsed time.
In Year 5 Maths students have been learning about addition and subtraction. They have been developing their confidence using the vertical addition and subtraction strategy, adding and subtracting numbers up to hundreds of thousands and well beyond!
There has been some discussion around various strategies that can also be applied to assist in solving vertical addition and subtraction equations. Students have revised their knowledge of place value and its importance when using the vertical addition and subtraction strategy. This has allowed them to practice regrouping numbers with accuracy. With practice, students have become increasingly confident in doing this.
The students have demonstrated a fantastic attitude to this unit and have been enjoying the challenge opportunities, always wanting to give them a go!
Year 5 students will be beginning a multiplication and division unit this week.
Fractions are a student's first introduction to abstraction in mathematics and, as such, provide the best introduction to algebra in the elementary and middle school years. This makes proficiency with fractions important as they form a foundation for learning more advanced mathematics.
In Year 6, we have been comparing fractions, locating and representing them on a numberline, adding and subtracting fractions with the same, like or completely different denominators, and finding simple fractions of a quantity.
Daraius M (Year 6) - I love finding the LCM when adding and subtracting fractions with completely different denominators. I also like the challenge of comparing smaller and larger fractions. I’m looking forward to multiplying and dividing them this week.
Analia C (Year 6) - Fractions at times can be tough but I really like adding and subtracting fractions as well as converting improper to mixed numerals and vice versa. I look forward to working on problems where the denominators are completely different.
Lachie P (Year 6) - I have been adding and subtracting fractions with unrelated denominators. You do this by find the lowest common multiple of both denominators and I like the maths involved here. I have also been looking at which fractions is largest, comparing positive and negative fractions. I am looking forward to multiplying and dividing fractions with positive and negative.
HOLT Cross Country
Susan Pattinson
PE and Sport Coordinator
Kingston Road Safety Program- WoW 'Walk or Wheel to School'
WoW!
LET'S DO IT, NO MATTER THE WEATHER.
Dear parents and carers,
We are pleased to see our WoW! Program is doing well since we started last Friday. This is ‘Walk or Wheel Once a Week’ with the City of Kingston. This program encourages students to walk, scoot or bike to school every Friday. As we approach the winter season, we understand that the weather can be challenging, but we have some encouraging tips to help make it easier for families to participate:
- Dress appropriately: Make sure to wear warm and waterproof clothing, hats, gloves, and scarves to stay warm and dry;
- Umbrellas and raincoats if it’s a rainy day;
- Buddy up: Encourage your child to walk or cycle with a friend or a group of friends. This will not only make it more enjoyable but also safer;
- Stay visible: Bright or light clothing is helpful to stay visible. Reflective clothing or accessories are helpful, especially for the colder mornings.
We encourage families to participate in the WoW Program and make it a regular part of their weekly routine. Together we can promote healthy habits and reduce traffic congestion around the school.
