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As prayer for Autumn
As the leaves fall, appreciate what they were, the beauty they brought, the shade they provided. Seasons change, times change. All that can be done is to dress accordingly.
Wear a coat in winter, jacket in spring, shorts in the summer, and sweater in the autumn. Accordingly, let’s dress for the seasons of life.
"For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven."
Ecclesiastes 3
This year marks the 150th Anniversary of the Diocese of Ballarat. The Diocese has chosen a piece of scripture to encapsulate the occasion and it comes from Romans 12:12; 'Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer'.
These words capture the essence of resilience, perseverance, and steadfast faith that are central to our journey as a school community.
We live in hope, always knowing that the sun will rise again tomorrow and the day after that. Despite the afflictions and the challenges that naturally arise during our school days, we aim to remember that these challenges are a part of life, and it is through these harder experiences that we grow and learn to persevere and develop our resilience. The sun will rise tomorrow and we will aim to be better, do better and find joy in that hope of a new day.
As a Catholic learning community, prayer is our connection to God and this piece of scripture that has been chosen by Bishop Bird reminds us of the power of prayer and faith. Prayer is our conversation with God, and shows us that we are not alone, despite days when it can feel very much so.
As we head towards the middle of the term two, when we are really deep in our learning, when colds and flu start to emerge, when the sun starts to retreat; let us remember to hold onto hope, be patient through the dark and remain connected through prayer to something greater when we feel most alone.
Emily
St Alipius has recently commenced the Inform & Empower Digital Safety Education program.
Within the program, students are guided by Marty (Educator) and other presenters through the content and it's highly interactive, competing with other schools in Kahoots etc.
Marty then provides follow-up work and documents aligned to the content to go home to parents.
In addition to providing up-to-date and current education in this space, the program also offers standalone whole-school parent sessions that dive into the most recent apps, security settings, current risks and trends online etc.
Schedule Thursday 16th May 7:30pm in your diaries. We are looking forward to this wonderful learning opportunity!
Excellence
Equity
Empowerment
We wrote letters to Veterans to thank them for their bravery in serving our country and tell them what we had been learning about in relation to ANZAC day.
These letters will be passed on to Isla’s mum who will be able to give them to Veterans face to face, with her involvement in Veteran Affairs. Thank you Stacey!
On Monday lunch time it is the Prep children’s turn for the GaGa Pit. These little superstars were LOVING it and having a great time playing and laughing together! ‘GA GA GO!!!’
Across the school, we've had visits galore to the Ballarat Art Gallery. We even had the opportunity to look at the magnificent mural on Field Street.
In RE, we have been learning about the Easter story. We have been learning about the Stations of the Cross and about how we can walk in the footsteps of Jesus by doing kind things and showing love to everyone.
At the beginning of Term 2, we celebrated the Resurrection of Jesus with Easter Eggs which represent new life and new beginnings.
During Science we have been learning about observable properties of materials and how these properties can help to determine their use.
We looked at how a solid can be physically changed through different actions such as adding heat, whilst conducting his solar oven experiment.
Preparing food in the kitchen is a rich experience.
It is nurturing for the mind and body. As we cook we learn valuable lessons about ratios, ingredients, chemistry, communication, taste, smell, estimation, economics, sharing, service, presentation, hospitality and so much more.
If you walk past the 4/5LC on a Tuesday morning you are bound to smell some delicious aromas coming from the kitchen!
In our Year 4/5 Respectful Relationships sessions, we have been looking at personal strengths. We identified the strengths each of us possesses, looked at synonyms for them, and then discussed situations where they might be useful.
Some of these strengths include:
I don't waste anything
I help others
I bounce back
I collaborate with others
I think a lot
I can wait
Back from the Easter break, we hope students and staff feel refreshed and ready to approach Term 2.
"Safety first at St Alipius" is the theme of media exploration in Art this term.
Recently, the Year 6 team took to investigating how heat impacts plastics to produce unique forms..
Sculpture, design and understanding how materials can be shaped & re-shaped are key elements to Art.
To begin Term 2, we held a school assembly to revisit playground norms and expectations while also celebrating the examples of leadership we have seen on the yard.
Students in the 4/5 Learning Community have been working alongside Allana to engage with the Indigital program.
Indigital is a collaborative program where teachers and Elders and Knowledge Holders work together to teach Indigenous cultural knowledge, history and language, and digital skills to the next generation.
During the week of ANZAC Day, we used the book ANZAC Biscuits by Phil Cummings to direct our literacy learning. After learning about the history and importance of the buiscuits for soliders, we just had to make some ourselves!
Our Year 6 Leadership T-Shirts and jumpers certainly help to make us "look the part" in our final year of school. They also remind us that we have a special responsibility as the senior students at St Alipius - which is to lead by example both within our school grounds and in our local community.
Recently, we visited the Art Gallery of Ballarat and represented St Alipius with pride.
We are exploring 2D and 3D shapes.
First we checked in with our surface knowledge, working on knowing the names and properties of common shapes. We took photos of shapes around the school and collaborated to make shape collages (can you find the shapes?).
Next in our learning we will be deepening our knowledge of symmetry, transformation and transferring our knowledge to create and make 3D shapes.
Science with Allana, Music & Japanese with Adam, PE / Sport with Claire
and STEAM with Kaylah.
In STEAM students have been learning about the engineering design process with a strong focus on learning to work together to plan and problem solve. In Foundation to Year 2 students have enjoyed working with our new Makedo cardboard construction tools while senior students have been working collaboratively to plan, build and improve catapults.
Planning & Constructions
with Adam and Kotaro Sensei
Japan Day is an opportunity to dress up in something that represents Japanese culture - it can be as simple as the colours of the Japanese flag to as elaborate as a human sushi train!
Maths News!
On Tuesday 30th April we held a Maths Afternoon celebrating Maths! It was wonderful to welcome friends and families into our classrooms to share the fun and dynamic ways we learn and experience Maths at school.
Here's a Maths puzzle you might like to tackle together at home!
Share a photo of your working out or of you working it out with Lauren Spicer and you might end up in the next edition of SAPS News.
School-Wide Wellbeing
Lately has been an incredibly sad and traumatic time not only in our local community but across the country. As a community, it is important to navigate conversations with our children around what is happening with care and sensitivity.
We can do this by:
Being honest, but age-appropriate
Creating a safe space for open communication
Listening and validating feelings
Limiting or turning off media if it becomes too distressing
Encouraging positive actions such as creating a prayer space, writing cards or letters or making a donation to an appropriate organisation as a family.
Linked is the School TV Special Report on Trauma Recovery.
Community News!
Last week we officially opened and blessed our new Multipurpose Learning Space and Administration Wing Upgrade. We were thrilled to have the Hon Catherine King MP in attendance to open the space and Fr Justin bless our new buildings.
We also thank Diocese of Ballarat Catholic Education Limited for their support and Mayor of Ballarat Des Hudson for celebrating the occasion alongside us. It was fantastic to work alongside Magellan Building and Morton & Co Architects on this project.
Now to enjoy the new spaces!!
We warmly welcome St Alipius friends and families to join us for Whole Schol Prayer (WSP) in the McInerney Centre each Monday afternoon from 2:50pm.
WSP is held weekly except if there is a Liturgy or Mass scheduled for the same week.
This term we will commence our rotating roster of F-6 Learning Communities leading us in prayer.
We'd love to share this special time in our week with you.
Click the embedded posts below to view the St Alipius Parish School social media updates.
We love seeing what is happening in the lives of our past students!
Patrick Snowden
Will Vanderkley
Henry Gilbert
George Rogers
... all feature in the production of School of Rock at St Patrick's College, Ballarat.
Bookings now open!
Sporting News!
Click the embedded post on the right to view the St Alipius Parish School social media updates.
A reminder to current families with siblings ready to start school in 2025, and all other families looking to enrol their child at St Alipius:
‘Expressions of Interest for Enrolment’ is now open. We encourage you to complete your form via the link below to register your preference to attend St Alipius in 2025.
