Week 2

We acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we gather today - 

The Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. 

Information in this week's newsletter

  Prayer 

News from our Principal

Dear Families, 


Welcome back to Term 2. I hope that all in our community had a wonderful Easter break celebrating with family and friends. 


I would firstly like to congratulate our STM community for raising $552.45 from our end of term 1 gold coin donation for the RCH. This money has now been sent to the Royal Children's  hospital. 


2024 prep interviews have commenced. If you have a child ready to begin school in 2024, please collect an enrolment form from Mary in the front office and hand it back to the office as soon as possible as we have had many new families, who reside within our catchment, return an enrolment form. We are looking forward to them joining our school community in 2024. 


There are many activities happening this term; tennis, chess club, mother's day celebrations, incursions/excursions, swimming program, Cross Country divisions and Year 6 winter interschool sports. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the following members of our school community for their efforts in organising and running the STM Parents Night Out. Sally, Jodie and Katia worked tirelessly to ensure this event was successful. We are so grateful to have community members such as yourselves helping support the school. 


Term 2 is a report writing term. Families will have the opportunity to meet with their child's teacher for a chat at the end of the term. More information about bookings will be sent out in the coming weeks.  


You will notice a new section in the our newsletter named 'Awards'. Students who receive an award at assembly will be listed under this section the following week in the newsletter. Last Friday's recipients have been acknowledged below, CONGRATULATIONS! 


This term we are proud in welcoming university students on placement as well as Year 10 students on Work Experience, most of whom are past STM students. We hope you have an amazing experience here at STM! 


Our curriculum day this term will be on Friday 26th May. This is will be a student free day as staff will engage in professional learning in Catholic Faith Development. 


School fee statements were emailed earlier this week. Please ensure your accounts are up to date. 


Term 2 is a short 9 week term finishing on Friday 23rd  June at 12.00pm. 


Kind regards, 

David Hurn 

Principal 








Important dates - Events for Term 2

MAY

JUNE

JULY

**'Public Events' are listed on our website under 'News and Events', the link being; https://www.stmhadfield.catholic.edu.au/news-events

On the bottom right hand side there is a blue box with a + symbol. If you have a google account, you can link the 'Public Events' calendar to your own personal Google calendar and keep up to date with the most current events and times.

Please don't hesitate to contact the office if you have any questions.

Learning and Teaching - inquiry learning 

Our school focus for Inquiry Learning this term, comes from the host area of History from the Victorian Curriculum.

Designing learning and curiosity is inspired by the following 'throughline', an overarching statement.

The human story explains how the past has shaped our world. Human identity is expressed through rituals, traditions and stories held by families, local, indigenous, national and global communities. Our students will explore and critically examine historical events and experiences from different perspectives. We seek to inspire an appreciation of the past as a way of understanding who we are and where we have come from, in an effort to create a safe and supportive future for all.

We hope that this will give you an insight into what the children will explore and discover this term. 

Prep, Year 1 and Year 2
The Victorian Achievement Standard for History at this level is by the end of Year 2. Therefore, the learning foci are very similar, however, the tasks and expectations of understandings are developmentally appropriate for children at each year level. Prior to planning, each team collects prior knowledge and children's wonderings. This is an integral part of the planning and helps us to shape the learning pathways, responding to the children's' current understandings and their wonderings about the concept of history.

Personal history is unpacked through learning about our family traditions. Over time, traditions are important in families and can be very similar and or different to other families. Understanding that traditions help us form an understanding of history as they occur repeatedly over time - some from generation to generation. 

Learning about toys from the past is exciting for children to explore from a historical perspective. This learning will be supported by an incursion. Discussing the function of toys from the past, their similarities and differences and even comparing them to toys in the present day, will allow children to form ideas about how toys have changed over time. They will use various 'thinking tools' such as think, pair share and their observational skills to formulate their understandings.  Investigating how things from the past, may still be in the present but have changed due to people's needs. It will also allow us to predict how toys may change in the future. Integrated in this mini inquiry, we will also learn about and play some First Nations games that have been passed on from generation to generation

Following this, children will learn about what school was like in our parents and grandparents' day. Children will be 'historians' who will ask questions, perhaps interview parents and grandparents, listen to guests tell personal stories, explore pictures and use videos as sources of information. This will support children to discover the similarities and differences between school in the past and now. Along the learning, we will honour and respond to children's wonderings and curiosities.

Year 3 and 4

Once again, the Victorian Achievement Standard for History at this level is by the end of Year 4. We have collected and interpreted children's current understandings to design learning pathways which align with the curriculum demands. 

Children will investigate how colonisation occurred in Australia. Discovering the journey and reasons for the First Fleet's arrival will give children an insight into the story of our history, and confirm or debunk any of their current understandings. An excursion to Pollywoodside will enable children to discover the conditions for travel and the reasons convicts were sent to Australia. They will also learn about the important people who led this journey and how their decisions influenced the consequences for the new arrivals. Investigating colonisation from the perspectives of our First Nations people and first settlers will enable the children to identify and empathise with the impact of settlement. Unearthing  some of the significant people such as Bennelong and Pemulwuy during colonisation in Australian history,  will broaden children's understanding of how these people influenced change. Children will be provided with opportunity to choose how they would like to present their learning using digital tools or perhaps in art form. Additionally, children's wonderings gathered along the learning pathway, will be incorporated in the designing of learning.


Year 5 and 6

The Victorian Achievement Standard for History at this level is by the end of Year 6. Prior to planning the learning pathway, we collect children's current understandings of concepts such as history, perspectives and events.  These understandings, alongside any questions the children have about history, guide us in our planning to address the learning demands of the curriculum.   

Building on the knowledge children learned in Years 3 and 4,  this history inquiry explores some of the significant events that occurred in Australia since Federation. Learning about notable First Nations people such as Eddie Mabo, Edith Cowan and Vincent Lingari will empower children to deepen their understanding of how these people influenced changed and have helped shape our country. Investigating the causes and effects of the changes these significant people made will empower children to respond to the events in our Australian history. History can be viewed from different perspectives, therefore it is an essential part of learning that we explore these perspectives so we can formulate grounded opinions based on historical facts. Furthermore, developing skills in chronology, arranging events or dates in the order of their occurrence is a skill the children will develop. This history unit will additionally require children to unpack the Research Process., as it demonstrates  and highlights, how historians collect information, and then formulate learning that is based on evidence from reputable and reliable sources. Research 'sprints'  (short bursts of  allocated time), will boost children's skills in being discerning in locating information, recording key words in point from and then write concisely in their own words. Children will have also have choice in the way they would like to present their learning. The design of this learning will evolve as the learning progresses throughout the term. 

Learning Showcase in Term 2.
A huge thank you to all the parents and family members that attended their child's learning showcase in Term 1. It was lovely to see and hear the children's excitement and enthusiasm to share their learning with you.
As Term 2 is only nine weeks, learning showcases will most likely happen earlier than the last few weeks. We will inform you of these in the next newsletter to give you enough time to make arrangements to come to school and learn with your child. Stay tuned!

Rita Totino

Learning and Teaching Leader                     

English

Prep & Year 1 Reading Workshop


Dear Prep and Year 1 families,


A meeting will be held Thursday 1st June at the following times:


We invite you to attend this meeting to explore ways that you can help your child with reading at home. We will also look at the importance of other factors, particularly oral language and phonological awareness, in the acquisition of early literacy skills. 

You will be able to register your attendance via an Operoo form.


Kind Regards

Julie Hanna

Literacy leader

Kids News Junior Journalist competition

Dear Year 3 - 6 Parents, 

Please find a writing competition below that your child may be interested in:

The search is on for the next generation of news breakers with the Kids News Junior Journalist competition. The free competition is open to children in Years 3-9, with four categories for both primary and secondary students: 


If your child is interested please visit the following website for more information: 

Junior Journalist Competition

Family Engagement

On Thursday 11th of May, the STMPA will be hosting a breakfast to celebrate the mother figures in our community. Thank you to those who have RSVPd and we look forward to seeing you all!

Also on Thursday May 11th, there will be a gift stall for children to purchase presents for their mother figures. Prices of gifts will range from $2-$10. There will be a maximum of two gifts per child. The children will purchase using coins or cash on the day. We also ask that each child bring their own carry bag to place the gifts in. Older siblings will visit the stall with younger siblings to support them and prevent double ups! 

If you are interested in becoming a Parent Rep for your child's class, joining the STMPA, or volunteering for fundraisers and events throughout the year, please fill out your details in this document.  We would love to welcome you!

Regards,
Kate Mackintosh

Community News and Announcements

At the end of Term 1, we had Carley and Marty from Inform and Empower discuss online safety with our parent community. Carley and Marty are experienced at engaging their audience and provide relevant, expert advice on how how to keep kids safe online. Please feel free to access and refer back to the parent information presentation by visiting this link. 

Raising Kids in a Digital World - Parent Resources

https://www.informandempower.com.au/parents

Toolkit (with links, info from slides and more) is available for the entire year.

Video content is available for 30 days and will need the password to access: march2023

Thanks to the parents who RSVP and attended the information session.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank you again for organising the information session last night. The presenters were knowledgeable and engaging and there were some very valuable lessons learnt in relation to how quickly things change in the virtual world. It was an eye opener to be shown what our children could potentially be exposed to and the impact on them socially and emotionally when/if they enter this space unprepared and unsupervised. I definitely took away some tools to implement in our home, including rethinking my habits as a parent and role model. Appreciate your support on this important matter for our school community."

STM PARENT

Awards

Marcus B - for consistently showing a happy, fun and positive attidue to his learning and daily life at school. Keep smiling 

Evie B - for showing resilience and a positive attitude 

Maximillano A - for consistently giving all tasks a go and always displaying work that he is proud of! 

Jasmine H - for persisting in learning her letters and sounds and applying these within given Literacy tasks. Keep up the positive attitude 

Indianna D - for approaching all learning tasks with a positive attitude and trying her best with her letters and sounds 

Ryder G - for bouncing straight back into routine after your holiday in Nepal and entering the classroom every day with a smile

Eleanor C - for approaching all learning tasks with a positive attitude and showing determination and persistence. Keep up the great work! 

Hugo I - for having a positive mindset and showing determination and focus when completing his writing activities. Keep up the great work! 

William P - for your consistent willingness to give anything a go independently. Amazing job William. Keep it up! 

Mikaela T - for coming into school this term with a big smile and getting yourself organised for the day. Well done!  

Amelia K - for consistently making great personal connections to any topic we are talking about. You show you are thinking deeply about what we are learning. Thank you for your insightful contributions

Tyler W - for his fantastic start to the term! You have come to school each day with a smile and done an amazing job sounding out your words when reading! Thank you for brightening 1W! 

Sebastian P - for being a role model to others by consistently modelling responsible and respectful behaviour in class 

Adele R - for listening to others respectfully and consistently making great personal connections. Well done for thoughtfully contributing to class discussions 

Sienna F - for settling into her new school with a positive mindset and always approaching new tasks with enthusiasm 

Jai P - for being a positive role model by always following and upholding school expectations 

Matilda E - for approaching challenages with a positive mindset and making relevant classroom discussions 

Hudson V - for being a respectful and kind member of 2W who always up holds school expectations 

Enzo M - for consistently modelling responsible and respectful behaviour in class. You are a fantastic role model to others! 

Jamie V - for approaching all learning tasks with a positive attitude aand growth mindset

Isabel M - for showing resilience towards her learning by taking on challenges and setbacks as positive feedback to help you improve! 

Poppy W - for being inclusive of her peers in the classroom and on the yard. You are an awesome role model to others! 

Celia F - for having an ogoing growth mindset and persisting to master new challenges 

Juliet W - for an incredibly positive attitude in all of her learning! You are a model for others! 

Kamelia D - This award is proudly presented to Kami for remaining focused in class and trying her best even when the task is a bit challenging 

Leonardo H - This award is proudly presented to Leonardo  for always being organised and ready to learn with an excellent attitude to all learning tasks 

Sophia D - This award is proudly presented to Sophia for consistently expressing enthusiasm and persistence when taking on challenges in math

Jack S - This award is proudly presented to Jack for his curiosity and valuable contributions to class discussions. Keep up the great work! 

Luka B - This award is proudly presented to Luka for consistently demonstrating the values of respect and responsibility. You are a great role model for others Luka! 

Grace D - This award is proudly presented to Grace for consistently following expectations in the classroom and always persisting with learning tasks. Well done Grace! 

Reuben D - for consistently modelling the PBL values of respect, responsibility, resilience and safety in class. You are an excellent role model for others Rueben

Asher F - for coming to school every day with a positive attitude, a big smile and a willingness to always help others. These are such great qualities Asher, keep it up! 

Zane C - for consistently expressing enthusiasm when contributing to class discussion and building on the ideas of others

Adar K - for consistently modelling responsible and respectful behaviour inside and outside of class. You are a fantastic role model to others! 

Antonio C - For being on task and working independetly with greater independence throughout the school day 

Alexander T - his insightfultext response to text 'Ziba Came on a Boat. Alexander  used creative visuals to describe a significant event from the story 

Daniel M - For consistently following teacher instruction and modelling responsible behaviour in class. You are a great role model to others, Daniel.

Henry P - For coming to school everyday with a positive attitude, a big smile and a willingness to alwats help others. These are such great qualities, Henry. Keep it up! 

William M - For consistently challenging himself during Maths lessons and showing persistence and determination with all tasks. 

Sienna T - For having a growth mindset with all tasks, showing initiative in the classroom and showing the PBL values of respect and responsibility everyday

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