Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School East Warrnambool eNewsletter

Acknowledgement of Country

Today we acknowledge and pay our respects to the First Peoples, the traditional custodians of the lands and waterways and thank them for their continued hospitality.

We acknowledge and celebrate the continuation of a living culture who have lived with Creator God through creation of land, sea, waterways and life.

Prayer

Leadership & Stewardship

Principal's Message

Dear members of the OLHC school community,

This week, alongside our Foundation teachers, I have taken the opportunity to do a number of Prep interviews. It has been a pleasure to meet and greet some of the younger brothers and sisters of existing OLHC families. We are blessed to have 39 siblings join us next year and I have been incredibly impressed by our next generation of students.

On Wednesday evening Sam Inverarity led a parent group of middle school children as they began their preparations for their First Eucharist. Both weekend masses will recognise and welcome children at these enrolment celebrations.

Today we welcomed over 500 Grandparents and special people to our school. We took the opportunity to provide a lovely morning tea (over two sittings to ensure everyone got something to eat) and to open up our classrooms so they could be with their grandchildren. Many grandparents take this opportunity to reconnect with old friends and it was a pleasure to host so many people who play a significant role in the lives of our students. Please pass on my thanks to them for making the effort to join us at OLHC. I trust they felt welcomed and loved.

Keep warm and dry over the weekend.

Steve

Grandparents Day Gallery

Term 3 Important Dates

Sat 22nd @ 6pm & Sun 23rd July @ 9am - Eucharist Enrolment Masses

Tue 25th & Wed 26th July - Parent-Teacher Conferences

Friday 28th July - School Closure /Staff Maths Professional Day

Thu 27th & Mon 31st July & Tue 1st August - Book Fair

Mon 31st July - Fri 4th August - New Family 2024 Foundation Interviews

Friday 1st September - Father's Day Breakfast

Friday 1st September - PFA Secondhand Uniform Sale

Sat 2nd & Sun 3rd September - Eucharist Celebrations

Sunday 3rd September - Father's Day

Friday 15th September - Term 3 concludes @ 2.30pm

**REMINDER: PORTAL CLOSES THIS MONDAY 24TH JULY**

Grandparents Day Gallery

Teaching & Learning @ OLHC

A Message from Mr A

Week 2 Term 3

We are back in the swing of things this week with plenty happening across the classrooms. Our Inquiry units are kicking off across the school with some fantastic activities for our students.

2024 FOUNDATION INTERVIEWS

We continue to welcome the 2024 students who have siblings at school this week. Mr Madden has done the bulk of the interviews this week as we look to welcome new families in the next couple of weeks. We’re lucky to have a principal invested in getting to know each individual student as we continually grow in size.

GRADE 1 INQUIRY- THINK, DESIGN, CREATE

The Grade 1 level had a crafternoon experience to kick off their Inquiry unit, Think, Design, Create. The teachers were supported with a high number of parents (and grandparent helpers) for the day as students got to work their way around different art and craft activities. The students love and remember days like this, well done Grade 1 team.

GRADE 4 INQUIRY- SHARED AND LOVED

Our Grade 4 cohort visited Loved and Shared on Tuesday. They are a non-profit organisation that works in partnership with our community to gift and rehome high-quality donated nursery and children’s goods, ensuring all families have access to essential resources needed to raise thriving children while reducing the amount of goods sent to landfill in our region. This links to their Inquiry unit, The Blue Marble, which has a big focus on sustainability. The students will be returning in small groups later in the term to assist in sorting the donated goods. Our very own Mrs McPherson played an integral role in bringing Loved and Shared to Warrnambool. Well done Bridget and Grade 4 level. Photos below.....

GRANDPARENTS DAY

What a hit! Great to have so many grandparents onsite today and there was an air of anticipation from the student population in the lead up. These people have such a special place in our lives and we are fortunate to have them visit our school. Well done to the teachers who opened up the classrooms and a special mention to our support staff for their assistance around the school at this time. Also thank you to our PFA and office staff for organising and catering the morning tea.

PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES NEXT WEEK

Our conferences begin next week on Tuesday and Wednesday. Please ensure you arrive on time so teachers can adhere to the agreed times for all families. If there is a pressing concern that doesn’t get discussed or resolved, teachers are open to following up after the conferences.

Have a relaxing weekend with your family.

Thanks,

Naish

Yr 4 Loved & Shared Excursion

Cyber Safety Bits with Ms Fitzgerald and Mrs Murfett

Hello Parents, Guardians and Friends,

Each week the Digital Technology teachers Ms Fitzgerald and Mrs Murfett will be bringing you new cybersafety tips and what is going on in the technology room this week. If you have any questions or concerns regarding cybersafety please contact us on:

Ellen Fitzgerald: efitzgerald@olhcwarrnambool.catholic.edu.au

Sarah Murfett: smurfett@olhcwarrnambool.catholic.edu.au

Pause and Think Online

Last week in Grade 1, we focused on learning how to use our body parts to help keep us safer online. We listened to a song and discuss the different body parts to help keep us safe. They are:

Use your arms when you're online to balance your time

Listen to your gut to stay safe online
Use your feet carefully when leaving tracks online
Use your legs to stand up to bullies online
Use your heart to be kind and respectful online
Use your head to ask questions about what you see online

Here is the link to the song:

Pause & Think Online

Here are some colouring sheets for home:

the-digital-citizens-coloring-book_0.pdf

What is going on in the classrooms this week?

Foundation: Will be creating their on Little Learners Love Literacy book using Google Slides.

1s: Will be learning to use Googles new feature Autodraw.

2s: Will be starting to create a Google Slides all about themselves and learning all the features of the app.

3s: Will be using Google Draw to copy a picture of a minion

4s: Will be starting their project on Google Draw to create a comic strip

5s and 6s: Will be creating their own website using Google Sites

Grandparents Day Gallery

Sports Report

SSV Hockey

Today 19 Grade 5 students ventured to the Warrnambool Hockey Center to play in the SSV Division hockey tournament.

In the girl's competition, 8 took the field in a round-robin competition v St Pius, East Warrnambool, St Joesphs, and Warrnambool Primary. The girls had a great day with some very close games. Well done girls.

The boy's competition saw two pools of 5. 11 boys played in pool 2 against Grassmere, Camperdown, St Josephs, and Cobden, winning three to book a spot in the Semi Final against East Warrnambool.

Halftime saw the score locked at 0-0 same great play by both sides. East eventually ran out winners. A great day for all players with some fantastic highlights throughout the day.

Awards

Classroom Awards

Foundation

Ida Robertson

Pip Bongers

Milly Dolphin

Clara Tune

Theo Davis

Cohen Skene

Yr 1

Mabel Couch

Ruben Davis

Nadar Mutti

Willow Krepp

Harriet Jess

Charlotte Nelson

Yr 2

Sophie Battisello

Lily O'Keefe

Finn Fogarty

Freddie Spikin

Maeve Barraclough

Brooklyn Suridge

Yr 3

Willow Wickenton

Bonnie Dickson

Sienna Grant

Matilda Parsons

Harry White

Ella Crawford

Yr 4

Meredith Holmes

Amelia Hawken

Oliver Drake

Jonah Davis

Indi Pickford

Hudson Ryan

Yr 5

Zara Doherty

Milah Knowles

Alicia Martin

Mikaylah Moloney

Lola Paton

Harvey Warburton

Yr 6

Amelia Barnes

Hugh White

Lily Hogan

Bridie McCrohan

Emily Hancock

Ashton Giblin

Spirit of Our Lady's Awards

Freddie Rowan

Archer Bowley

Lylah White

Harper Griffin

Leo Warburton

Elky Veale

Grandparents Day Gallery

Faith & Culture

Parish Office Hours: 9am - 4pm Monday - Friday

P: 5562 2231

E: southwestcoast@ballarat.catholic.org.au

Eucharist Dates

Enrolment weekend: July 22nd & 23rd

Eucharist Practice: 24th August @ 2 pm

Celebration of Eucharist: September 2nd & 3rd - Please note change of dates

Might and Mercy
(Matthew 13: 24 - 43)

Just as power is used for good or harm, not all seeds are created equal. Jesus tells a story of good seed and bad, and how they grow up together in the harvest of the world. We experience this reality in the contents of our own hearts. We have wonderful, generous impulses; and also cruel, petty thoughts. We may be heroic in our love one day, and selfish the next. We forgive and withhold forgiveness. Our fields are waist-high in grain and thistles.

No wonder that good and bad grow up together in families; parishes are a mixture of charity and snobbery; politics is full of high-minded ideals and crude scandal. If we were surprised when nice people do things that are not nice, we have to look no further than this parable for the reason. Reasons are not excuses, of course. Jesus says even a tiny seed of good can create immense goodness. A bit of yeast makes the whole dough rise. The existence of evil is no reason to view it as inevitable. If I find within myself both good and evil, I have a responsibility to grow the grain and invite the Spirit to uproot the thistle in me.

Pray
God of dreams and visions, we enter into moments of stillness and feel your presence. Through relationships – our relationships with you and with others – we know that you are constantly with us. We thank you for your many gifts to us, but especially for the gifts of being named, known, and cherished by you. Amen.

Ponder
Try “preventative” and “punitive” justice. Give people a break: forgive and show mercy before it’s deserved. Be kind when kindness isn’t returned. Try patience instead of irritation. Plant a good seed in every encounter. “Are you listening to this? Really listening?”

Weed It and Reap

Jesus continued, “The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?’ He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you’ll pull up the wheat, too. Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I’ll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the shed’”. (Matthew 13: 28 - 30)

My wife and I were young and naïve when we bought our first house. We moved into it in early spring, and soon discovered that the woman who owned the house before us had been a wonderful gardener. Each new day of spring seemed to reveal another flower, plant, or shrub coming to life.

Luckily, the neighbours living on either side of our house were patient with us. These elderly couples were themselves great gardeners and, after watching us mishandle the garden chores for a while, began to offer gentle advice and instruction. My favourite memory is the day Olga leaned over the fence and said with a kind smile, “You know, that tall plant you keep watering every day? That one’s a weed”. And not only was I feeding the weeds, I was also yanking plants that, if they had been left to grow, would have blossomed into brilliant flowers.

This week’s gospel talks about weeds and wheat and how to handle them. We all need spiritual neighbours who have learned a thing or two about the weeds and the wheat and how they crop up in our lives. Listen to the people who know. Cultivate sources of wisdom in your life –the sacraments, good spiritual reading, daily prayer – and pay attention to them. Because life isn’t just a bed of roses.

Parish Bulletin

New_Star_of_the_Sea_30_.pdf

Grandparents Day Gallery

Wellbeing

If you want to learn to ride a skateboard or get better at maths, you need to practise. It’s the same when you want to feel happier!

Here are some easy ideas to give Gratitude, Empathy, Mindfulness and Emotional Literacy a try every day. Because the more you practise, the better you will feel.

Let's Practice!

4 Steps to Overcome Anxiety

Anxious thoughts and feelings can affect so many of us in our day to day. Fortunately, @doc_amen and Lisa Smusz, Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, offer some excellent advice on how to overcome anxiety during the tough times. Click on the link below...................

4 Steps to Overcome Anxiety

Glycaemic Index: What is it? Why should I care?

Tell me more about glycaemic index?

You’ve probably heard of glycemic index (GI), but do you really understand what it means?

Simply put, it is a measure of how quickly carbohydrates in food are broken down and absorbed into the bloodstream, causing a rise in blood sugar levels. Foods have been lab tested and given a ranking on a scale from 1 to 100 according to the extent to which they raise the blood sugar after eating.

Foods with a high GI are rapidly digested and cause a rapid spike in blood sugar levels, while foods with a low GI are digested more slowly and cause a gradual rise in blood sugar levels.

A low GI food (which is what we ideally want to aim for) has a score of equal or less than 55.

Why should I care about GI?

If you have high GI foods, they can cause a rapid spike in blood sugar levels, which can lead to a range of health problems, especially when this happens frequently. Think type 2 diabetes, increased cholesterol, and increasing weight.

Also, low GI foods tend to be more nutrient-dense, meaning they contain more vitamins, minerals, and fiber than high GI foods.

Here is a nice little summary of the benefits of low GI foods:

Reduce insulin levels, which play a role in fat metabolism
Facilitates greater fat loss – low GI foods help burn more body fat and less muscle
Help you to feel full for longer due to slowing the rate of digestion
Reduce food cravings
Help maintain long-term weight loss

How do I know which foods are low GI?

Head over to the University of Sydney website – they have a comprehensive database of tested foods: https://glycemicindex.com/

The other thing to consider, is to make higher GI foods more “blood sugar friendly”, is add in some lean protein and healthy fats. What these two things do, is help to slow down the digestion of the carbs overall.

An example of this is, you are much better off having a piece of chocolate alongside a handful of nuts, because at least the nuts will help to slow down the sugar rush of the chocolate.

Grandparents Day Gallery

Parents & Friends Association

Grandparents Day Gallery

Term 3: Concluding on Wednesday 30th August

Term 4: Monday 9th October, concluding on Wednesday 22nd November

The students participating, meet staff in the courtyard after school where they have some fruit before heading over to the school hall.

This program runs from 3.30pm to 4.45pm

We appreciated parents/guardians being prompt on pick up.

Enrolment forms are in the school foyer or can be found on PAM in the "Knowledge Bank" under forms and then selecting sporting schools or on the link below.

These forms need to be returned to the school office prior to your child/ren participating in the program.

If you have any further queries please contact the school office.

Grandparents Day Gallery

Lingapiny Ajak Inc. Is a registered non-profit charity organization, established in March 2023. Our mission is to teach and empower underprivileged individuals, families and communities in Sudan and continue to develop projects that assist creating a better life for all.

Earlier in the term we included in our newsletter, an article that was in the local newspaper putting the spotlight on Teresa Padiet (Yr 6 student Evans Ajang's mum) and the wonderful work she is achieving in Sudan. Please see details on the webpage below.

Webiste: lingapinyajak.org

Email: lingapinyajak@gmail.com