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 Parents, Guardians & Students,

As term 3 draws to a close, I wish to take this opportunity to thank all the students, staff and parents playing their part in making us a great school. Today we hosted a significant number of Grandparents, many of who had travelled some distance to visit us and their families. We love this day and sincerely thank all families for their contributions. I wish to also thank Shannon Rae for her tireless efforts to coordinate the “feeding of 1000”s”.

On Wednesday, Matt O'Brien (Principal of St Josephs) and I met to interview 9 young adults looking to apply for our respective school trainee positions. We look forward to welcoming some great young people into our schools and will let the community know early term 4.

A number of OLHC staff and families are heavily involved in Hampden league finals, both North and South of Raglan Parade and I wish them all the best on Saturday.

Lastly, as we head into the holidays and hand over your children for a few weeks I thought I might share a reminder of Children's Property Laws…good luck and have a great holiday.

Children’s Property Laws

If I like it, it’s mine
If it’s in my hand, it’s mine
If I can take it from you it’s mine
If I had it a little while ago, it’s mine
If it’s mine, it must never appear to be yours in any way
If I’m doing or building something, all the pieces are mine
If it looks just like mine, it’s mine
If I think it’s mine, it’s mine
If it’s yours and I steal it, it’s mine

To Ricky, Jenny and Rylee Henderson (2SS), it’s been a pleasure having your family as part of our community and while we’re sad to see you go, we wish you all the best for the new opportunities and adventures awaiting you at your new school.

Thank you!

A big shoutout to Dee Tims and her amazing helpers—Kristy Goss, Yolande Hales, and Steph Tims—for organising a successful netball program this term on Monday afternoons. The girls had a fantastic time learning all aspects of netball and by the end, they were playing full games, having mastered the positions on the court and the rules of the game.

School Fee Reminder

All School Fee statements are sent monthly. If you are on a direct debit or credit card payment plan, please ignore the following.

All school fees for 2024 are to be finalised by 20/09/2024, please make contact with Christine Cook if you wish to discuss school fees.

Important Dates

Term 3

Friday 20th September - Staff Maths PD - Student Free Day

Term 4

Monday 7th October - School Resumes

From Monday 7th October Foundation - Yr 4 Swimming Program

Friday 11th October - Foundation Fairy Park Excursion

Friday 11th October Regional Track & Field Competition Ballarat

Friday 25th October - Yr 1 Werribee Zoo Excursion

Monday 11th November - Remembrance Day

Wednesday 11th December - Yr 6 Graduation Evening

Wednesday 18th December - Last Day of School for Students

Teaching & Learning @ OLHC

A Message from Mr A

Week 10 Term 3

FOUNDATION ART SHOW

Another great example of parent engagement on Monday as our youngest level welcomed parents and special people for their Art Show and shared lunch experience. There are a few up and coming artists among the group, that’s for sure! Great to see such a big parent turnout for the event. Well done Foundation team!

ART SHOW TERM 4

Mrs Auld has been working with the students over the course of the year to put on an Art Show early Term 4. This is an immersive experience that shapes to be quite the event. There is an opportunity for parents to visit on the Wednesday of Week 2. See below for details. Well done Suz!

GRADE 6 LEADERS CONGRESS

Last Wednesday Mr Bidmade and a small cohort of our Grade 6 leaders attended the Lighthouse Theatre. This was the culmination of the Student Leaders Congress, which is an initiative in Warrnambool schools to promote leadership among our Senior leaders. The group had to develop an idea that promoted health and mental wellbeing. The students were able to showcase the work they have done with The OLHC Kind News. A great effort! Thanks Mr Bidmade and the students who drove this.

GRANDPARENTS DAY…A HIT!

It certainly was busy in the Eugene Dalton Hall today as we welcomed in our two waves of grandparents. They then headed for the classrooms where they got a great glimpse into the learning world of their grandchildren. A big thank you to the PFA for organising the morning tea and the staff for making the classrooms so welcoming! It is always a great day on the school calendar.

Today our grandparents were treated to front row seats for the Grade 3 stop motion projects. This forms part of their Inquiry unit, Frame by Frame, and is the end result of an impressive term for this cohort. The rest of the school had an opportunity to see the stop motions this week, there are definitely a few Speilbergs and Tarantinos amongst the group. Well done Grade 3 team!

Plenty of students reminding me this week that the Hawks lost on the weekend. Good luck to Miss Watson in the Open netball grand final on the weekend.

Enjoy the holidays with your loved ones.

Thanks,

Naish

Grade 4 stars Evie Lowe, Bella Moore and Matilda Parsons sharing their amazing information reports based on a novel study, Storm Boy with Mr Madden.

Technology Toolkit with Mrs Fitzgerald and Mrs Murfett

New technology updates, cyber safety tips and snapshots of the learning experiences happening in the digital classroom. Let’s work together to make the online space a positive space! If you have any questions or concerns please contact us:

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

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

How to deal with CyberBullying

Online bullying can be very overwhelming as it can happen anywhere, or at any time, on your phone or other devices. But there are things you can do. Check out the tips below for practical steps to take if you or someone you know is being bullied online.

Classroom Awards

Foundation

Coco Auld

Francesca O'Sullivan

Braxton Davison

Maggie Dews

Yr 1

Clara Tune

Julian Taylor

Henry Ward

Poppy Spring

Yr 2

Dotty Fitzpatrick

Clementine Rea

Grace Dennis

Rylee Henderson

Yr 3

Lucas Harrington

Kieran Roberts

Sukhraj Singh

Violet Barlow

Yr 4

Tommy McCrohan

Ryland Hoy

George Green

Ella Crawford

Yr 5

Deepinder Singh

Peter Fry

Sid Lewis

Ben Adcock

Yr 6

Will Hodson

Hannah Ragg

Olivia Riordon

Louie Metcalfe

Spirit of Our Lady's Award

Evie Christison

Freddie Rowan

Andi Orr

Harley Wickenton

Mia Southwell

Cooper Watson

Isaac Ryan

Faith & Culture

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

P: 5562 2231

E: southwestcoast@ballarat.catholic.org.au

webpage : https://www.southwestcoastparish.com.au/

Weekend Masses

Saturday Vigil

6:00pm OLHC, Warrnambool East

Sunday Morning

9:00am Infant Jesus, Koroit

9:00am St Pius X, Warrnambool West

10:30am St Joseph’s, Warrnambool

10:30am St Patrick’s, Port Fairy

6:00pm St Joseph’s Warrnambool

*11:00am St Anne’s, Purnim

2nd Sunday of the month (Eucharist)

Weekday Masses

NB: MASS OF THE DAY IS REPLACED WHEN A FUNERAL IS HELD AT THAT CHURCH

Tues 10:00am St Pius X

Wed 10:00am St Joseph’s

Thu 10:00am OLHC & 11:00am Mercy Place

Fri 10:00am St Joseph’s

Sat 10:00am OLHC

Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (CRISP)

A group of Star of The Sea Parishioners embarked on the Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (CRISP) process at the end of 2022. What a privilege it was to welcome a refugee household to our country & our community. We are now fundraising to welcome a second refugee household to Warrnambool Please be part of this exciting journey with us.

CRISP is overseen by Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia (CRSA), in conjunction with the Department of Home Affairs and the UNHCR.

The Star of the Sea Parish CRISP group undertake the required background checks & training & are now fundraising to enable the provision of initial housing & essentials prior to the household accessing government support & seeking employment.

The household will be flown to Australia & come to Warrnambool with permanent humanitarian visas. We will meet them at the airport, provide transport to Warrnambool & then 12 months of support as they transition to independence. This will include linking with government services, language assistance & looking at education & employment options.

CRISP is an innovation in refugee resettlement in Australia and we are excited to be part of it. When only one percent of displaced people globally is permanently resettled each year (UNHCR figures) we are proud to be taking our small part in giving a future to one household at a time, for the first 12 months of their life in Australia.

https://shoutforgood.com/fundraisers/StaroftheSeaParish2

Where Conflict Comes From
(Mark 9: 30 - 37)

Jesus sat down and summoned the Twelve. “So you want first place? Then take the last place. Be the servant of all”. Jesus put a child in the middle of the room. Then, cradling the little one in his arms, he said gently, “Whoever embraces one of these children as I do embraces me, and far more than me – God who sent me.” (Mark 9: 35 - 37)

You can almost overhear their conversation. Someone proposed that John was the greatest. After all, did he not recline on Jesus’ bosom when they were at table? Someone else snorted: clearly the greatest was Judas, who held the moneybag and was obviously the most trusted. Someone argued for Peter, far and away the leader of the group. Another said it was Matthew, because he always took good notes at Jesus’ best talks and would one day publish a fine book. What about James, someone else insisted. He is one of the three Jesus always takes aside with him when he prays. The discussion became heated, as more names were asserted, and by the time they got to Capernaum, they were scarcely speaking with one another.

“What were you arguing about on the way?” Nobody answers. So Jesus sets the record straight. The greatest will always be the one you least expect. The last will be first. The servant will be the leader. The one who receives the child, receives the Lord.

We can bet that’s one conversation they never dared have again.

How do you lead by your service?

Angels All Round
(Mark 9: 30 - 37)

Jesus put a child in the middle of the room. Then, cradling the little one in his arms, he said, “Whoever embraces one of these children as I do embraces me, and far more than me – God who sent me.” (Mark 9: 36 - 37)

Mark had just gotten off a suburban train when an older woman came up to him and asked for directions. She was supposed to meet a friend who was taking a particular bus to a particular spot near the train station. Her English was a little broken, and the instructions her friend had given were less than complete.

Mark walked with her to what he thought was the nearest bus stop, but he wasn’t sure it was the right place. He was beginning to feel he was not really helping. While they were staring at the bus stop sign and trying to figure out what to do, they saw someone crossing the street coming toward them. She was a young woman, probably in her 20s, who was living with Down syndrome. “What are you looking for?” she asked.

“This woman’s friend told her she was taking the 250 bus, but we’re not sure we’re at the right stop,” Mark said.

“Oh,” the young woman said, “you want the stop around the corner. I take that bus all the time to work.” Mark had forgotten about that bus stop. They thanked the young person, and just as quickly as she appeared, she disappeared around the corner. Mark directed the older woman to where she needed to be. In a small way, he felt God had sent a messenger that day.

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!

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10 tips for surviving school holidays

While school holidays are a welcome break from the busyness of school routines, there is never a break from parenting.

The following tips will help you have fun and connect with your kids so you make the most of the school holidays:

1. Plan

Get your kids involved in making a list of activities that they would like to do
Plan for good and bad weather
Schedule downtime and time-out as well as time for one-on-one and family group activities

2. The best things in life are free

Make sure the list includes plenty of free activities such as picnics, bike rides, trips to the beach, the local library and the great outdoors

3. Boredom is good

Unstructured time and time away from electronic devices is good for young minds

4. Use opportunities to teach new skills and self-reliance

Not having the pressure to rush out the door in the morning can allow for kids to develop new skills such as getting their own breakfast and lunch, taking the dog for a walk or going to the shops by themselves.

5. Ask for help

Don’t be afraid to ask for help to share the load. For example, asking friends or family to help care for children or to provide assistance in other ways.

6. Accept that things may not always go to plan

Even the best made plans may need to be discarded at the last minute due to unforeseen events such as weather, illness or accidents. Whilst stressful, these unforeseen events often teach us and our kids valuable life lessons and may even become the source of family bonding or stories down the track.

7. Don’t forget self-care

Look after yourself and take time out to relax, even if it’s half an hour whilst you have a cuppa and read a book. Remember, happy and relaxed parents make for happy children.

8. Support and company

Having a support system can be crucial to any parent. It also gives parents the opportunity to interact with other parents whilst giving the kids a bit of playtime.

9. Consider your child’s mental health and wellbeing

Whilst it may be a family tradition to go on an annual family holiday or attend a family dinner, maybe your teenager is too depressed or your child with ADHD will be labelled by judgemental relatives. Consider if it’s really worth maintaining the tradition when it may be at the cost of mental health and wellbeing.

10. Holiday connections help us the rest of the year

School holidays provide unique opportunities to connect with, listen to and get to know your kids. Use the time to spend one-on-one time with each family member.