A Student’s Prayer for a New School Year

Lord Jesus,

I ask for Your help as I begin this new school year.

Allow me to experience Your presence in the many blessings You put before me.

Open my eyes to the new challenges and exciting opportunities that this new school year brings. Open my heart and mind to new friends and new teachers.

Give me a generous spirit to be enthusiastic with my studies and courage to accept new opportunities.

Help me to be attentive to my teachers and let me experience Your presence in my new friends. Jesus, inspire me to do my best this year! Amen

I extend a warm welcome to all our existing and new families to the 2020 school year. Already the students have settled in extremely well to their new learning environments especially our Kindergarten students who had their first day today.

I thank all our staff for their efforts in preparing for the new school year and we all look forward to a rewarding, productive year. In particular I welcome our new staff, Mrs Jessica Ridley (Early Intervention Teacher), Miss Grace Sullivan (Year 1), Ms Amy Moran (2 Blue), Mrs Jessica Shelton (4 Blue), Ms Kelly Young (5 Gold), Miss Tina Porter (6 Blue).

We welcome the following Kindergarten students and their families to our special school/parish community:

Mia Bailey, Pearl Bozinovski, Harrison Brown, Charlotte Campbell, Abbie Chapman, Isla Clarke, Elijah Cockcroft, Sienna Cole, Oliver Cunningham, Georgia Davies, Connor Geddes, Estelle Grima, Lily Harrington, Lola Jimenez, Sonny Kissell,Reid Knox, Jai Lindsay, Will McKenna, Daniella Noakes, Alexia Nowakowski, Riley O'Shea, Kai Pascot, William Riddell, Annabel Sayle, Grace Shepherd, Nixon Thomson, Penelope Weiberle, Karlos Yalda, Arianna Apolo, William Bautier, Hailley Bond, Ivy Chisholm, Luca Commacchio, Anabella Condy, Leo De Gori, Henry Ellis, Eloise Farrugia, Evie Gutierrez, Grace Healey, Hendrix Hodges, Macey Hodgson, Isabella Jackson,  Harry Kenneally, Parker Lewis, Sofia Ling, Jake Mickovski, Tyler Neuschwanger, Eve Piccirillo, Madison Ristoski, Alex Sammarco, Ryan Shillito, Taylah Sione Liutai, Dekoda Tolley, Quinn Zareba, Levi Zdraveski.  

A warm welcome is also extended to Maliyah Randall who has joined 5 Blue.

BUSHFIRES

The recent bushfires have had an impact on all of our school communities, with some schools in particular being quite significantly affected. Everyone here at Stella Maris is keeping the victims of these bushfires in their prayers.

KINDERGARTEN PARENT INFORMATION SESSION

An information meeting for all Kindergarten parents will be held in the school library on Thursday 13 February from 6.30-7.30pm. It will be an opportunity for the teachers to share their class procedures and expectations, as well as outlining their hopes and plans for a wonderful year, working in partnership with all parents.

GREET & MEET YEARS 1-6

A decision has been made to replace Parent/Teacher Information Sessions in Years 1-6 with a less formal, non-compulsory, greet and meet opportunity, where parents can come to the school to meet their children’s teacher. This will create the chance for parents to quickly share with the teacher any information that may have an impact on their children’s learning or general progress. There is always the opportunity for parents to contact the teacher for an interview if they require a longer amount of time as the Meet and Greet sessions will be kept informal.

The Meet and Greet Sessions will be from 3.30-4.30pm on the following days:

Monday 17 February: Blue Classes

Thursday 20 February: Gold Classes

All grades will communicate to parents relevant information including units of work to be covered this term, as well as any class rules, procedures or expectations that will be in place throughout the year. In many cases this may be done via electronic communication and will be distributed by the end of Week 3.

PARENTS and FRIENDS’ COMMITTEE

The Annual General Meeting of our P & F association will be held in the school library on Monday 17 February commencing at 5.00pm. The majority of the current committee will be standing down from their positions so it is a great opportunity for other parents to nominate for an executive position. I would strongly encourage all parents to consider nominating for one of these key positions as a vibrant, well-organised P & F is a huge asset to any school community.

SPORTS UNIFORM DAYS

This year library, music and PE classes will once again be held on Wednesdays and Thursdays. This means that the following classes will be wearing sports uniform on these days:

WEDNESDAYS

Year 1 Blue, Year 1 Gold, Year 2 Blue, Year 4 Blue, Year 4 Gold, Year 5 Blue, Year 5 Gold.

THURSDAYS

Kindergarten Blue, Kindergarten Gold, Year 2 Gold, Year 3 Blue, Year 3 Gold, Year 6 Blue, Year 6 Gold.

PARENT EDUCATION COMMITTEE

This year we will again be inviting parents to attend a parent education committee meeting once each term. There are three main goals that we hope to achieve. They are:

• To provide parents with a detailed explanation of current school educational programs and focus areas. As a result the agenda for each meeting will be different.
• To be able to seek feedback from parent representatives in regards to school educational programs and policies.
• To give educational priorities a greater emphasis amongst the school community.

 The first meeting will be held on Wednesday 19 February at 8.40am. Mrs Hanns, our literacy coordinator, will be explaining how students learn to spell using contemporary teaching methods.

If you would like to attend please wait around after assembly that morning.

CATHOLICCARE COUNSELOR

Once again this year we are fortunate to have Ms Bree Lord, our CatholicCare Counselor, at the school twice a week to offer support and guidance to students and their families. Bree will be at Stella every Monday and alternate Thursday/Fridays. If parents are considering counseling for their children, they are encouraged to discuss the situation with either myself or the class teacher and to complete a referral form.

SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY

This year, the Wollongong Diocese’s Social Media Policy is being implemented in every Catholic School. The policy outlines the expectation that schools use

social media in valid educational contexts to support student learning and wellbeing. It also outlines expectations for all in the school community when using social media.

These include that individuals will:

• respect the dignity of self and others in the context of their role
• not promote perspectives contrary to the Catholic faith
• not bring the school into disrepute
• not publicly criticise CEDoW, schools, staff or students
• align with the parameters of the intended purpose of the social media presence.

Parents can access the full policy at www.dow.catholic.edu.au/socialmediapolicy.

CONGRATULATIONS

We congratulate Krystle and Mat Caires on the birth of their son Connor James last week. Both mum and son are doing well and we look forward to meeting James later in the term. Krystle has taught 2 Blue with Mrs Hanns for the last two years and I know everyone at Stella Maris sends their best wishes.    

 This Sunday’s Gospel,

 Mt 5:13-16

Salt of the earth, light of the world.

All Saints Catholic Parish Shellharbour

Mass times: All Saints Church

College Ave, Shellharbour City

   

 Sunday    9.00am - Children’s Liturgy  6.00pm 

Welcome back to the 2020 school year! 

We look forward to celebrating many special occasions over the year with you. We warmly welcome all our new Kindergarten children and their families into the Stella Maris community.

We would especially like to welcome Father Joe who has joined us at All Saints Parish as Parish Priest.

Opening School Liturgy 

We would like to warmly invite all parents, grandparents, friends and carers to our opening School Liturgy on Tuesday 11th February at 8:45. The School Captains and Leadership teams will be inducted at the liturgy.

Dates for your information:

21 February - Opening School Mass at All Saints

26 Feb - Ash Wednesday 

1 Mar - 7th Mar Catholic Schools Week

5 Apr - Palm Sunday

10 Apr - Good Friday

12 Apr - Easter Sunday

Mass at Stella Maris 

We would like to welcome all friends and families to the following School Masses commencing at 9:45am at Stella Maris.

10 March - Stage 3

24 March - Stage 2

31 March - Stage 1

Feast Days

17 March St Patrick’s Day

19 March St Joseph’s Day

25 March The Assumption

Reconciliation

Enrolments for Reconciliation were at last weekend’s Parish Masses. An information evening was held on Wednesday evening at 7:00pm in the Church. The last opportunity for you to enrol your child for Reconciliation this year will be at the Parish Masses this weekend.

Penance

The Rite of Reconciliation is a two-stage process. Reconciliation is vital in all our lives and focuses on how we restore peace when we make mistakes or do wrong and how God’s desire to forgive and heal is offered to us through reconciliation. 

Children who have been Baptised and are at least in Year 3 at school can be enrolled by their parents into the Sacrament of Penance Program. The program is also referred to as the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

A four-week parish-based program will be  administered during the Season of Lent. This will be supported at school by our Year 3 teachers who will also be teaching a unit on ‘Reconciliation’. The unit focuses on the human experience of forgiving others and being forgiven. The parable of the Prodigal Son is presented and explored. It presents God as loving and forgiving. The unit explores the concept of reconciliation and living together in peace. It introduces the Sacrament of Penance, exploring how the Catholic community celebrates reconciliation with God and with one another.

Julie Hopkins

Acting Religious Education Coordinator

Dear Parents,

Behaviour management plays a crucial role in facilitating a positive culture within a school. Over the last few years, Stella Maris has endeavoured to make appropriate and effective changes through consultation with parents, staff, students and in particular the Catholic Education Office. Through this process we have created what we believe to be a fair, equitable and consistent system. These expectations have been explicitly and regularly communicated to all students to
encourage the safest learning environment possible. After careful consideration, we have decided to make some adjustments to the current Behavioural Management Policy. These changes are specifically designed so that all students will have an opportunity to make better decisions, feel safe and experience success.
A change to this policy involves the recording of minor and major behavioural incidents. A middle tier will now exist and sit between ‘minor’ and ‘major’ recordings. In the past, at times we have found that students have received two consequences for the one indiscretion. Ultimately we feel that these changes will benefit the students and be welcomed by our school community. In collaboration with the Catholic Education Office, we have made the following changes.

Major Behaviours:
A major behaviour recording now is only given to students who make a poor choice that constitutes a ‘major behaviour’ action (See Appendix …… in the Behaviour Management Policy). Previously, if a student received 6 minors in one term, they would automatically receive a major behaviour recording. This will no longer occur.

Minor Behaviours:
The process of recording minor behaviour incidences remains very similar to our previous policy. Under the new policy, if a student receives 6 minors in one term, they will receive a middle behavour recording and subsequent consequences. The Stage Coordinator will arrange a meeting with the student’s parents to discuss the student’s behaviour and put strategies in place to best support the student in making positive choices in the future.

End of Term Reward:
There will be opportunity for a reward at the end of term. Students are able to participate in this nreward at the end of every term if;
- They do not receive more than 6 minors in a term
- They do not receive more than 1 major in a term.
All of the changes to the Behaviour Management Policy have been highlighted in blue for easy identification. We are constantly reviewing our policies and wish to continue to work in partnership with our parent body, to create fair and equitable expectations and procedures that reflect best practice for our students. We greatly appreciate any feedback on the new changes to this Policy and ask that you forward these suggestions to the school office before the conclusion of Term One. The updated version of this policy can be found on the Stella Maris website. Thank you for your ongoing support and we look forward to continuing to work in collaboration with the whole school community to provide the best possible learning environment for our students.
Chris Price

Dear Parents,

Behaviour management plays a crucial role in facilitating a positive culture within a school. Over the last few years, Stella Maris has endeavoured to make appropriate and effective changes through consultation with parents, staff, students and in particular the Catholic Education Office. Through this process we have created what we believe to be a fair, equitable and consistent system. These expectations have been explicitly and regularly communicated to all students to encourage the safest learning environment possible. After careful consideration, we have decided to make some adjustments to the current Behavioural Management Policy. These changes are specifically designed so that all students will have an opportunity to make better decisions, feel safe and experience success.

A change to this policy involves the recording of minor and major behavioural incidents. A middle tier will now exist and sit between ‘minor’ and ‘major’ recordings. In the past, at times we have found that students have received two consequences for the one indiscretion. Ultimately we feel that these changes will benefit the students and be welcomed by our school community. In collaboration with the Catholic Education Office, we have made the following changes.

Major Behaviours:

A major behaviour recording now is only given to students who make a poor choice that constitutes a ‘major behaviour’ action (See Appendix …… in the Behaviour Management Policy). Previously, if a student received 6 minors in one term, they would automatically receive a major behaviour recording. This will no longer occur.

Minor Behaviours:

The process of recording minor behaviour incidences remains very similar to our previous policy. Under the new policy, if a student receives 6 minors in one term, they will receive a middle behavour recording and subsequent consequences. The Stage Coordinator will arrange a meeting with the student’s parents to discuss the student’s behaviour and put strategies in place to best support the student in making positive choices in the future.

End of Term Reward:

There will be opportunity for a reward at the end of term. Students are able to participate in this reward at the end of every term if;

• They do not receive more than 6 minors in a term
• They do not receive more than 1 major in a term.

All of the changes to the Behaviour Management Policy have been highlighted in blue for easy identification. We are constantly reviewing our policies and wish to continue to work in partnership with our parent body, to create fair and equitable expectations and procedures that reflect best practice for our students. We greatly appreciate any feedback on the new changes to this Policy and ask that you forward these suggestions to the school office before the conclusion of Term One. The updated version of this policy can be found on the Stella Maris website. Thank you for your ongoing support and we look forward to continuing to work in collaboration with the whole school community to provide the best possible learning environment for our students.

Chris Price

We have been advised by Lowes that the new polo shirts should be reaching Lowes by mid-March.  They do still have a stock of the gold shirts which they are happy to sell off at $20.