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- Principals Report Week 8 Term 4
- Religious Education News
- Family Engagement with Faith
- Vinnies Christmas Appeal
- Dates for your Diary
- Veritas Awards
- Community Council Update
- Library News- Please return all books!
- Change to Swimming Program
- Rosary Canteen Menu 2023 - 2024
- OSHClub Care Available Friday 15th December - Pupil Free Day
- Congratulations Emma Woodhouse Year 5 Washington
- Rosary Netball News
- Rosary Rugby News
- artKids @ Rosary
- Hayfever Season
- News from The Tradies
- Whole Day Absences via Parent Portal
- School Counselling Services
- Clothing Pool Opening Hours
- Car Park Safety Reminder
- Extracurricular Activities at Rosary
- Holiday Happenings
- ACT Government’s Rent Relief Program
Principals Report Week 8 Term 4
Dear Parents and Carers
Just over two weeks of school to go for 2023. How quickly this year has gone!
Principal for a Day Fun - Big Challenge Success
Last Friday we had a fun day as a reward for the wonderful big challenge effort by students. One of our students, Tomas and Year 5, was randomly selected as Principal of Rosary for the Day! Tomas did an amazing job taking the reins of school, showing great confidence and leadership. He moved around the school throughout the day talking with people and visiting classrooms. He also made some very popular decisions and gave students extra play time, requesting there be no maths lessons that day and that students be given a free activity afternoon with no formal lessons. Well done to Tomas in taking up this challenge!
The flip side of this is that I was able to be a Student at Rosary for a Day and spend time in all classrooms. I was also able to take part in playground activities and lunchtime. This was an interesting day and it was good to spend a short amount of time in each classroom and see things through the eyes of a student! Students were very kind to me and took this in the right spirit. The day was a lot of fun!
Congratulations to all of our students and families on raising $14,700 for the school through the Big Challenge Day. The Community Council and school will put this money towards great projects for the students. The result was outstanding. Thank you again to Miss Nicole Rich, Catherine Gareffa and all the other volunteers who made the recent 2023 Big Challenge Day such a success!
Semester 2 Reports Available Week 9
Student reports for semester 2 are currently being finalised and will be available to parents next Wednesday 6 December in the Rosary compass portal. The semester two report format will be very similar to previous reports, with the exception of the inclusion of a written general comment again, the first time for a while.
The general comment will be in line with Catholic Education Office requirements of a maximum of 1300 characters, including spaces. The general comment will give you an indication of some of the content and skills your child has been able to achieve this semester. The written comments will focus mainly on achievements in the key areas of Religious Education, English and Mathematics. Comments about work in other areas will be included if there is space available.
Parents and carers have the option of a parent/teacher meeting to discuss their child’s report in Week 10. There are no formal days or times for the meetings scheduled, you are asked to contact your child’s teacher directly through the normal means to organise a suitable time.
Rosary School Behaviour Focus
Just so you are aware, the staff at Rosary School are currently focussing on correcting any inappropriate behaviour exhibited by students. This is worth highlighting as there have been a few incidents of concern and some unacceptable comments being made by students. Although we are close to the end of the school year it is important that any behaviour that is not acceptable be followed up and dealt with. School must be a safe place for all students and we need to ensure we finish this year well and prepare students in the transition to 2024.
This week I held a special assembly for students in Years 3-6 reinforcing the expectations around behaviour and interactions with staff and peers.
Your support from home is always welcome when we support your child and also when our staff address particular behaviour concerns and incidents at school.
2024 Rosary School Fee Schedule
Catholic Education has just recently approved the fees for each school in our archdiocese. This week a letter will be distributed to you via COMPASS explaining the details of our 2024 Rosary Primary School fees. Catholic Education of Canberra and Goulburn has now centralised the fee payment process so you may notice some changes to how the fees notices will be presented and collected in 2024.
Thank you for ongoing support in paying fees and relevant program levies so we can provide a quality education for your child.
Rosary Swimming Program Makes a Return
The Rosary Swimming Program makes a return to our school for the first time since pre-COVID days. We all understand the importance of students having a good sense of water awareness and safety, as well as a certain level of swimming competency. In recent weeks there have already been a number of drownings on Australian beaches and in waterways and Summer hasn't officially started yet.
Often students lack confidence when in the water so this intensive program is designed to encourage students to participate and further improve in this area. Thank you to everyone for supporting the program and I hope it is a success for everyone next week.
Thank you to Mrs Godfrey for organising the program and to our office staff for the buses and other communications.
CECG Parent Talk Newsletter
Our Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT (CCSP) has published its latest newsletter.
The Parent Talk newsletter provides parents and carers with information about developments in education, wellbeing, CCSP advocacy work and other relevant news and events. Please access the newsletter through following link:
Link: https://www.ccsp.catholic.edu.au/parenttalk?nid=32
Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead.
God Bless
Greg Walker
Principal
ADVENT
This Sunday marks the start of Advent. Advent is a special time in the church year when we prepare and get ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus.
The Christmas: Way of the Star is a guided series of testimonies, scriptures, reflections and prayers that follow the scriptural encounters leading up to the birth of Christ. The Way of the Star is the journey of Jesus. It is also our journey. As you undertake this journey, be open to encountering Jesus in a new way this Christmas.
Religious Education Coordinator
- Year 6 Farewell Assembly - Monday 11 December (Week 10) at 2.20pm
- Swimming Program - Week 9 (4th December - 8th December)
- Semester Two Reports Available - Wednesday 6th December
- End of Year Mass - Tuesday 12th December - Holy Rosary Church - 10.00am
- Year 6 Graduation Dinner - Tuesday 12th December - Ainslie Football Club
- Final Assembly - Thursday 14th December - School Hall - 2.30pm
- End of Term for Students - Thursday 14th December 3.10pm
- Pupil Free Day (Staff Only) - Friday 15th December
Congratulations to the following students who received a Veritas Award:
Louise Pedregosa
Clare Tomac
Colton Longworth
Lam Phong Vo
Jigmee Norbu
Sogyel Norbu
Dradul Dorji
Louie Garreffa
Sangay Rigzin
Grace Hall
Charles Yapriady
Jackson Dalle
Sam Knoke
Mikayla Ryall
Jed Perks
The Council met for the last meeting of 2023. The new Council executive has been voted in by the Council and I am pleased to congratulate Chair – James Matthews, Deputy Chair – James Macpherson, Treasurer – David Battey and Co-Secretaries – Krystal Eppelstun-Lee & Matt Rudd. Other members of the Council include parent representatives Fiona Hill-Stein, Fiona Slater, Raphaela Higginbotham, Tesse Crozier. The school is in good hands! Many thanks to those who have contributed greatly over many years, Libby Reardon, Catherine Garreffa, Justine Tansley and Teacher Rep Kath Watson. The new Teacher Rep will be advised next year. Many thanks also to Fr Mannes who provided parish input and we wish him well in the next phase of his spiritual journey.
Council finalised a few items, wrapped up the 60th Anniversary celebrations and has allocated funds for the anniversary artwork and for the repainting of the quad ground surface.
The Catholic Education office has determined after consultation that all primary schools will adopt the Council format as opposed to Boards and P&C structures going forward. For Rosary that will only mean minor changes with our current structure aligning very closely to that being introduced.
The Council wishes all the families of the Rosary Community a very blessed Christmas with peace and a new year full of happiness and good health.
Library News- Please return all books!
As the school year draws to a close, it’s time for our annual library stocktake. We kindly request all families return any books with the school barcode on the front cover as soon as possible. This ensures an accurate count of our collection and allows us to ensure that we have all necessary resources for next year.
We appreciate your prompt attention to this matter.
The format of the school swimming program has changed. Students will attend 5 x 1 hour lessons over the period of a week (Instead of 10 x ½ lessons over 2 weeks).
This change is necessary due to timetabling requirements of the bus company and the Gungahlin Leisure Centre. There will be no change to the price of the program.
Lessons commence on Monday 4 December – Friday 8 December.
More information regarding exact lesson times will be available during week 8.
Kind regards,
Julie Godfrey
Coordinator
OSHClub Care Available Friday 15th December - Pupil Free Day
OSHClub will be operating on Friday 15th (Pupil Free Day) for families requiring care for their children.
Bookings will be open soon.
Please contact OSHClub directly for enquiries and bookings.
0437767194
1300 395 735
Congratulations Emma Woodhouse Year 5 Washington
Emma Woodhouse from Year 5 Washington competed in the Australian All Star Cheerleading Federation (AASCF) Nationals in Melbourne this weekend. She competed for Sirens Cheerleaders (the only ACT gym) in 3 divisions - Youth Novice, Youth Level 1 and Junior Level 1. They had amazing success with her Youth Novice and Junior Level 1 teams coming 3rd in the country (bronze medallists), and her Youth Level 1 team coming 5th in the country. We are all very proud of her and her teams who have worked so hard this year and proved that hard work really pays off!
Hayfever season has arrived with the weather being particularly windy and the pollen count high. We have had many children coming to the front office with hayfever symptoms. If your child is prone to hayfever please consider the treatment you would like them to receive.
If you would like your child to be given hayfever medication please fill in a Request to Dispense Medication Form and provide the medication to be stored in the First Aid area.
Parents will be contacted prior to any medication being administered. If your child is a suffers symptoms frequently, you may like to consider treating them before they attend school.
The Request to Dispense Medication Form can be accessed via this link: Request to Dispense Medication and on the school website.
Whole Day Absences via Parent Portal
Whole Day Absences
If your child is absent from school for a whole day or longer, please submit details of the absence via the Parent Portal. This should be completed within 7 days of the absence. There is no need to adjust times for whole day absences.
If your child will only be absent for a partial day, the absence will be recorded as your child is signed in or out via the kiosk at the front office. You do not need to add an early pick up or late drop off via the Parent Portal.
Unexplained absences for your child will be displayed on your homepage when you log in to Parent Portal.
If an unexplained absence appears that you believe to be incorrect, please send an email to the front office for investigation.
The school counsellor, is available every Thursday and Friday.
You can refer your child for counselling by contacting the school by phone or email.
You will be asked for your consent for your child to access the service. In the case of families where parents are separated, consent of both parents is normally required. If this is difficult for you please feel free to discuss this with the counsellor.
Access to the clothing pool will now be as follows:
Monday - All Day (school hours)
Tuesday - Friday - Before and after school only
Thank you to our wonderful parent volunteers who maintain the space for our community.
Please note: All donations of preloved uniforms (in good wearable condition) are welcome at the front office.
Extracurricular Activities at Rosary
There are many extracurricular activities available onsite for our Rosary Students. Please note all of these activities attract a fee and are delivered by external providers. Please see the timetable below for details:
- French Lessons - Monday 3.10pm - 4.20pm (continuing) / Wednesday 8.00am - 9.00am (beginner)
- Action Tae Kwon-Do - Monday 6.30pm Children class / 7:30pm Adult class
- Chess Club - Tuesday 3.10pm - 4.30pm (Weeks 1-9)
- Zanshin Martial Arts - Tuesday 6.30pm Junior class / 7:30pm Senior class
- Artkids - Thursday 3.15pm - 5.15pm
- Italian Lessons - Friday 8:00am - 9:00am (beginner)
- Musicorp (various instruments) / Piano Lessons - Friday 8:20am and during class time throughout the day
- Block Crafters - Wednesday Week 2 - Coding and Robotics After School Programme for interested students aged 8-12 years (currently fully booked).
- Dance Club - PLAY - The Dance Agency - Thursdays at Lunchtime from Weeks 2-10 - Kinder to Year 4
Please contact the school if you require further information.
ACT Government’s Rent Relief Program
The Christmas/Festive season is fast approaching, and along with it is the additional Christmas/Festive preparation expenses, not to mention the bills that will start rolling in come the New Year!
Care continues to facilitate the ACT Government’s Rent Relief program for those who rent privately in the ACT. Eligible renters can apply for the one off grant of 4 weeks rent up to a maximum of $2,500.
Please note: The current turn around for applications is 2-3 weeks, but could increase depending on the volume of applications received.
For more information, eligibility criteria and application form head to our website – www.carefcs.org/rent-relief-scheme
Care will be closed for Christmas from Friday 22nd December 2023 reopening Tuesday 2nd January 2024.
NOTICEBOARD