Real Schools

I am excited to announce a new partnership between our school and Real Schools, aimed at enhancing our educational environment through Restorative Practices. This collaboration will span three years, providing us with resources and support to deepen these practices into our school culture effectively.

Restorative Practices focus on building strong relationships and resolving conflicts by addressing the needs of all involved. This approach shifts the focus from punishment to understanding and responsibility, encouraging students to learn from their actions and make amends. By asking the right questions and fostering open communication, we aim to create a more supportive and respectful school community.

Real Schools have provided us with an Expert Facilitator, Jemma, who will work closely with our staff and leadership team. This partnership will include professional learning days, classroom support, and parent engagement sessions, ensuring that everyone in our school community has an opportunity to benefit from this initiative. The goal is to achieve both quick wins and sustainable changes that will leave a lasting impact on our school culture.

Save the date for the first Parent Engagement session on Tuesday 29th October @ 6:00pm. Look out for more details on SZApp in the coming weeks.

We look forward to embarking on this transformative journey together.

Right To Disconnect

In South Australia, the “right to disconnect” provisions became effective from August 26, 2024. For school parents, this means that teachers and school staff may not be available to respond to emails, calls, or other communications outside of school hours. The law applies to all national system employees, including those in education, and covers contact from both employers and third parties, such as parents.

As many of our staff work part-time, attend to operational matters before and after school, and are engaged in teaching during the school day, it is reasonable to allow some time for a response. Parents are encouraged to respect these boundaries, understanding that St Therese School staff will address communications during their working hours to ensure a healthy work-life balance for educators.

Parent Engagement at St Therese School

I wish to thank our parent community for your enthusiasm in embracing the new Parent Engagement framework this year. Your active participation and collaboration have been instrumental in making this initiative a great success. By attending meetings, providing feedback, and engaging in school activities, you have helped create a more inclusive and supportive environment for our students. I appreciate your willingness to be an integral part of our school community. I look forward to building on this success.

St Therese School Board

The school board members have also been valuable stakeholders in driving the new Parent Engagement framework during the formation and introduction phases. Their vision and guidance has helped us establish stronger connections between home and school, ultimately benefitting our entire community.

The following people are members of the current Board:

Fr John Shanahan (President)
Dee-anne Peters (Executive Officer)
Mark Peterson (Chairperson)
Patrick O'Leary (Chairperson Finance)
Carmel White (Emmaus Parish)
Carol Jarell (Staff)
Attila Meister
Barbara Rottenberg
Fiona Matters
Kate McKeough
Tristan King

I thank them for their continuing support for championing the importance of parent engagement.

Dee-anne Peters
Principal

Season of Creation

We are now in the second half of the Season of Creation for this year.

Season of Creation is a time of grace that the Church, in ecumenical dialogue, offers to humanity to renew its relationship with the Creator and with creation, through celebration, conversion and commitment together. In other words, the Season of Creation is the annual ecumenical celebration of prayer and action for our common home. For more information, please go to the Season of Creation website. https://seasonofcreation.org/ 

Our teachers have been busy celebrating this very special time with their students.

If you would like to explore Laudato Si with your children (in Years 2-6) please see the booklet below which contains activities for you to explore and discuss as a family:
https://anneneuberger.com/wp-content/uploads/Gods-Creation-Waits_Revised_June_2024.pdf 

Sacramental Program

Our Sacramental Program continues with our next workshop at St Therese this Saturday, 21 September. From 5 – 6 pm, we will be in the Dominican Room for our workshop and then from 6-7 pm, we will join in the Youth Mass at the church.

Enrolment will soon open for the Emmaus Parish 2025 Sacramental Program for young people aged 7 years or older. If you are interested, please come to the Sacraments Information Night for 2025 next term (dates and more information will be shared in Term 4). Please talk to your child’s teacher or Carol Jarell if you have any questions, or contact the Emmaus Parish office directly.

ReLAT

In Weeks 7 and 8 this term our Year 4 Students sat a ReLAT Practice Test and then a ReLAT Main Assessment Test. The ReLAT assessment tool is an online multiple-choice test with 35 questions. Children are given up to an hour to complete the test. The ReLAT Test focuses on knowledge content which is core to the Year 3/4 Crossways Religious Education curriculum. Students in Year 4 in 2024 have been engaging in the new Religious Education curriculum for three years. As a basic knowledge test, ReLAT complements the continuous, fuller, and deeper assessment of learning in Religious Education in the classroom.

PEG BBQ Stall & Bake Sale

Thank you to all that have volunteered to support our Sports Day events, and PEG initiatives being the BBQ Stall and Bake Sale. You play a significant role in making these activities possible for our students and families. We are so grateful for the efforts you have made and the time you are giving so generously. What a great day we have to look forward to!

We wish all families a relaxing and enjoyable time with their children and loved ones over the coming holidays.

Carol Jarell
APRIM and Wellbeing Coordinator

We extend our congratulations to all of the St Therese School students who recently entered the Catholic Earthcare art competition 'To hope and act with Creation'. We are delighted to announce two prize winning entries from St Therese School.

Primary Students - Bishop's Choice Award:
1st place - Sarah (Year 6)
3rd place - Priyanka (Year 5)

Please join us in congratulating these students on this wonderful acheivement!

The theme this year for Book Week was ‘Reading is Magic’

We had a bumper crowd in the church to watch our Magical Book Parade this year – and what a show our students put on! Many thanks to all our creative families and staff who crafted some magnificent costumes. We had Butterflies, Netball, Soccer, AFL and Cricket players, Princesses, Witches, Wizards, Magicians, The Queen of Hearts, Willy Wonka, Pirates, Barbie, a Strawberry, a Unicorn and even The Titanic, complete with iceberg damage! And many, many more - well done everyone!

Many thanks to everyone who entered and had fun with our Book Face competition.
Winners were - Zoe, Grace, Elle, Maddie, Spencer, Oliver and Madison. Winners each received a book voucher from Mostly Books at Mitcham. The students have enjoyed seeing all entries on display, in the library.

Melissa Fairlie

Sports Day – We are all very excited about Sports Day this week! House Leaders and students have been enjoying the 'Health Hustle' preparation and have also been working hard to gain Spirit tokens for their House. We look forward to seeing many family members and spectators on Friday to share this special day with us.

Summer Sport Registration – Our Registration Week for Summer After-School Sport has closed. I am currently in the process of organising teams and coaches. For all families that have registered their interest, final information will be sent out via SZapp next week (please watch for this update).

Touch Football Carnival – Congratulations to the 85 students in Years 3-6 who participated in the Touch Football carnival in Week 7. We were blessed with beautiful weather. Well done to all participants who represented our school with pride. Congratulations also to our Year 5/6 Boys and Girls teams who competed in the Touch Football competitive games. Out of twelve teams our girls came fifth and our boys came tenth. Thank you also to our wonderful parent volunteers: Nikki, Tonya, Nicole, Bettina, Sophie and Cathy. Your help and support is so very much appreciated.

Athletics Carnival - In Week 4 of Term 4 a selected squad from Years 3-6 will attend the annual SACPSSA Athletics Carnival. Trials will begin next week during lunch times. I invite students to start thinking about participating in the trials before the first session on Tuesday.

Barbara Mee
Physical Edcuation Teacher & Sports Coordinator