Dear Parents and Carers,

This week as we enter into the cold of winter I just wanted to share a prayer from a book I am currently reading called ‘Wil of God’ (please note Wil is not a spelling error in the title) by Carrie Wilson Link.

Lord, open my eyes to see beauty,

Open my ears to hear truth,

Open my mind to seek wisdom,

Open my mouth to seek kindness

And open my heart to love.

Sacrament of First Reconciliation

Last Thursday evening a number of children in our school and parish received the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We offer them our congratulations and blessings at this time.

We extend our thanks to the Parish team and the staff on Stage 2 for their time and commitment in helping parents to prepare their children.

We once again express our gratitude to Fr Richard who is a wonderful spiritual leader and guide.

Enrolments Period

Enrolment period for Kindergarten 2020 is finishing Friday 31st May. Enrolment forms and information are available from our school website.

Hats Off for June and July

Winter is upon us and hats are put away for the months of June and July (unless we are going to be out in the sun for extended periods of time). There are school beanies available through the clothing pool should your child need a little extra warmth.

Winter Uniform

Just a reminder that the transition period for changing into Winter Uniforms has now passed. Could you please support the school by encouraging your child to come dressed in the correct uniform each day.

We have attached the Winter Uniform Guide as it appears in our School Handbook for your information.

Drive Through

Just a reminder for all drivers of some important rules if you are using this option to drop your children in the mornings:

• Children must exit the vehicle from the left hand side only.
• This drop-off area at the back of the hall (marked by the large yellow cross and no parking) is appropriate for the children who can exit the vehicle independently. Please do not leave your vehicle to assist your child to leave the car. If your child has not yet reached this stage, please park your car in the normal bays and escort them to the safe area between the hall and school.
• Please drive to the front of the zone as far as traffic permits. This will allow for more vehicles to use the zone and in so doing will help to prevent a backlog occurring.

NAPLAN

Thank you to Mrs Wode for coordinating and organising the event for Sacred Heart. As many parents are aware there were extra challenges associated with this year’s administration.  We extend our thanks to the staff involved in this process for their calm and professional management of the changes and associated challenges.

Yours faithfully,

Anne Staines

Principal

Bullying. No Way!

Some of our more senior classes will be given wallet size cards today with strategies and helpline numbers for dealing with bullying. These are from bullyingnoway.gov.au and have been handed out as part of our ongoing awareness raising and fostering of right relationships. One card has content aimed at children and other has tips more for parents and carers.

These strategies fit well with our Rock and Water framework for the older students.

Be You Surveys

Our pre-testing of the surveys did not extend to answering them on iPhones or iPads. Our apologies to those families who attempted to complete the survey on this platform. It does work well on a PC! The Be You Action Team have contacted HeadSpace to let them know of our technical difficulties. Meanwhile the surveys remain active for you to open them on a PC. There have been some really positive and constructive feedback coming through from the data already and we welcome the input of all.

Parenting Ideas Insight Articles  

Three interesting articles attached:

• Managing your child’s anxiety
• Helping children make and keep friends
• Encouraging healthy attitudes towards women

Parenting Ideas Upcoming Webinar - Managing your child’s anxiety

Tuesday 25 June 2019 8:00pm AEST.  This webinar is free for staff and families with the voucher code as part of our school subscription. See how to redeem the voucher below. Webinars can be viewed afterwards if you are unable to attend at the nominated time.

Anxiety is one the biggest problems facing children and young people today, impacting on their learning, happiness and their wellbeing. Research shows that when anxiety goes unmanaged in childhood it will reoccur in adulthood. Fortunately, there’s a lot parents can do to assist kids when they become anxious.

Join Michael Grose in this webinar where he will help parents better understand the nature of anxiety, equip them to recognise it in children, and provide practical tools to help children and young people manage and minimise their anxious states.

How to redeem the voucher

1. Click this link: https://www.parentingideas.com.au/parent-resources/parent-webinars/webinar-managing-your-childs-anxiety
2. Click ‘Add to cart’
3. Click ‘View cart’
4. Enter the voucher code ANXIETY and click ‘Apply Coupon’. Your discount of $37 will be applied to the order. This voucher is valid until 25 July 2019.
5. Click ‘Proceed to checkout’
6. Fill in your account details. These are the details you will use to login to your account and access your parenting material
7. Click ‘Place Order’

Yours Faithfully

• 50th Anniversary Committee meeting is on today at 6.30pm in the Italian Room.
• School Fees are due Friday 31 May 2019. 
• We would like to remind you that enrolments for Kindergarten 2020 are closing this Friday 31st May. All enrolment forms and information are available from our website.
• The Student Information Checklist has been sent home please return to school by 7th June 2019.

A reminder that the 50^th Anniversary Committee Meeting will be held on the 30th May at 6:30pm in the Italian Room. We invite new members to come and join. Please come along with any ideas or suggestions to help celebrate this milestone. Alternatively, you can also email Sacredheart50anniversay@hotmail.com

• Are your SZapp app settings correct on your mobile phone?

Please ensure the setting notifications is turned on your phone, this will ensure all messages from the school are received in real time under the managed tab. 

Congratulations to the following students you have earned a gold certificate this term.

Veer A

Ruby B

Natalia C

Whayne G

Kaitlyn P

Cameron Mc

Congratulations to the following students celebrating their birthday in May

Karen L, Josephine K, Phoebe O, Levi T, Blake H, Joel S, Ava S, Logan W, Thomas K, Miranda C, Armani S, Finn K, Palak B, Lucy M, Eleanor L, Tom B, Angelo V, Grace M, Gilda R. 

Congratulations to Mia W, Emily Mc (5/6W)  Zoe C (3/4R) and Holly C (1R) who participated and placed in the recent ACT Calisthenics Championships.

On Monday 20^th May Stage 3 went on an excursion to the National Electoral Education Centre (NEEC) and Museum Of Australian Democracy (MOAD). The students participated in hands on activities related to the voting system and the government structure in Australia.

Last Friday was our first Peer Support session. We learnt about values we have. We created a group agreement so everyone knows what is expected. We got to learn about others in our groups. Everyone liked meeting new people in our school and we had fun. We learnt what each of us thought was important in our lives. 

We hope everyone enjoyed being part of Peer Support.

Mitchell, Vanessa and Macy (Yr 6 Peer Support Leaders)

Last Friday Sacred Heart held it's annual Cross Country Carnival. It was a great event that saw lots of children displaying great perseverance, determination and support for each other. The top five children in each age group have been selected to represent Sacred Heart at the South Weston Regional Carnival. We wish them all the best at the carnival next Monday.   

An additional part of this year's carnival was our School's Colour Run Fundraiser. This event has helped us  raise money for additional curriculum resources across the school. A final figure on the amount of money raised will be provided in the coming weeks. If you still have any fundraising money at home could you please return to school ASAP. We felt this was a great addition to the carnival and if the children's smiles were anything to go by it was a fantastic day had by all!

Thank you to all mothers, grandmothers, parents and carers for attending the Mother's Day celebrations. 

Confirmation— Presentation Mass

At each Mass this weekend (1/2 June), Confirmation Candidates will be presented to the Parish. Please keep the candidates in your prayers as they continue on their faith journey and for the families, teachers and catechists who are guiding them on their way. If you have any questions regarding the Sacrament of Confirmation, please call the Parish Office on 02 6286 1908 or wodensouth.sacraments@cg.org.au.

Youth Ministry Fundraising BBQ 9^th June 2019

There will be a fundraising BBQ for the youth group after the 10am Mass behind the church on Sunday the 9th of June. Prices will be $2 for a sausage sandwich and $3 gets you a sausage and a drink. All proceeds will go to the youth group budget so please come along, any extra donations are also greatly appreciated!

Name:  Mr FOX (Aaron)

Role/s: Arts and 5/6 Red Teacher + Religious Education Coordinator

Nickname: Foxy

I was born and raised in Canberra, 2902 Pride!  Before teaching at Sacred Heart I was the Earth Science teacher at Saints Peter and Paul, Garran, where I use to teach all the children in the school how to grow lots of different fruits and vegetables.  Before teaching at Garran I was at St Clare of Assisi, Conder for 10 fun filled years.

Do you have a pet or any children? I do and sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference.  I have two brilliant children, Molly and Noah who proudly follow the Swans and Raiders.  We also have a few chickens, Silver, White Fang and Milly.

Chocolate or hot chips: Hot Chips all the way!  I love making buttery hot chip sandwiches on a cold winters day after a morning at the soccer or footy.

Favourite team: Sydney Swans and the Canberra Raiders.

Little known fact about you: I have a twin brother who looks pretty much the same as me.  So if you see me and I have a confused look on my face, not knowing who you are, it’s because I don’t, it’s my brother.

If you could be a superhero or have a superpower, what would you be? I’d love to be Superman! I think he’s the complete package.

If you weren’t teaching, what would you be: What wouldn’t I be! A stay at home dad, Park Ranger, vegie farmer, TV camera man, Noble Peace Prize recipient, Supreme Court Judge.

Favourite funny quote from a student:  You’re funny. Not funny, funny. Just dad funny!

Name:  Ms Claire Egan-Richards

Teaching:  1 Red

Before I came to Sacred Heart, I taught at two other schools. St Matthew’s (Page) and St Monica’s (Evatt).  I do not have children (apart from the 23 I have in 1 Red) but I do have a beautiful dog named Patch.

Do you prefer hot chips or chocolate?  That is probably the hardest question I have ever been asked!! I can’t choose!

I have such a wide range of music taste, I have been known to listen to almost everything.

If I could have a superpower, it would be flying for sure, I could go anywhere I want and see every part of the world.

If I could do anything (and I wasn’t a teacher), I would love to find some way to be paid to travel the world.

I had a student once who would make up a little song about me every day. It would either be about what I was wearing or something that I did. It always made me smile.

Something that people may now know about me is that I absolutely love to watch cricket and rugby union.  I also attended Sacred Heart along with my 5 younger siblings.

2019 Under 8 Championships - Sunday 2 June 2019 - Campbell High School 

This event is suitable for all eligible players who can confidently move the chess pieces around the board.  Chess Clocks will be used and children who have not used clocks before, or have not participated in competitive chess before, will receive instructions and assistance (particularly in the early rounds).  Between 30 and 40 potential grandmasters have contested this event in each of the last few years, ranging from the very experienced to (almost) complete novices.  All players compete for all rounds unless byes occur.  Nobody is “eliminated” during the day.  We suggest all parents of “first-timers” stay for at least 1-2 rounds to be sure their child is comfortable & happy with their participation.  

Seven rounds will be played with each player having 15 minutes to complete their moves (maximum game time 30mins).  At the completion of the final round, trophies will be presented to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th placegetters and first Under 6.  All children will receive a participation ribbon.   For more information  2019 Under 8 Championships.

2019 Primary Allegro - Sunday 16 June 2019 - Campbell High School

Have you/are you playing in the Primary School Chess Championships?  Do you enjoy playing chess and representing your school?  The 2019 Primary School Allegro is a fun chess tournament for all children currently attending primary school.  Playing conditions are the same as the primary school open or girls championships (that is, games are played with clocks with each player having 15 mins to complete his/her moves) and children compete as individuals.   So if you are planning on playing in the ACT School Chess Championships, this Primary Allegro will be great practice.  

Awards are made to the first placed boy and first placed girl in each school year from Kindy to year 6.  The school with the highest level of participation receives chess books for the school library. This tournament caters to all standards of play.  All children who can confidently make all the basic moves of chess are encouraged to participate and every participant receives a ribbon!  For more information 

2019 Primary Allegro Chess Championships.