This week our classrooms are recognising and celebrating NAIDOC Week. The rich history of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture of the Dharawal people spans the thousands of generations the our First Nations people have cared for this land.

NAIDOC Week is a chance for our students at Good Samaritan to embrace that history, to promote Reconciliation and heal the wounds of the past.

A reminder to parents that school supervision begins at 8:20am. Under the NSW & ACT Catholic Systemic Schools Enterprise Agreement, unless a staff member has been rostered for before school supervision (8:20am) the normal starting time is no less than 15 minutes before the start of the first scheduled teaching activity. 

Historically, teachers have been on site in all schools well before the first teaching activity. This time is generally used for planning and preparing for the teaching day or for scheduled staff briefings/meetings.

Afternoon supervision concludes at 3:20pm following the conclusion of car lines. 

On Friday the children from the House with the leading score to be winners of the House cup will participate in a Mini Mufti Day. The winning house will be able to wear their house colour T-shirt and a pair of Crazy Socks. 

How does a house win the House Cup?

Students collect coloured tokens for their commitment to our weekly values and focus as well as their positive interaction with each other on the playground. Teachers distribute coloured tokens regularly whilst on playground duty. The tokens are added up and the House Cup is awarded to the winning house.

The Mini Mufti Day aims to encourage the positive student participation across our school playgrounds.

Catholic education has teamed up with CatholicCare to produce the information below. This has been in response to the year we have had with the disruptions and uncertainty of COVID-19. 

Attached to the newsletter this week is the Formation of Classes Policy and Procedure. This policy is used to direct the process of class formation each year. This is a lengthy process that works towards ensuring that every child’s needs are considered. The process begins throughout Term 4. It is important that parents are aware that the teachers know the students within the school - classroom and playground - environment exceptionally well and always put the best interests of every child first.

Please take time to read the policy. This will give you some indication of the process. Whilst parental requests are considered, there is never a guarantee that they will be granted. If you plan to make a request, particularly about your child being placed within a friendship group, please be aware that there may be circumstances surrounding such requests that prevent it from being granted. 

Often there can be experiences where children are placed in classes with friends upon parental requests. The children have then encountered difficulties with the friendship causing awkward situations for all involved that could possibly have been avoided. In addition, parents have requested that their child not be with a particular child/ren and the concern rests more with the adults than the child/ren involved. 

Please remember that, first and foremost, Good Samaritan is a place of learning. Learning involves academic achievement as well as learning how to work effectively with a range of people including peers, teachers and school support officers. 

As this term progresses the children will become excited about the approaching Christmas season. It is very important that the children remain focused and settled throughout Term 4. When the children begin to bring Christmas cards, candy canes and the like to school too early they tend to ‘tune out’. It is for this reason, and the fact that waiting is a part of our Catholic Christian tradition with the season of Advent, that the children may begin to bring Christmas cards, candy canes etc for their classmates from the end of Week 9 – Friday 11 December. 

Please begin to speak to your children about appreciating the card, gift or candy cane that they receive no matter who it is from and that when they give something they shouldn’t always expect something in return. 

As we approach the end of the school year, we need to take time to reflect on the good that the year has brought to our school community. Below is a video that recaps many of the Good Sam Moments. Take some time to view the video. I would appreciate some feedback about our school year and ask that you complete a short survey. Click here to access the survey. 

The survey will close on Friday 13 December.

Car Park Safety

Safety within the Parish car park is everyone’s business. Students, parents and staff can only be kept safe if everyone is vigilant about their actions when using this space. It is every parent/carer’s responsibility to exercise safe actions within the carpark. This includes using the car park as indicated below:

• Parents are not to park on school or Parish grounds during drop off (8:20am-8:50am) or pick up (2:30pm-3:20pm) times
• When arriving prior to dismissal at Car Line Pick Up parents are asked to turn engines off once the car is stationary
• A safe speed of 10km/h when driving into the car park
• Do not exit your vehicle when dropping off or picking up students
• Ensure that children are well within the school gate when dropping off before moving off
• Children only exit vehicles when the vehicle is at the front of the queue
• Ensure students have safely entered the car and closed the door when picking up
• There is no pedestrian access to the carpark when car lines have begun in both the morning and afternoon
• Gates into the school are closed and locked from the Parish car park following morning assembly.

Thank you to those parents who continually exercise the utmost care when accessing the school via the Parish car park. Every child’s safety is everyone’s concern.

If you pick your child/ren up from over the road please ensure that you have parked your car at the kerb rather than calling your child/ren to a car that is standing in traffic or is stopped at the pedestrian crossing. This is not safe for you child/ren nor is it a good example of being a responsible road user.