April 7th, 2022

Acknowledgement of Country

The St Pius X Parish School Community acknowledges the Gunditjmara / Marr Nation people who have educated children on these lands for thousands of years.

A Note from our Principal

We made it!  We survived! Congratulations to all staff, parents and children for not only surviving but thriving throughout this first term.  I think it is fair to say that we all  feel  grateful that we were able to have a full term of face to face learning for the first time in two years.

Our Foundation children have settled into St Pius X beautifully and are making great connections with the staff, each other and of course their buddies all the while learning about letters, sounds, numbers and school norms.

The Grade One and Two children have really enjoyed meeting their new Grade five buddies and have loved doing reading and easter craft together.  

A highlight for our Grade Three and Four students this term was the Science Unit.  The children tested materials and properties of materials by making their very own pinatas and testing their strength.  Lots of fun was had by all.

The Grade Five and Six Students have had an incredible start to their final years of learning at primary school.  They have transitioned well into extra curricular activities including swimming, athletics, buddies and leadership.

As we approach Easter I wish all families a restful break as we pause to remember the death and new life of Jesus. Whether you are able to join in a liturgical celebration over this period, or you use the time to be with your family, consider the poignancy of this special time for our school and parish community. 

I encourage all families to check over the dates for Term Two included in the newsletter.  Whilst we look forward to the holiday break, we’ll be coming straight back to another busy term for our community.

Clare Green

Acting Principal

Stations of the Cross - 9.45am Tomorrow

At 9.45am the Grade Five and Six Children from SP1 and SP 3 will lead us in the Stations of the Cross.  The Stations of the Cross will commence in the Stadium and conclude in the Church.  All parents and carers are welcome to join us.

Parents/Carers on School Sites Guidelines.       Parents, carers and other adult visitors attending a gathering at school, such as a fete, school play or other school ceremony, whether indoors or outdoors, need to show evidence of vaccination on arrival.  

Easter Raffle

Our annual Easter raffle will be drawn tomorrow.   The raffle will be drawn in the Church at 10.30am after the Stations of the Cross.  All parents and carers are welcome to join us for the BIG EVENT.

Sincere thanks to Donna Matheson and our very own Ava Matheson for wrapping our Easter Raffle Prizes.  They look fantastic!  Good Luck to all our ticket holders.

Parents/Carers on School Sites Guidelines.       Parents, carers and other adult visitors attending a gathering at school, such as a fete, school play or other school ceremony, whether indoors or outdoors, need to show evidence of vaccination on arrival.  

Early Finish Tomorrow - 2.30pm

A reminder that the country buses will be running from 2.30pm tomorrow as well.

Sausage Sizzle

Our sausage sizzle was a great success thanks to our very kind volunteers.  A huge thank you goes to Richard Verspay, Darren Edge, Kimberley Bakker and Sonja Martin.  

Rapid Antigen Test Kits

Each child will receive two more boxes of RAT kits, which are to be used for the first two weeks of Term 2.   Tests are not supplied by the Victorian Government for use during the holidays.  Test kits will be distributed tomorrow.

School Photos

Our school photographers visited ST Pius X last Monday and were very efficient and helpful while taking all the student photos.  If you have any queries please contact Leading Image directly.  The school only acts as a venue for our school photos to be taken and we are not involved in the administrative side.  Please phone Leading Image on 1300 084 586 if you have any queries.

Warrnambool City Athletics Carnival Results.

It was great to see so many of our representatives successful in their events and it was exciting that our school came third overall.

We are most proud of the reports that we got from parents, staff and the wider community who attended the day.  The feedback was that the children from St Pius X displayed excellent sportsmanship, encouraged and supported not only each but their competitors as well and had lots of fun.  Well Done Team!

A big thank you to Mr Alexander and his team: David White, Xavier Mills, Brenda Balash and Olivia Lindsay.

• Angus McKenna: 2nd in discus. 
• Austin Francis: 1st in 10 year old shot put.
• Kurtis Blain: 3nd in 12/13yo high jump.
• Holly Woodward: 2nd in 1500m run,3rd in high jump and 3nd in the 10 year old relay.
• Jess Kent: 2nd in high jump and third in 11 yr old 800m run.
• May Ballie: 3rd in high jump.
• Tommy Stebbins: 3rd in long jump.
• Zahli Best: 2nd in long jump, 3rd in the 100 metre sprint and third in the u/10  relay.
• Tessa Maher: 3rd in the 12/13  long jump.
• Isaiah Dawson: 1st in shot put.
• Pippa Dufty: 3rd in the 10 year old relay.
• Luke Harrison: 2nd in the 12/13yo 100m sprint.
• Zoe Everall:  2nd in the 11yo 1500m run.
• Rosie Kelly: 3rd in the 10yo relay.  

Congratulations to all our representatives at the Warrnambool Athletics Carnival:

Hamish Corbett, Naomi Kishinaka, Charlea Macleod, Oliver Miller, Jack Cushion, Dylan Verspay, Beau Allen, Charlotte Thompson, Maya Anderton, Kate Martin, Matt Harrison, Lewis Haberfield, Luca Rodgers, Felicity White, Eli Santamaria, Freya Corbett, Benjie Balash, Brax Alford and Darcy O'Shannassy.

ANZAC Day Public Holiday

Just a reminder that the first day of Term Two is ANZAC Day and will be a Public Holiday.  Classes begin on Tuesday, 26th April.

Winter Uniform Term 2

In Term 2, students are required to wear the full school winter uniform.

Grade 1/2 Excursions Term 2.

In the first week of next Term the Grade 1/2 children will be going on an excursion to the Twelve Apostle on Friday the 29th April.  On the 16th of May they will be visiting local landmarks.  Please remember to fill out the permission note on PAM.

New Admin Enrolment Program

In the last couple of weeks Anne has been investigating a new enrolment program called Enquiry Tracker.  Other schools in the area are using this program and have found it very efficient.

Anne is undertaking online training during the holidays and hopefully we will have it up and running for enrolment applications for 2023.  The program will be accessed through our website.

As enrolment applications are not far away please speak with your family and friends who may have a child ready for school in 2023.  Word of mouth is a very powerful tool in promoting our school in the community.

Hot off the Prep Press!!

Miss O'Keefe

For the last 2 weeks we have been lucky to have Ms Georgia O’Keefe teaching us in the Prep rooms. Georgia is studying to be a teacher at Deakin University and we have loved getting to know her. She has taught us lots of different things and she is always helpful, kind and gentle. We can’t wait to see her again in Term 3. Thanks for all your hard work, Ms O’Keefe.

Easter Excitement

This week we have been extremely busy but in lots of fun and creative ways. We have made an Easter sentence, we have labelled an Easter bunny, we have made an Easter basket, we have read lots of Easter stories and we have danced the Easter bunny hokey pokey and the Easter Boom Chicka Boom. What a great way to end Term 1!!!

Reading Eggs

Today we have started our Reading Eggs program using an i-pad. We have our own special log-in and password and we can learn about how to read both at school and at home. We can’t wait to collect lots of golden eggs as we learn all our letters, sounds and words.

The Arts

During the Easter break Gateway Plaza are holding their annual school Arts display with this year's theme being the 23rd Psalm.  Please show support by going along to have a look at the beautiful artwork our Preps have created.

Breakfast Club

Breakfast Club is back up and running for 2022!

Every Wednesday from 8:15 breakfast will be available in the function room for any students that would like to have some breakfast before the school day starts! Everyone is more than welcome to come along, even if they have already had breakfast at home. It is a great initiative supported by FoodShare who provide fruit, yoghurt, cereal and yummy toast. 

Thanks again to our parent volunteers Maddy and Tracey for running the program!

Confirmation Term 2

Next term the preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation will begin in the different communities of the Star of the Sea Parish (Warrnambool, Dennington, Koroit & Port Fairy). The Sacrament of Confirmation is celebrated by children who have been Baptised in the Catholic faith. At St Pius X this is usually children in Yr 2.

A family meeting for the children and parents of St Pius X will be held in the first week of Term 2 on April 28th at 7pm in the St Pius X Church. At this meeting we will be learning a little about the Sacrament and organising groups for preparation.

The celebration of Confirmation will be held on Monday June 6th at 7.00pm.

Families with a child who will be confirmed are asked to register this at the following link:

https://forms.gle/a5rhWJLB5pV3gnYp6

Families with questions are invited to contact the school office (55622506). Some queries may be redirected to the parish office (55622231)

School Fees and Levies

As we come to the end of Term 1 it would be greatly appreciated if families who have yet to make a payment could please attend to their school fee account.  All diocesan support and CSEF rebates have been credited to the appropriate accounts.

Second Hand Book Sale - Rotary Club

The Rotary Club of Warrnambool physically and financially support numerous international, national and local causes. We are holding a SECOND HAND BOOK SALE, at the Warrnambool Club, at 88 Kepler Street on EASTER SATURDAY, 16th APRIL.  

Your contributions would be greatly appreciated, so If you have any old books at home that you are willing to donate to the Rotary Club you can take them to 88 Kepler Street or drop them off at the school office.  Thank you in advance for your generosity.

Library News

We have lots of books in the library to contact.  If you'd like to help, you can pick up a bag of books and contact at the office.  We really appreciate your help!

Footy Tipping

Wow!  What a round of football.  The leaderboard is looking very different after Round 3.  Mack1, Bluesfan and JoeEwing have come from nowhere to take the top three spots.  Don’t forget to put your tips in over the holidays.  Good Luck tipsters. 

The Lions had another great win!  Get on the bandwagon!

Thanks to our generous sponsors:

Bojangles Pizzeria Restaurant

61 Liebig St

Warrnambool

5562 0666

An Easter Blessing.

Parish Contact

Sunday Mass 10.30 @ St Pius X Church. School families are always welcome.

The Parish office can be contacted on 5562 2231

Other information and contact details can be found on the Star of the Sea South West Coast website: https://www.ballarat.catholic.org.au/parish/southwestcoast/ 

Second Hand Uniforms

Families seeking low cost uniform items are welcome to contact Angela Verspay (mum to Dylan and Finn) who has stock of many donated uniform items. Ph: 0477660119.

Student Medical Details

At the end of last year we asked parents to use the Parent Access Module (PAM) to add and adjust medical details. This information is vital to the wellbeing of our students and we ask parents to prioritise the maintenance of this information.

Upcoming Dates

Apr  8 Final day of Term

            9.45am Stations of the Cross

           10.30am Easter Raffle Draw

            - Early Finish 2.30pm

Apr 15 Good Friday

Apr 17 Easter Sunday

Apr 25 ANZAC Day

Apr 26 Term 2 begins

Apr 28 Confirmation Family Meeting

Apr 29 Grade 1/2 Excursion 

May 2 Parents & Friends Meeting

May 6 Proposed School Cross Country

May 10-20 NAPLAN

May 12 SAC Meeting

School Canteen Roster

Covid 19 Arrangements

Managing Suspected or Confirmed Cases

As soon as a student (or staff member) becomes aware of being a suspected case - that is symptomatic (fever, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, loss of smell or taste:

1. The suspected case is required to leave the school site, or be isolated on-site until they are able to leave.
2. The suspected case is required to be tested with a rapid antigen test. A positive test result must be reported to the Department of Health using the RA portal and the school (notification on the VicED COVID tool).
3. Positive cases must be isolated for 7 days before returning to school. Another RAT test is not required.

Students and staff who return a positive RAT but who are asymptomatic, and have not been in contact with a confirmed case are now recommended to get a PCR test. If this subsequent test is negative the student or staff member may return to school.

In the event that school receives notification that a staff member or student was infectious while onsite:

1. All staff must use a rapid antigen test if they have symptoms.
2. All students must use a rapid antigen test if they have symptoms.
3. Close contact staff and students will be strongly encouraged to use rapid antigen tests for the following 5 days if they don’t have symptoms.

Where a positive case is recorded from a staff member or student who has been on site, the school community will be notified. Personal information will not be released in this communication.

Returning to School from a Positive Household

Some families may be in a position where their children have isolated as close contacts for seven days as required,  but have not become positive, even with current positive cases in the home. These children may be in a position to return to school under updated rules, but only if asymptomatic and with negative RAT results.

 If you believe this relates to you, please contact the school for advice.

Adult Entry

Parents visiting the school as volunteers (eg. canteen, classroom helper, P&F)  must:

• Wear a mask
• Show vaccination status (triple vaccinated or exempt)
• Complete school sign in.
• Carry a visitor pass.

Parents visiting to attend an event must:

• Wear a mask if indoors
• Show vaccination status (double vaccinated or exempt)
• Complete school sign in.
• Carry a visitor pass where applicable.

Parents who need to briefly speak with teachers, or pick something up from a classroom before or after school,  can enter classrooms before 9.00am and after 3.30pm, but must:

• Wear a mask.
• Scan QR code at the building door.
• Keep visit brief (5 minutes)

The opportunity for family members to help with reading and other classroom based activities will begin soon, but the above criteria must be adhered to.

Close Contacts

A close contact is now defined as a person who has spent more than four hours with someone who has COVID 19 inside a house, accommodation or care facility. Students fitting within this definition must access a PCR or RAT test and follow quarantine protocols if the result proves to be positive.

Rapid Antigen Tests

We encourage families to conduct rapid tests on children on Monday and Wednesday mornings. Rapid test kits have been distributed to families. Please contact the office if your family has not received the latest round of kits.

Please note that students who have been confirmed cases should not complete a RAT for 30 days after a positive test as the result will not be accurate.

Face Masks

Face masks for P - 2 students remain optional but are encouraged.

Face masks for Yrs 3 - 6 are required while students are indoors. These masks must be supplied from home and need to be managed by the students themselves.

Students whose physical or mental health will be impacted by wearing a mask may be exempt from this regulation, but we ask parents to contact the school to confirm this. Medical certificates and letters from doctors are not required.

We have listed all students with asthma or known respiratory conditions as exempt. Adults are no longer required to wear masks outdoors.

Masks are required to be worn on buses to and from school also.

Student Illness and Symptoms

Students and staff who are unwell should not attend school.

Students displaying symptoms that are beyond what they normally experience with a known existing condition (ie hayfever) will be sent home.

Assemblies & Liturgies

Special whole school gatherings such as liturgies and assemblies can now be held, however we are still required to maintain separation of class levels. Parents attending must provide evidence of double vaccination.

Visiting Therapists and Allied Health 

Visiting therapists and allied health may continue to visit, but must be triple vaccinated. We have encountered a minority who believe this does not apply to them - they are incorrect.

Canteen

Our canteen is open Tuesday - Friday for lunch orders and also for small items at second recess.

Parent volunteers must be triple vaccinated and follow sign in procedures.

Hand Cleaning

Students will be prompted to sanitise or wash their hands at key times across the day.

We ask that children not use their own hand sanitiser, unless this has been discussed with the school.

Progressive Cleaning

The school will continue to be progressively cleaned throughout the day, with our teaching staff ensuring surfaces are wiped down during school hours, complementing the work of our cleaning contractors after hours.

Sharing Food

Food sharing will continue to be avoided unless individualised portions can be organised (ie. birthday celebrations).

Camps, Excursions, Interschool Sport

Most offsite activities can go ahead, with safety controls in place and some modification.