While our school prepares to wind down after the end of an amazing first term, it is important that we remember that, as a community, we just celebrated the most important season in the Christian calendar.

We celebrated Easter last week and we are reminded that Jesus Christ died on the cross, He was buried and on the third day He rose again to bring hope to the world. 

As we celebrated this wonderful holiday, I hope we all remembered that Christ gave His life for us willingly and unconditionally and so we should extend the same love to family, friends and those around us.

I must make special mention of Miss Jackson, our staff and students for their preparation of our Easter Liturgy. This was such a special time for our community and personally, I felt so touched by the reenactment. I travelled to the Holy Land a few years back and walked in the footsteps of Jesus and remembered the significance of each of these events. So many parents and friends very kindly thanked our school after this liturgy and your thoughts and feedback was very well received and appreciated.

NATIONAL ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS WEEK 

This week is ‘National Assistant Principals Week’ and we would like to acknowledge our Assistant Principal, Mrs Taylor.

Assistant Principals play a crucial role, and this week is a dedicated time to recognise them for their hard work and commitment to our schools, students, and profession. For all of us, lucky enough to have Mrs Taylor guiding our school, we would like to thank her for being a great Assistant Principal for the past two years. Here is the prayer that our Year 6 leaders shared at our assembly for Mrs Taylor.

Dear God,

We come before you today with hearts filled with gratitude for the dedicated service of our Assistant Principal, Mrs Taylor. We thank you for placing such a compassionate and wise leader in our midst, someone who tirelessly works for the betterment of our school community.

Thank you for the guidance and wisdom bestowed upon Mrs Taylor as she navigates the challenges and joys of her role. 

We ask for your continued blessings upon Mrs Taylor. Grant her strength and resilience as she continues to serve with grace and humility. May she always find joy and fulfillment in her vocation, knowing that her efforts are making a difference in the lives of many.

We also pray for her health, happiness, and peace of mind. May she feel appreciated and supported, not only by us but by the entire school community.

Amen

DATES FOR TERM 2

STAFF DEVELOPMENT DAYS *some of these are mandated so please accept my apologies for any inconvenience

Day 1:Tuesday 30 January- Annual Improvement Plan, PGiA (Professional Goals in Action), WHS, Child Protection and Compliance.

Day 2: Tuesday 2 April- Curriculum Reform Network Professional Learning 1 

Day 3: Monday 29 April- Curriculum Reform School-based Professional Learning

Day 4: Friday 5 July- Curriculum Reform Network Professional Learning 2

Day 5: Monday 22 July- Spirituality Day 

Day 6: Friday, 18 October- Curriculum Reform Network Professional Learning 3

Day 7: Monday 18 November- Assessment and Reporting

Day 8: Thursday 19 December- CPR, Handover

*Friday 20 December is a day owed to teachers for doing extra twilight meetings throughout the year.

TERM 2 SNAPSHOT

Wishing everyone a safe and blessed upcoming holiday break and I look forward to seeing you all  in Term 2.

May God bless all our families.

Leanne Meehan

EXECUTIVE PRINCIPAL

Reporting and Parent Teacher Interviews

Our ‘Getting to Know You’ Parent Teacher sessions were very popular this term. They provided an opportunity to meet your child’s teacher and discuss your child’s learning, social and wellbeing as they started their new school year. Next term, our teachers provide a written report on your child’s academic achievement and effort.  We will also hold Parent Teacher Interviews at the end of Term 2 to give you an opportunity to discuss the report and your child’s progress for Semester 1.  

Our written reports meet the specified requirements as set out by the Federal and State Government along with Sydney Catholic Schools. They provide information on a student’s learning in all of the mandatory New South Wales Education Standards Authority (NESA) subjects as well as Religious Education. For Years 1 to 6, teachers assess a student’s progress and achievement against learning standards, reported as elementary, basic, sound, thorough or extensive, as well as a general comment. Kindergarten teachers assess student progress and achievement against three standards, basic, sound or thorough.  Individual parents may elect not to receive a scale report for their child, via a written request to the school each year. This year, there have been additional content areas added for English in line with the new syllabus. 

Zing Activ

An exciting time as it is less than a week to go now for the Years 3-6 Dancefever Challenge on Tuesday 9th April at The Hordern Pavilion.  The allocated seats for Sacred Heart parents are sold out, however if you haven’t bought your tickets yet, you still can by choosing the general seating area - section J.

What to wear

All students should wear their white T-shirt and denim shorts under their chosen ballroom outfit.  This could be a nice shirt, pants and shirt, skirt and top or a dress.  There are no change rooms in use, so children will just take off their ‘top’ layer of clothing when it’s time for the showdance.  

Years K-2

Our Kindy, Year 1 and Year 2 ‘Showcase’ performance is in our school playground on Wednesday 10th April, 9:00 am.  Parents, family and friends are welcome to join in the fun.

Car line Pick Up

Just a reminder that all cars should have your child’s surname clearly labelled.  This assists the teacher with the microphone to call students to be ready for pick up.  If you do not have a name for each car, please purchase from the office.

NAPLAN - 2025

For our Year 2 and Year 4 parents, the date of the NAPLAN test window for next year is the 12th to 24th March 2025.  Tests are usually scheduled early in the test window with the second week available for catch up tests. 

Winter Uniform

We have seen a big improvement with students wearing the correct uniform on the correct day.  At this time of year the weather can still be quite hot one day and then cooler the next.  To allow for this we have a changeover time for the winter uniform.  In week one of next term, students can wear either their summer or winter uniform on school uniform days and either their summer or winter sport uniform on sports days.  All students should be in their full winter uniform starting Week 2, Monday 6th May.

Around the Classes

FIRE-MAKING IN THE GARDEN

To support their exploration of how energy makes things happen, Year 4 students were captivated by David’s retelling of a Gamilaraay story about how the rakali discovered fire. Students then delved into hands-on activities exploring various methods of fire-making, before gathering dry materials from the garden for an illuminating fire-making demonstration.

May God’s love be with you. 

Jane Taylor

Easter Reflections this Friday, 5th April at Assembly 

Here’s hoping you all had a wonderful celebration over the Easter break with your loved ones. Thank you to all who were able to attend our Holy Week Reflections last Thursday at Sacred Heart Church.

The teachers and students put on a beautifully reflective experience to bring us into the Easter Triduum.

Please come along this Friday to see our Year 3 and Year 4 students reflect upon the events that occurred after Good Friday and on Easter Sunday. Easter Reflections will be presented at the Friday morning Assembly. In the case of rain, we will move to the school hall just after the Assembly. 

School Grade Masses- parents are warmly welcome to attend!

Each grade will visit the Church once a term to join Friday Mass at 9:15am. Parents are most welcome and we would love to see you there!

• Next Friday, 12th April @ 9.15am: Year Six and Kinder Grade Mass

Kindest Regards,

Miss Kristen Jackson

Religious Education Coordinator

Celebrating Wellbeing Week

Last week was Wellbeing Week at Sacred Heart. It was a time for us to have conversations with each other about reinforcing the message that simple acts can significantly impact our health and wellbeing as a community. Some of the activities we participated in were: Christian meditation to calm our mind and centre us, mindfulness activities - using grounding techniques through the senses, remembering our traffic light strategy - to breathe and think before we act and practising gratitude for the things we are thankful for in our life. We invited our families to join us during this week of wellbeing - for Christian meditation and through a Healthy Nutrition zoom session to learn about food that is best for our bodies.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter and enjoyed the mini break.

Think of Easter as your faith-based New Year’s resolution.

This is your opportunity to fully embrace the power of prayer. Strive to incorporate prayer into your daily life. Short prayers throughout the day will keep you grounded in your faith as you establish a closer connection with God. Lent and Easter was a good opportunity to examine our closest relationships.  Is there a need to forgive?  Is there love that needs rekindling?  Is there gratitude missing?  These are excellent ways of giving alms. 

In the end, all of our Lenten practices are simply saying “yes” to Jesus, just as Mary first did at the Annunciation.

May Mary pray for us, and may Jesus bring us to the Father. 

Oremus: Living the Year of Prayer 2024 

Our Holy Father has asked the entire Church to dedicate 2024 as a Year of Prayer in preparation for the 2025 Jubilee, ‘in order to foster a renewed ardour for evangelisation’.
Join the Parish Renewal Team online for a 3-week short course in which we will consider practical approaches to prayer as the font of renewal and mission in our parishes.

Thursdays 4 April, 18 April, 2 May, 2024
7:30 – 8:45 pm
For more information and to register, go to www.gomakedisciples.org.au/cas-events 

I attend Tuesday morning mass at Sacred Heart Church, 9:15am and would love for you to join me in meditating on what we are grateful for & praying for those we love who are in need.

Anzac Day is coming soon so let's remember & honour those who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations and the contribution and suffering of all those who have served.

Many Blessings

Anna Macri

Family & Faith Educator

Dear Parents and Carers,

With Term 1 coming to a close and only two more weeks of school left, the busy sporting world at Sacred Heart is slowly coming to an end.

Firstly, on Monday March 25th, we had six students representing our school at the Sydney Swimming Championships. Our Junior Boys relay team fought really hard and came second in their heat which is an admirable achievement, but unfortunately it was not enough to progress to the next round. They shaved off an entire five seconds from their time that they achieved at the Conference level.

Speaking of the next round, we will have two of our Year 6 students progressing through for breaststroke. Please wish Saoirse O’Riordan and Olivia Persinger the best of luck as they compete today at the Sydney MacKillop Selections Swimming Championships. Congratulations to those girls for such an amazing achievement. To add this, we would also like to congratulate Olivia Persinger for progressing through to MacKillop Teams for her performance in breaststroke today!

On Tuesday March 26th, we had Year 4 to Year 6 Sacred Heart Netball Club girls attend the Anne Sargeant Netball Clinic at Mosman Netball Courts. The girls had a great day, taking away valuable knowledge and skills from Anne Sargeant herself (who is a retired Australian netball player and current sports commentator. She played in the Australian national team from 1978 to 1988, captaining the side for six years) before their netball season begins.

Moving on to the next sport, we will have Flynn Daggett and Henry Pearson representing Sacred Heart at the Sydney MacKillop Selections Rugby League trials. We wish them luck for Friday the 5th of April as we know how tough the competition can be. Looking forward to hearing the results from the day.

In preparation for next term, Sacred Heart will be having their annual Athletics Carnival on Wednesday the 29th of May. This will be held at Rotary Athletics Oval as we trial a new venue with access to a proper long jump pit and equipment hire. We will once again have Zing Activ assisting with the running of this event. As usual, for any parents willing to assist for this event, please ensure that all of your volunteering documentation is up to date and has been submitted to the office.

Finally, to finish off, this is just another reminder that Sydney Catholic Schools are thrilled to share a range of exciting holiday opportunities for your child/ren during the school holidays. Prepare them for a holiday experience filled with joy, growth and unforgettable memories with their friends attending these active offerings:

• Fencing: Ages 8 - 16 year olds
• Golf : Ages 9 - 14 years old
• Table Tennis : Ages 9 - 15 years old
• Girls Football : Ages 8 - 12 year olds

Equip your child with skills, a love for physical activity, and nurture their spirit of competition, all while having fun. 

For detailed information and to secure a spot, visit the following link: https://sport.syd.catholic.edu.au/scs-outsidehours/holiday-camps

That’s all for now in sporting news. It has been a very busy Term 1, but I want to take this time to say thank you, and I appreciate all of your support and assistance that I have received so far. I look forward to giving you all further updates on our student achievements in the next term.

Wishing you and your family a beautiful holiday, and I am looking forward to Term 2 with you all.

Kind Regards,

Miss Austrie Calizar

Sports Co-ordinator

Below are few items of lost property being held in the school office, please collect before the end of term.