So much has happened since I last wrote for the newsletter. We had the most fabulous day for our inaugural Canberra Goulburn All schools Coota Volleyball. It was a fantastic opportunity for the town and regions to come together to be part of this wonderful Cootamundra tradition. We had 47 teams from around the district and beyond (Goulburn, Young, Gundagai and Tumut) enjoy the facilities provided by the Coota Beach Volleyball Committee (we are very grateful for their support). I have attached the clip which shows some of the action (the photos were taken by our amazing Art Teacher Mrs Anne Cooper). Also a big thank you to Mr Winsor and his dedicated  committee for all their efforts. Also to the hard working P & F under the guidance of Mrs Heather Gammon (catering Coordinator),  Mrs Sonya Ward (P & F President) and Mrs Kim Sannazzaro (P & F Secretary). We were blown away with the generosity of the school community with all of the donations for the catering stall. I have never seen so much “stuff” so generously donated. We also appreciated the families and staff members who came down to the courts to help set up and pack up. This event is now on all the regional carnivals It is the start of a wonderful tradition for Sacred Heart and the Beach Volleyball Carnival. Save the date: 16 February 2024!!!!

https://www.canva.com/design/DAFbPp_p6HQ/CpY_QlJIxAsdskAvSwwCVQ/watch?utm_content=DAFbPp_p6HQ&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=publishsharelink

Our wonderful swimmers were exceptional at the Western region Carnival yesterday from all reports. We came away as second placed overall with several champions in their age groups – Toby Westaway, Zoe Lake and Jake Harris were named as age champions. Congratulations to all who swam and conducted themselves with distinction. We have many students who have made it on to the next level.

A reminder that some COVID-safe protocols that have remained. This includes the need for parents to remain OUTSIDE the fences at pick up in the afternoons. This helps the teachers to manage the pickup and to monitor the students leaving the school grounds. Thank you for your help in this!

We are hopeful that fees will be sent out very soon but at this stage they are still ironing our issues with Central Schools and secondary colleges around family fees etc. We are aware that many are anxious to start their regular payments, and this is appreciated. Hopefully we will know in the coming week when fee statements and regular BPays can begin. A reminder that if you would like to request a fee remission then you need to complete a new application each calendar year. Please contact the Front Office for a 2023 Remission form.

This week we hosted four very successful information sessions. Kinder, Stage 1, Year 10 and year 7 were very well attended by parents and the information presented by our dedicated staff was invaluable. If you need any information because you were unable to attend any of these sessions, please contact the respective Coordinators/teachers for booklets or details.

NAPLAN testing will soon be upon us. It is now to be held in the weeks 15 March to 27 March. These are important to collect data around areas of need and strengths in the school’s teaching. Please talk to the class teacher if you are concerned about your child or they seem anxious about the process. More information is attached later in the newsletter.

Photo day is rapidly approaching, and we hope that we have maximum attendance on the day to record our beautiful students for 2023. Please mark 31 March in your calendar as Photo Day – all students are required to be in full summer uniform. Information and ordering instructions will be sent home soon.

Don’t forget to make sure you can access COMPASS for all information. If you have difficulty logging on then please see the girls at the front Office. All payments now will go out through COMPASS pay and we are striving for a more sustainable paperless workflow. There is a need to nominate a closing dates for consent and payment to allow processing. This places added urgency on completing all forms and payments well before the due date. This is a feature of the COMPASS portal that closes off consent and payment which makes late payments more challenging.

This week we officially welcomed our new Assistant Principal Mr Ryan Forsyth. He has recently been the acting Principal of Adelong and he is very enthusiastic and excited about the challenge of helping to lead our school. We look forward to sharing the 2023 journey with him and all that he can offer our school community.

This year we will work to be the kind of school where we strive to be kind all the time!

Remember, if you have to chose between being extraordinary or kind, be extraordinarily kind.

God Bless

Dear Parents & Cares

This year our National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) commences on Wednesday 15th March for our Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 students. As mentioned in the attachment, NAPLAN assesses the literacy and numeracy skills that students are learning at school - it is important to note that this is only one aspect of Sacred Heart's assessment and reporting schedule.

NAPLAN not only provides an opportunity to assess individual student learning but also a great opportunity for staff to identify trends from a broader school and system perspective. It may be important to reassure your children that they will be supported through this process and that they simply 'do their best' on each assessment.

Please find attached the 'NAPLAN Information for Parents and Carers' sheet which helps to further inform parents about this assessment and how to support your child/ren during this time.

naplan_information_brochure_for_parents_and_carers.pdf

Term 1 Week 4

Hi everyone,

Welcome back to a new school year. There will be many changes and things to learn with regard to the administration of Sport messages and notes for 2023. As we move to the new Compass system and navigate its complexities, we will endeavour to send out sports notes electronically. Specific questions can be answered and permission can be given electronically. There may be some paper notes distributed when required but we will be moving to a paperless format. 

Swimming Carnival Results

The first event for the year was our School Swimming Carnival. Congratulations to all those who participated. It was a very successful day, with many PBs, records and fun had. 

Most importantly thank you to all the parents and families who came and assisted on the day with timekeeping. As well as those who came and cheered on all the competitors. 

Broken Records 

Congratulations to the following students for their record breaking swims. What an amazing record haul!

Representative and Pathways Sport

Representative and pathway sport information can be found in a number of locations.

• CSNSW Sport website - for most pathway nominations beyond school level.
• Canberra Goulburn Sport website, nomination page and calendar page
• CSNSW - Facebook page
• Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn Sport - Facebook page

The pathway for a Primary student in NSW to attend Australian National Championships is as follows:

• Attends School carnival to gain selection to the school representative team.
• Attends Regional carnival to gain selection to the Regional team.
• Attends Archdiocesan carnival or Selection Trial to gain selection to the Archdiocesan team.
• Attends MacKillop carnival to gain selection to the MacKillop team.
• Attends NSW PSSA State Championships to gain selection to NSW State team.
• Attends the School Sport Australia Championship

The NSW State championship comprises 10 DoE Districts, the MacKillop team, the Polding team and Independent Schools Team (CIS).

The pathway for a Secondary student in NSW to attend Australian National Championships is as follows:

• Attends school carnival to gain selection into the school representative team.
• Attends Archdiocesan Carnival or selection trial to gain selection into Archdiocesan team or through individual entry/nomination on the CSNSW.sport. 
• Attends Combined Catholic Colleges Carnival /Trial to gain CCC selection.
• Attends NSW All Schools Carnival to gain NSW selection.
• Attends the School Sport Australia Championship

Primary Sport

Please note that Primary students (Years 3-6), will have sports Thursdays. Our term one calendar is very jammed packed, please keep an eye on Compass and the school calendar for any sporting events. 

Swimming

WR swimming carnival was held this Thursday the 23rd of February. We had a very successful swimming campaign with students making many PBs and qualifying for the next level in Queanbeyan on the 7th of March. Overall, Sacred Heart came second on the day, by 10 points. 

Our team included;

A special Congratulation to; 

Zoe Lake for receiving Age Champion

Toby Westaway for receiving Age Champion, Toby also broke the 10yr boys 50 Freestyle record with a time of 36.62

Jake Harris for for receiving Age Champion

Ella Gammon, Polly Manwaring and George Clark came third overall.

The following students qualified for Queanbeyan;

Cootamundra Soccer Gala Day

Students from stage1-3 have been invited to participate in a soccer gala day. This event is a free event and is set to take place at Mitchell Park, Cootamundra on the 27th of February (Monday week 5). 

If your child wishes to participate please indicate on the compass events page. We will be looking for coaches to assist on the day. Students must wear the proper soccer boots and shin pads in order to play.  

Students are to be dropped off at school as normal and will return to school before the end of the school day.

Triathlon 

Our primary triathlon will be held week 5. A note has gone out on Compass detailing further information. This term we will not be swimming any weeks other than our carnivals and triathlon. The day is all about participation, please encourage students to participate to the best of their abilities.

Volleyball

On Friday our stage three students participated in the beach volleyball tournament. They played a modified game called newcombe ball. Even though it was very hot, students had a great day and enjoyed learning a new skill. 

This event is going to be an annual event that will be bigger and better next year. 

C&G Sporting Representatives

This program is an opportunity for our stage 3 students to trial and represent their sport at a higher level. It is up to parents to register for these events. If you have missed the closing date, please let us know and we will contact the organisers. Please go to https://csnsw.sport/sports/nswccc to register for any of these events. 

CG Touch Trials

Congratulations to Jett Johnson for successfully making the touch team, last year for 2023. It was a great day in Yass at the MacKillop Touch Football trials on Wednesday. Our Canberra Goulburn teams played their hearts out all day and made our Archdiocese proud. Jett Johnson was identified as one of the top players for the day and played in the Possible V Probable game.

Athletics

Our SHC Athletics carnival is again set for early term 3, therefore we will start trialling and learning how to perform some of these events from week 6 this term. These will include, High Jump, Discus, long distance running, Long Jump and Shot Put. The top 6-8 students for High Jump and Discus will compete on the day. Students will be given the opportunity to practise and improve on these throughout the weeks. 

Primary Sport Dates

If you have any photos from any event please email them through and we will put them in the newsletter next week.

If you have any concerns or questions please don’t hesitate to contact me via email

Kind regards

Wendy Van Kerk Oerle

Primary sports coordinator

wendy.vankerkoerle@cg.catholic.edu.au 

Secondary Sport

Coota Invitational Beach Volleyball Carnival

The inaugural Schools Invitational Beach Volleyball was a huge success. With over 40 teams from all around the district participating in the event.

Click HERE to view the video.

Representative Sports

There are many representative sports coming up this term. All notifications and processes for registration can be found on the Secondary Sports Google Classroom page.

Secondary Triathlon

Friday 3rd March will be the Secondary House Triathlon. Students will be in staged teams in house groups. We are hoping for a swimmer, bike rider and runner per team. A notification will be sent out early next week.

Secondary Sport Dates

Students can log on to the Secondary Sports Google Classroom for more information on how to register.