It is a belated ‘Welcome to Term 4’ for me. As is often the case, the best laid plans never go to plan and I am writing my first newsletter for Term 4. I am forever grateful to our wonderful staff for managing and thriving in my absence over the past few weeks and to Ms Marsay for covering the newsletter writing duties. It has been a challenging time for my family on the loss of my beloved mother but I was touched by the messages of sympathy and support from the wider school community. A big thank you to Mr Forsyth who led the school over the past weeks and I came back to a happy and settled school and I am very glad to be back.

It is hard to believe that 2023 is nearly over and we are in the throes of end of year assessments, report writing and planning for 2024. Our Year 10 students will sit their final examinations and assessments next week as they prepare to move onto new and exciting adventures in 2024. They still have much to do before they leave us but it is inspiring to see how much they have grown and what fabulous young people they are. We are immensely proud of all that they have given to the school and achieved during their time at Sacred Heart and we wish them every success next week as they finalise their subject grades for their final report from Sacred Heart. Thank you to Ms Marsay who has led them as their PCA. She has navigated many ups and downs and been a constant support to them.

Years 7-9 will be completing their final examinations in Week 6 so they should be busy studying and preparing for these tests. Please consult the examination timetables and avoid booking appointments on the days of the exams. If necessary, contact the Year PCAs if you have any questions around the exams or the final weeks. All reports for all students K-10 will be released on COMPASS in week 9 which can be accessed through each child’s profile. The reports will appear familiar but will also include teacher comments regarding students’ strengths and recommended goals to work towards. This the beginning of a transition phase on how Sacred Heart communicates students’ progress and performance to parents. There will be a variation to the teacher and parent phone calls this term. This transition phase will continue throughout 2024. There will be an opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher upon request at the end of the school year.

The school photos will be available very soon and I will be very interested in seeing how they all turned out. So too, we are on the cusp of our annual Touch Carnival and Beyond Sacred Heart activities as we slide into the final weeks. There are still an expectations around uniform, behavior, application and effort. Despite the end of year events that are approaching we still have lots of different opportunities to learn, to build skills and to prepare for the learning of next year. Teachers are also very busy planning for 2024. If you have not contacted the school around your plans for next year please do so as a matter of urgency. We will be drafting class lists for 2024 and if you have a concern or issue that you would like considered then please make contact with me asap.

Next Wednesday 8 November will be our Community Breakfast for Term 4. Please join us at 8.15am for a light breakfast. It is also our Uniform Free day and all monies will go to Catholic Mission following on from Socktober. The uniform free rules still apply in terms of sunsafe and appropriate shoes. This also includes a broad brimmed hat – no caps.

Today we farewell Mr John Murray who finishes up with us to move onto new and exciting adventures. Mr Murray has been an incredibly valuable CSA whose wide range of skills made him able to support the school community in so many different ways. Mr Murray was an outstanding CSA, leading student learning and supporting the teachers with his new and innovative ideas, he coached and managed many sporting teams and also shared his knowledge of engines and basic car maintenance with our Year 10s. Mr Murray was always willing to “have a go” and would generously offer his support for anything that we were doing. We will miss him.

Thank you to Mrs McLeod who so capably stepped up to REC during Mrs Maxwell’s leave. She is a generous and happy soul that is so easy to work with. Thank you, Mrs McLeod for your dedication and commitment to our students and school. Welcome back Mrs Maxwell!

It was unfortunate that we were not able to host our Bush Dance last week as planned. So many people have so many different commitments that it was hard to find a date that suited. However, we are very grateful to Mrs Kim Sannazzaro for her enthusiastic efforts to organize this event to help raise funds for our school. Kim was tireless in her efforts to make the event a success and hopefully we will be able to host a dance on another occasion.

The Junior Student Leadership Team are hosting a Primary Disco (Years 2-6) at the S&C Club on Wednesday 15 November 5pm – 7pm. The theme for the disco is ‘Favourite Movie Character’. We have decided to make the disco free of charge to celebrate the final term of school. However, students will still need to collect their ticket before the night so that we are aware of all students who are attending. Please do not get your child to collect a ticket if they do not intend to attend.

Thank you to all our wonderful families who turn up everyday and support their children in achieving goals and learning new skills. Attendance is still paramount to experiencing academic growth. Please remember that you can not learn if you are not at school. Maximum attendance is expected for the remainder of the school year.

Next week is week 5 and the next newsletter will mark the halfway mark of Term 4. Let’s make every day count. Remember you can always be kind and it costs nothing.

God Bless,

Ms Nicky Trinder

Principal

Uniform free next Wednesday is to raise money for Catholic Mission’s projects in Timor-Leste.  

Upcoming Faith Formation Events

Monday 13th November - Year 9 Leadership Day

Thursday 16^th November - Yr 5 Leadership Day

Friday 24^th November - Yr 6 Thanksgiving Mass

Friday 8^th December - Yr 10 Farewell Mass

Thursday 14^th December - Advent Liturgy

~1B Assembly~

Primary

Swimming Programs

Our K-6 swimming intensive program will be held in week 8-9. Further information will soon be available through compass. 3-6 students may participate in this program if they require further consolidation of skills and water safety. It is not necessarily squad practice. Please contact me if you wish for further information about this program if you are in 3-6.

Primary swimming will start in week 6 and run every Thursday until week 9. It will be $12.00 for the 4 weeks. If you have a valid season pass please let us know and we will adjust accordingly. Students are reminded that they will need to bring their swimmers including a rashie, towel, hat and goggles. Information will go out on compass soon.  

2024 Canberra/ Goulburn trials

Nominations are now open for students who wish to trail for the Canberra Goulburn 2024 sports. Touch, Cricket, Tennis and Basketball trails for 2024 are all run in term 4. If your child is interested in trialling for these events registration is through the CSNSW Sport Website; https://csnsw.sport/help/help-guide-for-parents 

Cricket 3rd November, Queenbeyan

Touch 24th November, ACT

Tennis 30th November, ACT 

Basketball 1st December, ACT 

Regards,

Wendy Van Kerk Oerle

Primary Sports Coordinator