Term 2, Week 3 - Monday 13th May, 2024

What's On This Week

Principal

Dear Parents and Carers, 

Happy Mother’s Day to all of our Mothers, Grandparents and Carers. I am sure there was a lot of recognition and lovely gestures from our students to you. It was wonderful to see so many enjoying our Mother’s Day breakfast. It was a wonderful way to lead into our special Mother’s Day mass, followed by Open Classrooms for Catholic Schools Week. In particular, thank you to the Dad’s from our P&F, Mrs Bischof and our wonderful students who cooked breakfast for our special day. 

Last Wednesday, the Leadership Team had a planning day to devise the Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP) for the next 5 years. It was a fantastic day, with all leaderships thoroughly engaged in establishing our goals for improvement over the following years. To determine our goals, leaders considered all student, parents and staff feedback, as well as student achievement data, and research theories for high impact strategies. Following this day, leaders are refining the SIP and planning workshops in order to introduce the SIP to staff on our next Staff Development Day on June 17. 

Also on June 17, staff will again be engaged in a workshop with Michael McDowell, international expert in inquiry learning. This workshop will support staff in developing strategies for descriptive feedback in formative assessment. 

Parents are also invited to our professional learning day. This will be an excellent opportunity to find out about our SIP and give feedback, as well as understand our inquiry learning journey. Please let the office know if you are intending on coming to our professional learning day, and indicate the length of time you would like to attend. 

Do it for Dolly Awareness Day last Friday was marked by students wearing blue, and students talking about how we can all contribute to a safer, kinder world for all children. The blue additions to uniforms were worn with pride as students collaboratively marked this event. 

It is an exciting time over the following weeks with the commencement of Kindergarten interviews for our 2025 classes, and Year 6 transition to Year 7. Both events are important milestones for students. We look forward to meeting our new 2025 Kindergarten students and their families, as well as give Year 6 new and existing students a taste of Year 7. 

Please note that due to unforeseen circumstances this week's primary assembly will not be going ahead as normal. Infants and Primary awards will be handed out during class time on Friday.  Year 6 students will still be performing their play for the students and Year 6 parents are invited to attend at 2pm. 

Finally, as this term is racing ahead, please engage your children in conversations about their learning. Our students are immersed in many learning experiences daily, and they are achieving learning goals every day. We are proud of our learners, and our goal as a school is to aim towards ensuring every student achieves more than one year's growth every year of their education. 

God Bless, 

Michelle Deschamps - Principal

Assistant Principal

In my last article I wrote about St Raphael’s being a first choice school and what this means for us at St Raph’s, and today in this newsletter I will expand further.

We should be the school of choice for the local community. We should be the choice of parents because of what we offer at this fine school. To emphasise this point we have reviewed the enrolment process for new students and students continuing from Year 6 into Year 7.

Included in the new process are enrolment agreements for both students and parents, a closer look at school reports and a more in depth interview. This ensures that all prospective students and parents are aware of the high expectations we have at St Raph’s.

Every school will have on their prospectus or newsletter that they have high expectations but at St Raph’s we are ensuring practical and explicit procedures and processes are in place to ensure that these high expectations for learning and behaviour are understood and enacted upon. It is not just something that we say and don’t really mean, it is the standard of behaviour and learning that we demand of our students and parents. This is part of what makes St Raph’s the first choice school of our community.

Being a first choice school is also being part of the community and this was witnessed last Friday at our Mother’s Day festivities. Seeing so many positive interactions between students/staff/parents was wonderful to see and typifies the Catholic nature of our school where we demonstrate our care for each other. The morning BBQ with the P&F cooking splendid bacon and egg rolls served by our leaders; then into a beautiful mass to celebrate all the mothers in our school community; and then the open classrooms for people to visit and see what happens in our classrooms are all demonstrations of this sense of care and community.  It was a day to celebrate who we are and what happens in our school and I for one could not be prouder of what we are achieving in this fine school - St Raph’s!

David Wickham - Assistant Principal

Faith, Mission & Learning

CSW & Mother’s Day

Happy Mother’s Day for yesterday to all our Mums, Grandmums and motherly figures.

Thanks you to everyone who came to our special breakfast, Mass and Open Classrooms last week. It was a lovely community event. Special thanks to our P & F Dads and kids who helped with the cooking for breakfast.

First Eucharist

Our First Eucharist Candidates are halfway through their preparation for this Sacrament. This weekend is Prayer Card weekend, where our candidates will be handing out prayer cards to the parishioners for them to prayer for them. Please keep the students in your prayers too.

Pentecost Sunday

This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday in the Church’s Liturgical Calendar. It is the day when we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles. The same Holy Spirit we receive at our Baptism and Confirmation. It also signifies the end of our Easter Season.

Season of Cultural Learning and Acknowledgement

The 2024 Season of Cultural Learning and Acknowledgement will commence on Sorry Day (26th May) and will continue through Reconciliation Week (27th May- 3rd June) and will finish off with Naidoc Week (7th July-14th July) This season is very important to our school community and we will be holding lots of events and awareness activities. 

Sorry Day Mass

In 2024, Sorry Day falls on a Sunday. In collaboration with Fr Dong, the St Raphael’s Parish and our school, we have decided to have the 2024 Sorry Mass on the 26th May, during the Sunday 8:00am Parish Mass. We are encouraging all students to be in attendance with their families at this important event. Many of our students will be involved with different ministries and jobs during Mass. Mass will be followed by Breakfast. A Compass post will be sent out this week for a RSVP for catering. Please find an invitation attached.

Nicole Twohill-Scott - Leader of Faith, Mission & Learning (Acting)

Library News

Kids Lit Quiz

On Thursday 2nd May, twelve students, ranging from Year six to Year seven, led by Mrs Murney, Mrs Malcolm and Mr Thompson attended the Kids Lit Competition at James Sheahan Catholic High School in Orange.

Kids Lit is an international Kids literature competition for students between the ages of eleven and thirteen. Teams were divided into four people and each group competed in ten different topics. 

All of our teams were excellent and received very high scores. St. Raphael’s had three attending teams. Team 1 received 48 points, team 2 received 65.5 points coming in 4th place, and team 3 received 56.5 points.

All teams were amazing players, and the day was filled with fun. 

Year 9 Kids Lit mentors, Georgie Anning, Laura Bennett and Evie Green helped prepare the teams for the competition.

All attending staff were very proud of how these students performed. 

Taylia Penyu - Year 9 Kids Lit Mentor

Wellbeing & Enrichment

Attendance Matters

When students attend school consistently, they have more opportunities to develop and maintain positive friendships. 

Regular attendance in secondary school provides the consistency and continuity necessary for students to develop, nurture, and maintain positive friendships. These friendships contribute not only to the social aspects of secondary school but also to the overall wellbeing and personal growth.

Consistent Presence in Social Settings. Regular attendance ensures that students are consistently present in school, providing them with ample opportunities to engage in social settings. Daily interactions with peers in classrooms, hallways, and common areas foster the development of friendships.

Building Trust and Reliability. Consistent attendance contributes to building trust and reliability among peers. Being present regularly shows a commitment to friendships and helps establish a sense of dependability and mutual support.

Consistent Communication not Online. Regularly attending school allows for consistent face-to-face communication with peers. Students who are present daily can maintain ongoing conversations, share updates, and stay connected with the lives of their peers beyond social media. 

Development of Social Skills. Engaging with peers on a daily basis face-to-face contributes to the development of essential social skills. These skills include communication, empathy, teamwork, and conflict resolution, which are valuable for building and maintaining positive friendships.

Monash University, University of Melbourne and Deakin University researchers have created evidence-based parent resources for school refusal including a parenting guide and online modules for families. This could be helpful for some of our parents who are really struggling.

What to do if you see distressing content online

• Support for Australian families

Following the distressing events of the last several weeks, young people might be struggling to come to terms with what they have read and seen online. 

Online spaces should be safe for everyone. If your child sees violent or distressing material, it is important to check in and talk to them about the content they have seen. We also recommend that children use devices in open areas of the home, rather than in their bedroom, so you can be attuned to how they are coping and what they are reading or watching.

• Tips on how to deal with violent and distressing content
  
  • Don't share it further – even if your intention is to help or raise awareness, you may cause distress to others.
  • Report it to the platform to help get the material removed quickly.
  • If the material is not removed, you can report it to eSafety. eSafety can notify the platform to either remove the content or block access from within Australia. Your actions could protect you and others from seeing that content again.

You can find more guidance and information about distressing online content here: Dealing with distressing content

• Relevant resources

We understand as a parent or carer you may want to take extra precautions against your children seeing disturbing content online. eSafety has a range of helpful resources including:

• For kids and young people 
  • I saw something online I didn't like (for primary-school aged children)
  • Dealing with disturbing content (for teenagers)
• For parents and carers 
  • How to get started with parental controls 
  • General online safety advice for parents 
  • 
    
• Support services

If your child, or someone you know, has come across disturbing content online, there are a range of counselling services you can reach out to for help and support.

If a life is in danger call Triple Zero (000) right now.    

• • Kids Helpline, for 5–25-year-olds: 1800 55 1800 or kidshelpline.com.au (webchat is also available).   
  • headspace: support for young people, professionals, educators and families    
  • Lifeline: 13 11 14 or lifeline.org.au   
  • Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636 or beyondblue.org.au   

More support services, including state-based services aimed at parents and carers, are listed here.   

Learning Logistics & Pathways

Careers Corner

Students, parents & carers are encouraged to check out the latest updates on our school's career pathways website: https://straphaelscowra.careertools.com.au/

Any questions, please contact Mr Lette, thank you.

David Lette - Leader of Learning Logistics and Pathways

Primary Sport

Polding Winter Sports 

On Friday of Week 1, three St. Raphael's students travelled to Tamworth to compete in the Polding Winter Sports Trials. Evie in Netball, and Will and Harrison in Under 11s Rugby League, had all made it into the Bathurst Diocese teams at trials held last term. Now it was time to trial against the other Diocese from the top half of the state (Polding) to see if they could make the next step up.Evie was very competitive in the Netball, playing centre all day. She played 5 games throughout the day, winning 4, with the one loss being by a single goal. Evie was very unlucky not to make the possibles/probables match. Well done, Evie.

Will and Harrison had a successful day also. They had a very competitive team that saw both boys selected in the Polding team moving forward, Will at Fullback and Harrison at lock. A week long tournament against the rest of the state awaits for both boys in Sydney later on this year. Congratulations boys and good luck in Sydney. The Parramatta talent scouts will be out looking for rising stars!!!

Coolah Cross Country

Last Tuesday, 17 primary students made the long journey to Coolah to compete in the annual Cross Country running trial. 8, 9 and 10 year olds run a 2km course, whilst our 11 and 12 year olds run the 3km course. Windy conditions greeted the runners who were hopeful of finishing in the top 8 of their race which would enable them to progress through to the next level in Sydney later this year. With between 70 and 90 runners in each race, it is always tough going to make it through.

Vallie Bodiam was 9th across the line, but with a Coolah student from the Public School finishing ahead of her and ineligible to progress, Vallie now sees herself off to Sydney to run as part of the Bathurst Diocesan team. Congratulations, Vallie.

Placings for the events were:

9 Year Boys = Sebastian 51st, Jack 70th, Angus 71st.

9 Year Girls = Ebony 25th, Penelope 41st.

10 Year Boys = Archie 12th, Hamish 52nd.

10 Year Girls = Vallie 9th, Vivienne 40th.

11 Year Boys = Joshua 29th, Henry 48th.

11 Year Girls = Eleanor 22nd, Ava 48th.

12 Year Boys = Liam 15th, Henry 19th, Jacob 49th.

12 Year Girls = Rosemary 26th.

Thank you to our parents and carers for making the journey to Coolah for our chargers to represent the school. 

Rugby Union Gala Day

Last Friday, St. Raphael’s Catholic School sent two Stage Three teams to the Rugby Union Gala Day, held at the Rugby grounds in West Cowra. The St. Raphael’s 2 team played three pool games, before playing in the 3rd vs 4th final. The first game was against the St. Raphael’s 1 team. Mate against mate! Whilst it resulted in a 40-10 loss, the boys tried hard, with Harry and Bobby crossing the line to score for our team.

In the second match, we were against Forbes Public School. 61-0 wasn’t exactly the result that we were hoping for, but we were getting plenty of practice returning the ball from kick offs and tackling!!!

Our third game was against Canowindra Public School. It was a closer scoreline, only losing this game 33-5. Harry was again our try scorer.We again played Canowindra in the final, losing this one 33-0.Four games played, four losses. 167 points scored against us, with 15 points scored by our team! As Muhammad Ali once said, “You don’t lose if you get knocked down. You lose if you stay down!” Our boys never stayed down.  Bobby was awesome in attack, making the most run metres of the day.  Maurice was getting more and more involved as the day progressed. James was putting his body in front of opponents by the end of the day.  Henry tried hard all day in both attack and defence. Simon was fantastic at halfback, delivering good ball all day.  Ryder showed his blistering speed with the ball in his hands. Jimmy and Gus were great at all times, trying their best in defence. Harry led the team around all day, leading by example. 

Congratulations boys on never giving up and representing the school so well.

Grahame Statham - Primary Sports Coordinator

Secondary Sport

Western Region Academy of Sport (WRAS) Indigenous Talent Identification Day

Ten of our students took part in the Western Region Academy of Sport (WRAS) Indigenous Talent Identification Day in Orange yesterday. Students enjoyed taking part in a range of sports including Hockey, Golf, Rugby League, Athletics, Netball and Basketball. Tobie, Deakin and Tyler also had the honour of being asked to perform the Acknowledgement of Country.

Bill Turner Cup Soccer

Our U15 Boys & Girls soccer teams travelled to Forbes for Round 1 & 2 of the Bill Turner Cup which included Parkes High School, Red Bend Catholic College and Parkes Christian School. Neither team advanced to the next round but an enjoyable day was still had by all. Thank you to Mr Chris Colemane and Mr John Terry for coaching the teams and to Mr Will Bennett for driving the bus.

Secondary Bathurst Diocesan Cross Country

Our Cross Country team travelled to Lake Canobolas Reserve to take part in the Diocesan Cross Country Carnival. Laura P. and Laura B. were rewarded for good runs and will now progress to the NSWCCC Cross Country Carnival at the Sydney International Equestrian Centre. 

NSWCCC Netball Trials (Under 15s)

Congratulations to Milla and Emma for representing the Bathurst Diocese at the NSWCCC Netball trials at Penrith Valley Regional Sports Centre. Emma progressed to the Possibles v Probables round.

Upcoming Events

Secondary Diocesan Team Tennis Gala Day - in Orange on Wednesday 15th May 

Bathurst Diocesan Basketball Gala Day (Stage 6) - in Bathurst on Thursday 16th May 

Year 8 Camp (Borambola Sport and Recreation Centre) - is this Thursday 16th and Friday 17th May 2024. Students are to arrive at school by 7:15am for a 7:30am departure. All other information is available via Compass.

Students who would like to represent the school at upcoming gala days in Netball (Stage 4, 5 & 6) or Soccer (Open Boys and Girls) please see Mr Phelan during Week 3.

Andrew Phelan - Secondary Sports Coordinator

Administration

2023 Year Book

The 2023 Year Book is now available for collection. Year Books are distributed to all 2023 families, with most already being sent home via the youngest Infants/Primary Student. Secondary families who are yet to receive their 2023 Year Book are encouraged to have their child collect their family's copy from the school office.

Scholastic Book Club

Issue 3 of Scholastic Book Club has been ditributed home to infants and primary families, with orders due online, or returned to the school office by this Friday 17th May.

Canteen

Community Connections