Term 1 Week 10 Newsletter - 05.04.24

Principal News

He is Risen

“Accept the risen Jesus into your life.  Even if you have been far away, take a small step towards him: He awaits you with open arms.”

The Church throughout the world echoes the angel's message to the women: "Do not be afraid! I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised… Come, see the place where he lay" (Mt 28:5-6).

This is the culmination of the Gospel, it is the Good News: Jesus, who was crucified, is risen! This event is the basis of our faith and our hope. If Christ were not raised, Christianity would lose its very meaning; the whole mission of the Church would lose its impulse, for this is the point from which it first set out and continues to set out ever anew. The message which Christians bring to the world is this: Jesus, Love incarnate, died on the cross for our sins, but God the Father raised him and made him the Lord of life and death. In Jesus, love has triumphed over hatred, mercy over sinfulness, goodness over evil, truth over falsehood, life over death." (Pope Francis)

There are times in life where, on either side of a difficult season, you're either asking, "How am I going to get through this?” or you're on the other side looking back in amazement saying, "How did I get through this?". And that's where I find that the most sincere, real, authentic prayers get prayed. Whether you're praying out of desperation or gratitude, take a pick. When you find out what your support structure looks like: friends, family, loved ones; people who come around you, hold you up with the words they say, the things they do. They become real signposts for the face of Jesus. But what about those who have no one? What does Jesus have to say to them? He says, “I no longer call you strangers, I call you friends.” This is what I find so compelling about the friendship of God and the message of Christianity… that life is not a stacked tower of personal achievement, pride, ego, success, vanity; like you're trying to build a rocket ship to heaven all by yourself. Rather, it's just extending to others what Jesus says in the scriptures.

"In this world, you will have trouble but you're not alone and you can put your weight on me."

Learning Conferences

I would like to thank all parents, students and teachers for engaging in our recent Learning Conferences.  Our Learning Conferences give students and families the opportunity to reflect upon and celebrate achievements, discuss any struggles and set new goals for future learning. 

Having a strong focus on learning and wellbeing between school and home has many positive impacts for our children and we are committed to continue our work to strengthen our school and parent partnership.

Catholic Education Week

Our school will join with more than 45 schools across the Lismore Diocese to celebrate Catholic Education Week (CEW). This will take place in Week 11, Term 1 from April 8-12.

This year’s theme is “Innovation and Faith’. The transforming power of innovation and faith working in unison to ensure our students experience the fullness of life (John 10:10).

For many of the great innovators throughout history, their faith motivated them to explore and understand the wonders of the universe. Our Catholic schools walk alongside clergy, parishioners and families to prepare and nurture our future innovators and faith leaders on their journey.

I would like to extend a warm invitation for you to participate in our Catholic Education Week events and faith celebrations. Please take the opportunity with members of our parish and wider community, to experience innovation and faith in our Catholic school.

Below is a schedule of events for the week that you are invited to attend:

Thank you for your ongoing support of everything we do here at OLHC. I look forward to seeing you during our celebrations for Catholic Education Week in 2024.

Attendance Matters

Being at school regularly helps children develop positive friendships.

School attendance is not only about academic growth but also social and emotional development. Here are several ways in which consistent attendance contributes to the formation of meaningful and supportive peer relationships:

• Shared Experiences. Regular attendance allows children to share common experiences with their peers. Being present in class provides opportunities for shared learning, activities, and interactions, fostering a sense of camaraderie.
• Consistent Social Interaction. Attending school every day provides consistent opportunities for social interaction with classmates. Regular face-to-face interactions contribute to the development of communication skills, empathy, and a sense of belonging.

Building Trust and Reliability. Being present on a regular basis helps children build trust and reliability within their peer group. Dependable attendance creates a sense of predictability, and peers can rely on each other for mutual support and collaboration.

School Expectations

The mission of Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School is to work in partnership with the family, Parish and wider community to: 

• Provide a loving, safe and caring learning environment, based on the Gospel values, where students know they belong.
• Promote and implement high quality learning and teaching that nurtures holistic and life-long learning.
• Foster the Catholic story with its rituals, teachings, heritage and traditions. 
• Raise awareness of local and global issues and our responsibility to act with justice and compassion. 

The heart of our mission is to engage in high quality learning and teaching, and celebrate the Good News of Jesus. “I have come so that you may have life – life in all its fullness.” (John 10.10) 

We acknowledge that failures and mistakes are opportunities to learn and through Restorative Practice, we recognise these mistakes, grow in self-discipline, take responsibility for our own actions and recognise the impact our actions can have on others.

We believe that all students, their families and staff have the right to a safe and supportive learning environment. Therefore, all staff, students and families share a responsibility to teach, foster, promote and encourage positive behaviours from all members of our school community.

At Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School we aim to: 

• Ensure all students know that they are loved, cared for and belong.
• Ensure the rights of all individuals are respected and maintained.
• Encourage all individuals to accept responsibility for their decisions and actions and respond according to meet expectations.
• Promote resilience, self-esteem, problem solving behaviours and self-awareness through implementing Restorative Practices.
• Support all members of our community when required.
• Encourage and maintain positive relationships between all members of our school community.

ANZAC Day 2024

OLHC has a proud history of supporting ANZAC Day commemorations in our local area. To this end, we have once again been invited to attend and support our local march. Local RSL Sub-Branches are always delighted to see school students supporting the march and honouring

the traditions and sacrifices of those who have served our country in all armed conflicts. I invite any interested families and students to attend the Lismore march on Thursday 25 April, 2024.

As ANZAC day occurs during the school holidays, it is anticipated that some families may be away but if your child is here, then it would be wonderful to see them march as part of our school community.

Students are welcome to wear the medals of relatives but these must be worn on the correct side of

the chest (right side) in keeping with ANZAC Day protocol. Students attending need to wear their full school uniform including hats. It is also a good idea to apply sunscreen before the march.

Once the march concludes, students are welcome and encouraged to stay for the service. All students must be picked up directly from the staff attending and supervising the march to ensure student safety.

The details for each march are listed below:

• Thursday 25^th April 2024
• 8:40am Arrival-Clyde Campbell Car Park
• Full school uniform including hat and drink bottle

Mission News

Stations of the Cross

On Holy Thursday, Year 6 shared the most beautiful Stations of the Cross with our school community. We welcomed families to school to share this  important commemoration of Jesus's passion and death on the cross. Thank you Year 6 for a beautiful afternoon. It was a poignant way to finish Holy Week in preparation for Easter.

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Project Compassion

Year 6 Project Compassion 

Year 6 are very blessed to have their incredibly talented teacher, Mrs Innes, who 3D prints some amazing creations and she sells them over Lent to raise funds for Project Compassion. They are always a big hit and very cute. Thank you Mrs Innes. 

As well as this, Year 6 ran an amazing Easter raffle with 8 prizes! We thank Year 6 families for their generous donations and the students for their tireless work in selling the tickets each recess. 

Year 6 Raised an INCREDIBLE $1215 For Project Compassion this year. Thank you Year 6.

Year 5 Project Compassion Stall Afternoon

The weather held off to allow Year 5 to set up their amazing stalls for Project Compassion just before our Easter break. The stalls had a mix of everything from sport to lucky dips and challenges. They had some delicious treats and some wonderful prizes! 

We are so grateful for the wonderful ideas that Year 5 came up with, for their parents/carers for supporting their projects and, our fantastic staff for bringing it all together.

In total, Year 5 raised $370.85 with their stalls for Project Compassion this year! Thank you Year 5.

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Year 3 Project Compassion Pie Your Teacher

This Lent, Year 3 came up with the idea of raising funds through Pie Your Teacher! The very brave teachers who are up for pieing are Mrs Bradfield, Mrs McCarthy, Mr Denny and Mr Piccoli. We are pretty sure who we will see pied next Friday at 2:45pm! You’re all invited!

This total will be announced next Friday. 

Kindergarten Project Compassion - Easter Egg Guessing Competition 

Congratulations to Mrs Brafield and Kindergarten who ran a very successful easter egg guessing competition! Congratulations to Zoe who guessed exactly 159 eggs. Zoe assures me, she has not eaten all the eggs yet! 

Thank you Kinder for your $124.45 with your guessing competition for Project Compassion this year!

Year 4 Project Compassion - Disco 

Mr Denny and some helpers ran a very loud disco during one of our lunchtimes! It was a big hit with over half the school joining in! Thanks Mr Denny for organising a very fun event! 

Thank you to Mr Denny and 4L helpers - the disco raised $44! 

We will announce the grand total at our final assembly, which will include all the Project Compassion boxes from each classroom.

Sharing the love and joy of Easter!

As shared on our school Facebook page, Year 1 shared some Easter greetings with the residents of St Joseph’s nursing home on Holy Thursday. They were gratefully received and so much joy and friendship is being developed through this relationship. 

Year 2 popped some Easter cards in the mailboxes of the units next to us, spreading the beautiful joy of Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday to our community. The residents were very grateful for the thoughts at Easter time.

Kinder Storytelling

Mrs Bradfield shared a beautiful storytelling of Jesus’ last supper with his friends, the disciples during Holy Week in Kindergarten. Mr Piccoli and Mrs Bradfield washed the children's feet, as Jesus did to his disciples, and the children shared wine (grape juice) and bread as the disciples would have done at the Last Supper. Kinder were very reverent and were able to explain the importance of the last supper in Jesus’ life.

Making Jesus Real Awards 

KP

Ellie S  -  For always being knid and compassionate to your classmates.  You are always looking for ways to help others.  Keep shining bright Ellie!

1L 

Charlotte W  -  For making positive choices to promote harmony in our classroom.  Keep shining bright Charlotte.

2P

Sylvia S  -  For being a kind and helpful member of our classroom.

3L

4L

Anika B  -  For displaying qualities of kindness and gentleness in all your interactions.  Thank you Anika.

4P

Mason Mc  -  For always grreeting me with such kind words and putting a smile on my face!

5L

Malachias C  -  For being helpful and considerate in your thoughts and actions towards others.  Keep shining bright!

5P

Chaise K  -  For his reverent participation during prayer and meditation.  Keep shining your light Chaise!

6P

Lacey N  -  For working hard to confidently present a part in our liturgy.  What an amazing leader you are, Lacey!

Learning & Teaching

Kindergarten Writing words and sentences

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Year 1 Sentence writing

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Year 2 Comparing texts

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Year 3 Easter Writing

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Year 4 Fractions Fun

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Year 5- Multimodal text group research task

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Year 6 Planning multimodal texts

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OLHC Achievement Awards 

KP

Thea B  -  For your active participation and consistent engagement in learning.  You are becoming more confident everyday.  Keep up the great work Thea!

Archer C  -  For you incredible Family Tree presentation in our History lesson.  You are a confident presenter.  Keep it up Archer!

Sienna C  -  For always being a respectful and attentive listener.  You are a great role model for how to listen well in class.  Well done Sienna.

1L

Jordy B  -  For your mature and dedicated attitude to all learning tasks.  You are a star Jordy!

Elsie D  -  For growing confidence and independence when writing to produce effective texts.

Tallis J  -  For positive choices to avoid distraction and prioritise learning.  Great work Tallis!

Claire M  -  For her amazing drama skills in our work on the Gruffalo.

2P

Maddie C  -  For your perseverence and your willingness to tackle challenging writing tasks.  Keep up the great work!

Raife Mc  -  For your excellent work in English, especially in InitiaLit spelling and comprehension lessons.

3L

Zarli B P  -  For her impressive problem solving strategies in Maths.  Her enthusiasm and love of learning is a credit to her!

Nash H  -  For lighting up our day with his smile and having a positive attitude towards learning tasks.

Nahri J  -  For her excellent attitude towards all learning tasks and being a helpful class member.

4L

Isla D  -  For her amazing creativity, skill and techniques when creating her Cubism and Portrait artworks.

Mason E  -  For using your knowledge of language features to write an engaging narrative.  Well done Mason!

Ivy W  -  For sharing your quility thoughts during mathematics lessons, it has been great to see your confidence grow.

4P

Isabella F  -  For the amazing work you did building your Fraction Tower City, calculating the fractions and adding fractions with common denominations.  Well done, Issy

Paige W  -  For your focus and positive attitude towards mathematics lessons.  Keep up the great effort, Paige!

5L

Patrick C  -  For his creativity, skill and wonderful brush stroke technique when creating his animal portrait.

Brayden Mc  -  For successfully recognising the role of one as representing the whole.  Great work!

Harper S  -  For your ability to use a variety of stratergies to spell unfamiliar words.  Well done!

5P

Milani H  -  For demonstrating and explaining parts of a whole fraction.  Keep up the great work Milani!

Hamish J  -  For his outstanding effort and growth with his spelling.  Keep up the great work Hamish!

6P

Jack De  -  For trying your best to remain focused on learning tasks, especially when they are challenging.  Keep it up, Jack!

Matilda J  -  For always trying your best in all learning activities  -  Especially when they are challenging.  Keep being amazing.

Holly W  -  For her amazing animal artwork using realism and creative brush stroke techniques.

Sports News

Cooper Quinn - Motocross

Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits.

Cooper has been doing motocross racing for a few years now. He has a great passion for racing and his skills continue to improve the older he gets, and this is reflected in his achievements in the sport. Cooper finished 2nd in Qld Mike Hatcher JMCC rd1 on his Husqvarna 50 in his class and 3rd on his Husqvarna 65.

He will travel to Kurri Kurri on Friday the 12th of April to contend for the NSW State titles in Dirt Track racing and contending for the Australian Dirt Track titles in Mildura and Forbes for his classes this year. As a school, we wish Cooper all the best at these titles.

If you’re interested in knowing more about motocross, make sure you have a chat with Cooper.

OLHC Cross Country

Due to the weather, we have had to postpone the Cross Country Carnival on Friday the 5th of April. The new date will be Thursday the 11th of April. The carnival will be held at Hepburn Park. The school will arrive at Hepburn Park at 9:30. We will have acknowledgment of Country and Prayer and the first race will start at 9:45 am. 

There will be a coffee van available for parents only. Robyn from Coffee Additctions has also organised some light snacks and cold drinks too.

Leaders of Sport 

This fortnight, Cooper and Harper interviewed Jethro and Oscar about their favourite sport.

School News

Community News