School Newsletter - Issue 4 - Thursday, 28th March 2024

Principal's News

Dear Parents and Carers

We’ve had another huge week celebrating Holy Week, Reconciliation for Year 4, and Easter Hat Parade, following on from our Big Arvo last Friday afternoon. Thank you to everyone who worked behind the scenes as well as during these important occasions, they can’t happen without you. I know I always say it, but every contribution contributes to making our Tumbi community so special. 

Parent Charter 

Building positive relationships between schools and parents is the cornerstone of nurturing student learning and achievement. To formalise our commitment to effective communication and mutual respect, Catholic Schools Broken Bay launched a Parent Charter in late 2023. A copy of the Charter can be found here. The Charter places great emphasis on respectful, open, and two-way communication outlining: 

• What you as parents can expect from your relationship with your school 
• What our school will expect from you as parents and carers 
• Guidelines for positive communication and engagement between parents and the school 
• How to make a complaint or raise a concern 
• An explanation of unacceptable behaviours and how these are handled by the school. 

 As we approach the end of another busy school term, we kindly ask parents to be mindful of the following guidelines for effective partnership: 

• Stay Informed: Stay informed about your child's progress by attending parent-teacher meetings, reading newsletters, and checking COMPASS. 
• Initiate Contact: Don't hesitate to reach out to the appropriate staff member if you have concerns or questions about your child's progress, behaviour, or any other aspect of their education. Initial communications should always be with the appropriate school personnel, e.g., the classroom teacher. If further support is required, please contact our school leaders. 
• Be Respectful: Approach conversations with staff in a respectful and professional manner, as they are dedicated to helping your child succeed. 
• Respect Response Time: Recognise that staff have multiple students and responsibilities. Allow them time to respond to your inquiries and respect their working hours. Staff will usually respond within 48 hours. 

 Effective communication between parents and school staff is the key to a successful educational journey for your child. We value your input and are committed to working together to ensure that our school remains a collaborative, safe, and supportive environment. 

Positive Questions to Ask Your Child at the End of the Day 

To help maintain the positive partnerships that we aim to achieve, below are some questions that are worth referring to when you pick your child up from school: 

What was the best part of your day?  
Who was someone you helped today?  
Who helped you?  
What is one thing you learned?  
Tell me 1 issue that you may have and how we can resolve that. 

 I wish you and your family a happy and safe Easter Break. 

 Kind regards

Marcel Arendse
Principal

Assistant Principal's News

NAPLAN 

We want to congratulate all the children who have completed the NAPLAN tests! We know that preparing for and taking these tests can be a challenging experience, and we are proud of each and every student who has put in the effort and dedication to perform their best. The results of these tests will give valuable insights into the strengths and areas for improvement of our students and will help us tailor our teaching approach to better meet their needs. We also want to acknowledge the hard work and support of our teachers and staff who have worked tirelessly to prepare our students for these tests. We look forward to sharing the results with you and continuing to work together to support the growth and development of our students. Well done to all! 

Staff Development Day 

A reminder that Tuesday, 2nd of April, is a Staff Development Day. School will resume for children on Wednesday, 3rd of April. 

The staff development day on Tuesday is for all Broken Bay Catholic schools and will be facilitated by NESA (NSW Education Standards Authority). The day will provide teachers an opportunity to further their knowledge of assessment moderation based on the recent NSW Curriculum Reform. This will be a rich and meaningful day for all staff in our school system. We hope all children enjoy their break over Easter. 

Stephen Lynch
Assistant Principal

Key Dates

Growing in Faith and Knowledge Awards

Religious Education Co-ordinator News

Holy Week 

We would like to thank parents who came along to help us celebrate Holy Week. It was a very reverent and prayerful experience and the students who participated did so beautifully.   

We would like to wish all families and friends a very prayer-filled and Holy Easter weekend and we look forward to celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus on Wednesday 3rd April at 9.15 am which will be led by Year 3. 

Reconciliation 

Congratulations to the children who made the Sacrament of Reconciliation this week. Reconciliation is such a beautiful sacrament where you are forgiven for any wrong choices and given a fresh start.  

A special thank you to Mrs Thurlow and Mrs Murray who prepared the children so beautifully and to Kate Benton for all of her support leading up to and on the day.  

PBL 

To help the students follow our school rules: 

‘At St John Fisher we Make Good Choices to be Respectful, Responsible Citizens’
we have been unpacking: 
For the last two weeks of the term, we will be focusing on: 

Whole School Reward System 

As a staff, we have been brainstorming ways to create a more collaborative community where we support everyone to do their best and be their best. Therefore, starting next term we will introduce a whole school acknowledgment system where individuals are acknowledged for positive behaviours and then these will be collated in classes and again as a whole school. We look forward to explaining how the whole system will look in our next newsletter once we get student feedback and make adjustments if required.  

Luisa Lawicki
Religious Education Co-ordinator

Office News and Information

Kindergarten 2025 Sibling Enrolments 

 
Reminder 
Kindergarten 2025 Sibling Enrolment forms are due by Friday 29th March 2024. 

SJF Enrolment Form 

Please ensure all sections are completed and both parents sign the last page of the Enrolment Form (page 11). 
 
The following documents to support your child’s application for enrolment must also be attached to process the application: 

• Birth Certificate (original will need to be sighted at your child's enrolment Interview) 
• Sacramental certificates (if applicable) 
• The child's current Immunisation Certificate 

Please refer to the checklist within the enrolment application to ensure all applicable documentation accompanies your application.  
 
Once you have completed the Enrolment Form, please scan it as one PDF file (including the supporting documentation) and return it via email to sjf@dbb.catholic.edu.au 
 
If you have any questions regarding your child’s enrolment, please do not hesitate to contact the School Office on 7256 2102 or via email at sjf@dbb.catholic.edu.au 
 
Once you have returned your application to the school, we ask that you please book an enrollment interview time. Kindergarten 2025 Sibling Interviews will take place on Thursday 4th April 2024. 
Your child will need to attend the Interview. 

 Sibling 2025 Enrolment Interview Bookings 

 The Admin Team

Parent Engagement Co-ordinator (PEC)

Big Arvo 

Another amazing SJF Big Arvo last Friday! Thank you so much to all the parents who volunteered their time and creativity. The children were so joyful and had lots of fun! I think it was our biggest one yet!

Easter Hat Parade 

What a morning! Thank you families for joining us yesterday and for getting on board our environmentally & cost of living conscious theme. We loved seeing the children's creativity and we think this is the way to go moving forward!    

Parent Survey 

Thank you to all the people who took the time to complete the survey. We will discuss the results at the next SJF Advisory meeting and will put them out to the community soon after. 

“Little Fishers” Childrens Liturgy 

We had a wonderful turnout at last Sunday’s Children's Liturgy. It was great to see some new faces and was beautiful to see the children so involved in the parish. Each week at our Parish Sunday evening Mass at 5 pm in our SJF Mass Centre, we celebrate Children's Liturgy. We extend an invitation to you to attend.

Parent Workshop – Anxiety 

On Monday 8th April from 6 pm-8 pm, we are running another parent workshop on dealing with anxiety in children. Our school counselor/psychologist Christine Hain will facilitate the workshop. Please fill out the link below to register and check out the flyer or contact me if you want further information. 

https://forms.office.com/r/fuPbG5qY3Y 

Kate Benton
Parent Engagement Co-ordinator

Library News

Flyers

Upcoming Events