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Dear Parents, Guardians and Carers,
Welcome to the start of the 2023 school year. It was great to see the children return on Monday, refreshed and excited for a new year of learning. This year we have welcomed 20 new Foundation students and 4 students in other grades to St Patrick’s. I would like to thank you all for choosing St Patrick’s as the school for your child and I know that they will thoroughly enjoy their time here.
We have had a really positive start to the year with everyone appearing to have settled in beautifully. I have visited each of the classrooms a number of times throughout the week and each of them have been very calm with lots of great learning happening.
St Patrick’s School Wide Expectations
St Patrick’s values and promotes the following school wide expectations:
- Safe
- Respectful
- Responsible
The students, staff and families of St Patrick’s are expected to live out these expectations in all aspects of school life.
Student Assessment
During this week and over the next few weeks, students in all grades will complete some formal assessments. These assessments allow the teachers to get a good understanding of where each child is at and help them to effectively plan and teach them at their point of need.
Student Attendance
Daily school attendance is important for all children and young people to succeed in education and to ensure they don't fall behind both socially and developmentally. Children and young people who regularly attend school and complete Year 12 or an equivalent qualification have better health outcomes, better employment outcomes, and higher incomes across their lives. It is important that children develop habits of regular attendance at an early age. I understand that sometimes late arrivals, early departures and appointments are unavoidable, however, where possible, please keep these to a minimum. The table below, clearly demonstrates the time lost across a child’s education when they miss school, even for short periods of time.
Uniform
This year there are some new additions to the uniform list, available from JSM. These include a bottle green softshell jacket, to replace the windbreaker jacket; a bottle green polar fleece sports jumper (new item) and girls cut grey shorts and pants, which can be worn as an alternative to the summer dress and winter tunic. The grey shorts and pants will be worn with the white school shirt.
Softshell Jacket |
Polar Fleece Sports Jumper |
Girls Cut Grey Shorts |
Girls Cut Grey Pants |
Child Safety – Pick up and drop off
Before and after school pick up and drop off times are very busy around St Patrick’s. It is vital that everyone has child safety at the forefront of their minds during these times. Students and parents/guardians that are needing to cross Dixon St, must cross at the school crossing zone. It is also important for parents/guardians to observe street signs when parking near the school and not park on or near the crossing or in dangerous positions. I understand that there are limited parking spaces available, so I would also encourage parents/guardians that are picking up their children to use the parking area directly outside the school gates on Dixon St as a drop off and pick up zone and not park permanently in that space.
Parents and Friends (P&F)
After a couple of challenging years, we would like to form a Parents and Friends (P&F) group again this year. The P&F’s function is to assist the school in providing the best possible environment for the children. This is done through fundraising activities eg. Mothers'/Fathers' Day stalls, Chocolate Drives and functions. As well as fundraising, the P&F aims at bringing the community together. Twice termly meetings will be held with myself or Shane (Deputy Principal) to plan and prepare for these initiatives. Becoming a part of the P&F group helps keep communication open within the school community and facilitates the opportunity to develop many new friendships. I encourage new and existing parents to join the group. Please find below details regarding the first meeting for 2023. If you are unable to attend the meeting but would like to be a part of the P&F, please contact the school.
Kind regards,
Joel Brayshaw
KEEP UP TO DATE WITH WHAT'S HAPPENING AT
ST PATRICK'S BY CHECKING OUR CALENDAR ON OUR WEBSITE.
Go to: www.stpstratford.catholic.edu.au
Wednesday 8th February |
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Friday 10th February |
12.30pm - 3.00pm |
Monday 13th February |
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Wednesday 15th February |
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Friday 17th February |
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Monday 20th February |
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Tuesday 28th February |
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Monday 6th March |
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Friday 10th March |
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Wednesday 15th March |
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Thursday 16th March |
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Saturday 25th March |
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Thursday 6th April |
Finish at 2.30pm |
Monday 24th April |
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Tuesday 25th April |
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Wednesday 26th April |
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