18 March 2024

Upcoming Events

Week 8

• • Monday 18th March 
    • Fifth Week of Lent Liturgy & Assembly (9:00am -Hall)
    • Assembly hosted by 4W
    • Naplan (Language Conventions) for Year 3 and Year 5
      
      
  • Tuesday 19 March 
    • • Solemnity of St Joseph Liturgy (9:00am -Hall) -Year 1
        
      • Naplan (Numeracy) for Year 3 and Year 5
        
        
  • Thursday 21st March 
    • Harmony Day - Cultural Dress Day 
    • First Rite of Reconciliation (9:00am - 10:00am -Cathedral) Year 3
    • 5A Writing Workshop with Anita Heiss
    • NAPLAN Catch Up
      
      
  • Friday 22nd March 
    • 5C Writing Workshop with Anita Heiss
      
    • NAPLAN Catch Up

Week 9

• Monday 25th March 
  • Palm Sunday & Assembly (9:00am - 9:30am Hall)
  • Assembly hosted by 5C
    
    
• Tuesday 26th March
  • Kindergarten to Year 2 Cross Country
    
    
• Wednesday 27th March 
  • Years 3 to 6 Cross Country
    
    
• Thursday 28th March
  • Holy Thursday Holy Week Service (12:00pm Hall) 
  • Assembly hosted by Mr Boylan and Year 6 Volunteers
  • Easter Egg Raffle (2:00pm)

• Friday 29th March 
• Good Friday (Public Holiday - school closed)

2024 Important Dates

• Thursday 11th April 
  
  • Last day of Term 1
    
    
• Monday 29th April 2024
  • Pupil Free Day - Professional Development Day
    
    
• Tuesday 30th April 2024
  • Welcome to the first day of Term 2 - Winter Uniform

More important dates listed here Website Calendar Link

For those with a Google Account the calendar can be added to your Google calendars for
easy access on your phone or device Google School Calendar Link

Term 2

Week 1

• Monday 29th April 2024
  • Pupil Free Day - Professional Development Day
    
    
• Tuesday 30th April 2024
  • Welcome to the first day of Term 2 - Winter Uniform

From the Principal

Last week, as I finished one of my lunchtime playground duties I was delighted to read a beautiful note that had been left for me in the office. The note is pictured below and is beautiful for many reasons. As we focus on gratitude around our school this year I have noticed classes on their gratitude walks, students pointing to the everyday (the bubblers, the green grass, each other) and saying the word, ‘dis’. I thought then I should also express my gratitude.

I am grateful for these gorgeous children, for their families who have encouraged these curious and clever minds and for our staff who have made it known to our students that they too can have a voice.

Although guinea pigs will probably not make the budget this year, I am so pleased that our students continue to share their ideas and build spirit and community with their thoughtful actions.

3B students preparing Mrs Baird’s feast of olives…two more reasons to be grateful.

God is not in the whirlwind, not in blustering and show, Scripture teaches us. God is in the breeze, in the very atmosphere around us, in the little things that shape our lives. God is in the contradictions that assail us, in the circumstances that challenge us, in the attitudes that impel us, in the motives that drive us, in the life goals that demonstrate our real aspirations, in the burdens that wear us down, in the actions that give witness to the values in our hearts. God is in the stuff of life, not in the airy-fairy of fertile imaginations bent on the pursuit of the preternatural. God is where we are, including in the very weaknesses that vie for our souls.

God is not a mystery to be sought in strange places and arcane ways. God is a mystery to be discovered within us and around us. And savoured.
—from “O Wonder of Wonders,” How can I find God?, ed. James Martin, S.J. (Liguori Press)

Camille da Silva Tavares   | Principal

Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences

As spoken about at our Parent Information Session, this year our Parent/Teacher meetings will take the form of Three Way Conferences. Students are invited to attend with you to reflect and plan on their learning. Our staff will be participating in professional learning around this form of conferences and the Three Way Conferences will be held at the start of Term Three. At this point you will have received your child’s Semester One report along with NAPLAN results for students in Years 3 and 5. 

It was wonderful to see many of you catching up with your children’s teachers during the open classrooms after the Parent Information Session. A reminder that you are free to reach out to your child’s teacher to arrange a phone call or meeting should you need to discuss any matters regarding your child or their learning.

Cuppa After Assembly

You are invited to join us for a cuppa after assembly each Monday morning.
Bring your coffee from Cafe Viva or make yourself a cuppa in the hall kitchen.
All are very welcome.

Toys and Sports Equipment from Home

A reminder that students are asked to use the school sporting equipment that is provided instead of bringing sporting equipment from home. Mrs Bowman is currently re-stocking the sports equipment
for the year which is managed by our Year 6 Sport Committee.

We recommend that children do not bring toys from home unless specifically requested by the teacher
for show and tell or other classroom activities.  Toys can be disruptive to the learning environment and cause jealousy among the other children. If children do bring toys to school they do so at their own risk.
Staff will not be responsible for locating missing items or investigating instances of traded or stolen items. Staff may request that students keep items at home if they are causing disruption in any way.

Pedestrian Safety

We ask that any families using the George St entrance/exit to please use the pedestrian crossing. It is unsafe to cross in the middle of the road as this is the bus bay area. We also ask that parents please hold their child’s hand when exiting the school gate and walking to their vehicles.

Afternoon Walkers

Parents are reminded that the afternoon walkers duty is intended for students walking home or to workplaces only. For those families picking up children, we ask that you walk into the school grounds
on George St for collection or for a quicker pick up approach the gate at William St.  We understand that this is a busy time of the day and there is congestion around the streets however it is important that our procedures are followed so that we can provide a safe exit for students.

If there is extreme weather at pick up time (heavy rain, lightning etc) then students who are walking will be supervised on George St until they can be collected from the school or can safely walk.

Enrolments

Enrolments for 2025 are now open.
We thank all those families who have already submitted Kindergarten enrolment forms and we ask
those wishing to enrol their child for 2025 to do so as soon as possible.

Year 6 Farewell Committee Meeting

We invite all parents of Year 6 students to a brief meeting on Wednesday 20th March @ 3:30pm in the Library. At this meeting we will begin planning fundraising events for the Year 6 Farewell Dinner along with the event.

Teaching and Learning

National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN)
After a shaky start last week with connectivity issues during Year 5 Writing, Year 3 and Year 5 students have completed the first two NAPLAN assessments - Reading and Writing. It is with great pride that I commend our Year 5 students for their exemplary conduct and patience as they navigated through the interruption on the first day of testing. This week students will complete Language Conventions and Numeracy Assessments. At the end of the week there will also be opportunities for any students who were absent to catch up on missed tests.

This week NAPLAN continues on Monday and Tuesday with catch up sessions available across the remainder of the week.

Visiting Author 
Cathedral School is honoured to host Ms. Anita Heiss, a distinguished Wiradjuri author, this coming Thursday and Friday. Ms. Heiss will conduct Writing Workshops tailored for our Year 5 students, focusing on the art of storytelling and its power to foster understanding and reconciliation. These workshops promise to be an enriching experience, incorporating important themes such as reconciliation, highlighted through a vivid recount of walking across the Sydney Harbour Bridge and its significance for Australia and particularly Aboriginal people. Additionally, Anita will share her picture book Bidhi Galing which draws on the story of the Great Flood of Gundagai in 1852 and the Wiradjuri heroes who risked their lives to save countless townspeople. Through this experience students will come to appreciate how fiction can blend historical perspectives and storytelling.

This initiative is part of our ongoing effort to enrich our students' educational journey by exposing them to diverse perspectives and voices.

Catherine O’Neill   | Assistant Principal

Religious Education & Catholic Life

Delany Day/ Solemnity of St Patrick
Thank you to everyone who was able to join us Friday as we celebrated our House Patron, Bishop Daniel Delany, and St Patrick. It was green as far as the eye could see as students wore green for a gold coin donation towards Project Compassion. Our Mass was a lovely celebration of St Patrick and Bishop Delany and their impact on our faith and school. Our shared morning tea was a great chance to continue the celebrations with our families.

After Recess all students were involved in some exciting activities coordinated by our Delany Captains, Peppa and Ryan. A big thank you to these wonderful leaders for the amount of work that they put into some exciting new initiatives for our House Patron Celebrations this year. Students combined with others from their own school house and enjoyed a tabloid of activities that included a Treasure Hunt, Irish Bingo, Mini-Quiz and Irish Relay Games. 

Thank you again for an amazing day!

Project Compassion 
Please continue your wonderful efforts towards our focus on almsgiving during Lent. Students are encouraged to continue bringing in their donations to their class teacher/s.

Sacramental Program: Thank you to those families who were able to join us in Assumption Church recently for information on First Penance, First Holy Communion and Confirmation and how the parish based but school supported Sacramental Program will function  this year. This was for families not just in the grades where Sacramental Units are taught (Years 2, 3 and 5). The information evening was also if your child has previously been in one of these grades but hasn’t had the opportunity to make one or more of these sacraments as yet. 

Monday Liturgy & Assembly:  Please join us each week between 9:00 and 9:30 am as we pray together and acknowledge the achievements of those in our school community. Classes, Grades and Committees each take responsibility for this important event weekly.

Coming up:

This Year at a Glance:  

Ashley Boylan   | Religious Education Coordinator

Awards

Library

Merryn Sadler   | Teacher Librarian

A Message from Year 6

Supporting Project Compassion this Week
Our focus story for Project Compassion for the next two weeks is set in Malawi. Malawi is situated in south-eastern Africa. It is one of the poorest countries in the world with over half the population living in poverty. This means not having the things that you need for a good life ….  like money for food, medicine, running water and school.

 This week we will view the story of Memory. Memory is 26 years old and lives in rural Malawi, far away from cities and big towns. Memory’s parents are farmers and were only able to grow enough food to feed their family. There was no money for anything else. Sometimes the family had to wash without soap and had to walk long distances without shoes. As the oldest child in the family, Memory took on many chores to help her parents such as farming, carrying water, cooking and cleaning. Memory was determined that this wasn’t going to stop her going to school because she knew that education was going to give her a better life.

With the support of Caritas, Memory’s perseverance paid off and now she is a carpenter. She is the first female carpenter in her village. Memory now has a job at a water power company. The support of Caritas has led to huge improvements for Memory, her family and the entire community.

Thank you for supporting our fundraising appeal which has led to a huge boost to our overall results. The TAPITAS wall has been a wonderful success and across the two weeks of this project the display shows
$1,050 added to our fundraising total.

Thank you to everyone who has donated Easter eggs for  our Easter raffle. We will continue to sell raffle tickets in the morning in K-2 and at lunch time for Year 3 – 6.  All money raised will add to our fundraising efforts for Project Compassion. So far we have raised $454 through the Easter Egg raffle.

The Easter Raffle will be drawn on Holy Thursday at 2pm.

You can use the link to view the Project Compassion story for this week.

Zoe, Ruby M, Peppa, Josephine, Charley and Ruby Y   | Social Welfare Committee

SPB4L

This week we continue our focus on our culture of welcome at Cathedral School through kind words and actions.

Our slides below give an outline of our class and wider school activities this week.  We encourage families to use these as a discussion starter at home. Our focus also integrates with Harmony Week and various activities that our students will be involved in around the wider themes of diversity, understanding and acceptance.

Ashley Boylan   | SPB4L Committee

Wellbeing

Part 2- Gratitude
This week’s presentation from The Resilience Project focuses on Gratitude.

Gratitude is paying attention to the things that we have right now, and not worrying about what we don’t have. We practise this by noticing the positives that exist around us.

Research shows that practicing gratitude rewires our brains to overcome the negativity bias (which can lead to anxiety and depression) and see the world for what we are thankful for. It is also shown to broaden thinking, and increase physical health through improved sleep and attitude to exercise.

View Part 2 of the series here:

Part 2 - Gratitude: https://theresilienceproject.com.au/2023-parent-carer-hub-inspire-hugh/

There are many ways in which you can practise gratitude, including starting a gratitude journal. You can simply use a notebook to list three things that went well for you each day or use a more comprehensive Wellbeing Journal, like those created by The Resilience Project.

Source: Psychology Today

For mental health resources and support information, visit The Resilience Project’s Support Page.

Children who eat breakfast have increased alertness and improved moods throughout the morning, making for a better learning experience in the classroom.

We thank Coles Bathurst and Woolworths Bathurst for their generous donations and support as we continue to establish funding and food sources for the Cathedral Primary School Breakfast program.

We are putting a call out to any business or families that may be in a position to support our Breakfast Club. If you would like to make a contribution please make contact with Alice Gallagher a.gallagher@bth.catholic.edu.au  We look forward to bringing this exciting initiative to Cathedral Primary school!

Alice Gallagher and Abbie Bowman   | Wellbeing Teacher/Primary Coordinator 

Sports

Infants Cross Country
On Tuesday 26th March, we will be holding our K-2 Mini Cross Country event at school, on the William St Oval. This will be the sport lesson for the week, so regular Thursday sports uniforms are to be worn.

Parents are welcome to attend the K-2 Mini Cross Country and are encouraged to watch from the undercover areas and walkways around the hall and on the pavers, behind the classes. There is no need to check in at the front office for this event, so please proceed directly to the viewing areas to see your child run.

After the races, all children will receive an ice-block, funded by the P&F, as has been the tradition now for many years. We thank the P&F for providing this treat. If you do not wish for your child to have an ice-block after the event, please let your child’s class teacher know. 

11.45am          Children assemble on the pavers after recess.         

11.50am         Welcome & Prayer (Explanation of events and expectations of children)

12:00pm        Year 2 Boys, then Girls (3 laps)
                          Year 1 Boys, then Girls (2 laps)
                          Kindergarten Boys, then girls (1 lap)
                          Please note that times are approximate only.

12.45pm        Presentation of Ribbons

1:00pm          Ice-blocks and & Lunch

We look forward to a wonderful day and we wish all the children the best of luck. The focus of the day is to be active, do our best and have fun running with our friends.

Primary Cross Country
On Wednesday 27th March, we will be holding our Years 3-6 Cross Country event at St Stanislaus College. We will be arriving at St Stanislaus via bus and commencing at 9:30am and leaving at approximately 12:30pm.

Parents are welcome to attend and are encouraged to park on the front oval. If you are able to assist on the day, please indicate this on the compass note.

Students are to wear their Summer Sports Uniform. This is in addition to their normal sports day therefore they will wear sports uniform two days in Week 9.

The top FOUR placed students in each age division (boys/girls) will be selected to represent the school at the Diocesan Carnival on Tuesday 7th May in Coolah.

______________________________________________________________

Community Sport Site
Our Diocesan sports coordinator Mr Steve Maguire has created a Community Sport Site (has reports from events) for parents, families & teachers which can be accessed to assist with Diocesan Sports pathways. You may like to bookmark this site for reference:
https://sites.google.com/bth.catholic.edu.au/cedbsportcommunity/home

Abbie Bowman   | Primary Coordinator

Parents and Friends

OPTIONAL School Jackets- Are you ready for a cold snap ?

The Cathedral School logo is embroidered on the chest, the jackets are lightweight, windproof and water-resistant perfect for the cold weather. These optional school jackets are available to try on at the school office and ready to order via Flexischools under shop.

Please note: The optional jacket is NOT compulsory - All maroon/navy/black school jackets are also acceptable.

HOT CROSS BUNRAISER
This year Cathedral P&F is buddying with Bakehouse on the Boulevard to raise some dough for our school!

We have 3 delicious varieties on offer, to be sold as 6 packs of a single variety, for $7 per 6 pack.

• Traditional Fruit Hot Cross Buns
• Chocolate Chip Hot Cross Buns
• Fruitless Hot Cross Buns

Orders & payment must be completed in Flexischools by Friday 23rd March 2024
Hot Cross Buns will be delivered to your child in their classroom on Tuesday 26th March 2024

                                           Next P&F Meeting: Wednesday 3rd April 5:30pm - School Library
Everyone is invited to attend our monthly P&F meetings, which are held on the first Wednesday of each school month at 5:30pm in the Library.

There is NO PRESSURE to attend every meeting or volunteer bucketloads of time - the P&F is a great resource to keep track of what’s happening at school and connect with other parents, caregivers and school staff.  

For those who cannot attend in person, we have a zoom link, if you would like to join from home!

SCHOOL DISCO: Friday 5th April- School Hall
The school Disco is back for 2024, dust off your dancing shoes and practise your dance moves
Infants: 5:30pm - 6:15pm
Primary: 6:30pm - 7:30pm
Entry: $5 at the door includes a Glowstick

DATE FOR THE DIARY
May
Wednesday 1st P&F Meeting 5:30pm
Thursday 9th Mother’s Day Breakfast & Liturgy
Friday 10th Mother’s Day Stall

If you have any enquiries about our projects or would like to get involved, please email us at cathedralpandf@gmail.com

Melissa Bray   | P & F Publicity

Music

It is extremely important that your children are practising their instruments regularly at home each week. This will ensure your children understand the songs assigned to them and help with their progress as we prepare for our upcoming performances throughout the school year. The more your children practise the better overall sound we will achieve as a team!

Cathedral School Ensemble Times & Days:

• School Choir Tuesdays at Recess
• Guitar Group Wednesdays at Recess
• Concert Band Thursdays at 7:50am
• Junior Band Thursdays at Recess

If your child is interested in participating in any of these groups please feel free to contact me chris_dove_trumpet@hotmail.com

Chris Dove   | Band Director

School Calendar Handy Hints

For those who are not familiar with Google Calendar an easy way to keep up to date with the school calendar is to check the school website. Here is the link that will take you straight to the Calendar section of the site where the calendar can be displayed by month. If you click on the event more details (if confirmed) will be available for the event. 

Most end of year events and special celebrations have already been added to the calendar and all
other events appear as soon as we can confirm the details.  Website Calendar Link

For those with a Google Account the calendar can be added to your Google calendars for easy access
on your phone or device. Google School Calendar Link

Update your Details

Update your email, phone number, address, your child’s medical details or emergency contacts by emailing the information to cathedral@bth.catholic.edu.au

Canteen

The Canteen is open on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

We are in need of helpers in the Canteen on Wednesday, Thursday & Friday. 

For the canteen to run smoothly 3 volunteers are essential.

Please contact Alana Watson on 0417 044 116 if you would like to be included in the canteen roster,
any time offered is welcomed.

Thank you to all our friends and family for all your ongoing support of the Cathedral Canteen.

Community Notices

Bathurst Bus Lines - School Bus Tracking App
The school bus tracking app is available for parents to download on their phone and track their child's bus in real time.  This might alleviate some of the anxiety related to putting students on the bus. Please see instructions below.

Parents requiring any bus pass or general bus travel information are welcome to contact our office and we will be able to discuss their needs accordingly.

If you have any queries please contact us on 6331 2744

Kind regards,

Carolyn
Bathurst Bus Lines