Term 3: Week 10
St Francis of Assisi Feast Day Celebrations Oct 11th - join us for our Colour Run
St James’ Parish Fete 19th of October
Principal Message….
Dear Parents/Carers,
As we reach the end of another busy and productive term, I want to take a moment to reflect on all we have achieved as a school community. This term has been filled with rich learning experiences, exciting events, and wonderful moments of collaboration. A highlight for many was our School Sports Colour Day today, where students came together in a vibrant display of sports jumpers and scarves!
A special thank you to our incredible Parents In Partnership (PIP) team, led by Andrea, for organizing the much-loved hotdog lunch. Your hard work and dedication truly add to the fun of the day, and we are so grateful for all you do to support our school.
Looking ahead, we are excited to kick off Term 4 with our St Francis Feast Day celebrations in the first week back of Term 4. This special occasion will culminate in a Colour Run on Friday, a fun-filled event that is sure to be a fantastic way to celebrate together as a community. We are looking forward to families joining us for mass and morning tea before the colour run begins.
We also have our Parish Fete on the 19th of October. Our dedicated staff are running 3 different stalls this year and we need some help with donations from our families. Please see under the Parish News Tab below, for ways you can help out and join in on all the fun. As always, wristbands for fete ride and food packages will be on sale at school as of next term.
In exciting news, I am pleased to announce the appointment of our current Deputy Principal, Simone Laurie, as the new Principal of St Mary of the Cross Point Cook beginning in 2025. Simone will be an asset to the SMOC community because of her strength as a visionary and skilled leader. We wish her well in her future endeavours and will celebrate her time at SFA before the end of the year.
Take care, Michelle
🎥 The link to our last School Assembly.
Sock it to Poverty Day
Sock it to Poverty Day is a day when we wear our silly socks to school and when we include other people who feel left out. We want everybody to feel happy and included so that everyone can celebrate Socktober. This special day is very important because we are fundraising money to give to Fr. Jude and Fr. John so that they can give life-sustaining materials to support those in need, in the Philippines.
Sock it to Poverty Day will be held on October 25th next term. Make sure you wear your crazy socks to school. You also need to bring a gold coin donation to school. If you are not able to bring your crazy socks to school then you don’t have to worry because our dear grade 4s are creating some for the children that need a sock, so that you don’t have to be left out.
Thank you everyone,
Audrey and Elizabeth Year 4!
Get excited for our Colour Run!
Friday 11th of October
Year 1 Incursion: The Chocolate Shop
During the incursion, students could use their imagination and creativity to design their own hot chocolate creatures. They began by thinking about the appearance of their creature and where it might live, exploring ideas like fantasy lands, forests, or underwater habitats.
Once their designs were complete, students got hands-on and crafted their creatures using hot chocolate as the primary ingredient. They then decorated their creations with various toppings, making each one unique and reflective of their original design
Year Prep MoPA Excursion
This week, our Prep students had an exciting excursion to MoPA (Museum of Play and Art) in Geelong, where they experienced a day filled with creativity and imagination! Founded on the belief that more play and creativity will paint a brighter future, MoPA's facilities, exhibits, and activities are designed to spark curiosity and foster learning through play. Our students engaged in a variety of hands-on experiences, exploring their creativity while developing important skills. It was a fun-filled day of discovery, aligning perfectly with our commitment to play-based learning at school! Click on the image below to check out the fun had by all. ⬇️
THE GARDEN PROJECTThe garden project is teaching children about the environment and how to save our Mother Nature. In the garden, you can sit with your community and we are learning how to keep the organic garden growing and eco-friendly. The way the Year Four community enters the garden, is one by one and we sit as a community discussing the amazing jobs you can do together.
We are trying to grow crops such as tomatoes, carrots, spinach and so much more. We want to make our garden eco friendly and sit as a community in peace. We are excited to see where this project will take us and what we are going to learn along the way.
By Emelia & Shiven on behalf of the year 4 community.
Crochet Club
Our year 6 students have had the opportunity join the Crochet Club run by Year 6 teacher Sarah Devine. They are learning basic crochet stitches so they can make a scarf. They meet every Monday to crochet together.
Congratulations to the 2024 Athletics team for their enthusiastic efforts at the Division level Athletics Carnival on Tuesday the 10th of September. Students involved were;
Jack, Liara, Awec, Ishmael, Alek, Ajok, Chloe, Levina, Victoria, Mia and Favour
Everyone performed amazingly at their individual events and supported and encouraged eachother- in the true SFA way. We couldn't be prouder of the way they represented our school.
A special shout out to Ajok B in Year 6 who came first place in the 11 year old girls 200m sprint and who as a result, has gone through to the next level. Congratulations Ajok and good luck at the next competition!!!
Also a shout out to Mia Debrincat, also in Year 6 who came home with a ribbon for third place in the girls 11 year old 1500m run.
We look forward to another successful outcome in 2025!
Protecting Your Child's Privacy Online
ABC News recently published this article exploring the ways that children's images and information can be exploited online.
The article highlights the way that children's images can be manipulated by AI.
"What that means for parents is the face, or parts of their child's face, will come up in people's creations of an image," Dr Orlando says for example. "In the worst instance, it will be your child's face and someone's naked body."
These are the key points of advice in the article:
Be mindful of over-sharing: Avoid sharing excessive personal information about your child, such as their full name, school, or home address.
Consider the context of your photos: Even if you cover your child's face, other details in the image might reveal their identity or location.
Use privacy settings: Adjust the privacy settings on your social media accounts to limit who can see your posts.
Be cautious of tagging your child: Avoid tagging your child in photos or posts, as this can make it easier for strangers to find them.
Think twice before sharing sensitive information: Avoid sharing personal details about your child's medical conditions, activities, or habits.
Educate your child about online safety: Teach your child about the importance of online privacy and how to protect themselves from online threats.
Monitor your child's online activity: Keep an eye on what your child is doing online and who they are interacting with.
Consider alternative ways to share: Explore other options for sharing photos and information, such as private messaging or family-only groups.
Respect your child's privacy: Ask your child for their consent before sharing their photos or information online.
Stay informed about online threats: Keep up-to-date on the latest online safety trends and risks.
🎦 Interview with a Staff Member
Chatting with Lavina.
It's time to get to know some of our SFA staff. This issue we have asked Lavina, one of our Year Six students, to interview a staff member and ask the hard hitting questions. Click the link to view the interview.
Lavina and Vanessa our Executive Assistant to the Principal and Financial Administrator
We have our Parish Fete on October 19th. Please read below to find out how to support our Parish and school!
This Year, in addition to our Potions Stall, SFA will be running a Plaster Painting stall, and you can also get your Photograph taken at the Photo Booth for a gold coin donation! We hope to see you at our Parish Fete!
We need your help!!
We need a parent volunteer that can run the Book Club orders each term. Our current parent, Mel who has organised it for many years is needing to hand over the job to another parent.
A lot of this task can be done at home with very few school visits (perhaps only once a term) It involves organising the running of the Book Club orders that children make. Then once a term making sure the book orders get to the correct class once delivered to the school. Other PIP parents also chip in and help when needed.
As it is mostly an online job it can be easily done by a parent that isn't able to get into school during school hours. If you are interested in helping help please ring the office or email Andrea at amansour@sfatarneit.catholic.edu.au to let them know. Unfortunately, if we don't get a parent volunteer we will have to stop offering this to our students.
