20 November 2024

From the Desk of the Acting Principal

Dear Good Shepherd Community, 

As I reflect on the past four weeks during which I had the privilege of serving as your acting principal, I am filled with gratitude and admiration for our entire school community. Our school’s motto, Love, Faith and Learning, is not just words on a plague; it is a guiding principle that is deeply embedded in the fabric of this school. It has been inspiring to witness how it permeates every classroom, conversation, and moment at our school.

First, I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation for our dedicated staff. Their unwavering commitment to fostering an environment where students feel supported and motivated is truly inspiring. Every day, I watched teachers go above and beyond—creating lesson plans that engage, challenge, and inspire curiosity in their students. The creativity they bring into the classroom, combined with the patience and genuine care they show for each child, embodies the spirit of love and faith that defines Good Shepherd. Thank you, teachers and support staff, for your hard work, adaptability, and tireless efforts to ensure every child not only learns but thrives.

To our incredible students: you have been the heart of our school’s success. Your hard work, enthusiasm, and willingness to grow are what make our school such a special place. I have been impressed by how you have embraced challenges, supported each other, and shown determination in reaching your goals. Your kindness and support of one another reflect the love at the heart of our school’s values and your eagerness to learn and vibrant energy remind us daily why our mission matters. As we approach the end of this school year, your accomplishments serve as a testament to your commitment to learning and your strength in finishing strong. Your cheerful energy has been contagious and has made my time here unforgettable.

Parents and guardians, your role in this shared mission cannot be overstated. Your active involvement, whether through assisting with homework, attending school events, or simply encouraging your child to do their best, forms the foundation upon which student success is built. Thank you for being partners in your children’s education and for reinforcing our school’s values at home.

As we wrap up the year, let us all take a moment to reflect on the many accomplishments, big and small, that have shaped this term. Whether it was mastering a new skill, completing a challenging project, or building friendships that make the school day brighter, every success deserves to be celebrated. I encourage everyone to carry forward the spirit of Love, Faith and Learning as we head into the final days of school and beyond.

Thank you for welcoming me so warmly and allowing me to be a part of this exceptional community during this period. It has been a privilege to witness firsthand the spirit of our school. Let’s finish the year with the same enthusiasm and dedication that have carried us this far.

With deep appreciation,

Annette Poulson

Acting Principal

apoulsen2@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Pedagogy and Learning

Carpark reminder

Student safety is paramount, and the pick-up zone is one area where we need your assistance to help keep our students – your children – safe.

It is our expectation that all students being collected by car are picked up from the Pickup Zone. Students should not be asked to wait at the front of the administration building, walk across to the dirt carpark, or walk to a meeting place off the school grounds. Encouraging any of these alternatives is dangerous and places the safety and wellbeing of your child at risk. Students seen waiting in any of these areas will be redirected to the Pickup Zone.

When collecting your child after school in the Pickup Zone, please move forward as far as possible in the pickup lane. This allows as many cars as possible to access the pickup area. Children should only be entering cars stopped adjacent to the path in front of the seats, not in cars stopped further along the queue.

If you choose to park, please walk across and collect your child. Do not call for them to run across the carpark as this is unsafe.

Please also note that the area against the path near the administration building is NOT for general parking. This is strictly designated for buses and people displaying a disability parking pass. This applies at all times, not just during school hours, and to all people accessing our car park.

Thank you for your cooperation with this.

We’re still learning!

With only a couple of weeks of school left, it is often tempting to allow students to stay home because “they’re not doing anything important”.  Please be assured that your child is taking part in important learning every day for the remainder of the term. At times, this may look a little different but there is still valuable learning taking place. For example, as students work together on performances for the Christmas concert, they are learning skills that they can utilise in presentations in curriculum areas like English, as well as developing social skills, turn taking, leadership and skills essential for success at school and in life.

Compass access and reports

Our Semester Two student achievement reports will be released via Compass during the last week of school. In order to access the reports, you need to be able to log in to the Compass Parent Portal. If you are unable to do this, or are having difficulties with it, please email the school office on rsmssn@tsv.catholic.edu.au as soon as possible. 

Maxine Nolan

APPL

mnolan@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Religious Education

Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year in the church and consists of the 4 Sundays leading up to Christmas day. The word Advent comes from the Latin word meaning "coming". Jesus is coming, and Advent is intended to be a season of preparation for His arrival. While Advent is typically regarded as a joyous season, it is also intended to be a period of preparation, much like Lent. Prayer, penance and fasting are appropriate during this season. 

Advent is not as strict as Lent, and there are no rules for fasting, but it is meant to be a period of self-preparation. The purple colour associated with Advent is also the colour of penance. The colour of the Third Sunday of Advent is rose. This colour symbolises joy and represents the happiness we will experience when Jesus comes again. The Third Sunday is a day of anticipatory celebration. It is formerly called "Gaudete" Sunday; Gaudete means "rejoice" in Latin. 

Finally, Sundays during Advent, just as during Lent, should not be given to fasting, but instead to celebration because we celebrate the resurrection of Our Lord every Sunday. It is important to remember, however, there are no particular rules for how the laity should observe Advent. 

Rebecca Kershaw

APRE

rkershaw@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

What's Happening in Year 6

It’s hard to believe our Year 6 students are nearly at the end of their primary school journey. Our students are currently very focused, finalising their assessments as their teachers are preparing their final school reports. This term our students were learning how to write different forms of poetry in English. In Science they learnt all about different physical and chemical reactions, along with focusing on celebrations within the church and celebrations held within other church communities in Religion. They have learnt about the 3 levels of Australian Government and how laws are formed and amended in HASS and finished off by studying Chance and Probability in Maths. Many of our students have participated in inter school sporting competitions in Futsal and Touch Football, where they exhibited outstanding sportsmanship. Our students are about to begin preparing for their final school assembly item that they’ll present on stage on Friday-Week 9. They are also busy with learning their Christmas concert item and focusing on their Rite of Passage presentation. We’ll be very sorry to see our amazing students leave us here at Good Shepherd, but we wish them all the best as they transition into the new High Schools in 2025. 

Guidance Counsellor

Hi Everyone,

My name is Marissa. I'm the Guidance Counsellor at Good Shepherd and you can catch me here on a Monday, Tuesday or a Wednesday so please drop in to the wellbeing building for a chat.  

Raising Boys

Neuroscience and brain mapping has over the years helped researchers gain a clearer understanding into the distinct development of the male brain. When comparing male and female brains, it is necessary to take into consideration the psychology of differences. There are many reasons for these including hormonal, physical, environmental, and of course, brain differences. However, these should not translate into limitations or affect how a parent acts towards their child, nor should it influence how you treat them. It's no secret that most boys are active, loud, rambunctious and prone to rough play, but you need to be careful not to pigeon-hole your child into sex specific behaviours as there is a big cross-over. Boys should not be considered all the same as they do have individual differences. The following school TV resources offers some handy tips on raising boys. https://gstsv.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/raising-boys

Library

Story Dogs

Save The Date

Breakfast Club and Running Club

Both Clubs will run every morning. Breakfast Club will run from the Tuckshop from 8:10am and Running Club will be held on the Junior Oval from 8:10am as well.

The Good Shepherd Way

Term 4, Week 7

This week our Good Shepherd Way Gospel in Action value is Love where I share my good heart with others.

Our Love prayer is below:

Term 4, Week 8

The Good Shepherd Way Gospel in Action for Week 8 will be Reconciliation where I am fair, forgiving and respectful.

Our Reconciliation prayer is below:

The GSCS Way

The GSCS Way is our positive behaviour support program here at Good Shepherd Catholic School.

All in our community are encouraged to:

• Give My Best
• Show Respect
• Compassion and Care
• Safe Responsible and Fair

Each week we focus on a different area of our matrix.

This week we are focusing on: In the toilets. 

In Term 4, Week 7 we are focusing on: In the library. 

Prep Orientation 2025

Environmental Tips

You CAN recycle wherever you are - whether at home, work, school or around town. When you recycle one aluminium drink can, a milk bottle or a single newspaper you may not think you're doing much for the environment. However, you need to remember that millions of other people are doing the same as you. Together we can all make a big difference by recycling.

Tuckshop

Wednesday - Thursday - Friday

Please contact the school office or Ann-Maree at Tuckshop with any enquiries.

CUTOFF time to order TUCKSHOP
from FLEXISCHOOLS
is 8:30am.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL ORDERS ARE TO BE PLACED ONLINE AT THE LINK BELOW. Please visit the website to set up your account if you are new to Flexischools.

Flexischool How To Guides for Parents and Caregivers
• Online help is available any time at Flexischools via the link below.
• Phone between 8am - 12pm (AEDST) on weekdays or on the parent phone line (1300 361 769). 

How-To Guides for Parents
Flexischool has spent some time over the holidays developing some quick how-to guides for  parents. If you'd like to see these, please click the link below.
They include: 
•    Introduction to Flexischools;
•    How to Register; 
•    How to Top-Up;
•    How to Place an Order. 

Lost and Found

Teacher Contacts

Parent Portal

If you have any problems accessing please send an email to the school office at rsmssn@tsv.catholic.edu.au. 

The Parent Portal allows you to:

View your child’s timetable and the school calendar
View up to date attendance information for your child
Enter details of upcoming absences or explain past absences or late arrivals for your son or daughter
Access your child’s Semester reports
Make bookings for Parent Teacher Interviews
View a news feed of school announcements, alerts and updates
Provide consent for school events/excursions
Communicate by email with your child’s teachers
Update your contact details (email and mobile phone number).

The parent portal is a web-based system that can be accessed by clicking this link:

An app called Compass School Manager is also available for both iPhones/iPads (via the App Store) and Android phones/tablets (via the Google Play Store). When you have installed the app, search for “Good Shepherd Catholic School – Rasmussen”.
The browser version of the Parent Portal contains more features than the app.  Please click the link below to access the Compass website which has an online guide and video for the Parent Portal.

Community News