15 February 2023

From the Desk of the Principal

Parent Information Evening

Thank you to all parents and friends who attended our Parent Information Evening last Wednesday night. All information presented was also sent home.

Staff Update

Jason Hills has tendered his resignation. We thank Jason for all of his contributions to our Good Shepherd Family and wish him all the best in the future. The recruitment process to replace Jason has commenced.

Assembly

Our first Assembly was held on Friday. Assembly gives us an opportunity to come together as a whole school to pray together and celebrate the achievements of our students. We commence Assembly with our VIP Draw where Sherlock draws out three winners to join him and members of the Leadership Team at the VIP Table. Students of the Week are also acknowledged in front of our whole school community. Parents and friends are always welcome to join us from 8:40am each Friday in the BBC.

School Board

Our first School Board meeting for 2023 is being held tonight. Our School Board members are Fr Joseph (Parish Priest), Glenda Scrase (Principal), Maxine Nolan (APA), Charmaine Aili (Staff Representative), Helen O'Neill (Parish Representative), Adeleah Evans (Parent Representative), Shelley Gowley (Parent Representative) and Annalee Pope (Parent Representative)

Enjoy the rest of your week.

Glenda Scrase

Principal

gscrase1@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Religious Education

Shrove (Pancake) Tuesday
Tuesday 21st February

Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday, is the traditional feast day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Lent – the 40 days leading up to Easter – was traditionally a time of fasting and on Shrove Tuesday, Catholics went to confession and were “shriven” (absolved from their sins). Shrove Tuesday always falls 47 days before Easter Sunday, so the date varies from year to year and falls between February 3 and March 9. In 2023 Shrove Tuesday will fall on February 21st. On Shrove Tuesday people traditionally cook and eat pancakes. The reason for this was to use up foods such as fat, eggs and milk before Lent. We look forward to celebrating this special day with our students next week.

PARISH MASS

Friday 17th February at 10am
Good Shepherd Community Centre
Prep B and 4/5A will be attending.
Parents are also welcome to attend.

Rebecca Kershaw

APRE

rkershaw@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Administration

Are you worried about your child’s development?

If you are worried about your child’s development, help is available. 
The NDIS early childhood program offers assistance for children younger than 7 and their families – and the child does not have to be diagnosed with a disability to get support. They can help you access the right support and help give your child the best possible start in life.
For more information, see the NDIS brochure attached to the newsletter.

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.
Please remember, if using the pickup zone, to wait in the queue and pull as far forward in the pickup zone for children to get in the car. Children should be getting in from the path in front of the sliver seats, not going along the line of cars through the carpark.
If you choose to park, please walk across to collect your child, rather than calling for them to run across the carpark to you.
Thank you for your cooperation with this.

Naplan

If you have a child in Years 3 or 5, they will be taking part in Naplan, starting on March 15 (week eight of school).  If you have any concerns about Naplan, please speak to your child’s teacher as soon as possible. Parents can choose to withdraw their children from some or all of Naplan, however you must complete a form for this to happen. If your child is away on the day and has not been officially withdrawn, they will be required to complete the test during a catch-up session
There are four tests, for writing, reading, conventions of language and mathematics. Writing must be conducted on the first day of the testing period (March 15) and is paper based for Year 3 students only. All other tests, including Year 5 writing, are conducted online via the Naplan Secure Browser. Tests take no longer than 50 minutes and we schedule only one main test session per day. Students requiring catch-up tests may need to complete more than one a day, however there will be a significant break between tests.

Remember to Log In to the Compass Parent Portal

All new families and those who have not accessed the Compass Parent Portal before should have received an email in the last couple of weeks with your log-in details.  If you have not received the email, please check your “junk” email folder. It is important that you have access to Parent Portal, as this is the only place your child’s school reports are published to.
The Parent Portal also 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, provide consent for school events/excursions and communicate by email with your child’s teachers.

Maxine Nolan

APA

mnolan@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

What's Happening In Our Prep Classes?

Prep A

We have been exploring reading with Mr Reiterer and have had plenty of opportunities to explore books alone and with friends. They have begun learning about living things, starting with a big book about farm animals.

The children have also been exploring patterns in different ways, from sticker patterns on their names to unifix cubes and tangram blocks.

There have also been a few firsts: their first library experience when the children borrowed books to take home, their first experience of Christian Meditation and their first Buddy Reading session with their Year 6 PALs.

Prep B

In Maths, we have been learning number names up to 10. We have been introduced to different number rhymes and have been completing craft activities such as 'number one has fun!' and 'open the door four'. 

This week in literacy, children have traced letters using salt, practiced writing their name and matched letters with pictures. We have been learning different nursery rhymes such as Incy Wincy Spider, Mary had a Little Lamb, Five Speckled Frogs and Humpty Dumpty. 

In Science, we are exploring living things. This week, children planted seeds and explored that plants need sunlight, air, water, soil and time to grow. Prep B are very excited to watch their carrots, daisies, basil and rocket grow! 

Prep C

A little insight into the amazing world of Prep C
We have been investigating interests in our classroom. Trucks, cars, blocks, plants and drawing have been the main attractions. Our little people are working well taking turns, socialising with new friends and learning about each other. 

In Maths we have been learning all about numbers to 10. Songs and art to represent these numbers have helped us to remember them well. We are also beginning to recognise shapes in our environment, cutting, drawing and locating them in our room. 

In English, Nursery Rhymes have been a main focus. Humpty Dumpty was a hit and we made some excellent craft following a number of steps to complete. Students are beginning to read for interest each day with our RAM time (Reading Always Matters). They loved heading to the Library last week and were very excited to be able to take the books home to share with families. 

Awards For The Week

Birthdays for this week!

                  ~Joel(PrepB)            ~Lavynia(PrepB)            ~Layla(3B)               ~Isobel(6A)

Assembly

1A will be presenting our Assembly this Friday in the BBC at 8:40am

Our lucky Praise Note winners last week were: Adrien (Prep C), Elizabeth(1A), Colton (2C), Quinten (3C), Arielle (4/5A), Scarlett (6A)

The Good Shepherd Way

This week our Good Shepherd Way Gospel in Action value is Hope where I see good all around me.

Our Hope prayer is also 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 Eating Area.

Parent Library Borrowing

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.

Environmental News

“We must change our consumption habits. The Earth’s resources are finite and cannot be stretched.  We are living beyond our environmental capacity.  We have to face the hard issues of radically changing our habits.” (Catholic Earthcare, June, 2004) 

Parent Portal

Parent Portal

If you have any problems accessing please send an email to the school office at rsmssn@tsv.catholic.edu.au or call the office on 4774 0477. 

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.

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. 

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