St Kieran Newsletter Term 4, Week 7- 24 November 2022
This coming Sunday the 27th November, is the First Sunday of Advent, known as Advent Sunday. Advent is the season of new beginnings. A new liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent and it beckons to us with images of transformation and hope. It is the season of the impossible becoming possible. It is the season of longing and light.
Week by week, candles are lit on the Advent wreath signifying our longing for the light of Christ, as the time of his birth draws near. The First Sunday of Advent symbolises Hope with the "Prophet's Candle" reminding us that Jesus is coming.
Heavenly Father, your son,
Jesus, is your greatest gift to us,
a great sign of your love.
Guide us as we strive to walk in that love together as a family this Advent.
As we prepare our hearts for Christmas,
bring us closer to each other and to your son.
Give us the grace and strength we need every day.
Help us to always trust in you.
Come, Lord Jesus, lead all people closer to you.
Come and dispel the darkness of our world with the light of your love.
Amen.
I hope you have all had a great week.
Take care and stay safe.
Daine Burnett
Principal
daine.burnett@cewa.edu.au
CEWA Statement - School Fees
All parents have received an email detailing the below with further information.
Families at St Kieran Catholic Primary School will continue to benefit from high quality, Christ-centred and child-focused education in 2023.
Catholic Education Western Australia (CEWA) has announced that the fees parents pay at St Kieran Catholic Primary School will be decreased in 2023.
The changes to school fees have come about as a result of changes to the overall funding for Catholic schools in Western Australia. Our school and CEWA are able to utilise a greater level of data to inform how we determine fees in a way that better matches our school and community’s unique context.
‘I hope families will welcome this news as indicative of our school’s commitment to meeting the needs of the Tuart Hill and surrounding communities we serve. The reduction in fees has been impacted by changes to the Federal Government’s funding model, which is now based on the parent community’s Direct Measure of Income (DMI). We are strongly committed to delivering the highest quality education alongside all our other current programmes offered in 2023 and beyond.
‘The change in fees is a strong sign of Catholic education’s continued place as the best value for money education option for young people in Western Australia.’
2022 School Fees
Updated 2022 Fee Statement has been emailed out to families, if you believe there is an error please contact Kathryn Climo at kathryn.climo@cewa.edu.au. If you have not submitted a payment plan, fees are now overdue. Please pay using the BPAY details at the bottom of the statement or ring 08 6383 2600 for payment via credit card.
To access the Health Care Card Assistance Scheme, an eligible means tested Centrelink card must be presented to our Administration Office and an HCC Fee Discount Scheme form completed. The card must be in the name of the parent/guardian who is responsible for payment of fees.
Regards
Ms Kathryn Climo
Finance Officer
School Advisory Council 2023
Thank you to all the members of our school community that attended the Annual General Meeting on Wednesday night. This is a great time to recap the year and listen to the reports from Kieran Connect, School Advisory Chair, Treasurer and Principal. Congratulations to the below people who will form the School Advisory Council in 2023. We look forward to working with you all and thank you for giving your time so freely to our committee.
I would also like to acknowledge our departing Chairperson, Mrs Chelsea Lim who has been an asset to our School Advisory Council and has lead many initiatives at the school. Chelsea will stay on for 1 Semester in 2023 to allow for a transition to the new Chairperson, thank you Chelsea. Also Tina Terranova who concluded her 4 year term but accepted a secondment to the Advisory Council for her remaining term. Thank you Tina.
Kieran Connect 2023
Kieran Connect have been very active this year and has made lots of progress during the year with even more events planned in 2023. We are very fortunate to have such a wonderful group of people assist us with events at the school and provide even more opportunities to our community. The Kieran Connect email is kieranconnect@stkieran.wa.edu.au
Swimming - Final Week
Next week is the final week of swimming lessons for PP- Year 5. The information regarding this has been sent to parents however, it would be really good to refresh yourself with this information over the weekend and ensure that your children have rehearsed getting changed, packing away their clothes, drying themselves and ensuring they are independent in doing so.
Carols In The Quad
Our whole school, ‘Carols In the Quad’ promises to be an evening of fun and entertainment as we all come together to listen to our favourite Christmas carols, songs and of course, the story of the First Christmas. All the details you need are below:
Who: All children from Kindy to Year Six
Date: Thursday 1st December 2022
Time: 6:00pm start time - children to please assemble in their classrooms by 5:45 pm
Dress: Children to come dressed in a Christmas T-shirt or the traditional colours of Christmas, red, gold and green and shorts. Students may also wear headgear, including reindeer antlers, Santa Hats, etc. PLEASE NO SKIRTS OR DRESSES unless it is specified by teachers.
Gates will open at 5:30 pm; bring along a picnic rug, snacks to eat if you wish and relax as the St Kieran children bring the Spirit of Christmas to you.
Please note that low beach chairs or rugs are preferable to ensure that everyone can see their children. Those sitting on higher chairs, please sit towards the back and on the outside.
The first performers will be Kindy. Once the Kindy students have finished their performance, there will be an announcement for one parent to collect their child from the undercover stage area. They may then continue to watch the rest of the concert with their parents.
At the concert's end, all students will be taken back to classrooms (except Kindy Students) with their teachers. Parents can then collect them from the classroom.
St Vincent de Paul Appeal
We are now asking for donations for the 2022 St Vincent de Paul Christmas Appeal
Please donate CHRISTMAS themed items only:
- Fruit Mince Pies
- Small Christmas Cakes or Puddings
- Liquid Custard
- Candy Canes
- Christmas Treats
- Long Life Milk
- Fruit Juice
- Milo-Tea-Coffee-Sugar
- Ring Pulled Cans Fruit, Vegetables, Baked Bean or Spaghetti
- Honey, Jam or Vegemite
- Pasta & Pasta Sauce
- Savoury or Sweet Biscuits
All donations can be left in the tubs by the Christmas tree on the evening of the Christmas Concert, 6pm Thursday 1st December 2022
Solar Car Science Club
What a wonderful 6 weeks of learning and experimenting with Solar Cars!
The Year 6 students certainly experienced hard work and showed determination to get their cars ‘fine tuned’ and racing.
They now have a better appreciation of the attention to detail required to make a system work!
Great job team!
Mrs Stanford
Science Specialist
Matific Issues
It has been reported that some students are having issues when they log onto the Matific App at home from their school iPad. It is informing students that their connection is slow or unstable. This is due to an upgrade that Matific have carried out on the App and not an issue with your home internet.
This new version of the App is having problems with the school web filtering system. The Matific technical team together with school IT support and CEWA are working on a solution.
We thank you for your patience and understanding.
Liz Watson
Maths Support Teacher and IT Hardware Repairs
Dogs on School Grounds
Can I please remind all parents and family members that dogs are not permitted on the school site or at any school functions. We would respectfully ask that this is followed as requested.
Students Leaving St Kieran
Can you please let the school know as soon as possible if your children are moving on from St Kieran in 2023. We currently have families on our wait lists and would like to accommodate as many people as possible. Please note a terms notice should be given in order to not be charged any subsequent fees.
Playing After School
We have had several instances recently where children have been hurt after school has concluded, from falling over on the basketball courts, falling off walls and off the playground. We have communicated this a number of times that the children must be under the supervision of their parents and not on the playground equipment, this includes playing with balls on the courts. Can you please ensure that family members or friends that are picking up your children are made aware of this as well.