During 2022 our educational focus will be to improve Literacy and Numeracy skills — staff, students and families working together so all our students achieve at least 12 months growth. Other goals for the year are:

Build a community that continues to learn - Implement system Literacy and Numeracy initiatives which will increase student assessment data.

Enhance and maintain the wellbeing of all - Continued increase of attendance rates and implementation of school-wide Well Being Policy.

Build a community that is connected - Increased promotion of the school Vision and Mission statements throughout the community and to continue to increase family attendance at school events.

Term 4  

Friday 21st October    - Prayer Liturgy and Open Day - Mission Week celebrations 

                       JOIN US between 11am and 2.00pm anytime

Tuesday 25th October  - K/1/2 Excursion to Griffith Regional Theatre

                                  - Kindergarten Transition

                                  - School Community Council Meeting @ 6pm

Friday 28th October     - Morning Tea to celebrate World Teachers’ Day

Monday 31st October   - Dental Visit 

Tuesday 1st November - All Saints Day

                                  - Kindergarten Transition

Friday 4th November    - School Mass Year 3/4

Our school held its sports carnival on

the 8th of June and it was a successful day,

followed by school community sharing a

BBQ to finish off the day.

On Thursday the 23^rd of June the SFX Choir will be travelling to Hennessy Catholic College in Young to compete in the Mary Quinane Choir Festival. The students will be singing two songs as well as participating in a 'round' of Frère Jacques with the other competing schools. Please return your child's permission slip as soon as possible. The choir are excitedly practising for the big day!

On the 28th of June, Parent Teacher interviews will be held from 2.15pm to 4pm, room location to be confirmed. Please keep an eye out for further information on Parent/Teacher Interiews that will come home early next week. School reports will be available at these meetings. 

Please ensure that any medication plans are updated including Asthmas Plans. Asthma plans are required to be updated every 12 months. 

If your child requires medication while at school or if any changes are needed to current medication plans we will now require this in writting.

Wednesday evening saw Lake Learning Links, funded through a Schools Plus Fair Education Grant, facilitate the first Kindergarten Transition session for the year.  Many thanks to Elly and the LCELC team for hosting.  The session kicked off with information around childhood milestones and school readiness, play based learning, transition dates and who Lake Learning Links is and what the project is aiming to achieve.  We welcomed Brooke Brown and Shane Phillips, Growling Lachlan’s Community Connections Officers, who kicked off family engagement sessions.  These will continue throughout the year.  The next session is early next term and will be hosted by Murrin Bridge Pre School.  Many thanks to Miss O’Brien for the organisation and preparation of the session.

Raffle books will be going home this week and families are asked to please support the Year 5/6 students fundraising efforts by selling the tickets. 

Notes went home last week with full details of the Canberra Excursion and if families in year 5/6 would like to start paying off the Canberrra Excursion please contact the school to start a payment plan for this.

KINDERGARTEN NEWS

As it is near the end of the term and so many children are getting sick, Years 1 & 2 will not be getting any homework for Weeks 9 and 10. However they will continue to get books to read. Reading 15 mins a night will significantly increase a child’s stamina for reading.

YEAR 3/4 NEWS

Marley has enjoyed being creative at lunch time. 

YEAR 5/6 NEWS

Last week saw Griffith AMS visit Year 5/6 who welcomed them and particpated in a Health lesson with free fresh and fit.

All schools in Australia are required to participate annually in the National Consistent Collection of Data for Students with Disability (NCCD). This allows our Catholic sector to continue to provide and prioritise innovative and high-quality teaching and learning to support all students on their learning journey. Above all though, our Catholic tradition demands that educators see every child as equal, inherently sacred and worthy of dignity and respect. Our Catholic schools support children and young people with disability as an act of love, not merely as a legislative requirement.

What is the National Consistent Collection of Data?The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on Student School Students with Disability (NCCD) is a
process that all schools must complete on an annual basis. It is designed to count the number of students who receive additional adjustments or “help” at school because of a disability. This national data collection helps federal and state governments plan for the needs of students with disability. It is also the way that schools seek and receive funding to support the learning needs of their students.
Who is included in the data collection?

To include a student in the NCCD collection, schools must consider some key questions:
1. Is the student receiving adjustments to assist them with their ability to participate in schooling on the same basis as their peers?
2. Does the student meet the NCCD's broad definition of disability?
3. Has this school discussed the adjustments(help) with the student and/or parent/carer/guardian?
4. Does the school have documentation (assessments, medical reports or other paperwork) about the student’s functional needs, the adjustments (help) that they provided and how the student progressed overtime?

Where the school decides that the four steps above are in place (i.e. the student meets the NCCD (criteria), the school then decides the best disability category and how much help (adjustment level) that the student is provided with.

What is the broad definition of disability? The NCC definition of disability is based on the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and there are four categories; sensory (e.g. vision/hearing impairment), cognitive, social-emotional and physical. The definition of disability is very broad and many students that need help at school can be counted in the NCCD. Students with learning disorders e.g. specific learning disability or reading impairment (sometimes referred to as dyslexia), ADHD or auditory processing disorder, chronic health conditions (e.g. epilepsy or diabetes), physical disability (e.g cerebral palsy), vision/hearing impairment and social emotional disorders (e.g. selective mutism, anxiety disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorder) may be included in the data count.

A formal diagnosis by specialist may be very helpful for the school but is not needed in the NCCD. A student's inclusion in the NCCD collection is based on professional teacher judgement. Schools can consider school based and external documents to decide if a student can be counted.

What are examples of adjustments?
Students need different types of help at school. Some students need a little help sometimes (minor adjustments) but other students need a lot of help nearly all the time (extensive adjustments). The type of help and support that a school provides is also very different depending on the needs of the student. The adjustments can include physical changes to the school buildings or grounds (e.g. ramps or special equipment), extra teacher support in classes, special learning programmes, changes to the way the curriculum is presented and delivered or extra adult assistance.

What information is needed about my child?

Schools work together with parents /guardians/carers to understand the needs of each child. Your knowledge of your child's development and learning is important and valuable in this process. It will be
very helpful to provide your child's teacher with a copy of any relevant past reports (e.g. from a psychologist, speech pathologist, doctor, Paediatrician, OT etc). these reports will be used with information from your child's teacher, such as information about your child's reading progress or a Personalised Learning Plan, to build a picture of your child's needs and the help that the school is providing.

How is information collected?
The data collection process involves input from teachers, principals and other school staff working together to consider the data for students with disability in their school, the category of disability and the level of adjustment that best reflects each student’s needs.

As a first step, teachers consult with the student and their parent/guardian/carer, to discuss the student’s strengths in the areas where the student needs extra support. This support could be support for their learning, behaviour support, support for medical needs, participation, or other areas where the student needs extra help.

Information collected about the type of adjustments the school is making so
that they can participate and learn on the same basis as other students. Documentation, such as diagnostic reports, school reports, parent teacher interviews, Collaborative Planning Meetings and Personalised Learning Plans, will help to provide evidence of the type of support that the school is providing.

What happens to the data? Is it confidential?

All schools must complete the NCCD. Each school principal is required to verify and submit data about students with disabilities in their school during August of each year. The privacy and confidentiality of all students and their families is respected and handled as per the school's Privacy Policy and Collection Notice. Please refer to your schools’ policies for further information.

Do schools require active consent from parents to include students in NCCD?Amendments were made to the Australian Education Act 2013 and subsequent regulations. As such, schools do not require parents/carers/guardians to provide active consent for students to be included in the NCCD nor is there an option for parents/carers/guardians to request their child not be included (e.g. an opt-out
option.)

Where can I access more information?
Please contact your child's school if you have further questions about the NCCD. Additionally, the following link to the national NCCD Portal may be helpful www.nccd.edu.au.

Our School is putting together a family recipe book this year, to collate all the recipes we have used in cooking lessons at school but also as a fundraiser for the school.

If you have any favourite family recipes please drop into the school or email to alison.wheeler@cg.catholic.edu.au

INGREDIENTS

1 and 1/4 cups of mashed, very ripe Banana (this measures to about 3 medium bananas)

2 eggs, at room temp

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled (can also use melted butter ro avocado oil)

1/3 cup pure maple syrup (or honey)

1/2 cup nonfat plain greek yogurt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cup whole wheat flour (or can use white flour or gluten free flour)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

Optional: 1/2 cup chopped walnutes, 1/2 cup chocolate chips, 1/2 coconut flakes or 3/4 cup fresh fruit.

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 180c/350F. Line a bread pan or muffin pan with baking paper and grease the inside of the pan to prevent sticking.

2. Add mashed banana, eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, greek yogurt and vanilla extract to a blender and blend until smooth and well combined. Pour into a large bowl.

3. Next add in the dry ingredients: whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Mix well until just combined. Do not overmix. At this point you can fold in any of the following: 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, 1/2 cup chocolate chips, 1/2 cup coconut flakes or 3/4 cup fresh cup fresh fruit.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan. Split a banana down the middle then add on top of the batter or just add banana slices on top, side by side. Bake for 55-65 minutes or until a tester inserted into the middle comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Allow bread to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove and transfer to a cooling rack.