Term 1, Week 5, 2023 School Newsletter

News from the Principal

Dear Families,

Yesterday our school participated in Shrove Tuesday.  Am amazing group of Parent and Grandparent volunteers cooked pancakes for us all  and they were delicious.

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.

Lent is the period of 40 days which comes before Easter in the Christian calendar. Beginning on Ash Wednesday, Lent is a season of reflection and preparation before the celebrations of Easter. By observing the 40 days of Lent, Christians replicate Jesus Christ's sacrifice and withdrawal into the desert for 40 days.

Today our students and staff attended Mass at St Patrick's church in Gordon for the Lenten Mass.

On this coming Sunday, 26th February we invite all families to join with our Parents and Friends for a 'Meet and Greet' at Egans Reserve, Greendale.  The day will start at 1 pm and we ask that families BYO picnic lunch or BBQ supplies and drinks.  This will be a wonderful social day and we encourage all present families to attend.

Our Parent Information Evening on Monday was a great success and we thank all who attended.

A reminder that next Monday 27th February is a School Closure Day for students. Staff will be participating in a wellbeing training professional development day.

I wish you all a wonderful week.

Paul McDowell, Principal.

Shrove Tuesday

St Patrick's Primary School Foundation class will be featured in the Courier paper March 1st.  Don't forget to pick up a copy!

Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th  February PARISH MASS TIMES

Clarkes Hill/Ballan – Saturday - 6.30 pm 
Gordon - Sunday – 8.45 am 

Opening School Mass
Father Justin will celebrate our Opening School Mass on Tuesday, 28th February at St. Patrick’s
Church, commencing at 10.00am.

All families and grandparents are invited to celebrate and sing with us. We look forward to seeing you so please put the date in your diary. 

St. Patrick’s Twilight Sports - Save the Date: Friday, 3rd March

St. Patrick’s has established over the past 2 years our three houses – Patrick, MacKillop and
Bunjil.

Please view which house your child is connected to for their learning years at St. Patrick’s. House teams are used for a number of learning activities across the year but are also used in sport for both our House Athletics and House Cross Country.

Our House Athletics is an evening commencing at 5.30pm for a 5.45pm start whereby students will compete in a number of sporting pursuits, to win points for their House to see whose name will be on the shield for 2023.

MacKillop has had bragging rights for the last 2 years. Parents are invited to bring a picnic rug, chairs, nibbles and drinks and join us on the sports field to cheer on the athletes. Students are able to wear colours to align with their house – t-shirts, socks, face paint, ribbons (anything really is acceptable).

Stay tuned for more updates. We look forward to seeing you at the 2023 House Athletics.

Term Dates and Pupil Free Days

Each year, Catholic schools in the Diocese of Ballarat are allocated pupil free days for staff
Professional Learning, report writing and curriculum planning.

The 2 closure days listed for this Term, relate to our 3 Year Wellbeing Initiative that we began in December last year and our Review Day is part of our 5-year Cycle, whereby we are visited by external consultants to allow staff, students and parents to share our successes and plan for the next 5 Years.

I will invite families to share in this later in the year. The external consultants will visit us in
October and I look forward to inviting families to share their story with the panel.

Monday 27th February - School Closure Day - ReLATE wellbeing training for staff

Friday 10th March - School Closure Day – DOBCEL St. Patrick’s Review Planning Day

2024 School Enrolments and NAPLAN

We are currently accepting inquiries and conducting tours for new families interested in our
school for the 2024 school year.

If you know any families that have children attending 4 year old kindergarten and considering schools please encourage them to visit us online at www.spgordon.catholic.edu.au to view our virtual tour and make contact via the website or the office on 5368 9495 or principal@spgordon.catholic.edu.au

NAPLAN has been moved from early Term Two to commence on Wednesday, 15th March for
all students in Years 3 and 5.

Information will go out families in the coming weeks around what students complete online in each assessment.

Term One Dates