Holy Family Newsletter (Week 10 Term 1, 2024)
Messages from the Principal
Acknowledgement of Country
As we gather on this sacred land, let us respectfully acknowledge the past and present Nyangbul people of the Bundjalung nation for which the members and elders of the local Indigenous community and their forebears have been custodians for thousands of years of this land, on which they have performed age old ceremonies, celebrations, initiations and renewals. We acknowledge their living culture and unique role in the life of this beautiful country.
2024 School Annual Improvement Plan
Holy Family has many goals/targets each year, aimed at improving in many dimensions for the betterment of our students. Two of Holy Family’s big goals this year are in Mission and Learning and Teaching.
Digital Child Safety Handbook
The “NSW Police Legacy Child Safety Handbook” is a comprehensive and free resource to assist parents, carers, as well as, teachers on a range of topics essential to child safety.
We are pleased to advise that a new edition of this valuable safety resource is now available online with updated safety content.
We urge all parents and carers to download this latest edition and discuss the safety content with your children.
Child Safety Handbook App Available for download.
Attendance
Healthy sleep, exercise and diet can make a difference.
Healthy sleep, exercise, and diet play critical roles in a student's overall wellbeing, impacting not only their physical health but also their cognitive function, emotional regulation and ability to focus.
Encouraging healthy habits early on sets the foundation for a lifetime of wellbeing. Children who learn the importance of sleep, exercise and a balanced diet are more likely to carry these habits into adolescence and adulthood, impacting their overall attendance and success in school.
Discipleship Day of Service
The great vision and many hours of planning from Adam Sullivan and Kylie Hyde gave our students a unique experience: being true disciples of the Gospels and being of service to their community. In addition, all the staff that participated and assisted were outstanding. Their support of Adam and Kylie made the day a great success. “Team work makes the dream work.” One of the special traits of Holy Family is how everybody steps up to support each other. We are all very fortunate to be part of a special Catholic school community called Holy Family.
School Community Group (SCG)
There was a very good number of parents in attendance at our recent meeting. A highlight of the meeting was the excellent presentation on Anxiety by Janine Hanlon, Holy Family’s School Counsellor. In addition, there was excellent feedback provided to Ben Crawford, Leader of Wellbeing and Sport on how to have more parents participate in this year’s Tell Them From Me (TTFM) parent survey, which will take place in May; as the school greatly values your positive and constructive feedback. More information on the School Community Group will be available next term.
Sincere Thanks
As we near the end of a very busy Term One, I would like to acknowledge and thank the tremendous staff at Holy Family, they all make so many positive contributions to our Catholic learning environment, which in turn enriches our students. Also, I would like to thank you, our parents, for all the things that you do for the children at our school. At Holy Family, we have wonderful support from parents and relatives. We look forward to your continued support and involvement next term.
ANZAC March
"Save the Date"
Local schools have now been re-invited to participate in the traditional morning ANZAC Day March in Ballina after a long stint of not having school involved since the start of COVID. Pleasingly, Holy Family has always been well represented at our local ANZAC Day March and we are excited by the invitation to join in this commemoration once again.
ANZAC Day, Thursday 25th of April, falls in the second week of our Easter School Holidays. All Holy Family students are encouraged to represent Holy Family on this special day by marching in remembrance of those who have and still protect our nation and also publically express our pride in the peace and freedoms we are blessed with in Australia.
The March starts at 10.30 am in River Street, Ballina and all Holy Family students are to meet outside the Professionals Real Estate in River Street at 10.15 am. The students are to wear their Holy Family School uniform with their hats.
Kindness
There is never a reason not to be kind.
Term Two starts on Monday, 29th April for all Holy Family students.
God Bless
Murray
Principal
Catholic Life
Serving With Jesus - Our HF Discipleship Retreat
Acts of Service Across Ballina and Lennox Head
On Thursday, Holy Family took part in a Whole School Discipleship Retreat with the theme 'Serving with Jesus'. Following a short morning liturgy we ere focused on these words from the Gospet of Matthew:
“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. People do not light a lamp and put it under the bushel basket; rather, they put it on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”
The Kid President gave us a pep talk and reminded us that we can make amazing things happen by showing kindness to others. So with inspiration from Jesus and the Kid President we broke off into 21 groups and travelled across Ballina and Lennox Head taking part in acts of kindness and social service. We washed windows, collected rubbish from parks and beaches, cleaned the cenotaph and signage along the coastal walk, planted trees, organised donations at St Vincent de Paul, wrote cards of appreciation for local businesses and spent valuable time with the residents of Crowley and the preschool children.
It was wonderful to receive such positive comments from people when we were out and about in our community and watching the children work together to “give”. Once back at school each class reflected upon the day and the students’ comments confirmed that serving others is a powerful way to understand what discipleship can look in our modern world.
A big thank you to Bunnings Warehouse Ballina for donating resources required for this special day and thank you to Xavier Catholic College Students for supporting our groups during the day. Also thank you to our parents for preparing their children for this special day.
Please see below link to a short video recently posted on our Holy Family Facebook and Instagram pages, highlighting just some of the acts of service that took place on this day.
Learning and Teaching
InitiaLit
This year, we continue implementing InitiaLit in response to the revised NSW English and Mathematics Syllabus.
InitiaLit is an evidenced-based whole-class literacy program, that provides all students with the essential core knowledge and strong foundations to become successful readers and writers.
Kindergarten parents/carers are invited to attend an information session on Tuesday, May 7. The links below provide more information regarding InitiaLit and the research that supports the use of the program, as well as more information about our upcoming parent session.
If you have any questions, please contact Emma McFadden.
Kindergarten Enrolment Timetable
Event | Date | Description |
2025 Online Enrolments now open | Open | Online enrolment applications are available through our website: www.skhplism.catholic.edu.au |
Parent Walking Tour of Holy Family | Wednesday 10th April: 9:00 am or Thursday, 11th April: 2:00 pm | A walking tour of our school to explore the many learning and recreational environments Holy Family has to offer. |
Kindergarten Enrolments Close | Friday 3rd May 2024 | Completed Online Enrolment Forms and support documentation has been received. |
Online Bookings for 2025 Kindergarten Enrolment Interviews | Wednesday, 8th of May to Monday, 13th May 2024 | Parents will be sent an invitation to book their interview time online. |
2025 Kindergarten Enrolment Interviews | From Wednesday, 15th May to Friday, 14th June 2024 | Conducted by members of the Holy Family Leadership Team. |
2025 Online Offer | Sent out online via Compass on Wednesday, 19th June 2024 | You can either accept or decline the offer. If accepting the offer you will be asked to pay a $200 deposit, which goes towards your child’s 2025 School Fees. |
2025 Student Orientation Mornings | Thursday 31st October and Friday 1st November 2024 9.00am – 12 noon | This a valuable opportunity for enrolled 2025 kindergarten children to orientate themselves into the class and school environments. It is also an invaluable opportunity for teachers to observe and interact with the children and to support their transition into kindergarten. |
Parent Information Morning | Thursday, 31st October, 2024 9.15 am in the school hall. | An information session for parents to gain valuable knowledge and understanding how best to prepare their children for kindergarten. |
Australian Early Development Census- Kindergarten
The Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) is a national census that builds a picture of how children have developed by the time they start their first year of full-time school. Kindergarten teachers will administer the census in Week 2 Term 2.
Sport
Polding Swimming Championships
On Wednesday 3rd April six students from Holy Family attended the Polding Swimming Championships at the Sydney Aquatic Centre. Congratulations to Nash Stewart, Niamh Spinks, Miliani Tighe, Amy Roberts and Cahlu Bond-Sheehan who finished in the top 3 in their event/s and will now compete at the NSW PSSA Swimming Championships in Sydney on Thursday 11th April and Friday 12th April.
The students achieved the following results.
- Nash Stewart - Boys 8 yrs 50m Freestyle - 1st
- Cahlu Bond-Sheehan - Girls Snr 50m Freestyle Relay- 2nd
- Miliani Tighe - Girls Snr 50m Freestyle Relay- 2nd
- Amy Roberts - Girls Snr 50m Freestyle Relay- 2nd
- Niamh Spinks - Girls 11 yrs 50m Butterfly - 1st, Girls Snr 50m Freestyle Relay- 2nd
Wellbeing
Tell Them From Me Surveys
All families are strongly encouraged to partake in our Holy Family Tell Them From Me Surveys again this year. Families will have a three week window to complete their surveys from Monday 6 May (Week 2) until Friday 24 May (Week 4). Students in Years 4-6 and all staff will complete the survey during Week 3. This will be the third year the survey has been completed at our school and we are beginning to see trends with input from all our major stakeholders —> students —-> families —-> staff.
It is very important for our school to receive feedback from all families, as it helps us gain a greater understanding of the things that we need to celebrate, the things we need to improve on and listen and make decisions on the suggestions you have to make our school better for your child/ren into the future.
Please keep an eye out for more details and the link to complete the survey on Compass, Facebook, WhatsApp and your child’s bag early next term. Please contact ben.crawford@lism.catholic.edu.au if you have any questions.
School Events
Harmony Day
Harmony Week was from Monday 18th to Sunday March 24th, 2024. It is all about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging. It is a time to celebrate all the different cultures that are a part of Australia. The theme this year for Harmony Week was ‘Everyone belongs’.
Holy Family engaged in a variety of Harmony activities across the week. Thanks to Shataya for coordinating the fun activities and bringing awareness of the importance of diversity and inclusion to our school community.
Year 6 Incursion
Michele from Papaya shared her experience of sustainable practices with Year 6 as part of their Science and Technology unit. Topics of discussion were as follows:
- simple ideas of how to source food sustainably
- Michele’s experience supporting local producers and the gratification of being part of a local community
- making mindful choices about packaging
- finding creative ways to encourage customers to think sustainably eg. Discounted coffee for ‘keep cups’.
Year 6 had the opportunity to make chia puddings and to ask Michele questions, which will help them with their next task in their Science and Technology unit.
Chess
On Thursday, nine Holy Family students competed in the Gardiner Chess Interschool Tournament at Emmanuel Anglican College. The students acquitted themselves well, especially considering they played against a number of older students. Congratulations to Leo Hogg on his merit ribbon.. Well done also to Jaxson Moroney, Oliver Blanch, Darcy Carter, Christian Lang, Nevaeh Pirak, Jack Oud, Archie Flor and Theo Maxwell for taking up the challenge. The children represented Holy Family in a sporting manner and with excellent behaviour. Thanks to Bronwyn Stokes for her supervision and encouragement at the tournament.
Congratulations Kindergarten
Congratulations to all Kindergarten students for completing their first term at big school and for settling into our Holy Family community with ease and resilience. We have had a fantastic start to the year and we are so proud of the growth we have already seen in each child. We are going to have a fabulous year together.
Cheryl, Kaitlin and Matilda
Canteen Corner
Canteen Roster - Term 1, 2024
Week | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
11 | Rose Mitchell | Tipsuda Steele | Closed Pupil Free Day |
Term 2 W 1 | Help Needed | Help Needed | Help Needed |
A massive thank you to our meal deal helpers Narelle Davidson, Kim Carter, Marilyn Evans, Angela Shay and Sally Churven. Without your generous support on these days we couldn't do it without you, it was a lovely day and the students enjoyed their lunch.
Also thank you to our 6 Blue helpers Ayla, Bella, Amelia, Harper,Indigo, and Charlotte for distributing our lunch baskets to the classrooms.
A very warm welcome to our new canteen assistant Amie Colreavy. Welcome to the canteen team.
Student Awards
The McGrath Estate Agents, Lennox Head, Mary MacKillop Community Service Award
“Never see a need without doing something about it.”
The highly regarded Mary MacKillop, Community Service Award, is generously sponsored by McGrath Estate Agents, Lennox Head.
The Mary MacKillop Award for Term One goes to Indigo from Year 6 Blue.
Indigo is a kind-hearted student who follows Holy Family's code of Safety, Effort, Respect, and Self-Responsibility. Indigo has consistently demonstrated her commitment to her school work and the Holy Family School Community.
Indigo has been described as compassionate, trustworthy, sensitive, and respectful to the needs of others by her teachers. These characteristics are an example of the fantastic student she is but, more importantly, an outstanding role model who reflects and shares the values of Mary MacKillop.
The Student Forum nominated Indigo, that is, students from Year One through to Year Six and the decision to choose Indigo was ratified by the School Principal, her teachers and Mr Campbell.
It is with great pleasure that we present the McGrath Estate Agents, Lennox Head Mary MacKillop Community Service Award, for Term One, 2024, to Indigo.