Dear Families,

How lucky are we here at Lumen Christi? We continue to have stunning days of sunshine as well as being gifted continued face-to-face learning without an emergency closure.  It could be considered luck but can I thank everyone for their continued support in ensuring we implement our protocols sensibly and gently.  Our aim is to have students learning in classrooms and lounge rooms so when we hear of families making good choices around keeping their children home for short periods to eliminate any risk of exposing the school it is very much appreciated.  Can I also acknowledge the innovative and generous way the classroom teachers are adapting to support these children learning from home.   Fingers crossed we continue to be blessed with onsite learning but families can be confident that we have procedures in place ready to respond immediately to deal with a range of scenarios so that our community is safe, and that we can return back onsite quickly.  Communication will be a key factor and I remind families that information will be distributed via the Schoolzine platform (email), mindful that a range of scenarios may play out from only one class being impacted to the whole school.

This week it has been exciting as an educator to watch all classes in action with staff implementing a range of assessment strategies which will drive their teaching plans throughout the rest of the year.  I picked up a saying a few years ago which is very relevant to teaching "Don't count the days, make the days count" - and even though I'm very keen to put both 2020 and 2021 behind me, I'm very confident that our staff and students will take advantage of the weeks ahead.

This week we are expecting information around the operational restrictions that have been placed on us due to COVID.  A few key items of interest would include Transition (both Foundation 2022 & Year 7 2022) as well as events such as Graduation and Confirmation.  Once we know what we can and cannot do we will communicate with families - with our Transition program surely to be branded Turbo-Transition as prepare to welcome the 2022 Rookies.

We have a number of events coming up in the diary and we remind families to take note of items mentioned in the newsletter and on the online platforms offered by the school.  PAM and the Schoolzine Website have calendar functions that we use to promote events etc.  Please note that Monday 1st Nov is a school closure day, as well as the Cup Public Holiday on Tuesday.  

Have a great week, enjoy the sunshine ahead.

Yours, Dave

Mary, Help of Christians. We fly to you today as your beloved children. We ask you to intercede for us with your Son, as you did at the wedding in Cana.

Pray for us, loving Mother, and gain for our nation and world, and for all our families and loved ones, the protection of God’s holy angels, that we may be spared the worst of this illness.

For those already afflicted, we ask you to obtain the grace of healing and deliverance. Hear the cries of those who are vulnerable and fearful, wipe away their tears and help them to trust.

In this time of trial and testing, teach all of us in the Church to love one another and to be patient and kind. Help us to bring the peace of Jesus to our land and to our hearts.

We come to you with confidence, knowing that you truly are our compassionate mother, health of the sick and cause of our joy. Shelter us under the mantle of your protection, keep us in the embrace of your arms, help us always to know the love of your Son, Jesus.

Amen

Every year we proudly support the Morwell RSL Sub-Branch during their ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day appeals.  The pandemic has impacted the capacity of the RSL to conduct their regular community selling points so more than ever we ask for your support o buy a Poppy.  The items on sale this year include poppy pins through to key tags and pens.  The Poppy Appeal box is being passed around classrooms and we welcome you to give your child some money to purchase an item.  Prices range from $1 to $10.

https://poppyappeal.com.au/

During Term 3 and 4, the children have been learning about protective behaviours using the WA Child Protection Program called, ‘Holding Hands’.  As part of our Child Safety theme, we thought we’d reflect on the life of Daniel Morocombe by honouring Daniel on Friday, October 29th. Each class will participate in a whole school simultaneous video viewing, which will remind them of the importance of  Child Safety and the right to feel safe.  On this day, we will teach children to recognise, react & report any harmful/unsafe situations and use their 5 network support people if needed. 

Child Safety Day for Daniel Objectives:

• To raise awareness about Child Safety 

• To educate children regarding their personal safety and empower them to recognise, react and report any unsafe situations.

• To honour the memory of unsafe scenarios such as that of Daniel Morocombe 

On Friday, October 29th at 11:15am - each class will watch this video then make red hearts and pin them onto their tops to remember Daniel and  our theme focus of ‘keeping kids safe’, and ‘Every child has the right to feel safe all of the time’.

Our Lumen Christi staff will be continuing our Protective Behaviours Program titled, Holding Hands, this Term. As mentioned in pervious newsletters, it  is an Internationally acclaimed personal safety and child abuse prevention program endorsed by the Department of Education in Western Australia with Victorian Curriculum links. 

This program is based on two themes : “We all have the right to feel safe all of the time’ and “We can talk with someone about anything, no matter what it is”. By teaching protective behaviours programs, we will be helping our students develop the life long skills of assertiveness, self-confidence, problem solving, communication, resilience and help seeking. The activities and discussions are simple and presented in a fun, child-friendly way, designed not to scare children but teach them some of the vital skills of personal safety and the importance of consent. The focus this Term is Body Awareness and many classes will be having discussions about the human body and body parts. The lessons will involve using the correct medical names for the body parts. Please be aware that the children may come home sharing words learnt/used in their classwork. 

Our Child Safety focus fits in perfectly with National Children’s Week. Our Day for Daniel on Friday 29th, October, ties in with giving children the power to say, ‘NO’, and to seek assistance if needed. Empowering the children with these strategies will hopefully give them the safety they deserve. 

If you have any questions please feel free to contact your class teacher or Mr Cooper or Mrs Colaciello. 

Oct 23-31st

Children’s Week

‘Every child has the right to choose  their own friends and safely connect with others.’