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Good morning on this chilly Friday morning.
We have made it to the end of Week 3 - Congratulations!
Last weekend we joined with our neighbours across the ditch to commemorate one of the most significant events in our nation's history - ANZAC Day. This year's ceremonies posed a challenge that as communities had to deal with, but I'm sure you will agree when we reflect on the tremendous job we did in honouring the day. If you stood in silence at the end of your driveway amongst the fog and light of the early dawn you could feel the hairs stand up on the back of your neck. Well done to those families who led their children in different ways to acknowledge the day and thank you to Mrs.Colaciello who managed to profile some of the children's efforts in both Monday and Thursday's LV Express.
This week we have seen some fantastic work across all year levels and the staff are reporting how thrilled they are with the engagement of children. It is really appreciated when we receive those unexpected emails and photos of the children's work or even something extra they have made or done. As we establish some rhythm to Remote Learning after the first few weeks it is important though to maintain the enthusiasm, so we ask parent to continue to monitor their children's work to ensure the are fully completing the set tasks.
Life at Lumen Christi continues to be very busy both on and off site, and as staff we recognise the efforts of those on the homefront who are being so flexible in their new roles in Remote Learning. We appreciate how challenging it must be, while we also wanted to say thank you to everyone for the positive feedback and thanks we as a staff are receiving back from our school families. No one chose this path, but we walk it together looking for opportunities to lever advantages for our children as we learn more about them as learners.
Finally, again I wanted to reach out to all our staff and thank them for the tireless work they are putting in and the positively they continue to bring to their roles and to each other [Check out the Andrew Chinn 'Rainbow Song' for a few familiar faces]. However I'm not too sure who will have the biggest smiles we the green light is switched on for a return to school - Staff or Parents?
Take care,
Dave
We offer of prayers for those who have died, their families and the sick. We also give thanks for the skills and knowledge of those leaders and scientists who guide us in this time, especially those leading the medical research to deal with this crisis. We pray for those who offer care and comfort to others.
Our Lady Help of Christians, Patroness of Australia: Pray for Us
Saint Mary MacKillop: Pray for Us
Saint Luke, Patron Saint of Doctors:Pray for Us
Saint Agatha, Patron Saints of Nurses: Pray for Us
Finance Statements have been emailed out to families during this past week.
If you have any questions please make contact with Bek via finance@churchill.catholic.edu.au
We continue to encourage parents to access the resources on the eSafety Commisioner website CLICK HERE
Please make sure you are spent some time sharing the Kids Page with your child
On Thursday 7th May we have pick-up for the Weeks 5 & Week 6 packs. We will repeat the same procedure as last week with pick up via the Eco-Centre canteen window from 7.30am to 9.30am.
On the day can parents please return the LEARNING LOG sheets from this fortnight in one of the plastic pockets that has a name label on it.
We have listened to parent and staff feedback and simplified the LEARNING LOG system for this new set of work. Parents are asked to mark/tick/highlight the Weekly Overview page as the children complete each of the four tasks set for the day.
With the next set of packs families will be provided with a RETURN TO SCHOOL plastic pocket which explains what needs to be returned.
It is critical that parents continue to follow the Attendance procedures. Staff have to follow normal school attendance legislation even during remote learning and therefore all unexplained absences are recorded when children fail to check-in, complete work or parents are not in contact with the classroom teachers.
At pickup next week we will have the new school beanies available for sale or pickup via CDF-Pay for $15.
Social Media is filled with terrific examples of people linking online during the COVID19 pandemic. The heartwarming footage of families engaging with elderly family members in isolation shows the power of social media.
In the school setting the use of the various video facilities has many benefits, sadly though we also need to be highly vigilant of the risks involved. In the past few weeks our school, as well as the Catholic Education Office, have assessed and modified the settings on our student accounts to maximise security and safety. This has also lined up with some developments implemented by the Google team to link the functionality of Google Classroom with their video conferencing platform - Google Meets.
This week we have trialled Google Meets with our senior classes and have learnt significant tips and tricks to move forward. Today we will attempt a whole school assembly at 2pm - it promises to be combination of confusion and entertainment as we attempt this for the first time with a large group of rookie users!
Check out this Youtube clip for a few tips!
At Lumen Christi we intergrate with different online programs to support the delivery of our curriculum. In the Remote Learning phase families would be growing more familiar with their usage across the school. Some of these are paid subscriptions while others are available freely online. Remote Learning has seen schools across our diocese, as well as across the globe, share their success stories and procedures.
We will be rolling out the use of two new reading systems, both of them online.
LEARNING A-Z: Is a multiuse platform which can be used both in the school and home environment. The package families will 'see' is RAZ-Plus. Each child has their own profile that they access for ebooks and activities. We have been extremely impressed with reviews of this program from our colleagues and we look forward to using the face-to-face teaching component of it next term. We have purchased a 12month licence for all students and staff to have continued access beyond Remote Learning. Teachers will have access information included in the packs next week. We have been told this site is also available as an App.
MYON: Is another e-books platform, and without the teaching benefits of the above program. However the quality of the texts in the program appeal to staff and we can see it being highly engaging for the students. We are involved in a trial until the end of June, and will review our ongoing subscription if the feeling from staff, parents and students is positive. Log in details will be provided, but it is a generic password you might like to get active on straight away.
School: Remote Reading
Username: primary
Password: books
Our building program is underway and at this week's site meeting it was reported to the school that the builders are ahead of schedule. We are now finalising the plans for new student access points to the oval which will improve student safety as well as beautify the western side of the school property.
We have also received permission to install enhanced CCTV equipment which will monitor unauthroised after hours entry to our school in an effort to strengthen site security.
The works are all scheduled to be completed during the July school holidays.