Dear Families,

Well, our first week back at school was a great success. All of the children have settled back into school routine, into their new classes and classrooms really well. It has been wonderful to touch base with our families and to welcome everyone back to school. The staff here at Lumen Christi have a couple of days here at school preparing for the return of students and it is very quiet onsite – schools come alive when there are children in them and that is why we are here.

This term in Religious Education, students will be learning about the bible story from Matthew 5:13-16 “Salt and Light”. We learn through this story about being the salt of the earth and the light of the world. We are starting the year linking this piece of scripture to our school name Lumen Christi which means “Light of Christ” and making links to how we can be the Light of Christ in the world today.

Our Parents and Friends group met yesterday morning to start organising and planning all of their fundraising events for the year. Thank you to those who came along and to our new parents who joined for the first time. Our school has such a great sense of community and the Parents and Friends do so much for the children, always thinking of thing that will be fun, engaging and that will benefit our kids. Thank you again and keep your eye on the school calendar section of the newsletter for upcoming events.

Have a wonderful week,

Sally

Please take note of these dates for your family calendar

TERM 1 2023 DATES

NB: The week numbers have changed. This week is officially Week 3 of Term 1.

Week 3

9th February - Sacrament Meeting @ 5pm (All sacraments)

11th/12th February - Commitment Mass 1 Reconciliation (Receive your Mass Book)

Week 4

Week 5

22nd February - Ash Wednesday

23rd February - Whol School Mass @9:30am (Ash Wednesday)

25th/26th February - Commitment Mass 2 Reconciliation (Bring your Prater Letter)

Week 6

Week 7

8th March - Dad's Night 5 - 6:30pm

10th March - Lumen Christi Sports Day

Week 8 - Prep Children Start Full Time at School this week

13th March - Labour Day Holiday

14th March - Games Night for all Year 3 students

15th March - NAPLAN Window Open for Year 3 & 5 Students

17th March - Back Up Sports Day (incase of cancellation)

Week 9

22nd & 23rd March - Parent Teacher Interviews

25th/26th March - Commitment Mass 3 Reconciliation (Receive your pin)

Week 10

30th March - Reconciliation Night @ Sacred Heart 5:30pm

Week 11

6th April -   Holy Thursday Pasison Play

                 Easter Raffle Drawn at school

                 End Term 1 Finish @ 12:30pm

TERM 2 DATES

 Week 1

24th April - School Closure Day

25th April - ANZAC Day holiday

26th April - Term 2 Begins for students

Week 2

2nd & 3rd May - Life Ed Van at School

Week 3

11th May - Mother's Day Stall

Week 4

Week 5

24th May - SCHOOL PHOTOS

All parents must attend this meeting if they have a child making a sacrament in 2023.

My apologies, the last newsletter read as though the meeting was for children.

Children are not expected to be at this meeting.

This is an information session for parents.

The meeting is at Sacred Heart Church starting @5pm.

Assembly this week will be on THursday at 2pm.

All children will have PE this week on Friday. 

We will return to normal next week.

With many children having smart phones, tablets and other devices that connect to the internet and social media, it is important that parents are aware of the impact that this can have here at school.

For most social media platforms, the recommended age is 13. We understand though, that many of our children are using social media to keep connected with friends or because they enjoy viewing the content on videos and reels. Whilst we recommend that parents follow the recommended guidelines for social media use, this is a decision for parents and we respect that parents decide what is best for their children.

What is most important for children on social media outlets is that they understand three key things:

1. That they understand their responsibilities, especially around chat groups and online bullying and what to do should they experience it OR if someone else is being bullied.

2. That children know what is legal. We are not supposed to post photos of anyone else on social media without their consent. This can become a legal matter, especially if the photo posted is embarrassing in nature. Please remind children of this.

3. That children klnow their rights. Children must be aware of what to do if they are experiencing anything harmful on social media.

Please be aware that this becomes a very difficult area to deal with when issues arise on social media outside of school, that filter inside of school and cause problems amongst children in classrooms and on the playground. The school will always do our best to resolve issues with our children and families. We do ask parents to be aware that this is a common problem in Primary Schools with children who have not yet developed the maturity to understand their responsibilities and the consequences of poor online behaviour.

Children who bring a phone to school must hand it in to the office in the morning and collect it again at home time. Absoloutely no photos or videos of any sort should be taken in school uniform on the school grounds. This is a child safety issue.

I thank parents for supporting these important school expectations.

I wish to make our families aware of the Child Safe Standards that all schools must comply with.

Each Week I will present information about the child safe standards.

Our child safety policy is available on our website. This outlines how we aim to comply with the child safe standards.

Information about the child safe standards is available here also:

https://ccyp.vic.gov.au/child-safe-standards/the-11-child-safe-standards/#TOC-2