St Ita’s Catholic Primary School acknowledges and pays respect to the past, present and future Traditional Custodians and Elders of this nation and the continuation of cultural, spiritual and educational practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

HARMONY WEEK

Harmony Week celebrates multiculturalism and the differences that make us all so unique. It promotes respect, inclusivity, and a sense of belonging for everyone.

This year we celebrate Harmony Week from the 20th to the 26th of March 2023, with Harmony Day being officially celebrated on the 21st of March. Every year there’s a theme to help further unite everyone. The theme for Harmony Week 2023 is: “Everyone Belongs”. The traditional colour of Harmony Day is Orange.

What is the History of Harmony Week?

Harmony Week was first celebrated in 1999, to help celebrate Australia’s diversity and promote a sense of acceptance and inclusivity.

Australia has an incredible history of multiculturalism. There are many different Indigenous Australian languages spoken across Australia today. However, many people still face racism. Whilst Harmony Week is a celebratory event, it also serves to campaign against discrimination.

The day itself marks an important date, as today, the 21st of March is the International Day for the Elimination of Racist Discrimination. Whilst Harmony Week is a uniquely Australian event, it coincides with global efforts for the promotion of equality and inclusivity, centring on Harmony Day.

What Does Harmony Day Mean?

Though the whole week provides space for us to celebrate multiculturalism and diversity, you’ll often find many organisations focusing particularly on Harmony Day. But what does Harmony Day mean? Simply put, it’s a day for us to come together and celebrate all of our differences and diversity in Australia as well as across the world. Australia has a rich and varied culture, but we can’t ignore the racism and cultural discrimination that is part of our history.

On Harmony Day, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures in particular are a focus point for discussions and celebration.

Harmony Day is a great opportunity to educate others on the value and importance of other cultures such as these. The event as a whole encourages us to continue to build bridges between the many wonderful cultures and ethnicities that make Australia what it is today.

This Friday 24th all students at St Ita’s can wear something Orange to help celebrate harmony week. There is no cost involved just an opportunity to celebrate our cultural diversity within the St Ita’s community.

At St Ita’s we are a learning community that operates under a Whole School Approach to Positive Behaviours which consists of 5 pillars;

Respect for one another
Inclusiveness of all
Compassionate to the needs of others
Building our resilience to work through tough times and hardship
Working in teams to support one another.

At St Ita’s we have zero tolerance for racism or racist bullying, and everyone in our learning community has a role to play in naming it and calling it out if and when it happens. We want all our students to understand what racist bullying is and how we keep it out of our school community. The information below provides examples of what racist bullying can look like and what we can do to help educate and coach our kids to stop it from happening.

WHAT IS RACIST BULLYING?

Can be physical, verbal or emotional
May happen online via mobile phones, email, social media and games
Frequently making casual offensive comments about a minority group
Making jokes that use racial and/or religious stereotypes
Offensive graffiti
Ridiculing, tormenting, threatening or making fun of physical attributes (such as skin colour, hair or facial features), customs, religion, food, accents, language, cultural or religious dress or music, or migration history
Making comments that imply that a person is not “Australian”
Refusing to socialise, work or co-operate with others because they are from a different cultural or linguistic background
Making judgements about a person’s ability or values based on their accent, language or cultural background
Religious abuse or vilification.

IMPACTS OF RACIST BULLYING

Racist bullying can have a big impact on the person who is being bullied. It can make them feel confused, ashamed, rejected, fearful or embarrassed. It can also have a big impact on how safe they feel at school, and if they even want to go to school. Even if you are not directly involved, seeing and hearing racist bullying can have a negative impact on you and the whole school community.

PREVENTING RACIST BULLYING – MAKING A DIFFERENCE

To prevent racist bullying happening in our school, we can:

Remember that your experience of living in Australia might be different to other students’ experiences
Respect and learn about the different cultures and religions within and around your school community
Be kind to everyone including people who may come from a different culture or country to you
Read your school’s bullying prevention and student engagement policy, and suggest any changes you think will make a difference
Be an upstander. Be an upstander and not a bystander When you hear or see racist bullying, it can be difficult to call it out, but when one person stands up to bullying it encourages others to do the same. Most students admire people who stand up for someone being bullied. There are lots of things you can do to be an upstander. Upstanders can:
Be a friend to the person being bullied
Interrupt the bullying by shifting everyone’s attention away from the bullying.

For example, you can do this by:

asking the target of the bullying for their help with something or asking them to come and sit with you
distracting your friend if they are doing the bullying.
Leave the situation and then think about what you can do to help.

This can include:

supporting the target of the bullying to ask for help from a teacher, the school counsellor or the Wellbeing Coordinator
telling a trusted staff member or your parent/carer about what happened.

Calling out racist bullying can be hard but if it’s safe, step in and tell the person doing the bullying that their behaviour isn’t okay and that they should stop. Don’t call the other person a bully – comment on their behaviour, not the person. E.g. ‘That was a mean thing to say.’

What if you have said or done something you think might be racist bullying?

When you think you have done or said something that may be racist bullying, ask yourself:

Did I use unkind words?
Did my words or actions put someone down?
Was I trying to feel powerful or seeking the approval of my friends?
Even if I thought it was funny, would other people agree?

If you think your words or actions were racist bullying, there are steps you can take to avoid hurting someone’s feelings in the same way again.

Tell the person you are sorry. (Remember that people who feel hurt sometimes won’t be ready to accept your apology but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try
Make a conscious effort not to be involved in racist bullying again
If you see or hear any bullying, including racist bullying, be an upstander not a bystander.

We all have a role to play in making sure Racist Bullying is not a part of the culture of who we are at St Ita’s Primary school.

Andrew Osler

St Ita's Principal

CYBERSAFE WEBINAR

As part of our plan to support child safety and the protection of all students in our care, we have a great opportunity for St Ita’s parents to participate in a free webinar Inform and Empower- Raising Kids in a Digital World on March 23rd @ 7.30pm

This webinar will help educate and offer support strategies to parents and carers about: Cyberbullying, current trends in child/teen online behaviour, Unsafe apps and social media, parent/child communication, managing devices in the home, managing conflict around digital devices, balancing screen time, explicit/adult content, and where to find helpful information

To register your spot in our St Ita's Parent webinar “Raising kids in a Digital World.”

Simply follow the link: bit.ly/23march2023

This is a perfect platform for dialogue between school and home with the appropriate / inappropriate use of the devices our students are using.

We thank you for working with us to make all our students at St Ita’s to feel safe and supported.

MINI VINNIES

For the earthquake survivors in Turkey and Syria

The mini vinnies have collected an amazing total of $565.00 from the green free dress day on Friday 17^th March - St Patrick’s Day

All funds raised will go towards providing support for the people affected by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
The money will provide hygiene health kits which have soap, water bottles, water purification tablets, tooth paste and washing powder.
We also hope to provide education tents and recreational kits for children.

As the Gospel of Mark promotes the ideal to give selflessly and serve others.

SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION

The Sacrament of First Reconciliation will take place at St Ita’s Church Drouin Wednesday 29th March @ 7:00 pm

OR

St Joseph’s Church Warragul Thursday 30th March @ 7:00pm

Please pray for our students who will participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first-time next week.

GIANT EASTER RAFFLE

It is with great pleasure that we announce the world-famous St Ita’s Giant Easter Egg Raffle is back in 2023.

On Friday 31st March all children will have a free dress day at school, the cost for free dress is a minimum donation of ONE Easter Egg (you can offer more eggs if you wish). All donated eggs will then bundled into hampers and raffled off at our final assembly of term (our last raffle had over 60 hampers/winners!). The final assembly will be on Thursday 6th April at 12pm in the school hall after our Stations of the Cross Liturgy, which is starting at 11.30am in the Church.

In the coming days all St Ita’s families will receive a book of 10 tickets which are sold for $1 a ticket. All the sold tickets and money will need to be returned to school by Monday 3rd April at the absolute latest. If any families would like more booklets please have your child pick up another booklet at the Admin Office, or contact Admin via email or phone (admin@stidrouin.catholic.edu.au or 5623 7222).

Good luck to all and I hope you are a winner!

LAST DAY OF TERM 1

A reminder to all families that the last day of term 1 will be Thursday 6th April, with an early finish time of 2.20pm. On this day we will be having a whole school liturgy in the church at 11.30am to celebrate the Stations of the Cross, which will be presented by our Grade 6 students. This will be followed by a short assembly. Parents who would like to take their children home after the assembly are welcome to do so, please ensure that you Dojo your childs teacher to let them know they will be leaving early.

IMPORTANT DATES

Thursday 6th April 2023 - Last day of Term 1, 2.20pm finish

Monday 24th April 2023 - School Closure Day - no students on site

Tuesday 16th May 2023 - RE Closure Day - no students on site

PARENT INFORMATION PRESENTATIONS

Please find below a QR code and website link to 2023 Parent Information Presentations. The information presentations will help to give you an understanding of what your child is learning in the class during Term 1. Please use these links to explore what your child is learning and if you have any questions, feel free to contact your childs' classroom teacher for further information.

Here is web link if preferred- CLICK HERE

SCHOOL FEE CONCESSIONS

2023 School Fees Concession Program Financial Hardship

Eligible Centrelink Concession Card (CCC) Holder

Information for Applicants

Aim: To assist school families experiencing financial hardship in accessing a Catholic Primary education for their child/ren.

Confidentiality: At all times, the dignity and privacy of those seeking a fee concession will be respected.

Level of Concession: School office staff can advise applicants of the concessional fee to be charged. This concessional fee is fixed annually by Diocese of Sale Catholic Education Limited. Approved applicants will be charged only the concessional fee which will cover all standard school fees and levies including any charges remaining for camps, sports and excursions after the application of the Camps, Sports, Excursion Fund (CSEF) benefit.

Eligible Concession Cards: Centrelink issues a number of concession cards for a variety of reasons. Some cards have a generous or no income test and therefore holders of these cards are ineligible for a fee concession under Category One. Only CCC’s that are eligible for CSEF are eligible for the School Fees Concession Program.

The following CCC’s are the most common cards that are eligible for CSEF. The CCC type is specified as a two or three letter code printed on the concession card.

YA or YAL – Youth Allowance
PPS – Parenting Payment Single
PPP – Parenting Payment Partnered
DSP – Disability Support Pension
NSA – New Start Allowance
LI – Low Income
FA – Family Tax Benefit
SA or SKA - Sickness Allowance
CAR - Carer Allowance
ABA or ABY - Schooling Applicant
AGE - Age Pension
AUS - Austudy
HCC - Health Care Card
PTA - Partnered Allowance
SPL - Special Benefit
WID or WFD or WFA – Widow Allowance/Pension
The CCC must be issued in the name of the fee payer and list the students for which the concession is to be applied.
The expiry date of the card must be on or after 1 January of the year (2023) for which the concession is to be applied.
If an eligible concession card expires after the start of the year, the concessional fee rate will still be applied for the entire year.
If a family becomes eligible during the course of a school year, then a pro-rata concession may be granted.

Lodgement of Application: Applications for 2023 close on Friday 23rd June 2023, please lodge your application immediately for your card to be checked and a pro-rata concession to be applied if applicable.

The following application forms must be completed and are available from the school office:

Complete the school’s application form & the Direct Debit Request (DDR) Service Agreement (or Centrepay application form)
Submit the completed forms and present a valid CCC for verifying and copying.
Complete and return the CSEF application form immediately after receiving it from the school.

Important Notes:

The concession is automatic for a parent/guardian responsible for the school fees, who holds an eligible CCC.
Any offer of a concession is subject to the applicant entering into a DDR Service Agreement or CentrePay arrangement for a regular payment plan of remaining fees (either weekly or fortnightly payments preferred). Any default in payment may result in the concession being withdrawn.
The Direct Debit form is available from the school office or alternatively the CentrePay application form is available online at https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/forms/sa325.
A CSEF application must be submitted for a concession to be granted.
A new application must be made for each school year.
Where the fee account is split, the concession applies to only that portion payable by the eligible card holder.
All families requesting, or receiving, a fee concession must notify the school should their financial circumstances change sufficiently to affect the level of concession offered or if cards are cancelled.

Please complete the below concession request forms and return to admin together with a copy of your valid concession card before Friday 23rd June 2023.

HCC Concession Application Form

HCC Concession Application Form 205.78 KB

CSEF Application Form

CSEF Application Form 223.41 KB

CONVEYANCE ALLOWANCE

Eligibility:

An application on behalf of a student may be submitted if the student is:

a Victorian resident;
school aged and enrolled (3) three or more days per week at a school; and

A student who meets the above requirements may be eligible if they:

attend their nearest appropriate non-government school/campus
reside 4.8km or more by the shortest practicable route from the school attended

Note: Eligibility is assessed when the School completes your child’s application on the Student Conveyance Allowance System

(SCAS). If approved, the allowance payable is based on the one-way distance to make the journey to and from school.

If you are eligible and wish to apply for this allowance, please click the link to the Conveyance Allowance Application Form, which must be printed and completed and returned to the school office by Friday 10^th March, 2023. Late claims cannot be accepted.

Conveyance Allowance Application Form

Conveyance Allowance Application Form 832.39 KB

Teacher: Mrs Catherine McKenna

Email: cmckenna@stidrouin.catholic.edu.au

LIBRARY NEWS

Book Reviewers Wanted

For the last two years we have been fortunate enough to be chosen to review books for the Herald Sun and now the Geelong Advertiser. The books we are given to review are mostly suitable for grade 3-6 students.

I currently have 4 books that need to be read and reviewed. This can be in partnership as parent/student; or students may be able to work independently. It is also something that needs to be completed in a reasonable timeframe and at home. Book reviews need to be typed and 100 words. If your child is interested in being a book reviewer this year, please email me and I will keep them in mind if a suitable book comes in.

Story Box Library

Just a reminder to parents and new families that we have a subscription to Story Box Library. There is a link to the website below, or you can download the app. I encourage you to try it out.

Audiobooks

If your child isn’t into reading, or if they haven’t found the genre that they love yet, get them listening to audio books. Also known as ear-reading, it’s a great way for our students to explore and develop a love of story. I use the app BorrowBox which is free through the Local Community Library-Myli.

Scholastic Book Club

Book Club Issue 2 - CLICK HERE

Orders close Thursday 23rd March for free delivery back to school.

You also have the home delivery option with an addition fee of $7.50

PARISH NEWS

Break open your words

Lazarus is gravely ill (John 11:1-45). His sisters, Martha and Mary, send for Jesus, hoping against hope that their dearest friend, the miracle worker, “the Christ, the Son of God, the one who was to come into this world” will come to save him. The sisters are faithful believers and followers but, Jesus delays, Lazarus dies and the sisters grieve. Four days later when Jesus finally fronts, he too grieves and the sisters probably feel let down. Beyond the current heartbreak though, he desires to wake us to the truth that physical death is no enemy to be feared.

Mary and others imply that bringing Lazarus back to life is beyond even Jesus’ powers (though Martha still has hopes). None can be in any doubt that Lazarus is dead and so, when Jesus prays to God and Lazarus rises, it is clearly miraculous. Martha is right! “Whatever you (Jesus) ask(s) of God, he will grant you.” God is glorified and Jesus sonship is manifest to all. Indeed he is the “resurrection and the life,” as he claims. Belief in him, even though we all die (as Lazarus eventually died) guarantees us eternal life. “Do you believe this?” Jesus asks Martha. And she did; but still it needed Jesus to further “break open your words, let the light shine out, let ordinary people see the meaning.” (Ps 119:130)

Sometimes we Christians wear long faces, forgetting that Jesus is the leader who will never let us down! Around the world and in our lives, there is plenty to concern and distress, but Christians can put it into perspective. We know that “death is not the end but the beginning.” Ideally, we live to a ripe old age, rich in success and family and memories, but in any case, if we believe in Jesus, we are untouchable. The worst that can happen is death, and death means life eternal.

If that doesn’t put a smile on our dials, it should do!

Deacon Mark Kelly

2023 SACRAMENT DATES - RECONCILIATION

SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION:
Drouin: Wednesday 29th March, 7pm
Warragul: Thursday 30th March, 7pm