St Kieran Newsletter Term 4, Week 5 - 7th November 2024

Principal's Message

A Prayer for Peace 
Almighty God, we remember with thanksgiving,  
those who made the supreme sacrifice for us in times of war.  
We pray that their offering of their lives may not have been in vain.  
May your grace enable us this day to dedicate ourselves to the cause of justice,  
freedom and peace;  
and give us the wisdom and strength to build a better world.
 Amen 

On Monday we will acknowledging the Remembrance Day at St Kieran with a Liturgical Prayer Service across the school. With this in mind and to gather our thoughts before Monday the below is a summary of the importance of this day for us. 

Remembrance Day falls on the 11th November each year. On the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month, a minutes’ silence is observed and dedicated to those soldiers who died fighting to protect the nation.  

In Australia and other allied countries, including New Zealand, Canada and the United States, 11 November became known as Armistice Day – a day to remember those who passed away in World War One. The day continues to be commemorated in allied countries.  

After World War Two, the Australian Government agreed to the United Kingdom’s proposal that Armistice Day be renamed Remembrance Day to commemorate those who were killed in both World Wars. Today the loss of Australian lives from all wars and conflicts is commemorated on Remembrance Day. 

The 11th November is universally associated with the remembrance of those who had passed away in the First World War. At 11am on 11 November 1918, the guns on the Western Front fell silent after more than four years of continuous warfare. The allied armies had driven the German invaders back, having inflicted heavy defeats upon them over the preceding four months. 

In November, the Germans called for an armistice (suspension of fighting) in order to secure a peace settlement. They accepted the allied terms of unconditional surrender. The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month attained a special significance in the post-war years and became universally associated with the remembrance of those who had passed away in the war. 

I hope the week has been good to you all. 

Best wishes and take care. 

Mr Daine Burnett 
Principal 
daine.burnett@cewa.edu.au 

Calendar

A reminder to all families to continue to check the school calendar on our website for dates and events that are coming up during the term. We conclude the school year on Friday 6th December. 

School Term and Professional Development Dates 2025

The school administration office will re-open on Thursday 23rd January 2025 at 8am. 
All staff return to school on Monday the 3rd February. Students will return for the first day of school in 2025 on Wednesday 5th February. 

Term Dates 2025

Term 1 - Wednesday 5 February (Monday 3 February for staff) to Friday 11 April. 
Term 2 - Monday 28 April to Friday 4 July. 
Term 3 - Monday 21 July to Friday 26 September. 
Term 4 - Monday 13 October to Friday 12 December (Friday 19 December for staff). 

Staff Professional Development Days

Please note while these dates been set aside for 2025, there maybe circumstances that require us to adjust these during the year to cater for system and educational initiatives. The dates for 2025 are: 

Contact Details - Parents

It is imperative that parents and families update the school when your personal details change during the year. If you change you email address or mobile phone please ensure that the school administration is contacted so we can update these details for communication purposes.

School Fees

A reminder to all families that school fees are now due and that if for any reason you are falling behind you need to make an appointment with the school principal to address these and the payments required.

Sacrament of Confirmation Parent/ Child Workshops:

Parent and Child Workshops: 

Tuesday, November 12: Sessions at 4:00pm and 5:15pm 

Thursday, November 15: Session at 4:00pm 

Details: These workshops are designed to help parents and children understand the significance of Confirmation and prepare together for this important event.  

There has been some time since families nominated their preferred session and we understand that schedules have changed. Please complete this form to nominate your preferred session. Parent/Child Workshop form. 

URSTRONG at St Kieran

URSTRONG’s whole-school friendship strategy has improved the social climate in schools around the world, connecting over a million kids, parents, and teachers with a common language of friendship.  

St Kieran are proud to be a URSTRONG School and are committed to empowering your children with friendship skills. 

You are invited to take advantage of a FREE Parent Membership to access hundreds of resources – including an 8 session video series. This will allow you to learn the same language & strategies being taught in the classroom through the Friendology 101 curriculum. We hope that, as a URSTRONG Family, you will reinforce the important messages of empowerment, self-compassion, & kindness at home. 

As a next step, we would recommend: 

• Click here to view an overview of URSTRONG. 
• Activate your FREE Parent Membership and explore all the resources available to your family. 
• Explore the hundreds of resources available to you! 

We believe that empowering our students with these skills will create a culture of kindness at our school and we hope that, together, we can support your children to have healthy, feel-good friendships. 

If you were unable to join the Parent workshop online last Wednesday here is a recorded video of the workshop. 

https://urstrong.com/languageoffriendshipworkshop/#component-7-video-1 

Support Room Cafe Excursion

This week Support Room Conroy took a trip to the local café.

They have been learning about money, so they took a trip to put their knowledge into action. They brought some coins and notes to make their purchases.

They also showed off their lovely requesting skills. Strollio’s staff were very impressed!

Swimming Lessons 2024

Dear Parent/Guardians,

Swimming lessons will start on Monday the 18^th of November and run for two weeks (Weeks 7/8) FOR ALL CLASSES EXCEPT KINDY AND YEAR 6. The following is some information regarding the lessons. The swimming lessons will be run throughout the day, with the first group departing school at 8:45am to walk to the Servite Pool. The last group will be back at school in time for normal pick up.

To help the lessons run smoothly, please ensure the following:

• Children swimming in the morning classes are wearing their bathers underneath their school uniform. (Girls who are not swimming until the afternoon can change into bathers before they go)
• Sport uniform can be worn each day
• As it is an outside pool, students are expected to be wearing a swimming top. 
• They come to school in their normal school footwear.
• They have thongs or sandals for travelling to and from swimming. 
• Have a towel and a spare top/jumper for travelling to and from Servite Pool. In the past, some students have had dressing gowns but a jumper will be sufficient.
• Bring spare underwear for changing into when back at school.
• All items of clothing including goggles should be clearly named.

Please note that children in 1B and 4B will be departing school at 8:45am and if children are not on time, parents will be required to take them directly to Servite Pool.

Lesson Departure/Return Times

Parents at the Pool

We strongly recommend that parents do not attend swimming lessons. We understand that swimming lessons can be a stressful time, however, the swimming instructors are very well trained and are used to teaching nervous children, beginning swimmers and children with medical concerns. Having parents there can also be a distraction during lessons and instructors find it hard to keep children focused when they are trying to wave to parents. 

Your understanding is very much appreciated, of course if you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at school.

Matthew Taylor
Physical Education Teacher
matthew.taylor@cewa.edu.au

St Kieran Parish Cake Stall Fundraiser

We are excited to announce a Cake Sale to support St Kieran Parish’s fundraising efforts for a new kitchen! 🍰 

Join us after the 6:30pm Mass on Saturday, November 9 and the 10:00am Mass on Sunday, November 10 to enjoy a delightful selection of homemade cakes and treats. Your support will help us create a wonderful new kitchen for our community. 

We look forward to seeing you there and thank you for your generosity!