Dear Parents,

Thank you to all families for your cooperation over the last two weeks as we have dealt with COVID cases within the school.  We understand that the decision to close the school had a significant impact on families, however, as a result of being closed for the three days the extra cases that arose later last week did not impact across the school as the children were not onsite.  If we have further outbreaks in the future they will be dealt with on a case by case basis.

We will welcome back Grades 1MT and 2V to onsite face to face learning tomorrow, Friday the 12^th of November.  Again, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the staff who adjusted quickly to the changed circumstances, ensuring that the children’s learning continued.  Their flexibility, and willingness to do whatever is required, is appreciated.

Please continue to watch for symptoms with your children and get them tested if necessary.  If your child does return a positive result we ask that you contact the school asap.

Remembrance Day

Today we stopped at 11am and paid our respects of those who have sacrificed so much before us to allow us to enjoy the country we do today.  The children also participated in activities within their classrooms.

Camps

It is wonderful for the students that they have again got the opportunity to attend camps, it is something they have missed over the last 18 months.   Grade 5 students left for Kryal Castle yesterday and from all reports they are having a fantastic time. Our Grade 6 students head to Lady Northcote Camp in Glenmore on Monday.

A big thanks to all of the staff who are attending the camps.  It is a huge effort to take the time away from their own families to offer these opportunities to the students.  We are very appreciative and thankful.

Staffing News

Congratulations to Lisa McDonald and Jacki Taylor who have been appointed as Acting Deputy Principals next year.  Jacki and Lisa have both been in a senior leadership role this year as Curriculum Learning Leaders. They have been the driving force behind the learning improvements implemented.  They will remain responsible for the curriculum in their new role to ensure consistency.  I know that they will do an excellent job, along with Meg, leading the school next year.

It is with pleasure that we welcome Miss Katie Kolouris onto the staff next year.  Parents will be familiar with Katie as she has undertaken a large amount of contract work with us this year and has done a superb job.  I am sure that she will be made to feel welcome by all.

2022 Enrolments

If you know of anyone looking to enrol their child at St Pat’s for 2022 please encourage them to contact the school Office on 5943-9000 or email office@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au

Parent Access

Parents are now welcome to enter the school grounds without the need to QR on your way in.  Please remain outside the classrooms and do not enter the buildings.  If you are coming for a pre-arranged appointment please sign in and QR code at the Office.  Masks are required to be worn by parents at all times when indoors at school.

Uniforms

We understand that as students return for the last few weeks of the school uniforms may not fit as well as hoped and it is difficult to purchase uniforms at the moment.  We ask that parents are very respectful of our uniform policy and that students wear the uniform with pride, however, we understand that there may be some items that cannot be purchased.

Sacraments

Noleen Chalmers (REL) met with the Sacramental Team last Friday and new dates have been arranged and are as below:

Reconcilaition - 30^th November and 1^st December at  – 7:00 pm

First Holy Communion - Saturday  27^th November at 6.00pm and Sunday 28^th November at 10:30 am

Confirmation - 4^th Dec at 3:00pm

Noleen will send emails out to families with booking process.   If you have any questions please email Noleen noleen@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au

Hats

Please remember that as we enter Term 4 it is compulsory for the students to be wearing hats when outside.

The following COVID Restrictions remain in place;

• Parents are now welcome to enter the school grounds without the need to QR on your way in. Please remain outside the classrooms and do not enter the buildings.  If you are coming for a pre-arranged appointment please sign in and QR code at the Office.
• Student Masks – As per Government regulations all students in Grades 3-6 are required to wear a mask whilst indoors (unless you have an exemption). Masks are encouraged for students in Grades P-2.
• Adult Masks – Masks are required to be worn by parents at all times when indoors at school.
• Please communicate with staff via phone or email.
• The Office is open, however, if it is not essential please contact via phone 5943-9000 or email office@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au  
• All extra cleaning and hand hygiene that was in place is still being adhered to.
• Please do not send food items to share with others when it is your child’s birthday as they cannot be handed out.
• Bubble taps are operational at school.
• An ample amount of sports equipment will be provided at school so we ask that students do not bring equipment from home.
• If your child is sick, or displaying symptoms, please keep them at home. Children that present as sick or displaying symptoms at school will be sent home.  It is our preference that they gain a medical clearance or negative COVID test before they return to school.

Reimbursement for Activities Not Undertaken / Fee Assistance

Currently we have rescheduled many activities that have been missed throughout the year for this term.  At this stage we remain hopeful that they will go ahead.  If they cannot proceed parents will be reimbursed the cost.  If you are experiencing difficulties due to the pandemic please contact Fil at the Office for a confidential discussion regarding fees.

Regards,

Simon

Please read the article below in regards to helping children to cope with uncertainty during  COVID.

Using Play to support Children during COVID

Things are hard right now and if you need to talk about it or would just like to read some information on how to look after ourselves and our children, the following services will help you and articles will help you. 

If any families are struggling at this time and would like to reach out for a chat or support please contact Meg Escalante, our Wellbeing officer, via email on mescalante@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au. 

You can also visit the Be You website which has contact numbers for you to call. 

Have you set up your PAM account yet!

From the start of 2022 PAM will be our main form of communication.  All emails, Student Attendance, Sick Bay notes, School Reports, commonly used forms, excursion/camp permission notes and Family Learning conversations, will all be communicated via PAM.  

A new app (SimonEverywhere) will soon be available to download to allow easy access to PAM but for now please save the PAM log on screen to the home page of your device or bookmark it in your browser.  

Access PAM via this link   Link to PAM 

SIMON -  a Learning Management Software solution for schools.

St Patrick’s Primary school is now using SIMON in the classroom to keep track of your child’s progress and learning as well as attendance.  SIMON will also be used for School Reports and Student Wellbeing.

PAM, SIMON’s Parent Access Module

PAM (Parent Access Module) is our new Parent to School communication platform.   PAM will provide real time access to keep parents updated with their children’s progress, important dates and messages. Relevant resources – calendar events, student reports, parent notified absences, absence data and sick bay notes will all be accessed via PAM.

Parents will be able to easily book Parent Teacher interviews through PAM, and access teacher email addresses. 

PAM accounts are linked via your email address that we have in our systems.  If you have recently changed your email,  please call or email us on office@stppakenham.cathlic.edu.au

Click on the 'forget password' link to set your password and then verify your email address.  (Email addresses must be verified for PAM to work properly).  Once your email is verified, your email can be used as the username for your account.

Once you have successfully logged in, you can save PAM to your homescreen on your device.

If you have any issues or need help with PAM please contact the school via email, office@stppakenham.catholic.edu.au

PAM Instructions

Parent Notified Absences via PAM

Once you have PAM set up and saved to your home screen you can easily send in Parent Notified absences.   Please use this platform going forward as this automatically syncs with the class roll.   This will fix the issues of receiving SMS notifications even though you had already notified the school. 

Operoo is still our main platform for communication!  All correspondence will continue to go via the Operoo email platform.  In most cases it will be in Operoo that you will first be notified of any upcoming excursions or events.  Most of these events must first be approved before they appear on any calendar.  

Please remember to update any details in Operoo, for example change of address or phone number,  this will send us a message that your details have changed and we are then able to update our database.

Don't forget to upload your child's hayfever letters including symptoms specific to your child!

If you have any problems using Operoo, please call into the school office preferably on a Monday, Thursday or Friday and we will be able to help you.  

Please remember to update your contact details and any relevant medical details for your child.  

This can be either done via Operoo or contacting the school office.

The medical profile section of PAM has also now been turned on.   Please update this at your convenience.  We will still be using Operoo for any medical issues until the end of this year but as of the start of next year we will be moving to PAM for all communication and medical needs. 

Have you installed the new SZapp?   

Skoolbag is no longer being used, install SZapp now! 

 Follow the installation guide below to install the new app on your smart devices.