Dear parents and friends,

The season of Easter concludes this Sunday with the feast of Pentecost. On Pentecost we celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles in Jerusalem; this event marks the beginning of the Christian Church’s mission to the world. 

And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim. Acts 2:2-4.

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit were given to the disciples on this night and as such at Confirmation the Baptised are also filled with the gifts.

Tomorrow, all parents and carers are invited to join with our students and parish to celebrate a mass for the feast of Pentecost. This will be a special community event and we would love to share this with our parents and families. Mass will begin at 9am. Our students will enjoy a slice of Birthday cake after mass to recognise Pentecost as the birthday of Christianity. 

Thank you for your continued support,

Kaylene Duffin
Principal

2023 ANNUAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN Update

Goal 1 

Improve students’ relationship with Jesus through the values of compassion, justice, hope and integrity.

Our past two Staff Meetings have involved our teachers sharing student work samples from recent lessons taught using new pedagogical practices aimed at increasing engagement.

Teachers also began collaboratively planning an upcoming Religious Education unit.

Goal 2 

By the end of 2023, all students will have increased their confidence and engagement in Mathematics so that all students achieve growth.

Resources to support the understanding of place value have been purchased for 

each classroom. 

Stage 3 teachers worked collaboratively to develop a collaborative inquiry unit for 

place value based on immediate areas of students’ need

Pentecost Mass

This weekend the Church celebrates the feast of Pentecost. Pentecost is a Christian holiday that commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Jesus Christ. It is celebrated on the seventh Sunday (50 days) after Easter and is often associated with the birth of the early Christian church. Tomorrow, Friday 25th May, as a school community we will celebrate this special feast with a 9am mass led by our Year Six students. All are welcome to join us for the special celebration. 

 
Scripture Focus

This fortnight our school scripture focus is from the book of Galatians. The fruits of the Spirit, as mentioned in the Bible (Galatians 5:22-23), are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These qualities are considered to be the positive characteristics that are cultivated in our lives through the influence of the Holy Spirit. We are encouraged to bring these fruits to life in our everyday actions. We are also people of integrity, one of our Catholic values, when we let these fruits shine through.

Galatians 5: 22-23

‘….the fruit of the Spirit is love, 

joy, peace, patience, kindness, 

goodness, faithfulness,

gentleness and self-control.’

Laudato Si Week

This week is known as Laudato Si week. It is to mark the eighth anniversary of Pope Francis' landmark encyclical on care for creation. Laudato Si' is the second encyclical of Pope Francis. The encyclical has the subtitle "on caring for our common home". In it, the Pope critiques consumerism and irresponsible development, laments environmental degradation and global warming, and calls all people of the world to take "swift and unified global action." 

Yesterday, our students and staff gathered to acknowledge this week and pray for continued care or our ‘common home’.

Gracious and Loving Creator,

We come before you with hearts filled with love and concern for our world,

We recognize that this Earth, our home, is a gift entrusted to us, 

and we humbly ask for your help in caring for it. 

Give strength to those who work tirelessly to

safeguard our planet's ecosystems.

Empower us, as individuals and as a global community, 

to be agents of change. 

Fill our hearts with a sense of responsibility,

and urgency to address the pressing environmental issues we face. 

As our Year 7 students undertake their excursions to Minnumurra and Symbio on Friday, 

may they be able to understand the creation of this world and its creatures,

and how to be good stewards for the world around us.

We ask your Holy Spirit to be present also with the Year 10 students 

As they begin their subject selections for their senior studies this week. 

May they seek guidance from You, as well as their teachers, 

parents and friends in choosing what is right for them, and allowing them to

make choices that will nurture their growth,

and bring them closer to fulfilling their purpose.

Amen.

National Sorry Day and National Reconciliation Week

National Sorry Day 2023 this year falls tomorrow, Friday 26th May and is a day when we pause to remember the Stolen Generations of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.  

It leads us into the Week of Prayer for Reconciliation and National Reconciliation Week which is held each year between 27th May and 3rd June.   

The theme for National Reconciliation Week 2023 is Be A Voice for Future Generations. Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

For the Catholic Church in Australia, this week offers us a time to be fully the Church that God dreams for us - a Church in which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples make their own unique contribution and that contribution is joyfully received by others.

On Wednesday 31 May, our school will be celebrating National Reconciliation Week with learning activities, a yarn at our Yarning Circle and prayer. This special day will also be a Mufti Day - Wearing the colours red, yellow and black or if students have an Indigenous jersey.

Welcome Mrs Feil

We are thrilled to welcome Mrs Kat Feil to our Holy Cross Community. Mrs Feil will teach Music, Dance and Drama each Friday. Mrs Feil is an accomplished musician and an exemplary teacher and we are very fortunate to have her as part of our team. 

 
NAPLAN

NESA has informed schools that from this year they are changing the way they report NAPLAN results. Numerical bands will be replaced with: Exceeding, Strong, Developing and Needs Additional Support. Schools will receive school-based results towards the end of this term. It is expected that NESA will send reports that we make available to parents and carers in early Term 3.

Assemblies

Our next school Assembly will be held on Wednesday 31 May at 2.20pm. This assembly will include Principal Awards and Years 3 & 4 showcasing their learning. 

Professional Learning

Recent Staff Professional Learning

Research tells us that the quality of the teacher is the greatest in-school influence on student achievement. Therefore high quality professional learning for teachers must be a priority to ensure improved teacher practice that leads to improved student growth. Recent professional learning undertaken by our staff this fortnight includes:

11 May 2023 - Diverse Learning Network

Mrs Mitrevski

17-18 May 2023  - Learning Collaborative Meeting

Mrs Mitrevski

17-19 May 2023 - Australian Catholic School Principals Conference

Mrs Duffin

22 May 2023 - Mathematics Collaborative Inquiry Planning

Mrs N Baker, Mr Whitehall & Miss Costello

24 May 2023 - System Professional Learning day

Mrs Duffin & Miss Costello

25 May 2023 - System Professional Learning day

Mrs Duffin & Mrs Jennett

Upcoming TERM 2 Dates

Please find pertinent dates for Term 2. All pertinent dates can be found on our Parent Calendar… https://www.hchdow.catholic.edu.au/news-and-events/events/ 

31 May - Reconciliation Week Celebrations. Mufti Day - students wear Red, Black, Yellow or Indigenous jerseys etc

5 June - World Environment Day

8 June - Year 2 Excursion

8 June - Year 6 and Year 1 attending Parish Mass

12 June - Public Holiday King’s Birthday

16 June - Whole School Mass

18 June - First Holy Communion 

20 June - Netball Gala Day

23 June - School Cyclic Inquiry - Day 1

29 June - School Cyclic Inquiry - Day 2

30 June - NAIDOC Week celebrations

30 June - Last Day of Term 2

Students return to school in Term 3 - Monday 17 July

The Da Vinci Decathlon 

By Mattia, Amelia and Maya

The Da Vinci Decathlon is an academic competition for schools in the Illawarra region.  Our school entered two teams from Stage 3.

Year 6: Mia. A, Mia. G, Joseph, Bella. A, Oliver R, Keira, Alice and Qilqa.

Year 5: Amelia, Maya, Mattia, James, Amos, Emma. M, Lee and Mollyrose. In the decathlon, there were 10 disciplines that we competed in.

The Disciplines:

1. Cartography: Studying and identifying maps
2. Maths: Solving challenging word problems
3. English: Comprehending and responding to a set text and identifying different literary techniques
4. Engineering: Designing and building a roller coaster to specific dimensions  for a ping pong ball to successfully complete the run
5. Creative Producers: Planning a detailed dramatic act to present in front of a panel of  judges
6. Ideation: Identifying and developing prototypes to try to eliminate problems caused by war
7. Science: Identifying different types of biodegradable plastics and converting various sources of energy
8. Code Breaking: Solving and creating tricky puzzles to crack the codes
9. Legacy:  Identifying significant people in the world, chaotic events and sharing knowledge about Leonardo Da Vinci’s life
10. Art and Poetry: Creating a piece of poetry and a matching artwork.

There were 20 schools and around 320 students there.  The Da Vinci Decathlon was held at the Illawarra Christian School which is a huge school. There are many hills and stairs to get to the hall where the competition was being held. On the day we felt extremely excited and a little bit nervous. We all woke up super early and were extremely tired by the end of the day, as the tasks were very difficult and we had to do a lot of thinking. We were all so excited to be selected for this academic competition. The best scoring tasks for Year 5 were Art and Poetry, Maths and Engineering as we placed 4th. Year Six’s best score was Art and Poetry and Cartography, placing 4th as well.

Overall Yr 5 placed 7th and Year 6 placed 6th. We are all so proud of our efforts. The experience was incredible and we had extreme fun. We are looking forward to next year's decathlon.

Walk Safely to School Day

Library News

NATIONAL SIMULTANEOUS STORYTIME

National Simultaneous Storytime always occurs on the last Wednesday in May where teachers and students all around Australia settle down with the chosen book to read simultaneously! The chosen text for 2023 was the adorable picture book ‘The Speedy Sloth’ by Rebecca Young. This has been an activity that Holy Cross students have participated in and enjoyed for over 10 years – and this year has been no different.

PREMIER’S READING CHALLENGE (PRC)

Our PRC Champions for this fortnight are:

Year 3 – Dominic, Sadie, Asher, Max

Year 4 – Zeike

Year 5 – Jake, Mollyrose, Amelia, Isabelle R., Mattia

Year 6 – Bella, Krysha, Qilqa, Reuben, Darcy, James

CONGRATULATIONS to you all for completing the challenge!

NEW BOOKS NOW AVAILABLE…

This fortnight’s new books which are now available …

The Speedy Sloth (Junior Fiction)

The Canterwood Crest series (Senior Fiction Series)

Dragon Girls series (Fiction Series)

I Survived: The Attack Of The Grizzlies, 1967 (Graphic Novel)

Little Ash: Tennis Rush (Popular Fiction Series)

As always, I would like to express my sincere thanks to the P&F for supporting our Library and our wonderful parents who cover the books!

Stayed tuned for more titles…

LIBRARY WARRIOR

Introducing…James (Year 6)

What section are you responsible for?

I like Junior Non Fiction. I am also in charge of making sure the returned books are in the right spot on the trolley on Friday mornings.

What is your favourite book?

I don’t have a favourite - I like lots of different books!

What do you love about being a Library Warrior?

I love sorting and putting the books away.

What is your favourite Library task?

Stacking the trolley in the morning!

Happy reading everyone!

Sue Murray
Library Coordinator

Diocesan Cross Country Carnival

On Tuesday, 24 Holy Cross students represented our school at the Wollongong Diocean Cross Country Carnival and for the first time ever, won the Small School’s Diocesan Trophy. This was a fantastic achievement and so well deserved after the kilometres of training these students have put in over many months. On behalf of our cross country team, their families and our wider community, I would like to express gratitude to Mrs Natalie Baker for her initiative in beginning the Holy Cross Running Club and for training our team for the cross country season. Natalie’s energy and passion for supporting our students’ running goals in all weather conditions over the past 18 months is greatly appreciated. Congratulations to every student in the team and to Mrs Baker.

Year One Excursion 

Last week, our year one students went on an amazing trip to two museums, featuring many wonderful historic artefacts and devices. We have with us four year 1 students to share their personal experience with their trip, what they enjoyed, learnt and participated in.

Marley A -  

What was your favourite thing to do?

My favourite part was when we went to the History Museum and we saw olden day clothes and stuff.

Did you enjoy the experience?

I loved it so much! 

What else did you do? 

At the science base we did lots of technical science stuff! 

Fletcher -

What was your favourite thing to do?

My favourite part of the excursion was when we went to the large TV and they’d call out a planet and they’d show the planet on the TV.

Did you enjoy the experience? 

I really liked it. It was really amazing.

What else did you do? 

At the Science Museum we saw olden day stuff like farming and old clothes.

Vincent - 

What was your favourite thing to do?

My favourite part was when we played games and there was this man and a balloon and it goes up and up and up and goes down and down. 

Did you enjoy the experience? 

It was very fun and I loved how we washed some clothes. 

What else did you do? 

We also played this game where we had to throw a circle into a hoop. I won it twice!

Bobby -

What was your favourite thing to do?

My favourite thing to do was see the planets and the TV which showed space! 

What else did you do? 

We learned about gravity and sound and how people used candles to light the way. 

Did you enjoy this experience? 

I really liked it!

The P&F met on Tuesday. Thank you to all who attended, the minutes are available on our social media page. The next meeting has been set for Tuesday 1^st August. A special mention and thank you to Lisa who coordinated Mother's Day gifts, the fathers who manned the stall and the staff who organised the Mother's Day morning tea. These were very much appreciated! There are a number of events coming up to keep in your calendar which we will also be seeking volunteers to assist with:

• 2024 Fete on Saturday 2^nd March (Seeking Coordinator)
• Father's Day Stall & BBQ on Friday 1^st September (Seeking volunteers) 
• Pie Drive & School Disco Thursday 22^nd June (Seeking volunteers)
  -Years 3-6: 6:30pm – 8pm
  -Preschool – Year 2: 5-6pm.

If you can assist with any of these events, please contact the P&F in person,  via Facebook or by emailing holycrosshelensburghpandf@gmail.com

Gymnastic Champions!

Congratulations to our six Holy Cross students who competed at the regional gymnastics held at Warrawong last weekend. The girls competed for their club Burgh Gymnastics and all secured medals!

 Level 3 girls: Keira (bronze) Elsa (silver) Indigo (bronze) and Airlie (bronze).

Level 4 Nevra (silver) Vida (bronze).