Newsletter Week 6, Term 2 2022

MORNING BUSES - PLAN "B"

For those families who have children catching a Bus to school in the mornings, please ensure that you have discussed a Plan "B" with them in case the bus fails to arrive. The reason I mention this is that during the week a Surfside Bus ran 40min late (apparently it had broken down). Clearly this presented a number of issues:
1) Some parents had dropped their children off at the bus stop and then left for work. This resulted in children standing unaccompanied for 40 min at a bus stop! Clearly this is a very unsafe practice!!
2) Some children who were left stranded at the bus stop had no alternative plan i.e. walk back home, go to a neighbours / friends house, walk back home and ring a parent / relative/ friend etc.
If possible, stay with your child until they board the bus. If this is not possible ask another parent to keep an eye out for your children or take turns in supervising them in the morning.

STUDENTS BEING PICKED UP IN ELIZABETH STREET

A number of parents are requesting that their child walks across to Elizabeth St where they will be picked up after school. This presents a number of problems. Parking being one issue and the congestion of cars creates a hazard for pedestrians and bike riders using Elizabeth St. Our biggest concern, which has happened on numerous occasions, is that parents run late or the child misunderstood pick up instructions. This has resulted in children waiting for parents unaccompanied for a substantial amount of time. On one occasion a parent phoned the school to say their child was not on the bus. At 4.10p.m. we walked across the road and the child was sitting in the gutter waiting for their parent to pick them up!!! If the child had been waiting at the school the Office staff would have phoned and ensured the safety of the child until arrangements were made. Can I suggest:
1) That instead of waiting to pick up your child in Elizabeth St that you use the school car park and wait for them as they leave.
2) Join the queue and use the "Pick up Zone". For the sake of 5 or 10 min this is a much safer option for not only your child but for all children who legitimately need to use Elizabeth St.
Remember the safety of all children is everyone's business!

STRANGER DANGER
There have been a number of notifications made on social media regarding children being approached by unknown males in cars. Whilst the school has not been contacted directly about any such incident, it is always prudent to speak to your child about Stranger Danger. Ensure that your child has strategies to implement if approached by an unknown person or persons.

• Student Safety Tips:

  In light of suspicious activity in the local area, please review the following safety tips with your children.
  • Don’t talk to strangers.
  • Don’t take anything from strangers.
  • Don’t go anywhere with someone you don’t know.
  • Stay more than an arm’s reach from strangers. If you are approached by a stranger, seek help immediately.
  • Trust your instincts, if you feel you are being followed or something is not right, seek help immediately.
  • Use the buddy system, avoid walking anywhere alone.
  • Review contact telephone numbers and home safety practices.
  • When seeking help, always go to a trusted adult – teacher, coach, police officer, other parent, or older siblings.
  •  If a stranger grabs you, do everything you can to stop him or her from pulling you away. Drop to the ground, kick, hit, bite, and scream. Do whatever it takes to attract the attention of others who can help you. If someone is dragging you away, scream, “this is not my dad,” or “this is not my mum.”
  • Report any suspicious activity to your local school and the police.

Sunday 5^th June: Pentecost Sunday

Pentecost Sunday is often called the birthday of the Church.  As we come to the end of the glorious time of Easter, let us pray that God will fill us with the Spirit of the risen Christ.

Jesus gently breathed on them and said “Receive the Holy Spirit.” In the upper room the disciples felt a strong wind.

To view the latest news and events from our Parish please click here

PUBLIC SPEAKING

This term is our school Public Speaking Competition! Please see key dates below. 

Weeks 5-6: Students write and practise their speeches as homework. 
Monday Week 7: In-class public speaking commences.
Tuesday Week 9 (21st June): School Public Speaking Finals. Students present in stages and one winner and one runner-up will be chosen per stage. 

Speech guidelines will be sent out in Week 4.

AFL Footy  News

Last Tuesday we had 16 amazing students represent our School at the AFL Football Gala Day at Cavanbah Centre, Byron Bay. The sun shone all day and our students played 3 games of footy in great spirits and were great sports. Our first game against Lindisfarne we lost by a minimal margin but the second game against St Carthage’s was a great win 27 to 13. This meant we played off in the semifinals against Lennox Head, the team did a superb effort but fell short of a win. However, it was an amazing effort to make the semi- finals, well done team and congratulations! A big Thank you to Emma Star-Webb who did a fantastic job coaching our team all day. Also thank you to the parents who came and spent the day helping and supporting us.

- Sue Falcke

Netball Gala Day
The new Netball Gala day has been assigned to Wednesday 27th July, Term 3 Week 2. If you know you are now unavailable to attend could you please let Miss King know. Any parents that are now able to assist on the day as a coach or umpire please contact the school ASAP. 

Hockey Gala Day
In preparation for our upcoming Hockey Gala Day Miss Dicker and Miss Ayres will be running a trial for students wishing to compete in the Division 1 competitive teams on Monday 6th June at lunchtime. This is for students who have played hockey before or have solid knowledge in the game. If you would like to attend the trial you may wish to bring your own hockey stick. 

Athletics Carnival
In preparation for the upcoming Athletics Carnival on the 20th June, students will be participating in shot put and long jump during sport time with Mr Cook. We will be running a trial for the 1500m event for students to be selected to participate in the Tweed Zone Trial (21st June). The St Ambrose 1500m trial will be held on Thursday 16th June (Week 8) at 8:15am.  All these events will contribute to the Age Championship point score. There will also be a Coffee Van on the day.

Discus and/or High Jump at the Diocesan Athletics Carnival
If your child is wishing to compete in DISCUS and/or HIGH JUMP at the Lismore Diocesan Primary Athletics Carnival they will be required to complete a nomination form and have it endorsed by an accredited athletics coach. If you require a form please contact Miss Rachelle King. This form will need to be completed by NO later than then 14th June. If your child's nomination is then successful you will be notified. 

Upcoming events update:

The Winter Appeal

St Vincent de Paul works really hard to provide emergency accommodation, meals and everyday essentials to people in need. We want to show care and hope for these people too. 

This year the Mini Vinnies group is asking all families to donate clean blankets and toiletries to show our compassion. For the next month, we are collecting soap, body wash, tissues, toothpaste, toothbrushes, combs, shampoo, conditioner, moisturiser, deodorant, socks and blankets. The Mini Vinnies will then create care packs to be distributed by the St Vincent de Paul volunteers. Each classroom has a basket for donations to be collected. We appreciate your support.

SOCIAL BASKETBALL

Each Thursday afternoon from 4.00p.m. there is a "Parents" social basketball get together on the school court.If you would like to join in the fun either just turn up or contact Jeff Bottle on this email for further details -    stambrosepf@gmail.com
All Welcome!!