Newsletter 18 2021

An important letter regarding the recent SA Government direction on mandatory vaccinations is available here. We ask parents/guardians to please make yourselves aware of these new requirements.

Dear Parents/Caregivers, Students, Staff, and Friends of St Raphael’s School,

We have only a few weeks remaining, and we have so much more to plan and do with our students before our last day together this year, Thursday 9 December!

Like many of you I use the arrival of the Adelaide Christmas Pageant as a signal to begin decorating the house with Christmas ornaments. I always begin with the laying out the miniature statues of the Nativity scene, without ‘baby’ Jesus, as I only lay him in the crib on Christmas day, because this is of course, the birthday of Jesus.   

I often reflect and think, how blessed am I and my family, to enjoy all the wonderful sounds and celebrations of Christmas and yet this is a very stressful time for many families experiencing financial and emotional hardship. I thank the many families who have already donated to the Brother Michael Christmas Hamper Appeal and invite others who have not had a chance yet, to donate items for the hampers. The hampers feed over 50 families at Christmas and your small contribution enables this to happen. Thank you.

Little Raph’s New Reception Orientation Program

We have begun the Little Raph’s New Reception Orientation program with earnest.  We facilitate the program twice per year for students new to our school during the term prior to their fulltime commencement date. This provides students an opportunity to get to know their teacher and form new friendships with the students in their class.    We look forward to welcoming our new little people next term.

Water Safety Education Week

The Water Safety Education Week is happening next week for all students in Reception – Year 5. This is a fantastic opportunity for students to learn a few water safety techniques whilst having lots of fun in the water. We often find lots of un -named swimming gear and so please write your child/ren’s name on everything. You would be surprised how much unclaimed gear we collect.

Staffing News

I have appointed Vanessa Gentilcore as one of our teachers for 2022 and Lyndall Hanson as one of our Education Support Officers, Curriculum Support. We will have the opportunity to welcome our new staff members later this term.

In the next edition of the school newsletter, I will inform families Class Teacher/s allocation for 2022. Students from Years 1 to Year 5 will have the opportunity to have a transition session with their new teachers on Tuesday 7 December at 1:30pm.

With every best wish,

Mia Harms
Principal

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Last week our whole school gathered on Thursday 11 November to pause and remember the sacrifice of all servicemen and women who have served their country in war and conflict. Our ceremony led by the Year 6s featured prayers, the Ode of Remembrance, playing of the Last Post and observing one minute silence to honour all those who have fallen, served and continue to serve to protect our freedom. We prayed for all those around the world that are still affected by war and hope for peaceful resolutions for countries still in crisis. Each class made a wreath, with poppies, as a mark of remembrance.

Year 3 Learners Breaking Open the Mass

Our Year 3 learners have been exploring the Catholic Mass and its different parts in much detail. Each student has researched and presented their learning on the four parts and explained the symbols, text and meaning within each part. We gather, we listen, we give thanks and we go (forth) – a symbolic way to explore the Mass. The class was then divided into these four parts and students have planned, prepared and led their part in a Mass this morning with Fr Denis presiding. It was wonderful to see the children celebrate and share their learning in a meaningful way within our Eucharistic celebration. Their chosen theme was Serving God, Serving Others. It was great to witness the learners working together to develop their understanding of the Mass and move from an observing and participating role to a leading and preparing one.

Brother Michael Hamper Appeal

Thank you to the families who have started bringing in grocery items for the Brother Michael Christmas Hamper Appeal. We appreciate your continued support in providing  items such as baby food, tuna, pasta, rice and cereal.

The Southern Cross

Please find attached the link to the latest edition of The Southern Cross. https://thesoutherncross.org.au

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.

God bless,
Kelly Manera
Assistant Principal Religious Identity and Mission

Water Safety Education Program

Our annual Water Safety Education Program will be happening next week (Monday 22 November – Thursday 25 November) at Unley Pool (outdoor) for students in Reception to Year 5. Ensure that your child comes to school ready each day for their session. Please refer to the note which was distributed some time ago for all details. A copy of this note is available here or on the Skoolbag app. Finally, ensure that both consent forms have been returned to your child’s class teacher by this Friday. Spare notes are available at the School Office or your child’s teacher.

Kelly Sports Program – Term 4

Our Kelly Sports Program for Term 4 came to its conclusion this week. Interested students from Reception to Year 6 participated in a 5-week program, developing their throwing/catching/bouncing /shooting skills, as used in the games of basketball and netball, with an added focus on working as co-operative members of a team. All students received a participation certificate at the final session. Below is a gallery of photos of our Kelly Sports participants.

Cricket Medallion Presentation – Friday 3 December (Week 8)

Participation medallions will be presented to all our school cricketers (Master Blaster and C Grade) who have represented our school in Terms 1 and 4 this year. This will occur at Assembly (9:00am start) on the above date. You are most welcome to attend.

Jeanette Archer
PE Teacher and Sport Coordinator

In Science, the Year 3s have been investigating ‘Heat’. The students have explored different sources of heat and how heat can be created through friction, electric or chemical sources. Through experiments, the students discovered heat energy flows from one object to another and some materials conduct heat while others insulate. Integrated with Design and Technology, the students transferred their learning to a practical situation. The students were asked to design and create a cup that retains the heat for a company wishing to serve hot drinks. This week, we used a thermometer to scientifically test the temperature against the control to see how well our cups retained the heat for 10 minutes. All our designs were successful and performed better than the control!

In Mathematics, the students have been learning to solve addition and subtraction problems with efficiency.  We have explored various strategies such as doubles, place value and traditional methods. To culminate our learning, the students created ‘Number Function Box’, transferring their learning to incorporate algebraic thinking. The students created ‘rules’ for the ‘Number Function Box’ to follow. The number goes in and cleverly outputs the answer. We look forward to using our boxes to play ‘Guess my Rule’ with our friends and older buddies.