Newman News Term 3 Week 2: From the Vice Principal
The first two weeks of the second semester are well underway. The students have made an excellent start to the term. This weekend the Gospel speaks about the Kingdom of Heaven and what that looks like for people on Earth. The message around the story encourages us to reflect on what we treasure in life, that which holds meaning for us and helps us to let our light shine. Personally discovering the Kingdom of Heaven on earth is linked to uncovering what gives you life, that is, what brings you joy and hope. When we intentionally move towards making these experiences feature more in life, and move away from those things that deaden us, we are on the path to discovering the Kingdom of heaven. We do this in a community of family spirit.
The Marist characteristic of ‘love of work’ relates to our students and staff finding their passions and unique gifts and using these to fan the flames of others. The Arts is an area that has been in the media of late. Last week and over the coming weeks our talented staff and students will be showcasing their work in the Catholic Performing Arts – Spirit of the Arts Festival. The Arts is an expressive area of creativity, that brings life to the masses. We wish our performers well as they participate in this wonderful festival.
The St Vincent de Paul winter sleep out is next week. Our Year 6 students are joining the solidarity movement this year. It is so encouraging to see our students come together in social justice to help those less fortunate. We wish them well for their cold, overnight fundraising experience.
K-12 Buddy Day – Thursday 10 August
Students from Kindergarten to Year 6 will gather at the Lavalla Campus for Buddy Day activities and the annual Lapathon on Thursday 10 August. This celebration will form part of our Wellbeing week activities.
Y7-12 students will take part in the Lapathon with our Primary Students. Further details will be shared with students prior to the day.
Please click HERE for full details.
Lavalla Families – Kiss N Drive
Due to some works attached to the primary build program, the Kiss N Drive Lane will need to be closed for approximately 3 weeks. As of today Friday 28 July, the fence line will be moved and the Kiss N Drive lane will be closed off to allow these works to be completed.
During this time, Kiss N Drive will take place at the top of the Lavalla carpark loop. Two teachers will be positioned on duty at this location to ensure the safety of students and a smooth and efficient procedure. Please refer to the map below showing the revised traffic flow plan indicated with red arrows.
Alternatively, parents are reminded they can find a parking spot rather than use the Kiss N Ride during this three-week period.
Please remind your children to ensure they are to use the allocated pathways when making their way through the carpark. Your patience and support is appreciated. Any queries should be directed to Lavalla Administration.
Year 12 Parking
The College has a dedicated onsite parking area specifically for Year 12 students which we expect them to use. It is important we consider and balance the needs of residents and commuters around our campus, in particular Dolimite Road and Tuscany Way. Please remind these students to use the Year 12 carpark instead of using public roads.
eSafety – Online safety advice for your family
Parents and students are reminded of the need to be safe while online. Students in Years 7-9 were recently involved in a conversation that raised awareness of inappropriate online platforms that they may have been engaging with, in particular Tiktok and Instagram. We spoke about the need to always behave appropriately when using online accounts and to ensure they respected the dignity of all.
All students should be mindful of the following:
1) Consent: Sharing any images or information about another person requires permission and sharing without consent may lead to serious consequences.
2) Privacy: Accessing images from other people’s accounts is a violation of the privacy of the individual.
3) Uploads: Once something has been uploaded, it is there forever. Be mindful of what you are uploading, sharing and liking. If you like a post that is inappropriate or targets another person, this may lead to serious consequences.
The following link provides information regarding online safety for you and your family. eSafety Parents
NAPLAN 2023 DATA (Years 3/5/7/9)
Naplan reports for the above year groups are available through SEQTA Engage. Hard copies have been posted to families.
Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD)
Every year, all schools in Australia participate in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). The NCCD process requires schools to identify information already available in the school about support provided to students with disability. These relate to legislative requirements under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the Disability Standards for Education 2005, in line with the NCCD guidelines (2019).
Information provided about students to the Australian Government for the NCCD includes:
- year of schooling
- category of disability: physical, cognitive, sensory, or social/emotional
- level of adjustment provided: support provided within quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary, substantial, or extensive.
This information assists schools to:
- formally recognise the supports and adjustments provided to students with disability in schools
- consider how they can strengthen the support of students with disability in schools
- develop shared practices so that they can review their learning programs to improve educational outcomes for students with disability.
The NCCD provides state and federal governments with the information they need to plan more broadly for the support of students with disability.
The NCCD will have no direct impact on your child and your child will not be involved in any testing process. The school will provide data to the Australian Government in such a way that no individual student will be able to be identified – the privacy and confidentiality of all students is ensured. All information is protected by privacy laws that regulate the collection, storage, and disclosure of personal information. To find out more about these matters, please refer to the Australian Government’s Privacy Policy (https://www.education.gov.au/privacy-policy).
Further information about the NCCD can be found on the NCCD Portal (https://www.nccd.edu.au).
If you have any questions about the NCCD, please contact the Sarah Pagett, Leader of Learning Support.
2023 Religious Education Assessment (REA)
Catholic schools across Western Australia enrol students in Years 3, 5 and 9 to participate in a system-wide, online assessment in Religious Education. This assessment will take place in timetabled classes during Term 3, Week 3. Students following a regular classroom program are expected to participate. Exemptions may apply.
The purpose of the assessment is to measure student learning of the content in the Religious Education Curriculum. Test items relevant to each participating year level are developed by the Religious Education Directorate at the Catholic Education Office of Western Australia. The test items consist of multiple choice, short and extended response. Formal student reports are produced and made available in Term Four. The reports from the assessment complement the school-based assessment programs in Religious Education. As a system-wide, online assessment, classroom teachers, school and system leaders are provided with a ‘point in time’ snapshot of student performance in Religious Education.
Please contact your child’s teacher or me if you have any enquiries regarding the administration of the 2023 Religious Education Assessment.
Congratulations to the Cast, Crew and Creative Team of this year’s Musical Production of Lion King Jnr
The brilliant cast of our inaugural Year 3 to 9 Middle School Musical Lion King Junior played to sell out audiences across four big performances. The show received rave reviews with the Catholic Performing Arts Festival adjudicators awarding the Production a Certificate of excellence. The adjudicators were particularly impressed by the scale and quality of this spectacular production that the Arts and the community of Newman achieved with 130 young actors. Congratulations to Mrs Wiese the Producer, Mrs Bilton for her incredible direction of the Musical, the entire Creative Team, including Mrs Kelly Thwaites – choreographer and Ms Laura Van Rijn – vocal director – and most of all, the wonderful cast and crew.
Performing Arts: 20 July – 11 September
Term 3 will welcome the beginning of Catholic Performing Arts 2023, and we are delighted to have so many students involved in the instrumental and vocal sections as a soloist or ensemble member.
Our magnificent tutors are in the process of sending out the detailed event and venue information for each section relevant to your child, this may be over email or a hardcopy. In the interim, please use the link below to view the programme of events from July – September.
Performing Arts Festival – Spirit of the Arts
Transport: Performances are located at various locations around Perth. Transport to these performance’s is the responsibility of the Parent/Guardian, unless communicated otherwise. (Ensembles – Concert Band, Concert Wind, Scherzando, Vivace and Chamber Orchestra will have return transport arranged by the College. Students will depart and return from here).
Tickets: Try Booking ticket sales for the Performing Arts Festival, opens on Friday 7 July.
Further details regarding the festival can be found here: https://www.spiritofthearts.com.au/.
Please email Selena.barrett@newman.wa.edu.au should you require further information.