Welcome back to Term 3.

Please keep an eye on the newsletter & weekly parent memo for upcoming events.

During the next 2 weeks we are celebrating NAIDOC Week by have a smoking ceremony in in our Yarning Circle & planting a tree as a start to our bush tucker garden on this Friday. We thank Delise from Pejar Land Council who is leading the ceremony . She has also invited us to be part of helping with a bush tucker garden being established just down the road from our school. It is great for us to access people & resources and be involved in a community project. The tree is being donated by the Council to support National Tree day.  

Year 6 students will be attending the annual NAIDOC Mass and awards on next Thursday 31^st July at the Cathedral .
Next Friday 1^st August will be busy with Kindergarten celebrating 100 days of school & our Fundraising Walkathon. Our fundraising goal is to raise money to improve our playground.

I hope you will support these events.

Mark your calendar for the ART Show to be held on THURSDAY 4^th September . There will be a special grandparents showing from 10.30am & for families from straight after school till 6pm that day.

A reminder that no students should be on the grounds till 8.30am when formal supervision begins.

Pick UP AREA & Traffic flow around the school.

I have been in discussions with local council about the traffic issues around the school especially after school. I would encourage people to study our newsletter which has a very clear explanation about accessing the car line. In the afternoons especially you must not queue cars in Knox Street. Buses are being blocked as they  come up Knox Street . You also can be fined for not following the signage. When using car line we ask people to move right forward as we are trying to load 4 cars at a time to keep the traffic flowing. 

I have few ideas about how we might improve how children are picked up but these will need to be worked through in joint consultation with Council & School.

Our number one goal is children’s safety and I urge people to be patient & follow the rules we have established.

Attendance

I am obligated by law to keep an eye on attendance rates at school . Below is a guide to acceptable & concerning attendance rates.

From time to time I will need to write to parents to note their child’s attendance is falling below the 80% level. If your child is absent because they have an illness or for personal family reasons that goes on more than 3 days it is a good idea to let the school know.

If attendance rates don’t improve you will be called to a meeting to set up an attendance plan. Continued frequent absences could lead to court appearances or a mandatory Child safety report.

My advice is to keep up open communication with the school about why your child attendance might be a concern  and any issues that are stopping them from having a good attendance record

CECG identifies the following levels of attendance:

Excellent Attendance 95% and above (e.g. 2.5 days absence or less in a term or 10 absences over a year)

Regular Attendance 90%-94.9% (e.g. 2.6 to 5 days absence in a term or 10.1 -20 absences in a year)

Emerging Absenteeism 80%-89.9% (e.g. 5.1 to 10 days absence in a term or 20.1 - 40 absences in a year)

Chronic Absenteeism Less than 80% (e.g. more than 10 days absence in a term or 40 absences in a year)

DROP OFF/PICK UP INFORMATION

If you remember the following details school drop off and pick up should run smoothly. Please view the map below for parking restriction details:

• Supervision at school starts at 8.30am. Students arriving earlier than this WILL NOT be under active adult supervision so please avoid dropping your children off before this time. Between 8.30am and 8.55am students are to take their bag to their classroom and then make their way to either the hall or basketball court where they are to wait in year groups until the morning play bell rings.
• Knox Street/Princes Avenue parking (front school entrance) - ideally families with students in Kindergarten only should be parking in this area. Please be aware of the bus zone, parking restrictions and keeping our neighbour's driveways clear. We ask that you consider our staff when parking here in the morning as there are limited all day parking zones where they are able to park; car line provides a safer alternative for families.
• Hall gate (Knox Street) - Bus students are dropped off and picked up from here. At the end of the day a teacher is rostered on duty at this gate each afternoon and stays to supervise students until the last bus comes.
• Princes Avenue/Adam Street (back school entrance) - Parents are able to park on either side of Princes Avenue (outside car line) or in Adam Street if you need to walk your children into school (please note that this part of Princes Avenue is a one-way road). Be aware of parking restrictions and keeping our neighbour's driveways clear.
• Car Line (off Princes Avenue) -  Car line is a 'kiss & go' system where parents drop their children off without getting out of the car; please do not park and exit your car in car line as this creates major traffic issues. Car line is our preferred method of parent drop off as it ensures student safety. In the afternoons car line can be very congested. If the waiting line is outside of our driveway the advice from NSW police is that you should continue around the block via Adam Street until the line moves forward. Please consider arriving at 3.30pm or after to ease this congestion; your child will be safe and supervised until you arrive. Two teachers are rostered on and supervicion at car line is until 3.45pm. After this time your child will be taken to the office and a call will be made to parents to arrange pick up ASAP.

Before & After School Care

INDIVIDUAL SPORT TRIALS

Individual sports trials are open through the CECG sports website. These trials are intended for Year 5 & 6 student's ONLY. Keep up to date with trial information for next year.

Registration for ALL Canberra Goulburn, MacKillop and NSWCCC is through the new CSNSW website.

There are closing dates so if you are planning to trial please complete the registration process ASAP! Additional detailed information can be read below or from the Registrations page. For more information on Primary Sports visit the Canberra Goulburn Sport Facebook Page. If you have any queries please email Sherree Bush at sherree.bush@cg.catholic.edu.au

Congratulations to Rory Hogan in 3 Blue on winning the Road Safety Colouring Competition with Goulburn Mulwaree Council!

This competiton was open to students in all schools across the shire and Rory's was chosen as one of two winning artworks. Rory visited the Council Chambers last term to be awarded her prize and had her photos taken with the Deputy Mayor Caitlin Flint.

In another great opportunity for the Goulburn & District Cricket Community, Cricket NSW are bringing a FREE Cricket Clinic to Goulburn and are combining with one of Australian Cricket greatest players, Nathan Lyon, to bring a unique experience to the area.

In August, fresh off a series win in the West Indies, Nathan will support local Cricket NSW staff  with a FREE clinic at Seifert Oval. 

The clinic will be combined with a once in a lifetime experience to delve into the career of one of our greats, and Nathan and his team will outline what you’ll need to progress in your sports career.  Targeting families and young players, the seminar will outline both on and off field essentials.