Listed below are some important dates.

Year 6 Parents and Carers are invited to meet in the school library on Friday 16 August at 2:15 pm. This meeting will involve the discussion and coordination of the Year 6 farewell activities. Please keep in mind that this will be a general conversation regarding ideas and parents will be able to nominate themselves to coordinate different activities towards the end of year.

9:00 am - Students assemble and proceed to classrooms
10:20 am- Primary classes seated around the perimeter of the Cola area.
10:30 am- Infant students’ parade. Infant student best borrower lucky draw
11:00 am- Break
               - Book Fair in the library for parents and guests
11:50 am- Infant classes seated around the Cola Area.
12:00 pm- Primary students’ parade. Primary student best borrower lucky draw.
 
During our book week celebrations, on Tuesday 20 August, we will be having a display of books for parents and carers to purchase.
The library will be open to parents and guests only, no students will be admitted to the library at this time.
If you would like to purchase a book for the school your name will be displayed inside the book and your child will be given the option to borrow the book first.
We will also have EFTPOS available on the day.

As per school guidelines the students are to stay at school for the day

Originally our Father's/Carer's Day Stall was advertised for Thursday 29 August in the school calendar, however due to the Soccer Gala Day being on this day and a large amount of our students attending we have decided to change the stall to WEDNESDAY 28 AUGUST.

If you are able to help with either the setting up on Tuesday 27 August at 12:30 pm in the school hall or serving students at the stall on Wednesday 28 August, please SMS your name to Ellie on 0430 626 801.

Kinder White will be presenting at assembly on Friday 30 August at 2:20pm. We would like to invite parents/families from Kinder White to join us in the hall for the presentation. 

On Friday the 6 September (Week 7), Play Cricket will be coming to St Anthony's for some cricket skills and games for years K - 6. Even if it's not your child's sports day, please ensure they wear their sports uniform for the day.

Thank you for your ongoing support! It's going to be a fun and active day for everyone! 

Congratulations to all the students who attended the 2024 Western Region Athletics Carnival last Friday 9 August. Your hard work and dedication were truly inspiring. You should all be incredibly proud of your performances and the excellent sportsmanship you showed. You represented our school with great pride. Well done!

Congratulations to the following students who will now go on to represent St Anthony's at The Diocesan Trials on Tuesday 20 August.

Year 2 - Chase Simpson

Year 4 - Poppy Smith, Khloe Kovacevic and Indie-Rose Szczerbanik

Year 5 - Liam Dempster and Jayden Greene

Year 6 - Harrison Walker, Kurtis Dennis, Bella Cooney, Scarlett Kovacevic and Mya Daniels

Congratulations to the following students who won Age Champion awards at the carnival, Bella Cooney (1st), Scarlett Kovacevic (2nd), Harrison Walker (Equal 1st) and Kurtis Dennis (Equal 3rd)

On Sunday 11 August, Mr Devlin and our school captains, Grace Moody and Benjamin McMullen along with other Principals and School Captains from all the schools in the Macarthur area attended the annual Campbelltown Catholic Club Mass and Communion Luncheon at Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School, Eagle Vale. 

The St. Anthony’s Parents’ and Friends’ Association and staff are thrilled to unveil our highly anticipated fundraiser for 2024! Building on the success of last year’s event, we’re delighted to announce that this year’s fundraiser will feature a fresh twist.

Our talented students will once again create beautiful pieces of artwork, but here’s the exciting part: you’ll have the opportunity to purchase a range of fantastic items showcasing their art! This year, you can choose from Calendars, Tea Towels, Tote Bags, and more perfect for holiday gifts or keeping as mementos.

Mark your calendars: Orders will OPEN on Friday, 18 October. Stay tuned for more details on how you can support our school while enjoying these unique, student-created items.

All funds raised will go directly back into our school, helping to support and enhance our students’ educational experiences. Thank you for your continued support and enthusiasm!

Please see attached flyer and more details to come later in the term.

Wildflower Holistic Services - Principal Psychologist Alexandra McCarthy

Consent for school-aged kids and pre-teens: 

Whilst the above strategies can continue to be used for our school aged kids and pre-teens, there will likely be new opportunities to continue conversations around consent. This might look like: 

• Explaining consent: You can begin to explain consent in straightforward terms like, "Consent means saying yes or no to things that involve your body or personal space. If you don't want to play a game or if you want someone to stop, it's okay to say no."
• Peer check in: If they notice a friend might not be enjoying an activity anymore, you could say , "If you notice someone isn't smiling or seems upset, check in with them by asking, 'Is this still fun for you?'". 
• Choice:If they don’t want to go to a sleepover, you can encourage them to say no, for example, “It’s okay if you don’t want to sleepover at Lucy’s house, would you like to go for the day instead?”. 
• Social media & consent: If your child begins using social media, you can incorporate consent into sharing images of themselves and others. Before posting pictures of others, they should always ask for permission. Similarly, your child should expect others to ask for their consent before sharing any images of them. It’s also crucial for them to know that they can freely say no if they are uncomfortable with sharing their image. 
• Consent in different scenarios: Discuss with them how consent applies in various situations beyond just physical interactions. For example, you can talk about respecting personal space, understanding when someone is not interested in a conversation or activity, and the importance of checking in with friends about their comfort levels.

Encourage open and honest conversations about feelings and boundaries. Let them know they can always come to you with questions or if they feel uncomfortable about something. It’s also important to be consistent with listening to your child's concerns. If they come to you once and feel heard, they're more likely to return with future issues. Conversely, if they feel dismissed, they might hesitate to seek your help again. Starting these conversations early helps set the foundation for healthy relationships and interactions as they grow. It likely isn’t going to be a one-time talk, but rather a continuous conversation that evolves and expands as your child grows and encounters new situations and environments.

One way to make the conversation more relatable and less intimidating is to use examples from TV shows or movies that you might watch together to get the conversation started and link it to consent. For example, “ That person looks uncomfortable being touched, and she is drunk, what should she do?” or “ Did you notice how she changed her mind about having sex and he got angry at her, why is that wrong?” or “I never saw her ask him if she could touch him, he seems to be pulling away from her as well, do you think he wants to stop?”. 

Ultimately, we can only control what we teach our kids and we cannot always ensure that others have had the same teachings. Although these conversations may seem uncomfortable for us as parents who may have never received these conversations from our parents, it becomes easier with practice and it means we are equipping our kids with the tools we may have once needed ourselves and never had, so that they can navigate complex social situations with confidence and respect.

There are a tonne of resources available to help teach consent, some of our favourites can be found below: 

Resources for Kids:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3nhM9UlJjc
• Boss of Your Own Body - Byll & Beth Stephen 
• From My Head To My Toes, I Say What Goes - Charlotte Barkla & Jacqui Lee
• ABC of Body Safety and Consent - Jayneen Sanders
• Yes! No! - A First Conversation about Consent - Megan Madison, Jessica Ralli, & Isabel Roxas

Sacramental Programs

Religious Education is a priority in Catholic schools. It provides the knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith and outlines what is needed to live a Catholic life. Sacramental programs are Parish based, Parish coordinated, family focused and school supported.

Each year the Sacraments of Penance, Eucharist and Confirmation are celebrated in the Parish.

A Parish based program caters to the needs of all participants. In this way children from all schools receive the same preparation for each sacrament.

The Parish based, family focused approach to Sacramental programs is widely used throughout Australia as the preferred approach. This approach acknowledges the important role of parents and families in the whole preparation process. Parents are the first educators of children in the faith and traditions of the Catholic Church. Parents involvement in Sacramental preparation is crucial in shaping the values and attitudes of each child. So it is vital, for the continual spiritual growth of the child, that the families involve themselves in the Sacramental life of Parish.