Dear Parents,

Welcome to the start of the 2024 school year, I hope you have all enjoyed a relaxing and restful holiday period. I’d especially like to welcome all our new staff, students, and families, I’m sure you will enjoy your time with us at St Angela of the Cross.  

Our school newsletter will be distributed through the SZAPP App on a fortnightly basis every Wednesday (odd weeks). We encourage you to read all sections of the newsletter to ensure you keep up to date with the happenings of our school.

Our school assemblies will be held on the alternate week (even weeks) on a Friday afternoon, beginning at 2:45pm.

This year we welcome many new staff to our school, and I am sure that they will be made to feel welcome by all. Please see below for a full list of our school staff and roles. 

School Leadership Team

Principal: Mr Justin Greenwood

Deputy Principal: Teaching and Learning-Religious Education Leader: Mrs Rachael Williams

Teaching and Learning Leaders: Miss Danielle Kemp, Ms Leah Missen, Mrs Emily Moschitz

Classroom Teachers

Foundation Learning Team 3 grades (Teaching and Learning Leader, Danielle Kemp)

F Mrs Danielle Kemp

F Miss Olivia Castello

F Mrs Cecily Van Aswegen

Grade 1/2 Learning Team 4 grades (Teaching and Learning Leader, Leah Missen)

1/2 Ms Leah Missen

1/2 Ms Rachel Braun

1/2 Mrs Tenille Ellis

1/2 Miss Nicole Somerville

Grade 3-6 Learning Team 3 grades (Teaching and Learning Leader, Emily Moschitz)

3/4 Mrs Meg Cribbes

3/4 Miss Bree Alger

5/6 Mrs Emily Moschitz

Specialist Classes

Japanese

Ms Susan Taylor 0.2 Thursday

Mr James Simon 0.2 Wednesday

Visual Arts

Mrs Sara Harris 0.4 Wednesday, Thursday

Performing Arts 

Mrs Claire Pringle 0.4 Wednesday, Thursday

STEM

Mrs Mickey Davies 0.4 Wednesday, Thursday

Physical Education/Sports Coordinator

Mrs Jacqui Dennis 0.6 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday

Administration Staff

Mrs Lauren Soumilas (Mon, Tues, Wed)

Mrs Becky Blackwood (Wed, Thur, Fri)

Mrs Chelsea Van Der Linden (Mon, Tues, Thur)

Support Staff

Ms Suzanne Zammit (5 days)

Mrs Jodie Mesaric (5 days)

Mr Nathan Thomson (5 days)

Miss Maya Cooper (4 days Mon, Tue, Wed, Thur)

Mrs Faith Flanagan (3 days Tue, Wed, Thur)

Miss Katherine Drury (2 days, Mon, Fri)

Classroom/Student Concerns

For any classroom correspondence/student concerns, the classroom teacher is your first point of call. Please note that teachers will not respond to emails over the weekends, and they will endeavour to respond to emails within 24-48 hours (weekdays). A phone conversation is sometimes much more appropriate than an email. 

School Professional Development and Time in Lieu Closure Days

Ongoing Professional Development and Planning is vital for teachers as it allows us to improve our knowledge and reflect on current practice and trends in education. Throughout 2023 we will have several professional development days focusing on improving our teaching and learning. Under the new enterprise bargaining agreement for teachers, we also have four closure days classified as ‘Time in Lieu (TIL)’ for school staff.  Please note the following pupil free days in your calendars.

• Friday 8th March
• Monday 15th April
• Friday 26th April
• Tuesday 11th June
• Thursday 27th June
• Friday 28th June
• Friday 20th September
• Monday 4th November
• Wednesday 18th December
• Thursday 19th December
• Friday 20th December

Parking Safety

A reminder to all families that all vehicles must access the school via the Downton Street entry only. Children can be dropped off at the kiss and drop parking on the left-hand side of the roadway. If you wish to park and enter the school, please park in the designated spots adjacent to Mills Road. With the increased number of families this year, please ensure we are patient and sticking to the 5km hour speed limit. We also ask that you be mindful of local residents and do not park in front of driveways and on nature strips. 

Foundation Students ONLY | Easing into School

In order to allow the Foundation children to ease into the school routine, they do not attend school on a full-time basis until after the Labour Day weekend in March.

Morning Routine/Lineup

As our school is getting bigger there will no longer be a morning greeting or a communal area where all students will lineup. Our 1/2 students will lineup on the external decking area of our new classrooms and our Foundation, and 3-6 grades will continue to lineup in the undercover area.

For the first week of school only, classrooms will be open from 8:30am for you to come in and meet your child’s teacher without the need to sign in at the school office. From week 2, Monday 5th February parents will need to sign in at the office before entering classrooms and classroom doors will not be opened until 8:40am.

Before/After School Care (Camp Australia)

Our before/after school care will begin at the start of week 2 on Monday 5th February. Please see flyer’s below for further details.

School Pick Up

At the end of the school day, we will now have three options for student pick up.

1. Parents pick up students from main gate near undercover area.
2. Copelands Road Pick up. Gate adjacent to Copelands Road will be opened for pick up only and monitored by school staff.
3. Car Line, student’s lineup with teachers and parents remain in cars.

Please remember to clearly articulate with your child daily which of these three options you will utilise.

Uniform

A reminder that all students will need a hat to go outside and play in term 1. In line with our school SunSmart policy any child without a hat will need to remain in the shaded undercover area. Sports Uniform will need to be worn on the following days.

Wednesday: Grades 1/2 M, 1/2 S, 3/4 A, 3/4 C, 5/6 M

Thursday: Grades 1/2 B, 1/2 E, All Foundation

Preparation for the Sacrament of Reconciliation will begin at the very beginning of the new school year. If your child is in Grade Three or above, is baptised, and would like to prepare to receive this sacrament of Reconciliation, please come along to a Parent only Information Meeting. Our guest speaker is Rev. Dr. Fr. Elio Capra, SDB. He is a knowledgeable and engaging presenter. Information packages with enrolment details will be given out on this night. 

Date: Thursday 8th February
Time: 7pm
Venue: St Joseph’s Church, Warragul. 

For further enquiries feel free to contact Liz (Sacrament Coordinator)

Email: Warragul.sacraments@cdsale.org.au

Ph: 5623 1642

Word of God Sunday

Instituting Word of God Sunday, Pope Francis reminded us, “We should never take God’s word for granted, but instead let ourselves be nourished by it, in order to acknowledge and live fully our relationship with him and with our brothers and sisters”. (Aperuit illis, 2019). In today’s gospel Jesus is seen as a warm, compassionate and very tangible figure, fully engaged in his community and teaching us about balance in our lives! God’s rule and reign are transpiring right now in the hearts of his people.

He has stirred up sleepy Capernaum with his authoritative teaching and healing of the possessed man at the synagogue. Now Mark recounts the on-going action (Mark 1:29-39) as Jesus retires to Simon and Andrew’s place together with James and John, the others of his A Team, and there, discovering that Simon’s mother-in-law is ill, he cures her. After sunset Jesus obliges the queue of people gathering for physical or mental cure then rises before the sunrise for some quiet prayer time and gets on the road again. So much timeless wisdom here! 

Firstly, we see how central flesh and blood relationships are in Jesus’ life. Fresh from his startling triumph at the synagogue, he is not above going to his mate’s place for lunch (and perhaps a wine or two). There is plenty to talk about with his four fisher mates.

Secondly, he clearly teaches that Compassion beats Law. His fresh, compassionate perspective puts the well-being of his mate’s mother-in-law above the detail of the Mosaic law banning any work on the Sabbath. Then, once the Sabbath is over, we can imagine the demands of the excited citizens of Capernaum keeping him up into the wee hours of the night. 

Finally we see in his example how Contemplative Prayer centres us. Tired though he must have been, prayer is vital in his life, and so he spends time discerning the Father’s will for him. Then, confident, centred, renewed and focussed on his core mission, rather than being distracted from spreading the Good News, he moves on to proclaim God’s Kingdom to the rest of Galilee and to the world.

Deacon Mark

Proactive Parenting

Young People and their BIG Feelings

Sunday 25 February 10:00am

West Gippsland Arts Centre 

Proactive Parents is a community event hosted by Mindfull Aus and facilitated by child development expert Karen Young that provides parents, caregivers and educators with the skills and tools to better understand behaviour and challenges that arise within our youth.

Big feelings can drive big behaviour. Understanding how to respond when young people are overwhelmed can drive calm and connection over conflict. Ultimately, our responses have enormous potential to build important neural pathways that will strengthen them for life.

This presentation will explore the powerful ways parents can, quite literally, influence the strengthening of the brain in ways that will build self-control, emotional regulation, and resilience in their children for life.

** Karen Young’s books & resources as well as Mindfull Aus Merchandise will be available at the conclusion of the event.

Duration: 4 hours including intermission.

Members: $10
Full: $15

What is Saver Plus?  

Saver Plus is a program for people on lower incomes. It’s about bolstering their financial skills, so they can develop (and keep) good savings habits.   

Since 2003, Saver Plus has supported more than 58,000 people to start saving. It’s helped overcome the barriers around education expenses. And it’s set them up for a brighter future.   

 85% of our past participants said they’re better prepared to manage environmental changes (such as cost of living pressures or unexpected bills) since completing Saver Plus.  

  Saver Plus was developed by ANZ and Brotherhood of St Laurence, Berry Street is proud to be the delivering partner for the Saver Plus program in your school's area.