Term 4, Week 6 2023

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Term 4 has been very busy with the building project now well underway. We are extremely hopeful that the new learning spaces will be completed by mid January, so that our Year 2, 3 and 4 classes can enjoy the contemporary new learning spaces from the beginning of 2024.

It was lovely to show a large group of prospective parents through the school yesterday morning on a Principal tour.  I was extremely proud of how our students showcased their learning so beautifully and articulately.  The families were definitely impressed with our commitment to learning, our welcoming community and the sincere sense of care shown by our students and staff.

CHRISTMAS CONCERT

I can’t believe our Christmas Concert is next week.  There has been an exciting buzz around the school as the students (and staff) have been practicing and perfecting their songs, dances and plays in preparation for the big event!.  This will definitely be a great night of entertainment.

Families and friends are all invited to attend and share in the Christmas cheer.  Families are also encouraged to bring along a picnic dinner to share on the oval before the concert begins. Ice-blocks and drinks will be available for purchase on the night.

I look forward to seeing you all next Thursday night.

Where:      Oval and Court Area
5pm:         Dunn Street Gate Open 

Please Note:  Parents are responsible for the supervision of their children until they meet with their teacher at 6:00pm.

6:00pm:    Children meet their teacher in the MFC in preparation for the performance.
6:30pm:    Concert Begins
8:00pm:    Concert concludes (approximately)

Please Note:  All students must be signed off by their class teacher at the end of the concert.  Please do not leave without doing this.

LITTLE DOMINICANS TRANSITION PROGRAM

The last 3 weeks have seen our school community welcome 23 new Little Dominican students.  These students will be starting in Reception in 2024, and they have all settled in so beautifully. I have no doubt that everyone has made them feel welcome and all the feedback I have received has been very positive.  In fact, some of the Little Dominican students want to start school straight away.  Please make sure you smile, wave, and welcome them with open arms into this wonderful school community.

2024 CLASS PLACEMENTS

Staff are well underway in the rigorous and thorough process of class placements.  Our ultimate aim is to create a balanced learning environment within all classrooms, taking into consideration the social-emotional needs, academic capabilities and wellbeing of all students.

The class structures for 2024 are as follows:

2x Reception Classes
2x Year 1 Classes
1x Year 2 Class
2x 3 /4 Classes
2x 5 /6 Classes

On Monday 11 Dec (Week 9) all students will take part in a whole school transition where they will get to meet and become familiar with the other students in their class, as well as their 2024 class teacher.  This is always an exciting, but nervous time for students, so please continue to be positive and reassure them.

Madhavi Nawana Parker from Positive Minds Australia has some very helpful advice about navigating the uncertainty of class placements.  You can read it here.

YEAR 6 CAMP

On Monday this week, 30 excited Year 6 students embarked on their last camp as leaders of Dominican School.  There was a buzz of excitement in the air as they drove off making their way to Belair for 3 days of adventurous fun.

They all represented Dominican so beautifully and after sharing in their Talent Show on Monday night, I learnt a lot more about the ‘hidden’ talents all our wonderful students had.

This camp was one that developed the skills of teamwork, resilience, perseverance, and challenge. It required students to step out of their comfort zone to try new things. What an opportunity to 'inspire hearts and minds to be the best they can be’. 

CHILDREN'S UNIVERSITY

As a Principal, I was so proud to be a part of The Children’s University Graduation that took place at Bonython Hall in Adelaide University last Monday.  It was such an honour to present the awards to the following students: Annabelle F, Jessica J, Angelique J, Abigail S, Emma W, Leife C, Isabelle C, Marley G, William G, Ashley H, Braxton H, Eli M, Brooklyn O, Kelsey O, Parker P, Peyton P, Beth R, Evie R, Sarah T, Isobel W, Ella Y, Maddison Y, Luisa Z, Kyan J, Lennon J, Leonardo M, Jett R, Grace B.

For children between the ages of 7 and 14, the Children's University program provides excellent extracurricular learning opportunities, and also honours their accomplishments with official certificates and a graduation. Together with providing excellent learning opportunities for you and your child, the program also supports the involvement of parents in education.

I also acknowledge Mr Nick Ryan, who has worked behind the scenes, in liaising with children, families and the Children’s University. If your child would like to participate in the Children’s University program for 2024, please speak with Nick – nryan@dominican.catholic.edu.au

SAND DUNES PROGRAM

During Week 4 our Year 5 upcoming leaders joined with the younger children at Largs North Kindy to work collaboratively to clean up part of our coastline.  This is an ongoing project contributing to the maintenance, restoration, and enhancement of the coastal dune system and Biodiversity Park on LeFevre Peninsula.  Both students, volunteers and teachers had a great day, and many new friendships were forged. Our Year 5 students will definitely be fantastic school leaders in 2024

Wishing you a lovely week ahead.

Many blessings,

Angela Scodella
PRINCIPAL

We wait in joyful HOPE for the coming of CHRIST, the Light of the World

We will soon be coming into the Church Season of ADVENT.  The word Advent means ‘to come’ and during this time we prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus at Christmas. 

The duration of this season is four weeks and begins on Sunday December 3.  At Dominican School, it has been our tradition to begin Advent early so that we experience the full cycle.  Our theme for Advent this year is LIGHT, which centres on Christ as the Light of the World.  During Advent, we prepare for the coming of Christ, and as followers of Jesus, we are all called to shine God’s Light of Hope and Love on Earth.

We will mark the beginning of our Advent journey with community prayer as part of our whole school assembly this Friday November 24.

Jesus said, ‘You are the light of the world... let your light shine for everyone.’  Mt 5:14-16

One of the ways we can be a sign of the light of Christ in our world is by supporting those in need in our local community.  Each year at Dominican, we commit to helping those less fortunate by providing donations for Christmas Hampers to support the VINNIES CHRISTMAS APPEAL.  This year’s theme is ‘Give The Best Present Ever’.

We will have a Giving Tree in the Front Office and a Christmas box in each classroom for the collection of goods.  We invite all students to contribute an item so that together we can bring some comfort and cheer to the needy this festive season.  Such items might include: packaged foods such as pasta, noodles, and biscuits; tinned foods such as vegetables, soups, baked beans, and spaghetti; Christmas items such as bonbons, decorations, puddings, and tinned hams; long life products such as tea, coffee, milo, milk, juice, jam, and honey; and small gift items such as puzzles, books, stationery, and toiletries.  We will be collecting donations until Week 9 Monday December 11.

Our Dominican community is always very generous in giving at this time, and we thank you in advance for your support.

Alison Tanti-Clark
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL RELIGIOUS IDENTITY AND MISSION

SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM

The next cycle of the Sacramental Program will commence early next year… and we are seeking expressions of interest.  Our Family Faith Formation Program involves children from Dominican School, Our Lady of the Visitation School and the Lefevre Catholic Parish to prepare for and celebrate the Sacraments of First Reconciliation, Confirmation and First Holy Communion.  The program is for Catholic children who are 8 years or over.

Please see the following link for further details

Sacraments Brochure

We invite and welcome all children who would like to be a part of this program to support them on their faith journey.

To register your child in the program, please contact:
Bernadette Smith at familyfaith@catholicparishes.com.au or 8449 6378

Alison Tanti-Clark
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL RELIGIOUS IDENTITY & MISSION

ROTATIONAL SYMMETRY WITH 3/4S

In Mathematics our 3/4 classes have been learning and exploring line and rotational symmetry of shapes and patterns. We have used Minecraft to create examples of symmetry and explored works by artists such as Escher, who utilised repeated patterns and created tessellations. To demonstrate their learning and understanding of rotational symmetry students created their own monochrome Mandalas. They carefully created their patterns to ensure they repeated accurately.

Genevieve Spencer
3/4S CLASSROOM TEACHER

PHYSICAL EDUCATION WEEK

Celebrating the importance of Health & Physical Education

In week 5 we celebrated Physical Education Week. Health & PE is an essential area of the curriculum that provides real opportunities for children to learn how to lead active & healthy lives – now and in the future. It recognises and actively promotes the importance of health and physical education and physical activity for physical, social, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

We celebrated this important event by participating in various health and fitness activities throughout the week. We kicked off the week with a whole school health hustle led by Ash Brown, Dominican parent and owner/trainer of ABFit Society. The whole school morning health hustle continued for the remainder of the week and was led by Year 6 students, McKinley, Harrison and Grace. During lunch time each day, our Year 6 leaders ran various fitness and wellbeing activities focused on our theme days: Move it Monday, Target Tuesday, Wellbeing Wednesday, Team Thursday and Feel Good Friday. We were pleased to see so many students get involved and participate in each day’s activities.

Many thanks to Ash Brown, our Year 6 leaders and all Dominican staff for their support in making this a fabulous week for our school community.

Martina Kovacev
PE COORDINATOR

This week the Year 6 students attended camp at Nunyara, Belair. The students took part in three days of activities run by Beyond Limits. All of the activities promoted participation, communication, teamwork, leadership and initiative.  We were impressed by the consistent efforts displayed by all students throughout their time at camp. They continuously modelled the Dominican pillars and have come back to school with memories to last a lifetime. We thank our parent volunteers, Lauren Ratsch and Jack Fawkner, for actively supporting our students to be the best they can be.

Here are a few favourite moments from our Year 6’s:

“My favourite moment at camp was climbing all the way to the top if the 13m tree. I was a bit nervous but really enjoyed it. When you reached the top of the tree you could see an amazing birds eye view of the airport. Camp was really fun and a great way to make the last few memories at primary school.” – Grace H

“At camp I enjoyed climbing the tree which was 13m tall, I climbed to the top of the tree which was a bit daunting but once I did it, I was really proud. I also enjoyed the water activities, though the teachers and staff poured water all over me with buckets of water and the hose. This activity involved lots of teamwork and communication. Overall, I loved all the activities and tribal games.” – Emily

“My favourite activity was the water activities. We had to throw buckets of water to our team and fill up a bigger bucket. I also liked the talent show, Grace and I dressed up as Port players and sung ‘Never Tear Us Apart’. It was super funny and it got a lot of laughs. Camp was so fun and it will be a moment I will cherish. I am very grateful for the experience.” – Tahlia

“At camp I enjoyed doing the fun activities. My favourite was climbing the 13m tall tree. I also really liked the food that they made us. I really enjoyed the first day at camp because the activities were super fun.” – Jessica

Martina Kovacev, Matt Kosta and Lisa Osborne
YEAR 6 TEACHERS

All families with outstanding fees would have recently received Statements via post.

Please ensure all fees are paid in full as per your payment plan. 

Dominican School continues its commitment to support any family through difficult times. If you are at all concerned about your ability to pay your school fees by the end of the school year, 15 December 2023.

I strongly encourage you to have a confidential discussion with myself or our Principal, Angela Scodella. If you have not communicated with us, we have no option but to follow the South Australian Commission for Catholic School (SACCS) Debt Collection procedures.

Jo Freer
FINANCE OFFICER