Being a Positive Role Model

Dear Parents and Carers,

I wish to share an incident that occurred at Holy Name last week.  Just before the front gates were closed, three young males fleeing a threatening situation in the community, entered the school and hid in the library where a drama performance was taking place.  The parents and staff in attendance responded professionally, and, after speaking with the three men, they complied with the request to leave the school grounds.  I would like to emphasise that this was a unique situation. 

Although the situation above was unique, I share this because it highlights the increasing levels of negative behaviours and violence occurring in society and schools.

A recent national survey conducted by the Australian Catholic University revealed that nearly half of school principals have experienced or witnessed physical violence in their roles.  Over 54% reported being threatened with violence, often by parents or caregivers. These incidents range from verbal abuse to physical confrontations, and in some cases, even threats involving weapons. These experiences, while not defining, are part of the reality of modern schools, and they are not unique to principals. Research shows that teachers are six times more stressed and eleven times more likely to face violence than professionals in other fields.

While these statistics are concerning, I want to reassure you that Holy Name is fortunate. Negative behaviours and violence are rare in our school, which I am grateful for.

So, what do we do with this information?

The staff and I are working diligently to ensure Holy Name School remains a safe and supportive environment.  This includes explicitly teaching social and emotional skills, the development of a student code of conduct, and reviewing processes to promote and support appropriate behaviours by all members of the community.  It also means investing in relationships, celebrating successes, prioritising health and wellbeing, and finding joy in the everyday moments.  Again, our school is in a strong position, and we should celebrate this.

We know that violence should never be part of schools. At Holy Name, we remain committed to our Vision: Belonging, Learning, and Serving in His Holy Name. We continue to build a culture of respect, compassion, and resilience. And we thank you—our families—for your ongoing support, encouragement, and partnership.  For being a positive role model.

If you ever have concerns or questions, please reach out. Together, we can ensure our school remains a place where every child—and every adult—feels safe, valued, and inspired to grow.

Warm regards,

Ben Doyle
Principal

Curriculum

In Week 6, HNS underwent our annual COSI (Continuum of School Improvement) Curriculum Focus Day. This is an opportunity for our school to ensure compliance with the CSO, NESA and government guidelines as well as share with our Manning region colleagues diferent pedagogical and organisational approaches. We were supported by Education officers from the CSO and will receive a list of commendations and recommendations that we will work on in our next strategic cycle.

Public Speaking

The HNS Public Speaking finals were held today. A big thank you to Mrs Quilter for adjudicating and to all the students that gave their very best in the competition.

The Class Winners were 

The winners of our school competition were:

ES1	Hazel McNamara
S1	Jacob Matthews
S2	Anna Brooks
S3	Nanma Joy

These students will travel to St Joseph's, Wingham, next Wednesday, September 10th, for the Regional Competition. Information will come home to families on Monday. Mrs Loring will attend on the day.

Positive Behaviour for Learning

Our PB4L focuses since our last newsletter have been I Can Move Calmly around the School (Weeks 3 & 4) and I Contribute to a Calm Learning Environment (Weeks 5 & 6).

The following students received awards:

Week 4 Class Awards

Week 4 Principal's Awards

Week 6 Class Awards

Week 6 Principal's Awards

Our focus for Weeks 7 & 8 is I Use Kind Words and Manners. The students are given surfboard tokens when they are "caught" displying this skill.

Father's Day Breakfast and Prayer Reflection

Today we hosted our annual Father's Day Breakfast and celebrated our fathers, grandfathers and father figures who play a very important role in our students lives. Holy Name Staff cooked up bacon and egg rolls and saugage sandwiches and watched on as the dads played games with their son/ daughter on the playground. It was a lovely atmosphere for our school community to be part of.

Congratulations to our Yr 1 students and their teachers Miss Meers and Miss Nolan who led our community in prayer and then sang our dad's a memorable blessing song.  

We wish all our dads a very happy Father's Day on Sunday.

Celebrating Grandparents Day

Year 2 Student Formation Day – Caring for the Common Good

Yesterday, our Year 2 students participated in a special Student Formation Day held in the school hall. The day was thoughtfully planned around the Catholic Social Teaching principle of “Care for the Common Good.”

Led by Mrs Rose Loring and Mrs Sophie Tull, the day focused on helping students reflect on how they can care for others. Activities included scripture reflections, meditation and prayer, identifying local community needs, and planning meaningful ways to offer support.

Students ended the day with a creative craft session, writing heartfelt letters to people in need and designing their own T-shirts to wear during their upcoming Lemonade Stand fundraiser in Term 4.

All funds raised will go towards purchasing gift vouchers for families at St Joseph’s schools in Taree and Wingham. Mrs Stephens (Principal of St Joseph’s Taree) and Mrs Hunt (Principal of St Joseph’s Wingham) have been in contact with our Year 2 team, and Mrs Stephens kindly wrote a letter of thanks to our students. She shared that many families in her school community are still without basic necessities like homes, clothing, and toys due to recent flooding.

We are incredibly proud of our Year 2 students for their compassion, initiative, and commitment to helping others. Their efforts are a true example of living out the value of “Care for the Common Good.”

Year 6 Religious Literacy Test

On Monday our Yr 6 cohort sat the 2025 Religous Literacy Test created by the Maitland Newcastle Religious Education and Spirituality Team. Our Yr 6 students were feeling confident after completing the online test which was broken into 3 sections: Section 1 was 25 multiple choice questions, Section 2 five short answer questions on Beliefs and Section 3 four extended responses for questions on the Christian Scriptures. 

Thank you Miss McKinnon and Miss Sheppard for helping prepare our students for this annual assessment to help track the religious literacy of our students.

Parish Sacramental Program News

First Communion

For children in Yr 4 (additionally any children in Yr 5 or above who missed preparing for the Sacrament of Eucharist), are now invited to enrol in the program. Closing date for enrolment is Friday, 17 October 2025 at 3pm.
Preparation 1: Monday, 3 November 3:30pm-5pm
Preparation 2: Monday, 10 November 3:30pm-5pm
Preparations will be held in Parish Hall led by Mrs Williamson. Holy Name students will walk from school at 3:10pm with Mrs Williamson to the Parish Hall and have afternoon tea before commencing their lesson.
The Sacrament of Eucharist with Fr John Vo will be celebrated on Saturday, 15 November at the 5pm Vigil Mass in the Church.
Enrolment Form
The Sacramental Program enrolment form can be completed online via the Parish website:
www.forstertuncurrycatholic.org.au ‘Sacraments/
Sacramental Preparation (Enrolment Form)’.

Baptism Certificate
For your child’s preparation, the Parish Office will need a recent copy of their Baptism Certificate. If your child was baptised in another Parish please contact that Parish to obtain your child’s baptism certificate then send the copy of the Baptism Certificate by email to the Parish Office: forster-tuncurry.parish@mn.catholic.org.au or personally deliver to the Parish Office. If your child was baptised in the Holy Name of Jesus Church (Forster), please indicate this on the Enrolment Form, they will not need to sight the certificate, they can refer to their records.

Genevieve Williamson

Religious Education Coordinator.

This Edition is all About Science in Action

Year 6 Investigating States of Matter

In 6M the young scientists have been exploring the fascinating world of matter through hands-on experiments. Using Oobleck, students investigated viscosity and discovered how this unusual substance can act like both a liquid and a solid under and without pressure. They also created slime to see how molecules bond and change states slowly over time. Catapulting marshmallows demonstrated the different forces involved in aiming and distance.

Check out these fantasic videos of Year 6's conducting experiemnts investigating states of matter!

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/a-10Pbl6ovA?t=8&feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/KcZrwiufRYQ?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/yAz7zglIFXo?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/_ObRU-K0lgM?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/r2Y-w7avn9o?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/8y-5sKW602Y?feature=share

Term 3 Science in Kinder = All About Living Things

This term Kinder have been lucky enough to have 3 families bring in their special pets to share how they look after them by keeping them safe and happy.

Indy Williams was very excited to bring in her Bearded Dragon named Toothless! Indy shared all of the things that Toothless needs to stay alive such as a balanced diet, water, calcium, space/shelter and sunlight. The students were very lucky to have the opportunity of touching the bearded dragon.

Next Ella Tickle brought in her guinea pigs named Rosie and Lilly. Students in Kinder came up with a list of questions to ask Ella about how she looks after her pet guinea pigs. Ella shared lots of information with us to answer all of our questions and gave everyone the opportunity to pat her guinea pigs.

Last week Hadley brought in his pet chickens named Aelin and Bryce. He talked about the food he feeds them and the jobs he has to do to keep their chickens coup looking and smelling nice and clean. Lucky Hadley isn't afaid of hard work because he explained how much work it is to shovel up the chicken poo. Kinder thought this was very amusing! This Kinders got to have a pat of Aelin as he is the chicken that is happy to be held and patted.

Kindergarten will be visiting Oakvale Wildlife Park on Monday so we will report back on the our next round of animal adventures!

Breakfast Club & Mini Vinnies

Art Club

Creative Club

Wellbeing Week

Fun at the Todd Woodbridge Cup!

Congratulations to the students from Stage 2 and Stage 3 who represented Holy Name at the local Todd Woodbridge Cup event recently. All students played very well and demonstrated good sportsmanship; encouraging and celebrating not only each other, but students from other schools as well. The Stage 2 competition saw Holy Name finish in second place, while the Stage 3 competition saw Holy Name Red walk away with the win!! The Red team will now progress on to the next round to be held at Kendall on 20 October. More information and permission notes to come.

Polding Athletics Carnival

Good luck to Hafsa O, Charlotte A and Xavier L who are off to the Polding Athletics Carnival next Friday, representing the Diocese of Maitland Newcastle. Please join me in wishing them well and keep them in your prayers for a successful day of competition.

New Athletic Singlets for our Representatives

Holy Name students will soon be looking even sharper at sporting events with some new athletics singlets on the way. Once received, students will be able to wear these when representing Holy Name at events such as regional cross country, regional athletics, sports gala days etc. Thank you to our dedicated P&F for making this a reality for our students.

Yours in Sport,

Michelle Quilter

Spring has sprung in HNS garden and the students have enjoyed planting spring and summer crops of tomatoes, capsicums, carrots, spinach, peas and butter beans. After some much needed weeding has been completed, we might also consider planting watermelon and rockmelon seeds.

The spring breezes have brought with them the sweet-smelling scent of the small white flowers which have blossomed on the orange and lemon trees, creating yet another pleasantry in our garden environment.

With a spring in our step, until we meet next time in the garden …

Kind regards

Mrs Jackie Amato

Learning Support Assistant/Garden Supervisor