Dear Parents and Carers,

Moving in to the second half of our last term of learning for 2018, is also a time when life away from school becomes much busier as the annual end of year festivities begin to take place.  It is an exciting time and also a busy time.

It is great to see so many children remembering to drink lots of water during the school day to keep themselves refreshed and ready for the various events that are coming along each day.  It is also important to ensure that everyone is getting adequate rest each night.  This will help to ensure that all events are enjoyed by everyone! Please continue to talk with your children about having enough to drink and eat to enjoy their day at school. 

During this week, we have been having conversations about one of the biggest challenges which revolves around playing fairly and safely in games.  Often when someone gets out, they are disappointed with this result – however, accepting a result and moving on with the game means that no time is wasted and everyone gets lots of turns.

At present many of the children are enjoying the bike riding activity during recess and lunch.  Naturally this is challenging us to think about how we can share the available equipment and enjoy a different playground activity.  For the most part, the children are doing a terrific job of this.

Library - Well done to everyone who has been looking out for overdue library books and returning these to school.  This week we’ve had a number of books handed in which is terrific to see.  In terms of overdue books, our best result for this year, was an item that had been on loan for 266 days.

Please feel free to keep returning any “extra” books that you find at home.

School Fees – Thank you to those families who have already paid the fees for this term.  Thank you also to those who are keeping us up to date with making payments, this is very helpful.

If your family is experiencing difficulties paying school fees, please make contact with Therese Clancy at school for assistance.  There are a number of options available to assist when people are experiencing financial challenges.

ABC – during this term, we have been speaking with the children about using a simple method of reminding ourselves to be the best people and learners possible.

Our ABC explains what we need to be doing in order to be able to make the most of each day both at school and elsewhere in life.

Aspire – to be our best

Believe – that Jesus is with us

Connect – with each other, the world and God

When we remember these three aspects of our day at school then days will flow smoothly and we will get the most out of our learning.

Kinder Transition – Our Kinder orientation program has continued this week. Keep up the great work Kinder 2019!

During our final day next Wednesday, the children will share a short presentation that they have been working on thus far.  We will share this at a whole school assembly. The presentation will begin, at 12:45pm, and will be followed by a short meeting for parents to finalise preparations for 2019.

Parents can then join their children for lunch. The children’s lunches will be arranged through the canteen, although if parents would like to bring alternative lunches they are welcome to do so.

We look forward to seeing you again next week!

Book Club - the final book club flyer of the year was sent home last week.  All orders should have been returned to school yesterday (21/11) so that the order can be finalised and submitted to ensure that it arrives before the end of this term.

Carols in the Park – I understand that the Carols in the Park

Calendar - You might notice that our newsletter calendar has clicked over to 2019 – we are already in the planning stages for 2019 and dates have been put onto the calendar that are already have available. Please note that there may be some minor changes as time progresses.

Uniforms – orders for 2019 – an order form is attached to this newsletter.  If you wish to place an order for 2018, please return your order to school by Friday November 30 – this enables us to place the order and get it to school by the end of this year.

Swim Safe – information about this year’s Swim Safe program is being sent home today in a separate note.

Please note the change of date for our end of year Mass and graduation celebration. Our end of year Celebration and Yr. 6 Graduation Mass will now be held on Tuesday December 11.

Our Presentation Night is set down for Thursday December 13.

Please note these changes on your calendars.

Sincerely,

Therese Clancy

Principal

REC News

On a personal note, I have really been looking forward to this Thursday for quite some time. My youngest child will be arriving home from his gap year in Canada. There has been a flurry of activity in our house as we make some of his favourite foods, tidy up his bedroom (which seems to have become the dumping zone for all of our extraneous items) and just generally make the place, and ourselves, ready for his arrival.

This put me in the frame of mind to think about our preparations for Christmas and more importantly, Advent. There are so many reflections about Advent but I have chosen one for this week that resonated with me as I wait in joyful hope for the arrival of my son.

Memory Awakens Hope Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Seek That Which Is Above 1986

     "Advent is concerned with that very connection between memory and hope which is so necessary to man. Advent’s intention is to awaken the most profound and basic emotional memory within us, namely, the memory of the God who became a child. This is a healing memory; it brings hope. The purpose of the Church’s year is continually to rehearse her great history of memories, to awaken the heart’s memory so that it can discern the star of hope.…

     It is the beautiful task of Advent to awaken in all of us memories of goodness and thus to open doors of hope."

Leslie King

Classroom News

This week’s news comes from the Library.

Over the past few weeks quite a few books have been added to the shelves.  One book of focus has been Red Ned by Tony Wilson.

This book has a great message about how not to have a haircut, and even more importantly that points of difference are not necessarily a bad thing………

Some of K/1/2’s thoughts are as follows:

I liked it when Ned gave himself a haircut.  Saskia

I thought that it was funny when the boys cut their hair.  Jack R

It’s funny how Red Ned has red hair like his mum.  Grace

I liked the book because it had Ned Kelly.  He shaved his hair off and he looked funny.  Baxter

It was exciting that they worked hard, and got to go to the barber shop.  William

I liked it when the boys gave themselves haircuts at the Barber shop.  Georgia

I liked the story Red Ned because it was funny and it had rhyming words.  I also liked the describing words.  The message was to read the labels on hair dye and not to put a silver bucket on your head…. So no one thinks that you are a bush ranger.     Emma

It was funny because Jed had red hair and he had a bucket on his head because he was embarrassed to show his hair to everyone.  Stella

 It was a funny story because Ned shaved his red hair.  Beau

The book was funny because both the boy and his mum had lots of red hair.  India

It was funny because Red Ned had a haircut.  I also liked it because it had rhyming words.  Camilla G

The book was funny because the boy and his mum both have lots of really red hair.  Lily

I liked it when Ned tried to dye his hair blonde.  Bethany

I learnt that Ned Kelly had a bucket on his head because he didn’t want anyone to see his red hair.  Ned Kelly had a bucket on his head so that no one could tell it was him.  Jack P