Dear parents and carers,

What a wonderful celebration we had for Socktober for Mission month and Father Joe was so appreciative of being asked to celebrate the day with us. He talked to us about his experiences with sock balls as a child. He said he and his school mates made them from palm and banana leaves and that the balls were made differently depending on which sport they were planning to play with them. He said they used their home- made leaf balls for soccer, basketball and volleyball and that although their school had a real soccer ball, it was only used for special occasions, such as competing against other schools. For him, playing with our sock balls was a trip down memory lane.

Father Joe was also impressed with the effort some children had expended on making their sock balls. Some of them had quite elaborate weaving on the outside.

The tie dyed items from the gold reward day were revealed on Monday. The children were very excited to discover how their items had turned out. We learned a lot through the process. Here are some of their creations.

On Tuesday the 3^rd of November, the Year 5 and 6 students will be participating in the final session of the My Body, My Life program as part of their Personal Development and Health learning for this term. I would ask the Year 5 and 6 parents to please make sure that you have watched the online home learning videos with your child prior to their meeting on Tuesday. Your support and discussions with them will help give them the confidence to participate comfortably in this learning.

Next week’s excitement will be welcoming our Kinder transition students for their first visit to big school. We are all looking forward to Wednesday.

 Kind regards,

Acting Principal

RE Staff Professional Development

Last week, the teachers at our school were fortunate enough to be involved in some Professional Development in the area of Religious Education. Mr Lee Herden, CECG’s Interim Principal Catholic Identity Officer, and Andrea Muller, an education consultant for CECG, helped our staff to work together with staff from St Francis Xavier Primary School in Lake Cargelligo to discuss Religious Education teaching successes and challenges this past year and to begin developing units for next year. 

The latest approach in the teaching of Religious Education focuses on making students think critically and make connections with their learning. Overarching concepts are explored through Religious Education lessons and integrated with at least one other Key Learning Area. The idea is to connect Religious Education to our students’ own lives, and other subject areas, in a more meaningful context. 

Socktober Wrap-Up

HEAD, HEART, HANDS

Socktober for Mission Month encourages us to engage with mission for children by using our heads to enquire about the reality of the world around us, using our hearts to feel empathy for those in situations of great need, and using our hands to take action for them in whatever manner we are able.

 Our school Socktober Event Day on Wednesday the 27^th of October was an enormous success. The Mission Day liturgy with Fr Joe was a wonderful experience and tribute to our focus country of Thailand, where the Church seeks to provide life fulfilling opportunities for children in need. Afterwards, the students immensely enjoyed rotating around a number of ball games and activities, one of which was the highly anticipated ‘sockball’ shootout. Thank you to everyone for your valued input which contributed to the day’s success. We managed to raise almost $400 for children in need in Thailand which is a wonderful contribution given we are a small school. Fantastic work St Joseph’s!

Prayer

Teach me, Lord Jesus, to be generous:
to serve You as You deserve;
to give, not counting the cost;
to fight, not heeding the wounds;
to toil, not asking for rest;
to labour, not seeking any reward,
save that of knowing that we do Your will.
Amen

https://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=763

 

Reconciliation and First Communion are both sacraments of initiation which form part of a child's spiritual journey. Sacraments sustain us and are visible signs through which the Christian Community celebrates God's loving presence or Grace. Congratulations to the children undertaking this journey.

Sacramental meetings for Reconciliation and First Holy Communion will be held this term at St Joseph’s Church adjoining the school. Due to current restrictions, we are unable to hold them onsite at school. Meetings will commence at 6pm. One parent is to accompany their child to the meetings.

These meetings will be held on the following dates:

• November 3^rd
• November 10^th
• November 17^th
• November 24^th

Please have your child bring their booklets with them to the meetings. The booklet for First Reconciliation was sent out last term and the First Holy Communion booklet is yet to be given out.

 For more information, please contact Miss Schneider. Email:

danielle.schneider@cg.catholic.edu.au

Danielle Schneider

Acting Religious Education Coordinator