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Dear Parents/Carers,
Tomorrow, with the celebration of Ash Wednesday, we enter the significant season of our Church’s year - Lent. This is a time of Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving.
Lent is also a time to hear the Word of God, to be reconciled with one’s self and with one’s neighbour. It is a time to do good works, to fast and to prepare for Easter. Interestingly, this time is marked by the symbol of the ashes. This is an ancient practice which converted sinners. The act of putting ashes on the forehead is a symbol of fragility and mortality and the need to be redeemed by the mercy of God. This act is the first step in preparation of renewing the Easter commitment and promise of new life.
As we begin our Lenten journey for 2021, how will prayer become more integral to your life? How will you welcome the mercy of God in the confusion of life? How will you recognise that reconciliation may be needed for you to ‘outgrow the past and enter the present’?
Embrace this first week of Lent with open arms and allow God into your life as you have never done before.
Go gently,
Michael Reardon
Principal
Congratulations to the following students who have recently received a Principal's Award.
Patrick Waters, Johnny Corsaro, William Bellamy, Sophia Bond, Benjamin Carr, Tate Durrington, Alessia Castellano, Jarryd Alam, Oliver Lynch, Spencer Khan, Penelope Garbutt, Michael Macri, Oliver Cimino, Grace Tidy, Addison Campbell, Audrey Shephard, Mikah Small, Amelia Carr, Alyssa Marra, Andrew Kontista, Samuel Vincent, Marcus Mura, Izabella Robertson, Benjamin Moore, Emerson Lamacchia, Jacob Motti, Petyon Terry, Holy Garbutt, Erin Ward, Indie Tulich, Amelia Dominelli, Braxton Russell, Eldan Varghese, Ariella Gomez, Victoria Togias, Sophie Puckrin, Isabella Meekin, Emily Gray, Kyah Graham, Sebastian Patricio, AMelia Meekin, Angela Pisanko, Leila Tulich, Helena Kral
Kindergarten 2022 Enrolments
Enrolments for Kindergarten 2022 are now open. Enrolments packs will be available to download from our school website or to collect from the school office. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LHwPLISl8HYk4CC0GxTGaY-NLKSiMeLb/view
Applications close 3:00pm, Thursday, 1 April 2021.
2021 Student Leaders
At last Friday's whole school assembly our 2021 student leaders were presented with their badges and captains blazers.
Parking and Drop Off
All parents/carers should either park their car in Mitchell Street or in the Larkin Place Car Park. You should never stop your car on the road or parallel to the school and conveniently let your children out unsupervised. There were a number of occasions last year where such behaviour almost led to a child, or adult being hit! Children arriving late to school must be signed in at the office.
Rangers have and will be patrolling the area and infringement notices may be issued.
Bubblers Now Open
Following advice and the CEDoW COVID-19 Directives in Schools Term 1.
Our school bubblers are now permitted to be turned on. Students are encouraged to still use their own water bottles and use the bubblers to refill their water bottles during the day.
Birthday Celebrations
If your child is celebrating a birthday and you are wanting to send in something for the class please only send Allen's type lollypops that are fully sealed and individually wrapped.
Returning to School With an Injury (Broken Leg/Arm)
Any student who needs to come back to school with a broken arm or leg is required to have a medical clearance and the school needs to complete a risk assessment to determine further support before your child can return to school.
The school requests that parents make contact with the school office to arrange a meeting with Mrs Mel Waters to have a risk assessment completed before your child can return to school.
It is important that this process is followed to ensure that your child's education is not interrupted and that any support your child requires is put in place before they return to school.
During this time of Lent may we come to know Jesus more deeply and to live in his truth.
We pray that we become the people Jesus calls us to be, a welcoming community alive to relationships of justice and peace
This week we celebrate Ash Wednesday. This day begins the forty day season of Lent that leads to Easter. On Ash Wednesday, we come together to remind ourselves that we don’t always follow God’s ways. On these occasions we need to ask God for His mercy and forgiveness. Like God’s people in the time of the prophets, we wear ashes to show that we want to turn away from whatever keeps us from God, and to have a change of heart, so that we can live in the right relationship with God and with each other. For Catholics, Ash Wednesday is also a day of fasting and abstaining from meat. Fasting reminds us that food alone cannot make us happy. We must also be fed with prayer, with God’s Word and by meeting Jesus in the Sacraments, especially Reconciliation and Eucharist.
As Catholics, it is important to reflect on what Lent means to us in our relationship with God. It is a time to cut out the background noise of life and listen to God’s voice and turn our hearts and minds in the right direction. The small sacrifices we make during Lent make room in our hearts to welcome the risen Jesus at Easter. Please take some time to talk with your children about the meaning of Lent and discuss together what could be a meaningful sacrifice for this time. May we become more aware of the impact of our choices on ourselves, on others and on our world.
May you and your family have a blessed Lent.
Maria Debrincat
Religious Education & Pastoral Care Coordinator
Fostering Independence in your Child
Independence is an important aspect of your child’s development. From the age of two, children strive for more independence. From this age, you should encourage your child to make simple choices about their lives.
Around first or second grade, children begin seeking more independence.
Children at this age want to — and need to — make significant decisions. Instead of closely supervising your child’s every action, focus more on guiding decision-making and creating room for reflection and mistakes. When getting ready for school these activities could include: getting dressed themselves, putting their lunch box in their bag (after you have put their food in it), carrying their own bag into and out of school, walking into school by themselves...
Though it may actually take more time initially for parents to support children to do age-appropriate tasks for themselves, your child's self confidence and independence will grow as a result.
This increased sense of ownership — even a simple phone call to set up a play date — is vital to developing independence and responsibility.
The positive of Covid that we have seen at St Paul's is that our students are becoming more independent and willing to undertake these tasks. They are walking into school independently and willingly on their own. We congratulate the children on doing this. Let’s embrace this challenging time with a positive outlook and work together and become a team that supports natural and healthy developmental drives for independence.
Below are the minutes from our first P&F meeting of 2021.
Cheese & Drinks Night - RSVP via the compass parent portal (link in news feed)
Due to COVID restrictions, numbers will be limited to 50.
School Banking Day is Thursday
| Wednesday, 17 February 2021 | Ash Wednesday | |
| Thursday, 18 February 2021 | 1:30-2:30pm |
Parent Volunteer Workshop Parents MUST phone school office to register attendance |
| Thursday, 18 February 2021 | 6:30-7:30pm |
Parent Volunteer Workshop Parents MUST phone school office to register attendance |
| Monday, 1 March 2021 - Friday, 5 March 2020 | Catholic Schools Week | |
| Friday, 5 March 2021 | School Cross Country | |
| Thursday, 11 March 2021 | Year 5 Girls' Visiting St Pat's | |
| Friday, 12 March 2021 | 7:00pm-8:00pm |
Parent Cheese & Drinks Night Parents MUST RSVP via Compass |
| Thursday, 1 April 2021 | 3:00pm | Kindergarten 2022 Enrolments Close |
| Thursday, 1 April 2021 | Last Day of Term 1 | |
| Friday, 2 April 2021 | Good Friday | |
| Sunday, 4 April 2021 | Easter Sunday | |
| Monday, 19 April 2021 | Term 2 Commences |
Brother Clarence Foundation for Education
The Brother Clarence Foundation for Education is in its thirtieth year. The foundation was established for the MacArthur region in September 1990 as an honour and memory of the work of Brother Clarence Cunningham who, spent eighteen of his forty years of teaching in our region. The purpose of the Trust is to assist students in need in our region to meet their educational expenses.
The foundation is administered by an Advisory Board and responsible to the Trustees, since November 1991 the Foundation has distributed $117,320 to 303 families across MacArthur.
The foundation warmly extends an invitation to anyone interested in making a donation please contact the Hon. Treasurer Gary Charlton via email; gcharlton@optusnet.com.au or the Secretary, Therese Barrington email; brotherclarencefoundation@gmail.com if you would like more information.
