Principal's News Week 5
Dear Families,
Last Wednesday we celebrated the beginning of Lent with our Ash Wednesday Mass. A big thank you to Fr James for celebrating this liturgy with us. We have now begun the Lenten journey and again we are invited to accept the challenge of reconciliation and given the opportunity to speak to and educate our children about forgiveness and repentance. In the busyness of our day it is a perfect opportunity to stop and pray more deeply. It is a time of renewal and preparation for celebrating the resurrection.
Father James, in his sermon, gave the message that is highly relevant to us this lent. To pray, to fast and to give. Quite often we are challenged over Lent and tell ourselves that we are too busy. This Lent, take time out with your family to pray together and talk about the relevance of Jesus in our lives today.
Thoughts for Lent
Mend a quarrel
Search out a forgotten friend
Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust
Write a love letter
Share some treasure
Give a soft answer
Encourage youth
Manifest your loyalty in a word or deed
Keep a promise
Find the time
Forego a grudge
Forgive an enemy
Listen
Apologise if you were wrong
Try to understand
Flout envy
Examine your demands on others
Take pleasure on the beauty and wonder of the earth
Speak your love
Speak it again
PRINCIPAL’S RETREAT
This week I am away, attending the Archdiocesan Principal’s Retreat in Bowral. Each year, all Principals within our Archdiocese and key Catholic Education staff gather on retreat to reflect on our roles as leaders in Catholic schools. This year, Professor Br David Hall, Director of the La Salle Academy at the ACU will lead us in prayer. The theme of the retreat this year will be ‘The Virtue of Hope – Leading Learning and Mission’.
I thank you all for allowing me the time to attend this valuable time away from school.
SWIMMING CARNIVAL
Last week we held our annual St Francis of Assisi Primary School Swimming Carnival. A big thank you to Debbie Cossettini and Michelle Marshall and our ‘Swimming Carnival Staff Committee’ for coordinating and planning this carnival. It was such a successful day. We were certainly blessed with spectacular weather. A big thank you to all those parents who volunteered on the day. Your help is always invaluable and to those parents who could not attend but helped out with delicious morning tea. Thank you so very much.
CANTEEN
Don’t forget that our canteen offers parents the opportunity to purchase birthday treats for your child’s class. We have many children in our school who have food allergies and birthday treats have proven to be a problem in years past. We are a nut free school and all birthday treats provided must adhere to this. Any product that is brought to school that contains nuts will not be served to children and will be sent home. To avoid any confusion the canteen is offering nut free products, along with healthy options. Please see the canteen menu for further information. This can be located on our school website
LOCAL SCHOOLS COMMUNITY FUND
It is with great excitement that I announce our successful application for the Local Schools Community Fund. We submitted an application that would see the school develop the gravel area in front of the playground equipment into a new sensory garden.
This garden is designed to assist our students with additional needs. The area will have equipment that could include spinners, swings, sound tubes and wind chimes etc. As an inclusive school we see that this area of the playground would be accessible to all children during our lunchtime breaks.
As part of the grant we have committed to undertaking this project ourselves. We are very fortunate to have Jeff Alcock who will be doing the majority of the work himself, and throughout the year, I will be inviting parents within our school community to assist through working bees. I am sure we have a multitude of parents who have the necessary skills to help complete this project.
The grant has given us access to $20 000 and the school will use our fundraising efforts from last year and our Colour-Run this year to assist with the costs involved.
A would like to publically thank Mr David Smith MP, Federal Member for Bean, for facilitating this strong community project and for his continual support of our school. We look forward to inviting Mr Smith to see how our project is developing throughout the year.
SCHOOL SAFETY
For the safety of all children in our school, the BASCA school gates will be locked at 8:30am every morning. From 8:30am please make your way to the main entrance of the school and use the gate closest to the front office.
Peace and Best Wishes
Kate Markcrow