Dear Parents
Welcome back to a brand new school year, one that I’m sure is going to be very challenging. In April 2020, Pope Francis who in his Friday prayer read from a passage in the Gospel of Matthew which tells of how Jesus and his disciples were struck by a sudden storm while sailing on the Sea of Galilee. He said, “We have realised that we are all on the same boat, all of us fragile and disoriented, but at the same time important and needed, all of us called to row together, each of us in need of comforting each other.” As we enter a period of great uncertainty, it is important we strive to be people of hope who row together. I will do my best to keep you informed of all changes and challenges we will encounter this year. The intention is to make the learning experience feel as normal as possible for the students. I am sure that you will continue to support our beautiful community just as you have over the past two years whilst dealing with Covid. Last year, we focused on the virtue of Gratitude. This year, our focus will be Resilience, which I think is going to be very relevant. Last Thursday, the staff spent some time with a wellness coach looking at the virtues of Gratitude and Resilience. I will share more about this focus throughout the year.
Resilience Reflection People who are resilient find peace with the results of any situation. They make friends with failure and don’t take things so personally.
Holiday Works As you may have seen already, a significant amount of work took place over the holidays. The Science room was transferred to the old Year 6 Orange room and was fitted out with new flooring and a coat of paint. Art and Science are now side by side near the computer lab. The relocation of the Science room allowed for a significant refurbishment of the Pre Primary classrooms. Just like the Kindergarten rooms, we now have the luxury of spreading two classes over three rooms. Walls were removed and seven new sliding doors and windows were installed to make these rooms into something special which will allow our students to engage in more indoor and outdoor play, investigations and inquiry based learning activities. They also got a brand new kitchen and an extra toilet block. The Kindergarten and Pre Primary play area also received a magnificent new nature based shipwreck which the students will love playing on. Half of the funding for the shipwreck will be coming from the P&F so please do thank them when you see them around the school. Our P&F do so much for our community and for this, we are truly grateful. The Pre Primary classrooms will be available for use from next Monday 7th February.
On top of this, the Library, Music room and Year 6 classrooms received new Colorbond rooves. The Year 1 and 2 classrooms, and the Wellness and Reading Recovery rooms all got new carpets. Our school is really looking quite spectacular and our staff and students have access to the best resources available.
Parent Information Night The Parent Information Night is scheduled to go ahead as originally planned on Monday 7 February. As usual, we will meet briefly in the hall for about 15 minutes where I will address everyone. Then we will move into the classrooms for two sessions. The first session runs from 6.20pm to 6.50pm. The second session runs from 7.00pm to 7.30pm. Please remember that these sessions are of a general nature. If you have any specific questions regarding your children, please make an appointment to meet with their teacher at a separate time.
Family Fun Night Due to the raft of new restrictions coming into effect from this week, along with a high degree of uncertainty, we have decided that we need to modify the way in which we run this important event. As it stands today, any event with over 500 patrons attending, needs to get people over the age of 16 to provide proof of vaccination. Also, as things are changing rapidly, and there is a strong chance that we will move into a high caseload environment soon, where the rules will change again, we think it is best to modify our plans so the students don’t miss out. Therefore, we will run the event during the day in sections so the students still get full enjoyment from the activities. I have met with the P&F and we all agree this is the best way forward. The annual Family Fun Night which had been organised by the P&F to be held on the school oval on Friday 18 February from 6pm, will still take place on this date, but from 12pm. The P&F will work with the staff to make sure our students get the best experience that they can. I appreciate that this is not what was originally planned, however, in these circumstances, I believe it is the best option. Thank you for your understanding. More information will come out closer to the date. The next P&F meeting will be held on Monday 7th February at 8.45am in the staffroom.
Long Service Leave One of the great things about working for CEWA is that we get generous Long Service Leave entitlements. Unfortunately, if we accumulate too much, we are required to use some of it up. I currently have too much and I need to take some days off. However, I realise that now is not the best time to do so. Therefore, I will be taking most Mondays off during Semester 1. If I need to be at school to deal with any Covid issues or other school based issues, I will come in and then swap my days. Lisa Liebregts will also be taking some time this year and she will take every Friday in Semester 1. Again, if she needs to be here, she will also swap her days.
Yours sincerely
Laurie Bechelli