Dear Parents and Caregivers

I would like to open this newsletter with a huge ‘Thank you’ to Allison Fox, who is our current P&F Treasurer. Allison is also a grandparent and she did most of the work putting our movie night together a couple of weeks ago. It was a great night and everyone who came along had a lovely time. If you would like to support our P&F by becoming a committee member or even helping out at events, please contact the front office and we can pass your name on.

Awareness/Compassion Reflection If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.

First Reconciliation Our Year 3 students have begun their preparations to receive the Sacrament of Penance. They participated in a reflective and fun day on Monday this week which was run by the 24/7 Youth Ministry. The next step is the Parent Information Night which will be held on Wednesday 8 March, starting at 7 pm with Mass in our Church. All parents of students involved in this programme are strongly encouraged to attend.

Lenten Reflection During Lent, we often revisit the story of the Prodigal Son. Most of you are familiar with this story about a wayward son who makes some bad choices and eventually comes to his senses and comes home to reconcile with his father. One thing to reflect upon is which character are you in this story. Are you the wayward son? Are you the forgiving father? Or are you the jealous brother who always did the right thing and is never acknowledged? Maybe, we are all three characters at different times in our lives! This story sums up the love God has for us in a way that we don’t often think about.

NAPLAN This year, the Federal Government is trying something different. Instead of doing NAPLAN in May, we are now doing it in March so that we have earlier access to the data, which can then be used to make decisions in the areas we need to focus on. The NAPLAN testing week will run from 15 March to 24 March. Parents of students in Years 3 and 5 will receive information in the coming weeks about the tests. Please note that these tests are not anything you can really study for, and the results are only used as a guide. They are not a true reflection of all the learning that takes place in our classrooms and they are only a snapshot of results taken on certain days. The best data we have is the data teachers collect all year long on each child from a variety of assessment methods.

Swimming Carnival Our annual swimming carnival returns to Term 1 and this year it will be held at Bayswater Waves on Tuesday 14 March for all students in Years 4 – 6. Mr Boyce has been busy putting it together and it promises to be a fun day. Parents and grandparents are welcome to come along and cheer for their children. More details will be sent home soon.

I hope you enjoy your long weekend at the end of this week. At the halfway point of the term, I think we are all ready for a little break!

Yours sincerely
Laurie Bechelli