ST PETER S CATHOLIC PARISH PRIMARY SCHOOL 16th November 2017 Week 6

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1 ST PETER S CATHOLIC PARISH PRIMARY SCHOOL 16th November 2017 Week 6 To the St Peter s community, In this week s Gospel, Jesus tells a parable about the landowner who leaves his servants in charge of his possessions. The landowner is grateful to the servants who use the landowners money (talents) wisely. In many ways God has left us in charge of God s possessions responsible for the world God created. God has also given us the talents and skills to do that wisely. Freedom is great, but with it comes responsibility to use our talents for others benefit. This week our students have showcased their performing arts skills and talents to appreciative audiences. They have worked hard, learnt a lot and had a great deal of fun doing so. Ultimately, the children have experienced what can happen when we all give a little; we can create something very special together. The staff have supported the students to script write, choreograph, stage set, create props and costuming and produce a magnificent showcase of talents for the benefit of the audience. I think you would all agree that what the students and staff have been able to produce has been incredible, surprising and pleasing many with the results. I am incredibly proud to lead this amazing learning community; we have definitely used our talents for the benefit of others. The learning that took place through this unit of inquiry has challenged us all to be thinking about the diversity in our own community and how we respect and celebrate that. This learning has provided opportunities for us to deepen our understanding of the Catholic social teaching principles of solidarity and the dignity of the human person. Solidarity Everyone belongs to one human family, regardless of their national, religious, ethnic, economic, political and ideological differences. Everyone has an obligation to promote the rights and development of all peoples across communities, nations, and the world, irrespective of national boundaries. We are called by the principle of solidarity to take the parable of the Good Samaritan to heart (Luke 10:29-37), and to express this understanding in how we live and interact with others. Dignity of the human person Every human being is created in the image and likeness of God and therefore has inherent dignity. No human being should have their dignity or freedom compromised. The dignity of every person, is the foundation of Catholic social teaching. From Scripture (Galatians 3:26-29) we pray and reflect: For in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham s offspring, heirs according to the promise. How do you use your freedom? Believe it or not, you are responsible for helping people, for ensuring you use your talents to make a positive difference in the lives of others. Over time you ll see clearly why God trusts you with such enormous responsibility and how much your talents are needed to take care of God s creation. Life is God s gift to us. What we do with life is our gift to God. Have a wonderful weekend, Kerry Miller Principal DATES TO REMEMBER Middle Assembly & Confirmation Certificates 17th November Prep Assembly - Friday 1st December Sports Day at St Monica s Athletics Track - Friday 8th December Final day of School for pm finish Tuesday 19th December Yr 6 Graduation - 6:30pm Tuesday 19th December

2 EDUCATION IN FAITH Seeking Volunteers - Christmas Hamper Wrapping As we do each and every year we support our local community by donating Christmas Hampers to families who are in need. We are seeking volunteers to wrap these baskets in clear cellophane and decorative ribbon (all items will be supplied). Please let me know if you would be free to donate an hour or more of your time in the week of Monday 11th December - Friday 15th December Sacramental Season The Parish Sacramental team met this week; we used the feedback that you provided us and have begun to put some shape around our 2018 Sacramental Season. We are currently confirming dates and times with the Bishop, St Monica s for the use of their Sports and Assembly Hall and our new Parish Priest. We hope to share the confirmed dates with you via the newsletter next week; this information will also include booking forms to choose the date and location of your child's Sacrament. Advent - is approaching... Advent is a period of preparation, which occurs over four Sundays, before Christmas. The word Advent comes from the Latin word advenio, "to come to," and refers to the coming of Christ. This coming of Christ refers to our celebration of Christ's birth at Christmas; and to the coming of Christ in our lives through action and through the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist. The First Sunday of Advent 2017 is December 3rd, Did you know that there are actually 12 days of Christmas? Christmas Day to the Epiphany. Emily de Kort. Director of Faith and Mission edekort@stprepp.catholic.edu.au LEARNING & TEACHING Showcasing our Learning Sprints Last Tuesday teachers and students from St Peter s were invited to showcase our learning journey with Sprints by presenting to Principals, teacher leaders and Catholic Education Melbourne system leaders. Those present were impressed with the confidence of the students and teachers as they clearly articulated what Sprints are, how they had accelerated learning in reading, writing, maths and Japanese and why they liked being part of Sprint learning. As a result a number of local and international schools have shown interest in visiting St Peter s to observe and learn more about this focused approach based on the research of Professor Simon Breakspear to improve student learning outcomes. Many thanks to Lorena and Ashlea (teachers) and Stephanie, Melissa and Kayden (middle and senior students) for sharing and promoting this highly effective learning and teaching practice at our school. What are Learning Sprints? Learning Sprints is an organisational routine that can support the adoption of evidence-informed practices and develop the collective efficacy of teacher teams. The approach is aligned with the existing research evidence into the features of effective teacher professional learning and the science of behaviour change. It has been designed to be simple, relevant and manageable for teachers and their leaders. Agile Schools website. Sprints are 10 minute focused learning sessions that are taken each day with the same group of students for a period of 1-4 weeks or until the child has mastered the skill. (Agile Schools website). Remembrance Day Last Saturday Bonita and Aleksandr proudly represented our school at the Remembrance Day Service at the Epping RSL. They shared the reading of the poem On Flanders Fields and laid poppies at the foot of the Cenotaph. Both students were congratulated afterwards by RSL members for their inspiring reading. Thank you Bonita and Aleksandr and your families for attending this important community event. Many thanks also to all children who purchased poppies and wristbands to support the work of the RSL and Legacy.

3 Julie Percy - Director of Learning & Teaching juliep@stprepp.catholic.edu.au SCHOOL COMMUNITY Epping Community Fair Our Junior students as well as Glee Club are invited to perform their production songs between 1-1:30pm at the Epping Community Fair this Sunday. If you would like your child to participate, please inform Emma Canning or Ashlea Branov prior to the day. Disco Last Thursday Friends of St Peter s hosted its annual school disco. The night was a huge success and could not have happened without the support and hard work of Liz Iglesias and the group of parent helpers who coordinated the event. Walk Through Bethlehem Volunteers Did you know that our school community event Walk Through Bethlehem is now actually the biggest event in the City of Whittlesea? This is an amazing achievement and we should all feel incredibly proud of our contributions, large and small. All students should have received a Walk Through Bethlehem volunteer form last week. Please consider how your family can contribute to the success of the event. Every contribution makes a difference! Please ensure you return your form as soon as possible. If you require a new one, or did not receive one, please collect one from the office. Let s make this year even bigger and better! Helpers Required We are currently seeking helpers to complete a variety of simple tasks to assist in preparing for the end of the year. If you are able to spare some time, no matter how short, please contact me to arrange a suitable time to come in. Your help would be greatly appreciated.

4 Prep Play Date Many thanks to those who were able to attend our first Prep Play Date last Sunday. Many thanks to Jo and Leanne Emma Canning - Director of School Community ecanning@stprepp.catholic.edu.au STUDENT WELLBEING School Events Congratulations to our A-K cast on their amazing performance last night and good luck to our L-Z cast tonight. Our Wonderful World of Diversity Production has been a valuable experience for our students to be in. Whether you were part of the script writing, the dancing, the singing, the artwork and general participation it is an important way of sharing your talents. Our next school event will be the annual Sports Day. This is another fun day that highlights the talents and abilities within our school. We look forward to cheering our house teams on. If you would like to be a helper on this day and you have a current working with children check the slip will be sent out early next week. Playpod Our playpod is continuing to provide plenty of play opportunities for the children at lunchtime. They are creating, imagining, collaborating and celebrating their successes. Next week we will be holding a community conversation involving some children, staff and parents based around what is working well and what the students have noticed while playing. We will share with you the findings of this conversation. Jackie Fleischmann - Director of Student Wellbeing jfleischmann@stprepp.catholic.edu.au

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