Newsletter 3. from the principal. Mrs Nichii Mardon, Principal

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1 Newsletter Newsletter 3 Caritas College Thursday 2 March 2017 Woodforde Street Phone: Fax: info@cc.catholic.edu.au Web: Principal: Mrs Nichii Mardon Yesterday we celebrated Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Church s season of Lent. During the forty days of Lent, Christians are called to pray, fast and give alms to the poor. The forty days are a time of preparation for Easter. It gives us the opportunity to reflect on our relationships with God and others. The Church encourages us to take stock of our attitudes, values and actions and commit to do better as we try to renew ourselves as Christian people. During Lent, through Project Compassion, we are invited to support the work of Caritas Australia to help to bring a better future and to stand in solidarity with the poor in our world. Deputy Principal: Mrs Mary Manning God of Compassion, as we begin this time of Lent, open our minds. Empower us to move beyond our own world to see you in the faces of the poor. Give us the courage to be different and to share what we have. May our actions during Lent help to renew the world in your ways of peace, justice and mercy. Amen Inside this issue: Religious Education & 2 Faith Formation Student Wellbeing & Learning 3 Crows Visit 4 AGM Student Attendance Hazard Alert 5 Join us on facebook for updates on school events, photos and important information. We have had such a positive start to the school year in this first half of term, with rich learning and a range of co-curricular activities provided for students. A snapshot of these activities is represented in this newsletter, and are shared through our Facebook site regularly. I am very appreciative of our strong team of staff who organise and enable these activities, and for families ongoing support to ensure full participation by students. We wish Mrs Kaye Walker (Reception) and Mrs Leah McConnal (Literacy Learning Intervention teacher) well as they take some time of leave this term. Mrs Walker will be away for two weeks, and Mrs McConnal will be absent for the remainder of the term. We are delighted to welcome Ms Lauren McConnal back with us. Lauren has undertaken relief teaching roles at Caritas and will be filling these roles as replacement teacher for the remainder of Term 1. School Board Our School Board AGM will be held on Tuesday, 14th March. We have one position to be filled on the Board this year. If anyone wishes to nominate to join the Board, please contact Mrs Penny Archer at the College for nomination forms to be completed by Wednesday 8th March. I also take this opportunity to thank Mrs Fiona Kohler and Mr Paul Murphy who have served on the Board for two and three years respectively. Mrs Nichii Mardon, Principal from the principal Port Augusta 5700

2 religious education and faith formation Year 12 Seminar Day On Friday 24 February the Year 12s gathered together for their first Religious Education Seminar Day. The theme for Friday was centred on Caritas Australia s focus for Project Compassion Love your neighbour. Students participated in a number of activities designed to deepen their understanding and empathy for others living in the developing world and to think about the impact they have, as individuals, on the sustainability of our planet and its resources. Students worked on a definition for Social Justice and explored the message of our human responsibilities as outlined in particular passages of scripture, they visited the United Nations Global Goals and examined what it was that blocked human-kind from making a difference to the ecological and social sustainability of the planet. It was an excellent opportunity for the students to spend the day together bonding and building relationships, whilst participating in learning episodes which deepened their understanding of sustainability and the distribution of resources. All activities culminated in producing an action plan for a Year 12 Project Compassion event aimed at raising awareness of the plight of those who do not have a voice. Shrove Tuesday Stall In preparation for the Lenten season and to launch Project Compassion for 2017 Year 12 students, with the support of year 11 and 12 students, held a Shrove Tuesday stall. Students from R-12 enjoyed scrumptious pancakes at recess with some lucky students being served by Adelaide Crows players. $ was raised from the event and will be donated to Project Compassion at the end of Lent. Ash Wednesday Class Liturgies On Wednesday all students marked Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent with the distribution of ashes during homeroom liturgies. An Ash Wednesday reflection from Hannah & Charlie 3/4. Ash Wednesday is the day after Shrove Tuesday and the start of Lent. On Ash Wednesday we get the sign of the cross on our foreheads with ash. The ash was made from last year s burning of the palm leaves. Ash Wednesday is the start of the 40 day Lenten Journey. We think about ways to be Jesus. We only eat food that we need to live and all the money we would use for junk food would go in our Project Compassion Box. The money goes to the people that can t buy things they need to survive.

3 student wellbeing and learning Swimming Years 1 to 4 This week our class went to swimming lessons. We put our life jackets on and floated in the water. We liked the diving the best. After that we had recess and went back into the pool. Then we swam all the way to the end of the pool and back. We got out of the pool and we caught the bus back to school. We had so much fun. By Bridie and Sophie (Year 1/2 Gold) When we went to swimming I had fun. We learnt about safety and the water was cold. By Bryce (Year 3/4 Blue) Merciful is God In All Things Love Luke 6:36 Last week we went swimming and I swam in the deep end. I did a combat jump and a duck dive. By Hamish (Year 3/4 Blue) We went on a bus to pool for swimming lessons. We did really fun stuff and the water was very cold. We had recess there and then did more lessons. We took the bus back to school. By Aaliyah (Year 3/4 Blue) Adelaide Football Club - Growing with Gratitude Visit On Monday 20 February, the Years 3-7 classes got to meet some representatives from the Adelaide Crows FC. The reason they were here was to teach us about their Positive Education Program, Growing with Gratitude, which is all about being happy! They taught us the five habits of happiness and the ways to make yourself and others feel happy. The five habits of happiness are: an attitude of gratitude, doing random acts of kindness, positive reflection, wellbeing warrior and operation home services. We watched a video of Rory Sloane, Taylor Walker and Chelsea Randall explaining all of the habits of happiness, followed by a quiz where many of us won prizes. Their mascot, Claude the Crow, even made an appearance. By Lilah Hill (5/6 Blue) With Sports Day fast approaching much excitement has been building at school with the running of our Sports Day trials in week 5. This coming week we look forward to the pre-events of javelin, discus, triple jump, 400m and 1500m. Students in years 3-12 have been practising athletics events in Physical Education lessons whilst students in R-2 have been enjoying learning the games and activities that they will experience in their own modified Sports Day. All students have been representing their houses with distinction across a variety of events and have earnt valuable points for their team whilst also enjoying the friendly competitive nature involved. We look forward to seeing all students, parents and staff on Friday of Week 6, enjoying one of the most exciting days on the school calendar.

4 Adelaide Crows Visit

5 Coming Events Year 12 Child Studies Special School Visit Monday 6 March 2017 Year 3-6 SRC Mini Excursion Vinnies Visit Tuesday 7 March 2017 Year 12 Child Studies Miriam High Visit Monday 6 March 2017 R-2 Assembly 9am - Thursday 9 March Assembly 1:45pm - Thursday 9 March 2017 R-12 Sports Day Friday 10 March 2017 Annual General Meeting Tuesday 14 March 2017 Anti-Bullying & Harassment Day Friday 17 March 2017 St Joseph s Day Class Liturgies Friday 17 March 2017 Student Attendance As you would be aware, one of the most significant influences on student success at school is attendance. Whilst we recognise that many students will occasionally need to have time away from school (e.g. for sickness), we also encourage families to aim to minimise time spent away from school during term time. Caritas College uses the Rollmarker system to record student attendance in all lessons. The SMS Message You System continues to be utilised as a means of increasing the communication between home and school in relation to attendance and other messages. Daily contact is made via this text messaging system notifying families of any unexplained absences for that day. Class teachers and, if required, members of the leadership team, make contact with families to discuss support strategies for those with unexplained absences. Counselling through Centacare Catholic Family Services is provided to students along with referral to headspace Youth Health Service in Port Augusta. If frequent unexplained absences continue the College makes a report to the DECS Attendance Officer, in addition to the mandatory notification process we are required to undertake. addresses Please ensure you have registered your current address to enable school communication. The Family Calendar is available at news-events/family-calendar-1 for updated information. REMOTE ACCESS - Caritas Network OFFICE HOURS 8:15am 4:15pm Telephone info@cc.catholic.edu.au SMS for absentees We also highly value and appreciate the role families play in ensuring maximum school attendance, and look forward to our work in partnership with families as we aim for successful school outcomes for children. WHS: Hazard Alert Recently Catholic Safety Health & Welfare SA issued a Hazard Alert following two incidents at schools involving hats. The adjustable cord on student s hats became entrapped in play equipment causing throat injuries. Although broad brimmed hats with chinstraps are not our current uniform style, students may have these hats at home that pose potential risk. 6 day cycle Monday 6 March Day 3 Monday 13 March Day 0 (Public Holiday) Tuesday 7 March Day 4 Tuesday 14 March Day 1 Wednesday 8 March Day 5 Wednesday 15 March Day 2 Thursday 9 March Day 6 Thursday 2 March Day 3 Friday 10 March Day 0 (Sports Day) Friday 3 March Day 4