Mother's Day

Today we give thanks for all mothers and mother figures in our lives. We remember all that they have given and modelled for us; their patience and good humour; their generosity and care; time spent nurturing and helping us grow, and the values and unconditional love that have made us who we are. Whilst Mother’s Day is somewhat commercialised, it is important, in that, it invites us to pause, and to remember, honour and celebrate our mothers and all who are and have been like a mother to us. We wish all mums a very happy Mother’s Day on Sunday and hope that they are very much spoilt by their families.

On Friday 14 May, 8.30 – 9.30am we will have our annual Mother’s Day breakfast. Invitations have been sent home with students in the last few days. The morning will begin with tea, pastries and entertainment, and be followed by a guest speaker. We hope that you can join us.

Olive Harvest

Over the last few weeks students have been harvesting the olives from the trees at the front of the school. The two small olive groves were planted in 2009 to mark the International Year of Reconciliation and with good rain over summer, have been particularly abundant this year. There are many different theories on how to best brine and prepare the olives for eating and students are experimenting with a number of these. We look forward to enjoying the fruit of all this labour in the months to come.

The olive trees are a constant reminder that in our community we do all that we can to live as peaceful people. The olive branch appears on many crests and is the emblem of the United Nations. It is a universal symbol of forgiveness and peace. Just as God sent the olive branch to Noah we are called to hold out the olive branch to those with whom we’ve had differences. It is the first step towards reconciliation and rebuilding broken relationships. We believe that there is no issue that cannot be resolved peacefully.

Farewell and Welcome

At the beginning of Term 2 we farewelled Ms Louna Ghawi. Louna is well known to many families and has been at the College for almost three years, as our Arabic speaking Multicultural Education Aide. We thank Louna for the many hours she spent in interpreting and translating, in ringing families, in managing the ‘WhatsApp’ group and in ensuring effective communication and strong relationships between families and the school. This was never more important than during the COVID lockdown last year. I know that families really appreciated all that she did to assist them and their children to settle into the school in Australia. We wish Louna well in the next stage of her career.

All endings bring new beginnings. This week we welcome Ms Manal Hadeed to the staff as the new Multicultural Education Aide (Arabic). Manal is delighted to be joining the school community and we hope that her time with us is professionally and personally fulfilling. Families and students will have a chance to get to know Manal over the next few weeks.

Staff Professional Practice Day

Families are reminded that students are not required at school on Monday 10 May 2021 as staff have a Professional Practice Day. On this day staff will be participating in the following:

• Berry Street Education Model implementation
• Planning for differentiation.
• Asthma and Anaphylaxis training.
• Planning for the refurbishment of the library.
• Emergency Management Warden Training (non-teaching staff)

NAPLAN Tests

All Year 7 and 9 students will sit the NAPLAN online tests from Tuesday 11 May to Friday 21 May. Information about the online tests was forwarded to all families earlier this week.

The College uses a range of data to evaluate the teaching program, and also to identify students who would benefit from additional assistance or extension. NAPLAN data is one of the data sets that informs these decisions.

Newsletter

The newsletter is published fortnightly on Day 10 (Friday Week 2).

Newsletter Days for Term 2 2021:             

Fridays:  21 May,     04 June,     18 June

The newsletter can also be accessed on the College website at http://www.crcstalbans.catholic.edu.au