Year 6 Graduation

Year 6 Families are invited to attend the year 6 Graduation Celebrations on Wednesday 11 December at St Catherine’s. Families, friends and extended family members are invited to the Year 6 Liturgy in our Parish Church at 6:00pm.

Year 6 families are invited to attend the year 6 Graduation Dinner. Families are asked to pay for the adults and siblings attending. Siblings under 5 years old will not be charged. Parents do not need to pay for their year 6 students. Only members of the immediate family are invited to attend the dinner. Extended family are welcome to attend the Liturgy prior to the dinner.

When: Wednesday 11 December

Where: St Catherine's School Hall

Time: 7:00pm (straight after Liturgy)

On Wednesday 11 December 2019 at 7:00pm

Location:

St Catherine's School Hall

BOOK NOW!

https://www.trybooking.com/BGKUJ

I acknowledge and thank the parents of our year 5 students who have organised the dinner for year 6 students and families, along with volunteering to set up, serve and clean up on the night of graduation.

Displays around our school

I encourage parents to have a wander around our hallways to view the many examples of student work that is on display around our school.

Hats and Sunglasses

Hats and sunglasses are compulsory uniform items. Please ensure your child has these items at school. Students who wear prescription glasses on the playground are exempt from wearing sunglasses.All prescription glasses have some UV protection built into the lens.

Students who do not have sunglasses and hats will not be allowed to play outside.

Sunglasses can be purchased from the school office and hats from PSW uniform suppliers.

2020 Foundation Parent Information Night

Parents of 2020 Foundation Students are invited to attend our Parent Information Night on Wednesday 30 October at 7:00pm in our Learning Hub.

Carols/Market Night

Don’t forget to mark 28 November in your calendar as organisation for our Carols/market night is well underway. Lots of information regarding the night is starting to be published. Please read the Parents and Friends section of this newsletter for all the latest information. Thanks to our many volunteers who are supporting this event to happen.

Lynda O'Donnell

Principal

We all have a choice

Last Sunday’s Gospel is one of my favourites.  The Pharisee and the Tax Collector is a great Gospel read with a wonderful message.   Like many of Jesus’ stories it always has a message to do with CHOICE.

The choice in this story is whether we allow the Eucharist to affect us and change us or whether we tick the box of having done our so called duty.  

The Pharisee did what he had to do and was probably more contented in knowing others saw him who were sitting in the temple.  On the other hand the poor tax collector was present to his heart and in humility and asked the Lord for mercy.

When we come to share in the Eucharist we are invited to open our hearts to receive the graces God has for us.  Being present in this case is not about patting ourselves on the back as if we are superior to others.

This Gospel is a wonderful Gospel to stop us in our tracks and to assess our motives for why we live the Christian life.

Perhaps these quotes from Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Monk, will help us reflect further on this short but incredibly insightful Gospel.

‘If you are not yet able to love yourself, you will not be able to love your enemy. But when you are able to love yourself, you can love anyone. When you do this, you will see that your so called enemy is not more or less than a human being who is suffering.’

‘When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help. That's the message he is sending.’

‘Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.’

‘To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.’

‘Waking up this morning, I smile. Twenty-four brand new hours are before me. I vow to live fully in each moment and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion.’

‘When you plant lettuce, if it does not grow well, you don't blame the lettuce. You look for reasons it is not doing well. It may need fertilizer, or more water, or less sun. You never blame the lettuce. Yet if we have problems with our friends or family, we blame the other person. But if we know how to take care of them, they will grow well, like the lettuce. Blaming has no positive effect at all, nor does trying to persuade using reason and argument. That is my experience. No blame, no reasoning, no argument, just understanding. If you understand, and you show that you understand, you can love, and the situation will change’

‘Many people think excitement is happiness.... But when you are excited you are not peaceful. True happiness is based on peace.’

‘Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness. If, in our heart, we still cling to anything - anger, anxiety, or possessions - we cannot be free.’
 

‘Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is the only moment.’

‘Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today.’
 

‘Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future.’

In conclusion, after reflecting, which person are we in this Gospel passage?
 

Are we the Pharisee in this Gospel?

Are we the Tax collector in this Gospel?

Or, are we both?

Edward Dooley (Mission and Faith Leader)

Dear St Catherine’s Families

Our Christmas night market is fast approaching and we are delighted to announce than in addition to our FREE kids activities we will have fabulous activities from Pop Up Sports. These include laser tag, bubble soccer and an adventure inflatable. There will be two lines for each activity to ensure that the big and the little kids have a great time.

Wristbands allowing unlimited access to all three activities are available for purchase from the office for $15. Family tickets are available for up to six kids for $45. Pre-purchase will be available until Tuesday 26^th November.

Wristbands will also be available for purchase on the night for $20, with single activities being able to be purchased on the night for $5.

On Monday 21st of October the Year 5/6’s welcomed their parents and special friends for their last learning assembly for the year. Students in Year 5 presented their social justice initiative Socktober, which raises money for education initiatives in Ghana, before students in Year 5/6 highlighted their learning in Mathematics this term. They clarified the process in solving equations versus multi-step problem-solving tasks through a creative Reader’s Theatre that saw students as Maths Detectives- Multiplication, Divison, Addition and Subtraction.

Then it was time for some hands-on problem-solving tasks, with the students leading the way before viewing Newspaper articles in the corridor in relation to our school concert. We congratulate all the students who received a learning award and Sienna Webb, who received the Mark Dreyfus QC MP Community and Leadership award for her commitment to school initiatives. We would like to thank all the families of the Year 5/6 students for their wonderful support this year.

Mrs Debra Bruenjes

Year 5/6 Teacher

Entries close Thursday 7th November

AGE 4-7

Leo receives 8 candy bars in his trick-or-treat bag. His brother Max eats 3 of them. How many candy bars does Leo have left in his bag?

AGE 8-10

AGE 10 upwards

154 children in the school went trick or treating. On average they each got 40 sweets. About how many sweets did they get altogether?

Mrs Moore is still keen for any bather donations to take to Thailand with her in January 2020. With the weather warming up, if you find last years bathers no longer fit your little people, please send them into school. A collection basket has been set up at the front office.

The program went live two weeks ago and as you can see, the local children were very excited.

A big thank you to those who have already sent in bathers.

SCIENCE WEEK

Wednesday 6th November - Friday 8th November

St Catherines will be observing Science Week next week - the theme ‘Destination Moon’. This year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 Moon mission and it seems fitting that we continue to inspire students about space science just as the Apollo program to the Moon did in the 1960s and 1970s. 

With this in mind, some of our activities and inquiries will examine space exploration, space activities, space technology and space efforts. We will begin this exciting learning with the Space Discovery Dome coming to our school on Wednesday 6th November. Other activities will involve training like an astronaut, space creative writing, flight activities - to name but a few. 

We appreciate you taking the time to talk to your children about their science discoveries next week and we look forward to sharing our Space Week adventures with you.

P&F/Market Update

Primary School Wear is moving their retail outlet very soon.  It will be one street away from where they are located at the moment.