School Newsletter

Term 1 Week 10 - 2nd April 2020

From the Principal

Dear Parents, Friends, Staff and Students of St Catherine’s,  

Thank you for working in partnership with staff in the past weeks as we have managed the challenges of the many changes to our lives as a result of Covid 19.

By now you will have received information about online learning for your child. It is likely that from the commencement of Term 2, schools will remain open to enable the ongoing provision of remote curriculum delivery and to support students whose particular circumstances require them to be at school. However, learning will be delivered simultaneously in school and at home. All students will access the same mode of learning; those at school will be supervised to access the same curriculum provided for those who will access it remotely. This mode of learning will continue until we are advised differently by the government. We will continue to communicate updates with you in the coming weeks so please make sure you are checking all modes of communication. Also, if you are in a position where you require fee remission due to current circumstances please do not hesitate to make contact with the school to discuss a way forward.

We are now fast approaching the end of the Lenten season and the beginning of Holy Week, and the most significant celebration in the liturgical calendar, Easter. The death and resurrection of Jesus reminds us that we are people of hope and that we can draw strength from the Easter message, using the teachings of Christ to navigate our way through the current challenges facing our communities and families. I encourage you to share the spirit of Easter with those around you by finding time for acts of kindness and checking on those who are lonely or may need your assistance.

There is a continued sense of hope at St Catherine’s as the building works continue, the construction of the classrooms is well underway and plans are now in place for the construction of the undercover walkway.  Below are some progress photos for you to look at.

Next week we will Farewell Tom Melingakos, our Year 6 teacher. Many thanks Tom for being such a vibrant part of the St Catherine’s community this term. Your wisdom and humour will be greatly missed. All the best for your new role at Catholic Education South Australia. In turn, I would like to welcome Nikki Hall to the St Catherine’s team. Nikki will lead the learning in the Year 6 class for the remainder of the school year.

Next term I will return to St Joseph’s School, Murray Bridge. I would like to thank you all for making me so welcome this term. I have really enjoyed being a part of the St Catherine’s community.

Finally, if you can’t find the sunshine – Be the sunshine!  Take Care of each other in these challenging times. 

God Bless,

Erika Dixon

Acting Principal

St Catherine's School

Building progress

Sports Day Survey

We would love to gather feedback from our parent community on the recent Sports Day on March 13, with regards to it's new format, time and activities.  We thank you in advance for filling out the survey via this link.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DMKYLZZ

Term 2 commences Monday 27th April 2020


Helping Kids Cope with COVID 19

With this global state of emergency, we are living in an unprecedented time.

As much as the Coronavirus pandemic affects parents and caregivers, children may also experience increasing levels of anxiety, given that everyday life as they know it has been suddenly impacted.

If you’re unsure of how to support a child or student experiencing heightened anxiety over COVID-19, the following article may help you.

Helping Kids Cope with COVID 19

RE NEWS

Welcome Bishop Patrick O’Regan

These last few weeks have seen the appointment of Bishop Patrick O’Regan as the Archbishop of Adelaide. Bishop O’Regan has come to us from his role as Bishop of the Diocese of Sale in Victoria which he has held since December 2014, and will be the 12th Archbishop of Adelaide. We welcome him and look forward to his faith leadership.

Project Compassion

This term our focus has been Project Compassion however our usual fundraising efforts have been put on hold in order to avoid the handling of money. While families are still encouraged to collect loose change in their Project Compassion boxes at home, we are instead working with students on a range of reflection activities to help build a deeper understanding of the important work that Caritas does and the Catholic Social Teaching Principles that underpin their work. 

During this time of challenges we turn to prayer….

As 2020 has brought with it a range of challenges, the most recent being the current pandemic, Fr Philip Marshall has offered up comfort during this time, calling communities to pause for prayer at 8am every Friday morning from now until Pentecost. The following prayer has been suggested to share during this time of pause. You too are invited to take up this opportunity for reflection with your family.

Almighty and All loving God

Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

We Pray to you through Christ the Healer

For those who suffer from the Coronavirus Covis-19

In Australia and across our world.

We pray too for all who reach out to those who mourn the loss

Of each and every person who has died as a result of contracting the disease.

Give wisdom to policymakers,

Skill to healthcare professionals and researches,

Comfort to everyone in distress

And a sense of calm to us all in these days of uncertainty and distress.

This we ask in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord

Who showed compassion to the outcast,

Acceptance to the rejected and love to those whom no love was shown

Amen

Easter Celebrations

As we enter Holy Week next week our preparations this year for the coming of Jesus are somewhat different to what we may be used to. What remains the same is that we continue to reflect on the experience of Jesus and the faith which he showed during his suffering, passion and death. Unlike other years we are asked to avoid gathering as we usually would however this does not mean that during Holy Week should not still be a time of reflection. You are encouraged to chat with your children about their understanding of the events of Holy Week and to again revisit these conversations after we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday. You may also like to focus on a particular piece of scripture from Holy Week and place yourself in the scene. Imagine that you were there. Are able to recall the look on Jesus’ face, listen to the way he spoke to others, and notice how people respond to him. Notice the emotions and questions that are stirred within you. Think about what is revealed to you about God in these pieces of Scripture. Spending this time in reflection draws us into a closer relationship with God and helps us to more fully experience the crucifixion and resurrection. 

Farewells and Thank You

I would like to thank our Parents and wider community for their support during this time, in particular your generosity in providing a lunch for our staff. This was very much enjoyed and lifted the spirits of everyone. It was truly overwhelming and very much enjoyed.

As the term comes to a close I would like to also extend a thank you to Erika Dixon for her commitment to the school during Term 1. Her time here has been extremely busy with building works and of course the impact of the recent Covid-19 situation. We have been in good hands under her leadership and wish her well upon her return to St Joseph’s Murray Bridge.

We also Farewell Tom Melingakos this term and are grateful for everything he has brought to the St Catherine’s School community. I know he will be very much missed, especially by our Year 6 students.

Krystina Dawe

APRIM

Other School News

Congratulations

Congratulations to some of our St Caths students who won trophies at the end of the Hills Little Athletics season. Maggie, Zoe, Jack, Hannah, Georgia, Lachie and Hugo received trophies. (Georgia, Lachie and Hugo were not present for the photo below).

A special mention to Maggie who won the 800m at the Little Athletics State Championships the week before & came second in 400m. Well done everyone!

Hills Little Athletics

Maggie Year 4
Zoe Yr 5, Jack Yr 2, Hannah Yr 5, Maggie Yr 4

6M Classroom News

During the first term of 2020, the Year 6 M class has been working on different forms of design and technology. We covered model, drawing, symmetry and 3D printing. We began in week two. We had an art teacher called Ms. Carey.  Our class began drawing and modelling birds. Each student chose their own species of bird and began sketching. Then we used newspaper and tape to create the model shape of our bird. Once each birds shape was complete the students used strips of newspaper and special gel like glue to papier mâché their creations. Once they had dried the class painted the birds with the corresponding colours of their species. Each student had time to add details to their bird. We ended up with very colourful birds in all different shapes and sizes, each unique in their own way. We enjoyed the experience and the fun that it brought. We hope that all the other classes will have the same amazing opportunity as our class. 

Year 6 Art

Year 6 Mandala making

On Wednesday the 18th of March our class had the opportunity to participate in a mandala making session. We were given a guideline sheet of paper on which we created a mandala. We began by discussing what mandalas are and where we see them in the natural world. We started by drawing small triangles in the second section of our mandala in pencil. From those triangles we worked our way outwards and to the edge of the paper. The students took great precision to make sure everything was explicitly detailed. The students had an instructor called Cathy who helped them in the first stages of the mandala. When the students had passed this first stage of making their mandala Cathy left them to their own devices to finish the mandala on their own. The students were given pieces of paper that had different designs and pictures on it so that they could get ideas from them. Once the students had drawn everything in pencil, they outlined it with fine art markers and in some cases shaded the sections in. It took a couple of weeks working on the mandalas to make sure that the students were happy with what they had done. After the students had finished their mandalas, we displayed them on the window. 

Year 6 3D Printing

Our class began working on our computers to create a 3D printable design. We used a software program called Tinker Cad. We started by doing lessons on how to use the app and make different shapes. Then we used a guide to design a name tag for our bags. We learnt how the 3D printer works and how you make the design print. We used STL filament to print our name tags in blue. We had to change the format of the creation into a STL file so that it could print. We practiced printing by starting out with a pawn and then made one for our buddy class. Printing the name tags took an average of 25-30 minutes. Our class really enjoyed this experience of using the technology to create various designs.  

3/4K Classroom News

The 3/4 class have been very with our resident art teacher Mrs Carey creating amazing pictures of our school chickens. We sat for a lesson beside the chicken coop and explored shape, features and colours, before we began sketching our favourite chicken the following week. The students then coloured them using oil pastels and painting over with black paint. The final part of the process will be scratching back the paint to reveal our beautiful art.

 The students have been thoroughly enjoying this creative experience.

3/4K Art

Notice from CommBank School Banking

The health, safety and wellbeing of our communities and our people is our first priority. Due to the rapidly developing situation with coronavirus, School Banking has been temporarily paused from 20 March 2020 until the start of Term 2. Please don’t bring your deposit book with your weekly banking into school and we will notify you when banking will recommence.

Community Notices

Cabra Dominican College 2022 Enrolments

In light of the rapidly changing COVID-19 situation, Cabra Dominican College have decided to extend the closing date for Year 7, 2022 enrolment applications. Enrolment applications still need to be submitted if you are thinking you would like your child to attend Cabra. 

Please visit their website, where they have some updated photo galleries to showcase their facilities, particularly the newly opened gym, Caleruega Hall. Please head to www.cabra.catholic.edu.au/discover/location . You can also follow them on Facebook for a snapshot of college life at www.facebook.com/cdadelaide/

SA Dental

St Catherine's School