St Bernadette's Primary School Dundas Valley

As this term draws to a close, I would like to acknowledge the hard work that the teachers have done in preparing and reporting on the students' progress. You should, by now, have had an opportunity to share feedback and insights on your child’s progress at the Parent Teacher interviews. These interviews are a great way to stay in touch with the learning goals set and the next steps for all students.

 Our Tell Them From Me survey closes this week. I would like to thank all of the parents who took a moment to share their thoughts about how we, as a learning community, are going. We had 53% of parents respond. This is the largest number of responses to date. 

 I wish you all a warm and restful break. These holidays will give the children and staff a chance to recover from any illness or fatigue so that all are ready to launch into Term 3. Don't forget that our first day back is Tuesday July 19th as Monday July 18th is a pupil free day.

Stay well and take care, 

Love & Light  

Lisa Gerrard

(on behalf of the St Bernadette’s staff & students)

Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

The Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house!” And if a man of peace lives there, your peace will go and rest on him; if not, it will come back to you. Stay in the same house, taking what food and drink they have to offer, for the labourer deserves his wages; do not move from house to house. Whenever you go into a town where they make you welcome, eat what is set before you. Cure those in it who are sick, and say, “The kingdom of God is very near to you.”

REFLECTION by Dianne Bergant CSA

Although the gospel is a report of ministerial commissioning, it contains elements of discipleship in general.  Most obvious is the disciples’ dependence on Jesus.  They are not independent missionaries; they are followers.  Furthermore, there is a communal dimension of discipleship.  While there is certainly a personal relationship between Jesus and each disciple, discipleship itself is not a singular privilege that one hugs to oneself to the exclusion of others.

Disciples minister to the needs of others, whatever those needs may be and with whatever abilities the disciple may possess.  There are various kinds of healing: a friendly smile, a word of gratitude, a soothing touch.  We can teach the lessons of life in classrooms, in playrooms, in kitchens, in boardrooms.  There are many ways that we can cast out the demons that hold our world by the throat; demons of poverty and oppression, demons of addiction and slavery, demons of disdain and neglect, demons of hatred and violence.  If they are not cast out by us, then by whom?

The life of discipleship is not an unmixed blessing.  Because disciples are marked by the sign of the cross, they must expect suffering.  Because they do not live according to the standards of the world, disciples will be judged as fools.  Some of them will be subjected to even greater suffering.  Still, the disciple proclaims that true fulfilment is only found in God!  In reality, it is the world that is upside down, not the life of discipleship.  And it is the cross that sets things right.

We are again attending Mass with the parish, both as a school and in class groups. As parish Masses begin at 9:00am, the classes involved will assemble at 8:45am, in order to be seated in the church before Father enters. Your extra effort to be at school by 8:45am on these days would be greatly appreciated. Please see the roster for when your child will be attending Mass and/or Reconciliation.

Week 10:

Friday, 1st July : Last day of term 2.

Term 3:

Week 1:

Monday, 18th July:  Staff Development Day (no students to be onsite)

Tuesday, 19th July:  First day of term 3 for students

Friday, 22nd July:  Commonwealth Games A-Thon

Monday, 25th July:  School Athletics Carnival, Barton Park, North Parramatta

Attendance Rate: 70.7 %  - To unpack this a little more, this means that 70.7%  of our students have an attendance rate of 90% -100%.

A reminder that classes commence at 8:55am.

To help your child have a positive start to the school day it is important that they are at school on time.

Being at school a little before 8:55am allows them to have time to calm themselves and be confident in knowing they are prepared and ready to learn. It also gives them time to say hello to their friends and classmates.

Arriving late can cause stress to the child entering a class that is already working and it can cause disruption to the lesson that has started.

If we were 5 minutes late every day x 5 days = 25 minutes lost each week. 25 minutes x 10 weeks of each term = 250 minutes each term.

That adds up to a lot over the course of the year.

So please be mindful of what time your child  is arriving at school. It is important we establish good routines as it sets our children up for success.

If your child is late, they must come to the school office to be signed in by their parent or carer. They are not to be dropped late and left to run through the school gate unaccompanied.

We would love to advertise events in our community so if you know of an upcoming event please email the details to dundasvalley@parra.catholic.edu.au.