From the Principal
Dear Parents and Carers,
As we come to the end of the second last week of Term 1, our community of faith is preparing for Holy Week with Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday is the time when we remember Jesus being welcomed into Jerusalem as someone having a profound impact on the community of the time. Jesus was known for his kind acts of healing and the challenging of the status quo where it was creating a barrier between God’s people and God.
Palm Sunday reminds us of the profound impact Jesus had on the people of the Middle East and, this sets the scene for what is one of the core tenets of the Christian faith: Jesus’ death and resurrection on the cross so God’s people could be closer to God.
Prep Twilight Sports - Thursday 25th March
Our prep students and staff are all ready to come together with families for the Prep Twilight Sports Night (weather permitting). We are looking forward to coming together for this wonderful social opportunity for families to get to know each other and build community. The St Simon’s Parents’ Association will be hosting a sausage sizzle so thank you to the marvellous volunteers who have organised this.
Should the event be cancelled due to weather, a notification will be sent via Skoolbag and Operoo email.
Athletics Day - Friday 26th March
A reminder for all families in Years 1-6 to check in with the information shared with you last week (Operoo eForm) regarding preparation for Athletics Day. It is important that students are on time for school so that the shuttle bus service can commence on time.
Parents wanting to take their child\ren home from the track at the end of the event must email the relevant classroom teacher prior to the day. If your child\ren is going home from the track with another family, you must put this in writing to the classroom teacher prior to the day. Classroom teachers will be monitoring the attendance of students.
This year there is a specific area where parent spectators will gather to watch the Athletics. Please follow all COVID related directions and we appreciate your cooperation in this matter.
Please note the toilets closest to the Grandstand are for Adult use only. A separate toilet facility will be used for students.
Whilst we have experienced some wet weather this week, the forecast looks favorable for us to go ahead with the event. Let's continue to pray for good weather!
Please check in with the Sports News section of the newsletter.
The Resilience Project - Parent Webinar
Tuesday 30th March 6:30 - 8:00 pm
Click here to connect via Zoom
The Resilience Project delivers emotionally engaging programs to schools, sports clubs and businesses and provides them with evidence-based, practical strategies to build resilience and happiness. The Resilience Project has delivered programs to over 1000 schools around the country and worked with many elite sporting teams including Australian cricket, netball and soccer, NRL and AFL clubs. Through presentations, wellbeing journals, schools curriculum, teacher diaries and their App, The Resilience Project seeks to help all Australians become mentally healthy.
Programs offered by The Resilience Project are based on the following strategies:
Gratitude - Appreciating what you have, not begrudging what you don’t.
Empathy - Thinking of the needs of others/kindness.
Mindfulness - Being present in the moment, not becoming distracted by unhelpful or negative thoughts.
During this presentation, Hugh will share his experiences and combine them with practical strategies that can be implemented everyday to improve our overall wellbeing.
Colour Fun Run launching The Resilience Project
What a wonderful lift to our community spirit last Friday’s Colour Fun Run was! Thank you and congratulations to the Parents’ Association for organising such a fun and exciting event for the students. The numbers are still being finalised however the fundraising efforts of the colour fun run are looking very positive. The Parents' Association will share more with the community early in Term 2.!
National Ride to School Day
Congratulations to all the students and staff who marked National Ride to School Day last Friday by riding or scooting to school. We had a fantastic turn out with many students taking up the challenge of our bike challenge course set out on the basketball court. Thank you to Bianca Gilling and Karl Camerino for taking the initiative with running this day, and thank you also to the staff and parents who came and supported students on the day.
God bless
Tom Wursthorn
Principal