DEVOTION

The feeding of the 5000 is one of the better-known stories in the Bible. Jesus had been teaching a large crowd and it was getting late. The disciples were starting to worry about how they would provide food for such a large number. But Jesus wasn’t. “You get them something to eat,” he says. I imagine him saying it with a wry grin.

He knew the task would seem beyond their capacity and above their pay grade. “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” Philip says. But then they find a young boy with a meagre offering, five small loaves and two fish. They think it won’t go far among so many, but it’s something.

Jesus has the crowd sit down, gives thanks and distributes the food. All eat and are satisfied, and twelve basketfuls are left over. John doesn’t describe it as a miracle but ‘a sign’ pointing us to a deeper truth about who Jesus is (John 6:14).

There are other lessons here too. We tend to worry when a situation seems beyond us and forget to take it to God in prayer. We look at the big problems rather than the small resources God has given us to bring blessing to others. The smallest person in this story with the smallest amount of food became a great blessing, and so can we.

Living Waters is a community of people, a large crowd, with many needs. It is easy to focus on that and become overwhelmed. But it is also a community centred on the presence of God and the gifts he offers. Our task is to bring those needs to God, to recognise the resources he has given us and to continue being a blessing to others. May God continue to guide us in this work.

Pastor Ben

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Werte

Welcome back to term three!

Free to Flourish

You will have heard us talking about “Contemporary Teaching and learning” and how at Living Waters we have a “Child and Christ Centered” approach. But do you know what this is?

Contemporary learning and teaching is an approach that prepares students across all curriculum areas and learning stages with skills and capabilities to thrive in a rapidly changing and interconnected world. Here are some key aspects:

Learner-Centered Approach: Contemporary teaching strategies focus on the learner. They encourage collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity. Students become leaders of their own learning, engaging in problem-solving and becoming mindful global citizens.
Flexible Learning Environments: These environments allow students to learn in various settings, interact with peers and educators differently, and enhance their sense of belonging and inclusion. The design of learning spaces scaffolds different learning modes and activities, catering to individual student needs.
Skills Development: Contemporary learning emphasizes gaining new skills for successful futures. It connects students and engages their curiosity, fostering a love for learning.
Interconnected World: As our world becomes more interconnected, contemporary teaching and learning equip students with the tools they need to thrive in diverse contexts.

As part of our research and application of this approach, we have been selected by Lutheran Education Australia to be an action research site in their Contemporary Learning project, “Free to Flourish”. “Free to Flourish” serves as a powerful tool for reflecting on current pedagogy and exploring transformative teaching practices. By embracing its elements—adventurous, compassionate, purposeful, and relational—schools are discovering new ways to cultivate these qualities in their learners. It is the final chapter in our guiding document for Lutheran education “Growing Deep”. Our learning hubs have explored the Free to Flourish themes as the stimulus for their three deep learning inquiries this year with the theme of being relational underlying learning for the whole year and enhancing our approach to wellbeing. Stay tuned as we share more about our journey in the coming months.

Value Focus - Lead by Example

Our value focus for the first three weeks of term is Lead by Example. I subscribe to the theory if you want a child to develop a skill then they need to practice it in an authentic way. Did you know every child in the Reef (5/6 Hub) has a leadership role in our school? They have all embraced their roles and have risen to the challenge. There may have been some bumps in the road, but these are opportunities to reflect and learn. As a group your child will spend the first three weeks of term exploring what leading by example looks like, sounds like and feels like. How can you help? Ask your child what they think leadership is. How do they show leadership daily? Check in with them to see how they have shown leadership today, or if they had a challenging situation where they wanted to lead by example but weren’t sure what to do.

Being a student leader is about more than just showing a new kid the ropes in the classroom. It is about becoming an independent thinker who understands how to work as part of a team and positively affect those around them. While leadership skills can come naturally to some, research shows that anyone, even young children, can learn and develop leadership qualities when they are explicitly taught and given opportunities to lead. If you subscribe to the idea of constructivism (which our team does!), then you believe that kids can develop their leadership skills over time by applying past knowledge into new ways of understanding the world.

Reminders:

School Photos are next Friday! Full school uniform required including black shoes, no sports tops.

Canteen now opens Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday. Get your orders in by 8:00 am. If you have time in the morning, please pop in and see Ness as she’d love a hand with labelling bags and morning prep. Even 15 mins is helpful.

Pick Up and Drop Off. A reminder that parking on the verge on Kramer St is not allowed and the street is now no parking. Children should be dropped off at kiss and go, or park in the carpark and walk children across the supervised crossing. This is important for safety at these busy times.

Blessings,

Mrs Lisa Goldsworthy

PRAYER FAMILIES

for the coming fortnight:

Noble, Noyalton, Obede, O'Connell, Oliver, Oyler, Parker, Pfeiffer, Philip, Porambo

And staff:

Melissa Bevan, Riley Bevan, Mike Boland, Steven Chen

BIRTHDAYS

Happy Birthday to the following students for the coming weeks:

Tyler Watts, Maya Losee, Gnakhan Ruei, Lachie Gregory, Jayden Losee, Krisha Noyalton, Brooklyn Berry, Azaria Fernando

Community Notices