Catholic Identity
At a Glance…
The “At a Glance” section of this newsletter is a response to the feedback presented in the “Tell Them From Me Survey” completed earlier this year. We acknowledge that some families are time poor and wish to have the information communicated as concisely as possible.
Solemnity of St Mary of the Cross Mackillop
Vision and Mission: Student and Parent Survey
Year 1 Spotlight: Parable of the Yeast
Reminder: Year 6 Confirmation: (Thursday 10 September and Tuesday 15 September, 7:00pm)
Reminder: First Reconciliation Parent Information and Prayer Evening (Wednesday 9 September 6:00pm)
Solemnity of St Mary of the Cross Mackillop
As a proud Josephite school, we hold a special connection to Australia’s first saint, St Mary of the Cross Mary MacKillop, whose legacy inspires our daily living and learning. Guided by her deep faith and famous words, "Never see a need without doing something about it", Mary dedicated her life to ensuring education, dignity, and care were accessible to every child and family, regardless of their circumstances.
Last Friday, we gathered as a Catholic School Community in celebration of St Mary of the Cross, Mackillop. We attended Mass and completed some activities in our classrooms. The activities were dynamic and ranged from hands-on craft activities, writing prayers, listening to podcasts, research, PicCollage, Lego and even playing a Kahoot. Students made connections between the life and legacy of St Mary of the Cross Mackillop and their learning in Religious Education about Saints, God’s goodness and Jesus’ Commandment of love.
A special shout out to Everett (KJ) and Autumn (2J) for representing our school St Joseph’s at the Dioceasean Mass on Saturday - the feast day of St Mary of the Cross Mackilop. In his Homily, Fr Bernard reminded us that just like us, St Mary of the Cross Mackillop faced human struggles, but continued to trust in God to help her bear witness. His words of encouragement were that young people are not just the future, but they are very much the present!
Vision and Mission: Student and Parent Survey
One of the main areas of focus this year is to reimagine our School’s Vision and Mission. This was first developed in 2017 and since then our school has undergone significant change. The aim of this process is to evaluate whether our Vision and Mission is Christ-centred, current and formative of all aspects of school life.
A necessary part of this process is to gain feedback from our parent community. This feedback is facilitated by Gary Quinn through an online survey of 7 questions, taking no more than 5 minutes. I ask that you take the time this week to complete the survey so that we can gain as much feedback as possible for this process- Thank you!
Gary Quinn works for the Catholic Education Office in the Diocese of Wollongong and will be visiting our school on Tuesday 18 August to gain feedback from our School Community.
Students with 1:1 iPads will complete the survey anonymously online and Gary will facilitate a whole class discussion for students in K-2. To assist in preparing the students for this, the questions are outlined below:
Why did your family send you to this school?
What do you like about your school?
What would you change?
What would you like included in your school?
What do you appreciate about your teachers?
Year 1 Spotlight: Parable of the Yeast
Students in Year 1 have been learning about some important parables that Jesus taught. Parables are stories that often have a deeper meaning and much of Jesus’ teaching was in parables. Last week, they listened to and responded to the parable of the Yeast.
“The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every part of the dough.” Matthew 13:33.
This parable teaches us that small things can make a BIG difference and God’s love grows quietly. You can't actually watch bread rise in real time because it happens so slowly and quietly. God’s goodness works the same way! Even when we don't notice it happening right away, His love is quietly growing inside our hearts and all around us.
How can you be like a little bit of yeast in your school or family?
Reminder: Year 6 Confirmation: (Thursday 10 September and Tuesday 15 September, 7:00pm)
A friendly reminder for families of Year 6 students intending to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation: please ensure your enrolment forms are submitted directly to the Parish Office or handed in during one of our Sunday Masses. Active participation in Mass is a vital component of spiritual preparation as we approach this sacred milestone, and we warmly encourage all candidates to join the community at either the 8:30am or 5:30pm on Sundays.
Reminder: First Reconciliation Parent Information and Prayer Evening (Wednesday 9 September 6:00pm)
The planning between the school and parish is well underway for the Sacrament First Reconciliation. An essential and necessary part of this planning and preparation is the parent information and prayer evening. This evening, held in the church, is a special time for parents to receive necessary information, (including enrolment forms and booking information) about their child’s Sacrament and how they can support them on their journey.
The evening is scheduled for Wednesday 9 September at 6:00pm.
If your child has not been Baptised into the Catholic Faith and you wish for them to participate in the Sacraments (Reconciliation, Eucharist and Confirmation), please contact the Parish Office as soon as possible to ensure that your child is able to participate with the rest of their grade.
Office hours: Monday, Wednesday, Friday 9.30am to 3pm
Phone: 4284 3000
Mr Alexander Walker
Religious Education Coordinator