Devotion, From the Principal, Prayer Families & Birthdays

DEVOTION

The 2024 Living Waters Sports Day was a big success. Despite the postponement due to rain, the conditions turned out to be pretty good. The students ran, jumped and threw their hearts out. Larapinta won the day. The Flynn parents won the relay. Albrecht competed well. The bake sale was amazing. The rest is history (see elsewhere in the Newsletter for actual results!)  

It was a wonderful day. But I was reminded that Sports Day does not happen easily and is not an easy day for everyone. It takes a lot of work from a lot of people. And for many students running, jumping and throwing are not skills that come easily. They take practice and persistence. I loved seeing students ‘have a go’ despite these challenges. 

There are good life lessons to be learned at Sports Day, like trying your best, following instructions and being a good sport. I am reminded of a Bible verse from the book of Hebrews which says, ‘Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith’ (12:1-2).

The verse describes life as a long-distance race. It requires perseverance, some days more than others. But we also have a ‘great cloud of witnesses,’ people who support and encourage us along the way, our cheer squad. In this race, Jesus is our guide and goal. He runs the difficult race of the cross for us and promises to help us in the challenge we face. Well done to all competitors!     

Pastor Ben

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Werte

Wednesday was National Support Persons Day, and we celebrated our support people by letting them know all the amazing things we love about them and shouting them lunch at the canteen. Our school is made up of talented and dedicated people who go above and beyond to enhance the learning environment at Living Waters. We are grateful for our strong, capable and competent team. 

Lord, we pray for strength and endurance for each member of the support staff. Grant them patience as they handle countless responsibilities and challenges. May they feel valued and appreciated for their hard work and dedication. Bless them with wisdom and discernment as they provide guidance and assistance to students, parents, and teachers. Amen

Congratulations to all the Year 4-6 Students who represented our school at the Interschool Athletics carnival. We can be proud of the courage and endeavour of all involved. It was great to see people give their best and also cheering on the other students not only from our school but from all schools. Well done sports reps. 

Last week I started a ‘Myth Busters’ series. First cab off the rank was HOMEWORK. At Living Waters, we use a research backed approach to our contemporary learning framework. Teachers encourage nightly reading, provide the spelling patterns children are learning and may provide some other optional activities. We also partner with Children’s Uni for those children who would like to explore areas that interest them. 

*We keep the child at the centre of all of our decisions. 

*Evidence states there is a zero effect of homework for primary students and students would be better placed spending time interacting as a family and enhancing their experiences with sports and other extracurricular activities. 

*Research also goes as far as to say that for neurologically diverse students, homework can have a negative effect as their brain needs adequate time to rest and recover for learning the next day. But don’t take our word for it! leading education researcher John Hattie recently released this article: https://amp.abc.net.au/article/103565534. Professor Hattie said while there was some evidence homework benefited high-school students, there was no need for it in primary schools. "The evidence is pretty clear that homework in primary school has a very low to zero effect," he said 20 May 2024.

Planning for 2025 is underway, as you may be aware there is an international teacher shortage, and this is felt keenly in Alice Springs. Every school in town currently has vacancies. Being a teacher is often called a service vocation, with a lot of unpaid work and time. The younger generation are not choosing teaching as a career and teachers are leaving the profession in droves. The combination of factors makes recruitment to Alice Springs challenging. Therefore, we are asking for you co-operation in adhering to your enrolment contract by providing the school with a full term's notice of your intention to depart. This means if you are planning on departing in Term 4 you would need to notify us prior to the start of Term 3. If you are planning not to return in 2025 you would need to notify us prior to the start of Term 4. We understand families are relocating interstate and we are sad to see them go, however, to adequately resource the school we need to stick to the terms of the enrolment contract and provide the relevant notice. 

Lastly, I have finished reading all the students reports and I am impressed by the progress made by nearly all students. Literacy results in the last semester have skyrocketed and 12- 18 months growth is common among the children. I look forward to presenting awards to those students who have had significant growth at closing worship. 

Please take the time over the holidays to rest and play as a family and we look forward to seeing you all back for a huge semester two of Reef camps, swimming lessons, Father’s Day breakfast, school concert, cricket lessons and Be Me with Miss Katie to name a few.

Blessings,

Mrs Lisa Goldsworthy

PRAYER FAMILIES

for the coming fortnight: 

McNamara/Pipe, Meagher, Meladious, Melky, Mills, Modi, Mondal, Morton, Munyoro, Nicholl

And staff:

Gai Puglisi-Kelly, Rachael Pyatt, Portia Strawbridge, Ramzy Ahmadi

BIRTHDAYS

Happy Birthday to the following students for the coming weeks:

Anne Quin, Mihira Arya, Parker Sanderson, Waylon Bathern, Molly Fior, Rachel Tee, Shaurya Raj, Ava Harman, Yousif Obede, Gabriella Melky, Kenaisha St Clair, Finn Harvey, Weneang Makouc, Evander Oyler, Eben Meagher, Kenzo South, Nyabana Makouc, Jeremy Philip, Isabella Seeley, Sandy St Clair, Anwen Jones, Kenzo St Clair, Shivank Arya, Todd Parker, Shivam Modi, Lexi Goldsworthy