From the Principal
In recognition of NAIDOC Week, we offer the following prayer
Reconciliation Prayer
Holy Father, God of Love,
You are the Creator of all things.
We acknowledge the pain and shame of our history
and the sufferings of Our peoples,
and we ask your forgiveness.
We thank you for the survival of Indigenous cultures
Our hope is in you because you gave your Son Jesus
to reconcile the world to you.
We pray for your strength and grace to forgive, accept and love one another, as you love us and forgive and accept us in the sacrifice of your Son.
Give us the courage to accept the realities of our history so that we may build a better
future for our Nation.
Teach us to respect all cultures.
Teach us to care for our land and waters.
Help us to share justly the resources of this land. Help us to bring about spiritual and social change to improve the quality of life for all groups in our communities, especially the disadvantaged.
Help young people to find true dignity and self-esteem by your Spirit.
May your power and love be the foundations on which we build our families, our communities and our Nation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
(Wontulp Bi-Buya Indigenous Theology Working Group, Brisbane, Qld).
St Pat's Show Day
What a wonderful day we had on Wednesday. As we celebrated both the Melbourne Cup and the Nhill Show, we had our own St Pat's Show Day. Just as you would see at the Cup, there was a range of attire worn by students and staff on the day and this added to the occasion.
There were some fantastic displays as the children exhibited their art work, Lego constructions, photographs, flower arrangements, foods, and more. Throughout the day we enjoyed pea-shelling competitions, a 'Fashions on the Field' parade, Gum boot throwing, egg and spoon races and simply a whole lot of fun!
Thank you to everyone for making it such a fun day.
School Closure Day - Staff First Aid Course
As advised last week, next Thursday, 12th November, will be a Student Free day as staff undertake a First Aid course on that day. No students are to come to school next Thursday.
Senior Camp
I am pleased to advise that we will be conducting a Senior Camp for all Years 3-6 students on Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th November. We have not had a lot of time to organise the camp given the ever changing restrictions due to the coronavirus, however we have managed to book in for an overnight stay at Little Desert Nature Lodge as well as undertaking some other activities around the area on those two days. More information will be coming home shortly. Thank you to Miss Webb for all the organising she has been doing over the past week.
Whole School Excursion
On Friday 20th November, all students will have an excursion to Halls Gap and the Halls Gap Zoo. Once again, more information will be sent home in the near future but please make a note of this date on your calendars.
NAIDOC Week 2020 - Always Was. Always will Be.
The 2020 National NAIDOC Week theme has been developed to shine a focus on the length of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander occupation of Australia. In narratives, Aboriginal people talk of continuous occupation of being here when time began, of being part of the Dreaming – past, present and future. Anthropologists and archaeologists have dated Aboriginal sites to being hundreds of thousands years old, in fact recording some of these sites as being the oldest on the planet. Additionally, the NAIDOC theme seeks to get teachers, students and community to explore and learn about, and appreciate the wealth and breadth of Indigenous Nations, languages and knowledges of this continent. This week particularly, we focus on exploring and learning about Indigenous understandings of the environment, plants, animals, greater astronomy and cosmology, waters, land use and protection, Indigenous sciences and maths.
Walk to School
Sadly this year we didn’t have any Walk to School activities due to the COVID 19 restrictions. Walk to School has introduced the new Walk to School 2020 email series for families with ideas, tips and fun facts to encourage kids to be active before and after school, even while coronavirus restrictions are in place. Subscribe to the new @WalkToSchool emails for weekly tips like how to kickstart a healthy routine and 6 ways to get big kids ready for independent travel.
Here’s to a term where kids are active and feeling great!
Reminders - on-site learning
Coronavirus restrictions remain in place. This means that:
- All unwell students must stay home. Parents will be called to collect any students who experience symptoms such as fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat.
- Students must bring their own water bottles to school for use (and refilling).
- We will continue to provide routine environmental cleaning, including progressive cleaning throughout the day.
- Parents/carers are asked to observe physical distancing measures before and after school by not congregating in areas inside or around the school, including at the main entrance.
- Parents/carers can attend the school office if necessary.
- Face masks do not need to be worn at school by primary school children, but children over the age of 12 must wear masks when not at school.
Last Sunday's Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12
Seeing the crowds, Jesus went up the hill. There he sat down and was joined by his disciples. Then he began to speak. This is what he taught them: 'How happy are the poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Happy the gentle: they shall have the earth for their heritage. Happy those who mourn: they shall be comforted. Happy those who hunger
and thirst for what is right: they shall be satisfied. Happy the merciful: they shall have mercy shown them. Happy the pure in heart: they shall see God. Happy the peacemakers: they shall be called sons of God. Happy those who are persecuted in the cause of right: theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 'Happy are you when people abuse you and persecute you and speak all kinds of calumny against you on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.'
Remember to follow us on Facebook
Those who are on Facebook are encouraged to follow our page at St Patrick's School, Nhill. 'Like' our page, enjoy our posts, and share them with your friends. Stay connected through our Social Media page.
Our Josephite Heritage
The Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, often called the "Josephites" or "Brown Joeys", were founded in Penola, South Australia, in 1866 by Mary MacKillop and the Rev. Julian Tenison Woods. In 1949, three Josephite sisters arrived in Nhill to open St Patrick’s School. In 1978, the Sisters of St Joseph informed the Nhill Parish that they would no longer be able to maintain their role within the school.
We endeavour to honour our Josephite heritage through the regular presentation of the Little Joey awards at our assemblies. In support of this we also include a reflection from Mary MacKillop on our newsletter each week.
"We must pray that God may direct us to do what will please God most" Mary MacKillop, 1881
God Bless you all.
Kingsley Dalgleish
Principal