Principal's Message
Dear Parents/Carers
Welcome to the end of Week 9. This will be the last newsletter before Easter and for this term. As such I have placed a 600yr reflection below in regard to fasting. It only goes to show that the adage ‘if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it’ often holds true, even in prayer.
Fasting
While fasting with the body,
brothers and sisters,
let us also fast in spirit.
Let us lose every bond of iniquity;
let us undo the knots of every contact made by violence;
let us tear up all unjust agreements;
let us give bread to the hungry
and welcome to our house
the poor who have no roof to cover them,
that we may receive mercy from Christ our God.
- Byzantine Vespers
Covid 19 – Term 2
Our hope is to have our first onsite school event next term, Mother's Day. This is a small indication that our covid rules have relaxed for outdoor events. Welcome news indeed for our X-Country Carnival and our Athletics Carnival which are planned in the first half of Term Two.
Unfortunately, there is still limited indoor interaction available, and we will wait to hear about any official word from ACT Health. Otherwise, all regulations that are in place will remain the same. This means masks, isolating, hand sanitizing, social distancing etc. I will notify community of any changes to these rules in Week 1 of Term 2.
Mother’s Day Afternoon Tea and Gifts-
Today a flyer has been sent home for a Mother’s Day celebration. Hopefully we will all be able to gather for a tea and a coffee and a pastry in the afternoon, allowing the children to come out and enjoy some afternoon tea and a play as mums have a chat with each other, socially distanced of course. Children will have the opportunity next week to choose a gift for their mum if they want to. Money can be brought in next term.
Parent Class Contacts – Shout Out
We are still placing a shout out for Parent Class Contacts. If you haven’t signed up for a role at SJV before, or even if you have, this is your chanced to add value to your child’s class. It usually means organising a couple of activities per year or semester, such as a hot chocolate afternoon or a footbal/netball game after school, very easy and lots of fun.
School Event Calendar – Covid Rules Dependent
Our fridge calendar was sent out today and has events and dates planned for the year. The hope is that all of these go ahead, Covid rules dependent. We have not really held any events for two years so this will be new for many people.
As you will see when looking at the calendar there are classes or grades that have been allocated to an event. A shout out will be asked for the parents of these allocated cohorts to help organise these events. All information on how to hold these events are provided to the organisers. These events help shape who we want to be as a community, so please make sure that you participate in your allocated event. Thanks for all your hard work. BTW - If you are reading this, please send an email to the Front Office with the subject line -Easter Raffle - for a free ticket.
School Community Council – Positions Filled
Welcome aboard Annette Doszpot and Matt Thorpe, two parents who have placed their hands up to be on our School Community Council. A large applause for Yash McCann who has worked tirelessly on the council, doing wonderful work with Facebook communication and assisting with many key events.
Term 2 Start – Wednesday 27th April
Term 2 comes on the back of Anzac Day and this is then followed by a system wide Professional Learning day. This means that the students will receive two days, creating a longer Anzac Weekend. Enjoy!
Easter Raffle Wk 10 and Free Clothes Friday 8th April – Support the Ukraine and World Poverty
Families have donated Easter eggs for three baskets to be raffled off by our SRC leaders all next week. SRC will sell tickets which are 1 for $1 or 3 for $2 and three lucky winners will walk home with a chocolate feast. The money raised from this raffle will go directly towards supporting Caritas’ efforts in the Ukraine.
Over 3.7 million people have fled their homes in Ukraine, and there have been at least 2,778 civilian casualties. You can help the Caritas Ukraine staff on the ground to provide families with emergency food, water, shelter and hygiene support.
On the last day of school we intend to hold a ‘Free Clothes Friday’. We would ask children to bring in a gold coin donation to put towards solving world hunger. Thanks for your support.
God bless you and your families
Peter Rodda
Principal