Term 4 Week 5 of 11
Friday, 8th November 2024
Message From the Principal
Dear Parents/Carers,
I hope you are all well. I just wanted to let you know we have made an appointment to replace Jess
Davis. I have changed the role slightly. The new role will be Leader of Wellbeing/Child Safety and
Community. This role does not have a Deputy Principal component to it. I wanted the new person in this role to have the time to devote themselves to the wellbeing of our children and their safety. Shannon
Betham will continue in her role as Deputy Principal: Learning & Organisation.
Congratulations to Marie D’Orazio who will bring her vast experience in leadership and wellbeing to this role.
Marie is currently the Deputy Principal, Learning Diversity Leader and Wellbeing Leader at Mother of God
in Ardeer and prior to that was the Student Wellbeing Leader and Community Leader at St Peter’s in Keilor East and St Annes in Sunbury. Marie has a proven track record in working closely with staff and families to support the wellbeing of all students and will be a great asset to our school. She will start with us at the beginning of 2025.
2025 Dates
● Thursday January 30 -First Day of School Year 1-6
● Monday February 3- First Day for Prep
● Thursday February 13 - School Finishes At 12 PM- Parent Teacher Interviews from 12.30-8pm
● Monday February 24- School Closure Day Staff Professional Learning
● Friday April 4 -Last Day of Term 1
● Monday April 21 - First Day of Term 2
● Monday May 19 - School Closure Day Staff Professional Learning
● Friday July 4 -Last Day of Term 2
● Monday July 21 -School Closure Day
● Tuesday July 22 - First Day of Term3
● Wednesday August 6 - School Finishes at 12pm - Parent Teacher Interviews from 12.30-8pm
● Monday August 18- School Closure Day Staff Professional Learning
● Friday September 19 - Last Day of Term 3
● Monday October 6 School Closure Day
● Tuesday October 7 - First Day of Term 3
● Monday November 4 -School Closure - Day before Melbourne Cup Holiday
● Tuesday November 5- Melbourne Cup Holiday
● Tuesday December 16- Last Day of School 3.15pm finish
Deputy Principal: Learning & Organisation
Reports: We are going paperless!
Once again, our teachers are working hard to complete our Semester 2 student reports. The student reports will be made available online through the online portal on Monday . We will send out details on how to access this in the coming weeks, closer to school reports being made available.
This term we are sending an Operoo for you to opt in or out of a paper copy of your child’s report. All families will be able to access the online copy of the report. This opt in/opt out option is an opportunity for you to let us know if you would like to receive a paper copy as well as the digital copy that is available online. This will be the final time that we will offer a paper copy option as we transition fully to digital reports in 2025.
Our school is always looking at ways we can be
more sustainable and one of those ways is to reduce
the amount of paper that is used and distributed at
school. We ask for your support in accessing reports digitally through Nforma this reporting term.
Keep a lookout for an Operoo form that has been sent today Friday 8th November. The form will be open for two weeks, closing on Friday 22nd November. The form will indicate to us which families would like to receive a paper copy of the report. Please note that only families that have opted in for a paper copy will receive this when reports are distributed.
Thank you for your support in reducing the amount of paper used and distributed here at Resurrection!
Prep 2025 Transition Sessions
We are very much looking forward to welcoming our 2025 Prep students as they begin their transition sessions next week on Friday. Our new preps will be easy to spot as each of them will be gifted a Resurrection Prep 2025 t-shirt to wear to their transition sessions.
It is not too late to enrol in Prep for next year - we only have 4 places left. If you know of parents still looking for a school for their child for next year don’t forget to refer them to Resurrection.
In preparing these transition sessions, it is timely to announce that our Prep teachers for 2025 are Olivia Duvcecski, Kurt Caguin and Carla Tirotta. We know that they will make an incredible team and will ensure a fantastic first year of learning for our littlest learners in Prep!
2025 Class Placement & Transition sessions
Thank you to the parents who have reached out over the past few weeks with feedback on class structures and suggestions to support their child’s placement for next year.
This input is valuable as we prepare for the upcoming year. Our placement process includes professional observations, assessments conducted throughout the year, peer relationships, and collaboration with families.
Creating balanced class groups is like forming a diverse group of around 26 students, each with unique experiences, skills, and abilities. We consider each student’s personality, talents, and social, emotional, physical, and spiritual needs and strengths. Although this task is complex, your input, understanding and support is much appreciated.
In the coming weeks, our teachers and executive leadership team will begin organising the 2025 student lists, assigning teachers to classes, and allocating LSOs across the school.
2025 Prep to Grade 5 Transition sessions are:
Monday 2nd December 2024
Monday 9th December 2024
Staff News!
We would like to congratulate Mrs Jacinta Polh and Ms Maeva Soba on their recent pregnancy announcements! We wish them both all the best on this exciting new chapter of their lives and pray for a smooth transition to motherhood. Our prep students are very excited about this special news!
We will be holding our Colour Run on Friday 8th November after our second break. Please ensure you have read the detailed email sent out earlier this week which will provide you with a good overview of the plans for the afternoon.
Learning Diversity
We would like to inform you that Parent Support Group Sessions (PSGS) will be held in Week 7 for students who qualify for substantial and extensive support under the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) funding categories. These sessions are an essential opportunity to discuss your child’s progress, review their individual learning plans, and ensure they are receiving the necessary support to thrive in their learning environment.
You will have received an Operoo message to book if this is relevant to your child.
Additionally, we kindly request any updated reports from specialists or recent assessments that you may have for your child. These documents play a vital role in helping us tailor our support to meet your child’s evolving needs. We appreciate your assistance in providing these as we work together to support your child’s education.
SUNDAY GOSPEL
This Sunday’s reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Mark 12:38 - 44
The poor widow has put more than all who contributed.
In his teaching Jesus said, ‘Beware of the scribes who like to walk about in long robes, to be greeted obsequiously in the market squares, to take the front seats in the synagogues and the places of honour at banquets; these are the men who swallow the property of widows, while making a show of lengthy prayers. The more severe will be the sentence they receive.’
He sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the treasury, and many of the rich put in a great deal. A poor widow came and put in two small coins, the equivalent of a penny. Then he called to his disciples and said to them, ‘I tell you solemnly, this poor widow has put more in than all who have contributed to the treasury; for they have all put in money they had over, but she from the little she had has put in everything she possessed, all she had to live on.’
Gospel Reflection
We would normally hear or read the second half of this week’s gospel as a stand alone example of generosity and faith – often without the section that immediately precedes it. Whilst the actions of the widow are certainly worthy of comment, when we read it in the context of the condemnation that immediately precedes it, the widow’s offering is placed in a different light. Jesus condemns the scribes who parade their wealth and seek trappings of earthly power and glory: being recognised and greeted as they walk the streets; taking the front seats in synagogue; and expecting to be seated in the place of honour at banquets. Whilst parading their wealth and feasting at banquets, they are also swallowing up the property of widows – taking advantage of those in need. We often hear widows and orphans named in the scriptures as those in need. Widows and orphans (and strangers in the land) are marked out for special attention in the Torah. They are named as deserving of special care – the lost and broken of society. So despite holding a special place in Jewish Law and tradition, the widows are being taken advantage of by the scribes, who are taking over their property for their own gain. One of the duties of the scribes was to administer the proper payment of Temple taxes. The treasury referred to in the passage is the Temple treasury. Rather than a great act of generosity, we can now see the widow’s payment of Temple tax as a burdensome, heart-wrenching obligation to pay the very last coins she had to a corrupt, uncaring system. We usually read praise into Jesus’ comments about the widow’s offering, but it can also be read as moral outrage at the system that demands this woman pay all that she possesses to the Temple.
Living the Gospel - Hypocrisy
Throughout the gospels, what Jesus appears to abhor more than anything else is hypocrisy. His harshest condemnation of the scribes and the Pharisees is that they are hypocrites. In this passage, whilst Jesus hates the scribes’ parading around and claiming honour that is not their due, what really sees him condemn them is their mistreatment of widows ‘while making a show of lengthy prayers’. We cannot praise God in prayer while at the same time mistreating our neighbour. That is hypocrisy! Our actions are an extension of our prayer. We cannot celebrate the Eucharist on Sundays and fail to live it the rest of the week!
Have you thought? What’s in a word?
It’s interesting that we have traditionally read Jesus’ comments about the widow’s offering as praise and perhaps even some pride in her actions. Nothing in the words themselves give away Jesus’ emotion. Try reading Jesus’ words with a variety of different emotions: anger; sadness; joy; triumph; dismay. How does the emotion with which we read these words change our understanding of them? Can you think of other passages that could be read in a whole new light if we changed our preconceived ideas about the emotion with which Jesus spoke?
Historical Context - The Widow
In ancient Jewish culture, until a woman was married she was literally the property of her father. Upon marrying, the woman left her family and became part of her husband’s family and became specifically the property of her husband. If the woman’s husband were to die, leaving her a widow, she no longer had anywhere to belong. Because a woman’s identity was based on which man she belonged to, she effectively ceased to belong anywhere. It is for this reason that the Torah names widows as deserving of special care and protection from the whole community.
Christ the King
Since 1925 the universal Church has celebrated the 35th and last Sunday of Ordinary Time with the Feast of Christ the King. The feast honors the Christ’s sovereignty over all persons, families, nations, and the whole universe. Over the past years we as a parish, have celebrated this feast with a distinct Samoan flavour.
It gives us an opportunity as a parish to recognise and celebrate with our parishioners who trace their origins back to Samoa. The celebrations will be at our 10.30am Mass on Sunday 24th November, lunch will be provided afterwards in the hall.
Everyone is welcome.
St Vinnies Christmas Appeal
As we begin to approach the end of the year and look forward to Christmas, for members in our community that are less fortunate than us it means a time of greater stress. This year especially has seen an increase in the number of people who have lost jobs, been victims of violence or in financial difficulty. St Vincent De Paul will be providing assistance to these families before Christmas and look to our parishioners and their generous support to assist us.
For those that are able to, we ask for the following:
Christmas hampers for families (feel free to make your own)
Books, puzzles and activities for children
Toys for children
All of our St Vinnie’s members will represent each of you as we will deliver these generous gifts on your behalf.
We would like to extend our gratitude and thank for your continuous support.
God Bless you all from
TERM FOUR DATES
Week 6
Monday - 11/11
Saint Martin of Tours
Remembrance Day
Exec Team 9.30 – 10.30am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 12/11
Saint Josaphat
Wednesday - 13/11
Grade 5 Interrelate Program (3 of 3)
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Thursday - 14/11
Friday - 15/11
Saint Albert the Great
2025 Prep Transition Session 1
Year Level Mass followed by morning tea: Grade 1/2
Saturday - 16/11
Saint Gertrude
Saint Margaret of Scotland
Sunday - 17/11
33rd Sunday In Ordinary Time
Week 7
Monday - 18/11
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 19/11
Wednesday - 20/11
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Thursday - 21/11
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Friday - 22/11
Saint Cecilia
2025 Prep Transition Session 2
Saturday - 23/11
Sunday - 24/11
Solemnity Of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King Of The Universe
Year 3/4 Sunday Family Mass 10:30am
Week 8
Monday - 25/11
Saint Catherine of Alexandria
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 26/11
Parent Support Group Meetings
Parent Advisory Council 7.00pm – 8.00pm
Wednesday - 27/11
Parent Support Group Meetings
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Thursday - 28/11
Parent Support Group Meetings
Friday - 29/11
2025 Prep Transition Session 3
Year Level Mass followed by morning tea: Grade 3/4
Saturday - 30/11
Saint Andrew
Sunday - 1/12
1st Sunday Of Advent
Week 9
Monday - 2/12
2025 Student Transition Day 1 (Prep – Grade 5’s)
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 3/12
Saint Francis Xavier
Parent Support Group Meetings
Wednesday - 4/12
Saint John Damascene
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Grade 5 Camp - Sovereign Hill (Ballarat)
Thursday - 5/12
Parent Support Group Meetings
Grade 5 Camp - Sovereign Hill (Ballarat)
Friday - 6/12
Saint Nicholas
2025 Prep Transition Session 4
Grade 5 Camp - Sovereign Hill (Ballarat)
Reports due to leadership
Saturday - 7/12
Saint Ambrose
Sunday - 8/12
2nd Sunday Of Advent
Week 10
Monday - 9/12
The Immaculate Conception Of The Blessed Virgin Mary
2025 Student Transition Day 2 (Prep – Grade 5s)
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 10/12
Our Lady of Loreto
Wednesday - 11/12
Saint Damasus I
Carols By Candlelight 6.00pm - 7.30pm
Report changes completed
Thursday - 12/12
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Friday - 13/12
Grade 6 Big Day Out
2025 Prep Transition Session 5
Saint Lucy
Saturday - 14/12
Saint John of the Cross
Sunday - 15/12
3rd Sunday of Advent
Week 11
Monday - 16/12
Grade 6 Graduation Liturgy & Presentation Night 6.00pm
Reports sent out
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30 pm
Tuesday - 17/12
Whole School Mass 9.00am
End of Year Award Ceremony
Last Day Of Term (3.15pm Finish)
Wednesday - 18/12
School Closure Day - Handover Day
Thursday - 19/12
School Closure Day - End of Year Staff Lunch
Friday - 20/12
School Closure - Time in Lieu Day
Saturday - 21/12
Sunday - 22/12
4th Sunday of Advent
