Term 2 Week 5 of 9
Friday, 26th May 2023
This Week’s Newsletter Items:
● Celebrating Pentecost
● Sacraments - Food For Thought
● Operoo Profile Photos – Important Information
● Upcoming Parent Committees
● Our Junior School Celebrating Mass
● This Weekend’s Gospel
● Understanding The Gospel
● Mass On Pentecost – Celebrating our Cultures
● Learning How To Respect Others And Ourselves
● Students Awards
● Term 2 Dates
Dear Parents, Students & Friends,
On reflection of the past week, it seems that every time someone asks how I am, my response has been ‘busy’ or ‘hectic’ or ‘as busy as ever. I wonder what would happen if I replied, ‘Relaxed and laid back’ or ‘taking time to smell the roses. I don’t think I would be believed.
This weekend we celebrate the feast of Pentecost. In John's account of the first Pentecost the primary gift Jesus' Spirit bestows on the disciples is peace.
Peace is like all the best things in life: an attitude of mind and a habit born of consistently making good choices. Peace, for such people, is an affair of the mind and a way of life reflected in the way they handle conflict, challenges or even the odd crises. For others, trying to be peaceful can be a struggle reflected in their actions, communication and daily living.
At Resurrection, the staff work constantly to create an environment of peacefulness for our students and families. This is evident from the greeting of children and parents as they enter the school gates, the engagement of students in their learning, the support of families at times of crises, the management of behaviour throughout the day, and ensuring that the grounds and classrooms look their best. However, most importantly, the positive relationships that we endeavour to have with students and parents alike.
Sacraments – Food For Thought
The single largest indicator of whether a young person will continue and grow in the practice of their Faith is whether or not their parents actively practice their own Faith.
Let’s for a moment imagine it is early February in our parish. You find yourself in a Church or the parish hall and it is full of young families there for a meeting. The children are in Grade 3 or Grade 4 gearing up for their First Reconciliation and First Communion later in the school year. The parents get a calendar, some introduction and sense of what’s to come, info on dress code for the upcoming events, maybe an order form for some First Communion themed Catholic swag. They hunker down for an hour long meeting and leave immediately after.
Having attended and presented at so many of these meetings over the years I reflect upon the following:
· How many of these families are coming to Sunday Mass on a regular basis? How many of the parents have an adult level understanding of the Sacraments that their children are preparing for?
· How many of them are there because the grandparents of their child, to receive their sacraments, made sure that they would be?
· How many of them are panicking about how the preparation events will conflict with soccer, dancing classes or gymnastics?
However, despite these questions, these parents are to be commended for showing up at the meeting or coming along to the weekend Masses to honour the commitment they have made to their children as well as the faith community they belong to when preparing their child to receive their first Sacrament, that of Baptism.
There are many children who, whether or not they go to Mass regularly, make their First Communion, even their Confirmation. In another generation, if we just coast along with the status quo, will these children, when they become parents themselves, even care enough to bring their own children to the sacraments?
In reflecting upon the participation of families in the Sacramental program over the last several years, there appears to be two different approaches taken. One approach is to jump through some churchy hoops so that their children can go through what they perceive to be a rite of passage. The last thing these families expect is to be involved or spiritually nourished themselves.
The second group appears to see this as an opportunity to not only be involved in their child’s Faith development and participation in the Sacraments, but also their own. It is an extension and continuation of the baptismal promises made at the first sacramental rite bestowed upon them, Baptism. Their participation at Mass, be it frequent or infrequent, would suggest that they seek to honour, nourish and deepen their understanding of faith, both for themselves and their child/ren.
This year, it has been wonderful to receive such positive feedback from parents regarding the Adult Sacramental / Faith Session provided by Fr John Madden, as well as the enthusiasm of so many of our parish children, be they Resurrection school or State school children, on receiving a stamp at the weekend Masses to acknowledge their participation.
Recently, a parent asked why the Sacraments are being conducted through the Parish, rather than the school. The simple answer is, Sacraments are, and have always been, Parish centric. The school’s role is to support the parish and parents by building upon the child’s Sacramental understanding that has evolved through their participation in family and parish life
As I began in my introduction, so I end with the following reminder - the single largest indicator of whether a young person will continue and grow in the practice of their Faith is whether or not their parents actively practice their own Faith.
As we celebrate Pentecost this weekend, and in particular, reflect upon the gifts of the Spirit that have been endowed upon us, may we offer up our prayers for the children of our school and parish as they prepare for their Sacraments, in particular those children receiving their first Holy Communion and those who will be Confirmed later this year.
May we all do our best to create a peaceful world.
With warmest regards,
Des Noack
Principal
Operoo Profile Photos
Important Information
The school’s admin team have spent this week ensuring that all currently enrolled student Operoo profiles have a school portrait photo uploaded to their profile to ensure that they are easily identifiable by all staff. We have found that some families are changing their child's profile photo that does not reflect their current look nor age, resulting in the child not being easily identifiable.
Please note that the Operoo app is used by staff to access medical information if required, especially if they are on excursion. At times, your child will be taught by a replacement teacher that may not know your child personally nor by name and therefore, the image assists them to identify your child and access their information as quickly as possible in the event of an emergency.
We ask that you please do not upload photos that do not plainly identify your child’s current image. For example, some families have uploaded baby photos which, although a very cute picture, are clearly not suitable for what this App was designed to do.
If you have any concerns regarding this, could you please email Mr Noack (Principal) via dnoack@rskingspark.catholic.edu.au or office@rskingspark.catholic.edu.au
Upcoming
Parent Committees
Fundraising Committee Meeting
Tuesday 30th May 7.00 – 8.00pm
Canteen Committee Meeting
Tuesday 6th June 7.00 – 8.00pm
School Advisory Board Meeting
Tuesday 13th June 7.00 – 8.00pm
Our Junior School Celebrating Mass
This Sunday’s reading is from the Holy Gospel according to John (20:19-23)
As the Father sent me, so I send you: Receive the Holy Spirit.
In the evening of the first day of the week, the doors were closed in the room where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them. He said to them, ‘Peace be with you’, and showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy when they saw the Lord, and he said to them again, ‘Peace be with you.
‘As the Father sent me,
so am I sending you.’
After saying this he breathed on them and said:
‘Receive the Holy Spirit.
For those whose sins you forgive,
they are forgiven:
for those whose sins you retain,
they are retained.’
The feast of Pentecost celebrates the power of the Holy Spirit coming upon the disciples and energising them to set about their mission of continuing the ministry of Jesus. The gospel reading is one of the post-resurrection appearances by Jesus when he breathed the Holy Spirit upon the disciples. The actual events of that first Pentecost are recorded in the book of Acts and are recalled in this week’s first reading. The use of this post-resurrection gospel account is a reminder that Jesus had already imbued the disciples with the Spirit but, as so often throughout his ministry, they were a bit slow to catch on to the significance of what he had done. It seems that they needed a more tangible experience to jolt them into action and Acts records the very physical experience of the Spirit entering their midst as a roaring wind before settling upon them as tongues of flame. Jesus had breathed the Spirit upon them but it took the roaring wind to make a real impression on the disciples. There are frequent references in the gospels to Jesus being ‘filled with the Spirit’. It is this Spirit with which he was filled that he breathed upon his disciples; it is that same Spirit that we receive sacramentally in Confirmation.
For the weeks following the death of Jesus the disciples had lived in fear and confusion, not fully understanding what had happened and not really knowing what to do. When they realised that the Spirit Jesus had breathed upon them was really present and urging them to action they finally had the courage to begin the mission that Jesus had entrusted to them: to spread the Good News of Jesus and continue to realise his message in the world.
Historical Context – Pentecost
The word Pentecost comes from the Greek for fiftieth day. Pentecost Sunday ends the season of Easter and comes as a Sabbath day after seven weeks of seven days. In Jewish tradition the 50th day after the Passover was celebrated as a blessing of the harvest and rather than the unleavened bread of Passover it was celebrated by leavening the bread. It was for this reason that the disciples were gathered together when they experienced the Holy Spirit empowering them. In Christian tradition, Pentecost is celebrated as the arrival of the Spirit, promised by Jesus, that animated the disciples to spread the gospel of Jesus and gather believers to form what would eventually become the Church.
Have you thought? The Spirit
We can sometimes regard Pentecost as the day the Holy Spirit came into the world. However, the Spirit had long been active in the world before this event. In fact, even the second verse of Genesis Chapter 1 tells us that the Spirit hovered over the waters. The Old Testament is filled with references in which ‘The Spirit of God came upon (him) with power’ and the Spirit was evident at Jesus’ baptism and throughout the gospels. Jesus is frequently described as being ‘filled with the Spirit’. So, from the very beginning of creation the Spirit has moved in the world and continues to energise it today.
Living the Gospel – Come, Holy Spirit
‘Come, Holy Spirit’, or its Latin, ‘Vene Sancte Spiritus’, has become the basis of countless prayers and hymns over many hundreds of years. To this day, it remains a powerful invocation that can be used in prayer or meditation. Three simple words convey a wealth of meaning. The invitation for the Spirit to ‘Come’ indicates recognition of the need for the Spirit’s intervention and openness to accept the guidance that the Spirit brings. It is a powerful, simple prayer that can be used at the outset of any significant undertaking or whenever you find yourself in need of inspiration.
Mass on Pentecost
May 27th /28th May
As part of our Mass on Pentecost weekend, in addition to children receiving their First Communion, there will be a focus on the multi-cultural aspect of Pentecost and our Parish.
We are encouraging all our families to come along to the Mass on that weekend dressed in traditional /cultural attire. We would especially love to see our children celebrating their culture at Mass in this way.
Learning How To Respect Others & Ourselves
Last Friday we sadly were confronted with having our Senior toilets damaged. Fortunately, this is now a rare event.
Students from Grade 3 to Grade 6 met in a brief assembly on Monday morning so that we could highlight and explicitly explain the impact that such damage has on the school, its students and maintenance staff.
I share these images to reinforce that despite every effort taken to teach our students the values of Respect, Responsibility and Resilience, there is always one or two students that take a little longer to learn these key values.
I note that Senior students had already identified who was responsible and those students have since spoken to their teacher of their actions.
I believe that they are now aware of the impact they have had on their peers and have learnt a valuable lesson from this. This time, I and their peers are monitoring and reinforcing the school expectations. As the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child.
To avoid students not having water to wash their hands following this incident, we are replacing all taps with a push handle, rather than a turn handle tap, ensuring that what has occurred will not happen again. The cost to the school is approximately $4,400.
Thank you to all parents for your continued efforts in raising well mannered, respectful and responsible children. Their behaviour honours your efforts.
WEEK 5 STUDENT AWARDS
PA - Anna Druitt
Gloria K - For being a caring and kind student and always showing a willingness to help your classmates.
Singolai K - For being a knowledgeable learner in maths when counting on from different starting points. Great work Singolai!
PC - Carla Tirotta
Aubrey R- For demonstrating resilience in conquering challenging tasks. Congratulations on your commitment to learning.
Ayom M- For being a kind and caring student who always has a positive impact on those around you.
1A - Enza La Rosa
Nizapar H - For her resilience in gaining confidence in her ability to take risks in her learning and for having a positive outlook on her learning. Well Done Nizapar!
Tha T - For showing a positive approach in her learning and demonstrating confidence to ask questions when in whole group discussions. Well Done Tha!
1B - Matt Galea
Xander A - for being a risk taker by presenting to the whole school at assembly with great confidence.
Akur L - for always trying your best with your learning and showing care to your peers.
1C - Natalie Donevska
Esequiel V- For being a risk taker in his learning during maths when making his clock and using his prior knowledge about time. Well Done!!
Estela P- For showing resilience during reading and using her reading strategies when sounding out new words. Well done Estela!!
2A - Rebecca Koutivas & Shannon Ziebell
Liela M- For using feedback to improve the overall quality of her learning.
Elijah C -For being a reflective learner by challenging himself to present his work at a high standard.
2B - Ric Martin
Kelechi O - For being a thinker during his literacy time, often trying to begin tasks independently and ask questions when needed.
Michelle K - For being a risk taker with her literacy, trying to add new words to her writing to make her sentences more exciting for the reader.
2C - Dorothy Hall
Athieng M - For being an effective communicator when writing out the steps of the procedure, How to Make Wombat Stew.
Ruth S - For being a reflective learner when identifying religious and non-religious celebrations
in our community.
3A - Ella Nowak
De Vid S- For being an excellent communicator in class and sharing how he worked out an addition problem during our daily 10 addition questions. Well done De Vid!
Vidhusha K- For being an excellent communicator and sharing her ideas during class discussions. Well done Vidhusha!
3B - Emma Lyons/Sophie Duddington
Jenoleela N - for settling back into Resurrection so easily and greeting all of your peers and teachers with a big smile each day! We are so excited to have you back!
Caleb H - for being so motivated and driven in your learning by approaching everything with a positive attitude and using great time management skills. Fantastic work, Caleb!
3C - Joss Coaley
Stenly. - for showing resilience and being a motivated learner as we continue our journey exploring Mary in Religion. Well done Stenly.
Bilai Pha K - for being a strong communicator; sharing, supporting and encouraging others through your own learning. Congratulations!
4A - Lavina Stewart
Van T - For showing resilience and being a risk-taker when trying new things and demonstrates confidence and independence when completing his work. Well done Van!
Evelynne D - For being an inquirer by seeking guidance for a better understanding of a given task. It is great to see you ask for feedback to find out how you can improve in your learning. Keep it up Evelynne!
4B - Thomas Pham
Eunice Z - for being a Communicator by consistently starting to share your ideas in whole-class Literacy and Inquiry discussion. Congratulations Eunice!
Marcus T - for being Reflective by making a good choice in his learning and seeking an adult when needed. Congratulations Marcus!
4C - Brittany Davidson
Jackie D- for being a responsible and motivated learner, putting in 100 percent during all learning tasks throughout the week. Jackie, it has been a joy seeing you so engaged in your learning.
Jack L- for demonstrating respect towards his peers and educators and being resilient when things are difficult. Well done Jack.
5A - Katherine Salloum
Noor O - for being an inquiring and knowledgeable learner by developing his understanding of how and why monkeys adapt to the world around them.
Jayden P - for being an inquiring learner by developing a curiosity about turtles. Jayden was able to develop his researching skills and inform his peers on how and why turtles adapt to the world around them.
5B - Shannon Betham
Briella U-S - For being a risk-taker when engaging in discussion about ethical issues when inquiring about 'Sharing the Planet . Well done Briella!
Ruby M - For being a knowledgeable learner and achieving some great growth in our multiplication and division unit. Keep up the great effort!
5C - Malae Suaesi
Narean N - For being a reflective learner when considering how to solve division problems using long division strategy.
Jeremiah M - For being a resilient and inquire learner, when sharing important information about his animal adaptation on giant turtles. Great learning!
6A - Annette Lee
Chimankpa O- for being a balanced and reflective learner. You always give your very best effort and support those around you to do their best also- well done!
Vivienne N- for being a positive and principled role model to others. You strive to be an inclusive and supportive friend and class member- keep up the great work!
6B -
Jemma C - For being a motivated learner when completing her persuasive writing piece about ‘All Students Must Be Active’. Congratulations for adding interesting and persuasive language. Keep up the great work!
Ryan L - For always making sure that his work is completed to an excellent standard. Particularly with his research on ‘cicra’. You are an achiever who works hard on all tasks. Well done!
6C - Jane Huang
Adut L - for being an active communicator by sharing her idea of different perspectives about the ethics of the war in inquiry lessons.
Dylan T - for being a balanced learner by showing passion and talent in different learning areas and trying hard to achieve his best.
Specialist Awards
Japanese: Yumiko Aiki
Jenny T (6A) - For being a responsible and independent student who strives for the Japanese learning area. Congratulations on her conscientious and dedicated attitude that she applies to her work.
Performing Arts
Jody Banks- Aguer L (6B) - For being a risk-taker when reading the script for this year’s Grade 6 production and enthusiastically getting into character. Well done on demonstrating some outstanding drama skills, Aguer!
Visual Arts
Jake Moloney - Amelie L (2B) - For being a responsible learner in the Visual Arts room when setting up and packing up her resources. Well done Amelie!
S T E M: Matt Dalton
Akok A (6B) - For being an effective communicator as demonstrated by his willingness to share his ideas and knowledge during STEM learning. Well done Akok.
P.E: Jen Barresi
Calvin Pham-Moore (6C) - for being consistently respectful and caring towards myself and others. Each week Calvin participates in P.E with resilience and a positive attitude. Keep up the great work Calvin!
Week 6
Monday 29/05
● Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
● Exec Team 9.30am - 11.00am
● Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4.30pm
Tuesday 30/05
● Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
● Fundraising Committee Meeting 7.00-8.00pm
Wednesday 31/05
● The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Thursday 01/06
● Saint Justin
● Deputy Principals Network
Friday 02/06
● Saints Marcellinus and Peter
● Year 3-6 Athletics Carnival (Backup date)
● Year Level Mass followed by parent morning tea - Preps
● Deputy Principals Network
Saturday 03/06
● First Communion Masses
Sunday 04/06
● Solemnity Of The Most Holy Trinity
● First Communion Masses
Week 7
Monday 05/06
● Student House Activity Day
● Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
● Exec Team 9.30am - 11.00am
● Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4.30pm
Tuesday 06/06
● Parent Support Group Meetings
● Mary, Mother of the Church
● Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
● Canteen Committee Meeting 7.00-8.00pm
Wednesday 07/06
● Parent Support Group Meetings
Thursday 08/06
● Parent Support Group Meetings
Friday 09/06
● Saint Ephrem
● Year Level Mass followed by parent morning tea – Seniors
● ONWZ Principals Network Meeting
Saturday 10/06
● First Communion Masses
Sunday 11/06
● Feast Of Corpus Christi
● First Communion Masses
Week 8
Monday 12/06
● King’s Birthday – School Closure
Tuesday 13/06
● Parent Support Group Meetings
● Parent Advisory Council 7.00pm – 8.00pm
● Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Wednesday 14/06
● Parent Support Group Meetings
Thursday 15/06
● Parent Support Group Meetings
● Grade 5 Dance Battle Competition
Friday 16/6
● Instalment 2 - Family Fee Payment Due
● Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
● Year Level Mass followed by parent morning tea - Middles
Saturday 17/06
● Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
● First Communion Masses
Sunday 18/06
● 11TH Sunday In Ordinary Time
● First Communion Masses
Week 9
Monday 19/06
● Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
● Reports back to teachers
● Exec Team 9.30am - 11.00am
● Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4.30pm
Tuesday 20/06
Wednesday 21/06
● Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
● Resurrection Day Celebration
● Resurrection Day Mass 9.00am (Whole School)
● Last Day of Term 2 Dismissal Time 3.15pm
● Semester 1 Student Reports Sent Home
Thursday 22/06
● School Closure Staff Faith Formation Day 1
Friday 23/06
● School Closure Staff Faith Formation Day 2