Term 4, Week 1, 2023

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

I would like to welcome you back to school as we commence Term 4. 

On Monday we held a Staff Reflection Day with the staff from St Thomas More School, led by our Assistant Principal, Melissa Musolino. The title of the day was Living Mercy, Head, Heart and Hands! Compassion. We looked at what it means to understand and be compassionate to ourselves, in order to understand and be compassionate towards others. As a part of the day we divided into three groups and prepared items to donate to Fred’s Van and Catherine House. Thank you to Mrs Musolino for her organisation and leadership on the day and to our staff for they way they participated in the various activities. I would like to leave you with a particular quote she shared with us on the day: ‘If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion’ (Dalai Lama). 

This week we welcomed some new students to our school: Charlotte (Year One) and Emelio (Year 2). I would like to welcome both of you to our school community and hope that your time with us is full of learning, friendships and fun!

Friday 27th October is National Bandanna Day, raising funds for Canteen to support families impacted by cancer. We have decided to do Crazy Hair Day with a gold coin donation towards the charity. We also have bandanas to purchase for $5. Miss Cassie and her Family have been impacted by cancer so to show her commitment to the cause she will be shaving her head. Please join us in Nelson Grove on Friday at 2:45 to witness her commitment. 

In the link you can donate or scroll down to make a Bandanna purchase. 

https://www.bandannaday.org.au/fundraisers/cassieparker/selling-bandannas-23?utm_source=qr&utm_medium=print

For the donation of an additional gold coin, children will be able to participate in a sausage sizzle at lunch time. While it is a ‘crazy hair day’ children will still be required to wear their normal school uniform.

At the end of last term I mentioned that one of my greatest concerns, and a concern of the School Board, is the safety of our children as they arrive at or when they leave the school grounds. I am alarmed at the number of cars that exceed the speed limit of 25kph (legal limit past a school when children are present). Mrs Menadue and I see so many cars speed through the crossing, but also along Harvey Road. Sadly, many of these cars are our only parents. We have also noticed the number of cars who speed through the church car park across Fairfield Road. Please be safe in and around the school when you are driving and abide by the local council by-laws in relation to parking. I want all of our children, staff and parents to be safe - whether they are in their cars, walking through a car park or crossing the road. We have noticed a police presence, with a number of cars being stopped (and possibly fined), in this first week of Term 4.

On Monday and Tuesday our Year 5 and Year 6 children will be attending a ‘Zoo Snooze’ at the Adelaide Zoo, enjoying a one night sleepover. I wish them all well and hope the lions don’t snore too much!

This Sunday is ‘Mission Sunday’ in our church. This is a time when we consider all those people around the world who are in great need. Jesus calls us to reach out to support others, whether they are poor, sick, uneducated, homeless or experiencing mental health issues. I encourage you to listen to a song called ‘The Face of God’ written by Mark Raue but sung here by Belinda Chinn, the daughter of our friend Andrew Chinn who shared his gifts with our children last term. The song talks about us - you and me, being the ‘face' of God, being the ‘eyes’ to look upon the world, the ‘voice’ to speak out and the ‘hands’ to reach out and do something for others. If you see and injustice in the world, speak out about it and maybe do something about it. That is the challenge but it is what God calls us to do.

Kind regards

Peter Mercer

Head of School

‘Shaping our future together’

Liturgical Calendar Information 

Special celebrations that we focus on during classroom and whole school prayer throughout term 4 and those that come up in our liturgical calendar include: 

1/11 All Saints Day 

2/11 All Souls Day 

11/11 Remembrance Day 

11/11 Catherine McAuley Day 

13/11 World Kindness Day 

20/11 Universal Children’s Day 

26/11 Feast of Christ the King 

3/12 1st Sunday of Advent 

10/12 2nd Sunday of Advent 

  Mercy Day 

At the end of last term, we celebrated Mercy Day with our Year 5/6 students running a variety of activity stalls and games for students to visit and play for a small donation which was collected to support Catherine House. Throughout the day students learnt about the sisters of Mercy and the role that Catherine House plays today in supporting women and children in need. With your generous support we were able to raise a total of **** for Catherine House. 

Our Year 5/6 students continued to raise money to support those in need when they ‘walked a mile’ to raise funds for the Hutt Street Centre, raising a total of… 

The Hutt Street Centre supports people in the community experiencing homelessness by providing immediate support such as a warm shower and a hot meal as well as longer term support, connecting people with housing, education, and employment opportunities to build the skills and confidence to change their circumstances for good. 

Staff Reflection Day 

Our term began with a staff reflection day held at St. Thomas More School and focused on Living Mercy: head, heart and hands through our mercy value, compassion. Staff engaged in a variety of activities across the day enabling them to focus on compassion for self as well as compassion for others. Looking at prayer in different ways including, praying in colour, and praying through song assisted staff with reflecting on Jesus’ view of compassion. Staff explored compassion for others by preparing items for Fred’s Van Elizabeth and helping to gift wrap the toiletry items collected by St. Thomas More families and staff during term 3, ready to be sent to Catherine House. Staff member Lesley Swann then finished off our day by leading staff through an enjoyable art activity where we created Vincent van Gogh’s, Starry Night artwork with oil pastels. 

Classroom Learning  

Made in the Image of God (MITIOG) - Human Sexuality Curriculum  T

The Made in the Image of God (MITIOG), Human Sexuality Curriculum is the official program for sexuality education in South Australian Catholic Schools, for Years R-12. Each year our students engage with age-appropriate curriculum content regarding sexuality through MITIOG. 

Catholic understanding is that all humans are made in the image of God and therefore deserving of the utmost dignity and honor and that our sexuality is a fundamental dimension of the human person. We acknowledge that the beliefs, values and insights of the Christian Tradition and Catholic moral teaching enrich our lives. This year the Human Sexuality Curriculum will be taught during Term 4.  

We acknowledge that families are the first educators of their child’s sexuality and that it is the role of the school to support families in this area. We are committed to supporting and enriching these partnerships. 

If you have any further questions, please contact your child’s class teacher. 

Signs and Symbols of our Catholic Faith 

During daily prayer in the classroom, students are involved in preparing a prayer space with symbols from the Catholic faith tradition. We follow the liturgical calendar which highlights colours for each liturgical season.  

A calendar year incorporates the seasons in twelve months or fifty-two weeks which include holidays, commemorative days, and days that we could term as ordinary. The Liturgical Year is similar in the way it is organised. It provides occasions and whole seasons to ritualize the significant movements in our Christian life. It is through this cyclical process that the Church renews itself again and again. In the Liturgical Year every season or feast day has its own unique symbols and colour which help us to explore and be involved in the mystery of the incarnation, birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We begin the Liturgical Year on the First Sunday of Advent then move to Christmas, Ordinary Time, Lent, Easter, Pentecost, and Ordinary Time again, finishing with the feast of Christ the King. 

Advent - Purple 

Christmas – Gold / White 

Ordinary Time – Green 

Lent – Purple 

Easter – Gold / White 

Pentecost - Red 

Ordinary Time - Green 

I wonder if your child/ren can tell you which liturgical season we are currently in? 

Elizabeth Catholic Parish News 

Sacramental Program 

We have now come to the end of our Sacramental Program for 2023. If your child would like to be involved in the Sacramental Program for 2024 or you would like to find out more about the program, please see Melissa Musolino. 

Parish Bulletin Link 

https://elizabethcatholicparish.com.au/bulletin/