Newsletter Term 1, 2024 Week 8
Principal's Update
Dear Parents and Carers,
Welcome to Week 8! Holy Week, a very special week leading up to Easter Sunday!
Thank you to our school community for a lovely Holy Week liturgy this morning.
Thank you for attending our Easter Hat Parade on Tuesday – such amazing hats, lots of smiles and a visit from the Easter Bunny!
Our Year 6 and SRC members from other grades have provided a great service to our school community at our Open Days by providing school tours to new families looking at joining our St Brendan’s school community. Thank you, boys and girls, you should be very proud of yourselves.
Last Friday I held a school uniform meeting for parents to come and share their ideas. Thank you for those who attended and some online. We will have some samples available in the next few months to allow you to touch the materials etc. We will have a sample of a modified version of the girls' Summer uniform, the boys' shirt, and also a culotte option for girls.
Wishing our Polding Swimmers the best on Wednesday, 3rd April at Sydney Olympic Park!
We may try to live stream the races at school for their classes and siblings to watch! These are approximate times. Good luck to you all!
Kiarni W 9 years Freestyle 10.45 Event 119
Rhoden M 8 years Freestyle 10.45 Event 118
Logan B Junior IM 2.30 Event 158
Logan B Junior Butterfly 12.15 Event 136
Sam Mc 11 years Breaststroke 9.05 Event 107
NOTE: Any swimmers who progress to the MacKillop/Polding Swim team will attend the NSWPSSA State Swimming Championships at Sydney Olympic Park on the 11th and 12th of April
Congratulations to:
Lachlan R (Year 6), Jett O (Year 6) and Nate P (Year 6) who have been selected into the Broken Bay Rugby League team, are now invited to the Polding selections in Tamworth in May!
Also congratulations to Alexia G (Year 5) who has been selected into the 11-year-old girls Broken Bay Rugby League team, now invited to the Polding selections in Tamworth in May!
Thank you to Isaiah’s mum and dad for coming into school during the week to provide some extra run training to children in Years 2-6 ready for our school cross country on Monday, 8th April. You are very welcome to attend the cross country. Please be aware the gates will be closed and no cars will be entering or leaving the car park during any running races. You might like to park outside and walk through the pedestrian gate if you don’t want to get stuck!
We have two more Friday assemblies, on the 5th of April we will be presenting the swimming and athletics age champions as well as the Friday awards. We will commence this assembly a little earlier at 1.45 pm.
On Friday 12th April our Friday assembly will start at 2 pm with our Spirit of St Brendan’s Awards.
Our End-of-term reward is on Friday, 12th April – we are holding a bike and scooter day onsite! More information will follow!
Here is a message from Fiona Dignan, Senior Executive of Eileen O’Connor School:
Eileen O’Connor Catholic School Support Classes
In 2022 Bishop Anthony outlined an exciting new vision for Catholic Schools Broken Bay with plans for a specialist school on the central coast for students with disability, as well as support classes across the Diocese of Broken Bay. Last year St Brendan’s was a pilot school for the kindergarten support class structure, building on the great work that was happening in the Hive and Hub classes.
This year we formally set up three support classes; K-1 Yellow, 1-2 Yellow and 2-4 Yellow. Each student in these classes is an important and valued member of our community, participating in all aspects of our school.
If you know of any families considering a support class option for their child in 2025, please direct them to the Eileen O’Connor Catholic School website at www.eocsdbb.catholic.edu.au for information on locations and how to apply.
On behalf of our staff, I wish you all a Happy Easter. Enjoy your extra long weekend and we will see you back on Wednesday, 3rd April. Our Term 1 last day will be Friday, 12th April.
ANZAC Day falls within our school holidays on 25th April. We would like to invite as many families to the 8.30 am (meeting at The Doylo at 8.15 am) Service at The Doylo. Children are to wear their full Summer uniform, please. Part of our school uniform is black polishable shoes – black with no white or any other color on them, please. Girls are to wear black shoes and white socks and boys are to wear black shoes and grey socks, please. We have high standards at SBLM including behavior, academics, well-being and presentation.
Our Term 2, Week 1 commences on Tuesday, 30th April. We have a pupil-free day on Monday, 29th and staff will be offsite.
God Bless,
Charlene Reid
Principal
Dear Community,
Building positive relationships between schools and parents is the cornerstone of nurturing student learning and achievement. To formalise our commitment to effective communication and mutual respect, Catholic Schools Broken Bay launched a Parent Charter in late 2023. A copy of the Charter can be found here. The Charter places great emphasis on respectful, open, and two-way communication and outlines:
- What you as parents can expect from your relationship with your school
- What our school will expect from you as parents and carers
- Guidelines for positive communication and engagement between parents and the school
- How to make a complaint or raise a concern
- An explanation of unacceptable behaviours and how these are handled by the school.
Groovin the Green
We would like to thank the amazing parent helpers who volunteered and constructed over 200 lolly bags for Groovin the Green.
Kristie
Kassandra
Sam
Maria
Ashleigh
Cassandra
Emma
Religious Education
School Updates
What does Holy Week Mean?
Holy Week is an important time for Catholics throughout the world. Behind all those Easter eggs and Easter bunnies, Holy Week, is the final week of Lent, starting on Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter.
Holy Week is a time in which we gather to remember when Jesus arrived in Jerusalem until He was crucified. This final period of Christ’s life is also called The Passion.
Four special ceremonies commemorate the events of Christ’s Passion:
Palm Sunday: when Jesus arrived at Jerusalem riding a donkey, to the praise of the townspeople, who laid palms on the ground in front of him as a sign of homage. In these times, this was a customary practice for people of great respect.
Holy Thursday: commemorates the Last Supper, when Jesus consecrated bread and wine the night before he was betrayed and arrested.
Good Friday: marks the day of Jesus’ arrest, trial and crucifixion. The events of Good Friday are commemorated in the Stations of the Cross, a 14-step devotion, traditionally prayed during Lent and especially on Good Friday. It is also a day of fast and abstinence within the Church.
Holy Saturday: when the body of Jesus lay in the tomb. It is a day of quiet and prayerful reflection on the true gravity of the crucifixion of Jesus’ redemptive sacrifice.
Then we have Easter, Easter Sunday: the resurrection of Jesus.
Easter is the greatest celebration in the Catholic Church. It celebrates the beginning and foundation of Christianity. Easter is a symbolic reminder for Catholics that Jesus has overcome death and sin. It signifies the victory of good over evil.
As Catholics, we live in hope, not fear and with God’s mercy and love, we can overcome anything life throws at us.
Happy Easter!
Nicole Anderson
Parent Engagement Coordinator (PEC)
Adapted from What Does Holy Week Mean For Us? - Santa Maria College
To register for the Kindergarten Drop-In Reading Workshop, please follow this link: https://forms.office.com/r/rujNVVYZJ6
April Vacation Care - Enrolments now open
Please be advised that enrolments are now open for CatholicCare’s April Vacation Care Program.
To register: https://catholiccaredbb.org.au/vacation-care/
Our Vacation Care programs offer a wide range of activities catering to children of different ages, interests and needs. We also head out and about on a range of local excursions. The environment that we provide is stimulating and enjoyable with activities that harness the children’s interests and strengths, while respecting their need for leisure.
Vacation Care
CatholicCare is an accredited provider of vacation care during school holidays for children aged 5 to 12 years.
2024 OPEN DAYS
Awards
SBLM AWARDS
SBLM Focus - Weeks 9 & 10
Keep our environment clean and tidy
Week 7
Class | Merit Awards | SBLM award | 120 Dojos | 200 Dojos | 300 Dojos |
KR | Teddy R | Frankie V | |||
KB | Bella M | Ava A | |||
KG | Ava R | Yvonne T | |||
1R | Charlie R | Stella S | |||
1B | Sailor G | Freddy S | |||
1G | Alexis L | Kora B | |||
2R | Knox W | Josimarie C | |||
2B | Rhoden M | Charlotte G | |||
2G | Oliver T | Alivia Mc | |||
3R | |||||
3B | Charlee G | Logan P | |||
3G | T | Zed G | |||
4R | Elijah T | Kobe L | |||
4B | Isla R | Eden W | |||
4G | Levi B | Cruze T | |||
5R | |||||
5B | Adelynn T | Sophie Mc | |||
6R | |||||
6B | Ayden S | Brando A | |||
6G | |||||
EOS | |||||
K/1Y | Evie S | ||||
1/2Y | |||||
2-4Y | Liv C |
Week 8
There are no awards this week
Community News
The newly opened Central Coast Atrium is running Catechesis of the Good Shepherd for 3-6-year-olds. The central aim is to help the child nurture their own personal relationship with God. Sessions run Saturdays 9-10:30am, Our Lady of the Rosary, The Entrance. For information or to join our waitlist contact centralcoastatrium@gmail.com or call Ashleigh on 0466 255 033.
Free eSafety webinairs for Parents and Carers with a term planner for the year (see attached flyer)
CatholicCare offer a number of parenting programs both in person and online Parenting Programs - CatholicCare (catholiccaredbb.org.au)
Compass Calendar