From The Principal Week 7
Dear SCA Families,
This Friday is St Patrick’s Day. But did you know that, two days later, we also celebrate the feast day of Saint Joseph?
We know little about the life of St Joseph but what we do know is that God chose him to play a special role in the salvation story. Joseph stood by Mary and trusted her account of God’s intervention in her life through an unexplained pregnancy. It was Joseph who protected the infant Jesus and Mary when they fled to Egypt to escape certain death. Under Joseph’s care and influence, together with that of Mary, “Jesus grew in wisdom and grace, finding favour with God and among people”. (Luke)
St Joseph is a model for us of good living, of living and acting in such a way that reflects God’s goodness and love by constantly doing what is right and good. We celebrate the Feast of St Joseph on 19th March.
May St Joseph and St Patrick bless our school community this week with a desire to always do what is right, and with a firm faith in God’s loving presence within and among us.
Colour Fun Day
On Friday 31st March, we will share the fun of the 2023 SCA Colour Day. This is a major fundraising event for St Clare of Assisi.
This year the money raised will be going towards brand new Playground equipment, in both Senior and Junior areas.
Please take note of the instructions for sponsorship, and jump in to help us build the best playground equipment we can for our children.
School Fees
Term 1 Fees were due Friday 3rd March.
The following payment methods for school fees will be eliminated in 2023 with the migration to a new Finance system:Direct DebitsDirect bank depositsBPoint (Credit Cards)
Please note that the preferred payment methods for the 2023 School Fees will be BPAY, however, you will also have the option of paying with EFTPOS, Qkr and Cash. Your BPAY details can be found on the bottom left hand side of the fee statement.
If you have a direct debit in place, and have not already, please contact Jo McCarthy on 6294 1860 or jo.mccarthy@cg.catholic.edu.au to receive a cancellation form. Alternatively one can be downloaded from the school website under the school fees tab.
It is most important that you notify the School regarding any changes to your email address as this is our primary form of communication.
Principals’ Gathering and Retreat
Last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, I attended the Catholic School Principals’ Retreat at Bowral. This is an annual retreat generally held at a location which is a midpoint in our archdiocese. Most schools in this region are located in the ACT; however, a significant number are situated in regional areas of New South Wales. The archdiocese stretches from Pambula in the South to Lake Cargelligo in the West. As a visiting lecturer once remarked “Good Lord! That’s about as big as Ireland.”
Given the significant distances between schools, this was only one of two occasions this year that Principals throughout the archdiocese have an opportunity to meet and catch up.
Our Director, Mr Ross Fox, used Wednesday as a day where he outlined System-wide initiatives, such as the Catalyst Teaching and Learning program, which is continuing throughout our archdiocese.
The retreat leader was Sr Margaret Ghosn. Sr Margaret is Principal at Maronite College located in Sydney. The theme for the retreat was – In the Image of God - Christian Anthropology.
I thank Mrs Jo Reed and the Leadership Team (Mrs Rachel Kennedy, Mrs Belinda Breen and Mrs Jo Thomson) for holding the fort while I was away.
Community Council
Our Community Council will have its second meeting of the year next Tuesday (21st March) evening. Should you wish to send a message to our Council, we would love to hear from you on sca@cg.catholic.edu.au
Parent Teacher Interviews / Oral Reporting
In Week Nine this term (27 – 29 March) teachers will be available for Parent Teacher Interviews at which your child’s progress can be discussed. Teachers are looking forward to meeting with the parents of every child in their class. Please feel free to contact your child’s teacher should you feel a longer interview or an alternative time may be required. Bookings are made online using Compass, further information to follow.
NAPLAN Weeks
This week, our students will participate in NAPLAN, the national literacy and numeracy assessment that students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 sit each year. It is the only national assessment all Australian students have the opportunity to undertake. Students sit assessments in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school’s assessment and reporting process. It doesn’t replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance, but it can provide teachers with additional information about students’ educational progress.
Schools have transitioned from paper-based to computer-based assessments. All Year 3 students will continue to complete the writing assessment on paper. Online NAPLAN tests provide more precise results and are more engaging for students. One of the main benefits is tailored (or adaptive) testing, where the test presents questions which may be more or less difficult depending on a student’s responses. Your child should not be concerned if they find questions challenging; they may be taking a more complex test pathway.
See the types of questions and tools available in the online NAPLAN assessments at the public demonstration site. More information for parents and carers can be found here.
It was once said…
Lenten blessings to you and your family.
Matt Egan-Richards
Principal