A PRAYER FOR FATHER’S DAY

God our Father, we give you thanks and praise for fathers young and old.

We pray for young fathers, newly embracing their vocation. May they find courage and perseverance to balance work, family and faith in joy and sacrifice.

We pray for our own fathers whom we love so much. We are grateful for everything they do for us.

May they be blessed as they continue to play significant roles in our lives.

We pray for fathers whose children are lost or suffering. May they know that the God of compassion walks with them in their sorrow.

We pray for men who are not fathers but still mentor and guide us with fatherly love and advice.

We remember fathers, grandfathers and great grandfathers who are no longer with us but live forever in our memories and nourish us with their love.

We ask these prayers through Christ our Lord,

AMEN.

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

We hope that all the dads and pops have a wonderful Father’s Day with your families this Sunday. Hopefully the weather will allow everyone to enjoy quality family time and you will be spoilt by your children and grandchildren.

STAFF DEVELOPMENT DAY

Last Friday the staff came together via Zoom to focus on two areas of the curriculum, Challenging Maths and agreed literacy practices. We had the opportunity to examine what quality teaching looks like and how to support our students to engage more in their learning in order to improve success. The teachers were given time to collaborate and plan both with their grade partners and Stage colleagues. A big thank you to Miss Crandell (Maths) and Mrs Hanns (literacy) for the time they spent preparing their presentations.

SUMMER UNIFORM

The changeover to summer uniform officially starts on the first day of Term Four, Monday 12 October, however if the warm weather continues the students can start to wear their summer uniform from Week 9, Monday 14 September.

KINDERGARTEN TRANSITION TO SCHOOL 2021

One of the updated school directives relating to the management of COVID-19, was the cancellation of the transition to school program for the 2021 Kindergarten cohort. This includes playgroup, orientation days and the face-to-face parent meeting. Whilst people are prevented from being on site, we will still implement initiatives which will support the students and their families to feel comfortable about starting Primary School next year. These will include an EBook which will explain aspects of our school, including a guided tour of key features and an online Zoom Meeting for parents. These will be made available in Term 4 and further details will be forthcoming. We know that this is not ideal, but parents can rest assured that we will do everything possible to support the children to make a great start at Stella Maris.

AFTERNOON PICK UP

I am in constant communication with council regarding before and after school drop off and pick up arrangements. A letter went out on Compass on Tuesday explaining the situation and asking for parent feedback on a Google form. There is a strong possibility that the No Parking signage on Wilson Street is extended to an afternoon session (2.30-4pm). This would allow parents to not only drop their children off in the morning but also to drive by in the afternoon and pick their children up from the same kerb-side area in Wilson Street. For this to operate effectively there would be a lot of logistical details which need to be addressed. Whilst this change impacts on vehicles who currently park there of an afternoon, council assures me that there is sufficient car parking at the harbour foreshore and in the council carparks either side of Addison Street, if parents wish to walk to the school gate to collect their children. A pick-up arrangement would eliminate the need for parents to come onto the school grounds at dismissal time, which would be an extra precaution to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

CYBER SAFETY

TOO MUCH TIME ONLINE

It is important to remember that some of the time your children spend online may be related to their education. If however, their online activity appears to negatively impact on their behaviour or wellbeing, it may be time to discuss the matter. Some tips in this area include:

• The longer you wait to address the issue, the more difficult it can be to overcome.
• Talk to your child about the concerns you have and monitor what games, apps and devices are bought or used by your child.
• Install a program on the device your child is using which can be adjusted to limit the amount of time an internet connection will be available on that device.
• Implement family agreements about the amount of time your child can spend online. Set boundaries regarding where and when devices can be used and keep to them.

Further support can be accessed on the eSafety Website- (esafety.gov.au).

DROPPING OFF STUDENT ITEMS

We have been asked to really limit the amount of visitors to the school during these current times. One of the increasing problems we are experiencing are the number of parents who are calling in to deliver items children have forgotten such as hats, jumpers, lunches, news items and library bags. Could we please ask that parents refrain from this practice and perhaps implement a checklist at home so that the children can develop responsibility for remembering to bring necessary items to school. We thank you for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. 

STUDENT DROP-OFF AND PICK UP

The Diocese of Wollongong has implemented a new guideline whereby, due to increased COVID-19 restrictions, any adult who enters the school buildings for more than a duration of 1-2 minutes must sign in via the Sign-in iPad at the front reception of the school office.  This may cause some disruption where students are arriving late to school and/or leaving early. Therefore, as of Monday, parents are asked to walk late arrivals through to reception and then leave, staff will organise for the students to go to class. With early departures, parents are asked to come to the front office, request a pick up of their child, then wait outside the school building and office staff will escort the student to meet them.

Thank you for your assistance with this.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION NEWS   

Mt 18:15-20

Find ways to win others over;

prayer shall be answered.

GOSPEL

Mt 18:15-20

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

If your brother or sister listens to you, you will have won that person back.

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘If your brother does something wrong, go and have it out with him alone, between your two selves. If he listens to you, you have won back your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others with you: the evidence of two or three witnesses is required to sustain any charge. But if he refuses to listen to these, report it to the community; and if he refuses to listen to the community, treat him like a pagan or a tax collector.

‘I tell you solemnly, whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.

‘I tell you solemnly once again, if two of you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted to you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three meet in my name, I shall be there with them.’

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

All Saints Catholic Parish is open for Masses, Weddings, Funerals and Baptisms.

Please contact the Parish Office to register for the Vigil and Sunday Masses.

Please follow the link to the Parish Bulletin

http://www.allsaintscatholic.org.au

Please see the Parish Bulletin for updates to the 2020 Sacramental Programs including proposed dates (subject to Covid restrictions).

RIPPLES Podcast

Prayer of the Heart

For PARENTS: 

https://sites.google.com/dow.catholic.edu.au/clem-spiritual-formation/spiritual-formation/parents

Father’s Day

This Sunday the 6th September we celebrate Father’s Day.

In Australia, Father’s Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of September. On this day we celebrate the love and dedication of fathers, step-fathers, guardians, fathers-in-law, uncles and grandfathers and thank them for being our teacher, carer, friend and role model.

What Makes a Dad

God took the strength of a mountain,

The majesty of a tree,

The warmth of a summer sun,

The calm of a quiet sea.

The generous soul of nature,

The comforting arm of night,

The wisdom of the ages,

The power of the eagle's flight.

The joy of a morning in spring,

The faith of a mustard seed,

The patience of eternity,

The depth of a family need.

Then God combined these qualities,

When there was nothing more to add,

He knew His masterpiece was complete,

And so,

He called it ... Dad

A Child’s Blessing for a Father 

May God bless you today with all good things: faith and courage, 

health and joy,

love and laughter,

peace and justice. 

Amen. 

Julie Hopkins

Acting Religious Education Coordinator

School photos will take place on 22 September 2020.  It will however, due to COVID -19, be in a different format this year.  Children will each have their photograph taken individually and then these photos will be combined to consititute the class photos for this year.

Envelopes for photo orders should not be returned to school until 22 September, when the children will be asked to scan their envelopes whilst they are with the photographers and drop them into the box provided, therefore, they are not required in the school office at any time.

Anyone requesting photo orders after the 22 September, will need to go through the photography company, not the school, to order these.  

Thank you for your assistance with this.

Canteen News

We are a school run canteen and rely on volunteers to operate.

Canteen is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays to make and prepare lunch orders and serve the children over the counter.

Online orders can be made via the My School Connect app - www.myschoolconnect.com.au/stellamarisps click on create account.