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Weekly

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Term 1, Week 8

Coming up this week

Date

Event

Wednesday 23 - Friday 25 March

Year 4 Camp Howman's Gap

Thursday 24 March

CIS Swimming Homebush

Wednesday 30 March

Cross Country Apex Park

MISSION STATEMENT

To work under God in partnership with parents to provide an inclusive, nurturing and high quality education for every student.

VIsion

Flourishing through faith, belonging and the pursuit of excellence.

From The Principal

Being in Community

One of the primary things families look for in a primary school is the sense of community. Parenting is difficult and it is made a little easier when there are people with whom they can share the joys and struggles. We have been able to see community within this “with COVID” era so far in Term 1 and look forward to seeing it continue.

Community events

Humans beings are social creatures. Central to our wellbeing are healthy relationships, characterised by respect, inclusivity, reciprocity and social responsibility. We are grateful for your participation in our Family Fun Day as well as our Super Circus family event. I pray that you were able to connect with other families and with staff members. We are truly partnering together.

Future community events are being planned by the PFO. We hope you will consider joining their upcoming planning meeting on Tuesday, 3 May at 7 pm.

Year 4 camp

We had some very excited campers head off this week. In the student surveys, some shared that they will be practicing courage on the large swing and during other activities. Camp builds community in ways that you likely remember. Students may not remember all their maths lessons into the future, but they will remember those who befriended and encouraged them at camp.

A Caring Community demonstrating social responsibility

Most times, the little things matter most. We’re grateful to all who stepped up to volunteer as Classroom Carers. We’re thankful for new people coming to Parents and Friends meetings to help give feedback and support the school. 

This week our Year 4 teachers were especially grateful to all the parents who administered RAHTs prior to leaving for camp. It led to some big disappointments for a few, but the integrity allowed for a safer camp experience. Thank you for caring for the larger community.

That same thanks is extended to every parent that is following the health directive alongside the school. Please see the NSW Fact Sheet for the latest information.

Community Communication in Partnership

At the recent P&F meeting, the parents shared that they find it helpful that they can now directly message the teachers via Seesaw. Ongoing communication is so important.

Also, we know that everyone’s communication style is different and wellbeing is important. Many of you send work and school messages at night when you think of them (I do too!) because you don’t want to forget. Others of you prefer to completely turn off from work and devices. Our teachers are the same. If you share a message in the evenings, note that the teacher will likely not respond until the following day (even if they read it). The expectation of the school is that teachers get back to you within one working day of receiving a message. In cases of longer messages, teachers will likely ask to set up a meeting so that two-way communication can happen most effectively. 

Thank you for demonstrating Community with respect, inclusivity, reciprocity and social responsibility.

Janet Moeller
Principal

Mark your calendars

Term 1 Dates
7 April last day of term

Term 2 dates
27 April – 1 July

Term 3 dates
19 July – 23 September

Term 4 dates
11 October – 8 December

SCHOOL FEES

TERM 1 FEES ARE NOW DUE

Reminder statements will be issued at the end of this week with full payment due by the end of the term. If you are unable to pay in full please contact the Finance Office to arrange a payment plan.
If you are on a direct debit arrangement and paying by instalments there is nothing further you need to do as payments will continue as per the agreement.

Important information on direct debits

If  your direct debit has been declined it is up to you to make sure the payment is made, I will process the payment again on request.

OSHC Information
• OSHC accounts are emailed weekly and shows the care your child has received.
• Please remember all enrolments need to be confirmed through MYGOV – if this is delayed you will not receive any CCS.
• BASC Vouchers – Accounts need to be cleared up to the 27th February before we will add the voucher as the voucher does not cover any care before the 28th February 2022.
• Term OSHC accounts are required to be paid in full before Vacation Care.
• Direct debits continue to be processed the second and fourth Friday of each month.

If you have any concerns regarding your account please feel free to email me: [email protected] or phone 69238100

Jenny Hausfeld

Finance Officer

Values Focus

WITNESSES TO CHRIST: PEOPLE FROM HIS PASSION

John tells us why he wrote his Gospel: “Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30–31). Life! When we believe that Jesus is the Christ, God gives us life—abundant life, forgiven life, and eternal life.

Historically, the Fourth Gospel is likened to an eagle—an image that suggests John soars to heights of glory and grandeur. That’s because the evangelist paints a stunning portrait of Jesus, who is the bread of life, the resurrection and the life, and the way, the truth, and the life. Life in Jesus. That’s God’s gift to you!

This Lent, our life in Christ will be strengthened as we hear the witness of those in John’s Gospel who journeyed to the cross. Along the way, we’ll meet villains, such as Barabbas and Pontius Pilate, as well as sinners, such as Peter (who denied Jesus three times), Mary Magdalene (who was possessed by seven demons), and Judas Iscariot (who betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver).

Please join us for worship as we hear the witness of these people in John’s Gospel:

Wednesday, 30 March at 7:30pm: Barabbas, John 18:33–40
Wednesday, 6 April at 7:30pm: Pontius Pilate, John 19:1–16
10 April Palm Sunday at 9:30am: The Disciples, John 12:12–19
14 April Maundy Thursday at 7:30pm: Judas Iscariot, John 13:21–30
15 April Good Friday at 7:30pm: John, the Gospel Writer, John 19:25–37
17 April Easter Sunday at 9:30am: Mary Magdalene, John 20:1–18

Respect is the starting place of good character.

Respect, how do we know what it is and where it comes from? The bible mentions respect, so it can’t be from our modern world that the idea of respect has come around. Respect has been here since God created Adam and Eve. You can not find the origin of respect because the Creator built it into our DNA. God respected that which he created, so respect is created as part of us and who we are as human beings. Even young children who are learning how to walk and talk have a sense of what respect is and to respect where love, care and compassion come from. But this week I would like to talk about respect on a deeper level.

In 1 Peter 2:17 we read this: “Respect everyone and show special love for God’s people. Honour God and respect the Emperor”. Let’s unpack this a little and see what is being shared with us here and how it’s helpful in how we live our life today.

Respect everyone: Christians were definitely a minority during this period after Christ, and there were people trying to convert Christians to paganism, back to Jewish tradition and to many other sects and cults around at that time. What Peter is saying here in his letter is no small task for the small Christian Churches being persecuted around the Middle and Near East. This is a tough call for your everyday person raising a family, to respect those who are against me and the way I raise my family. However, of course with the Church being made up of people and not buildings Peter calls for Christians to show special love for those who can support you and those who you share Christ with.

Honour God: Now this is interesting because it comes after Peter calls his readers to respect everyone and to show a special love for God’s people. Shouldn’t honour God be first in this statement? After all, God made us and everything we see. But in doing what Peter has already stated, respecting everyone and loving God’s people, we are indeed honouring God. Honouring God doesn’t mean just going to church and being a good Christian on Sunday, loving and raising our family in a biblical manner. Honouring God means respecting those we meet every day down the street, and those who have done wrong in our eyes. We can still respect these people while disagreeing with what they have done. Peter doesn’t call his readers to agree with everyone, but to respect them.

Respect the Emperor: Now this is the hardest one of all. not only is the Emperor the leader of the country but he is also actively killing Christians because they are not following the faith of Rome. Now I think this would be the hardest one of all to follow. It means respecting those who have done and are doing wrong by us. But what does our society say we should do to those who have done wrong by us? Take them in the courts with our lawyers, solicitors, injunctions, AVOs, and rally against them publicly if they are deemed bad enough by society.

Peter does none of these things by any stretch of the imagination. He calls the readers to do the opposite of all that. He calls us to respect people. Now I said it before, and I’ll say it again a little more clearly this time: that doesn’t mean agreeing with said people. You can disagree with people but still respect them as a creation of God.

This is what we need to remember in our community here at Lutheran School: People will do wrong by us, do things that make the school look bad. We may have vastly different views on politics or religious practices. We can still respect each individual as someone that Christ died for. This is no easy task and quite often we fail at this, me included. But we can always go back to God asking for forgiveness and for the strength to keep on trying.

We are a school community that has Christ the crucified savior at the center, a Christian community that respects each other and puts their differences aside, because Christ first respected the Father in heaven and us so much that he died for us so that we might know Him.

As we go about our week I encourage you to use Christ’s strength and not your own when it comes to respect, because he has more than enough, because he wants to help you.

Pastor Dave

Bethlehem Lutheran Church

Curriculum Matters

Maths Olympiad

Today was our first competition day for Maths Olympiad. The Olympiad comprises five separate contests roughly six weeks apart. Each contest has 5 mathematical questions. The questions are designed with the focus on each students’ ability to solve mathematical problems in a creative manner – as opposed to simply reaching a solution using a prescribed method  or algorithm.

The questions today were challenging and certainly stretched our brain muscle – the cerebrum. Results have been posted on the learning hub window with every student’s unique Maths Olympiad identification number.

For those team members who were absent today we will catch you up this week.

The “Petrol Price Comparison” is an example of a Maths Olympiad problem. Can you solve it?

Emma Grant
Learning Innovation Coordinator

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OSHC

This week we have been spending a lot of time outside enjoying the beautiful weather, playing handball, cricket and soccer on the oval and creating in the sand pit.

We have also been decorating wooden planes and folding paper planes, making butterflies and being creative with foil art.

In the mornings the children have been colouring in and running to the “beep test” in the larger hall area.

BASC Vouchers

We are now ready to accept the NSW BASC (Before and After School Care) vouchers. If you have a voucher and would like to redeem it please see Bec in the OSHC room. If you have any questions about the vouchers please feel free to call 69238124 or email us at [email protected].

Vacation Care

The Autumn Vacation Care program is available and you only have 2 weeks left to book in. Many days are already filling up.

We have some amazing activities planned including an Easter egg hunt, a visit to the Junee Licorice Factory and so much more. If you would like a copy of the program please email us at [email protected]

We look forward to another great week.

Rebecca Cameron

OSHC Coordinator

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