Issue #5

Following the email last week announcing Sean Hill’s substantive appointment to another school, I am delighted to be continuing in this role next term. Thanks to Sean for his contribution to St Gabriel’s over the past almost 5 years and thanks also to Sean for the comprehensive guidance that he has provided me during my transition into this role since the beginning of the year.

I have come to know the school well and enjoy being Principal of St Gabe’s. We know that St Gabriel’s is a successful school with many strengths achieved through its committed staff, supportive parents and students who enjoy being part of our learning community. I assure you that as Principal my role is not simply to maintain these successes but to build upon them as the school commences the next stage of its journey. This process has commenced as we embark upon the next stage of our master plan, as we develop new wellbeing programs and as we respond to the individual learning needs of our students in improved ways.

Overwhelmingly, research shows that students are more likely to flourish when they have consistent support from school and home. Thank you for your participation in the recent Learning Conversations. Formerly known as parent teacher interviews, these conversations are held early in the year and intended to build the three-way partnership between students, the teacher and the parent/caregiver. I hope these conversations have enabled you to better understand your child at school, their strengths, areas for improvement and how these can be addressed. I encourage you to continue these conversations via the SeeSaw app.

We are grateful to the work of our wonderful Education Support Officers (ESOs) who support us in classrooms, contributing to the teacher’s work in supporting our students with the greatest needs. As a school, we receive some funding for our ESOs from the Australian Government through the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). In our school approximately 40% students are included in this process.

Currently teachers are collecting information for the NCCD to determine which students receive adjustments at school due to disability. The NCCD uses the definition of disability in the Disability Discrimination Act 1992. While the school team’s observations and professional judgements form the starting point for these assessments, any medical or other professional diagnoses are often required to support these judgements.

Students who are counted in the top three levels of the NCCD (extensive, substantial and supplementary) attract funding based on a per-student amount at each level. The amount of the funding is based on the level of support students with disability need to participate fully in school, with higher funding for those who need higher levels of support. The school provides adjustments in consultation with the student and their parents/cargivers.

Thank you to our Assistant Principal Religous Identity and Mission Mr Meixner for his leadership of Holy Week.

Easter is the greatest Christian feast and symbolizes the fulfillment of our faith as Christians. Over the past few weeks, we have shared with students an insight into the most significant time in our liturgical calendar. It is a time of inspiration and I have provided the information below for you to share with your children.

Good Friday is a day of remembrance when Christians reflect on the death of Jesus Christ. The Stations of the Cross follow the path of Jesus Christ from his condemnation to his crucifixion and the images from these 14 stations serve to remind us of the Passion of Christ. At the Easter Vigil, a Paschal Candle is lit and processed into the church. On Easter Sunday, Christians celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ as a celebration of new life and hope.

Please see the following Easter message from Archbishop O’Regan:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hh4UE-rtKgE

Please find below further information from Mr Meixner and the details of our Parish Easter Services. 

This newsletter is being published on the Thursday of Holy Week, also known as Maundy Thursday, which refers to the washing of feet demonstrated by Jesus at his final gathering with the disciples. Today we remember the Last Supper that Jesus ate with his disciples. This sacred meal signifies the origin of the Holy Eucharist that we celebrate today, each Sunday at Mass. 

At this Sacred meal, where we receive strength through the Body of Christ and forgiveness in the Blood of Christ, we believe Jesus is fully present with us. 

The last Supper was also a teaching moment for everyone who believes. It is at the Last Supper when Jesus washes the feet of Simon Peter, his friend and disciple. This is a major upheaval in the Jewish society as the task of washing feet is one left for the servants. 

Jesus is teaching his disciples that if they want to follow in his way, they too must be servant leaders. This was something the disciples found hard to comprehend but a vital part of Christ’s teachings. 

Today, we are all called to ‘serve, not to be served’. We are being asked to look, ask and act on the questions, who can I help, what can I do to improve a situation?  

Then later this Holy Thursday evening we remember Jesus praying in the Garden. Asking God to be with Him in his final hours. A despicable betrayal is followed by an arrest and audience before Pilate, the Roman governor. After being wrongly accused and manipulation by the crowd, Pilate orders Jesus’ crucifixion. 

We must remember here that this is all part of God’s plan to fulfil a prophecy that the Son of God will be Crucified to redeem the World. 

The sacrifice Jesus makes is for all of us, so that we can have our sins forgiven. Jesus’ sacrifice is an ultimate act of love for all humanity and the world. 

Jesus’ sacrifice is the new and everlasting Covenant with God and humanity. Covenants that went by the wayside with Abraham, Noah and the Nation of Israel are replaced with this new covenant. All these previous covenants were formed but did not last the test of time. Jesus’ sacrifice is God’s agreement with humanity to forgive all the sins of the world so we can be for evermore reconciled with God. All we need to do is ask for forgiveness. God will always love us and we will belong to God. Or as Jesus puts it, Love God with all your heart, mind, and soul and to love your neighbour as yourself. 

To mark this special time in the church calendar, today children commemorated Holy Thursday and Good Friday with a liturgy in the gym and we ask that we can all try to remember something from the Holy Week story. Especially the love God has for the whole world, which include each of us. We pray we can move into Easter with a renewed heart and loving Spirit to bring about the kingdom of God here on earth. 

When you visit St Gabriel’s, you could easily think Harmony Day was created for this school.  With 28 cultural groups represented, the school is a melting pot of languages, religions, and cultures.   

I often delight in the children leaving school speaking English to their teachers and friends, then switching to their family dialects to greet waiting relatives. 

Even more joyful is watching children from different cultural backgrounds playing happily in the yard and learning side by side in the classroom. 

On Thursday 21st March, St Gabriel’s School, like many other schools in Australia celebrated Harmony Day.  A whole-school meditation led by the Year 6 leaders helped everyone focus on the purpose of Harmony Day and the importance of allowing everyone find their place in our school. 

Our meditation enabled the students to sit with Jesus and reflect on His words of acceptance and the Father’s love for each person.  As a school, we reflected on Jesus’ teaching that He came so all may have life and live it in abundance, John 10; 10. 

Following our whole school meditation, the children and staff enjoyed cultural foods supplied by parents who cooked familiar, delicious dishes for everyone to enjoy. 

The menu included jelly cups with tropical fruits, Vietnamese spring rolls, South African spiced Donuts, Filipino deep-fried bananas, Afghani rice and meat, Australian meat pies, sticky rice, and an assortment of other delicious treats. 

I would like to extend a big thank you to all the parents who generously donated ingredients and their time for making Harmony Day so special at St Gabriel’s School. 

Thanks also goes to the Parent Community Group who organised donuts coated with orange icing for the children to round out Harmony Week. 

Of course, what would Harmony Day be without adorning a splash of orange clothing.  The children certainly entered the spirit and wore their orange clothing to celebrate this important day. 

Friday 29th March 2024

 9.30 am St. Brigid Stations of the Cross

10.00 am St. Brigid Reconciliation/Confession

11.00 am Good Shepherd Stations of the Cross

11.30 am Good Shepherd Reconciliation/Confession

3.00 pm Good Shepherd The Lord’s Passion

3.00 pm St. Brigid The Lord’s Passion

Saturday 30th March 2024

9.30 am St. Brigid Polish Blessing of E. Eggs/Food

8.00 pm Good Shepherd Easter Vigil Mass

Sunday 31st March 2024

9.00 am Kilburn Easter - Resurrection

10.30 am Clearview Easter - Resurrection 

In March of Term 1 over two nights Year 4 were lucky to enjoy the famous Zoo Snooze at Adelaide Zoo.  After a self-tour in the afternoon, were we met by the zoo education staff. They organised a game of 'zoolympics' while Mr Fulton, Mr Holmes, Mr Mexiner, Mr Simpson, Mrs Marino, Miss Brittany and Nicki Cambourne made BBQ dinners. After our meal the children organised their sleeping bags and were then introduced to a zoo resident, Homer the lizard.  

Next, it was time for the night walk where the staff told us many stories about the nocturnal animals - where they had come from and what we can all do to protect them and their habitats. Unfortunately, some of the children were actually nocturnal and struggled to get a good night's sleep. The early morning call came for pack-up and breakfast, before a final private tour of the zoo to see all the other early risers, like the tigers and lions.

Everybody learned something new and would like to encourage you all to support the zoo and all the good work it is doing

In 4H, we illustrated and crafted exploding head pictures. By making a fold at the top of the head, we can fill it with all the things that are important and special to us. Our favourite games, activities, foods, and pets fill our heads – we are all unique and all care about different things.

For Carnevale, the Year 4 students made some amazing masks using paper plates. They decorated them with pipe cleaners, paint, coloured paper, pom-poms, paddle-pop sticks and the dreaded… glitter. They looked fantatstico as we paraded around the gym after eating some delicioso gelati.

In week 5, the Year 4 students hosted mass at the Good Shepherd Church in Enfield. We had many students speak in front of the parishioners and share the message of the Common Good for our community and our world. This was linked to our learning in RE based on Catholic Social Teachings as we thought about Ronita, Leiya and Memory with Project Compassion.

The children in the Earth Care Squad are helping keep the yard tidy and collecting ideas from their classmates about which vegetables to plant in their garden beds.  We are entering winter, so choices need to be considered for the coming cooler months. 

We are currently waiting for some help from Bunnings at Prospect to top up the soil in the beds and install an irrigation system that will make the garden water wise. 

Read more about what is happening at OSHC!

The Android Phone issue has now been resolved, parents/users can now download the App from the Google Play Store.

To find out more about the School Fees and School Card, click the link below:

School Fees & School Card 2024

Fee Remission for 2024

Parents/caregivers experiencing financial difficulties are encouraged to apply for fee remission ASAP.  Please email accounts@sgs.catholic.edu.au for a fee remission form or collect from the School Office if you wish to apply. 

We assure parents/caregivers that all details provided will be kept strictly confidential.  

If you are having difficulty with meeting your fee obligations or have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact Alison Boyce (Bursar) or Mark Simpson (Principal) on 8216 9900. 

Thank you,

Alison Boyce

accounts@sgs.catholic.edu.au

Direct Ph: 8216 9902