Last Sunday’s readings are directing us to take a look at ourselves during the season of Lent. In the parable in the Gospel, Jesus spoke of a fig tree planted in a vineyard, which was alive, but did not fulfil its duty of bearing fruit.  When the owner went to look at it for a fruit, he found none on it. The tree had been without fruit for three consecutive years. Finally, tired of that useless tree, the man told the gardener to cut it down. The gardener asked the owner to patiently wait another year during which time he would dig around the tree and put manure on it in the hope that it would bear fruit. If that helped after one year and there was fruit on it, good; if not, then it should be cut down. 

There is not much arable land in Israel, so the fig tree had to justify its existence. The gardener had a willingness to be far more patient with the barren fig tree than the tree’s owner was.  The tree was given additional time to be productive. 

The fig tree reminds us of two kinds of human persons, those who give and those who take. Those who give symbolise the sacrifice they make and fulfil the purpose of their existence. They give what they have without holding back anything for themselves and this is in generosity. Those who only take have to justify their existence. They have to fulfil their purpose of existence.  To accept Christ’s message is to be open for conversion and change of heart. It invites the person to bear fruit and fulfil the purpose for which it has been created, namely to give. During Lent, God personally calls each one of us to return to Him with all our hearts, with fasting and prayer, so that we too are given extra nourishment just like the fig tree so that we are better able to bear fruit.

Reminder!  This Friday is the last day to submit a response to the uniform survey for the girls’ summer dress. 

At present, just like your children, staff members are undertaking a lot of new learning due to changes that are being implemented from a Diocesan level and beyond.

New learning includes:

• Landing students on progressions instead of the current continuum;
• Setting up excursions and interviews using Compass, which I am sure you would have found much quicker and easier;
• Using new compulsory templates for programming;
• National Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) which directly affects our funding, hence each teacher is being given some time on an individual basis to ensure that everything is exact; 
• Collaborative goal setting and inquiry using data; and
• Using Schoolzine to produce the school newsletter. One of the features of this program is that it provides feedback on the number of people that access this form of the newsletter. At this point, just over half of the people receiving this form of the newsletter are opening it. We find it easier to produce as we can collaborate with it rather than Rachell being responsible for compiling all of the pieces so we hope that more people start adopting its use to make it cost effective.

We are also currently undertaking readiness testing of our equipment for the upcoming NAPLAN assessments, which will be online this year for the first time.

Cross Country Carnival
Just a reminder that the Cross Country Carnival will be held next Monday. The Carnival will commence at approximately 9.30am and will be held at Alexandra Park (the park opposite the school).  The event helps promote participation, school and team spirit. All students are expected to participate to the best of their ability.  

Children will need to wear their full school sports uniform including their school hat and will need to bring lunch, afternoon tea, drinks (including plenty of water) and sunscreen.

Helpers will be needed on the day to assist with the races.  Due to the nature of the events, it is impossible to provide parents with an exact time for each race.

Parent/Teacher Interviews are being held this week.  If for whatever reason you are unable to attend your appointment, please contact the school.

Have a lovely week everyone,
Kayleen Petzer

Listed below are some important school dates.  The school calendar is updated regularly and can be accessed via the school website and Compass parent portal.

MARCH

During Week 11 of this term, the 2^nd Rite of Reconciliation will be offered at St Thomas Aquinas Church, Bowral.  The date is Monday 8^th April at 6:30 pm.  Several priests will be in attendance.  This is a very good way to prepare for the Easter season.

Next week some of our Year 6 students will begin classes to prepare for receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation.  This year the ceremony will take place on Saturday 18^th May (2:00 pm) at St Thomas Aquinas Church, Bowral.  We will keep these children and their families in our prayers as they experience the final sacrament of initiation into the Catholic Church.

Please remember our Project Compassion appeal.  Thank you very much to the families who have donated already.  All of the money raised will go directly to help people in need.  Each class has a box for donations.  So far Kindergarten lead the way having donated $74.

Mr Richard Tuckwell, REC

NEWSLETTER TRANSLATION
Did you know that our new digital newsletter format allows for the reader to translate the information into a language which may assist with the reading of the Newsletter. Simply go to the top of the Newsletter and find the dropdown menu ‘TRANSLATE’. There are approximately 100 languages, which can be translated.  

Scoliosis_Self_Detection_FactSheet.pdf

Scoliosis_Self_Detection_FactSheet _pdf 178.80 KB

The Scoliosis Australia website (www.scoliosis-australia.org) contains further information. 

KINDERGARTEN ENROLMENTS FOR 2020
Reminder to parents that Kindergarten enrolments are due the last day of Term 1, the 12 April 2018. 

Please ensure you read, complete and attach photocopies of the additional documents listed in section 22 ‘Checklist’ of the enrolment form and provide a current family photo.

WOOLWORTHS EARN AND LEARN
Woolworths Earn and Learn is coming in 2019.  We will again be participating in the Woolworths Earn and Learn. More information coming soon.

How to order from our Canteen

The canteen will shortly go LIVE with Flexi Schools online canteen ordering.

Flexischools is a great online system to make the ordering of lunches easier and more convenient.

• Order at a time convenient to you, in the morning, the night before, or weeks in advance!
• No searching for cash required it's already paid online!
• Order from home or work

It's so easy!

• Go to https://www.flexischools.com.au/
• Click "Register Now" to create an account
• Registration is easy and free!
• Top-up your balance
• Start ordering immediately

Payment Options available from Flexi Schools
There are a variety of payment options supported, including Visa, MasterCard (credit and debit), Bank Transfer and PayPal. The system operates via a pre-paid account.

The advantage for you

As parents the most important advantage of using online ordering are:

• You know that the Canteen receives your order
• There are no lost orders or money and young children are not required to handle cash
• You can detail EXACTLY what your child likes, even thick or thin vegemite!
• Flexischools is open until  9 am each morning, you can even order a week in advance or setup recurring orders (eg every Friday).
• Orders can be cancelled in the event your child is unable to attend school – until 9am online.

Don't worry if you do not have internet access, orders can be dropped off at the canteen each morning by 9:00am. 

Happy birthday to the following students who celebrate a birthday this week:

Charlote P, Ava F, Isabel G.