This is the birthday of the author, Kenneth Grahame, who wrote the book “The Wind in the Willows” In that book, two of the characters, Rat and Mole, paddle the boat upriver very early one morning. As the sun rises, they sense that they are in the Presence of some Divine Being, and they feel called to worship:

‘Slowly, but with no doubt or hesitation whatever, and in something of a solemn expectancy, the two animals passed through the broken, tumultuous water, and moored their boat at the flowery margin of the island. In silence they landed, and pushed through the blossom and scented herbage and undergrowth that led up to the level ground, till they stood on a little lawn of a marvellous green, set round with Nature’s own orchard-trees: crab-apple, wild cherry, and sloe.

“This is the place of my song-dream, the place the music played to me,” whispered Rat, as if in a trance. “Here, in this holy place, here if anywhere, surely we shall find Him!”

Then suddenly Mole felt a great Awe fall upon him, an awe that turned his muscles to water, bowed his head, and rooted his feet to the ground. It was no panic terror - indeed, he felt wonderfully at peace, and happy - but it was an awe that smote and held him and, without seeing, he knew it could only mean that some PRESENCE was very, very near. With difficulty he turned to look for his friend, and saw him at his side, cowed, stricken, and trembling violently. And still there was utter silence in the populous bird-haunted branches around them; and still the light grew and grew.

“Rat!” he found breath to whisper, shaking. “Are you afraid?” “Afraid?” murmured the Rat, his eyes shining with unutterable love. “Afraid! Of Him? O, never, never! And yet - and yet - O Mole, I am afraid!” Then the two animals, crouching to the earth, bowed their heads, and did worship.’

Let’s remind ourselves in silence that God is with us and we are in his presence…

Week 6

URGENT MESSAGE

From the beginning of Week 7 (Monday 12 March), NO student who has not returned their general permission note (sent home in Week 1) will be able to leave the school grounds for any purpose. This includes sport, excursions, etc. PLEASE ENSURE your child returns the note asap if they have not yet done so. Teachers will be sending reminders home with students next week. All teachers have been given a list of students who are not to leave the school grounds until the note is returned.

Lent

Good Friday is a reminder that sooner or later, life deposits us all at the cross. It is a gathering place for the world's sorrow, its wasted efforts, its tormented people, its unimaginable catastrophes and its utter silences. It is also a place of forgiveness. Good Friday reminds us that for 2000 years the cross has been more than an important symbol for Christians, it is the focal point for the pain of personal suffering and of God's forgiveness.

The first Good Friday gave Christians a focal point where they can direct their sense of loss. From His isolated position on the Cross, Jesus was all too aware of the reality of loss: betrayed by Judas, denied by Peter, deserted by His disciples and, seemingly, even by His Father which lead him to call out 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me'. Unbelievably, in His time of greatest loss Jesus was able to utter the words of forgiveness: 'Father, forgive them….'"

Sometimes in the midst of 'loss' we might need to forgive ourselves, take away the blame we feel that we did not do enough for a person who died or that God didn’t do enough to prevent a catastrophe. Maybe our anger towards another person who caused us financial loss or the loss of a friend or a loved one has caused our life to become bitter and soured. If this is the case, then maybe we should take our loss to the Cross, and, in due time, be inspired by the message of forgiveness that is always there.

Family Fun Maths Night

It was a joy to come together with 90 of our parents, students and family members at the Family Fun Night with a Maths focus on Tuesday evening. It was a very excited (and noisy) group who played together, learning new ways to engage with games that lead to better understandings for all with regards to numeracy.

The importance of playing card, board and dice games with our children cannot be underestimated. The skills and attitudes that are learnt during this time are very beneficial to the learning and development of our children. Often we, as parents are too tired or not in the mood to play games. If the only homework our children did when they are young was to read for 10 minutes every night and play a game, you would see a significant shift in your child’s attention, ability to be a “good” winner, develop skills in taking turns, sharing and learn resilience when a game is ‘lost’.

More and more as our children don’t play these types of games that require interaction with others, particularly of mixed ages, they become unable to cope with the social and emotional skills that are necessary throughout life. We encourage all parents to make a special time to play games with their children to assist in this development. If you are unsure what to play or how to play, please don’t hesitate to contact us for a quick chat about possibilities.

Parents took home a list of games (and their rules) that assist numeracy development in particular, as well as some research which highlights the significance and importance of playing games with our children.

My favourite comment from the evening was “Mrs Cartwright, you shouldn’t have put Maths in the name of the Family Fun Night. I didn’t want to come and Mum made me. I had heaps of fun but I didn’t expect to!” It’s time to change the bad wrap that Maths can sometimes have, and help our children understanding that working mathematically and problem solving IS in fact fun!

Thanks to Kate Maher, Natalee Litchfield, Susie Alexander, Brad Winsor, Lyne Witenden, Emma McDonnell and Nicky Trinder for their assistance on the night and to Emma Deep who assisted with organising supper.

SchoolTV

On 22 February the The Healthy Body Series was launched on SchoolTV. Topics will include:

• Diet and Nutrition
• Exercise
• Eating Disorders
• Body Image
• Sleep
• Mindfulness

We all know that diet and nutrition is vital to your child’s development and growth, but are you aware of the effects it has on your child’s brain development and how it can impact their academic achievement? In this era of convenience, it is easy to reach for pre-packaged and processed foods to cope with busy schedules. However, these foods are usually packed full of sugar and salt which can have adverse health effects. Making a habit of reading food labels can help reduce the risks. It can also help to stabilise your child’s energy, improve their mood, maintain a healthy weight and improve their general wellbeing. In this edition of SchoolTV, parents will discover practical advice for teaching your kids about the benefits of incorporating a healthy diet and good nutrition. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this month’s edition and we always welcome your feedback.

This is the link to the current edition:  http://shcoota.nsw.schooltv.me/newsletter/diet-and-nutrition

Previous articles, resources and videos are able to be accessed through this site.

With blessings,

Mrs Janet Cartwright

Principal

Changes to the calendar

2 weeks ahead