Christians attempt to comfort sufferers by touting the benefits of suffering. “Suffering builds character,” we say. “I don’t want character,” says the sufferer. “I want relief.” Then come the inevitable questions: “Why does God let bad things happen?” and “Where is God when it hurts?”

The care that parents give their children suggests answers to both questions. For example, suppose a seven-year-old girl is taking her first ride on a bicycle. Her father, running alongside her, sees that she is about to hit a rough spot on the road but restrains his impulse to reach out and steady the bike. The dad wants his little girl to learn how to ride with confidence, so he does not prevent her fall. When the bike bounces off the bump, the girl panics, tumbles to the pavement, and scrapes her elbow and knee. The dad scoops her up into his arms and comforts her. Then he carries her into the house, cleans and dresses her scratches, holds her on his lap, and tells her a favourite story.

God is like that dad. He lets us navigate our way, but he stays alongside us. He does not prevent bad things from happening because he wants us to learn to deal confidently with hardship. But when we suffer, God scoops us up and stays with us. He shares our pain, sustains us, and consoles us.

That’s the message of the cross, and signing ourselves opens us to hearing it. God’s only Son became a man in Christ. In his human nature, God himself suffered rejection, humiliation, ridicule, abandonment, buffetings, scourging, crucifixion, and death. He embraced suffering as a man so that he could comfort us in our suffering.

When we make the sign of the cross we invite the Lord to join us in our suffering. We touch our forehead and move down to our breast, telling the Lord with this gesture that we want him to bend down to us. Then we cross our shoulders in a movement that asks him to support us—to shoulder us—in our suffering.     

(From The Sign of the Cross by Bert Ghezzi)

Week 9

We pray that all have a safe and holy Easter break over the next four days. I hope your Easter will be a time of rest and reflection. May the Risen Lord break into our lives and transform us. Students return on Tuesday 3 April.

Our Year 9 students were excellent in their re-enactment of the Passion today. Congratulations to all students involved – you should be very proud of your efforts. Thanks to Mr Dan O’Brien for working with the students so tirelessly and adding his interpretation to this very meaningful and reflective prayer.

Our students will once again pray this Passion prayer at Mass on Good Friday at 3pm. Please join them in the Sacred Heart Church.

Staffing changes Term 2

It is with mixed feelings that I announce that Katie Thompson will be taking on the role of Acting Assistant Principal at St Mary’s Young for the remainder of the 2018 school year. We will miss Katie’s expertise, wisdom and incredible input in our school but also wish her all the very best as she embarks on a new endeavour in her career. We strongly encourage our staff to take on new roles and opportunities and support Katie’s courage as she enters the learning pit! We know that Katie will be a huge asset to the St Mary’s community and we wish her all the very best. We will let you know staffing changes as we find teachers to fill both the REC role and Katie’s teaching load as we are able to fill these positions.

Congratulations Mock Trial Team

The first round of the Mock Trial was held against Radford College Canberra (2017 champions) and we congratulate our Sacred Heart team on being victorious! This is an excellent effort. Thanks to our students for their positive attitudes and team work and to Mrs Nicky Trinder for coaching the team and driving them to Canberra.

Community Breakfast

We enjoyed another very successful community breakfast on Wednesday. Students, staff, parents and families enjoyed the wonderful pancakes whipped up by Sacred Heart Staff. Thanks to the Wellbeing Team and the Student Leaders for organising this wonderful community get together. It was terrific to see so many of our parents and students coming together on such a beautiful morning.

Thanks also to everyone for their donations for our uniform free day. We raised $296.20 which is a credit to the community. Funds raised will be added to our Project Compassion total.

This month on SchoolTV - Physical Activity & Exercise

In the last decade, children's participation in physical activity and exercise has been in decline. In this digital age, children are using computers and mobile devices, not only for learning, but for relaxation and recreation purposes. This sedentary behaviour is having a detrimental effect on today's youth. The key is finding the balance. Research shows, that regular physical activity and exercise leads to changes in the brain. It improves cognitive function, elevates mood, enhances learning and improves academic outcomes. Playing sport helps kids develop fundamental movement skills impacting positively on their confidence, self-esteem and ability to develop social skills. Parents play an important role in helping children establish positive habits that will benefit them in the long-term.

In this edition of SchoolTV, parents will discover practical advice relating to the benefits of regular physical activity and exercise, as well as tips on how to get their kids motivated and moving more. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this month's edition and we always welcome your feedback.

Check out this month's edition http://shcoota.nsw.schooltv.me/newsletter/physical-activity-and-exercise

Investing in your child’s education

Each year as our students return to school, we monitor and analyse where students are up to with their reading fluency, comprehension and the level of text sophistication needed to keep them interested and challenged (but not stressed) with their reading. Approximately 25% of our students in Primary who are not yet independent readers, drop by several levels from the end of a school year to the beginning of the next.

We cannot stress the value and importance of ensuring your child reads or you read to your child EVERY day for 10 minutes (no more is needed). In fact, we say to parents, read to your child for 10 minutes – if they wish to continue on their own, great but you need to invest 10 minutes either listening or reading with your child every day for them to gain significant benefits with their reading and literacy. These benefits will be far reaching in their whole education as they continue to improve their literacy skills and these are utilised throughout their schooling.

We also encourage parents to play a board game or card game several times a week with their children. The skills learnt by students include sharing, numeracy, fine motor skills, resilience and spending quality time with family. The impact on their mathematical and numeracy skills cannot be underestimated.

With blessings,

Mrs Janet Cartwright

Principal