Dear Parents and Carers

Welcome to Term 2, I trust that everyone had a Happy Easter and celebrated this most sacred time of the year with family and friends. This week we warmly welcome  two new families to our school community, please say hello to Frankie in Year 4 and Aska in Year 3  when you see them.

Easter is the season of ultimate ‘hope’  out of despair and as such is so important to every one of us. There were many beautiful Holy Week services including the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday, when we gathered in the paddock on the hill surrounded by the astounding beauty of the hillside, many of our St Mary’s students turning up to help portray the journey of Jesus on his way to Calvary. There was such a feeling of reverence and community, as many locals and visitors stood together to pray and remember. A special thanks to Simon Kinch and his boys who worked tirelessly to prepare and ensure everything was organised on the day. This was followed up by the sunrise mass on Easter Sunday, which from all accounts was a very moving and meaningful occassion for the many who attended, a big thank you to Father Michael and the parish team who worked so hard to bring this Easter season to life for our Parish.

We also gathered in large numbers for the ANZAC March on Thursday, our students looked superb in their uniforms. The students again displayed their ability to contribute to their community and to understand the importance of respectful behaviour and reverence at such important and solemn events. A big thanks to staff and families who took time in the holidays to be there to represent our school so proudly. We will be holding our school ANZAC Liturgy on Friday at 2:30pm, please join us to remember.

Yesterday the staff met at school for a day of Professional Development in the area of Learning Progressions, which is a national framework designed to track the learning of each student. The benefit to students is that Literacy and Numeracy interventions can be more strategically targeted to meet the needs of each student.  The staff will continue with this professional learning in three follow up modules during staff meetings.

I have spoken often about the importance of kindness in our school, in our families and in our community. I recently read an article that suggests five essential parenting tips that promote kindness in our children;

1. Live Kindness as a core value- try to live kindness as a non-negotiable in all you do.
2. Verbalise kindness as a priority- Instead of saying ‘As long as you are happy.’ try ‘The most important thing is that you’re kind.’ Hold your child to high ethical standards eg in teams, addressing others respectfully even when cranky/ tired.
3. Expand your child’s circle of concern -Expect them to include others who are isolated, elderly neighbours, younger children, from different cultures. Ensure your child considers the affect their actions have on others.
4. Help children to manage destructive emotions such as jealousy and anger. The feelings are natural but we need to be in control of our responses.
5. Show gratitude- show your children how to habitually show gratitude. Research indicates that  people who are grateful are more likely to be helpful, generous, compassionate, and forgiving as well as happier and healthier.

As a parent, I understand the challenge of mastering all of these at once, but this week I challenge you to try just one.

Yours in partnership

Laurinda Nelson

Principal