Dear Parents and Carers,

This morning, our staff gathered in prayer and reflected on the story of The Prodigal Son, the Gospel reading for this Sunday’s Mass. Many of us know this parable by different names, such as The Forgiving Father or The Jealous Brother.

Jesus tells of a father with two sons—one who takes his inheritance and squanders it, and the other who remains at home, working diligently. When the prodigal son returns, remorseful for his actions, his father welcomes him with joy rather than rejection. This response angers the older brother, who remained loyal and dutiful.

This parable beautifully illustrates God’s boundless love for us, the complexities of family relationships, and the challenge of choosing compassion over resentment. Forgiveness and compassion are cornerstones of our faith, yet they can be difficult to practice, especially in times of conflict. May we continue to reflect on this message and strive to embody these values in our daily lives.

Last week, we had the pleasure of welcoming new and current families to our Open Day Sessions. It was a wonderful celebration of the opportunities our students enjoy. A heartfelt thank you to our outstanding Year 6 students, who served as tour guides on both Thursday evening and Friday morning. Their confidence, pride, and enthusiasm for our school were truly commendable. Visitors consistently remarked on the warm, welcoming atmosphere and the evident pride our students have in their school. If you have a child starting Kindergarten in 2026, please ensure your enrolment form is submitted, as interviews will begin early next term.

We appreciate your ongoing efforts to ensure your child arrives at school on time each day. As the term comes to a close, we congratulate all classes maintaining at least 90% attendance, with Kindergarten leading at 94%. Our goal for Term 2 is to see all classes reach 95%, as strong attendance supports both learning and social connections. Mornings can be busy, and we kindly remind families that students should arrive after 8:45am when staff are on duty to provide supervision and before 9:10am when our morning routine commences. Thank you for your continued partnership in fostering a positive learning environment.

A big thank you to our P&F for organising tonight’s Trivia Night. So many people work behind the scenes to ensure our school remains well-resourced and our community thrives. We are also looking forward to our Easter Raffle celebration on the last day of term—please drop off any Easter donations at the Office (otherwise we do sometimes receive a few nibbled ones!).

We hope to see you around our school soon.

Yours in partnership
Laurinda Nelson

Now that NAPLAN is out of the way, Year 5 has been able to focus on the famous Australian text - “Storm Boy”. We have been reading the book, watching parts of the movie so that we can compare how the story is told in different ways and analysing the rich language that Colin Thiele uses to paint a picture of the Coorong where the story is set.

The class was asked to think about a place in our community that needs to be protected, just like the Coorrong in South Australia. The choice was Narrawallee Inlet because of its similarities.

The Learning Intention for the class was:

We have been learning to use our senses to write interesting and descriptive texts. What do I hear, see, feel, smell and taste?

Here are the wonderful responses from Year 5.