In Parishes throughout the Diocese of Wollongong, we celebrated the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B. The reflection by Loyola Press outlines that Jesus’ first teaching in the Gospel is directed to the Pharisees who questioned him. Jesus’ words are then directed to the crowd, teaching that a person is defiled by his or her words and actions, not by the food that he or she eats. In verses omitted in the Gospel reading, we learn that Jesus returned home with his disciples, who in turn questioned him about what he had taught. The words we read at the conclusion of the Gospel are addressed to Jesus’ disciples. Mark’s narrative shows several audiences for Jesus’ teaching: his antagonists, the crowds, and Jesus’ disciples. As we see in this reading, the words to the Pharisees are often words of challenge. The teaching to the crowds is often a general, sometimes cryptic, message. With the disciples, who often misunderstand Jesus’ words, further explanation is offered about his message and its meaning.

Jesus’ words challenge us as well. In our desire to show that we are holy, we might also give too much credence to externals, following rules without thinking about the intention behind them. Jesus reminds us that we do not make ourselves holy by our actions. Rather, we become holy when we allow God’s Spirit to transform us. Our actions should be an expression of the conversion of our heart to God and to God’s ways.

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope that you, your families, and communities are all keeping safe and well. Undoubtedly, all families would have heard and read announcements made by the NSW Government and Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong in relation to return to school plan for Term 4, and the return to face-to-face learning for children from kindergarten through to Year 12 in Term 4. It is reassuring to know that the NSW Government has a plan for return to face-to-face learning in Term 4 as we recognise the importance of our students and their families belonging to a community and that students desire connection with their peers and their teachers. At St Paul’s the staff have maintained the personal connection with students and their families so that we can offer our students some sense of community which is welcoming for them in such tumultuous times. St Paul’s School Captains, Ivy and James have shared words of encouragement so that our students are able to stay connected to our school community.

Next week, Week 9,  as a school we will be recognising the importance of the wellbeing of our community with a focus on RUOK Day and St Paul’s Wellbeing Week as part of our remote learning experiences.. The purpose of St Paul’s Wellbeing Week is for our teachers to provide the opportunity for our students, parents and carers to focus on an overall awareness for the wide-ranging aspects of wellbeing, including social, physical, emotional, and environmental wellbeing. This focus on wellbeing has never been so important as now, when we consider the challenging times we are in.  RUOK Day is on the 9th September and encourages staff, students and parents and carers to check in on friends and family and start a conversation about mental health. I would like to express my thanks to Ms Olivia Djodan and a team of staff members who have organised the learning experiences that students will engage in next week.

On Sunday 5th September we celebrate Father’s Day and recognise the importance of positive male role models in the life of our students and this certainly links to the Year of St Joseph. Sunday is a day for all of us to be grateful for Fathers or those men who are significant in the lives of our students.  For all our fathers, grandfathers, or special men in the lives of students at St Paul’s, we give thanks for all that you do for our St Paul’s students and our school community! Our Week 8 Virtual Assembly has a focus on the role of fathers and the importance of relationships with our fathers. On behalf of the staff at St Paul’s I wish all families a wonderful day for Sunday.

I would like to warmly welcome Mrs Gemma Bolton to St Paul’s. After a recruitment process Mrs Bolton was the successful applicant for the Year 1 Red teaching position to replace Mrs Rachel Della-Libera as she commences her parental leave. On behalf of the St Paul’s school community we welcome Mrs Bolton.

Last week each school community received an encouraging email from our Director of Schools, Mr Peter Hill, titled a message of Hope. In his message, Peter asked the following question. “At this time, more than ever, we need to co-create hopefulness with others. Hope is really about looking ahead – a long way ahead. Our work in Catholic education is about the daily challenge of keeping hope alive. In an age when faith can be fragile, when COVID-19 has engulfed our lives, how do we patiently keep hope alive?

​​Pope Francis has a simple, life-changing message for us: God's love can grace each of us with a lasting and sustaining hope, no matter how dark or confusing our situation.

"Life is often a desert, it is difficult to walk, but if we trust in God, it can become beautiful and wide as a highway. Never lose hope; continue to believe, always, in spite of everything. Hope opens new horizons, making us capable of dreaming what is not even imaginable." Pope Francis. May we continue to be hope-filled people in these challenging and uncertain times.

I thank everyone for working together to keep our community a community of hope.

Yours in Faith and Learning,

Michelle Rodwell

Principal

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We recognise the Season of Creation during September, beginning with the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation on Wednesday 1st September.

Each year from September to October the Christian community celebrates the Season of Creation by praying and acting together to protect our common home. During this time Catholics unite with others in the global family to pray and protect every creature in God’s beautifully complex web of creation. The theme of this year’s Season of Creation celebration is “A Home for All? Renewing the Oikos of God”

The Season of Creation begins on September 1st, the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, which we celebrate today. This annual day, established by Pope Francis in 2015, is an opportunity to pray, reflect and act to care for God’s creation. All of us, both those who most contribute to climate change and those whom it most affects, pray today for better stewardship of the Earth. Pope Francis in his announcement for the World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation said,

"The annual World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation offers to individual believers and to the community a precious opportunity to renew our personal participation in this vocation as custodians of creation, raising to God our thanks for the marvellous works that have been entrusted to our care, invoking God’s help for the protection of creation and God’s mercy for the sins committed against the world in which we live."

Today we raise to God our thanks for the marvellous works that have been entrusted to our care, and we ask for God’s help as we take action to protect our planet and all of its creatures.

R U OK? DAY

R U OK? wants to inspire and empower people to meaningfully connect with those in their world and lend support when they are struggling with life by asking "are you OK?". A huge thank you to all who engaged in the R U OK? FlashDance. I have sent submissions to the Catholic Education Office Wollongong for inclusion in the Diocese FlashDance.

Next week, the school will be offering activities to promote student well-being. Look out for these activities in the daily plans.

PARISH NEWS

ST PAUL’S WEEKEND MASS TIMES

Currently due to restrictions there are no weekend Masses.

FIRST COMMUNION PREPARATION

First Communion Preparation continues for students who have made their First Reconciliation this year. Due to the current restrictions the preparation will be completed online by parents and the child. An email was sent to all First Communion students with the attached letters and modules. The modules can be accessed via SeeSaw for students at St Paul’s school. 

Thank you to those students and parents who have completed the First Communion Preparation. Mrs Marsh is sighting the modules each week and collecting names of those who have completed all modules to forward to the Parish Office. For those students accessing via email, please send a copy of your completed modules to info@spapdow.catholic.edu.au for Mrs Marsh to sight.

As you can appreciate no further plans have been made as yet for First Holy Communion.

Mrs Jodi Marsh

Pope Francis described St Joseph as a beloved and tender father. Pope Francis wrote in the Vatican News that St Joseph concretely expressed his fatherhood by making an offering of himself in love a love placed at the service of the Messiah who was growing to maturity in his home. St Joseph has always been venerated as a father by the Christian people, and in him, Jesus saw the tender love of God. 

St Joseph is a wonderful model for Christians as we live in the world. The Word of God spoken in the Scriptures guides us, but many times we have to apply that Word in everyday situations where we must see the reality around us, decide what God desires us to do and then act courageously, justly and with compassion. Joseph shows us how to be persons of the Word of God, whether it is written in books or in the face of God’s creation, unfolding in history.

Congratulations to the following students who have received or will be receiving an ACE Award, Principal Award and/or a Mary MacKillop Award:

Toby Bancroft - Ace Award

Piper Smith - Ace Award

Samuel Barrett - Ace Award

Our staff thanks you for the generous support and ongoing patience you have shown over the last few weeks while, together, we continue to live, learn, and work under the restrictions and challenges posed by COVID-19.

We urge everyone to continue to follow the advice from the NSW Government and NSW Health regarding Stay-at-Home orders and restrictions in keeping all members of our community safe and well. As you know, COVID-19 case numbers continue to be high across Greater Sydney, as does the number of people who have been in the community while infectious. In light of this, the NSW Government and NSW Health have again reinforced the message that parents and carers must keep children home if they can.

We understand how difficult it can be to manage working from home as well as supervising your child’s learning, however we are requesting your support to limit the risk of COVID-19 by having your child learn from home, rather than school, unless you absolutely have no other option. As we continue to plan for supervision of students who must attend school it is vital that we schedule only the minimum number of required staff members each day. This is to ensure we meet the direction provided by Catholic Schools NSW and NSW Health.

If it is absolutely necessary for your child to attend school for onsite supervision on any day, please complete this form:

This information will enable the school to organise appropriate supervision for students onsite whilst managing teachers working remotely and ensuring there is adequate access to electronic devices for students being supervised at school to engage in online learning.

Our focus for Remote Learning this fortnight is Be Respectful on Zoom. We ask ALL parents to spend a few minutes revising the Zoom manners and protocols we have established. 

*Dress appropriately (no pyjamas, low-cut tops etc.)

*Choose an appropriate location free from distraction and noise.

*Keep camera on (unless you must turn it off for a privacy reason)

*Keep yourself muted unless invited to speak/unmute

*Sit still and focused

*Only use chat feature for important questions or comments

Personalised Plan Collaborative Meetings are scheduled to take place between classroom teachers and parents during Weeks 9 and 10.  These meetings will take place over the phone.  Parents involved in these meetings will be notified via Compass and will be provided access to the Compass Booking System.  Additional information will be provided to those families involved via Compass.  Please note that those students who require a Personalised Plan for Medical reasons only or who have finished their Tier 2 interventions will not require to make a booking and therefore will not be added to the booking system.  In those cases, the classroom teacher will contact each family directly for a brief update.

Bree-Anna Fogliada

Diverse Learning Support Teacher

Resilience refers to the capacity of an individual to overcome odds and demonstrate personal strengths needed to cope with hardship.  At St Paul’s we teach our students strategies for building resilience using the BOUNCE BACK Acronym. The Bounce Back Program teaches students how to ‘bounce back’ after encountering negative events, challenges, difficult situations or adversity and return to a sound level of emotional wellbeing.

While the social and emotional skills for developing resilience start with explicit teaching of these skills, it is through continual practise of these skills that children build their resilience and capacity to ‘bounce back’

The next letter of the BOUNCE BACK acronym represents the strategy Nobody is perfect.  Mistakes help you learn.

The key messages are:

• There is no such thing as a perfect person.  We all have flaws.  Perfection is not an option but improvement and striving for high standards are options.
• You’re not perfect so don’t be too hard on yourself when something doesn’t turn out as well as you had hoped.  Judge yourself by effort and be kind to yourself.
• Others (including parents, teachers, brothers, sisters and friends) are not perfect so don’t have unreasonable expectations of them.
• Mistakes are part of learning.  We all have to make mistakes to get better at things. 

Some strategies for supporting your children to learn and practice this strategy at home include:

• Own up to mistakes - It is natural for people to avoid owning up to their mistakes.  When something goes wrong, be sure to voice the mistake you made but judge yourself on the effort you have made and what you have learned from your mistake.    

• Nobody is perfect - notice times when you may judge someone for doing something wrong, when a mistake was made.  Say the mantra ‘nobody is perfect’ and to empathise with the other person when things don’t quite go their way.  This goes for people in our day to day lives but also those we see in the media. 

The most powerful way to build resilience in children is to remind them of the strategies they have been practising in real life contexts.  Reminding children that Nobody is perfect.  Mistakes help you learn and that they have the ability to BOUNCE BACK when they are faced with hardship is integral to developing children’s resilience to a level of independence.  

Bree-Anna Fogliada

Diverse Learning Support Teacher

I am sure it comes as no surprise that the Diocesan Cricket Gala Day which was due to be held at the beginning of Term 4 has now been cancelled.

The Virtual Assembly for week 8 will have a double focus. The first is that we will be celebrating World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation on Wednesday Week 8, which begins the Season of Creation. The second focus for our Assembly will be on Fathers Day.

Next week St Paul’s will be participating in a wellbeing week including RUOK Day. Students can expect Zoom themes, wellbeing focused activities and a lesser workload. We hope this week brings some rest and joy to what has been a challenging term. More details will be provided in the Remote Learning Newsletter on Sunday and in each grade’s daily plan.

Due to COVID restrictions the majority of staff professional learning has been postponed or cancelled. St Paul’s staff are continuing to participate in our weekly professional learning sessions via zoom.

A Note from your School Counsellor

My video for the children this week is about positive ways to manage sad feelings, so I thought I would take the opportunity to talk to parents about sadness in your children. It's natural that during these times of cancelled activities and holidays, let alone the general boredom and frustration of lockdown and home-school, many children may have some low days.

While this is normal, it's important for you to keep on top of your child's low moods and try to help them move out of it. Here are some tips for you to use and some warning signs to look out for.

Provide Reassurance

Let your child know that sad feelings are okay sometimes, but that they have the power to help themselves feel better.  

Encourage Your Child to Talk

Give your child the right to have sad feelings. Children sometimes get the idea that it's not OK to feel sad and they start to hide their feelings rather than deal with them in a healthy way.

Teach Your Child to Ask for Help

Kids need to know that there is help and compassion for what they are going through. Listen and be a source of support. Besides making yourself available, talk to them about who else they can reach out to, such as other family members, a teacher, or the school counsellor.

Encourage fun activities AND mindful activities

Doing fun things can help take your child's mind off what they're feeling.  It's hard to be happy when they are ruminating about what is wrong, but when they spend time doing fun things, or things that require their full concentration, they are more inclined to STOP THINKING about it.

Watch Your Own Coping Skills

Your child learns coping skills by watching you. Be aware of how you respond to life stresses.

Things to watch out for

It can be difficult to know whether your child's sadness is just a mild reaction to a negative event, or something a bit deeper. Parents sometimes struggle with understanding what their child is thinking and feeling. 

Watch for sadness that seem to go on too long, irritability, loss of pleasure, change of appetite, change of sleep habits, tiredness, feelings of worthlessness, and talk about death or dying. 

Talk to a health professional if your child shows any of these signs. You can send me an email if you have any questions or concerns about your child. doreenw@catholiccare.dow.org.au

Take care of yourselves during this crazy time.

Best Regards, Doreen

Recently school fee statements were forwarded to families via email from the Catholic Education Office Diocese of Wollongong. Attached to this school fee reminder email is information from the Catholic Education Office Diocese of Wollongong regarding Deferred Payment Option and Fee Concession Applications in the case that families are experiencing difficulty due to COVID19.

The school fully understands that in the current climate families are under financial pressure, please remember we are here to help.  The school is here to assist, you just need to make contact with the school office. Please email the school via info@spapdow.catholic.edu.au or alternatively call the school on 42 562772 and ask to speak with Michelle Rodwell or Kristie Bicknell, all communication is confidential.

A feature of our fortnightly newsletter is an overview of Term 3 dates. The best platform to view the Term 3 dates is a laptop or iPad rather than a phone. Some of the Term 3 dates are outlined below and please note that these are pending COVID 19 Restrictions.

New Enrolments for 2022 are now open. Enrolments packs are available for collection at our school office. Please let your friends and the wider community know that enrolments are now open.

Please ensure when your contact details change to email the info account, so we have a record of the new details. info@spapdow.catholic.edu.au

The St Paul's Staff created a poem for parents and carers to thank you for your amazing efforts during Remote Learning!! Thank you to those parents and carers who have liked and commented on our video via Facebook.