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“When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up – one on one side, one on the other – so that his hands remained steady till sunset.”
Exodus 17:12
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Students,
Some mornings I wake up and one of my arms or hands feels dead. It feels as though I hardly slept. I am sure we all can feel battle weary at times, even more so now, close to the end of semester 1 scrambling through a global pandemic.
Although we find ourselves in very different times and are feeling weary through it all, the staff in the school have continued to measure your children’s growth in readiness for Mid-Year reports and portfolios. Despite the pandemic and the short time of online learning, teachers have been able to gain an excellent understanding of every child’s growth in all areas of the curriculum as well as their social-emotional learning. I have loved reading through every child’s report and portfolio. I view these documents as a celebration of your child’ learning so far this year. Reports and portfolios articulate what your child has learned, how they learned, the content and skills they have learned and acknowledge their areas of strength. Mid-Year reports and portfolios will go home at the end of week 9 on Friday 26th June.
In the past at OLOR the first week of Term 3 has been added to the holidays to enable the staff a full week of professional learning and to enable families to make use of a longer holiday after harvest has finished. This year however, with covid-19, everything is different. So, with the needs of students and families at the forefront of our minds, the School Board decided last Monday that school will resume in week 1 of Term 3 after the 2 week holidays. It is, however, important that staff are provided with opportunities for professional learning which, in turn, will positively affect your children’s learning and development. I will inform you when these will take place through term 3 and 4 sooner rather than later.
Congratulations to Aurora, Xanadu and Adamantia who won a voucher for their efforts in the Reconciliation colouring in competition organised by Life Without Barriers in Berri. A huge thank you to Sam and Sandy for presenting the girls with their prizes. In today’s climate it seems even more important to teach our children what reconciliation means and how to action it. I couldn’t have described the meaning of reconciliation better myself:
“Reconciliation means caring for others in our world.”- Aurora
“Reconciliation means saying sorry for the bad things that happened.”- Adamantia
Reconciliation means reconnecting relationships between Aboriginal peoples and Australians.”- Xanadu
As restrictions continue to ease around the state, I am extremely happy to let you know that from Monday 29th June some activities can resume, as long as adults continue to follow the density and physical distancing guidelines outlined by SA Health:
- No more than 1 adult per 4-square metres in an enclosed space
- Maintain a minimum social distance of 1.5 metres.
Please be reminded that the AHPPC does not believe that it is appropriate or practical for students and children to maintain physical distancing requirements in classrooms.
Activities that are allowed to resume in week 10 on Monday 29th June are:
- Parents, volunteers, school support and other service providers entering the school grounds.
- School assemblies.
- School sport competitions, sports days and carnivals, including inter-school competitions (but the use of change rooms and shower facilities is not permitted).
- Inter-school choirs, and performing art activities.
Playgroup is also allowed to resume. We are delighted to be able to welcome back all playgroup families in the first week of term 3. Families have really appreciated and enjoyed the activity packs that Erica put together for pick up every Tuesday. It once again demonstrates the importance of human connections, especially during difficult times. One parent wrote:
“We appreciate all the work and thought that have been put into preparing these bags each week. Tuesdays have been our child’s favourite day because of them.”
This weekend we can also return to mass across the Our Lady of the River Parish with numbers up to 75 people allowed, observing strict social distancing practices. Fr Paul writes: “We went out as one and we return as one, as we walked this time together. A Welcome Back to the Table Ritual at the beginning of Mass will be a shared reflection of this time, symbolically acknowledged before God. It is more than starting again, because we have all been pruned from the True Vine, but are still part of that Vine.”
As we continue to emerge from covid restrictions and journey towards the end of Term 2, a little battle weary, please spare some thoughts for Moses and his journey. Moses’ difficult journey out of Egypt had been accompanied by the constant groans of an ungrateful people. They fail to learn, they refuse to enjoy the benefits of their liberation and they have a list of questions as long as the proverbial dead arm! Moses pleads with God, “What am l to do with these people?" Exodus 7:4. Then the unexpected! An attack from the Amalekites no-one saw coming. Defeat is not an option. As an inspirational leader, Moses positions himself on a hill above the battlefield. As long as he holds his symbolic staff up with both hands, his people are in the winning position. As his arms grow tired and the staff falls lower, they begin to lose their edge.
An African saying says, “The chimpanzee fights because he counts on the help of the gorilla,” meaning that those who are insignificant by themselves can accomplish much when greater power is on their side. A wise leader and teacher like Moses, knows that by depending upon God and two supporting friends he or she can do far more than when acting alone.
Thank you to all families, for your continued support throughout these times. Thank you for holding our hands up and entrusting your children into our care. We really look forward to welcome you back onto school grounds from week 10.
Nanda de Winter
Year 6/7
The Year 6/7’s have been learning about angles over the past couple of weeks and they got to do something they normally aren’t allowed to do!
Year R/1
The R/1 Class have been learning about vowels, they made some fantastic rockets identifying all the vowels in their name.
Congratulations!
Congratulations to Aurora, Xanadu and Adamantia who won a voucher for their efforts in the Reconciliation colouring competition. Thank you to Sam and Sandy from Life without Barriers for presenting the prizes.
“Reconciliation means reconnecting relationships between Aboriginal peoples and Australians.”- Xanadu
“Reconciliation means caring for others in our world.”- Aurora