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Dear parents,
The staff are looking forward to Monday morning and having all of the children back at school engaged in face to face teaching. We do have a small number of students who have compromised health and they will continue to be supported by the school while they work from home. There may be a degree of anxiety amongst students however staff will do all in their power to reassure students that the school is a safe place to learn. Should you be concerned about your child’s anxiety please either talk to your child’s teacher or contact the front office for a referral to our school counsellor.
Normally, at the end of term two, parents receive written reports for the first semester. There will still be reports however the process for this year will change. Due to students spending a considerable amount of semester one engaged in remote learning, we currently don’t have the work samples to allocate a grade. Work samples or assessment pieces need to be completed at school so we are sure it reflects the child’s knowledge and understanding. For each achievement standard we are trying to assess, we need several samples of work. These are then moderated against the same work samples from students across the year level to arrive at the grade allocated from A – E. One major change is that this year is that there will be no written comments.
Kindergarten students will not be graded using the A – E scale but will have a three point scale using the descriptors Competent, Developing and Experiencing Difficulty.
Over the next few weeks teachers will assess student’s understanding in English, Mathematics and Religious Education. These are the only subjects receiving a grade this semester. This data will allow teachers to carefully plan what they intend to teach in semester two.
All reports will go home in week eight of this term with parent-teacher interviews taking place in weeks nine and ten. A timetable allowing parents to select the session they wish to attend will be sent home well before the interviews. These are important meetings as it allows the teacher to share with the parents the strengths and areas of development for each child. It also allows the teacher and parents to look at how they can both support the child.
The report will also contain information about each child’s ‘Critical and Creative Thinking’ as outlined in the Australian Curriculum.
Enrolment
A reminder to parents that the enrolment period closes on Friday 22th May. If you have a younger child who is commencing school in 2020, or have friends at preschool and childcare who are interested in enrolling at Mother Teresa School, please let them know.
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Parents at School To ensure the health and safety of students and staff at school we ask:
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Maths Problem
Next week, as all students are back at school, we will revert to one problem. It deals with attendances. This is for the older grades.
Day one of Term Two saw 31 students turn up to school. Yesterday, which is Thursday of week three we had 296 students. We have 696 students enrolled at Mother Teresa School.
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God Bless
Peter Hughes
WHOLE SCHOOL FOCUS
The Whole school focus theme for this year is: Be Just Like Jesus This term we will be focusing on: Think Like Jesus: Jesus’ character and the way he lived offers excellent examples of ways we can copy him. We can do this by doing our best to live peacefully with others, study the scriptures, be gentle and humble, trust God, help others, make good choices, and always obey God.
Fr Mark and Fr Jiss invite you to please sign in to the Mass at 9.15am using Meeting ID 824-036-573 or click https://zoom.us/j/824036573
Sixth Sunday of Easter - Year A
17 May 2020
“I shall ask the Father and he will give you another Advocate.”
Something to Think About
Even though we cannot see Jesus, we can experience his presence in many different ways. The Spirit is at work in the world, bringing love, joy, kindness, patience and gentleness. The main message in today’s gospel is to love Jesus and to do as he commands. What does love look like…. feel like…. and sound like?
The Story
Jesus reminds the disciples that the way to show their love for him is to keep his commandments. However, the disciples are still fearful and anxious so Jesus promises them a comforter and helper – the Holy Spirit.
They are not to feel alone or like orphans.
The Holy Spirit will help them to know Jesus as the one sent by the Father.
The Scriptures
A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to John 4:15-17, 19-20
Jesus said to his disciples:
"If you love me, you will do as I command.
Then I will ask the Father to send you the Holy Spirit
who will help you and always be with you.
The Spirit will show you what is true.
In a little while the people of this world won't be able to see me,
but you will see me.
And because I live, you will live.
Then you will know that I am one with the Father.
You will know that you are one with me,
and I am one with you.”
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Video
What is Love?
Things to do this week
Mealtime Prayer
Family Discussion
Begin by talking about activities we need help with before we can do them on our own, e.g. riding a bike, swimming, tying shoelaces. Now talk about activities that we still need help with e.g. learning a new language, baking a new recipe.
Help is something we need all through our lives! This is true for us as disciples of Jesus. Talk about times when you have needed help to show your love for Jesus by keeping his commandments.
Family Activity
In the gospel, Jesus reminded the disciples that they show their love for him when they keep his commandments.
Imagine you are responsible for writing some rules for the 21st century.
What would some of these be?
Put a copy of your 21st century commandments on your fridge door.
Images from Unsplash.com and Pixabay.com. Used under licence/with permission.
Contemporary English Version of Scripture extracts provided under licence from ICEL to Liturgy Brisbane.
Peace and best wishes
Anne Leet REC
Live Streamed Marriage Seminars Sundays in June
The local Archdiocese has organised a series interactive live-streamed presentations for Marriage & Family Month immediately after the 11am Online Mass at St Christophers Cathedral for the next three Sundays (14th, 21st, 28th June).
Listeners will be able to interact online and ask questions of our impressive line-up of international, interstate and local Catholic couples speaking at 11.45am each Sunday from mid-June. See full program at https://www.catholicvoice.org.au/marriage-family-month-june-2020/
Free Online International Catholic Marriage Summit this week
Starting this Friday, 50+ high profile Catholic speakers & social media personalities will be appearing online with their spouses to share openly about the highs, lows and challenges of married life.
This free International Catholic Marriage Summit is the first of its kind. The instructions to the committed Catholic speakers was to ‘keep it real’. Talk topics include finances, grief, communication, conflict and sex. It should be a great resource for any engaged or married couple. Register for free here or at https://www.joyfuleverafter.org/
Award winning Canberra wine maker Tim Kirk and his wife Lara, a Catholic marriage educator, will be speaking on the topic: “I Can’t Make You Happy”.
Beating stress and worries about coronavirus (COVID-19)
by THE BRAVE TEAM on MARCH 15, 2020
There are a lot of negative and stressful events occurring in our world every day – but when something like coronavirus (COVID-19) becomes so pervasive that it affects almost every country in the world, and is talked about almost every hour of the day, our children and teenagers can become quite anxious.
They may worry about many different things related to the virus – whether they or their family members will get sick, whether schools will close, whether they will be asked to stay away from loved ones and friends, whether they will be safe, or whether the virus will ever end. Sometimes, it is simply not knowing what will happen that creates the most fear (for young people and adults).
Children and teenagers are very observant – they see things changing, they hear the news and they talk with whoever they can about what’s happening. For some young people, this is a natural and healthy way to manage their worries about the situation. But for other young people, excessive focus on the issue can increase their fears and become unmanageable. Either way, the chances are young people will have lots of questions and will be seeking reassurance from those around them, and those they trust. As parents and caregivers, you might be wondering how best to respond to these questions.
The BRAVE Team are a team of Clinical Psychologists and experts in child and adolescent anxiety and have put together a set of simple tips for you and your young person to manage the stress associated with the COVID-19 coronavirus.
Stay calm yourself
Children and teens look to their parents to work out how to respond. When parents are not calm it sends young people the message that they too should be panicking. Pay attention to how you talk about the virus to your children, each other and other people. Stick to the facts when talking about the virus. Speak calmly about it. Behave in a considered and rational way. Fear is just as contagious as this virus – and it is not helpful. The best way you can ‘vaccinate’ your child against fear around COVID-19 is to remain calm and rational yourself.
Think about the way young people receive their information
It can be helpful for parents to consider the way in which children and teenagers consume information about COVID-19 coronavirus. Constant exposure to news broadcasting can cause additional stress– children can’t always recognise fine differences between facts and messages designed to convey exaggerated threat. Help your child receive factual information in ways that are young-person friendly. Focus on the messages that are most important to children (think about what you want them to do – Regularly wash hands). Don’t forget to pay attention to how you talk about the virus to your children, each other and other people. Try not to panic – children are much more likely to keep calm if you do too.
Think about how you can answer questions
When young people are anxious, they tend to focus on the worst-case scenario and seek a lot of reassurance. Remind your children that there are a lot of people out there working hard to keep them and their loved ones safe, and we need to help in whatever way we can. Be there to listen and answer their questions, but try and keep an optimistic outlook. Help them see the range of possibilities and focus on what you can do right now to keep safe and manage stress. Try not to let them continue asking questions over and over – instead engage them in other activities and use the strategies from our Guide for Parents and Young people below, which you can use, print and share.
Remember that everyone worries about different things
We also need to remember that children may have different worries than teenagers and adults. For many younger children, their fears may focus on being separated from loved ones (including pets and toys) whereas older children and teenagers may worry about getting sick themselves or social isolation and missing out on things. It’s important to acknowledge their individual worries and help find strategies to manage these.
Help your young person find a strategy that works for them
Help your young person find some strategies for managing their anxiety. This might include family activities which can distract from fear and focus on positive experiences, or it might be things like encouraging your young person to listen to music, rediscover old hobbies, practice relaxation or mindfulness or connect with family and friends online. Encourage them (and all family members) to focus on other things during these activities. Remember, young people learn through experience – set a good example and try and remain calm as much as possible. Try and keep to your family routines as much as possible, stay healthy and active.
Finally, remember that it is normal to feel overwhelmed by such events. Reach out and find the right support for you and your child if required.
About The Brave Program
The BRAVE program is an evidence-based cognitive behavioural program which helps people understand how anxiety works and identify strategies for overcoming fears and worries. There are programs for Parents of young children (3-6 years), Children (7-11 years), Teenagers (12-17 years) and Parents of Children and Teenagers.
If you are in Australia you can learn more about how to help your child or teenager manage stress and anxiety generally by accessing the BRAVE Self-Help program at www.brave4you.psy.uq.edu.au .
Please note that the program is only available to Australian IP addresses at this time.
Useful Links – Australia
Youth Beyond Blue: https://www.youthbeyondblue.com/ OR https://www.beyondblue.org.au/the-facts/looking-after-your-mental-health-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak
Emerging Minds: https://emergingminds.com.au/ OR this video on Talking to Children about natural disasters and traumatic events.
Kids Helpline: https://kidshelpline.com.au/ OR call 1800 55 1800
Reach Out: https://au.reachout.com/
Lifeline: https://www.lifeline.org.au/ OR call 13 11 14
