Dear parents,

As this is my last correspondence with families for 2020, I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a merry Christmas and a relaxing and restful new year.  I know the break is certainly something staff have been looking forward to after such an extraordinary year.  For all of us, it was a time of uncertainty and stress but also a time of thinking about those close to us as well as caring for others.

School life in the later stages of term one and term two reflected the uncertainty of society with remote learning taking place, which for some students lasted beyond one term. Thankfully school life for the students has nearly returned to normal with excursions, camps and sporting events happening towards the end of the year. Unfortunately, many events were unable to proceed or were limited in their scope and parents were unable to fully interact in the life of the school.

I thank ALL staff for their work throughout the year in continuing to implement quality learning experiences for the students.  Considering the interruptions this year, there has been strong growth throughout the school.  I thank the students, especially our Year Six leaders, for the way they have adapted to changes to life at school which was very different to what they were expecting.  Our year six students have been wonderful role models and as they leave MTS we wish them all the best at high school.

Thank you to our parents who, despite the restrictions, supported MTS in a number of ways.  It seemed a long time between the Wine and Cheese Night at the start of the year and the Carols Night two weeks ago.  We still had parents assisting at sporting events, on excursions and at our working bee.  I again thank the Community Council for their efforts this year.

We have several members of staff moving on and on behalf of the school I wish them all the best in their new roles.  Those leaving are Kristina Hudina and Jason van Deas from year four and Kirsty Brooke from our Diverse Learning Team.

Personally, I am looking forward to some down time and look forward to a busy 2021 which will again see lots of action across so many areas including the building of a new room for our Diverse Learning Team.

Maths Problem

The last maths problem for the year was correctly answered by a number of students with Lacey Press having her name drawn out.

I know Mrs Williams has prepared some wonderful maths activities/games for parents to play with their children to stop what we call the ‘Summer Slide’.

Have the children put down their digital entertainment and try some of these games as a family.  Great fun while learning mathematics!  Thank you to Mrs Williams for putting this resource together. The links for this resource will be available on our website under the "Curriculum" tab and is also included in this newsletter.

Term 4 Awards

I would like to congratulate our Term 4 Academic Award winners who were presented with their certificates on Wednesday.

A reminder that school starts for all students on Monday 1 February, 2021.  Please stay safe over the holidays and I will see everyone back at MTS healthy and full of energy.

Regards,

Peter Hughes

The Whole school focus theme for this year is: Be Just Like Jesus

Jesus showed us that serving others and humility go hand in hand. As we launch into the fourth and final week before Christmas  we need to think about how we can ‘Be the hands of Jesus by giving to others.’

4th Sunday in Advent Year B

20 December 2020

“You will conceive and bear a son.” 

Something to Think About

When Mary learned that she was going to have a baby, she was afraid and unsure about what to do. But Mary trusted God. When we are afraid and not sure what to do, we can ask Mary to help us just like we can ask our Mums to help us.

The Story

In today’s gospel reading, the angel has a special question for Mary. The angel asks Mary if she would agree to be the mother of Jesus. Even though Mary was confused, she said yes. Mary agreed to be a part of bringing Jesus into our world so that God could be with us.

The Scriptures

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke 1:26-38

God sent the angel Gabriel to the town of Nazareth in Galilee with a message for a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to Joseph from the family of King David.

The angel greeted Mary and said,

"You are truly blessed! The Lord is with you."

Mary was confused by the angel's words and wondered what they meant.

Then the angel told Mary, "Don't be afraid!

God is pleased with you, and you will have a son.

His name will be Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of God Most High.

The Lord God will make him king, as his ancestor David was.

He will rule the people of Israel forever, and his kingdom will never end."

Mary asked the angel, "How can this happen? I am not married!"

The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come down to you, and God's power will come over you. So your child will be called the holy Son of God.

"Your relative Elizabeth is also going to have a son, even though she is old.

No one thought she could ever have a baby, but in three months she will have a son.

Nothing is impossible for God!"

Mary said, "I am the Lord's servant! Let it happen as you have said."

And the angel left her.

The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Reflection

Nothing is impossible for God. Mary wondered about this – how could she become the mother of God? Perhaps there are some things that you feel are impossible but would still like to happen.

Spend a few quiet minutes thinking and praying about this. You can talk to God about anything at all.

Booking to attend Mass @ Holy spirit Parish

Change to Mass Times

From Saturday 12 December, our Mass times will be:

• Saturday 5:00pm
• Sunday 8:00am
• Sunday 9:30am

Please note that we will be continuing with our booking system until the end of the year to ensure numbers are managed at each Mass.

Peace and Best Wishes

Anne Leet Religious.

Education Co-ordinator

May the peace and joy of Christmas be with you today and throughout the New Year.

Facebook link:

https://www.facebook.com/HolySpiritGungahlin/photos/a.533278550035741/3816904811673082/

A huge thank you to everyone who bought a Gingerbread House Kit from the Community Council. We had a fabulous response and we are very keen to continue this as a MTS Christmas tradition!

It was the first time the Community Council has done something like this in a little while and we ran into a few unexpected challenges, such as our delivery date changing. Thank you for your patience and understanding while we worked through these issues. We really appreciated your support.

We were overwhelmed by the number of people who took the time to submit their architectural and engineering masterpieces for our decorating competition.

After many hours of deliberation, channelling our inner Kevin McClouds, we have a ‘Grand Designs’ winner – Oliver Miller from 3 Sapphire. Congratulations Oliver, you are our inaugural MTS Gingerbread House Decorating Competition Winner!