Hi everyone and welcome to Week 8. I hope you are well as we head towards the end of this term! Last week we held our first ‘Zero Waste 4 One Day’ initiative. This was such a great experience and something I think we can really build on. Thank you to all the parents and students who did something a little differently and contributed zero waste for one day.

During the process of preparing for the event I learnt that plastic soap pumps contribute so much to land fill and as you know plastics take thousands of years to break down. I thought it would be great to make some bar soaps to give to all families as a way of saying "Thank You!" for the day and to encourage people to think about not purchasing plastic soap pumps in the future. Lisa Lambourne stepped in and offered to turn the idea into reality, engaging our Eco Warriors to make the soap with her. Sincere thanks to Lisa and her team of helpers for providing each of our school families with a tangible example of how to lessen our contribution of waste. Adding to the experience, Lisa and her class also made muesli bars and damper for their lunch. I would like to thank Lisa for all of the effort and extra time she dedicated to enriching the conversation around World Environment Day.

Last week was Catholic Education week, a time when we reflect on, and give thanks for all the wonderful things Catholic schools do to support our children. I love that Catholic schools are so supportive and really go out of their way to make sure all students are supported not only in their learning, but in their wellbeing and faith development. We strive hard to do those things here and we pride ourselves of putting the needs of each individual student at the forefront of our minds and work hard to support the teachers to carry out this important work on a daily basis. As a parent of children in a Catholic school, which is a similar size to ours, I am very happy that they feel known and cared for each day. On Wednesday our Year 6 students joined St Thomas, St Therese, St Rafael’s, St Catherine’s and Mercedes students for a Regional Mass at the Monastery in Urrbrae. This was a great way to come together and share in the lived experience of being in catholic school and, with a shared recess, meeting other students that they may find in high school next year.

Speaking of meeting other students, in week 8 and 9 of this term, our Year 5 and 6 students will commence their Enrichment Program. On these days students can choose a learning experience from our school or St Thomas or St Therese. There are a number of activities to choose from, from cooking to coding. Students will mix with other teachers and students as they travel on a bus to the other schools- not just learning something new, but importantly broadening their networks of friends, some of whom they may go on to high school with, or simply find commonalities with.

On Friday Phil and I met with Jason, the General Manager from Nature Play SA, to discuss our plans for updating our play spaces in the near future. Jason was very excited to hear our vision and believes we will be able to produce a wonderful result. We have plans to meet with an architect shortly before Jason and Nature Play SA will lead a staff meeting, student workshop and parent presentation early next term. This will be very exciting and a wonderful opportunity to have your say about what you would like to see our students engaging in. More information about this process will be coming out shortly.

Take Care,

Jamie