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It’s easy to begin Lent with more superficial commitments, such as giving up a favourite food or doing an extra good deed. Some choose to use Lent as a time to get in better physical shape, and others decide to dedicate more time to spiritual reading or good works. All of this is good and useful, however, the three pillars of Lent; prayer, fasting and almsgiving are key. In particular prayer. The cornerstone of our Lenten journey is prayer.
“…But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” (Matthew 6:6)
Prayer is conversation with God. It is essential for fasting and almsgiving because prayer gives us the strength to fast. Pope Francis said, “Lent is a privileged time for prayer.” In prayer, we draw closer in relationship with God. Relationship with God makes us grateful for the blessings we have received.
The great mystics have taught us that there are many levels to prayer. We often begin with the recitation of prayers, such as the beautiful prayer of the rosary. From there we meditate, ponder and reflect deeply upon the mysteries of our Lord and His life. We come to know Him more fully and, little by little, discover that we are no longer just thinking about God, but we are gazing at Him face to face.
As we begin the holy season of Lent, reflect upon your practice of prayer. Commit yourself to the discovery of God in prayer. There is no limit and no end to the depth to which God wants to draw you through prayer. True prayer is never boring. When you discover true prayer, you discover the infinite mystery of God.
| MacKillop | 191 |
| Evans | 187 |
| Samaritan | 173 |
| Junior Female Age champion | Audrey G |
| Junior Male Age Champion | David M |
| Senior Female Age Champion | Georgia F |
| Senior Male Age Champion | Cameron B |
STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE COUNCIL FOR SEMESTER 1
It was with great pleasure that we presented our elected SRC with their badges at last Friday's assembly:
| SRC Chairperson | Natalia |
| Year 6 | Eden |
| Year 5 | Vincent |
| Year 4 | Emerson |
| Year 3 | Zlata |
| Year 2 | Hunter |
| Year 1 | Orlando |
| Kindergarten | Semester 2 only |
Bishop Brian has appointed Fr Victor Vincent as Assistant Priest to Fr Michael Williams, PP, in the Camden Parish. This appointment commences on Tuesday 6 April 2021.
I thank Fr Victor for his ministry to the staff and students of St Brigid's for the last 3 years.
After careful consideration and consultation, Bishop Brian Mascord approved a recommendation from the Director of Schools to increase Primary and Secondary tuition fees by 2% for the 2021 school year. This moderate increase has been applied in line with annual cost increases due to inflation and rises in educational costs. The increase applies to:
- Tuition Fees;
- Primary School SEDSO Building Levy
For more information about Dicoesan School Fees please visit our website where you will find the Diocesan School Fee Management Policy and all relevant forms and procedures related to school fees.
OUR NEW FLAGS AND FLAG POLES
Australia has three official flags: the Australian National Flag, the Australian Aboriginal Flag and the Torres Strait Islander Flag.
The Australian National Flag
The Australian National Flag is blue, white and red. It has three important parts:
- The flag of Great Britain, known as the Union Jack, is in the top left corner. The flag represents our history of British settlement.
- The Commonwealth Star is under the Union Jack. This star has seven points, one point for each of the six states and one for the territories.
- The Southern Cross, on the right, is a group of stars we see in the southern sky.
The Aboriginal Flag
The flag was designed by Harold Joseph Thomas, a Luritja man from Central Australia.
- The black symbolises Aboriginal people.
- The yellow represents the sun, the constant re-newer of life.
- Red depicts the earth and peoples' relationship to the land. It also represents ochre, which is used by Aboriginal people in ceremonies.
The Torres Strait Islander Flag
The flag was designed by the late Bernard Namok from Thursday Island in 1992.
- The colour green is for the land.
- The dharri or deri is a symbol for all Torres Strait Islanders.
- The black represents the people.
- The blue is for the sea.
- The five-pointed star represents the island groups. Used in navigation, the star is also an important symbol for the sea-faring Torres Strait Islander people.
- The colour white of the star represents peace.
PICK UP FROM MONDAY 22 FEBRUARY 2021
Just a reminder that if you need to walk to the school to collect your child/ren we ask that you wait outside the Church on Gipps Street from 2:50pm. It is essential that you observe the social distancing rules in place by the NSW Government.
RESPIRATORY ILLNESS PROCEDURES - GOOGLE FORM
This google form can be found on the St Brigid’s website, as a link in the Brigid Bulletin and by clicking the link in the COMPASS news-feed.
Students and staff who have undergone testing but HAVE NOT been directed to self-isolate can return to school when: they have received a negative test result AND are not displaying symptoms of illness.
Please complete it any day or time of the week, including weekends. The information will automatically come to Ms Uroda and Mrs Sammut.
The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with a Disability (NCCD) takes place every year. The teachers, under the leadership of Mr Boss and Mrs Lavelle, work consistently each year collecting and recording data about student goals and progress to be counted within the collection.
Parent meetings will be held in Week 8 this term and appointment times will be sent out very soon. This is a crucial part of the collaborative process for teachers, parents and students.
UPCOMING EVENTS FOR TERM 1
| 23/2 | P&F AGM and Term 1 meeting | 6:30pm |
| 23/2 | Trash Free Tuesday begins | All day |
| 5/3 | Clean Up Schools Day | All day |
| 17/3 | Year 5 and 6 liturgy with Fr Bernard | 9:30am |
| 19/3 | Project Compassion Fundraiser | All day |
| 19/3 | Special food day | Lunch time |
| 26/3 | Pupil Free Day - Staff retreat | All day |
| 1/4 | Cross Country Carnival | From 9:30am |
| 1/4 | School term ends | 3:10pm |
| 19/4 | Pupil Free day | All day |
| 20/4 | School commences for Term 2 | All day |
2021 SAVE THE DATE
| 2 December | End of year Christmas concert in the playground from 5:30pm |
| 14 December | Year 6 Graduation Mass/ luncheon/prize giving/ringing of bell from 10:00am |
TRASH FREE TUESDAY - AN SRC INITATIVE
Next Tuesday 23 February 2021 (Week 5), we are launching 'TRASH FREE TUESDAY'!
This is an SRC initiative to encourage everyone to bring a waste free lunch box to school and therefore reduce the amount of plastic waste at St Brigid's.
The SRC class representatives will promote this initiative on Friday 19 February at the assembly where they will show the students examples of a waste free lunchbox. Then from next Tuesday at recess the SRC representatives will take a tally of all the students in their class who have brought a waste free lunch box to school. The class with the most waste free lunch boxes will be announced at the following Friday's assembly. The 'most environmentally conscious class' will receive the St Brigid Peace Lily which will live in their classroom to be cared for for a week.
At the end of each term, the class with the most tally points will then receive the 'TRASH FREE TUESDAY Champions Reward which will be a negotiated reward with the winning class. We are very excited to launch this initiative and encourage everyone to bring a waste free, no trash, plastic free lunch and recess to school on Tuesdays and everyday if possible. Please see the link below for some ideas for a waste free lunch box.
St Brigid's Peace Lily
NAPLAN 2021
The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) will be going ahead this year in an online structure. NAPLAN is an annual national assessment for all students in Years 3, 5, 7, and 9. All students in these year levels are expected to participate in tests in reading, writing, language conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. At the classroom level, NAPLAN provides additional information to support teachers’ professional judgement about student progress. It also allows parents to see how their child is progressing in literacy and numeracy against the national standard and compared with their peers throughout Australia. Students in Years 3 and 5 will sit the NAPLAN online tests between May 11-29. Prior to the testing days, teachers will ensure that students are familiar with the test formats and will provide appropriate support and guidance.
NAPLAN tests are constructed to give students an opportunity to demonstrate skills they have learnt over time through the school curriculum, and NAPLAN test days should be treated as just another routine event on the school calendar. The best way you can help your child prepare for NAPLAN is to reassure them that NAPLAN tests are just one part of their school program, and to advise them to simply do the best they can on the day.
If you have any questions about your child's preparation for NAPLAN, please make an appointment through the office to speak with your child's teacher.
LENT
During the season of Lent, we are asked to pray, fast, and give alms. What does this mean for us?
Prayer — for example, Mass attendance; family prayer; a visit to a church or chapel; reading the Bible; making the Stations of the Cross; praying the Rosary.
Self-denial — for example, not eating meat; not eating sweets or dessert; giving up entertainment, especially technology, to spend time with the family; limiting food and drink so as to give to the poor of one’s own country (eg, Project Compassion).
Helping others — for example, special attention to someone who is poor, physically or mentally ill, elderly, lonely, bereaved, depressed, addicted or overburdened.Sacrament of Reconciliation Program (Year 3)
To ensure careful preparation, attendance by the child and an accompanying parent/carer at the following four sessions is essential.
Meeting 2: Reconciliation Programme Session 1: 24th or 25th Feb, 6:30 pm in St John Vianney Co-Cathedral
Meeting 3: Reconciliation Programme Session 2: 3rd or 4th Mar, 6:30 pm in St John Vianney Co-Cathedral
Meeting 4: Reconciliation Programme Session 3: 10th or 11th Mar, 6:30 pm in St John Vianney Co-Cathedral
Meeting 5: Reconciliation Programme Session 4: 17th or 18th Mar, 6:30 pm in St John Vianney Co-Cathedral. Sacrament of Reconciliation to follow upon completion of Meeting 5.
PROJECT COMPASSION 2021
This year's theme for Caritas Australia's Lenten Appeal, Project Compassion, is drawn from the words of St Oscar Romero, "Aspire not to have more, but to be more".
St Brigid's kicked off the fundraising with a profitable pikelet morning tea. Many happy and sticky faces were seen eating pikelets with strawberry jam, butter, icing sugar or just a plain pikelet.
We raised $198.75 for the Project Compassion Appeal.
To serve 420 pikelets takes a team of helpers. Thank you to Mrs Regan, Mrs Mitrevski, Mrs Sammut, Mrs Paton, and the Year 5 students, Cameron, Alexis, Tayah, Sam, Grace, Georgia and Shay.
We would also like to acknowledge the generous donation of $50 worth of pikelets, from Woolworths, Fairy Meadow.
Next Project Compassion Fundraiser - Friday 19 March - More information to come.
REFLECTIONS
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Sunday 21 February 1st week of Lent  |
Today’s readings show us that Lent is a time for us to receive God’s grace. We are not the ones who, through our penance, are meant to accomplish great things. Rather, it is God who acts; it is God who makes the sacrifice; it is God who accomplishes great things for us. Each reading describes a different kind of conflict within which we might find ourselves: a world-wrenching upheaval, such as happens during social discord, war or natural disaster; the struggle between right and wrong, between fidelity and disobedience; the struggle with temptation. In the midst of the conflicts of life, God initiates a covenant with us. God saves the world from the chaos into which it was thrown, makes a covenant with all living things and with the earth, and sets a bow in the heavens as a perpetual reminder of the covenant. Christ dies for sinners, and offers them baptism that will save them from the chaos of their lives. The Spirit drives Jesus into the desert, there to be tested, but to emerge triumphant. His victory is not for him alone, but for all who will heed his words and follow his example. The bow in the sky is a sign of the good news of the covenant; baptism is both the good news of salvation for us and our pledge of fidelity to God; Jesus’ proclamation is that the reign of God is at hand. With the psalmist we praise God for inviting us into this covenant relationship. © Dianne Bergant CSA |
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Sunday 28 February 2nd week of Lent  |
We all have dreams for the future, dreams about success and well-being. We all want a better world for our children and grandchildren. Our religious tradition sets before us aspirations that call for personal transformation. However, sometimes when we follow the inspiration of our most devout aspirations, obstacles are thrown in our path preventing us from following our dreams. Still, God does not call us out of our dreams into a vacuum. If we are asked to relinquish a possible future, it is only to be offered God’s future. Our aspirations may be noble, but the possibilities that God offers will outstrip them in excellence. Abraham was promised an heir; he relinquished his hold on his heir, and he was granted heirs beyond counting. Jesus came as a Rabbi; he allowed himself to be handed over to death, and he was revealed as the beloved Son of God. Those preparing for Baptism might be asked to relinquish the dreams that they previously held in order to embrace the future God has in store for them. We who are already joined to Christ will be asked to recommit ourselves to this transformative experience. Do we have faith, or do we need a glimpse of Christ’s transfiguration in order to believe in his resurrection? Do we have to see and touch Jesus, or are we able to believe because we have heard his message? God’s future in Christ is open to us, but we must accept it in faith, even when we do not fully understand what it means. © Dianne Bergant CSA |
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Congratulations to the following students on receiving their awards during the last fortnight.
| CLASS | JUSTICE AWARD | LEADER OF THE WEEK |
| Kindergarten | Ava Y | Evie W |
| Year 1 | Jonas T | Charlotte F |
| Year 2 | Lachlan C | Millie A |
| Year 3 | Sarah M | Isabella S |
| Year 4 | Philippa L | Rosie S |
| Year 5 | Sophie J-T | Ash A |
| Year 6 | Thomas S | Starrsi D |
| CLASS | LEARNING AWARD | LEADER OF THE WEEK |
| Kindergraten | Maggie M | Blaire W |
| Year 1 | Lucas S | Vita K |
| Year 2 | Ireland C | Rafael S |
| Year 3 | Simon C | Zara H |
| Year 4 | Nicolo M | Eliza P |
| Year 5 | Isobel F | Flynn S |
| Year 6 | Luca D | Matthieu C |
Happy Birthday to the following students.
We hope you have a great birthday!
| Kinder | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
| Sebastian T | Mia W | Sachi B | Joshua S | Rafael M | Tayah A |
| Angelina R | Ruby G | Harper L-D | Alessia S | ||
| Fab M | Emily V | ||||
| Raen G |
PARENTS ON SITE
Parents and carers are allowed on school sites or at off-site school events held during school hours for the following purposes:
- Essential parent and carer meetings with teachers and/or school executives with a scheduled appointment.
- Attending a school administration building or another defined location for the purpose of picking up their child if they are unwell or where they have been asked to arrange for a COVID-19 test after their child has displayed flu-like symptoms while at school.
- Volunteering for canteen and uniform shop duties, or collecting and purchasing uniforms.
- Volunteering in educational support roles for activities essential to the delivery of the curriculum such as reading groups, music, dance and kitchen garden areas. Please note that scheduled programs will be in place and parents and carers must not attend school unless it has been previously arranged.
- Attending parent orientation meetings and ‘meet the teacher’ meetings with school staff for all year/stage groups.
- Parents may attend P&F meetings held after school hours with a COVID-19 Safety Plan. Gatherings are limited to 30 people indoors and 50 people outdoors for schools within Greater Sydney and Wollongong
WHEN A STUDENT OR STAFF MEMBER IS UNWELL WITH FLU-LIKE SYMPTOMS
- Students or staff showing signs of being unwell must be sent home ASAP.
- Schools must maintain an isolation room for persons showing symptoms of COVID-19 while they await collection.
- When the reason for their absence was illness with flu-like symptoms (as outlined by NSW Health) students and staff are required to be free of symptoms AND present a negative COVID-19 test, which must be sighted by the school, before returning to school.
- In circumstances where students have other medical reasons for recurrent symptoms, a letter from the GP is sufficient to negate the requirement for a negative test.
- Students and staff are encouraged to get tested as soon as possible if they display flu-like symptoms.
REQUIREMENTS FOR RETURNING TO SCHOOL AFTER SELF-ISOLATING OR UNDERGOING TESTING
- Students and staff who have undergone testing but HAVE NOT been directed to self-isolate can return to school when they have received a negative test result AND are not displaying symptoms of illness.
- Schools must sight the student or staff member’s negative COVID-19 test result and make a file notation of the date and the staff member who sighted the negative test result.
- Students and staff who have been directed to self-isolate and have undergone testing can return to school when their 14-day isolation period is complete AND they have received a negative test result AND they are not displaying symptoms of illness.
BEGINNING OF YEAR NOTES AND INFORMATION
The information that we need to collect at the beginning of the school year is many and varied. For many of these notes we will be utilising Compass as a way of collecting permission. For notes that are required by a small portion of students the details are below.
STUDENT MEDICATIONS
As per the Catholic Education Office Administration of Medication in Schools Policy, any medication required by the students while they are at school must be kept in the school office. This medication must be accompanied by a Request for School to Administer Medication form.
The form is available at the link below and on the school website.
ASTHMA
If your child suffers from Asthma and requires medication at school, along with the form above, please provide the Asthma Notification form (attached below) and ensure the school office has a current Asthma Plan.
ANAPHYLAXIS
If your child suffers from allergies that could result in an anaphylactic reaction and requires medication at school, along with the form above, please provide the Anaphylaxis Action Plan (attached below).
If the school already has a copy of this plan you only need to provide this form if the form we have is out of date.
ALLERGIES
If your child suffers from allergies that could result in a reaction and requires medication at school, along with the form above, please provide the Allergic Reaction Action Plan (attached below).
If the school already has a copy of this plan you only need to provide this form if the form we have is out of date.
At the beginning of the new school year, we would like to remind parents to check and update any details for your children and yourself in the Compass portal.
School fee balances can be checked via the Parent Portal on Compass.
To do this on your phone:
- Open the Compass App
- Open the menu button in the top left hand corner (3 lines, also commonly refered to as the hamburger)
- DO NOT USE THE SCHOOL FEE OPTION IN THIS MENU
- Find and click 'Open in Browser'
- Click your name in the top right hand corner
- Click billing tab (fourth tab along)
To do this on your computer:
- Open the Compass Portal (httpss://sbgdow-nsw.compass.education/)
- Click your name in the top right hand corner
- Click billing tab (fourth tab along)
STUDENT UNEXPLAINED ABSENCES
A reminder to please logon to your parent portal and provide an explanation for any full day absences for your child/children. You do not need to provide partial absence explanations - this will be done from the school office when the students arrive or depart.
If you have any questions regarding any of this information please contact the school office.
COMMUNICATING WITH STAFF
Parents are asked to contact the school office either via phone or email if you need to contact your child's teacher. Any message or information will be passed on to the teacher straightaway.
Australian Parents Council February 2021 Newsletter
Visit the link below to view the newsletter:
NEWS FROM THE PRESIDENT
The P&F is a team of volunteers that works closely with the school to make the most of school life at St Brigid’s. See the end of this email for a report on P&F activities in 2020.
In 2021, we need your help to continue this important work.The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the St Brigid's Parents & Friends Association is on soon - and all Executive positions will be declared vacant.
There are two ways you can help support the P&F:-
Being on the Executive. This means you will be part of a team that plans and runs the meetings and oversees the finances of the P&F. Executive positions are: President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer. It is possible for two people to share a position.
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Come along to P&F meetings. We need parents and friends to come, engage with the committee, and vote on motions. Without attendees, the P&F can not function.
AGM details
When: Tuesday February 23
Where: St Brigid's school hall
Time: 6:30pm
The Term 1 General Meeting will occur immediately after the AGM.
More information
If you are interested in being part of the Executive Team please contact Kathy Uroda or outgoing President David Macdonald (davidmac26@gmail.com) to find out how you can help support the P&F and school. You will not be under any obligation to take a position, so if you have been thinking about becoming involved and want to find out more please get in touch.
Remember you can submit a joint nomination for a position, e.g. two people can nominate together as “co-secretaries”. Nominations for Executive positions should be submitted to Kathy Uroda prior to the meeting.Cheers,
David Macdonald
Outgoing P&F President
St Brigid’s Gwynneville
ST BRIGID'S CHURCH MASS TIMES
| Saturday | 5:30pm Vigil |
| Sunday | 9:00am |
| Thursday | 9:30am |
PARISH BULLETIN
SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION INFORMATION
PARISH WEBSITE
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HOLY SPIRIT COLLEGE OPEN DAY
The Holy Spirit College Open Day and Evening will take place on Thursday February 25 2021. There are two sessions scheduled for the day.
The morning session begins with an information session in the Casey Ryder Centre at 8:45am - 9:45am followed by a tour of the College from 9:45am - 11am.
The evening session will begin with a tour of the College from 5:30pm - 6:45pm followed by the information session in the Casey Ryder Center at 7pm.
The University of Wollongong invites your students to LITTLE and EARLY LEARNING LABS, an academic and creative arts enrichment holiday program. We are targeting students from Year 1 to 6 who are passionate, self-motivated and curious learners.
Dates: Little Learning Labs (Years 1 and 2): 17th-18th April 2021
Early Learning Labs (Years 3 to 6): 10th-11th April 2021
Venue: University of Wollongong (Wollongong campus only)
Applications close: Wednesday 3rd March 2021
For further information about workshops and the application process please visit our website, or contact the Learning Labs team via email at learning-labs@uow.edu.au or phone on (02) 4221 5557.
We thank you for your continued support of Learning Labs and we hope to share our passion for providing further opportunities to your students in April!
The ISLHD Health Promotion
Cancer Council’s Healthy Lunch Box website
Healthy Back-to-School lunch boxes made easy!
Developed by dietitians, healthylunchbox.com.au is a one-stop shop for everything you need to know about packing a healthy lunch box. It’s a great resource to promote to parents, even the canteen. On the website there is an interactive lunch box builder, a wide range of nut-free recipes, an ‘Inspiration and Ideas’ section that includes healthy snack alternatives and informative blogs to help kick start the year.
Back to School Road Rules Quiz Competition
Transport for NSW in collaboration with Wollongong City Council are running a Back to School Road Rules Quiz Competition from 15 February – 14 March 2021.
The aim of the quiz is to improve parent/guardian awareness of road rules and behaviour in and around school zones, with the ultimate goal to keep children safe.
Parents/guardians who complete the quiz can go in the draw to WIN a $250 fuel gift card or one of 11 $25 fuel gift cards.