Our Lady of Grace Newsletter No images? Click here Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for those who belong to Christ Jesus. TERM 1 WEEK 9 - 1 APRIL 2020 PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGEDear Parents, As we lead into Holy Week next week starting with the celebration of Palm Sunday, I recall a wonderful experience I had over 10 years ago when I was privileged to be studying in the Holy Land during Easter. In a small group we walked the Stations of the Cross following the steps of Jesus in the ancient city of Jerusalem. It was 5.30am in the morning, very cold and there were two other groups praying the Stations of the Cross as well. It was silent as we walked through the very narrow Via del Rosa, every now and then the silence was broken with the sounds of ‘The Our Father’ being sung in three languages – Papuan, French and English. Even though our groups were from three very different cultures we were connected through our faith and prayer. As we walked the scene of this great tragedy and triumph of Jesus’s death and ultimately his resurrection, there was a sense of calm, love and commitment to each other regardless of language, culture and geographical distance. Awe inspiring. There are many opportunities in your home learning to read about, retell and re-experience the story of Holy Week. Our challenge is to enter next week feeling faith, connection, and hope. I’ll share with you a story of my Mum who was recently very sad about not being able to attend Mass. Her faith has been, for nearly 90 years, the foundation of her life. Her solution was to think differently and use the tools at her disposal - she now attends daily Mass all around the world as she uses her iPad for Mass Online - her favourite Masses are from Sante Fe and Boston! She is connecting globally through her faith. Awe inspiring. A great challenge for our OLG community is to stay connected over the next while. A great joy for us is our capacity to do so. We will; · Pray for each other daily at the same time (synchronized prayer!) In these unprecedented times we are being asked to be adaptable, flexible, connected, community minded, creative and calm as we work in ways we’ve never done before, teach our children at home, stay in our homes, reimagine our employment, stay calm, stay centred and grounded as we lead our families in a time of uncertainty. None of us have done this before in this context so we are all ‘pioneers’ of the new normal. So when we look back in two or three years at this moment in time, the way we stay connected and help each other should also be awe inspiring. God Bless, Gabrielle Doyle Merit Award Winners Congratulations to those who received a merit award at last week's assembly. NEW WEBSITE Thanks to some outstanding work our new website is now live! Please jump on and have a look as we continue to build a site that reflects the many wonderful aspects of our school and community. The Home Learning page (below) is the first port of call for parents from the start of Term 2. This page will be updated regularly with your child/s weekly learning timetable, academic grid and the appropriate ACE model for your child/s year group. All home learning will be sent via SeeSaw (Kindy – Year 3) and online via OneNote or Teams (Year 4-6). SEESAW ONLINE SAFETY The ‘ACE Your Day the OLG Way’ learning model is developed so that there are times for device use and times where it is not necessary. Key points are: · At no time should your child be on a device all day for their school work. Many parents have talked to me about the overwhelming amount of time their child spends on their device. This is a great opportunity for families to negotiate times, ground rules and use of devices. Students will be reminded frequently the ‘ACE Your Day the OLG Way’ learning model has equal time for academics, creative work and exercise. Teachers will respond to questions at certain times during the day and will ‘check in’ with children at set times. Our teachers will also be encouraged not to be on screens or devices all day! The ‘esafetycommisioner’ website is outstanding and easy to navigate for parents – there is no reason to not be informed about your power and capacity to help your child negotiate this online world. If you log onto https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents you will find information on topics such as skills and advice, children under 5, COVID-19 Online Safety Kit, how to have that conversation with your child, sexting and sending nudes, cyberbullying etc. SOCIAL MEDIA FEES AND FINANCES We acknowledge the original custodians of this land, the Nyungar people, and show our respect for their ancestors and traditions. Our Lady of Grace School |