Dear Parents and Carers of Good Samaritan,

Week 3 has come upon us very quickly. Each day of remote learning brings a new success along with a new challenge. I began to think about the meaning of the word ‘remote’. As an adjective ‘remote’ can mean operating from a distance or having very little connection to or relationship with.

This got me thinking about our Good Samaritan community and how blessed we are to have teachers who have worked hard to ensure that the learning of our students stays as connected to their school learning experiences as possible. This has occurred through daily videos, zoom sessions and detailed daily learning plans.

Our students have also broken through the idea of being remote. They join into the zoom sessions with a sense of maturity and commitment to their learning. They ask questions to clarify their understanding about what they need to complete and the work they are submitting is of a very pleasing standard. 

Last Friday, Mrs Shelley and I had a meeting with our student leadership team. The aim of the meeting was to come up with ways that they could keep the student community connected. As a result, we have seen videos created that have our school vice captains Evie, Cohen and Finley giving remote learning tips,  the importance of Brain Breaks and an Olympic wrap up that will be included in daily learning plans. Vice captains, Mikayla and Emma have published Olympic learning tasks for each stage across the school.  Vice Captain Noah is working with Cohen on an Olympic Trivia to be shared across the school.

Our school captains, Matisse and Christian created a ‘Breaking News’ Report that detailed the learning across our school during week 2.

Whilst we are engaging in remote learning, our community is striving to ensure that students and families remain accessible and as relevant to one another as possible during this lockdown period.

As principal, I am extremely proud of our student leaders as they are a wonderful example of young people who demonstrate commitment to their school, their peers and to learning.

As we journey together, with Jesus,

Toni Sillis

Principal

This period of remote learning has, no doubt, placed a lot of pressure on parents and families. Research has begun regarding the stressors that parents are feeling during this time…

‘... findings show that parents, as proxy educators, experience heightened levels of mental health distress when their child struggles to adapt to a distance learning pedagogy. Research shows that stressful learning environments tend to stifle students’ academic abilities, making it imperative to address both students’ and parents’ emotional needs throughout this period (Zhang and Sapp, 2008).’

Take some time for yourself this week. Plan something for yourself this weekend; something you can look forward to and pay yourself back for all that you have given this week. Your self care works to give you the energy to continue with the challenges that will continue to face us all as we work through the next few weeks. Remember: every flight attendant says to take the oxygen mask first before you help others.

Last Sunday 25 July was the first World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly following Pope Francis’ announcement earlier this year as a reminder of the important role they play as a link between generations.

The Feast of St Joachim and Ann on July 26 coincides with this important day of recognition. Joachim and Ann were the parents of Mary, Mother of God. Joachim and Ann are therefore known as the grandparents of Jesus. 

Pope Francis tweeted: 

‘The significance of this Day is that every grandfather and every grandmother, every older person, especially those among us who are most alone, might be visited by  an angel!’

‘Dear grandparents, what is our vocation today, at our age? To preserve our roots, to pass on the  faith to the young and to care for the little ones. Let’s never forget this.’

This term we would have celebrated Grandparents Day but unfortunately have been unable to do this. We hope to celebrate later in the year however, this week, we remember all the Grandparents and Great People and what they bring to our lives.

Pope Francis Prays with Grandparents and the Elderly:

Did you know that our Parish has reflection to read and listen to across the week? Fr Bernard and Fr Anthony prepare and publish reflections on the Sunday and weekly Gospels. You can read, or listen, to them by following this

Unfortunately, the high winds last weekend tore the sails over the infants’ playground. They have been removed to be repaired and reinforced in an effort to prevent this from happening again.

This week teachers will be offline on Friday 30 July from 1pm-3pm in order to take their Professional Planning Time. 

Professional Planning Time (PPT) is the provision of time issued to teachers under the Enterprise Agreement 2017 NEW SOUTH WALES & AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY SCHOOLS. This provision is to support teachers in achieving learning outcomes for students, for example by planning, programming and carrying out related administrative duties. Good Samaritan teachers take this time as one 2 hour block each week.