“This sovereignty is a spiritual notion: the ancestral tie between the land, or ‘mother nature’, and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, who were born therefrom, remain attached thereto, and must one day return thither to be united with our ancestors.”

Uluru Statement from Heart

Dear Parents and Carers

Welcome back for another school term. I hope and trust that you and your families had an enjoyable and restful two weeks, and found the change of pace and routine to be restorative. Staff and students have returned well and with energy and we are looking forward to another excellent 10 weeks of learning.

This week, we celebrate NAIDOC week. We celebrate with a liturgical reflection on Thursday, some associated class activities throughout the week. On Friday, Fron Garrett-Rumba and I are attending the archdiocesan NAIDOC Mass at St Christopher’s Cathedral. With us will be some of our older Indigenous students. This year’s NAIDOC theme is ‘Heal Country. I began my teaching career in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, in an Aboriginal community called Kururrungku (Walmajarri for Wallaby, the dreaming of the region). It was an indescribably privileged period of my life and I learnt much more than I taught. This week, I remember with particular gratitude the students I taught (four of whom have since passed on), their families and the community that befriended me. There are no words that can adequately convey the gratitude I feel, or the impact my time in the community had on me.

https://www.naidoc.org.au/news/2021-naidoc-week-theme-announced-heal-country

https://ulurustatement.org/the-statement

Rostrum

Next Tuesday, Josie Murrell from 6W is representing Sts Peter and Paul in the South Canberra Rostrum Public Speaking finals. Josie’s speech is called 'A better way'. I wish Josie all the very best and I look forward to attending and hearing her speech on the night.

Cyber Safety Talk

Next week, CE personnel will be visiting the school to give a cyber-safety talk to our Years 5 and 6 students. Such talks are important for the wellbeing of our students and their ongoing awareness of safety issues as they pertain to all matters IT.

Year 6 Leadership Day

Our Year 6 students continue their leadership days with Term 3’s day being Thursday week. The days are invaluable for the students as they continue to develop their resilience, grit and teamwork skills. The students also have a great deal of fun, as they attend the day camp. My thanks to Paul Jenkins and Sarah Kennelly for organising the Leadership Days.

https://bfirm.com.au/

STEM Program – Kindergarten – Year 2

Last Semester, our students in Years 3 – 6 participated in weekly STEM lessons with our Assistant Principal, Sean Rutledge. The program was a great success and culminated in a project display day at the end of Term 2. This Semester, Kindergarten – Year 2 will have weekly lessons with Mr Rutledge, where they will hone their inquiry skills and explore various problems using their knowledge and skills in science and technology. In so doing, they will also develop their capacity to think creatively, when solving real-world problems. It promises to be wonderful opportunity for our students. My thanks to Sean, and all of the K – 2 teachers, for their support our students.

Have a wonderful week.

Best wishes

Cameron Johns

Principal