Dear Parents and Carers

“...greatness of spirit is manifested in simple everyday realities. It involves striving untrammeled for all that is great, better and more beautiful, while at the same time being concerned for the little things, for each day’s responsibilities and commitments.”

- Pope Francis

The late Pope had many gifts. One of those gifts was his extraordinary capacity to speak to people in the midst of their everyday and so-called ‘ordinary’ lives. In addressing people in their course of their daily lives, he had the gift of naming the grace and gift that is the quiet presence of God, admidst the mundane, the average, and sometimes the downright painful experience we might have. The quote above illustrates a common theme of the Pope’s: that our yearning for greatness of spirit is often, paradoxically, to be found in the faithful attention to the small and everyday things. Mother Teresa, in her motto, ‘Do small things with great love,’ captures that understanding beautifully.

Tournament of Minds

Last weekend, four groups of students, made up in different combinations and versions of students from Years 3 – 6, participated in the annual Tournament of Minds competition. This competition sees children solve a problem from a category such as Maths, STEM, English or History, and present the solution in dramatic form. The children are required to work through the problem and come up with the solution themselves, and while adults can facilitate the group working together, an adult cannot provide the answer or solutions. I am very proud of our students. I am also very pleased to say that our Year 6 group got through to the next round. Congratulations to Harper, Chiara, Michael, Bentley, Massimo, Anwesha and Lilah. My deep thanks to Katie Birch, who facilitated and coordinated all four groups.

Fathers’ Day and Other Community Events

On Friday we are having a Fathers’ Day breakfast take place, to celebrate the fathers and father figures in our community. There will be a Fathers’ Day assembly in the school hall, following the 9am morning assembly. At the end of Week 9, on Friday September 19^th, we are holding our Trivia Night in the school hall, which promises to be an exciting night with the opportunity to win many prizes and raise some funds for the school. Both of these events are organised by the Community Council. My thanks to the Council for their great work. Another initiative of the CC is the creation of 2025 Sts Peter and Paul Tea Towels, which will feature every child and staff member, with a self-portrait. Also a fundraiser, these tea-towels are an excellent memento of the year. My thanks to the Community Council and Sarah Walsh, for their great work and coordination.

Have a wonderful week with your families. Congratulations to all Raiders fans!

Best wishes 

Cameron Johns

Principal