Term 4 Week 4 of 11
Friday, 25th October 2024
Message From the Principal
2025 Planning & Dates for the Diary
Thank you to those families who have emailed me about your child’s learning and social needs. This assists us in the placement of your child into classrooms for 2025. Please note that we may not be able to provide you with exactly what you want, but we do try to do our best given the many and diverse factors that go into making up a class. Please ensure that all emails (principal@rskingspark.catholic.edu.au) are titled with “Confidential – 2025 Class Placement” and are sent by Monday 4th November 3.30pm.
2025 DatesThursday January 30 -First Day of School Year 1-6
● Monday February 3- First Day for Prep
● Thursday February 13 - School Finishes At 12 PM- Parent Teacher Interviews from 12.30-8pm
● Monday February 24- School Closure Day Staff Professional Learning
● Friday April 4 -Last Day of Term 1
● Monday April 21 - First Day of Term 2
● Monday May 19 - School Closure Day Staff Professional Learning
● Friday July 4 -Last Day of Term 2
● Monday July 21 -School Closure Day
● Tuesday July 22 - First Day of Term3
● Wednesday August 6 - School Finishes at 12pm - Parent Teacher Interviews from 12.30-8pm
● Monday August 18- School Closure Day Staff Professional Learning
● Friday September 19 - Last Day of Term 3
● Monday October 6 School Closure Day
● Tuesday October 7 - First Day of Term 3
● Monday November 4 -School Closure - Day before Melbourne Cup Holiday
● Tuesday November 5- Melbourne Cup Holiday
● Tuesday December 16- Last Day of School 3.15pm finish
Deputy Principal: Wellbeing & Community
Swimming Program
Well done to our Prep, Grade 1 & Grade 2 students on completing a very successful Swimming Program. It is always a delight to witness how the students develop over the two weeks of swimming not just in their swimming ability, but also in their personal skills around looking after their property, getting dressed and managing what can be a tiring day.
A huge thank you to Mr Matt Galea for all his work in organising such a successful swimming program and a huge thank you to the staff who attended and supported the students during the swimming program.
Grade 6 Puberty Sessions
Earlier this term our Grade Six students were part of Puberty sessions run by Interrelate. I received the following email from the educator that presented to our students
“I would like to thank you all for the opportunity to work with your Year 6 students this year, to talk about respectful relationships, puberty and reproduction. I REALLY enjoyed working with your teachers and the students. As an Educator it is wonderful to see a school truly living it’s values of respect, resilience and responsibility. Over the three weeks of the program most of the students were engaged with their learning and asked some really important questions. They showed an ability to reflect on their learning, think critically and have some fun in the process. I look forward to seeing you all again next year, helping to empower your students to manage the important physical, social and emotional transitions into the teen years.” Fiona Hart Interrelate Educator
Art and Cultural Show
What an incredible night we had on Wednesday evening for our annual Art and Cultural show! It was wonderful to see the incredible artworks that our students have created throughout the school year. What amazing opportunities our students must create, explore and design - in Art there are no mistakes!
Our two brilliant Art teachers Ms Tosh Kaan and Mrs Emma Lyons have put in an incredible amount of work into not only the planning and teaching of our Art program at Resurrection but also into the preparation and set up of the Art show. The Cultural parade was as always, a highlight of the evening. Thank you to Ms Jody Banks our Performing Arts teacher for her organisation of the parade. Seeing the students proudly representing their culture and heritage is such a highlight and something I will miss dearly about Resurrection Catholic Parish Primary School.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the families who have approached me in the yard, sent emails and who were able to attend my farewell this morning. I'm not normally someone who is lost for words, however, I have been completely floored by the outpouring of thanks and congratulations I have received from our community after the announcement of my Principalship to Mother Teresa, Mt Ridley (Craigieburn).
While I am very excited to start this new journey as Principal, leaving Resurrection is by far the hardest thing I have done professionally to this point. This incredible Parish school community has been my ’work home’ for nearly 14 years. It has been a community that has been so welcoming and a place where I have been able to grow and learn, developing myself initially as a teacher and more recently as a school leader. Resurrection has been a workplace where I have been blessed with many opportunities indeed.
Being appointed as the school Deputy Principal: Wellbeing & Community has meant that I have worked alongside many of our families during times when you have been at your most vulnerable. I am so grateful for trust and partnership in working together to ensure that your children’s needs have been met. For this partnership and collaboration, I am truly grateful.
To our incredible students both past and present. I would like to thank YOU for the lessons I have been taught. Being a teacher means that you are first a learner. I have learnt more from our diverse student community than I ever thought possible. I loved seeing you grow and develop over my time at Resurrection, mind you seeing so many past students driving their younger siblings to school through the car park is always such a shock! I wish you all the best for your future.
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Fr. Gerard and Adrian for their unwavering support and encouragement - I truly appreciate their wisdom and guidance. I would also like to thank Shannon for her partnership as a co Deputy Principal, seeing her grow into the role as a Deputy Principal has been a true highlight of the year!
Finally, the staff at Resurrection are one of a kind! I would like to acknowledge and thank all staff both past and present for the role that they have played in my journey at Resurrection. I can confidently say that our school’s motto, ‘We Care’ is genuinely reflected in the spirit of Christ’s love and compassion through the actions of the Resurrection staff each and every day. This moto of ‘We Care is something I will take with me to Mother Teresa.
I can’t wait to hear and see (from afar) what is next for this extraordinary Parish school.
God Bless,
Deputy Principal: Learning & Organisation
Our School Captains for 2025 are Keiara D & Anthony L!
This exciting news was shared at this week’s assembly! We thank all of the candidates for their efforts and commitment in preparing and delivering their leadership speeches. We are so proud of your efforts and bravery in presenting your speeches and know that all of the candidates will naturally lead and support our newly elected captains.
Today, the Grade 4 and 5 candidates for House Captains delivered their speeches to their houses. The votes will be counted, and the captains will be announced in week 6 on Monday at the whole school assembly.
e ask you to pray for Keiara and Anthony as they prepare to lead at Resurrection in 2025.
Week 5 Update - School Closure and Colour Run!
A reminder that we will have a long weekend with two school closure days on Monday 4th and Tuesday 5th November of Week 5 (next week)!
We will be holding our Colour Run on Friday 8th November after our second break. Please ensure you have read the detailed email sent out earlier this week which will provide you with a good overview of the plans for the afternoon.
Well done to all of those who have continued fundraising since our postponed date last term! A reminder that you are still able to raise funds between now and Friday 8th November!
Thank you and good luck to Mrs Davis!
Today we celebrated Mrs Jess Davis and her truly graceful leadership and service here at Resurrection Catholic Primary School over many years. Her service was highlighted and noted in a beautiful reflection from our children and staff, but it is hard to put into words just how much she has impacted and supported the community, staff and students throughout her time here. The Resurrection community has been so lucky to have had Jess lead, guide and support, and Mother Teresa will be undoubtedly enriched by her presence and leadership. We thank Jess for her bright smile each day (even in the carpark - rain, hail or shine!), endless patience, advice, perseverance, determination and commitment to always do what is best for those in her care. We have been blessed to have Jess and we wish her all the best as she moves on to incredible things as Principal of Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa reminds us to ‘do small things with great love’ and this is exactly what Jess does each and every day (as well as all of the amazing, big and impressive things!) Thank you, Jess, for your mentorship, leadership, love and care! We know you will continue to do great things.
Remembrance Day
Dear Families,
You are warmly invited to attend our Remembrance Day Service, led by our student leaders.
Date: Monday 11th November
Time: Commences 10:15am
Location: Outside the Church, near the fire pit.
Kind regards,
Student Leaders
Art & Cultural Show
SUNDAY GOSPEL
This Sunday’s reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Mark 12:28 - 34
This is the first commandment, and the second is similar to it.
One of the scribes came up to Jesus and put a question to him, ‘Which is the first of all the commandments?’ Jesus replied, ‘This is the first: Listen, Israel, the Lord our God is the one Lord, and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You must love your neighbour as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.’ The scribe said to him, ‘Well spoken, Master; what you have said is true: that he is one and there is no other. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and strength, and to love your neighbour as yourself, this is far more important than any holocaust or sacrifice.’ Jesus, seeing how wisely he had spoken, said, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ And after that no one dared to question him any more.
Gospel Reflection
Generally, in the gospels, the scribes are shown as antagonistic towards Jesus and when we begin this passage we may be expecting a trap being laid by the scribe. In Jewish tradition, a lot of teaching occurs through a question and answer style and often the question is related to a particular teaching from Torah. Here, the scribe approaches Jesus as a teacher, a rabbi, and poses a question just as he would to any other worthy teacher. He asks which of the commandments Jesus regards to be foremost. This could be an opening question to any teacher and one would expect it to be the start of a long conversation. Neither of the commandments Jesus quotes come from the Ten Commandments with which we are most familiar, but, rather, they come from other parts of Torah (the Law). His qualification of the first commandment – to love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength – is a way of capturing the whole person. What Jesus is saying is to love God completely and utterly with your whole person. Then he follows up and adds another commandment – ‘You must love your neighbour as yourself.’ The scribe agrees with Jesus’ teaching and adds that these are far more important than offering sacrifice. This is a pretty controversial statement from a scribe! Sacrifice has been the official form of prayer practised in the Temple for a very long time and he suggests that love of God and love of neighbour are far more important! It is because of this understanding about the priority of love over religious practice – the hallmark of the kingdom of God that Jesus proclaims – that Jesus pronounces the scribe to be ‘not far from the kingdom of God.’
Historical Context – Sacrifice
We know from the Old Testament that sacrifice was an important religious practice dating back to the foundations of Jewish faith. After the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem, sacrifice of birds and animals was practised there as the highest form of worship. With the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE – about the time Mark’s gospel was written – temple worship and sacrifice came to an abrupt end. The entire nature of Judaism changed from a Temple-centred faith to a much more decentralised faith. In this week’s gospel, the gospel writer is projecting the reality of his time back into the scribe’s encounter with Jesus.
Living the Gospel – Love
Jesus reminds us ‘You must love your neighbour as yourself.’ There’s an unspoken, underlying idea here that is absolutely crucial. Before you can love your neighbour, you must first love yourself. To say that you love yourself today can imply a level of boastfulness or ego. However, what is required is a genuine love of self – an acceptance; a respect; a true valuing of self. Only then can we know how to treat others. When we ask ourselves how we would want to be treated it points us towards how we should treat others. What is summed up so simply by Jesus is a very tough ask!
Gospel Focus – First of all
Jesus is asked which commandment is first and he provides two commandments as his answer. However, he doesn’t bundle them together as one overarching commandment – he very distinctly identifies them as first and second. Sometimes we can feel the way to express love for God is through demonstrating our love for other people in charitable or justice-focused actions. However, Jesus makes clear that the first commandment of all is the love of God with all our being – that God is worthy of love in God’s own right. Our love of God may inspire us to action for others but the first step is loving God for who God is.
All Souls Day
All Souls' Day commemorates the faithful departed. It is a day of prayer and remembrance for the souls of those who have died. We will pray for all souls who have departed on 2nd & 3rd November during all Masses. Parishioners will be asked to come forward and place the names of their loved ones who have passed at the foot of the cross.
Remembrance Book
In our Remembrance Book we record the names of loved ones who have died so we can pray for them especially during November. If there is someone whose name you haven't recorded in the book, you are welcome to do so. The Remembrance Book will be brought up during the offertory possession at each weekend Mass, as a gesture of the whole community praying for them.
Student of the Week Awards
Week 4
Prep A
Sophie Duddington & Leesa Walsh
Harrison M - For showing persistence and motivation when making 2D shapes using playdough and matchsticks. Keep up the fantastic work, Harrison!
Prep B
Jacinta Polh
Aleksandr E - For being honest and respectful when communicating with teachers and peers by offering help and using your words to express how you feel.
Prep C
Carla Tirotta
Hayden P - For being a curious and inquisitive learner, always asking questions to learn more about new topics. Keep up the amazing effort, Hayden!
One B
Matt Galea
Sajana K - For being a risk taker by joining in classroom discussions and sharing her knowledge in teacher focus groups.
One C
Thomas Pham
Gloria DK - For being a responsible learner by always focusing on the learning task and ensuring that it is done to the best of your ability. Congratulations Gloria!
Two A
Belinda Collins
Tha Len Z - For being responsible and organised with your belongings during swimming lessons. Keep up the great work Tha Len!!
Two B
Liz Micallef
Sang Sang Z - For being an enthusiastic and responsible learner in all subjects and always following classroom expectations. Keep up the good work!
Two C
Dorothy Hall
Harlow M - For being a resilient learner and trying her best when dividing numbers equally between a variety of groups
Three A
Ella Nowak
Kara F - For being a kind and caring class member and always looking out for her peers. Keep it up Kara!
Three B
Kurt Cuguin
Micaiah I - For being a helpful and caring member of 3B, encouraging and assisting her classmates with their learning. Keep it up Micaiah!
Three C
Joss Coaley
Max H - For showing your prior knowledge when making the connection between Multiplication and Division, well done!
Mercy NTPT - For using your creative talents to present a wonderful poster, expressing the different ways that we can be sustainable!
Four A
Dorcus I - For displaying resilience and confidence when identifying an adjective in a sentence during the daily review in literacy. Keep up the amazing effort Dorcus!
Emma N - For being a thinker when summarising a non-fiction text and using a plan to include specific information to create a structured paragraph. Well done Emma!
Four B
Stella T - For applying her skills to summarise information by note taking to form a well-structured introduction and 1st body paragraph for your information report. Well, done Stella!
Four C
Parker C - For showcasing exceptional resilience in Literacy, reviewing and editing his adverbial phrases multiple times until certain he understood the concept. Well done Parker!
Five A
Lavina Stewart
James K - For showcasing his understanding of the gospels Matthew and Luke by comparing the similarities and differences within their Nativity stories. Well done James!
Five B
Malae Suaesi
Jordan W - For being a reflective learner by recognising and sharing the definition of new vocabulary words. Well done Jordan!
Five C
Rosie Nojdek
Carol M - Amazing contributions to classroom discussions, always sharing your knowledge with others. Thank you!
Six A
Katherine Salloum
Mason B - For being a respectful and responsible member of 6A throughout the year. You have shown great dedication towards class tasks all year and have always shown respect to your peers and teachers.
Six B
Lena Aloi
Anthony L - For being focused during Inquiry as he wrote about his family and their migration story. Well done!
Brandon N - For being brave in class and putting his hand up to contribute to classroom discussions. Your input is highly valued. Well done!
Six C
Jake Moloney
Lexton V - For showcasing his prior knowledge during an Interrelate session to help demonstrate his understanding of complex topics. Well done Lexton.
Japanese:
Yumiko Aiki
Apiok M (5B) - For being an independent learner, showing her responsibility and enthusiasm during Japanese class. Fantastic attitude! Well done Apiok!
Performing Arts:
Jody Banks
Jeremiah M (6C) - For his excellent musicianship, his creativity when working with musical concepts, and for his newly discovered acting talents. Keep up your enthusiasm for Performing Arts, Jeremiah!
Visual Arts:
Emma Lyons-Pell & Tosh Kaan
Louis Q (6A) - For the outstanding effort and resilience shown when weaving his Monet inspired Lily-Pad. In addition to this he used his new found skills to help support his peers. Well done Louis!
S T E M:
Matt Dalton
Sophia T (5A) - For demonstrating outstanding communication skills when presenting her learning to the class. Well done Sophia!
P.E:
Jen Barresi
Simeon V (2A) - For continuously showing respectful, kind, inclusive and enthusiastic behaviour during P.E each week. Excellent effort Simeon!
TERM FOUR DATES
Week 5
Monday - 4/11
Saint Charles Borromeo
School Closure Day
Tuesday - 5/11
Melbourne Cup Day – Public Holiday
Wednesday - 6/11
Grade 5 Interrelate Program (2 of 3)
Semper Dental Van
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Thursday - 7/11
Semper Dental Van
Friday - 8/11
Semper Dental Van
Saturday - 9/11
Sunday - 10/11
32nd Sunday In Ordinary Time
Year 1/2 Sunday Family Mass 10:30am
Week 6
Monday - 11/11
Saint Martin of Tours
Remembrance Day
Exec Team 9.30 – 10.30am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 12/11
Saint Josaphat
Wednesday - 13/11
Grade 5 Interrelate Program (3 of 3)
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Thursday - 14/11
Friday - 15/11
Saint Albert the Great
2025 Prep Transition Session 1
Year Level Mass followed by morning tea: Grade 1/2
Saturday - 16/11
Saint Gertrude
Saint Margaret of Scotland
Sunday - 17/11
33rd Sunday In Ordinary Time
Week 7
Monday - 18/11
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 19/11
Wednesday - 20/11
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Thursday - 21/11
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Friday - 22/11
Saint Cecilia
2025 Prep Transition Session 2
Saturday - 23/11
Sunday - 24/11
Solemnity Of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King Of The Universe
Year 3/4 Sunday Family Mass 10:30am
Week 8
Monday - 25/11
Saint Catherine of Alexandria
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 26/11
Parent Support Group Meetings
Parent Advisory Council 7.00pm – 8.00pm
Wednesday - 27/11
Parent Support Group Meetings
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Thursday - 28/11
Parent Support Group Meetings
Friday - 29/11
2025 Prep Transition Session 3
Year Level Mass followed by morning tea: Grade 3/4
Saturday - 30/11
Saint Andrew
Sunday - 1/12
1st Sunday Of Advent
Week 9
Monday - 2/12
2025 Student Transition Day 1 (Prep – Grade 5’s)
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 3/12
Saint Francis Xavier
Parent Support Group Meetings
Wednesday - 4/12
Saint John Damascene
Staff Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Grade 5 Camp - Sovereign Hill (Ballarat)
Thursday - 5/12
Parent Support Group Meetings
Grade 5 Camp - Sovereign Hill (Ballarat)
Friday - 6/12
Saint Nicholas
2025 Prep Transition Session 4
Grade 5 Camp - Sovereign Hill (Ballarat)
Reports due to leadership
Saturday - 7/12
Saint Ambrose
Sunday - 8/12
2nd Sunday Of Advent
Week 10
Monday - 9/12
The Immaculate Conception Of The Blessed Virgin Mary
2025 Student Transition Day 2 (Prep – Grade 5s)
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Whole School Assembly 2.30pm
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday - 10/12
Our Lady of Loreto
Wednesday - 11/12
Saint Damasus I
Carols By Candlelight 6.00pm - 7.30pm
Report changes completed
Thursday - 12/12
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Friday - 13/12
Grade 6 Big Day Out
2025 Prep Transition Session 5
Saint Lucy
Saturday - 14/12
Saint John of the Cross
Sunday - 15/12
3rd Sunday of Advent
Week 11
Monday - 16/12
Grade 6 Graduation Liturgy & Presentation Night 6.00pm
Reports sent out
Exec Team 9.30 – 11.00am
Team Leaders Meeting 3.30pm - 4:30 pm
Tuesday - 17/12
Whole School Mass 9.00am
End of Year Award Ceremony
Last Day Of Term (3.15pm Finish)
Wednesday - 18/12
School Closure Day - Handover Day
Thursday - 19/12
School Closure Day - End of Year Staff Lunch
Friday - 20/12
School Closure - Time in Lieu Day
Saturday - 21/12
Sunday - 22/12
4th Sunday of Advent
