Dear Parents and Carers,

Thank you for a great, although very different Term 3. Despite what is happening in the outside world we have hopefully managed to keep school life as normal as possible for our students. Everyone has been working hard and has earned a well-deserved rest.

Kindergarten to Year Two Swimming Program, Year 4 and Year 5 and 6 Camp
Sadly, we have made the decision to cancel our Kinder, Year 1 and Year 2 swimming program for next term. We have also had to make the unfortunate decision to cancel both our Year 4 Overnight Camp and our Year 5 and 6 Camp. These decisions were made in consultation with Catholic Education and in line with the current COVID-19 Roadmap.

Attached is a link to the roadmap. COVID_19_Roadmap

We are very aware that the two school camps are a highlight of the school year for our students and understand they will be disappointed. With this in mind teachers are busy organising other activities for the students to participate in that do not involve travelling interstate or staying overnight. At the beginning of next term teachers of those grades will send home more information about these activities.

Parents and Carers will be refunded any money paid toward swimming shortly. At this stage no parents have been charged for the school camps.

Recharge, Reflect, Reset, Restart
We all know the three Rs of school, but what about the four Rs of the holidays? My hope is that everyone in our community experiences a nourishing break over the holiday period and have lots of opportunities to Recharge, Reflect, Reset and Restart! We look forward to having everyone return to us safe, happy and healthy next term.

God Bless.

Rachel Smith
Principal

Mindfulness and Fun Day
This Friday our students will participate in mindfulness and fun activities run by our Year 5 and Year 6 leaders. These activities will take place after Recess. Please note students need to wear old clothes on Friday, as weather permitting, the students will participate in a mini colour run.

St Benedict's Front Garden Name Competition
Don't forget entries to name our front garden close this Friday 25th September. All ideas need to be sent to rachel.smith1@cg.catholic.edu.au

School Uniform
A reminder that Summer Uniform commences in Term 4, so please check the wardrobe and visit the Clothing Pool and Savvy if any items are needed. We will have the usual transition period early in Term 4 to cater for the unpredictable weather.

Leaving St Benedict’s
If you anticipate that your child will leave St Benedict’s at the end of this year, could you please notify the Front Office where they a heading to. We need to begin planning for staffing and class configurations for 2021. Naturally Year 6 parents need not respond to this request.

Holiday Random Acts of Kindness

There are many ways that you can get the whole family involved in helping others without expecting anything in return.

• Cleaning-out and donating toys and clothing.
  
• Writing a caring note for someone.
• Making little prayer cards for others.
• Cutting flowers from the garden and dropping them off at a hospital or aged care facility.
• Making wildlife water stations for the upcoming warmer months.
• Use chalk to write messages of hope on a footpath.
• Make a bird feeder.
• Make baked treats for a friend.
• Make handmade bookmarks to donate to the public library.
• Put on safety gloves and help clean up your local park with an adult.

 Below are some more ways that you can help our local and school community too!

Mini Vinnies Hygiene Donation Station
The St Vincent de Paul Night Patrol are in need of mini toiletries (hotel size is perfect) to re-stock their hygiene packs to be distributed to the people who approach the van. We invite all families to make regular donations to the Mini Vinnies Hygiene Donation Station in the Front Office.  This is one way our school community can help teach our children about human dignity and how we need to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to look after their body.

Items that can be donated are:

• Shampoo/conditioner
• Moisturisers
  
• Combs/hairbrushes
• Sunscreen
• Tissue packs
• Feminine hygiene products
• Soap/body wash
• Toothbrushes/toothpaste/mouthwash
• Mouth wash
• Lip balm
• Deodorant
• Hand sanitiser/masks

Please help collect these items over the holidays!

Community Meals Program: HELP NEEDED!

The Community Meals Program freezer is one way we can assist families who are experiencing hardship. We are seeking donations of frozen meals (homemade or store bought), frozen food and non-perishable food donations. If making homemade meals, please ensure that they are in a

disposable container clearly labelled with the date made and ingredients. All donations can be brought to the Front Office after the holidays. If your family requires temporary meal assistance, you can speak in confidence to any of our staff members.

Thank so much to those who have made donations to this service. Your support is greatly appreciated!

CYBERBULLYING

If it's unacceptable offline then it’s unacceptable online.
Think! It’s important to talk to your child about how they behave online. If they choose to use technology to call somebody names or spread hurtful rumours then they are involved in online bullying.

Talk to your child, ask them how they would feel if the same was said or done to them? What are your children saying online? It can be very easy online for children to behave in a way that they wouldn’t if they were face to face with each other. Talk to your children about how they are speaking to others online. Explain to them what to do if somebody is mean to them online, how should they respond (don’t respond, ignore them!), how to use reporting tools and to tell a trusted adult.

I think my child is being bullied
Your child may not tell you if they are experiencing bullying behaviour online because of a fear it might make things worse for them or they may lose access to their devices and the internet. 

Signs to watch for

• being upset after using the internet or their mobile phone
• changes in personality, such as becoming more withdrawn, anxious, sad or angry 
• appearing more lonely or distressed 
• unexpected changes in friendship groups 
• a decline in their school work 
• changes in their sleep patterns 
• avoidance of school or clubs 
• a decline in their physical health 
• becoming secretive about their online activities and mobile phone use

For support and further information on what you can do in this case, see the resources available at https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/big-issues/cyberbullying

YOU TUBE
You should be 13+ to use YouTube. Lots of inappropriate content can be found on YouTube and it relies heavily on users flagging content that violates the terms and conditions of their service.

What can you do to make it safer for your children?

• Turn on Restricted mode – this mode restricts the availability of mature content.
• Sit with your child and see what they are watching.
• Ensure your child knows how to report content.
• Make sure your child understands that they can talk to you if they see anything upsetting online.

YouTube Kids is also available with the option to select the shows you prefer your child to watch, however inappropriate content has also been found on here too. Services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime are a great alternative containing lots of children’s programmes.

We have tried to keep as many of our usual school events as possible. Please understand that in the current environment these events may be cancelled or the style in which they are held may change.         

25 Sep Mindfulness  and Student Fun Day
25 Sep Last day of Term 3
12 Oct First Day Term 4 (Summer Uniform)

The following note was sent home this week.

PG Rated Movie Permission Note - Year 1/2

PG Movie Permission Inside Out Year 1/2

Please remember to check the Schoolzine App (SZapp) for all the latest school information.  You are able to register via either:

Google Play - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pidigi.schoolzine&hl=en_AU

BOOK WEEK CELEBRATIONS
Book Week will be celebrated on Wednesday, 21st October (Week 2).  It will be a little different this year, but will still be a celebration of books and reading.

  

St Benedict's School Cookbook
The Harmony Day Cookbook’s publication is underway, and we would love more recipes from your cultural heritage. Also, please include your full name on the recipe, and if you have already entered a recipe please put your name down on the clipboard located in the front office. We would love it if we could credit you and your family in the cookbook as you have been a huge part of sharing your culture with our community. If you do decide to add recipes, the due date is Tuesday, 29th of September, 2020. We are very excited to be sharing all of these recipes with our school community. 

Commonwealth Student Banking is Wednesday.  Please ensure your bank book and money are sent to the Front Office via the class notebag.

Happy birthday to the following children who celebrate their special day this week: Claire D, Hamish M and Rose G.

Happy birhtday to the following students who celebrate their birthday during the holidays: Olivia B, Miya H, Brigid N, Thisagari R, Mackenzie J and Himiona T.

Congratulations to the following students who have received the Ways of Being Award for 'Be Respectful' for term 3.

Kinder:        Roseleen K,  Ava K,  Reuben W and Jack K

Year 1/2B:  Alishia W, Lucy L, Zachary H and Nicolas C

Year 1/2G:  Lucy W, Mitchell S, Vincentia B and Eli A

Year 3/4B:  Trinity M,  Rocky-James B, Mia T and                             Rafael VK

Year 3/4G:  Finn M, Claire L, Raphael D and Celeste M

Year 5/6B:  Ciru N, Finn W, Adam AM and Gabriella S

Year 5/6G:  Petar B, Niora P, Michael T and Emily S

There were no Growth Mind Set Awards this week due to the Ways of Being Awards.

St Benedict's Front Garden
The St Benedict's P & F are embarking on an exciting new project for the school!

Click on the link below to find out more about this exciting new initiative.

St Benedict's Front Garden

The lost property box was emptied again this week and uniforms were either returned to students if named or washed and given to the clothing pool for resale.  Thank you to all the families that have kindly donated uniforms to the clothing pool.  

Each morning when you drop your child or children off to school please ask them to go and have a look and find any of their missing items.

Please check your child/ren are bringing their uniform home.  If they have accidentally picked up someone elses uniform,  please return it to the front office so it can be returned to the correct child.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our normal school clothing pool processes are not in place. If you need uniform, please email the school office.stbenedicts@cg.catholic.edu.au or contact Mrs McRae with a list of items required.  We will endeavour to fill your order and reply to you as soon as possible.

PLEASE ENSURE YOUR CHILD/REN'S CLOTHING IS LABELLED WITH THEIR NAME.

Summer uniform is to be worn next term.

If you require any summer uniform please email the front  office. office.stbenedicts@cg.catholic.edu.au

St Benedict's Parish
Office Hours: Tuesday to Friday 9am to 12noon
Phone: 62957879
Email: narrabundah@cg.org.au
Web:   www.cg.org.au/narrabundah

Parish Team:
Fr Dan Benedetti MGL
Fr Rembert Fernando MGL
Fr Baiju Thomas MGL
Monica Nulley-Valdes (Parish Secretary)
Anjalie Upasena  (Parish Youth Minister)

Dear St Benedict’s community,

See below our links for booking our Saturday 6pm Mass and Sunday 9am Mass. Please remember that 9am Mass is being streamed live and the 10am live streamed Mass has finished.

These bookings closed at 11.30am this Friday. Please feel free to come if you fail to book as these numbers just give us an indication.

Mass Saturday 26 September https://www.trybooking.com/BLPQG

Mass Sunday 27 September https://www.trybooking.com/BLPQJ

Those who wish to attend the Friday Healing Mass and the Sunday 6.00pm Charismatic Mass still need to contact Carmel Henry on 0409777743 or email  carmelhenry2@gmail.com

Please book for the Weekend Masses by 11:30am this Friday:

Daily Mass from the Archdiocese is available online at https://www.catholicvoice.org.au/mass-online/ .

If you would like to have email updates from St Benedict’s Parish, please contact narrabundah@cg.org.au . Be assured of our prayers for the whole St Benedict’s community at this time. Please keep safe and if anyone would like to contact Father Dan, he is available through the Parish or through the school.

St Benedict, pray for us.

God Bless

Fr Dan Benedetti MGL PP
Parish Priest
St Benedict's Catholic Community Narrabundah ACT

WODEN VALLEY YOUTH CHOIR
Woden Valley Youth Choir has provided a music education to hundreds of students from ACT and surrounding region for over 50 years. WVYC offers a dynamic choral programme for young people aged 8 to 25 and we are proud to provide so many positive benefits to our members: the value of learning to sing with confidence, positive self-esteem, and performance skills, which will hold them in good stead for the rest of their lives. WVYC is a not-for-profit community choir with a strong music education programme. We don’t just sing – we become musicians.

AUDITIONS
Auditions for young people going into year 3 next year through to college age will be held in late September and early October prior to first term 4 rehearsal on Tuesday October 13. We have vacancies in all choirs and are especially keen to audition more young men for our changing and changed voices choir, Centauri Voices. For more information on auditions please go to https://www.wvyc.org.au and download an application form or email info.wvyc@gmail.com or phone 1300 599 655.

All bus and light rail services, including special needs transport, are operating as normal.