Advent
Advent, our season of waiting and preparation for the birth of Christ, commences this Sunday. The passing of the weeks of Advent are traditionally marked with the lighting of five candles in an Advent wreath: one for each Sunday of Advent and one for Christmas day. The first candle is violet and represents hope; the second, also violet, represents peace; the third candle is pink and represents joy; the fourth, violet, represents love; and the final, central, candle is white and represents the light of Christ coming into the world. We will hold a brief prayer service at Monday morning’s assembly and light our first candle, beginning our journey towards Christmas with a prayer for hope:

Christ our Hope,
Shine in our lives with hope and promise. Open our eyes to see you in others. Help us to be people of hope.
We await your coming with gratitude.
Amen 

3JR will be leading the school in an Advent prayer service on Monday morning.


Term Dates
Term 4 this year concludes on Wednesday 15 December and I hope that everyone is looking forward to a peaceful and joy-filled Christmas break. In 2022, all students, K-6 will commence Term 1 on Tuesday 1 February. Term 1 concludes on Friday 8 April.

Reports and Compass
Teachers are all working hard at the moment to finalise student assessment and prepare Semester 2 reports. This year, for the first time, we will not be sending home printed reports; families will, instead, need to access the reports via their child’s Compass profile under the Reports tab. The reports will be published on Monday 13 December, Week 10, and a Compass notification will be sent to confirm that reports can be viewed. If you have not yet activated your parent Compass account, please do so as soon as possible, and contact the school office if you require confirmation of your login details.

Because of the disturbed semester and prolonged period of Remote Learning, not all subject areas and strands are able to be accurately reported. Grades for Religious Education, English, Mathematics, Geography, and some strands of PDHPE and Creative Arts will be included on your child’s report, however.


Daytime Disco
A reminder that we will be holding our Daytime Disco tomorrow for K-4 and on Friday for Years 5 and 6. The 3/4 disco will be held at recess, and K-2 will have theirs at lunch time. Students do not need to wear school uniform on the day of their disco - wear your best dancing clothes (enclosed shoes, though, please), and everyone will be provided with a free icypole to cool down at the end.


Prayers, Please
Mrs Turner has asked me to let the school community know that she is taking a period of extended leave to care for a serious health concern. I ask you to join me in praying for Ev and for her full and speedy recovery.


A Gift for our Kindergarten Students
Dianne Brown, author and Mt Carmel grandparent, has written a picture book called ‘What Do Cows Do’ to raise money and awareness for Motor Neurone Disease, which affected her twin brother.

Dianne has kindly provided a copy of this book for each Kindergarten student to keep.

May God’s peace be in your families,