2025 Newsletter Term 1 Week 10
Letter from the Principal - Brad Toole
Dear Parents and Carers
We have made it to the end of a very busy Term 1. Everyone is exhausted including myself, the staff and students and everyone is ready for a holiday. Enjoy the time over the holidays with your family and friends.
ANZAC Day
ANZAC Day will be on Friday of Week 2 in the upcoming holidays. We will be marching as a school community with other members of the community and the Gulgong RSL sub-branch. We will need to meet together at 10.15am near the library.
Students must be in Full Winter Uniform including tie.
**Please note our first day at school in Term 2 will be Monday 29th April.
Have a great holiday everyone and we look forward to seeing you at ANZAC Day then when school returns on Monday 28th April.
R.E. Matters
The theme for 2025 is…
All Hallows - People of Hope
2025 is a Year of Jubilee!
‘Holy’ means "set apart." Christians set apart an entire week - Holy Week - to recall the events surrounding the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus.
Holy Week begins this Sunday with Palm Sunday and is the last week of Lent, when we follow Jesus from Palm Sunday, the Sunday of the Passion, to his death on Good Friday in preparation for his rising from the dead on Easter Sunday. On Monday the classes followed the story of Holy Week in our Holy Week Liturgy. This year the source for the Stations of the Cross comes from the illustrations by Aboriginal artist Richard Campbell of Jesus’ Journey through the Dreaming – or what is usually referred to as - the Stations of the Cross. The students were very reverent, attentive and able to move through the events of Holy Week in a prayerful and reverent manner. Thankyou to parents and grandparents who were able to join us for this special time.
Special Days in Holy Week.
Palm Sunday: The Sunday before Easter is known as Palm Sunday. It celebrates Jesus' triumphal arrival in Jerusalem for the Jewish festival of Passover.
Holy Thursday: The Last Supper and the betrayal by Judas. During the meal Jesus took bread and wine and shared them with his disciples. The Last Supper was probably a Passover meal – the meal which Jewish people share together to celebrate the time when God delivered Moses and the people from slavery in Egypt.
Good Friday: The arrest, trial, crucifixion, death and burial of Jesus Christ. On Good Friday, Christians remember the day when Jesus was crucified on a cross.
Holy Saturday, the Sabbath on which Jesus rested in the grave.
As we draw closer to Easter we may look back and see just how far we have come in the last six weeks through our Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving
Fifth Week of Lent
The life-changing work of Caritas Australia is only made possible by the unwavering generosity of our supporters and the dedication of our local partners on the ground.
Our partners are the true heroes, working tirelessly on the frontlines every day to transform lives and build brighter, more hopeful futures for their communities.
This term we have been focusing on ‘Unite against poverty’ via Project Compassion. It is now time to return your Project Compassion box that each family received at the beginning of Lent.
This year our classes also came up with fun fundraising ideas to help out Caritas Australia. Thankyou to the Yr 5/6 students for their effort with Cakes for Caritas, K-2 who are holding the Egg Guessing competition and Yr 3/4 who will be ‘filling the bucket’ on Friday with coins donated for mufti day.
So far the school community has raised $310.80. All money raised will be sent to Caritas to help them continue their work in poorer communities around the world. Thank you for your donation.
Easter Mass Times
Gulgong: St John Baptist Church
Good Friday 18th April - Passion of the Lord 3.00pm
Holy Saturday 19th April - 5.00pm
Mudgee - St Mary's Church
Holy Thursday Mass Lord's Supper 17th April - 6.00pm
Good Friday Stations of the Cross - 18th April - 10.00am
Good Friday Passion of the Lord - 3.00pm
Holy Saturday 19th April - 6.00pm
Easter Sunday 20th April - 7.30am & 9.00am
RE BOOKS
This week I was lucky enough to see the wonderful work being done in our student’s Religion workbooks. The understanding, creativity and thoughtfulness in responses was outstanding. Thankyou to the students for sharing your work.
SPORT
Netball Gala Day
Last week the primary girls travelled to Mudgee for the St Matthews Netball Gala Day. It was a fun day combining with our friends from St Michael’s to play netball and make new friends. The teams were very competitive and cooperative throughout the day. It was exciting to see the players skills improve as the day went on. The Yr 3 team was lucky enough to be managed by Mrs Brennan from St Michael’s throughout the day. Thank you to Mrs Buckle, Mrs Kelly and Ms Statham for training and managing the teams. It was great to see so many parents and grandparents come along to watch the girls. We appreciate your support.
Winter Uniform
We will have a two week transition into Winter uniform at the start of next term.
Students need to transition into their Winter uniform including tie by the Monday of Week 3 at the latest. We don’t want students mixing and matching the summer and winter uniforms together. Please contact the office if you have any questions regarding the uniform changeover. The Uniform Shop will be open Tuesday mornings and if you need other times please private message the P&F facebook page.
Uniform Policy - Reminder
As we head into Term 2 I thought I would remind you of our uniform policy.
Boys Winter Uniform - Grey Pants, Light Blue Long Sleeved Shirt, Tie, Grey Socks, Black Shoes or Boots (Whole shoe must be black and no other colours), School Bucket Hat, Maroon Jumper or Navy Jacket.
Girls Winter Uniform - Maroon Pants or Pinafore, White Shirt, Tie, White Socks, Black Shoes, Maroon or White Ribbons, School Bucket Hat, School Bucket Hat, Maroon Jumper or Navy Jacket.
Sports Uniform - School Sports Uniform, White Socks, Sports Shoes, Blue Jumper or Navy Jacket.
All uniform items must be clearly labelled with full name or initials clearly marked on the clothing item.
Hair
Hair should be neat and tidy at all times. Shoulder length hair should be tied back and not in the eyes. Radical/Trendy haircuts such as mullets/ mohawks etc or colours which may cause the student to be the object of ridicule are not permitted. If in doubt the school should be contacted before the child’s hair is cut. Jewellery
Jewellery is not part of the uniform. Students may wear small stud or sleeper earrings only and there may be occasions during sport where these must be removed for safety sake. One bangle or signet ring is permitted. Costume jewellery is not appropriate for wearing at school.
Make-up and Nail Polish are not to be worn at school.
Easter Hat Parade
This Friday we will be holding the hat parade at 9.15am as soon as the bell rings so families are able to watch. Students will head to class, put their things away and come straight out for the Hat Parade. We will be joined by our friends from Happy Days. Children will make their own hats at home and bring them in on the day to wear. We will keep you updated with details as the end of the term draws closer.
P&F Update
The P&F have decided the following events will occur in 2025:
- Tea Towel Fundraiser Early Term 2
- Labels Fundraiser Term 2
- Henry Lawson BBQ - Saturday June 7th
- ‘A Night at the Races’ - Gulgong RSL Sat 20th September
- All Hallows P&F Bazaar - Friday 31st October
- Various raffles Mother’s Day and Father’s Day
The Uniform Shop will be open every Tuesday at 8.30am - 9.15am
Next meeting will be held next Wednesday 9th April at 3.30pm.
Canteen Helpers Required
Please email the school office if you’re able to help in the canteen on a Tuesday or Thursday between 10 - 2.00pm. We will be putting a roster of volunteers together to help Emma in Term 2.
Merit Awards - Week 9 Term 1
Kinder: Ella, Reggie
Year 1:
Year 2: Bella, Bailey
Year 3: Jacob, Kurt
Year 4: Willow, Emma, Reid, Miller
Year 5: Jett, Ivy, Liam
Year 6: Noah W, Noah T, Frank, Ethan
Halos: Jack Bi, Emma, Albert, Zion, Reid, Olivia, Ruby T, Hamish, Georgia, Alex
Student Wellbeing
