Dear Parents/Carers and Community Members

“This is my body that is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”  1 Cor. 11:24

Thursday, we begin the Triduum – the three great celebrations of our Catholic Faith.  These three celebrations are the heart of our faith and are the culmination of all our worship throughout the Year.  Thursday, with the celebration of the Lord’s gift of the Holy Eucharist, Friday we enter into the mystery of Jesus’ Crucifixion and Saturday, after the sun goes down, we enter into the glory of his Resurrection.

On Holy Thursday, Jesus offered an example of the perfect humility and service to others that we are called to imitate in our own lives.  He washed the feet of his Apostles so as to teach them and us that His Body and Blood are given so as to enable us to love as he has loved, to be true servants who are called to humility and to provide humble service to others.

In the past week with the devastating floods, many homes, businesses, and lives were impacted across our community.  As individuals, we cannot image how these people are feeling unless we have been impacted directly.  With this devastation, we saw our community come together and be true servants, showing humility and giving service to others as Jesus enabled us and teaches us to do.

I can speak openly about this, as my family’s business was directly impacted with water entering my wife’s business in Pulteney Street.  We were flooded in at home, and could not get into town to try to save stock etc.  My wife put out a message for anyone that could help, shortly afterwards more than 50 people, a lot of people we did not know, turned up and helped my sister move stock to safer ground.  That was truly a humbling experience for my family.  A clear example of humble service of others, and I thank every one of them.

These events have demonstrated what we can achieve when a community comes together with a clear focus of helping others.  There is still a lot to do, but we will get through it as we have shown with previous events over the past few years.  We cannot also forget the support of so many community members and groups, including RFS, SES, Fire Brigade, Army and Valley Industries to just name a few who have come from afar to support our community.

The questions Jesus always wants us to ask ourselves in both good and bad times are:  Do you serve those around you?  Do you humble yourself before others to care for their most basic needs?  Do you show love towards them by your actions?  Are you committed to seeking ways in which you can serve others, showing them, your love and care for them?  This is at the heart of Holy Thursday.  Humble service is a beautiful expression of our own humanity, our intimate union with Jesus and our love, care, and respect for others.

I wish every student, teacher, parent, and carer a very enjoyable, safe and loving Easter and school holiday break.  To the families and community members of the Manning and Great Lakes, impacted by the flooding, you are in our prayers during this time.

God Bless

 Phillip Gibney
Acting Principal

It would be appreciated if parents/guardians would phone the office or send in a written note if their child needs to leave early for appointments etc.  Notes should be handed in at the front office in the morning so a leave note can be issued to students.  If parents/guardians need to notify their child of a change of afternoon arrangements, it is necessary to phone the school prior to 2:20 pm (End of Lunch – Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday) or prior to 2:05 pm (End of Lunch – Thursday Sport) as it is often difficult to locate students if their last lesson is a PE Prac or there has been a room change.  Students cannot be collected from the school during school hours by anyone other than a parent or guardian without phone or written permission.

Lateness to school is recorded as a partial absence and must be explained to the school the same way as other forms of absence.  Arriving Late for school requires a handwritten note from a parent/carer or a phone call from a parent/carer or the absence is recorded as an unexplained partial absence. 

Students are reminded that if they are unwell whilst at school they are to advise their teacher who will then send them to the Front Office.  If necessary, the office staff will contact a parent while the student waits in the Clinic.  Students are not to contact parents on their mobile phones as this leaves teachers and office staff unaware of the situation and is also in breach of the school policy – use of mobile phones.

Mass Times

Forster-Tuncurry Catholic Parish

Mass times at the Holy Name Church - Saturday 5.00 pm & Sunday 8.00 am, 10.00 am and 12 noon. 

Attendance is through registration only - phone 6554 6401 or email forster-tuncurry.parish@mn.catholic.org.au before 3pm Friday.  Please provide name, phone or email and preferred Mass time.  To watch the 8 am Sunday Mass live stream please send us your email address to receive the link.  The Holy Name Church is open from 9 am - 3 pm Monday - Friday for private prayer.  You are strongly encouraged to use the QR code linked to the Service NSW app to check in and out of the church.

IMPORTANT:  please be aware that registration is still required for attendance at any of our weekend Masses and Easter services at the Holy Name Church

Easter Mass Times

Holy Thursday
1 April 2021 – 7 pm

Good Friday
2 April – 10 am and 3 pm

Holy Saturday
3 April – 9 am and 6:30 pm

Easter Sunday
4 April – 8am, 10 am and 12 noon

Registration is required through the Parish Office

Due to current restrictions regarding the number of attendees we can have at Mass, attendance is by registration only.  To register, phone 6554 6401 or email forster-tuncurry.parish@mn.catholic.org.au before Friday close of business.  Please provide name, phone or email and preferred Mass time.

To watch the 8 am Sunday Mass live stream please send us your email address to receive the link. 

The Holy Name Church is open from 9 am- 3 pm Monday - Friday for private prayer.

You are strongly encouraged to use the QR code linked to the Service NSW app to check in and out of the church.

Further updates can be viewed on the Forster-Tuncurry Parish Website:

Taree Catholic Parish

Our Lady of the Rosary Church Taree current Mass times are:

Saturday - 6 pm
Sunday – 9:30 am

Holy Thursday, 1 April 2021

Mass of the Lord’s Supper 7 pm at Taree
Eucharistic Adoration after Mass of the Lord’s Supper until 10 pm

Good Friday, 2 April

10 am Combined Stations of the Cross at Taree with the Anglicans
10 am Stations of the Cross at Wingham
3 pm Commemoration of the Lord’s Passion – Our Lady of the Rosary Church, Taree

Holy Saturday, 3 April

7:00 pm Easter Vigil Mass at Taree

Easter Sunday, 4 April
Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord

7:30 am Wingham Mass
9:30 am Taree Mass

COVID-19 Mass Attendance Regulations:

Please kindly scan the QR code before entering and show the confirmation details to our volunteers at the door.  People who are unable to sign in using QR codes may do it manually.  Our volunteers are willing to assist.

Please do not attend the Mass if you are unwell, displaying COVID-19 symptoms or have been in contact with a COVID-19 affected person.

The Easter Triduum

Holy Thursday:

This week we celebrate Holy Week that is full of drama and emotion. On Holy Thursday we celebrate the wonderful gift of the Eucharistic meal that Jesus gave us and asks us all to ‘do this’ in his memory. Jesus prior to this challenges us with washing the disciple’s feet as a clear meaning of ‘service’ to others.

Good Friday:

Jesus journey to his death is marked by the drama of the body – the physical suffering he endured. Whilst true and important – it was his suffering of the heart that we need to also think about. He was isolated, lonely, and frightened by what he was to face. It was not going to be a pleasant journey. It’s the type of journey that we can face, and are facing at this difficult time – those same emotions. It is profoundly comforting to know Jesus has been there before us.

Humans could take away Jesus’ human life, but could not take away what he came to accomplish: “I have not lost any of those you gave me.” (John 18:9) Nor could they take away the gift of life and inheritance he assured to those who faithfully follow him. The blood and water that flowed from his pierced side is the new covenant that calls us to choose His life.

Easter Sunday:

We’ve come to the pinnacle of our faith – that Jesus suffered, died and rose from the dead. We can only view Jesus’ death on the cross in the shadow of the Resurrection, because his death only makes sense if we see it in the light of God’s overarching love for Jesus expressed in Jesus being brought back to life. Death to life - darkness to light. Jesus is the Light of the World!

The Resurrection of Jesus has several dimensions – firstly it is a physical event. Jesus who was dead is now alive. This is absolutely radical! Secondly the Resurrection of Jesus is a spiritual event. This connects us to the core of our relationship with God. Our lives are permanently overshadowed by this reality. The day is all about our ‘new life’ and we hopefully desire to live that newness.

I pray that you receive the many blessings that this week offers and given the challenging times we are experiencing it is a wonderful opportunity to seek God’s consolation and strength to keep us in the Light of Jesus.

Deacon Vince

Back in Week 6, I mentioned in the newsletter that the Japanese students were playing games so they could have fun exploring the language and that they were engaging in a process called ‘Cold Character Reading’ (CCR).  While there is quite a lot to CCR, it is the theory that students can get to the point where they can read and understand an entire story in Japanese without ever having been taught a Japanese symbol.  That means no instruction, drilling, practice, revision, flashcards, or mnemonics for any of the Hiragana (and in some cases Katakana and Kanji).  We HAVE been doing things though, constructing six original stories in Japanese this term, most with differentiated versions, totalling over 2576 Japanese symbols!  (For reference, the longest text an HSC student has to write is only 400 symbols).

It is a fascinating notion that the brain can learn a language without “study”, but it shouldn’t be so hard to believe considering most of us have done this with our first language already.  Now that we are at the end of the term though, it is finally time to see how the students went.

For their assessment, students had to upload a video of themselves reading and translating a Japanese story (with no notes) in a program called Flipgrid.  Which story they had to read was completely up to them though.  Interestingly, when given the choice between an easy or difficult reading, some students chose the more challenging reading, even though it was worth the same.

(Kaeden Gonzalez of Year 8 was one student who attempted one of the most difficult readings, having to read AND translate 479 Japanese words in 5 minutes).

Here are some extracts from one of our stories called Carrot Crazy which we did in Week 5 – it contained three differentiated versions, a ‘surface’, ‘deep’ and ‘beyond’.  Some of the main differences between the readings were their length, grammatical complexity and the addition of Katakana and Kanji.

Surface Version

Deep Version

Beyond Version (only 1 of 4 paragraphs!)

Whilst we are by no means done with our Hiragana learning, we are well on our way.  Following on from this, after about six months of learning, some students will be about to write around 50% of the things they can read, without any drills or instruction - so, see you towards the end of Term 2 with another update.

Mr Richard Petrucci
Language Teacher

Careers Corner

This week (Thursday, 1 April) all of the Year 12 students should have received an email from UAC (The Universities Admissions Centre) with a PIN and login information on how to access and register.  This is the main pathway into university from school.  If any student did not receive this email, then it is important that they contact me so that I can help with access.  Obviously, if a student is definitely NOT interested in a university pathway, they do not need to register.  It costs $70 to register before 30 September and $200 to register after this date.  There is quite a bit of time to decide on preferences etc. 

UAC PIN and Applying

Students must use their Year 12 student number (NESA Number) and UAC PIN to apply so that they can be identified as a Year 12 student.  If students don’t use their student number when applying, they will not appear on the school’s data spreadsheet available on “School Hub”. 

Each student can put down five preferences.  It is worth noting that not all university courses are available at this stage and more will become available as the year progresses.

If any students did not get an email, they can contact UAC in one of the following ways:

UAC Contact Numbers

Our call centre is fully operational, and our friendly team is standing by to take calls Monday to Friday 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.  Livechat and email through our website also continue to be available.

From a landline:  1300 275 822
From a mobile:  (02) 9752 0200

If students are still having difficulty, then please contact me preferably via email so that I can assist.

It is imperative that ALL STUDENTS have access to their NESA information and records.  This is where they can access their HSC timetables etc.

All Year 12 students have been emailed with relevant information regarding UAC.  The information has also been placed in the Careers OneNote and the Careers section of the school website which they all have access to.

Students in Year 12 who might be considering careers in medicine or dentistry post school need to register for the “UCAT” (University Clinical Aptitude Test ANZ).

Important UCAT ANZ 2021 Dates

Candidates taking the UCAT ANZ in 2021 for entry to universities in Australia and New Zealand in 2022 should note these key dates (deadline times are in AEST - Australian Eastern Standard Time): 

Please log on to the UCAT website for specific information.  There are free practice tests on this website to assist with preparation.

Newcastle University Open Day

I have been contacted by Newcastle University regarding an Open Day for our students to be held early June (Tuesday, 8 June).  The details are being finalised and I will email information as soon as I receive confirmation of dates and times from University of Newcastle.  By the time this newsletter is published I will have emailed Year 12 students to get an idea of numbers.

Early Entry for Year 12

The University of New England (UNE) and the Australian National University (ANU) are both open for Year 12 students to apply for Early Entry without going through UAC.  If you are interested, please go to the relevant university’s website and apply.  If you would like some assistance, please email me.

Resumes

I would also like to remind the Year 12 students to keep working on their resumes and to make an appointment to have a meeting with me.  Students can email me or write their names in a white space on the Timetable attached to my office door, and we can organise a time to do this.  To date I have had several meetings with students.  I am more than happy to talk to any student who would like some help with a resume or anything else relating to Careers.

Apprenticeships, Traineeships, Job Vacancies, University Information and Open Days, TAFE Information and Scholarships

As information comes to hand, I will email the relevant students and I will also be putting all information in the Careers section of the School Website and in their Careers OneNote.  This will relate to apprenticeships, traineeships, job vacancies, university information and open days, TAFE information and scholarships.  There is a tab in the Careers section titled Job Jump which has a great deal of up-to-date information.  All the students in Years 10, 11 and 12 have, or will have, access to this.

Work Experience

Please do not forget that if you are interested in doing Work Experience, you need to come and see me to collect the paperwork.  Year 11 and Year 12 can do this at any time provided it does not clash with exams etc. Years 9 and 10 have to complete this during school terms.

Karen McCann
Careers/VET Adviser

NSWCCC Swimming Championships

Congratulation to Harrison Tancred, Hannah Carmichael and Emily Rowell for their participation in the NSWCCC Swimming Championships.

Emily Rowell, Harrison Tancred & Hannah Carmichael

Gold, silver and bronze medals for Harrison, bronze for Hannah and a well-deserved 10^th for Emily in the 100m free.  This was a very strong competition.

Harrison and Hannah have progressed onto the next level – NSW All Schools Swimming Championships to be held on 28 May at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre

Harrison Tancred & Hannah Carmichael

Laurent Gonfond
Representative Sports Coordinator

Mathematics Workshop provides the opportunity for every student to obtain assistance and support in improving their understanding of Mathematics.  In the lead up to topic tests, assignments and general homework, a number of Mathematics Teachers are available each week.  There is no need to stay the whole of lunch, come and go as you see fit.  We mark a roll for parents and you may eat your lunch during your time in Room 10.

WHEN IS IT ON?  Wednesday lunchtime
WHERE?   Room 10
Bring your lunch!

We hope to see you there!

Mr Mark Fletcher
Mathematics Coordinator

Term 2 2021