Newman News Term 4 Week 9 2020: From the Leader of Early Childhood

The past two weeks have seen lots of excitement in classrooms over the impending celebration of Christmas. It is lovely to see the children’s focus being centred on the notion of ‘giving’ rather than ‘receiving’. Christmas truly is an opportunity for us to teach children the joy that comes from bringing love and happiness to others.

You may have noticed the installation of the ‘Giving Manger’ in the Marian foyer. This initiative is to promote the true meaning of Christmas amongst our students. Each time a student is caught doing something for someone else, they were given a piece of hay to add to the manger. The hope is that by Christmas, the Giving Manger will be filled with all of these good deeds, ready for baby Jesus to lay upon.

Staff Farewells

We wish both Mrs Pauline Murphy and Mrs Jan Robertson a very fond farewell as both will be retiring at the conclusion of 2020.

Mrs Robertson will enjoy some well-deserved downtime with her husband and no doubt some rounds of golf. Mrs Robertson has been a welcoming face and source of knowledge for staff, families and students at the Marian Campus reception for the past 16 years. Her wealth of knowledge and the support she provides to everyone is going to be sorely missed.

During her 20 years at Newman College, Mrs Murphy has led classes of students in Pre Primary, Kindy and most recently, Pre Kindy. She has been an active member of the Marist Association and is a living example of the Marist characteristics; particularly “Presence” and “In the Way of Mary” which is demonstrated through the nurturing learning environments that she fosters and Christ-centred approach to education. We know that she will thoroughly enjoy this next chapter of her life and will savour her new role as Grandmother in 2021.

We also thank Mrs Susan Kadak (Year 1 Blue teacher), Mrs Avani Sheth (Kindy Red EA) and Mrs Natalie Thompson (Kindy Green EA) for their hard work and dedication to our students, as they leave Newman College to move onto new positions in 2021.

Pre Primary Christmas Nativity

Last Friday we celebrated a beautiful liturgy centred on the Christmas Nativity story. The Pre Primary students led us in song and action through the re-telling of the birth of Jesus. A very big thank you to the Pre Primary teaching team and students for all their hard work in preparing this beautiful and meaningful liturgy for us. We are also grateful to Fr Kaz for leading the liturgy and to Mrs Majstrovich and baby Maisie who took on the role of baby Jesus beautifully.

Swimming Lessons

It was fantastic to witness the enthusiasm and perseverance of our Years 1 and 2 students as they undertook their swimming lessons in the College pool.

From all reports the students had a wonderful time and displayed excellent listening skills and a ‘can-do’ attitude that challenged them to achieve their best.

Families should have received their child’s swimming certificate via email. If you have not received it as yet, please contact the Newman Swim Club via lessons.nchswimming@gmail.com

End of Term Celebration

To celebrate the end of what has at times been a challenging year, we held a ‘Fun Day’ for all Marian students today.

The day commenced with our celebratory Year 2 assembly in the undercover area. The assembly marks the end of our Year 2 students’ time at Marian and was an opportunity to reflect on all the wonderful moments they have shared during their time on the Campus. It was also a chance for us to wish them well as they transition to the Lavalla Campus.

After morning tea, there where several inflatable water slides for the children to enjoy, as well as a water pistol zone, bubble blowing station and some sprinkler fun.

The day finished with a range of Christmas movies being screened across the Campus.

Lost Property

Please check the lost property area for your child’s belongings prior to the end of the school year. Any items remaining at the conclusion of the term will either be donated to charity or disposed of.