Welcome to our final Newsletter for Term 3. I am sure that you would agree that our Cultural Celebration last Wednesday night was a wonderful community celebration. A big thank you to all of those who worked hard to make sure that we could come along and enjoy the evening together. There were many families who expressed their appreciation and enjoyment on the night. The students did a wonderful job of presenting and performing on the night. I always enjoy seeing our students shine in different ways and it was great to see how our diversity brings so much strength to this community. Thank you to all of the staff who gave of their time, creativity and energy to make the night such a success.

Our Year 5 students ran their businesses this week during lunch time. This was a wonderful expression of their learning with staff and students commenting on the importance of seeing our students leading and working together. As we head in to the fourth term, I would like to thank you for your support this year. We have a wonderful community here at Bethany and I am constantly thanking God for you. I also pray that you would experience His strength and His peace in your lives. 

Our desire is to see your children discover who they are and find meaningful ways to contribute to the world through understanding their identity and purpose. This is a lifelong process and we want to help each child on that journey. I would encourage you to continue to listen and encourage your children in finding their passions, interests and to develop new skills. Congratulations goes to one of our Bethany graduates, Ethan Cox, who is playing for our National Under 16’s soccer team, he is a real example of someone who has found his passion and is pursuing it. Experience is the best teacher, so in the school holidays, why not try something new or make time to create something together.

I would like to remind you that children are not supervised in the yard before 8am or after 3:30pm. We have noticed a growing number of children arriving early which creates an unsafe environment for them in the mornings. We would ask that you plan your mornings and afternoons taking this into account. OSHC is available from 6:30am until 6pm for your convenience. If you require support in the school holidays, OSHC is also open each day.

Next week our Year 2 and Year 3 classes have daily swimming lessons. Please return all forms and ask your class teacher any questions that you have. Parent teacher interviews have begun and continue next week. Please make sure that you book in through the online booking system if you have not done so. This interview time is a time to check in and to celebrate the learning journey of your child. If you require a longer conversation, please book in a different time with your class teacher.

Our final term is always quite busy and I would encourage you to continue to be vigilant with regular bed times and healthy eating. We begin our term with a visit from a small group of teachers from Hope Village School in Indonesia. They are visiting to experience our learning community for themselves. Feel free to say hello and welcome these special visitors. They will be hosted by Base Church and staff from our school. We will also have two visitors from Belgrave Heights Christian School in Victoria. They are on a similar journey to us and work with us in Indonesia. It will be awesome to share our school and to learn from these colleagues too.

I pray that you have a refreshing weekend.

God bless,

Wendy Matear