From the Principal
Mrs Felicity Grima - Principal
National Walk to School Day - Friday 10 May
Today marks the 25th year of National Walk Safely to School Day, raising awareness around road safety skills. Whilst this day does not directly apply to our students, there are some excellent clear takeaways from this campaign that all families should consider. We encourage you to have intentional conversations with your children, to ensure their safety as pedestrians:
- Always hold your child's hand until they are at least 8 years old. Closely supervise them until they are at least 10 years old.
- Explicitly teach being a safe pedestrian - this includes but is not limited to not 'trusting' the green light, driveways, where to walk when there is not a path, and to 'Stop, look, listen and think' whenever you cross a road
- For our older students, the key message is remove the ear buds or ear phones, as this limits the capacity to listen for danger
John Lambert Assembly
Our Term Two John Lambert assembly was another wonderful opportunity to acknowledge the commitment of our students to the opportunities the College provides. Additionally, it was wonderful to celebrate the achievements of Monet P and Liam D within the Duke of Edinburgh program. During the assembly, we were blessed with performances from the Development Band, and our HSC superstar drummer, Jerome Cruzado. We also heard of the outstanding learning happening in Year Four, where we were encouraged to consider our footprints, literally, in regards to erosion around the campus. Our Latimer Captains also shared their learning in regard to Citizenship, in organising and running the Latimer Charity Day. We are incredibly blessed to offer all of our students such a variety of opportunities.
Dr Justin Coulson - Tuesday 21 May
Tickets are now on sale for our event with Dr Coulson. He will present his workshop on 'Carrots and Sticks' next term. The session will commence at 6pm, in the Lighthouse Theatre. The seminar is suitable for all ages P-12 and this is an open event so please invite your friends and family to take advantage of this amazing opportunity.
Tickets are $21 (including booking fee) and can be purchased on the College website via Trybooking Justin Coulson Bookings.
TheirCare will be providing childcare throughout this event and can be booked by following the link provided, Childcare Bookings for Justin Coulson.
Carrots & Sticks
Better ways to build boundaries with your kids
Punishment and reward are the foundation of discipline for most parents. Parents would prefer not to yell, threaten, use time-out, smack, or generally get the kids in trouble... but what else is there? And when it comes to rewards, they're a pain to administer. All those stickers and gold stars. Plus, why should we have to bribe kids to pick up their mess or be nice to their siblings?
The typical toolkit for parental discipline needs an update. Fortunately, smart science is pointing the way to positive parenting solutions for every parent. Join Dr Justin Coulson for this provocative presentation. You'll discover:
- Why punishment is unhelpful in raising thoughtful and considerate kids
- The reasons time-out needs to stay in the naughty corner and never come out again
- The challenges with praise and why it can hurt children's development and growth
- The most powerful parenting strategies to help guide your children successfully
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Production
Tickets went on sale for the College production of Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Students have been very busy rehearsing for the June shows. Please support them by purchasing tickets to come along. It will be a fantastic show!
Musical Sponsors
Thank you to our Silver Sponsor Ample Air.
There are still opportunities to sponsor the College Musical. Please contact Mrs Rebecca Anderson for more details. [email protected]
Happy Mother's Day
Happy Mother's Day for Sunday 12 May. Thank you to our P&F for once again organising an amazing Mother's Day Stall.
We celebrated on Friday with a Chapel and Open Classrooms. Thank you to all the parents and carers who joined us.
Colour Run
The P&F Colour Run is coming up on 31 May. We want to thank our generous sponsors.
Prayer and Praise
From the Deputy Principal (Primary)
Mrs Melinda Richardson - Deputy Principal (Primary)
During our Staff PD day last Monday, we continued to discuss the challenges our students face within a digital world. A comment raised, has certainly resonated with me, and this week I put it to you - do our children know how to be bored? There is a lot of research around the instant gratification and entertainment that technology provides for our children, as well as the engaging and potentially addictive elements within online gaming. Allowing our children to be bored, can support their development of a range of skills, such as creativity, flexibility and problem solving. It helps them learn how to deal with the frustration of boredom, and develops strategies to regulate their emotions.
Some ways you can continue to help your child is to engage in play online together - know what your child is playing, or interacting with, and ensure they are content and age appropriate, set healthy 'screen time' limits, and observe your child in play whilst online watching for any behaviour changes.
Child Safe Practices: Uniform Labels
We are currently seeing an increase in embroidered labels of student names, on the outside of uniform items. Please note that this poses a significant, potential danger for our children, in revealing private information to potential strangers. Please support us in keeping your child safe, by ensuring name labels are placed on the inside of garments, including hats.
Enrolling now - Pre-Kindergarten 2025
We are in the process of holding enrolment interviews for our Pre-K 2025 class. If you have siblings for this cohort, or know of families that may be interested in exploring enrolment for 2025, I encourage you to start the application process now, to avoid disappointment.
Mothers Day Stall
I have been astounded by the amazing efforts of our P&F team, in providing such a wonderful shopping experience for our students this week. Our students were presented with a wonderful assortment of different gifts, and it certainly made a very tricky choice for some! Our dedicated P&F team ensured that gifts were presented beautifully, and are commended for their interactions in helping our students make their purchases. I extend my greatest thanks!
Thank you also to those who have donated to our stall, in support of the College.
Upcoming Events
Please continue to keep an eye out for a range of events that are quickly approaching for our Primary students. Information has been provided via email, for further details:
- Monday 13 May (Week 3) - Choir Extravaganza, including Quaver & Crotchet Crew - all welcome!
- Wednesday 15 May (Week 3)- Sports Awards at Primary Assembly
- Wednesday 22 May (Week 4) - Book Parade & National Simultaneous Storytime
Mrs Melinda Richardson
Deputy Principal (Primary)
CRU at Primary Chapel
At last week's Primary Chapel, we were honoured to have a guest from CRU share insights on the powerful message of John 6:35. Students were reminded of Jesus' words: "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."
It was an inspiring time of reflection and learning, discovering the everlasting nourishment and fulfillment that can only be found in Christ!
Year 1 Arms of Australia Museum at Emu Plains Excursion
On Wednesday 8th May Year 1 visited the Arms of Australia Museum at Emu Plains. The visit formed part of their studies of History this semester. At the museum they were able to engage in a variety of hands-on interactive activities.
They learnt that washing clothes took all day and had a glimpse of what it was like to scrub the clothes, rinse them and then put them through the ringer (or at least watch their teachers put them through the ringer!). They were able to hold old fashioned irons and learnt that this job was also a whole day one.
They learnt that kitchen chores were also very time consuming as there was no electricity and saw how much effort went into juicing fruit and churning butter.
They were in awe of the rotary phones and typewriters while the pianola had them all mesmerised!
Their experience of school back when the cane was used and having to copy their work onto slates certainly made them appreciate their experience at school today!
We were very blessed that the weather held out for us and the day was filled with lots of excitement and fun running around with hoops, playing quoits and horseshoes and enjoying each other’s company.
Here are some of their comments about the day:
I learnt that you used to have to be respectful at school (JM)
I learned how to churn cream into butter (JF)
I learned how they used to make juice using apples. It was very hard to turn the handle but the more you turned the handle the more juice came out. The man caught the juice in a little bowl. (SM)
I learnt how to wash in the olden days (TG)
What I liked about the museum was the throwing game. (IJ)
At the museum I learned how to wash clothes in the olden days (OG)
At the museum I learnt that they had typewriters in the olden days. (JT)
Senuka, “We got to spin machines and we got to wash clothes. We got to go on a horse and carriage and we used a type writer. We got to play with what old toys”.
Myah, “The washing was cool. I love it! We did a bit ourselves and it was so cool”.
Madeline, “There was a piano that you put a think with holes in the top of and it worked with no hands. It was so cool!”.
Upcoming Event - Choir Extravaganza
Date: Monday, 13 May
Time: 6:30pm
Cost: FREE
Location: Penrith Anglican College, Lighthouse Theatre
Experience the our three choirs perform individually before joining forces for a mesmerizing finale. This event is open to everyone, so bring your friends and family for a night filled with beautiful music and wonderful memories. See you there!
Library
Upcoming Event - Book Parade 2024
Who will make a special guest appearance at our Book Parade this year?
Mary Poppins? Peter Pan? The Bad Guys? Captain Underpants? Harry Potter? Matilda? The Cat in the Hat? Gangsta Granny?
We can’t wait to see which favourite book characters will join our 2024 Parade on Wednesday 22 May, as our Primary students share their love of books with each other and the entire College.
The Parade will start at 9am and run for approximately 30 minutes in the Primary assembly area, unless wet weather moves us to the Gym. Students will also parade past our Secondary classrooms (weather permitting). Please contact [email protected] for more information.
Secondary School
From the Deputy Principal (Secondary)
Mr Leighton Corr - Deputy Principal (Secondary)
Term 2 has started with a number of exciting activities happening in the Secondary. Sport, Creative Arts, Chess competitions and 2 year groups out on CEP are just a few of the great things we have seen in the first two weeks of the term.
We are seeing students try new things, build relationships with others, push themselves outside their comfort zone and learn through these experiences. These activities are all extra and outside the classroom. This excites me greatly because at Penrith Anglican College, we talk about learning a lot and we are keen to develop learners. But when we mention this we are not talking about students who do well in Maths or can memorize quotes for an essay. When we talk about learning we are talking about young men and women that are well prepared for all aspects of succeeding in the future.
I challenge and encourage our students to remember that they will learn things while walking in the wet on CEP and problem solving friendship issues are learnings that will be memorable and necessary for their future. Well-rounded young men and women who have a strong sense of their character is what we are trying to do and this will be developed both in the classroom and outside the classroom walls at our school.
Mr Leighton Corr
Deputy Principal (Secondary)
Winner of the Clay Gulgong, National K-12 Ceramics Competition
Alex Doyle (2023 Alumni) has been announced as the Winner of the Clay Gulgong, National K-12 Ceramics Competition where her Visual Arts artwork, Interwoven was exhibited as part of the Clay Gulgong, week long convention! Clay Gulgong is an international biennial event that showcases innovation and the very best contemporary ceramics practice.
Congratulations to Alex and her wonderful submission!
Sports
NWSRC Draw
North-West Schools Rugby Competition (NWSRC)
Bill Turner Cup Boys Football
We are thrilled to share that Penrith Anglican College's Bill Turner Cup Boys Football team secured a solid victory against St. Paul’s Grammar School in Round 2 this afternoon! Despite the pouring rain, our team displayed exceptional skill and teamwork, emerging triumphant with a 3-1 win. A testament to their dedication and resilience. Congratulations, team!
