One of our goals at PCS is to encourage our students to go out into the world to make a difference. Congratulations to these amazing Year 4 students on having a great heart for Missions:

Alicia ran 3km on the weekend, and with her family, helped to raise over $3,000 for 'Run to Cure Neuroblastoma'

Ethan was so moved by his Class Reader that he is doing his own fundraiser to ‘Help Restore Sight’ through the Fred Hollows Foundation

Elliott generously brought many small gifts to give to the students at Divine Junior School Uganda.

Last week, PCS had four students representing NSW at the National Christian Schools Games. The Games are held every two years (for Under 16 teams), and this year they were held on the Gold Coast. The students competing from PCS were:

Basketball - Jessica Harrison and Ella Edwards

Netball - Isabella Hall

Tennis - Thomas Nelson.

Last Monday we were honoured and proud to have a past graduate of PCS offer to come and speak to our Senior Science students. Dr Martin Stewart (B.Sc maj. Nanotechnology, Biology: Cell Biophysics/ Mechanics), graduated from PCS in 2001 and has travelled the world studying and researching in Dresden Germany, Zurich Switzerland and the United States. He has finally come home to lecture and continue his exciting research at UTS.

The students and staff thoroughly enjoyed his visit, and found his talk very helpful. For some, it confirmed that they wanted to pursue a path to a Science career, and some Year 10 students stayed back to ask questions about what subjects would be helpful to choose.

‘My current research interests are in cell manipulation and analysis, specifically in the areas of intracellular delivery and cell biophysics. Intracellular delivery is a foundational technology for cell engineering applications such as gene and cell-based therapy. Prior to joining UTS in 2018, I completed postdoctoral fellowships with the Swiss National Science Foundation (Switzerland) and the Life Sciences Research Foundation (USA). Grants from the American Australian Association and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT gave me the opportunity to pursue my interest in cell response to membrane-based intracellular delivery methods, such as microfluidic cell squeezing and electroporation. Currently, I am a research Group Leader and Lecturer in the Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences.’ Martin Stewart

Our School Captains attended a School Leaders Reception hosted by the Mayor of Penrith, Councillor Ross Fowler OAM at the Civic Centre on Wednesday 29 May.

Councillor Fowler congratulated the School Leaders from various schools in the Penrith area in which PCS was well represented by Julian Fernandez and Zoe Green.

Lyn Jagger

Parents, family, friends and Elective Music students, interested in higher level performance, are invited to our HSC Performance Night. 

This event is an opportunity to showcase the talents of our Year 12 Music students as they perform two of their HSC pieces.

When:                  Thursday 13 June 2019

For the past few weeks, Junior Missions have focused on acknowledging the efforts of OTHERS in our school. Year 3 and Year 4 students have given up their play time at lunch to type words of encouragement and make cards to recognise people who serve in our school. These students enjoyed taking their cards to give as gifts to a variety of people at our school.

They are grateful for our amazing leaders, like Mr Nevill and Mrs Woods, who make our school a better place; they appreciate the help of our Canteen Ladies who prepare delicious food; Mr Clark and the 'builders and fixers’ who work around our school; patient bus drivers, clever sports teachers, and as the students call them, ‘First Aid Ladies’ who are kind and caring, and many more.

Who do you know that needs a random act of kindness?

On Thursday 23 May, Year 10 and Year 12 students attended the Western Sydney Careers Market Day.  Students interacted and chatted with the stall holders from Universities, TAFEs, Colleges, Trades, ADFA, and more about careers and further education that they can pursue.  The students came away informed and with bags full of information about courses and careers that are of interest to them.

Year 10 students are now well-prepared for their Information Night about subject selection this week, and Year 12 students found it helpful for their applications to Tertiary study which are due over the next few months.

Lyn Jagger Head of Senior School And Year 12 Wellbeing Mentor

Thank you for the opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Katrina Baines, the new Head of Early Childhood. I am so excited about this role at PCS and look forward to working with the youngest members of our school community. I have worked in early childhood for 14 years as a teacher and director in child care.

I have been married to my husband, Stuart, for 16 years and we have three beautiful children. Caleb is in Year 5, Jonah is in Year 2 and Eden is in Prep. We have been so blessed by the support and encouragement that PCS has provided as our children have moved through the years. We are members of Imagine Nations Church where I am a key leader with the 1-3 year olds. For children to know, from infancy, that there is a God who loves them and that He has a purpose for their life, is what drives me to do what I do. It is the purpose God has placed on my life and I am so excited to see it in action on a daily basis.

I am so blessed and honoured to have joined the PCS school community this year. God has opened the doors for me and I am so grateful for the opportunity He has bestowed upon me. The early years are crucial to a child’s development and the quality of experiences in the first five years of life shapes how a child’s brain develops; 90% of a child’s brain is developed by the age of 5. I believe that quality interactions and learning through play are fundamental in developing a child’s ability to succeed in school and life.

Last week, twenty Year 11 and Year 12 students from Studies of Religion visited the Emanuel Synagogue and Jewish Museum to learn more about Judaism.

At the Synagogue, they were able to look at an old Torah scroll worth around $80,000, handwritten in Aramaic with ink on  parchment. They heard about Synagogue services and all the symbols of Judaism from Rabbi Sam.

At the Jewish Museum, Year 12 toured the holocaust section and were affected by the terrible war crimes against European Jews. Their question was “Why didn’t the world do something to stop it?” Year 11 were taken through the religious section and learnt about Shabbat, and the Jewish way of life.

We are so proud of our Alumni and what they’re achieving since they’ve left PCS.

Sarah Morley has just graduated from WSU with a Bachelor of Health Science (Sport and Exercise Science). For a long time she dreamed of becoming a Physiotherapist but didn’t achieve the ATAR needed straight from school. Through a different pathway, Sarah has managed to achieve her goal to study her Masters of Physiotherapy at Sydney University.

Awesome job Sarah and well done!

For those I haven’t met yet, let me introduce myself. My name is Daniel Favretti and I am the Wellbeing Mentor for Year 8, Missions Coordinator for Middle School and Ancient History Teacher.

I began at Penrith Christian School at the beginning of 2018 in a temporary position, which became permanent at the end of the year. I knew from the beginning that God had opened the door to this amazing school, and my prayer was that I would be able to stay, which He has answered in such a beautiful way. I have taught at numerous primary and high schools throughout the Macarthur area, yet arriving at PCS has felt like a homecoming.

I am also newly married, having tied the knot to my beautiful wife Sarah, in May 2018. We met whilst studying a Diploma of Ministry and the rest is history. Sarah is currently studying a Masters of Counselling and Psychotherapy at Western Sydney University. As for me, I studied at the University of Sydney, completing a Bachelor of Education, and a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Ancient History.

Year 1 have been busily writing Procedures in class. The students watched how to make jelly and then wrote a Procedure on it.  They particularly enjoyed the tasting at the end of the day. We also read about how to do leaf rubbings and enjoyed making coin rubbings too.

The students have enjoyed our Science topic ‘Spot the difference.’ They have been learning about the changes that take place with items when they are heated or cooled. We also have been exploring how materials can be manipulated.

So far this term, the students have investigated ice blocks and spaghetti – both cooked and uncooked.  Some interesting spaghetti artworks have been created and the students built some amazing spaghetti towers.

The second article for Throwback Thursdays sheds light on Jake Meney, who started at PCS in Kindergarten, and is now a Zookeeper.

Whilst other kids read Pokémon and played on the Xbox, Jake  was subscribing to Reptile magazines and watching videos on them. He studied reptiles from the age of five, and had many interesting scaly pets. In Year 3, Jake received an award for catching a Redback Spider in the playground and the award stated ‘Considering the safety of others’, but as his Mum said, he probably just wanted it as a pet. Steve Irwin was a major influence on Jake at a young age, and if he was going fancy dress, then he would be dressed as Steve. His goal at school was to become a herpetologist and work with venom.

In high school, Jake took every opportunity to do work experience at the Australian Reptile Park and this led to him getting a job there as a Reptile and Spider Keeper. When Jake had his license, the school called on him to come and help with a brown snake spotted in the Junior School area. He caught it and released it in the wild. Jake currently runs the educational shows at the Australian Reptile Park in the Central Coast as the crocodile handler.

During Term 1, our Enrichment group focus was Art. We had some students from K-Year 4 involved in some special Art classes as well as  Art and Craft activities in the Junior School Library at lunchtimes. 

Our Year 1 and 2 Boost Art students explored the details we see in nature. We used a variety of different art materials to draw flowers in detail, and each student discovered which medium was their favourite. Watercolour pencils were a favourite but charcoal wasn’t!  We then used craft glue and chalk pastels to do an artwork of a flower, focusing on blending different colours together. 

The Years 3 and 4 group looked at perspective and went outside to think about and draw what things would look like to an ant, or a bird.  What would grass look like to a tiny ant? What would the top of a tree look like to a bird looking down? We then drew a city from the point of view of an ant looking up at the tall buildings.

Throughout this year Kindergarten have become informed inquiring investigators.

During Term 1 in our Science unit ‘What’s Alive?’, the students examined how their senses can be used to investigate the world around them to make predictions and hypotheses. In order to understand how their senses can impact their understandings, the students engaged in a variety of activities that had them touch, taste, hear, see and smell a range of items. This helped to highlight how utilising their senses in combination can develop and enhance their investigative skills. Taste was definitely one that the students enjoyed the most, especially the marshmallows.

As Term 2 has begun and Kindy have started working on our next Science unit ‘What’s It Made Of?’, those investigation skills have been really put into practice. They have been exploring the school to determine the vast array of materials that the school is made up of and investigating why certain materials are used in different parts of the school.

We hope all our PCS mums and grandmums had a wonderful Mother's Day this year. Our Mother's Day stalls hopefully provided those of you with children in Preschool to Year 6 with a gift picked out just for you! We know that our students had a great time carefully selecting something special for their mums.

Thank you to everyone who attended our Mother's Day High Tea. We hope you enjoyed the entertainment (courtesy of Prep, Year 1 and Year 3) and were able to catch up with old (and make some new) friends. Jenny Mahoney's talk was an encouragement to all of us - and some attendees were the recipients of some beautiful lucky door prizes! Our aim each year is to bless our mums and grandmums with special food, and an atmosphere of thankfulness for all that you do - so whether you were in attendance or not, thank you!

A HUGE thank you to all the staff and volunteers who worked hard on wrapping gifts for the stall, operating the stall, planning and organising logistics for the High Tea, decorating the room, and preparing the lovely food.

Year 10 students and parents/guardians are invited to our Year 11 Information Night on Tuesday 28 May 2019 (7.00 pm to 9.00 pm). It will be held in the Auditorium and Cafeteria of Penrith Christian School (1 Simeon Road, Orchard Hills). This event is open to both current and prospective students.

The aim of this event is to provide specific details concerning options available for the HSC, including the exciting VET (Vocational Education and Training) courses on offer. The night will also cover other aspects of 'life at PCS' including Missions trips, leadership and scholarships.

Attendees will be given a subject guide and have opportunity to speak with Faculty representatives to find out more detailed information about specific subjects. Staff will also be available to answer any questions you have, over an informal supper.

As the election approaches, while we will have a diverse range of opinions and priorities, we must also consider the protection of our fundamental values and beliefs regarding religious freedoms.

Please CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD a brochure forwarded to us from Christian Schools Australia, on behalf of ValuEd Voices in Christian Education, for your consideration. 

You can also follow ValuEd Voices on Facebook.

This term Year 5 are studying Global Connections in Literacy. To start our unit off we took a little journey to see where some everyday items are made. We had to look up the packaging and then draw a line from Australia to where each item had been made, then we discussed what information our findings gave us. Here are some things it got us thinking about:

‘We only had one item made in Australia.’

Amy-lee Prince

All students from Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 will be undertaking the NAPLAN tests this term.  Students will be completing four online tests in Reading, Writing, Conventions of Language, and Numeracy.  The testing period begins on Tuesday 14 May and concludes on Friday 24 May.

PLEASE CLICK here for brochure for more information.

Mr Steve Grice