In Terms 2 and 3, Boost students in Years 5 and 6 met regularly on Wednesdays at lunch times to make puppets for the Samaritans Purse Christmas Child shoeboxes.

Three thousand shoeboxes are lovingly packed each year at a local church filled with special things for children who will receive nothing at Christmas. These shoeboxes are then sent to third-world countries, outback Australia, and to remote Aboriginal communities.

One of our wonderful grandparents, Mrs White, gave up her own time every Wednesday to come and help us make these puppets. The students from Years 5 and 6 produced some amazing, creative puppets for these boxes. Some students came once, others came every week!

Penrith Christian School is pleased to host an important seminar for parents on Tuesday 23 October, 2018 (7.00 pm): Generations XYZ - how to navigate the gap, presented by Mark McCrindle.

This night for parents only is open to PCS families and anyone in our local community. CLICK HERE TO BOOK

ABOUT THE SEMINAR:

Our new Penrith Creative Academy has now been running for a term. We are looking forward to expanding even more during Term 4. 

We have a few vacancies in group and individual classes as follows:

K-Year 1 Dance (3.00 pm - 4.00 pm)

Year 2-Year 4 Dance - Style: Lyrical (4.00 pm - 5.00 pm)

The Penrith Creative Academy is excited to announce a new filmmaking and videography course. This opportunity is open to students in Years 9 to 12.

In this course students will enter a two term Introductory program where they will learn in depth the core fundamentals of filmmaking, from storyboarding to filming and editing techniques. Upon completion of the Introductory course, students will be able to enter the Advanced film program where they will learn specific topics and techniques in detail and refine their skills. The Penrith Creative Academy Film course offers students the opportunity to grow their interest and skill in filmmaking and digital media, as well as equip them with skills to produce their own films and media.

Classes will run for 1 hour per week on Tuesdays (3.00 pm - 4.00 pm). Cost is $15/week.

Thank you family, friends and students for your great heart for Missions. I hope parents have been blessed by your child’s desire to do extra jobs at home to earn their ‘Coins for Missions.’

Last year we raised over $2000 to provide bibles and a much needed water tank for our sister school in Uganda Africa –Divine Junior School. This year we set a goal to change their ZERO Technology to THREE computers and printers, in addition to bible education for the teachers of Divine Junior School. At PCS we are blessed to have well over 1000 pieces of technology including computers, laptops, colour printers, apple TV’s, interactive whiteboards, iPads, robots and 3D printers!

Junior school students have been so generous in their giving and the final total will be announced at Chapel on Friday 28 September.

CanTeen supports young people aged 12-25 living with cancer. They may be experiencing cancer themselves or have a close family member (parent or sibling) with cancer.

National Bandanna Day is CanTeen’s annual fundraising and awareness campaign and this year aims to raise $1.3 million. Funds raised help provide counselling services, a 24/7 online community, camps and youth-specific resources as well as specialist medical treatment and support for young cancer patients.

CanTeen is encouraging us to show our support for young people living with cancer on National Bandanna Day by buying a bandanna at school on Friday 26 October, or you can CLICK HERE to make a tax deductible donation to our School’s fundraising page

Our Batemans Bay Missions team had a wonderful time serving with Mrs Cheryl Burton’s church, from Wednesday 12 September to Sunday 16 September, 2018.

We visited Christian lunchtime groups in three public schools and served with three youth groups. We had the chance to serve Batemans Bay Baptist Church with their Mainly Music program, their Sunday church service and even some gardening. We were blessed with some great beach weather and a visit to Mogo Zoo as well!

Thank you for your support and prayers

Within our PCS online eBook library, we have over 1500 titles available to borrow and read on your device.

To check out what we have available, visit pcs.wheelers.co

Students can log in using their school login details and if assistance is required, please ask one of the iCentre staff.

Definition of Sensory Processing: The sensory system takes information from the surrounding environment through touch, smell, sound, vision, taste, movement, and gravity. It processes or interprets these sensations together to make sense of the environment.

We are all aware of the five senses, but there are ‘hidden’ senses that play a big role in how we interact with our environment.

Proprioception: Often called our ‘internal eyes’, proprioception provides us with information about where our body is, how it is connected and what it is doing. The information comes from the act of movement and the messages this sends from our skin receptors and muscles. Information is also detected internally when a person makes a ‘plan’ to move. For example, seeing a cup on the table and planning to pick it up and knowing the right amount of force to use to achieve this.

If your child has outgrown last season’s swimwear, or you would like to purchase PCS branded swimwear for the first time, we are placing a bulk order at the end of Term 3. This will ensure that orders are received in plenty of time for the 2018/19 swim season.

It is not compulsory to wear PCS swimwear, but we encourage any students who are likely to compete at Triathlon/Biathlon, Zone and State (and beyond) events to consider purchasing this swimwear. Usage is not restricted to PCS Representative water sports: students are welcome to wear PCS branded swimwear at non-PCS events such as Open Water swimming, community Triathlons or even for training/practice.

PCS branded swimwear is not restricted to those who participate at Representative level only. All students are welcome to purchase the swimwear for PCS swimming carnivals and extra-curricular events.

As the new librarian, I had no idea of how big Book Day really is at PCS. I had heard stories and seen past photos, so I had an inkling, but that was all. All I can say is WOW!! The enthusiasm that the whole PCS community put into Book Day was amazing. It made my job so much more rewarding knowing that the day was appreciated by so many.

We were treated to many wonderful book character costumes for the annual Book Parade. Our emcees Mrs Gabin and Mrs Garrett entertained the crowd with their witty repartee (how exactly does a pirate pronounce aaarrrgh!!?) and candid interviews with a number of the students. Mrs Brady’s Boost Group performance of ‘Bring a Duck’ was terrific and appreciated by all, including the author Lesley Gibbes, who was in the audience.

As a consequence of our school’s growing numbers, Years 5 and 6 participated in their own book character photo-shoot in the iCentre. Mr Benbrook’s photos told a wonderful story of the love that these students still have for dressing up. Great work!!

Prep is always a hive of busy investigations but this week has seen the children turn into the next generation of fashion designers! This play began when children started using large pieces of fabric we keep in the classroom to make their own dresses, skirts and even designed draped chairs! This initial play sparked ideas of drawing our designs and then making them come to life. A dressmaker’s mannequin borrowed from Senior School became our muse as the children dressed it by draping, sticking, tying and sewing the fabric and ribbons into place.

This experience led children to create their own ‘clothes’ by tracing around their bodies onto the fabric and cutting their pieces out. We then used a combination of sewing with large needles, or securing with ribbon, before adding a splash of colour at the watercolour table.

‘I loved using adult scissors when we cut the fabric.’ – Vanessa

Justin Orchard from Year 12, an Electrotechnology VET student, has received the Schools Industry Partnership Award as an outstanding learner who has consistently been observed and evaluated by SIP members as having:

Demonstrated a clear understanding of the knowledge and theory required from the first occasion on which these were presented and explained

Acquired the relevant and necessary skills to undertake required work quickly and effectively, including the use of the necessary tools and/or equipment

Applied relevant knowledge and theory, using the relevant skills and equipment/tools to successfully and effectively from the first attempt, to complete set tasks

Demonstrated work readiness by positively and proactively seeking to learn what needs to be known and understood, and by developing the skills and use of relevant equipment/tools in order to complete set tasks successfully as quickly and comprehensively as possible.

This term in Biblical Studies K-4 classes completed a unit based on the life story of Paul, which is portrayed in the book of Acts in the Bible. The first lesson outlined Paul’s conversion from being a religious man who was intent on wiping out Christians, to a follower of Jesus committed to spreading the good news of the Gospel. We learnt that Paul was doing what he thought was right, but then God spoke to him and he changed his mind.

One of the things that strikes me about the story of Paul is, what would have happened if Paul had decided not to listen to God, but continued to make his own choices? One of the wonderful things about working with children is that they are usually ‘teachable’. Most children love to learn, yet somewhere along the way as we grow up, we can become ‘stuck in our ways’. Paul’s intentions were good, but he was misguided in his thinking. There is a challenge there for all of us to seek truth and be open to changing our minds, and our actions, as a result.

God led Paul into an adventurous life. He faced many hardships, but was sustained through these knowing he was fulfilling the purpose that God had for him. He also had undeniable impact on the people around him and we are still reading his letters and learning from his wisdom today.

In Term 3, Year 4 are working extremely hard in all Key Learning Areas. They display a great heart for Missions and serving others in a variety of ways. Many students have received their pen licence and others are developing their cursive writing technique in preparation for Middle School.

We have worked solidly on persuasive writing in English and the students recently picked their own topic and wrote a thought-provoking discussion text. Please see some examples below.

Another highlight happened a few weeks ago when Year 4 went on an exciting Geography excursion to the Penrith Lakes Educational Centre. This was as part of our ‘Earth's Environment’ Unit. The students were able to learn about how the environment supports the lives of living things and how we can use places and environments more sustainably. There were lots of hands-on activities such as dip netting, bird spotting, water-testing and examining invertebrates under a microscope.

Year 6 Students from PCS have recently taken an educational tour of the National Capital. Students were given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia’s history, culture, heritage and democracy.

The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the National Capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion, the Australian Government contributes funding of $20 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the excursion.

Below is a report by Zoe Gee and Leah Westcott who went on the Year 6 Canberra Camp:

Parents, please be reminded that students are not to be picked up from the car park adjacent to the Uniform Shop.

For the safety of all children, please either collect your children via Express Pick Up, or park in the top car park and meet your children in the Canteen COLA area.

Following on from our book we studied during Book Week, The Great Rabbit Chase, Kindy Alligators were set a challenge of creating a rabbit hutch using only mini marshmallows and toothpicks. I was certainly impressed with the creativity, problem solving, and persistence that the children displayed.  

Challenging but so much fun!

Miss Jenny Allen

Thank you for all the various ways that you help your children to support missions causes in our School. Our recent fundraising efforts raised $2,766.00 for our farmers.

Let's join together as a school community to make a difference for those most affected by the drought; and, let's pray for continued rain and for God's hope to sustain individuals and communities in rural Australia.

Thank you

At the end of Term 3, Year 6 enjoyed a day at Mr Pickworth’s Farm. The purpose of the day was for the students to get a hands on experience of managing a farm.

The students rotated around different activities that focused on an aspect of God’s Big Story. They made jacaranda people, got messy with compost and potting mix, planted sunflower seats and learnt about respect for others, self and God.

The students enjoyed the bonfire, hitting fruit and vegetables with a bat and going on a tractor. They also got to see all of Mr Pickworth’s pets and had a delicious sausage sizzle.