Yesterday we celebrated our Numeracy Challenge Day, whereby Grade Four students from Emmaus, Lumen Christi and St Alipius Primary Schools were welcomed to the College by our Year 9 Maths Extension class. The day was a celebration of all things numeric and mathematical. It provided a wonderful opportunity for our students to host, coach and mentor younger children from our parish primary schools. Young people enjoy being given the opportunity to lead and demonstrate their gifts and talents. I was so impressed by the leadership of our Damascus students, who were able to engage and work with the young people on their teams. I walked around each of the groups and asked the primary students to provide feedback to our Damascus Learners. I was delighted that the primary school students rated our students at Damascus 10 out of 10. Our VCAL students contributed to the day's success by providing valuable hospitality and tours.

Learning at Damascus College provides great depth and breadth. Today l visited our Technology and Arts Department. The tradition of our founding St Paul's College was evident and so alive. Our students can 'be their best' through the Technology or Arts Learning Areas being both creative and practical. The calibre of our student's work was so striking. I could see our students contribute to their chosen careers, whether in the area of apprenticeships – carpentry, electrical or even cabinet makers, but l could also see these skills in enabling our students to express their creativity and passion. It was refreshing to see students use their hands to produce great pieces of furniture that will be shared with their families in many years to come. Art provides our learners with the chance to express their dreams, realities and their beliefs. Let us continue to celebrate each learner's creativity and gifts, whether it be employing our hands or minds.

A number of weeks back, l had an appointment to meet one of our Senior Students - Luke Borg, who was proposing a Breakfast Club as part of his VCAL Studies. Luke has modelled the values of the Mercy Sisters by supporting those around him. He has meticulously planned our breakfast club for our student body and the organisation of many donations. Tuesday morning saw the Inaugural gathering, and Luke's hard work had paid off. We had a number of students in attendance, and Luke modelled how we all can be a beacon of Christ's light.

It was fantastic to be able to meet with representatives of our Year 12 cohort Monday afternoon as we worked through the planning for the end of their year. Planning is such a challenging concept in the current environment. I admire our Year 12 students who are emerging as the future leaders of our society with this new competence of dealing with and responding to regular and unplanned change. These are valuable skills that they are drawing upon as we progress through our planning of how they approach their final weeks and days at Damascus College.

The College Leadership Team is keen to continue to engage with our families and to seek feedback about our practices and culture. As part of this focus on continued improvement, we seek your feedback on the recent Teacher Advisor Interviews that focused on Subject Selection. We invite you to complete the following survey. The feedback will support the College in harnessing our partnership with families.

https://forms.office.com/r/AJgq60A8Ze

Each year since 1945, the Children's Book Council of Australia has brought children and books together across Australia through CBCA Book Week. During this time, schools and public libraries spend one glorious week celebrating books and Australian children's authors and illustrators. This year's theme, 'Dreaming with Open Eyes,' resonated with each one of us at Damascus. It is a rich theme that connects us with our Indigenous brothers and sisters, connects us with country and has deep connections to our faith. Reading provides great joy and helps us understand our world and to see new and different perspectives. As an English teacher, l urge you to keep encouraging your young people or person to read. Through literature, we learn much about ourselves and of different perspectives. We thank our library team as this week we have had a raft of different opportunities for students and staff made available by the St Martin's Resource Centre staff team and the English staff team.

Employing the book week theme of Dreaming With Open Eyes, I pray that we may see the beauty of the world, challenge the injustices we see and the gift of our relationships. May we continue to see and hear the face of our God in one another.

Uniform expectations - nose piercing

As a result of COVID and students being required to wear masks previously at school, we have seen an increase in nose piercing. We ask for parents' support in regards to this uniform expectation. Students are asked to refrain from getting nose piercing while attending Damascus College.

As per our guidelines - 'Body piercing, other than in the ear, (e.g. nose piercing) is unacceptable. Please note that should a student have a nose piercing, it is to be removed during the school day. Failure to observe the jewellery expectations will result in the excess jewellery being confiscated until the end of term.

With every blessing