Dear parents, friends, staff and students,

This Sunday’s Gospel is John 8: 1- 11. It is the story where a woman is brought to Jesus by the pharisees to be stoned for adultery. Jesus bends down and starts to write in the sand and when He looks up, He says: “If there is one of you who has not sinned, let him be the first to throw a stone”. The crowd turns and walks away. We should keep in mind that this is only a few weeks prior to our Easter readings where we know that Jesus will be accused, condemned, and crucified by the same crowd. Why is it that the crowd recognises their injustice with the accused woman, but does not see the same injustice with the condemnation of Jesus? Some scholars ask what it was that Jesus wrote in the sand. Was it sins that we commonly commit or perhaps the names of those accusing? Either way, the crowd realised that looking within themselves was essential before passing judgement on others. In the lead up to our own Easter, we are given the opportunity annually to reflect on our lives, our goals and our actions. In considering this, repentance for things we may have done wrong requires a desire to improve. This leads to hope. We must remember that the sadness of Good Friday is always followed by the joy of Easter Sunday.

Last newsletter I mentioned that our main focus for improvement as an educational community this year was based on student learning growth and will be characterised by High Impact Teaching Strategies (HITS). These will help to make small but regular improvements. HITS involve things like goal setting, clear structures and explicit teaching and learning. These are things that students and teachers can aim to achieve. Over the school holidays, I encourage the students to consider their own goals and set themselves clear expectations and structures. This will support the work that is currently being done by teachers in this area.

As we move toward the last week of term, a reminder regarding enrolment applications for Year 7, 2026. The deadline for these to be submitted is the last day of this term, Friday April 11. If you have a child in year 6 or know someone who is considering an application to Mount Carmel, please be aware of this date and let them know.

This will be the final newsletter for this term. Thank you to all students for your cooperation and parents for your support over the first term. Education is a partnership and requires input from all three parties to be successful. I wish you all a holy Easter and hope that you will get some down time to spend with family.