Melissa Brown dons her hard-hat and goes behind the scenes with Andrew Lowry to get an update from the building sites of the Learning Hub and J Block.
This week at Covie
Get to know Mr Haes
This week we have the pleasure of getting to know Mr Dave Haes just a little bit better.
Growing Great Thinkers
Introducing a new segment for Covie news - Growing Great Thinkers with our Extension and Enrichment teacher, Amanda Drain. Watch the video below with Amanda and Emily Smith (K-9 Extension and Enrichment teacher) to learn more about this fabulous new segment.
What's been happening?
So much happens every week at Covenant. Below are some things that have happened lately:
Year 7 Micah Project visit to Wesley Gardens
Primary Zone Swimming Carnival
Primary State Swimming Carnival - news just in!
Congratulations to Jeremiah M, Year 7
Hockey Gala Day
Australian Mountain Bike Interschools
Year 5 Camp
Pastors' Morning Tea
Year 7 Micah Project visit to Wesley Gardens
Earlier this week, our Year 7 Micah 3 class visited Wesley Gardens Aged Care in Belrose. With nervous butterflies in our stomachs and a list of interview questions in hand, we hopped on the bus for our much-anticipated adventure. We were taken to a large dining area where an ever-increasing parade of smiling residents soon greeted us. We quickly connected with these wonderful people and their rich life stories and patient, ready grins.
While we went with the aim of connecting with the residents, many kids walked away feeling more blessed, encouraged and engaged than what we felt we had offered. This was an incredibly rich and special time, and we were very sad to leave. However, we are already planning what we can say and do with our new 'friends' in two weeks time.
The other teachers and I may have also shed a tear or two of happiness at this beautiful experience - connections and community really do make a huge difference and give us a taste of heaven on earth.
- Year 7 Micah Project teacher, Tim Stanwell
"He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." - Micah 6:8
Primary Zone Swimming Carnival
Covenant had an incredible day at the Zone Swimming Carnival! We proudly celebrated two age champions: Vida VG (10 year girls) and Mia C (12 year girls). Eight of our talented students progressed to the CSSA State Swimming Championships. All of our swimmers had a fantastic time and represented our school with great spirit and enthusiasm! Go Covie!
- Primary Sport Organiser, Jessica Russell
Primary State Swimming Carnival - news just in!
News just in from last night's Primary State Swimming Carnival - amazing results for our swimmers! The following swimmers are off to the Combined Independent Schools (CIS) Primary Swimming Championships:
- Congratulations to Mia C who placed 3rd in 50m Butterfly and 200m Individual Medley, and 4th in 50m Freestyle, Backstroke and Breaststroke!
- Congratulations to Vida VG who placed 1st in 200m Individual Medley, and 2nd in 50m Breaststroke!
- Congratulations to the Junior Girls Relay team, Ruby C, Ellie PS, Chloe R and Vida VG, who placed 3rd!
Congratulations to Jeremiah M, Year 7
Last Friday at the NSW CIS 2024 Sports Awards Presentation, Jeremiah received a Combined Independent Schools (CIS) Red award for reaching the highest level of sporting performance and involvement in Athletics! In 2024, Jeremiah was a member of the NSW CIS Primary Athletics Team, NSWPSSA Athletics Team and competed at the School Sport Australia Championships. Along with his parents, Mr Tim Stanwell (Year 7 Coordinator) and Mrs Georgia Carnell (PDHPE Coordinator) were thrilled to attend this special event in support of Jeremiah. #covieproud
Hockey Gala Day
Last week we sent nine students to the State Hockey Gala Day at Narellan. Our Open Boys team (Ben C, Darcy F, Nathanael G, Caleb H, Caleb K, Toby K and Nathan S) had been training twice a week, preparing their strategies to maximise their teamwork and skill. The day was extremely hot (up to 34 degrees), but every player pressed in and gave their absolute best. The Open Boys team had a draw 1-1 with Parks, and close losses to Inaburra and William Carey Christian School. The team excelled in defence and built their attack strategies more effectively in each subsequent game.
Two of our students, Angela K and Rebecca W, played in the combined Opens team, the Barbarians, and won all their games!
Thanks to several parents who travelled out to support the team, ex-student Owen K who helped train the Open Boys team, Mr Moody and Mrs Freestone for accompanying the team, and to the students for their wonderful sportsmanship on a very exhausting day! We are already looking forward to a comeback next year!
Australian Mountain Bike Interschools
This week, Jack D (Year 5), Josh F (Year 5) and Kai T (Year 4) attended the Australian MTB Interschools competition in Thredbo. They had an incredible time (as did their parents who were there supporting them!) racing across the Thredbo tracks, and did an amazing job for their first year in the Interschool Competition. If you’re interested in joining the team for 2026, please contact Heidi Stead, via email - hstead@covenant.nsw.edu.au.
Year 5 Camp
Year 5 had the best time at camp earlier this week. Lots of fun memories were made, with billy cart racing being a huge highlight!
Pastors' Morning Tea
On Monday this week we hosted a Pastors' Morning Tea for those involved in gospel ministry amongst our students, families and staff. We are so thankful to God for the faithful work of these men and women, and recognise the incredibly valuable role that our churches play in the life of our school. To see more visit our Facebook post.
Upcoming Events
Only 2 weeks until our Open Event and Tours
Covie is a very special place and we are so thankful you've chosen to send your children here! We would love more families to join us. Do you have friends or family you can invite to one of our upcoming tours or events? Tell your friends to visit covenant.nsw.edu.au/invite to book their place!
Covenant Information
Helpful information for parents
Covie Holiday Program
Soccer and Netball Peninsula Cup
Why are NAPLAN tests online?
Year 10 Vaccination Clinic
Relevant information from past newsletters
Covie Holiday Program
Soccer and Netball Peninsula Cup
Enrolments are now open for Term 2 Peninsula Cup soccer and netball.
Boys soccer - U14s, U16s, U18s
Girls netball - U14s, Opens
More information can be found on the letter titled 'Years 7-12 Peninsula Cup - Term 2, 2025' sent home on Thursday 6 March. You can also find this letter on the Covie App > More > Links > Letters to Parents > Secondary School - General & Sport.
Enrolments can be made via the Covie App > Co-Curricular > Activity Selection
Why are NAPLAN tests online?
Some helpful information from ACARA:
Doing the NAPLAN assessment online means students answer questions that adapt to their performance during the test.
Each student’s results will be based on both the number and the difficulty of the questions they have answered correctly. This provides more precise and detailed information on students’ performance in the tests.
Watch their latest video about NAPLAN tailored testing.
Year 10 Vaccination Clinic
The Year 10 Vaccination Clinic will be held on Monday 31 March. You can give your online consent by visiting https://engage.health.nsw.gov.au/engage. If you need more information on how to give your consent, read this information. Students might find it helpful to read this or watch Seb's story.
Vaccinations will be given to:
- Year 10s who have consented.
- Year 11s who missed their vaccination last year and have consented
- Year 8s who missed their vaccination last year and have consented.
Relevant information from past newsletters
It can be hard to stay on top of all the information. Below is some information from the past few weeks that you might need a reminder of.
Improving data for school student travel (+ a special offer on lost cards)
What is happening? On Friday 7 March, Transport for NSW and CDC will be visiting Covenant in the afternoon to carry out a count of school students using bus services.
Why? Many schools have low compliance when it comes to using their School Opal card, making it very difficult to determine how many students are actually using the bus. This is designed to supplement their current data and provide insights so they can better plan their services.
Important reminders for your children:
- Always tap on and off when using your School Opal card
- Follow the Opal terms of use and only use your School Opal card to travel to and from school
- Always follow the Student Code of Conduct when you’re on the bus
- Be polite and courteous to the Bus Driver and follow their reasonable instructions
Special offer for lost/stolen Opal cards: Between 24 February and 11 April, you can order a replacement for your child's lost/stolen Opal card and the usual $10 fee will be waived. This offer is only applicable for eligible school students. Fee waived for one card per child only. Visit transportnsw.info to replace a lost or stolen Opal card.
Need to complete some PIP hours?
Wondering what PIP is? The Parent Involvement Program (PIP) gives our parents the opportunity to enjoy a hands-on role in the education of their children and an opportunity to engage with other members of our community. You can learn more here.
Current opportunities:
- A Netball umpire (badged or experience required) and a Netball/Soccer coach (experience required) for Peninsula Cup. If you are interested, please contact Jonathan Chor, via email - jchor@covenant.nsw.edu.au.
- Our Learning Support team needs parents to assist students with reading or writing during tests/exams. If you are interested, please contact Learning Support Coordinator, Sally Rofe, via email - srofe@covenant.nsw.edu.au.
- The Term 1 Working Bee is coming up on Saturday 5 April. If you are interested, please RSVP here.