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Dear Parents and Carers,
We are heading into the end of the school year and in some of our students, we start to see some anxiety and tiredness. We are very conscious of this and have been talking through some strategies with the students and staff. A few of our students start to worry about the change that is ahead of them – change in teacher, change in class, change in friendships, change in schools. The security they know now feels like it’s ending. We also must remember, and acknowledge, the difficult year that it’s been with all the restrictions that have been placed on our students; this has had an impact on our community. Not being able to have the sport carnivals, gatherings, social events, Dance Display and so on, has left our students with less opportunities to connect with other parents and community members.
In keeping all this in mind, next week we will hand out our “school expectation” tokens acknowledging the positive and kind behaviour we see daily. (We will have a surprise for the students at the end of the 2 weeks). We also have our “Step Up” afternoon in Week 10. This is where the students meet their new teacher and their new classmates before going into the Christmas and January break. I find this really alleviates the worry and anxiety in the students prior to the new school year.
Kinder 2021 Orientation
This Friday morning, we welcome our Kinder class for 2021. At present we have 25 students enrolled for Kinder next year; I look forward to meeting our new families. Mrs Samantha Mance will be the Kinder teacher for next year, along with Mrs Helen Bramanathan who will teach every Friday while Samantha is fulfilling her Religious Education Coordinator role.
School Reports
Semester 2 reports will go home next Monday, November 30. Optional Parent/Teacher Interviews will be held in Week 9 (Monday and Tuesday). Bookings can be made through the link in next week’s newsletter.
Congratulations
Congratulations to Violet Nelson (Yr 2) and Ned Snashall (Yr 1) on receiving the Principal affirmation at morning assembly last Friday.
Principal
Advent
This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent. Advent is the four weeks leading up to Christmas in which we prepare for the birth of Jesus.
In the first week of Advent we light a purple candle and HOPE for the coming of Jesus this Christmas.
For the second week of Advent we light the purple candle of PEACE and reflect on how being peaceful may prepare us for the coming of Jesus.
During the third week of Advent we light the pink candle, giving thanks for God’s gift of JOY. We reflect on the joy of Jesus’ birth and show gratitude for the many things we have in our life.
In the final week of Advent we light the purple candle of LOVE. Love is celebrating the gift of family and the presence of Jesus at Christmas.
Illuminate 2020
The 5/6 students share their reflections of the event:
“All the events of the day showed us the different ways to ‘illuminate’ our faith since we are different people, with different minds and hearts.” - Annabelle
“Placing the candles on the different coloure prayer cloths was a time when I could pray and reflect on myself and my wellbeing” - Elise
“The day was very prayerful and relaxing. I like the icebreaker activities - especially untying our shoelaces without using our hands.” - Rex
Mission Fair - Wednesday 2nd December
You should have received a note about Mission Fair next Wednesday, 2nd December. Please purchase tickets through the QKR app. $5.00 for one child, or a family contribution for multiple children. Each child will receive 10 tickets.
STM Parish - ‘A Little More’
Fr Emil and Rossen will be running a Youth Group after school for Years 4-6 this Friday 27th and next Friday 4th December at 3pm - 5pm. A flyer was given out last week.
Kristy Poole
Religious Education Coordinator
Thankyou to those parents that have donated and used the new QKR app for our Mission Fair next Wednesday. If you have not done so, here is the "How to" guide below.
Qkr!™ by Mastercard® is the mobile phone payment app designed for Australian schools, delivering an advanced and competitive online payment solution. Qkr delivers convenience to parents, efficiency in payment methods and is effective in assisting to streamline payments.
The STM Community Council have endorsed the use of this application for future payments in line with moving to a cash free school. This will include fundraising events, special food days, donations and will also extend to payment of school fees in the future. QKR will allow parents to make payments from the convenience of their mobile or device at any time.
Our first QKR launch will be the Mission Fair to be held on Wednesday 8th December.
A How to Guide for parents is included below and also some FAQ's.
If you require any assitance with downloading or using the application please contact Julie Ogden in the Front Office.
Christmas Hampers for St Vincent de Paul
Thank you to those who have already donated to our annual St Vincent de Paul Christmas Hampers collection. If you have not received a note with an item listed for donation, please let me know and I will ensure your child receives one.
These hampers are distributed by the St Vincent de Paul Conference of our Parish to families in our local area who are in need. Often these families are living in hardship due to disability, sickness or old age or because of circumstances such as single parenting, loss of work or low income. Donations are requested by Wednesday 2 December (Week 8) and can be placed in the white basket provided in the children's classroom. Please note use-by-dates of donations. Many thanks once again for your generosity.
Crazy Sock Day
Crazy Sock Day was a huge hit and it was wonderful to see so many crazy socks worn on the day. Thank you to all families for the gold coin donation. As a school we raised $210 and all funds raised have been donated to Orange Sky Australia.
Feel welcome to visit or contact me on 6249 8869 or send an email to brenda.galvin@cg.catholic.edu.au
Brenda Galvin
School Chaplain
Posting
As we are coming to the close of our 2020 school year please let me know if you are posting out of Canberra and require any assistance. I am happy to help with any transition needs your children might have with moving schools and leaving Canberra.
Please also let me know if you are aware of any courses or deployments for the rest of this year and next year so I can take the time to check on your children and assist them during this time.
Craft
We have been running our Craft on Tuesdays for children with parents deployed or away on courses. This provides a chance for these children to chat with me one on one or with other students in a similar situation. The students can bring a friend along to help them feel more comfortable.
We have also been holding our weekly lunchtime craft activities on a Thursday, and it has proved just as popular last term.
Please feel welcome to visit me at school or contact me on 6249 8869 or, alternatively, send an email to brenda.galvin@cg.catholic.edu.au
Brenda Galvin
Defence School Mentor
Reminders
The last day for Library borrowing for the year will be this Friday 27th November (Week 7). This will allow time for Library loans to be returned, a stocktake to be completed and organisation of resources for next year.
Please have a look around at home if you receive an overdue loans notice. We will ask that any book loans that are less than 12 months old be replaced or reimbursed.
Madeleine Reid
Librarian
