Dear Parents

It is hard to believe that we are almost at the end of June and I am sure you will agree it has been a very demanding Semester One on everyone due to the impact of the fires and COVID-19 on the community. We are noticing the children are tired and still struggling to get back into the daily routine. I know the staff are looking forward to a well-earned break. The Semester One reports will be sent home in the first week of next term as we have tried to maximise the learning time since the return to face to face teaching and learning. 

Kinder 2021 Interviews

This week I commenced our Kinder interviews for 2021. As indicated last week I have prioritised our new families for this term and will interview all our siblings early next term. It has been a real joy to meet our new little ones and their families. Letters of offer will be sent out to all families mid next week.  

Families Leaving 

To help with class planning for 2021 please advise the school in writing if you do not intend returning to St Monica's in 2021.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help (OLPH) Feast Day

Today as a Parish we celebrated Our Lady of Perpetual Help Feast Day. Whilst we couldn't join as a whole Parish community (including St Michael's School), we celebrated simultaneously through prayer, liturgy and art at each school. We used MSTeams to video across to other classes at St Michael's.

Parish Sacramental Program Update

On Friday Haley Stonham and I will attend a Parish Sacramental Team Meeting. We will be mapping out the plan for Term 3 and Term 4 regarding students receiving the Sacraments. 

At this stage, and we will confirm dates in next week's newsletter, the timeline would be as follows:

Term 3, 2020 - Sacrament of Reconciliation (First Rite) - Year 3 students

Term 4, 2020 - Sacrament of Confirmation - Year 6 students

Term 1, 2021 - Sacrament of First Eucharist (which was missed this year) - Year 4 students from this year (they will obviously be in Year 5 next year when they receive this Sacrament)

From Term 2 2021, we will be back on a normal timeline.

We apologise for any issue this may cause. The decision for Sacrament of Reconciliation for Term 3 was because it is the easiest Sacrament to limit crowds and follow the physical distancing requirements etc. The decision for Confirmation in Term 4 was to still be able to support our Year 6 before they head off to high school. 

Further information will follow next week with exact dates and timeline. 

Late Arrivals - What you need to know!

Children arriving after the 8.55am bell MUST walk through the foyer to access their classroom. Children arriving late are to be signed in by a parent/carer at the Front Office. Do not just drop them off. The information documented on a late slip is now transferred to our new student roll data system to accurately record all arrival and departure times. The class roll is now taken each morning by 9.05am. Any child arriving after 9.05am will be documented as arriving late for school.  Eventually an automated SMS notification will be added to our system which will advise a parent when a child has not been accounted for at school. 

Dont Forget!

General Reminders 

• Children need to bring their water bottle every day.
• Packs of wipes are available from the office for $1.00.
• Shoulder length hair to be tied back.
• Black shoes should be worn with the winter uniform.
• Blue or maroon beanies are permitted.
• Parents are still not permitted into the school building unless authorised. 
• Social distancing is still required in the school car parks with the children being dropped off and picked up at the designated areas. 

Continue to stay safe and healthy. 

Principal