Year 3 Reconciliation - Please continue to pray for the students in Year 3 who made their Sacrament of Reconciliation on Wednesday evening. For many, the Sacrament of Reconciliation is a wonderful opportunity to encounter the mercy of God and the forgiveness he always offers. Sometimes the hardest part of Confession comes before we even receive the sacrament! It is common to feel anxious or nervous about the choices we have made. What is important to remember, however, is that the more honest we are about what is wrong the easier it will be for us to experience healing. 

Congratulations to all the Year 3 students and thank you to Father Loi, Haley Stonham, Carmel Rheinberger, Susan Carswell and Kirsty Godschalx for preparing the students for this important milestone in their faith journey.  

Kindergarten Orientation - On Tuesday morning I had the pleasure of speaking with new and existing families of our 2023 Kindergarten cohort. I felt incredibly blessed to be able to speak so passionately about how great St Monica's Primary School is.  I shared with families the importance of fostering a caring and inclusive spirit of community as well as an insight to the relevant, developmental and challenging learning opportunities we offer our students. Thank you to the current Kinder parents who provided Morning Tea, our uniform shop ladies, Wendy Regan,  Steph Flynn and Linda Baird who answered a myriad of questions and put together our information packs. I am so proud to be the Principal of this amazing school.

BYOD- On Monday night there will be a presentation for families with children in Years 4-6 in 2023, with a focus on our BYOD program here at St Monica’s. This information session will provide parents and families with an understanding of how the BYOD program works and considerations when purchasing a Chrome Book (Year 4 students 2023 only). Our school’s commitment to digital learning has not changed and we value the importance of being connected with our community and developing students that can interact with respect as informed citizens on a global scale. 

Class Placement Considerations for 2023 –Teachers are beginning to consider class groupings for 2023. Please trust that we know your children well and have a very good understanding of their academic, social and emotional needs. We endeavour to balance classes in a variety of ways and any parent requests, regarding placement of children for 2023, must be sent to me in writing by 5.00pm on Monday 21 November.

Interviews and Reports - Your child/ren's Semester 2 report will be available via Compass on Friday of Week 9. Catholic Education schools are providing graded reports with no comments. Instead, parents and carers are invited to meet with their child’s teacher in Week 8 for a parent/teacher conference to discuss their progress, strengths and areas for development. These can be face to face or via MSTEAMs. Opportunities to schedule an interview with your child’s teacher will be provided to you in the coming weeks.  

School Council Nominations – Vacancies have arisen for our School Community Council in 2023. Council members are appointed for a period of two years, during which time they attend two meetings per term. These meetings are an opportunity to hear about what is going on at the school and to participate in planning for the future. No special skills are required, although there are opportunities to join sub-committees focusing on the grounds, fundraising, catering and events! It is important that members of the council come across the school community, so that decisions reflect the interests of the whole school. Your voice is important, why not consider having your say by joining the Community Council in 2023.