Dear St Monica’s families and friends,

The second half of this term has been in full swing. Our school theme of “Walking together / You’re invited” has flourished, with greater numbers of attendees at community events such as Morning Assembly, Whole School Prayer and the Get to Know you Meetings. I know this is primarily due to the lifting of COVID19 restrictions, but it is warming to see parents and visitors back on school grounds again.

Students in Years 3 and 5 have participated in NAPLAN over the past week. I thank the supervising teachers for making sure the program went smoothly and ensuring the testing was considered a regular part of the teaching and learning day. The results of the NAPLAN testing will come out later this year.

Earlier this week Maggie Lloyd and I presented a webinar (to our colleagues across the Catholic Education System) on the implementation of the InitiaLit, Math Mastery and Spelling Mastery programs into the school. We recognise a need to inform parents about these initiatives. As such, we have begun the process of scheduling suitable times to run some parent workshops, webinars and / or video recordings. This is to ensure our parents have a greater understanding around the ‘why’ St Monica’s has gone down the path of teaching this way.

Next term on 10 and 11 May St Monica’s Primary School will undergo the School Improvement Review and Compliance Registration process. A panel of visitors will come into the school and speak with all stakeholders, including representatives from the parent community, about the following 5 Strategic Domains:

• Catholic Identity & Culture
• Partnerships & Community
• Excellence in Teaching & Learning
• Stewardship & Resourcing
• Staff Capacity & Leadership

School Fees are now due. Reminder notices have gone out to families today and we hope to have fees settled by the end of term. If families are experiencing difficulty in meeting the school fee payments, please make an appointment to come and see me. I understand there has been some confusion, around the payment options for this year. School Fees can be paid in full or via instalments by BPAY, EFTPOS, or Cash.

For families wishing to pay their fees via BPAY instalments, please establish a recurring fortnightly or monthly payment from your nominated bank account. You will find the BPAY Biller Code and your Individual Reference Number at the bottom of your Fee Statement. If you need an updated BPAY Instalment schedule, please email Kirralea Thompson who will work out what your individual payments will be.

It's not too late to volunteer for the Fete!! Please consider offering some time to help out at the Fete. We are in particular need of afternoon volunteers. Huge thanks to Kirralea Thompson and her team of helpers for their fabulous coordination of this extraordinary event. Special thanks goes out to the businesses from our local area for their sponsorship and kind donations. Big thanks also to all St Monica’s families for the selling of raffle tickets, donations for the cake stall, white elephant stall and more…. It is going to be a magnificent day!!