St Monica’s Primary School - Evatt eNewsletter

Monday 18 October

12.00 School Prayer via MS Teams Kinder - Year 6

Wednesday 20 October

11.30 Kinder - Year 2 Online Incursion - Kaboom Percussion

12.30 Years 3 - 6 Online Incursion - Kaboom Percussion

Dear Parents

While we are looking forward to welcoming the children back to school, keeping up with the daily changes as we move out of lockdown is difficult. I am also aware of family concerns as we are monitoring current COVID cases each day.

There are no further changes to report about the pathway to resuming on-campus learning. We have included information on the arrangements and measures that we have in place to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission and illness in our community. All measures are consistent with advice from ACT Health, the ACT Government, the ACT Education Directorate and Catholic Education. We hope this will give you confidence in your child’s return to school as we welcome students back onsite.

The ACT Government has provided a pathway for the return of on-campus learning to ensure the safety and wellbeing of students and staff. A reminder that Kindergarten, Year 1, Year 2 and Year 6 are planned to return physically to school on Monday 25 October with Years 3, 4 and 5 the following Monday on 1 November. Tomorrow morning you will receive the St Monica's Return to School survey. This is to help with our school planning and to gauge the feeling of families in our community. Please look out for the survey and return it by next Monday.

While remote learning is still occurring, many of our staff will continue to work from home. We have in place a roster, which ensures that only a relatively small number of staff are present at school on any given day. This is to safeguard that, should a COVID case come in contact with staff or students attending school, it will only affect a small number, enabling us to keep the school open.

Some information/reminders for all:

There are to be no parents on the school site, except for emergency situations (please contact the school first);
Until the end of next week parent drop-off and/or pick-up will occur via our school drive-thru area. Please wait in your car or stand well back from the foyer entry;
From Monday 25 October we will operate our afternoon drive-thru for pick up at the front of the school and we will provide supervision for children being picked up at Chomley;
Signage will be displayed when students return to remind all;
We must minimise unnecessary physical interaction between students on school grounds and ensure that students learn and play only with those in their cohort, wherever possible. We will be finalising these arrangements in the next week;
We have spoken with our cleaners and organised extra cleaning supplies. We have arranged for extra cleaning schedules and resources onsite during the school day to wipe down and disinfect high-touch areas, including classrooms and common spaces, in addition to regular daily cleaning;
There will be frequent announcements and increased signage around the school to ensure that children are practising good personal hygiene. This means covering mouths and noses when coughing and sneezing, frequent hand washing, not sharing food or drinks, minimising physical contact and practising social distance techniques where possible;
No child is to attend school if they are showing any COVID-19 like symptoms (e.g. fever, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath). They must remain at home and follow all ACT Health directions in relation to testing and/or quarantine instructions; and
The use of masks is one part of a suite of measures to reduce COVID-19 transmission. All staff, volunteers and visitors who are onsite must always wear a mask and students in Years 3–6 are encouraged, though not mandated, to wear a mask. Staff, students and visitors are expected to provide their own masks.

Please know that we are ready to talk with you about any concerns you have regarding your child. As always, please feel free to contact your child’s teacher, or myself. We will also take special care to ensure children feel safe and supported, whether they are learning at home or at school.

Families Leaving

It is that time of year when I am required to submit our expected enrolment numbers for 2022 to Catholic Education. If you are aware your child will not be returning to St Monica's in 2022, please advise via email as soon as possible.

Planning for 2022 Class Groups

In the coming weeks planning for the 2022 class groups will commence. Please take some time to discuss with your child the four learning friends they would consider nominating once school returns this term. As always we endeavour to provide a child with at least one close friend in their new class group.

Preparing to return to school

Children are being encouraged to wear their sports t-shirt on Mondays and Friday during remote learning sessions.
On return to school, the children move into their summer uniform. Uniform orders can be placed through Qkr and picked up from 1.00pm on Friday 22 October.
Children need to provide their own water bottle as bubblers will be closed.
Please send in a packet of antibacterial wipes to be kept on your child's desk so that it can be cleaned regularly.
Please advise SMOOSH if your child will be returning to care.
The canteen will be closed for the moment. (We hope to reopen once everyone is back).

Kinder interviews and Orientation Days

I am currently waiting on advice from Catholic Education regarding the timing of enrolment interviews and orientation days.

Special Prayer

Please keep the Gonzalez family in your prayers as Dominic's (1R) grandmother passed away recently in Sydney. A difficult time for Samantha and the family. Eternal rest grant unto her O Lord.

Continue to stay COVID safe and may God's blessing be with everyone.

Carmel Maguire

Principal

To ensure we maintain a safe environment for the children and staff extra hygiene and safety practices have been put in place now all the children are returning

Increased cleaning schedules and resources onsite during the school day to wipe down and disinfect high-touch areas, including classrooms and common spaces, in addition to regular daily cleaning.
Provision of extra hand sanitiser and anti-bacterial wipes across the school.
Provision of extra hand soap for children to wash their hands frequently, particularly before and after recess and lunchtime.
Frequent reminders to ensure children are practising good personal hygiene. This means, covering mouths and noses when coughing and sneezing or coughing and sneezing into inner elbow, frequent hand washing, not sharing food or drinks and minimising physical contact.
Children must bring a water bottle for personal use each day and all Years 3 – 6 to provide their own pencil case.
Each child to provide a pack of anti-bacterial wipe to be kept on their desk.
No child is to attend school if they are showing any cold or flu-like symptoms. They must remain at home and stay away from school until they are no longer showing symptoms or have attended a GP who has instructed that they are fit and safe to return.
If your child, or family members or other close contacts are tested for COVID-19, you must follow ACT Health directions regarding quarantine rulings. Your child is not to attend school until the results of those tests are known and are negative. Please advise the school if this situation occurs immediately.
If your child has a medical condition that places them at greater risk from a return to face-to-face teaching at this time, please contact their teacher so that we can discuss their needs in greater detail and develop an appropriate plan for their circumstances.

As we are attempting to minimise the number of adults coming onto the premises and to reduce the possible risk of COVID-19 transmission, please make appointments ahead of time so a possible MS Teams meeting can be set up. Where possible, telephone or use email as the preferred method of contact with your child’s teacher or staff member.

Changed Drop Off and Pick Up Arrangements when Kinder, Year 1, 2 & 6 return

For safety and to maintaining social distancing requirements we have introduced a revised drop off and pick up routine for the next few weeks. Please read carefully

Morning Drop Off

Children are to be dropped off in the hall car park or at the top of the ramp to the basketball courts between 8.25am and 8.50am. A teacher will be available to greet and supervise the children cross the staff car park crossing near the office. Please display extra car etiquette during this difficult time as your child’s safety must come first. Due to the increase in the number of children at school please do not drop off in the staff carpark

Afternoon Arrangements

Pick Up – Front of School

Commencing at 3.10 pm bell.

Families with K and siblings to drive through the staff carpark, enter from Moynihan Street.
Clearly display your family name in the passenger window.
Suggestion: Place baby or toddler seat on the righthand side so children can access the car from the left-hand side.

3.20pm Drive through pick up for Years 1, 2 & 6

Chomley Carpark - A teacher will walk the children across to the carpark. Adults are asked to remain in their car.

Copland College Carpark – this carpark will not be supervised.

Walkers and Bike Riders – Children will be dismissed as usual. Parents can wait at the boundary of the school to collect their child/ren; please remember social distancing while you wait.

Bus Travellers - Moynihan and Copland Bus Stops will be supervised.

SMOOSH – children will walk to the hall with supervision provided at the front office crossing.

October – the Month of the Rosary

Praying the Rosary – A Family Activity

This week let’s focus on the actual Rosary Beads. What do the beads mean? What are the ‘mysteries’ of the Rosary? What prayers go with the sections? You can use this image to help you and your family pray the rosary. The Rosary is a string of beads used to keep track of a series of prayers. The beads are divided up into five groups of ten beads, each called a ‘decade’. At the bottom of the string is a series of 5 beads and a crucifix.

What are the Mysteries?

The mysteries of the Rosary allow us to reflect on the life and death of Jesus. There are four mysteries of the Rosary:

The Joyful mysteries – The Annunciation and birth stories of Jesus.
The Luminous Mysteries – Jesus as a baby and small child.
The Sorrowful mysteries – Jesus’ Passion and death
The Glorious mysteries – Jesus’ Resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit

Each mystery has a set of readings from scripture that you can use to reflect on. There are certain days of the week that you focus on each mystery.

What are the prayers of the Rosary?

There are a few prayers that are prayed during the rosary. They are:

The Our Father
The Hail Mary
The Glory Be
The Apostle’s Creed

Sacrament of Confirmation – Change of Dates now confirmed

Due to the current COVID-19 restrictions in the ACT the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation will now be celebrated on 23,24 and 25 November 2021.

COVID Restrictions - due to Covid restrictions limited people are allowed in the church for each celebration and as some parents are working from home Fr Loi has agreed to include midday and evening liturgies to celebrate the Sacrament. There will be 6 liturgies with around 15 candidates per liturgy.

This means the number of people attending is restricted to a maximum of 4 per family and only people who reside in the household. Which means the people attending would be, the candidate, their sponsor and 2 other household members. In the absence of the sponsor, a parent may stand in as a proxy.

Booking a date for the Sacrament will open on 18 October and close by 5 November 2021. Bookings are to be made through TryBooking via the links on the parish website at www.cg.org.au/belconnennorth

Sacrament of Reconciliation

The Sacrament will be celebrated (5 minute timeslots for each candidate) -
9 November in St Michael’s Church from 3.30pm to 6.00pm
10 November in St Monica’s Church from 3.30pm to 6.00pm and
11 November in St Monica’s Church from 3.30pm to 6.00pm.

Registration for the Sacrament – is open and will close by 25 October 2021. Registration and payment must be made through the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish Qkr! App (NOT the school’s app). No further registrations will be accepted beyond the closing date.

Booking a date and time for the Sacrament - is now open and will close by 28 October 2021. Bookings are to be made through TryBooking via the links on the parish website at www.cg.org.au/belconnennorth

Purchasing a stole for the Sacrament of Reconciliation is optional and is not compulsory. If you wish to purchase a stole, the cost is $20 and this can also be done via the Parish Qkr! app.

Further Information – please contact the Sacramental Program Coordinator at sc.belconnennorth@cg.org.au or (sue.coll@bigpond.com (during lockdown)) or check the parish website for updates at www.cg.org.au/belconnennorth

Next Wednesday, 20 October, the students in K- Year 2 and Years 3- 6 will attend an online Music incursion provided by Kaboom Percussion. After having to postpone their Canberra tour due to lockdowns, the interactive school shows are moving online in the form of remote performance workshops. The 45 minute performance workshops link directly to the Music program being taught by Mrs Pearson and are a fun and inclusive way for students to access the Music curriculum from home with hands-on percussion activities. The links to the workshops will be shared with the students on Teams on Wednesday morning. The K-Year 2 show will take place at 11.30am and the Years 3-6 show will take place at 12.30pm.

https://www.kaboompercussion.com/

If you are looking for ideas on what to read next the Children’s Book Council of Australia NSW branch publish a Kid’s Corner magazine each month that has information about new release books Kid's Corner. The October issue has the article “Read whatever you want -Nat Amoore”, author of “Secrets of a Schoolyard millionaire”

The Australian Publishers Association’s Independent Publishers Committee held an event to showcase the new books being released by Australian best independent publishers in September. The event was live streamed and can be viewed at EVENT // The Indies Roadshow 2021 . It begins with children’s books and moves to adult books so something for children and parents.

Communicating with Children Using Math Language

Talking About Math: Talking about mathematics with your child – whatever his or her age – helps strengthen his or her mathematical reasoning and understanding. Some ways to keep the talk engaged and focused while you support your child include:

Revoice - Repeat what you heard your child say, then ask for clarification (e.g., “So you are saying it’s an odd number?”).
Repeat/Restate – Ask your child to restate your reasoning (e.g., “Can you repeat what I said in your own words?”).
Reason – Ask your child to apply his or her own reasoning to someone else’s reasoning (e.g., “Do you agree or disagree? Tell me why.”).
Adding On – Prompt your child to participate further (e.g., “What more would you add to that?”).
Think Time – Wait several seconds (try five) to give your child time to think (e.g., “Take some time to think.”). You may be surprised by how hard it is to stay silent in that time!

Belconnen/ACT Virtual Athletics Carnival

Please see the letter sent to me from SSACT. We will be nominating our school results so you will not have to do anything (except wait for the results in week 7). Please contact me if you would not like your child's results included.

SSACT_AACT_Virtual_T_F_Entry_Information.pdf

SSACT_AACT_Virtual_T_F_Entry_Information _pdf 276.32 KB

Happy Birthday to the following students celebrating a Birthday this week

Jacob P, Ella C, Nicholas M, Rhys M, Chloe W

It seems strange to be sending this out in these crazy Covid remote learning days, but we have a school fundraiser in the wings! Family Portraits on Sunday 27 November 2021! The attached flyer provides more detail, but for the bargain price of $20 per family, you are able to sit for a family portrait and obtain a 10"x13" print, as well as a wallet photo (more poses and images are also available at an additional cost). To keep it all Covid friendly, sitting for the family photos will take place at Lake Ginninderra nearish to the Learn to Ride Park. All booking are made through Try Booking (details on the flyer). If you have any further queries after reading the flyer and checking on Try Booking, please contact the photographer directly - Kieren from Lasso Studios - on 0420 233 747.

If you have any ideas or concerns please email them through to our Secretary Noel Chan at council.stmonicas@cg.catholic.edu.au

Reminder all families:

Catholic Education COVID-19 Website - Click to open web updates