Sport Days for Term 4 are as follows:

Dear Parents

We have had a wonderful week welcoming back our first group of students. The school is beginning to feel like a real school once again as the empty classrooms fill with chatter, excitement and smiling faces. We are now looking forward to welcoming back all our Year 3, 4  and 5 students next week.

Use of Check In CBR app

Parents and carers cannot enter the school grounds. They are allowed on campus for essential purposes only or in the case of an emergency.

Exceptions include:

• to pick up a sick student
• to access After Hours Care - please use the Hall Check In App
• to provide necessary supports for a child or young person with additional needs (which must be negotiated with me in advance).

Student illness

No students are to attend school if they are showing any COVID like symptoms.  They must remain at home and follow all ACT Health directions in relation to testing and/or quarantine instructions and can only return to school when cleared to do so. Students who present as unwell or with symptoms will be required to go home.

Hygiene and cleaning

Students and staff will need to wash hands and use hand sanitisers throughout the day. Students will not be allowed to share food or drink. This includes celebratory events such as birthdays.

We have increased cleaning schedules and resources at school during the school day to wipe down and disinfect high-touch areas, including classrooms and common spaces, in addition to regular daily cleaning.

We have purchased extra cleaning products for all classrooms, including the provision of extra hand sanitiser at key entry and exit locations and extra hand soap so all students and staff can wash their hands frequently, particularly before and after recess and lunchtimes. 

Bubblers are not available for use. Please remind all students to bring and use a suitable refillable water bottle each day.

Masks

Staff and visitors must wear a face mask on campus, unless exempt, when eating or drinking, when communicating with a person who is hard of hearing, when exercising vigorously, when outside alone, or in an emergency.

Students in Years 3 to 6 are encouraged to wear a mask at school if they are comfortable doing so (at the discretion of the student and their parents/carers). Although the ACT Health directives say people 12 and above must wear a mask in the ACT, this does not include primary school settings.

Children in preschool to Year 2 should not wear masks as they are likely to be worn incorrectly and may present a choking hazard.

Physical distancing

Physical distancing between children and young people is not always possible. ACT Health guidelines do not mandate that students physically distance themselves from each other. It is however important for limiting the transmission of COVID-19.

Students will be encouraged to minimise close contact and close interaction where possible. Parents and carers gathering outside the school grounds for collection and/or drop off must socially distance and wear a mask until ACT rules change.

Ventilation

St Monica’s will ventilate classrooms and other areas as much as possible, including opening doors and windows. Classes will also be encouraged to maximise the use of outdoor learning spaces where appropriate. Due to these changes, students are encouraged to dress in layers as appropriate.

Wellbeing supports

Our School Counsellor will recommence with the return to school. Conversations with parents will be conducted remotely. 

Cohorts

St Monica’s will limit unnecessary physical interaction between students on school grounds and the mixing of student cohorts (those year groups not routinely learning together) where possible. This will include identifying entry and exit points for different year groups. Limiting interaction between students does not apply to siblings.

Break times

Managing cohorts differently is challenging but necessary as we navigate our way beyond the recent lockdowns prompted by the pandemic. While we are keeping our break times as normal, we are alternating eating and playtime within the breaks for the various cohorts.

Clubs and Choir

Due to limiting unnecessary physical interaction between students on school grounds and the mixing of student cohorts, Lunchtime Clubs will not be occurring this term.

Before and after school care

SMOOSH will continue to operate as usual from the School Hall.

Staff vaccinations

As you are aware, on 13 October 2021, the ACT Government announced that staff and volunteers in school and care settings for children aged under 12, including ACT primary schools, Early Learning Centres and Out of School Hours Care centres, will require full vaccination against COVID-19.

Fee support for families impacted by COVID-19

Catholic Education will continue financial support to meet the full cost of any fee remissions to families in Term 4 arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligibility for fee relief will be based on the financial hardship experienced by families due to COVID-19. If your family has been financially impacted by the pandemic, you may be eligible for assistance. Email carmel.maguire@cg.catholic.edu.au for information and application forms.

Please do not hesitate to contact me confidentially if you have any concerns regarding school fees.

School uniform

St Monica’s summer uniform must be worn by all students onsite this term.  All students must ensure that they adhere to the uniform and appearance requirements as per the Uniform Policy available on our school website. Please inform your child’s teacher if your child is unable to wear correct uniform temporarily. Uniform orders should be placed via Qkr as our uniform shop is not open for face-to-face sales due to current restrictions. Place your order by Thursday evening and it will be filled on a Friday morning. 

Hats

All students are required to wear a school hat at recess and lunch, as per our Sunsmart Policy. It will be problematic for us if students attend without a hat as they must sit in the shade in our designated ‘no hat spot’ and we will have mixed cohorts. Please ensure your child has a hat ready for their first day.

Birthday celebrations

Students will not be allowed to share food or drink. This includes celebratory events such as birthdays. No sharing of birthday treats until advised. We will continue to review and adjust these measures based on the most up to date advice from the ACT Government, ACT Health and Catholic Education.

Morning Drop Off Reminder

Quick drop off zone on the basketball courts

To reduce the time the children are gathering and mixing with other grades each morning, it would be of great assistance if children could be dropped off as close to 8.45 am as possible. Our first bell goes at 8.50 am when the children will line up in their designated areas. Courtyard supervision will still commence at 8.25 am. Please no drop off in the staff car park area. Refer to further COVID safe school plans later in the newsletter. 

• Children need to provide their own water bottles as bubblers will be closed.
• Include an additional small snack as the children will find it very difficult not to be able to snack constantly during the day.
• Send in a packet of antibacterial wipes to be kept on your child's desk so it can be cleaned regularly.  
• Advise SMOOSH if your child will be returning to care. 
• The canteen will be closed for the moment. (We hope to reopen very soon).
• Please provide an alternative if your child has an issue with using hand sanitiser. Children will be reminded constantly to wash or sanitise their hands as they come into the classroom, before eating and after going to the toilet. 
• Make sure your child knows who will be collecting them and where they are to be picked up from, remember parents will not be able to walk to the classroom door.  

School Banking To Close

Families Leaving

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

Principal  

Drop Off and Pick Up Arrangements for Kinder to Year 6

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 across 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 unless authorised.

Afternoon Arrangements

Pick Up – Front of School

Commencing at 3.10 pm bell.

• Families with K, Year 1 and siblings to drive through the staff carpark, enter from Moynihan Street and start queuing from near the hoppers. Children will be supervised by staff as they wait. 
• 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 Year 2 and siblings. By delaying the pick up by 10 minutes parents will avoid the bottleneck that can occur at 3.10pm. A teacher is always on duty until 3.30pm so you have plenty of time. 

3.10pm Years 3 to 6 can be picked up from the basketball courts. Parents must stand along the fence and not congregate to chat. Please stand back as the children pass through the gate.

Chomley Carpark - A teacher will walk the children across to the carpark. Adults are asked to please remain in their car until the children arrive when they can greet their child/ren

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.

Sacrament of Confirmation – New Dates confirmed

Due to the current COVID-19 restrictions in the ACT the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation will now be celebrated on:

Tuesday 23 November in St Michael’s Church at 12 noon and 6pm;

Wednesday 24 November in St Monica’s Church at 12 noon and 6pm; and

Thursday 25 November in St Monica’s Church at 12 noon and 6pm.

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 included midday and evening liturgies to celebrate the Sacrament. This 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 (and the Sponsor). This means the people attending would be, the candidate, their sponsor and 2 other household members. If the sponsor is unable to attend, a parent may stand in as a proxy.

Booking a date for the Sacrament opened on 18 October and will close by 5 November 2021. Bookings are to be made through the TryBooking 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 now closed and no further registrations can be accepted.

Booking a date and time for the Sacrament - is now open and will close by 29 October 2021. Bookings are to be made through the TryBooking links on the parish website at www.cg.org.au/belconnennorth

Home Booklets

Will be posted home once the registration has been received. Families should work through the booklet with their child in preparation for the Sacrament and prior to school resuming for year 3 students on 1 November and in preparation for the Parent/Child Formation night on 4 November 2021.

Commitment Cards – commitment cards were included in the home booklet and are to be completed and returned to the school in the week of 1-5 Nov 2021 or scanned & emailed to the Sacramental Program Coordinator at sue.coll@bigpond.com

The card must be returned prior to celebrating the Sacrament

Parent/Child Formation night – Thursday 4 November 2021 via zoom
Zoom access - https://cgcatholic.zoom.us/j/64196950174
Home booklets must be completed in preparation for the parent/child formation night.

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

Home Readers

A friendly reminder to please return your child’s home readers to school this week. Our trolleys are looking empty, and we need to clean them before they can be sent  home next week.

We would love families from Kindergarten to Year 2 to continue using the home readers to read with your child every night.

Guided Readers

A huge thankyou to the Community Council who has funded another $3000 for new guided readers in our school. These books will compliment the readers purchased earlier in the year, as well as the decodable readers bought last year. The teachers are very grateful to be using these brand new readers in the classroom.

Library Books 

Learning to Count

When children are learning to count, they like to touch, point to and move objects as they say the number aloud – so encourage them to!

• Have your child count toys, kitchen utensils, items of clothing as they come out of the dryer, collections (such as stickers, buttons or rocks) and any other items your child shows interest in counting.
• Mix it up! Have your child count a set of objects but start at different places in the set (for example, start counting in the middle of the set rather than at the beginning). This helps to develop the idea that the counting of objects can begin with any object in a set and the total will still be the same.
• Sing counting songs and use counting in meaningful ways in games, such as Hide-and-Seek. Counting games, rhymes and songs exist in every culture. Some counting songs and rhymes help children to count forward and backward as well.
• Have your child skip count (counting by twos, fives or tens) to count larger groups of items quickly. Use such objects as blocks, pasta pieces, toothpicks or buttons.
• Develop your child’s awareness of the symbols used to represent numbers by making it a game. Look for number symbols in your home and neighbourhood: on the television remote, on the microwave, on the telephone keypad, in flyers and media, on signs and on team sweaters.
• Play a number version of I Spy. For example, “I spy something that has the number five on it,” or “I spy something in this room that there are three of.”
• Ask for your child’s help to count items in your home. “I wonder how many chairs we have around the table? In this room? In the house?” Count windows, light switches, lamps or beds. You might record “how many” by using a combination of numbers and pictures.

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. 

Happy Birthday to the following students  celebrating a Birthday this week  

Giuseppe C, Grace R, Lorenzo S, Sonny S, Emma N, Aaliyah S

T

Fees are due by Friday 12 November 2021

Term 4 school fee invoices have been posted home. Please let us know if you have not received your statement. Please make every effort to settle your account on time. Please contact our school Finance Officer, Kirralea Thompson, should you need to discuss your account. Any families who are leaving at the end of this year must ensure their account is settled in full.

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