ST. THOMAS THE APOSTLE

ST. THOMAS THE APOSTLE251 Diamond Creek RoadGreensborough North, 3088Telephone: 9434 4565No 621st March, 2019Hello Everyone,In recent days we have heard of the terrible news from New Zealand and ourthoughts and prayers are with all New Zealanders at this sad and tragic time.On Friday we farewelled Dalya Patto, one of our remarkable Learning SupportOfficers, as she prepares for the birth of her child. We wish Dalya and her family allthe best for the new arrival and we look forward to meeting Dayla’s baby and welcoming her backto work at St Thomas in the future.SCHOOL LEADERSOur school leaders had a full week last week attending the annual GRIP Leadership Day at theConvention Centre and the St Patrick’s Day Mass at the Cathedral on Friday. They reported backvery eloquently to the school community at assembly on Monday. All our school leaders are doing asuper job and we are very proud of the way they represent our school.EUCHARIST FAITH NIGHTLast night our Year 3 parents of students making their First Eucharist this yearattended an adult Faith Night. The aim was to deepen their understanding of thesacrament and enable them to discuss the sacrament with their children. It wasattended by parents from St Thomas, Sacred Heart and St Mary’s schools.ENRICHMENT AND CARE

YEAR 5 & 6 CAMPNext Wednesday, our Year 5 and 6 students will be attending their adventure campat Waratah Bay, near Wilson’s Promontory. It will be a great experience for thestudents and the numerous staff who will be in attendance.Due to the fact that we will have 13 staff attending the camp, personnel back atschool will be a little thin on the ground. Classroom teachers from non Year 5 and 6classes will also be attending camp. Consequently your child may have a differentclassroom teacher for these three days. Please discuss this with them and allay any concerns yourchild may have.I am always extremely grateful to the staff who attend these camps because it is a 24/7 experience.Your child’s health and safety is their focus the whole time. They don’t receive extra pay or days offin lieu, but do it for the children. I will be attending the Victorian Association of Catholic PrimarySchools Principal’s Biannual Conference next week. Ana Amorim will be the senior staff member atschool in my absence.CAR PARKINGThis seems to be a recurring theme in the newsletter but we all must cooperate andfollow simple instructions so the car pick up and drop off can run smoothly.Cars are not to enter the church side driveway and proceed up to the maincarpark. Cars are not permitted to park around the roundabout outside the church andgym. In the drop off zone, proceed as far as you can to the end of the zone beforedropping your child/children off. Children are to only cross at the designated crossing zones. If collecting children from the back gate, do not park on painted lines or acrossneighbours’ driveways.These instruction apply to all students and their families. Thanking you inanticipation. OPEN MORNING - ENROLMENT 2020This Saturday, 23rd March, between 9.00am and 11.00am, the school will be open for prospectivefamilies to visit. We are experiencing strong interest in our tours to date, which is fantastic. Ourwonderful school leaders are conducting many of these tours and the feedback from the parents isthat our students are very impressive. They are very articulate, polite and informative and for thiswe are very thankful.If you are of aware of any families looking for a school for their child for next year we ask that youplease encourage them to come along to this open morning and view our school.Likewise, if you have a child due to commence Prep next year, please collect an enrolment form fromthe office asap.Interviews will be held in May with appointments open for bookings in late April.ENRICHMENT AND CARE

STUDENT - PARENT – TEACHER GOAL SETTING DISCUSSIONSWe will be holding our Student/Parent/Teacher Goal Setting meetings on Wednesday, 3rd April.All students will finish school at 1.30pm and will need to be collected. Goal setting meetings willthen commence. These meetings are goal setting discussions where the teachers will share with youyour child’s progress to date and work on some further goals to improve their learning outcomesnext term. Details of how to log into the booking service will be sent home shortly.David DelaneyPrincipalOur amazing 2019 School Leaders.NAPLAN ON LINEKey dates for 2019 NAPLAN testing All Year 3 and 5 students will be participating in scheduled practice tests during Week 9 ofTerm1.Year 5 students on 25/3/19 Year 3 28/3/19A letter was sent home today, via your child’s school bag, to advise parents of the changes toNAPLAN testing.If you have any concerns regarding NAPLAN please contact your child’s teacher to discuss.ENRICHMENT AND CARE

DIARY DATES 2019MARCHMAY22nd Year 1 Swimming1stYr 5 & 6 Dance Progam23rd4thFirst Eucharist 6.00pm - 3OR5thFirst Eucharist 10.30am - 3OR6thYr 3 & 4 Footsteps Dance ProgramOpen School Morning (Saturday)9.00am—12.00pmEucharist Commitment Mass6.00pm24thEucharist Commitment Mass 10.30am25thYear 2 Swimming27thYear 5/6 Camp - Waratah Beach28thYear 5/6 Camp - Waratah Beach29thYear 5/6 Camp - Waratah BeachYear 1 Swimming1stSCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)2nd2020 Enrolment Information Evening7.00pm—8.00pm5th7thEltham District Cross Country8thYear 5 & 6 Dance Program10thMother’s Day Morning Tea11thFirst Eucharist 6.00pm - 3MP12thMother’s Day13thYr 3 & 4 Footsteps Dance Program14th NAPLAN (14th to 24th)APRIL3rdSCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)Student Goal Setting ConferencesStudents finish at 1.30pmEnd of Term 1. Finish at 1.30pmDaylight Savings ends19thGood Friday20thHoly Saturday21stEaster SundayYr 5 & 6 Dance Program17thSchool Closure—Report Writing Day20thYr 3 & 4 Footsteps Dance Program21stPEB Meeting 7.00pm– 8.00pm22nd Yr 5 & 6 Dance ProgramPrep Easter Bonnet Parade 9.15am7th15th27thYr 3 & 4 Footsteps Dance Program29thYr 5 & 6 Dance ProgramJUNE3rdBook Fair (3rd -7th)Yr 3 & 4 Footsteps Dance Program22nd Easter MondaySCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)23rd Term 2 CommencesYr 3 & 4 Footsteps Dance Program25thAnzac Day27thFirst Eucharist 6.00pm - 3ST28thFirst Eucharist 10.30am - 3ST29thYr 3 & 4 Footsteps Dance Program5thYr 5 & 6 Dance Program6thGrandparent’s Day10thQueen’s Birthday—Public Holiday12thYr 5 & 6 Dance Program13thBasket Supper at St Sava HallEnrolments are now being taken for Prep 2020.Families with siblings due to commence in 2020 can obtain enrolmentforms from the school office.Interviews will be held in May.ENRICHMENT AND CARE

DIARY DATES 2019JUNEOCTOBER18th6thDaylight Savings commences7thTerm 4 commencesConfirmation Faith Night - Yr 5/622nd Confirmation Commitment6.00pmMass,23rd27thMass, 10.30amConfirmation CommitmentSt Thomas Feast DaySCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)28th End of Term 2. Finish at 1.30pmJULY15th Term 3 commencesSCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)25thSchool Disco31stStudent Goal Setting Conferences8thReconciliation Faith Night Yr 2 7.00pm12thReconciliation Commitment Mass13thReconciliation Commitment Mass17thYear 4 Camp to Holy Cross18thYear 4 Camp to Holy Cross24thSports CarnivalNOVEMBER1stStudents finish at 1.30pmAll Saints Mass 9.15amGymnastics - Yr 3/4AUGUST5thSCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)13thPEB Meeting 7.00pm-8.00pm15thFeast of the Assumption19thBook Week commences (26th - 30th)26thBook Week Parade29thFather’s Day BreakfastSchool Closure — Report Writing Day5thMelbourne Cup Day8thGymnastics - Yr 3/411thRemembrance DaySCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)SEPTEMBER12thPrep Orientation (1/3)15thGymnastics - Yr 3/419thPrep Orientation (2/3)20thFirst Reconciliation 5.30pm & 7.00pm22nd Gymnastics - Yr 3/41stFather’s Day2ndSCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)4thArt Show11thConfirmation rehearsal at St Patrick’sCathedral26th13thConfirmation (Yr 5/6) at St Patrick’sthedral 7.00pm (Friday)20th4thFooty Day20th End of Term 3. Finish at 1.30pmPrep Orientation (3/3)DECEMBER2ndCa-Advent beginsSCA Meeting 7.30pm (staffroom)4thChristmas Carols Evening16thYear 6 Graduation Mass 6pm & Disco17th End of Term 4. Finish at 1.30pmENRICHMENT AND CARE

ENRICHMENT AND CARE

SCHOOLS CLEAN UP DAYThe Gardening focus for the students in Year 3/4 this term is ‘Caring for me, the kitchengarden and our school environment’. The project involved being actively involved in theClean Up Schools Day - an initiative of Clean Up Australia Day. St Thomas’ was registeredas an official clean up site for 2019. All Year 3/4 students participated in the Clean UpSchools Day on Tuesday as part of their Gardening program.Change starts with you!Congratulations to all the Year 3/4 students and teachers for their efforts on Schools CleanUp Day on Tuesday. The event was a great success. It helped give the school a thoroughclean up.To our surprise (and disappointment), we collected buckets full of rubbish from around theschool grounds, including discarded food wrappers, empty plastic drink bottles, tissues,plastic bags, bandaids, plastic wrap, foil, soft drink cans, and scraps of paper. Unfortunatelymost of the rubbish collected made its way to landfill, and only a small portion was able tobe recycled.The next step for the students is to work with me to look at ways to reduce waste at StThomas the Apostle school. Families can start by taking part in a ‘nude food’ rubbish freelunch challenge. That is, packing a nude food, rubbish free, lunchbox every day for yourchild/ren.NUDE FOOD A HEALTHY BODY HEALTHY PLANETENRICHMENT AND CARE

CLEAN UP SCHOOLS DAYENRICHMENT AND CARE

CARLY’S BIG GROUP HUG DRIVEENRICHMENT AND CARE

ENRICHMENT AND CARE

President’s UpdateThe SCA has met twice this year with some very healthy discussions about the year ahead. I wouldpersonally like to thank everyone in the community who responded to the survey that wentout. It is fair to say we have learnt a lot from the data which will go a long way in helping us withplanning 2019.As you can see below Easter is around the corner. Your children would have brought home a flyerwith some tickets attached by now. Please ensure that your raffle money is returned by Friday,29th March, to ensure your chance to win some yummy chocolate hampers. I don’t think you will bedisappointed by the hampers thanks to Chocolatier. It would be good to see a nice turn out at theassembly on Monday, 1st April.Icy Pole Fridays will continue until the end of the term and has been a hit with the children asusual. Please use the link to SignUp to volunteer if you have 45 minutes on a Friday.(http://signup.com/go/WYkuxnK). We are trialling this new tool SignUp.com as a more effective wayto register for volunteer and coordinator roles for each event this year. Some of you would recognisethis from the Fete last year.Also, as Term 1 comes to a close, remember that Hot Food Friday’s will start on Friday, 3rd May.You would have seen the forms come home for volunteers. Please let Nat know your availability.The one exciting thing I can reveal is that the new T-Pee ‘climbing frame’ which the SCA raisedmoney for and committed to last year, will be up and ready when the children come back from Easter holidays. It will be very exciting to see the results of all the community’s hard work.As mentioned above, the survey results have given the SCA a lot to think about, which is why therehas not been a full schedule of events released as yet. I can promise you though, after our next meeting on Monday, 1st April that you will: see a full plan for the year what we are raising money forIf you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to email stthomassca@gmail.com orcatch one of the team at school drop off or pick up.ThanksCarl BreitenbachSCA PresidentENRICHMENT AND CARE

Happy Birthday to the following students who celebrated their birthdays this week18th March - 25th MarchAlexander W, Emily T, Sonny B, Milla S & Luke SENRICHMENT AND CARE