St Monica's Primary North Parramatta Newsletter

School start time is 8:50 am.  Parents are advised that the gates will be closed after the morning bell at 8:50 am. 
Students arriving after 8:50 am will need to be signed in at the office via Daking Street.  

Thurs 27 August (W6)           St Monica's Feast Day Celebrations
Wed 2 September  (W7)       Fathers' Day Gift orders due 9am
Wed 2 September (W7)        Mufti Day - Caritas Appeal               
Fri 4 September (W7)           Fathers' Day Liturgy (live-streamed)    
Fri 25 September (W10)       Staff Development Day

Term 4 

Fri 6 November (W4)            Staff Development Day
Thurs 17 December (W10)  Staff Development Day
Fri 18 December (W10)        Staff Development Day

Dear Parents and Carers,

The Tell Them From Me (TTFM) Partners in Learning survey has been extended until Friday 28 August.  If you have not yet completed the survey we invite you to do so as soon as possible. 

As we value the role of parents and carers within our school community we would greatly appreciate your feedback.

The information you provide will be used to maintain our commitment to working together in partnership to further improve student learning and wellbeing at St Monica’s Primary, North Parramatta.

The survey is anonymous and will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. 

You are able to access the parent survey on your computer or mobile device by using the URL below:

www.tellthemfromme.com/smnp2020

Many thanks for your continuing support,

Lisa Howell and Mary-Anne Stenning

If your child is absent from school, one of the following must be done before they may return to school: 

If they displayed flu-like symptoms during their absence or were sent home with flu-like symptoms:

● Return a negative COVID-19 test and be symptom free.   Provide us with a copy of the NSW Health or COVID-19 Testing Centre correspondence (e.g. SMS screenshot or email).

If they were suffering from a medical condition without flu-like symptoms:

● Provide us with a Medical Certificate or Letter from a Medical Practitioner, clearly detailing medical condition and clearance to return to school.

If they were absent due to a non-medical reason:

● Provide us with a detailed description of the absence.

Thank you for your support and understanding as we continue to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our community.

Happy birthday to the following students and staff who celebrated birthdays in July and August!

Fathers' Day Gifts are available for purchase.   

Please select from the options below.

Gifts range from $3-$7.

PLEASE NOTE:

• Limit of 3 gifts per family.
• Limit of one of each item.
• Colour/style selection will be random.

When items have sold out, they will be removed from the order form. First in, best dressed.

Orders are due by 9am on Wednesday 2nd September. 2nd round orders (if any gifts left) will be accepted on Thursday 3rd September.

Orders will be sent home from school on Friday 4th September with your child/ren.  

EXACT MONEY needs to be in a sealed ziplock bag or envelope with your eldest child's name on it,  before Friday 4th September.    
Change will not be provided.

Please note that gifts will not be sent home until payment has been received.  

2020 Fathers' Day Gifts Order Form  available here.

Thank you.

On Mondays at St Monica’s, from now until the end of Term 3, students will get the privilege of enjoying tennis lessons from professional coaches provided to us from Tennis Australia.

On Monday they had their first lesson and thoroughly enjoyed themselves along with demonstrating some amazing skills.

We look forward to seeing what they can achieve by the end of the term. 

Mrs Lauren Hartz
Leader of Learning / Sports Co-ordinator

Parents who have missed the registration for the Sacrament of Reconciliation for their children are requested to please contact the Sacramental Co-ordinator ASAP via stmonicasacraments@gmail.com

Next Wednesday, 2nd September, we are inviting the students of St Monica’s to wear mufti to raise money for the Caritas Appeal for victims of the disaster in Lebanon. We understand that this might be a difficult time for families financially, and so we are inviting all students to participate in our Mufti Day, however, donations are voluntary and we ask that, if you choose to make a donation, that you determine the amount based on your family’s circumstances. 

Please ensure that students wear appropriate clothing and enclosed footwear on the day.

Thank you for your ongoing support as we reach out to those who are suffering in our world.

Therese Coutinho

Religious Education Coordinator

On Thursday, 27th August, during our St Monica's Feast Day liturgy, seven of our students will be initiated into the Catholic Church. These children have spent the past three months preparing to receive these sacraments and we ask that you pray for them as they begin their new life as a part of our Church community and God’s family.

The children that will be receiving the sacraments are: Menuk Gunawardena, Parmida Foroutan, Zi Han Lin, Ziyang Lin, Ava Cong, Jonathan Cong, and Theo Choi.

They were also joined by Nika Naeme who attended our formation sessions after already having received the sacraments and wanting to know more about the Catholic faith.

We are all very proud of the work they have put in to learning more about the Sacraments of initiation and we look forward to sharing this joyous occasion with them.

Therese Coutinho

Religious Education Coordinator

                                   LIBRARY TIMES  

Monday-Thursday: 8.30am-8.50am  (OPEN TO ALL CLASSES)

Extra Borrowing Times for Classes:

Monday:     YEAR 2  Recess 

Tuesday:    YEAR 1   Lunch 

Wednesday: STAGE 2 & YEAR 5 Recess

Thursday:   ES1 & YEAR 6 Lunch (storytime)

We have a great range of new books in the library to suit all age levels

Please encourage your children to come & borrow - 
a ‘bee’ for their class reward jar is given when a student borrows a book and then another given when the book is returned!

Mrs Rita Davino, Library Assistant

“We are SAFE, RESPECTFUL LEARNERS”

Students have been working hard to earn "bees" from teachers acknowledging the appropriate behaviour they see in the classroom and on the playground. 

Each grade/stage is rewarded with a fun classroom game or an extra 5 minutes of play as soon as they fill their class jar. 

Students encourage each other to contribute to the class jar so a whole class reward can be enjoyed. 

Bees can also be earned in the library when borrowing & returning books and even when students visit the office and display respectful behaviour!

The outdoor bee boxes are closely monitored by students to see who will be the next winner and what fun activity they will get to enjoy. 

Mrs Rita Davino on behalf of the PBS4L Committee

Thank you to our Lifesavers for Week 5 & 6.

For Week 5, we would like to thank: Maureen, William, Lola, Ashleigh, Siria, Riana, Sara, Noah, Liam, Peter, Ashton, Zi Han, Michael, Gabbi, Charlie, Charlize, Abbi, Theo, Max, Menuk, Ruby K, Max and Andrew.

For Week 6, we would like to thank:  Ashleigh, Charbel, Aimee-Akiko, Madeline, L’Lysse, Kristian, Theresa, Sophie, Monica, Theo, Gabbi, Parmida, Nika, Maureen, Simon, Samuel, Ryan, Nathan, Manson, Alicia and Tiara.

Therese Coutinho, Ivana Algeri and Kellee Bagnall

Stage 3 Team

From Tricky Behaviours by Andrew Fuller (Child Psychologist)

https://www.generationnext.com.au/2020/08/tricky-behaviours/#respond

A pledge to my child

To my dear son or daughter,

I am your parent. I am NOT the hired help, the locator of all lost socks or an open-all-hours convenience store that delivers anything you could ever wish for. I repeat, I am your parent.

This means there are times that I will use the word ‘No’. This means what it sounds like. You will not like it when I use this word.

There will be times that you think you hate me. There will be times that you think I am the worst parent on earth. There may be times that you are right, even though you won’t hear me admit it.

As a parent I am responsible for raising you to be a decent human being who treats themselves and others with tolerance and respect.

That is my job and I take it on willingly because I love you and want the best for you. This means that I will watch you with a level of surveillance that most spy agencies would envy. I will track you like a bloodhound. I will check whether you have schoolwork to do and whether you are doing it to the best of your ability.

I want you to have as many moments of sheer delight as possible, however, my job is to prepare you for real life. It may surprise you to learn that you will not blitz every test at school, be picked for the leading role in every play, be the best player in the team, win every award or be invited to every birthday party. These are not failures. This is real life. I won’t like these setbacks any more than you will. In my heart I would love you to have an endless progression of unwavering success but I know that having setbacks helps you to be humble, to try harder and to acknowledge others. They also make you stronger in the future.

Disappointments forge determination and increase the likelihood you will be able to go some way towards supporting me in my more senior years.

In the house that I work to pay for there will be rules and there will be jobs to do. You will not like all of these rules and you certainly won’t like all of the jobs. These rules are in place so I do not go crazy while raising you. These jobs are there so you can learn that responsible people make a positive contribution to others.

You have the right to argue with me. You do not have the right to remain silent or brush me off with vague comments like ‘Don’t know’, ‘As if’ or ‘That’s so random …’

I’m sure we are going to get along just fine. Through all this please know that I love you for who you are and will continue to do so even if you stuff up.

Love, your parent

 

Parents are requested to drive safely and slowly through the Kiss and Drop Zone.  It has been noticed that some cars are moving very quickly (on the left) while other parents are stopped to let their children out of their car in the mornings.  To ensure the safety of our students please observe the speed limit and drive safely. 

Dear Parents/Carers 

All Volunteers have until 30 September 2020 to submit a new Undertaking in the new system. 

In Catholic Education Diocese Parramatta (CEDP), we see parents and carers as partners in your child's learning journey. Parents and carers are encouraged to become involved in our schools in many important ways such as supporting classroom learning, being part of advisory groups, mentoring programs, coaching sporting teams and supporting other extra-curricular activities, canteen support and other kinds of help.

 A range of checks and undertakings are required for people who work for or provide services to CEDP. These checks reduce potential risk and form part of our strategy to build child safe communities.

CEDP has launched a new Building Child Safe Communities form and online training module that all volunteers are required to complete. 

The purpose of this training is to inform you of the standards of behaviour and other requirements that must be adhered to when volunteering for CEDP.

The undertaking should take no more than 5 minutes to complete and the training module approximately 10 minutes. Once the form and training modules are submitted, an automated email will be sent to you within two business days to confirm the status of your submission.

The undertaking form will expire within two years or when your Working With Children Check expires (if applicable), whichever is sooner.  At that time you will need to complete the undertaking form and training module again. You will receive an automatic reminder email when this occurs. 

Further information on the new online form and training module can be found at www.parra.catholic.edu.au and clicking on About Us/Building Child Safe Communities.  Within the form you will also find help sheets and a video tutorial to assist you. 

Thank you in advance for your support.

Lisa Howell
Principal

Has your child lost clothing at school?  It is easy to return items that are clearly marked with a child’s name but we have many items where the name is not very clear and some which do not have any name on them at all.

Please check that all your children’s belongings are clearly labelled so that they can be returned to your child (including lunch boxes and drink bottles).