Dear Families,

Students have settled very well into the new school year. I would like to thank you for your support in this regard. As a parent, I know first hand how challenging it can be to get children back into the school routine and the staff greatly appreciate the efforts you have gone to to ensure children are in bed early and up and dressed in full school uniform each day.

Today we farewelled Fr Drinkwater. Fr Drinkwater was a constant within the school and always worked very closely with the Principals and Religious Education Coordinators to ensure that the school was an integral part of the parish. This strong connection was continued with the support of Fr Tom and continues still with Fr Gerard. It was a feature of the school that the registration panel commented on last year for our most recent registration and noted as the closest connection any panel member has ever seen. The students reverently lined Lhotsky St to give Fr Drinkwater one final farewell.

I want to thank the many families who provided a plate of food for Fr Drinkwater’s wake. This generosity was greatly appreciated by the school and the mourners, many of whom had gone through the school over its 48 years of operation.

Tonight, we will have our Meet and Greet. This will be a wonderful opportunity for parents and carers to meet their child/ren’s teacher. We will meet in the hall so that everyone can be introduced to all of our new staff, then families will be able to visit classrooms. It has been a while since we have been able to open the school up, and I am looking forward to being able to do this again this year with Goal setting meetings in Week 4 of this term and Learning Journeys in Term 3.

There are always a number of notes to look over at the beginning of the year. Notes for the swimming carnival went out to families with students in Years 3-6 last night. If you have a child in Year 2 who swims competitively and you would like them to be included in the swimming carnival, could you please contact their class teacher to let them know so a note can be sent home via COMPASS. The ICT permission note will be coming to your inboxes shortly, again it is important that we have these back as soon as possible as students across the school need to access iPads and Chromebooks for testing and as part of the broader curriculum.

Take care and God bless

Yours in Faith

Access Canberra speed and parking operations in School Zones

The start of the school year is a particularly busy time in our school carparks and surrounding streets. To help keep students safe when making their way to and from school, please ensure you drive and park safely and legally, at and around, school grounds. We all have an important role to play in supporting road safety. Access Canberra has notified us that mobile speed and parking vans will be in operation to support our students’ safety. These enforcement teams play a critical role in supporting our students get to and from school safely and we thank them for their ongoing support. In addition to sticking to the speed limit, please remember to park safely – including not parking across pedestrian crossings, in no stopping zones, on corners, verges and double parking. Unsafe and illegal parking can reduce visibility of our students and motorists to see each other, creating a significant hazard when students cross the road. Let’s work together to keep our kids safe.

Please note that our two disabled parking spots located at the front of the main car park are soley for the purpose of those who hold a Disabled Carparking Permit. Please ensure that these spots remain available for those who require it. These parking spots are not for pick up and drop off.

We appreciate your assistance.

 

Please note that there is no supervision before 8:30am and after 3:20pm, unless the school has been notified of an emergency.

Students who need care outside these hours are able to use the services of OSHC (Outside School Hours Care).  For legal and safety reasons, children should not be on the school premises before 8:30am and must depart the school grounds as soon as they are released from school, unless they are attending our OSHC facility, ELC or are involved in a school arranged activity such as school sports training.

STUDENT ARRIVALS/DEPARTURES

Please note that it is a legal requirement for schools to keep attendance records of students, and records of student late arrivals and early departures from school.

Students Arriving Late for School

• It is preferrable that all students arrive at school by 8:50am to ensure that they have greeted their friends and teacher, been marked off rolls, and are abreast of their daily activities.  Whilst we understand that this is not always possible, for many reasons, this is an important part of the day for all students.
  
  
• Students arriving at school after 9.00am must enter via the Front Office with their parent /guardian who is required to sign them in using the COMPASS Kiosk. Please do not enter late arrivals  into the parent portal.
  
  
• Please do not drop-off your child off on the black top as this is a safety issue after 8:50am.

Students Leaving Early from School

• No child is permitted to leave the school grounds during school hours without a teacher/parent/guardian.
  
  
• If you are aware that you are picking your child up early on a particular day, please advise their teacher or the Front Office by providing a note.  Please be mindful that teachers are often unable to view emails/online info during class time. Please do not enter a note in the Compass portal. 
  
  
• Parents wishing to collect their child early must report to the Front Office where they will sign the child out using the COMPASS Kiosk 
  
  
• Please do not pick up a student between 2:45pm and 3:00pm unless it is an emergency.  The Front Office and classrooms are generally very busy at this time and locating and calling students over the class phone, or the school speaker, is disruptive for all.  

Thank you for your cooperation.

Information regarding bus services available to our students can be found on the Transport Canberra website found here.

Please note that these are not dedicated school bus services for our school.

The new bus timetables relevant to our school here - St Thomas Aquinas Primary School - Bus Route

Please note that school fees and information regarding payment will be sent out by Friday 10th February. 

We thank you for your cooperation.

The Catholic Education Office of Canberra and Goulburn (CEOCG) policy on the Medical Welfare of Students is below:

Medical_Information_and_Consent_Form_2023.pdf.  This form must be completed by a parent/guardian for each student, if they have a medical condition, and returned to the school by the end of Week 3.

Depending on your child's medical condition, we may require you to complete additional forms which can be found below.

• Medical Form 1 - Request to Dispense Medication During School Hours
  This form is to be completed by Parents/Guardians for all medications to be administered during school hours, in addition to Medical Plans if applicable.
• Medical Form 2 - Deed of Indemnity
  This form is to be completed by Parents/Guardians for the administering/dispensing of Schedule 8 Drugs.
• Medical Form 3 - Medical Advice to School
  This form is to be completed by the prescribing Doctor if a Medical/Health Plan is not provided. 

Some medical conditions require more complex Health Care Plans including those with asthma, Type 1 diabetes, epilepsy, anaphylaxis or other more complex health procedures.

• An individual health care plan must be developed, and approved by a qualified medical practitioner, for any student:
  • diagnosed with severe asthma, type 1 diabetes, epilepsy or anaphylaxis
  • diagnosed as being at risk of an emergency, or
  • who requires ongoing administration of health care procedures.
• Any medication that is provided to the school must have an expiry date of 2024, where possible.  We understand that some medications have a short expiry date.

Please note that schools do not dispense analgesic substances for pain relief without prior approval from the parent or guardian.  Aspirin, or medications containing Aspirin, can only be administered with written authorisation by the student's doctor. Schedule 8 drugs include Codeine, Concerta and Ritalin.

At St Thomas Aquinas, as at all Catholic schools, we have a strict uniform policy.  Full details relating to uniforms can be found on our website here.

Some people question the importance of uniforms at school and would prefer the school to focus on other things. We believe that by focusing on uniform we eliminate a lot of unnecessary worry for students and families, so we are able to focus on what is important. Here are just some of the reasons why all ACT Catholic schools insist on a school uniform:

• Uniforms are a great equaliser
• School uniforms promote learning
• They nourish a sense of equality
• School uniforms promote a feeling of community
• They make it easier to get ready for school
• School uniforms improve safety

Families are reminded that the school uniforms for summer are the following:

Boys School: Sky blue polo shirt with school logo and navy dress shorts with navy socks, black leather (or leather like) school shoes.

Girls School: Maroon checked dress or sky blue polo shirt with school logo and navy dress short with white ankle height socks, black leather (or leather like) school shoes.

Sport: Both boys and girls will wear the same sport uniform.  Navy shorts (optional navy netball skirt for girls) and Sky/Navy sports knit shirt with school logo. Year 6 students may wear their Year 6 shirt.  Runners/Gym shoes/Sneakers for sports days only.

This year the uniform policy will be strictly enforced. If you are unable to afford a uniform, please contact the Front Office and we can support you in purchasing the correct uniform.

At STA we have a NO HAT/NO PLAY policy.  STA now sell school hats at the Front Office.  We have them in Small, Medium and Large and they cost $15 each.  They can be purchased via BPay, Eftpos or Qkr.

February Birthdays

Jack B, Seneca B, August S, Jed G, Nevaeh M, Jack P, Aditya P, Lilly H, Bradley L-B, Jessica R, Skylar W, Jaana C, Abbey T, Violet P, Evelyn F, Lu’isa T, Audrey K, Savanna H, Annabel L, Oliver T, Isaac H, Qunley Y

Hi, I am Sally, and I am the new counsellor at St Thomas.

I have been working in the community sector for 15 years. I have worked with children and families who have experienced trauma, sexual abuse, family violence, grief and loss and mental health issues. Previously coming to St Thomas, I worked for Marymead as the clinical lead in the post separation program.

Currently I work in my private counselling practice working predominantly with children and young people experiencing mental health issues.

I will be working at St Thomas in term 3, Thursday and Friday and term 4 Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. You might also see my therapy dog Summer, the beautiful golden retriever around.

I am located just past the front office. Please feel free to contact me via the main office or fill in a referral form online or from the front office if you need to access support. Alternatively, you can email me at sally.cox@mccg.org.au.

Kids are back at school and thus begins our life of drop-offs and pick-ups, packing lunch boxes, after-school lessons, cooking dinner and ensuring they are well-fed while sticking to the bedtime schedule! Not to mention keeping up with their rapid developmental changes, varying emotions,  experiences and behaviours! In this busy, chaotic time it may become challenging to find time to pause, connect and bond with our children as we try to do the best for them every single day. Here is an article that I hope you may find useful to not let family connection time slip through as we strive to balance the fine art of parenting.

Vrushali
School Counsellor

Kindergarten Health Checks were carried out at school last Term. If your child missed their check up, catch-up appointments are available at City Health Centre, 1 Moore Street Canberra City on the second floor.

Appointments can be made by ringing Community Health Intake on 51249977.

If you have any questions, please contact the School Health Team office on 51241585.

CANTEEN

The Canteen is open from Wednesdays to Fridays - for the first 10 minutes of each break.  We sell a limited selection of healthy canteen approved chips and ice blocks.

SUBWAY

Parents and staff are able to place Subway Orders Online.  Click on the link below to place an order and payment as well. 

Cut-off time is 9:15 AM for same day delivery.
Call on 02 6259 9101 to place your order after this time

Subway Lunch Orders can also be made, directly with Subway.

PLEASE NOTE THAT WE NO LONGER HAVE THE FACILITIES TO ACCEPT SUBWAY ORDERS AT SCHOOL.