Dear Families,

I would like to begin by congratulating our Year 6 leaders for the wonderful way they conducted themselves at the Leadership Mass on Friday. They are a great credit to you and the school and have already contributing well to our beautiful school culture. On Friday, I spoke about Jesus calling his disciples. Jesus didn’t call people who were always perfect, they didn’t start out saints. And so, we are called to look out for those who might not be the most popular and to look out for them, to welcome everyone and let them know that we care about them too.

Each year, Year 6 students have to complete a number of tasks to demonstrate they have the qualities and desire to be a leader at St Thomas Aquinas. All students applied themselves to this task and I am pleased to say, they all completed these tasks well before the Leadership Mass. All students received their leadership shirts on Friday, and it was wonderful to see them wearing them by lunch break! I thank Mrs Thomas, Mr Smith and Miss Barry for preparing the Leadership Mass and the students for this Mass.

SRC
Today, Mrs Michelle Mason met with our Student Representative Council. The SRC is made up of one elected member from each class from Year 2 to Year 6. This SRC will provide advice for student-led projects throughout the school.

NAPLAN
Information about this year’s NAPLAN is provided in this week’s newsletter. Years 3 and 5 will complete NAPLAN earlier this year commencing in Week 7. This earlier date and the fact that all tests are online will enable ACARA to provided information for parents and schools earlier in the year which will allow us to use this information to support or extend students where necessary. At St Thomas Aquinas, we also use this NAPLAN data to assess the effectiveness of programs across the school. This year’s Year 3 students will be the first cohort of students to have had Initialit for Kindergarten (albeit from halfway through the year) to Year 2 and to had Connecting Math Concepts (CMC) in Year 2 and Year 3.

Fete
Planning for the Fete meeting is well underway with our first parent fete meeting to be held this Thursday. If you would like to be part of this great community event and have not had a chance to respond or email, I encourage you to come along and hear about the big or small ways you might be able to contribute. It has been over three years since we have held our last school fete and I for one am looking forward to finally being able to be part of this event.

Lent
This week, we begin Lent. This is a time for reflection and penance. It can be a little tricky for some children (and adults) to understand what Lent is about. Many think it is just about giving something up, but it is so much more. We fast or give things up to help us attune our thoughts back to God, but we can do this in other ways too. Prayer is a wonderful way to reflect on what God is asking of us, as are acts of service. I encourage you to talk to your children about ways they can be more like Jesus and serve those around them.

Take care and God bless

Yours in Faith

What you need to know:

All students in Kinder, Year 1 and Year 2 (excluding those competitive swimmers born in 2015 who will be attending the swimming carnival) will have the opportunity to participate in the STA Water Fun Day. Students will participate in a range of activities that will involve water.

When: Friday 24^th February @ 2pm

What does your child need:  A towel, a change of clothes for those students going to OSH and a can-do attitude! Students can wear clothes that they don’t mind getting wet. Please wear SunSmart clothing, slogans and images need to be appropriate and closed shoes must be worn.

Parents and carers are welcome to attend and watch the water fun event. If you are free and would like to volunteer some time to assist with the setting up, running and packing up. Please get in touch with Mrs Black at the Front Office. You do need to hold a valid WWVP Card, and you must be registered at the front office before the commencement of the event.

If you have any queries about the Water Fun Day, please do not hesitate to get in touch your child’s classroom teacher.

Many Thanks
Megan Thomas
STA Sport Coordinator

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, 

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.

  

Reading Challenges

Congratulations to our bonus prize winners from our Summer Reading Challenge:

Erin H 1G

Isabel P 1G

Nella W-S 2G

Lincoln D 2G

Elizabeth H 5B

Flourish O 5G

Samuel S 6B

Anthony S 6G

It’s now time to begin the Chief Minister’s Reading Challenge, which requires students to read and record 30 books.

A paper copy of the challenge will come home with each student by the end of Week 3. It’s a good idea to keep the reading challenge sheet on the fridge to keep adding to as you read. The reading challenge sheets are due back to the library by 11^th August 2023. Every student who hands in the completed challenge will receive a yellow token. Winning schools will win book vouchers for the library.

Happy reading,
Mrs Hind

CULTIVATING KINDNESS IN OUR CHILDREN

Kindness is being friendly, generous, and considerate to others and ourselves. By being kind we are spreading happiness and joy to the world around us. Kindness can be as simple as a warm smile, a friendly nod or a word of encouragement. Research suggests that people who give to others even in small ways tend to be happier. We can promote kindness in our children through open conversations, being kind to others in their presence, and engaging in simple everyday actions that will bring joy to the lives of others as well as our own. Here's an interesting monthly plan to foster kindness as a value in our children. You can print this off, put it on your fridge and encourage your child/ren to engage in the activity. Remember to check in with your child/ren to see how they feel after an act of kindness :)

Vrushali
School Counsellor