Dear Families,

Thank you for your support in keeping students at home who are showing cold and flu-like symptoms and for informing the school of positive cases for COVID. As of this week, the ACT government has changed the way RATs are distributed in schools. The school has a small number of Rapid Antigen Tests that will be distributed in consultation with staff and families in specific situations as the need arises. If you require a RAT for your child, please contact the school office.

A new COVID map was released by the ACT government last week. The great news is, we are now allowed to hold excursions and camps. I know a number of classes have already booked excursions for next term and Year 5 and 6 are looking forward to attending camp. If you have any questions or concerns with COVID-19 restriction requirements please don’t hesitate to contact the school.

Cyber Safety
Periodically we see a rise in inappropriate messaging and online bullying occurring outside of school. While the school does run programs and lessons with students about online safety and the importance of being kind online, sadly, some students continue to make poor choices online. We know other students who see this often feel obliged to tell other students or the student it is about about what they have seen online, but this can often inflame the situation and make the victim feel worse. Instead, we recommend that those who see it either call out the behaviour if they feel comfortable and safe in doing so, and to let an adult know. Sadly, the school has no control over what happens at home. However, if you feel that inappropriate online behaviour is impacting on your child we recommend you contact the e-safety commissioner and report online abuse https://www.esafety.gov.au/. If this online behaviour, or repercussions is continuing while your child is at school or carrying over into the schoolyard or classroom, please contact your child’s teacher, Mrs Myles or myself.

Interim Reports
Interim Report will be sent home on Thursday. These reports are an opportunity for parents and carers to gain an idea of how students are tracking in this early part of the year. The reports provide information about students' performance in Religious Education, English and Mathematics, as well as general learning behaviours. If the reports raise any concerns for you, I encourage you to speak with your child’s teacher.

Take care and God bless

Yours in Faith

Leah Taylor
Principal

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

We thank you for your cooperation.

On Friday the 25^th, eight Year 6 students participated in the daVinci Decathlon.  This was a virtual competition this year, run by Canberra Grammar School, with 18 schools competing in the Year 5/6 division. Students worked as a team through ten challenging papers throughout the day, including Art and Poetry, Engineering, Maths, Cartography, English, General Knowledge and more.

The opportunity to collaborate and use each other’s knowledge was taken on board with enthusiasm by this group.  It was wonderful to see them specifically going to certain members of the team, they knew were experts in an area, opening up questions to the group, brainstorming ideas together, jumping from one paper to another to support fellow team members and continuously showing persistence and resiliency to keep diligently working. 

The team should be proud of the way they worked together to achieve as much as they could in the time given.  I was impressed by the leadership skills shown by the identified leaders of each paper and ability to work collaboratively and push themselves to the limit, so much so that they were absolutely exhausted by the end of the day.  No matter where we place in this competition, the team should all be very proud of themselves!

2B will be celebrating their Black Token Reward on Wednesday, 30th March. We will enjoy a movie and students are welcome to come to school in sunsmart free dress. 

Please note that we are no longer able to source plastic cutlery. Please ensure that you provide cutlery to your children to use during the day as we are seeing an increase in the number of children requiring spoons and forks. As it becomes increasingly difficult to source plastics, we would appreciate it if you would kindly provide these from home.

At St Thomas Aquinas Primary School we encourage healthy eating. Our afternoon eating time allows children to munch and crunch on fruits and vegetables to help feed the brain for a happy learning afternoon. We ask that all children be provided with a healthy snack option in their lunchbox. We do have a small amount of fruit available at the front office but our supplies are currently not keeping up with the demand in children requiring a healthy snack. We appreciate your efforts in supporting your children's healthy eating habits. 

Further, it is essential that every child has a drink bottle filled with water only. Did you know that drinking water and staying hydrated increases a child's ability to multitask and improves their reaction times!

             

Community News is located on our website.

	Chair: Vice Chair: Treasurer: Secretary: Fete Committee: Parent Representative: Parent Representative: Parent Representative: Teacher Representative:	Loryn Reynolds Amelia Swinbourn Kirsten Clark-Drance Natasha Williamson Stacey Campbell Max Urack Aurora Lukass Simon Dixon Michael Prosper
Please contact the SCC via email:  sta.school.community.council@gmail.com

Your SCC representatives met on 22 March 2022 - our first face to face meeting of the year!  

We discussed the following items:

• Oval remediation and developments
• Upcoming NAPLAN tests for Years 3 and 5
• New ELC building progress
• Opened the SCC Teacher's Grant program for applications
• Teacher training opportunities (various)
• New furniture for senior class rooms
• Covid impacts on events - athletics carnival, school camps, etc

The SCC was excited to provide delicious cupcakes with red icing for students to celebrate Father Tom's 70th birthday last Thursday.  Happy Birthday, Father Tom!

The second hand clothing pool will continue to be open on Monday mornings before school and Wednesday afternoons until 3:30pm.

Our next meeting is in Term 2 so if you're keen or even just curious about the SCC, we'd love to welcome new council members to our cohort.  It's a great way to be part of the school community and meet other parents and teachers.

If you have any questions or would like to raise anything with the SCC, please contact us via email:  sta.school.community.council@gmail.com

After receiving over 5,000 student poems and planting over 5,000 trees last year, we're thrilled to be launching the POEM FOREST Prize 2022 in celebration of World Poetry Day and International Day of Forests. 

Red Room Poetry and The Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan invite you to enter the POEM FOREST Prize and use your words to create positive climate action.

Visit the POEM FOREST webpage for full details. Your Nature poems can be entered via the online form (closing 23 September 2022)

Did you know....

• A tree is planted for every poem received
• $5,000 in prizes to win including $500 cash for each category, book packs from Magabala Books, Pantera Press and Wonderground as well as Garden tours, plants, seeds and more
• Digital publication for all entries and selected poems published in the POEM FOREST 

Thanks for helping us to grow the POEM FOREST and heal habitats for future generations.

We can’t to read your poems!

Questacon Science Circus is bringing over 40 exciting science and technology exhibits to PCYC Queanbeyan on Saturday 2 April! Spin yourself dizzy, test your reflexes against a Formula 1 driver, and explore your fingertips under the microscope! Spectacular science shows for the whole family will be performed throughout the day.

What: Questacon Science Circus Pop-up Science Centre
Where: PCYC Queanbeyan
When: Saturday April 2, 10am – 3pm 

General admission sessions start every fifteen minutes from 10:00 am - 2:15 pm, to ensure staggered entry.

Spots are limited so grab your FREE tickets now by clicking the link below!
https://premier.ticketek.com.au/Shows/Show.aspx?sh=QUESTCIR21

Please note, every person attending the science centre (including babies and young children) must have a ticket. Children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult.

For more information visit our Facebook event https://fb.me/e/1cyyQ0NUG

Parent Talk newsletter is distributed electronically twice a term by the Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT (CCSP).  The newsletter aims to provide parents and carers with relevant and timely information about developments in education, wellbeing, CCSP advocacy program and significant Catholic news and events.  Find the latest online newsletter here.

We encourage families to subscribe to the newsletter to keep up to date with the latest information from CCSP.

For further information please contact Sarah Rose, Family Engagement Officer on Sarah.Rose@cg.catholic.edu.au or 0447 888 326 or Service Area Leader, Tim Elliott on Tim.Elliott@cg.catholic.edu.au or 0409 042 130.

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, via Subway Envelope, at school.  Subway envelopes, including cash, need to be placed in the Lunch Order Subway box, located outside the Front Office,  by 9:30am on the day before the lunch is required.  For example, if you would like a lunch order on Wednesday, the lunch order needs to be manually submitted by Tuesday 9:30am.

Here is a sample of the Subway ordering envelope.  Envelopes are available from the Front Office or the classroom.

The White Token Lunch for Term 1 will be held on Thursday 6th April 2023.  If your child has received a White Token this term, they will have already received an invitation.  All RSVP's must be received no later than Monday 3rd April 2023. 

MARCH 2022
Congratulations to the following students who will be celebrating their birthday this month:

Sebastian C, Zach B, Henry B, Zeke F, Molly WS, Levi W, Sofia A, Marian R, Isaac R, Aseem H, Jayson T, Aarav S, Aryan S, Krystof M, Samuel A, Ruby R, Ellie H, Layne M, Cameron C, Astrid F, Travis GT, Laurence GT, Amboz B, Zara B, Ashlyn T,
Kupakwashe M, Sofia A, Archie W, Maxine M, May R

APRIL 2022

Chaia L, Indie-Rose H, Riley S, Ryan S, Thor S, Charlotte S, Jessica J, Kael A, Parker W, Mackenzie S, Estelle W, Poppy R, Eric H, Zeus B, Anon Diing, Melinda M, Miranda G