From the Principal

Dear families,

I trust everyone is relaxed after the EXTRA long weekend. I also hope we are all ready for the next few weeks as we slowly whined down an amazing but very busy 2023. We have many fun and exciting events upcoming in the lead up to the end of the school year. Please make sure you continue to be across all of the relevant information as it comes to hand. 

As we have now welcomed our Preps for 2024 and have a number of new families in our community, I am introducing a "Staff Profile" tab in the newsletter. We will work our way through all the staff over the end of this year and early next year. In today's newsletter, I am the staff member is profile. I hope you enjoy my profile and learn a little more about Mr Mc. 

Production Premier!!

It is finally time! The premier of our Production "The Reluctant Dragon" will take place on Friday 1st of December. An Operoo was send home late last week with information about times and ticket prices. We hope to see as many families there as possible. 

School Camp! Year 5 and 6:

Early next Month, students from years 5 and 6 will head into the city for our biannual City Camp. The students have had lots of input into what the camp will look like and I am sure they cannot wait for the 7th of December to board the train and head into CYC City Camp. An information session will be held for parents on November 29th at 6:30pm. This will be held on Zoom. A link will be shared a few days before hand. 

Year 6 Fun Day:

Every year Graduation time is exciting. This year is no different. The year 6 students will be celebrated for all they have contributed to our school, they will also get to have a little bit of fun. On Wednesday 6th of December, they will head into the City and have a fun day at Luna Park. The year 6's are selling Zooper Doopers every Friday to help cover the cost of this day. 

Little Angler Fishing Gear:

Please see the below information as to why our Year 5 students all received Little Angler Fishing Gear. 

Chicken Run:

Big thank you to Steve Hermans who worked over the long weekend to construct our Chicken Run. We are not in a rush to go out and buy the chickens as we want to focus some of the children's learning in early 2024 around sustainability and how to best care for the animals. 

STM Community Picnic:

Over the past 3 years our STM Community Picnic has become a very popular event for families as we have some relaxing downtime together as a community. This year the event will be held on Wednesday 6th of November (I know Wednesday is not ideal, but the calendar is very full). The picnic will start at 5:30pm and run until around 8:00pm. The event will be held outside near the smaller basketball court and will spill out into the lower half of our playground. 

Welcome!!

I would like to welcome the following students who have joined our community in recent weeks!

• North D in Year 5 
• Abigail G in Year 5

We welcome both families into our communities and I hope they enjoy the time they spend here at STM!

I have been busy with lots of school tours and trial days for new families and students looking to come to our school. It appears we will increase in enrolments for the third straight year which is an amazing achievement for all of the staff and community at STM. Keep spreading the positive news. 

Prep transition:

On Thursday 26th of October we welcomed our 2024 Prep cohort into our community for their first transition day. They took to it like ducks on water and all left with big smiles on their faces. We welcome them back tomorrow for transition day number 2!

Advent is coming, but what is it?

Advent Liturgy times - Parents and Family members are most welcome. All Liturgies will take place in the Library. 

Friday 24th of November at 2:30pm - Year 5/6

Monday 27th of November at 2:30pm - Year 4/5

Tuesday 5th of December at 9:00am - Year 2/3

Monday 11th of December at 9:00am - Year P/1

Respectful School Communities start with Respectful Behaviour:

Kiss and Drop (1 minute drop)

When dropping your children off at school if you need to exit your vehicle for any reason, please park your car first.  The "Kiss and Drop" is designed to keep the flow of traffic moving and gets congested if the driver exits their vehicle. Cars behind also use a common sense approach, sometimes parents need to help their children get unbuckled out of their car seats.

Evacuation and Lockdown drills: 

As part of our school compliance, we are required to undertake several different types of exercise drills. A few weeks ago our school held a "Bushfire" evacuation exercise. Our staff were monitored by a professional in emergency management and was very impressed with the response from students and staff alike. In the next few weeks we will have to engage in a "lockdown" procedure exercise. Although these can provoke some anxiety in students it is important we practise in the unlikely event we would need to go into a lockdown event. 

Secondary Education:

To assist your decision making in relation to your child's education for 2025 and beyond, please find below a link to the Nov 2023 edition of the Secondary Education Guide.

CLICK HERE:

https://victoriaschoolguides.starcommunity.com.au/...

School Disco:

Thank you to the parents and friends committee for organising another successful event. Our school disco with a Halloween theme was a massive hit. We had over 70 students attend and they all looked they had a ball. 

I was disappointed that some parents were sprinting out of the hall after dropping their children off. Perhaps the free babysitting on a Friday night got the better of some... just joking!!

School Advisory Council:

I am seeking a couple of parents to come on board the St Thomas More school advisory council. The AGM will be held at school on Tuesday 21st of November starting at 7pm. We have a couple of Year 6 parents who will be moving on from the council. If you are interested, please let me know before hand or just come on the evening

Parents and Friends Committee: 

As we approach the end of 2023 we are on the lookout for new members for our passionate and hardworking parents and friends team. The AGM will be held at school on the 27th of November at 7pm. 

School Closure Days:

Monday 4th of December: 2024 Planning day for staff

End of School Year Dates: 

End of Year dates are as follows:

Year 6 Graduation Day/Year 6 last day: Thursday 14th of December (Lunch from 12pm-3pm, Mass from 6:30pm-8:30pm)

Prep/Year 5 last day: Friday 15th of December at 3:10pm

Commitment to Child Safety:

Please see attached the CECV's (Catholic Education Commission of Victoria) commitment to Child Safety in schools. Each school must have a range of measures in place to meet the 11 Child Safety Standards. 

Thank you and God bless

Declan