Dear Families,

Project Compassion

We have had a wonderful response so far for our Project Compassion. There is still time to give! To help inspire you, I encourage you to listen to and read about Shaniella’s story. Our school leaders will continue to remind classes and collect money for this worthy cause.

Reconciliation

We had a lovely Communal Rite of Forgiveness at our church on March 24. Congratulations to our Year 4 students and to those students from the other schools in our parish who were also participating for the first time. A special word of thanks to Fr Michael for the wonderful way in which he engaged the congregation and made it a special evening for the Year 4s and their families. Thanks too, to Clare Bisby, Kathy Toomey, Melissa Kerr (Holy Spirit), Emily Ashworh and Katrina Smith for preparing the children and coordinating the sacrament.

Cyber Safety Evening

We had a strong number of parents attend our Cyber Safety evening with Carly and Martin McGauran on March 22. I know those that attended gained some helpful insights and strategies to better support their families whilst online. Below are some helpful resources in case you missed it and you were interested in finding out more.

REPLAY OF A WEBINAR (recorded March 2022):

https://youtu.be/c_OndC7_U7g

ACCESS TO TOOLKIT (RESOURCES & LINKS)

https://www.informandempower.com.au/parents

Password: informempower

JOIN THEIR FACEBOOK GROUP (FOR PARENTS & CARERS):

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1958015517710202

Literacy - 10 Great tips for reading with your child at home.

Please take some time to read the Literacy section of the newsletter today to see who our latest media stars are and to learn about 10 top tips for reading with your child at home. Developing a love of reading with your child can be a wonderful way to bond and it provides some great modelling for your child.

NAPLAN Practice Sessions

Last Thursday March 24, our Year 5 students participated in the national Coordinated Practice Test. This allowed NAPLAN IT systems to be load tested and also provided an opportunity for our Year 5s to familiarise themselves with the interface. Wednesday this week, both the Year 5s and Year 3s had a local practice test to ensure that students were familiar with the processes involved, the manner in which tests are conducted and to again interact with the NAPLAN site. All went to plan from our perspective.

You can learn more about it and provide your child with more opportunities to become familiar with the mini tests on the public demonstration site here.

NAPLAN commences May 10.

End of Term and Friendly Friday Pick Up

A reminder that next week is the last week of Term 1. School will finish at 1pm on Friday April 8. Well done to all, for your efforts to have our first full term at school for some time! The first term break is always a special one as we are able to take some time to spend with family and friends over the Easter period.

To celebrate, we will be having our Friendly Friday Pick Up from the bottom playground near the Community Centre where students can enjoy an icy pole before heading off for their holidays. Please see the message in the Wellbeing section of this newsletter.

OSHClub will be available for any families that require care for their children after that time.

Winter School Uniform

During Term 2 we revert to our Winter uniform. We will allow two weeks for a transition from Summer to Winter uniform so families have time to ensure they have the items and in case there is a mix of warmer and colder weather at that time.

Tuckshop

The Tuckshop will be open next Wednesday as usual, however on Friday it will only be open for window sales at the recess break, as we finish at 1pm. There are no lunch orders for Friday.

Shade Sails and Basketball Backboards

You may have noticed that this week there has been restricted access to the junior building due to works being done in that area. We applied and received a government grant to cover the majority of the cost to install shade sails to help provide an extra area that teachers can use for outside learning. It will also provide extra cover during playtimes. This is part of the response strategy to COVID - 19 to help keep schools as safe as possible during the pandemic. The Foundation playground sail will also be replaced at the same time.

We are also replacing some of the basketball backboards this Saturday. The current ones are well and truly past their use by date and new ones will add a newer and cleaner look to the playground space.

Both these projects will be partly supported by existing PFOL funds from money raised over the last year or two. Once the works are completed we will share photos of the new sails and backboards.

Warm regards

Patrick Green

HOLY WEEK AND EASTER CELEBRATION TIMES

Holy Thursday	14th April, 7pm	Montmorency
Good Friday	15th April, 3pm	Eltham
Easter Vigil	Saturday 16th April, 7pm	Montmorency
Easter Vigil	Sunday 17th April, 6am	Eltham
Easter Sunday Mass	17 April, 8:30am	Montmorency
Easter Sunday Mass	17 April, 10am	Eltham

Please refer to our School google calendar for events throughout the year.

Links

Absentee Form
COVID Safe Plan
Enrolment Form Link
Please click here for link to Asthma plan and/or Anaphylaxis plan and allergy form.
CDFpay link
Bicycle Paths
Parish Bulletin/Parish Website

Tuckshop Wednesday & Friday

Tuckshop
Wednesday & Friday