NEWSLETTER Term 1 Issue 1 February 9th 2017

St. Monica’s Primary School 20 Robinson Street Moonee Ponds 3039

Phone (03) 9375 1132 www.stmonicasmp.catholic.edu.au

Parish Priest: Rev. Fr. Anthony Feeney Principal: Mr. Peter Moore

Parish Office: Phone 9370 5035

Mass Times: Saturday 6:30pm (Vigil), Sunday 8:00am, 9:15am in Italian, 10:30am and 5:30pm

OSHP Number 0412 616 491

Faith

Hope

Love

Dear Parents, Caregivers and Children,

It has been a very warm Welcome Back to school and yesterday the Gold House Team “MacKillop” shone

like the stars during the Years 3-6 Swimming Carnival. Congratulations to the MacKillop Team. It was hot

outside the pool (due to the sun) and inside the pool (due to the fierce but friendly competition). My sincere

thanks go to all the parents who came along to assist with the day’s activities., all the staff and most of all

to Mr. McGuinness who once again organised a smooth day.

In the early days, even the Sisters of St. Joseph used more than one way to spell St. Mary of the

Cross Mary MacKillop’s name. The universally accepted way is “MacKillop” so we’ll need to

update our banner!

Birthday Treats

It is our School Policy that only two products can be handed to the teaching staff

for distribution on the occasion of your child’s birthday.

1. Chupa Chups

2. Icy Poles

Chupa Chups are guaranteed to be nut-free. This is clearly stated on the packaging. Icy poles

are also produced in nut-free environments. If you would like to share one of these treats

with your child’s class, please follow the following procedures:

Chupa chups can be dropped off the day before, or the morning of your child’s

birthday. Please see the class teacher. The chupa chups will be given at home time, not

during the day.

Icy-poles are best delivered at 3:25pm and taken to the classroom. It is challenging for

us to store them throughout the day, so bringing them in to the class teacher at home time is the best

option.

Please note that other lolly-pops will not be distributed. There are literally hundreds of brands of these

products on the shelves of shops across Melbourne. Some come in clear packaging and the ingredients

cannot be guaranteed. We will therefore strictly adhere to the one endorsed product: Chupa chups.

If you would prefer that your child does not consume either of these two products, please speak directly

with your child’s teacher so that alternative arrangements can be made.

If you are new to the school, it is worth noting that this School Policy is set in cooperation with the

Parents’ Association. These policies are reviewed from time to time. Everyone is welcome at PA Meetings.

After being presented with their badges, at assembly this morning, we interviewed the School Captains, Max

Hudson and Isabella Morello. Together they captured their vision for 2017 in this short acrostic poem.

L eaderhsip to us is

E ncouraging all the SMPS students. We want to be

A prroachable leaders, who make good

D ecisions,

E arning the

R espect of the whole

S chool Community. We were

H onoured to receive this position and will

I nspire future leaders to

P ass on the role by leading by example.

Congratulations to all the other Year 6 Student Leadership recipients and the 15 members of the Semester 1,

Student Representative Council (SRC). We have no doubt they will all be exceptional leaders.

Yours sincerely,

Peter Moore

Principal

REMINDER - WELCOME BBQ

TOMORROW AT 5.00PM IN THE

SENIOR YARD

Teachers who love teaching … teach students to

love learning! Here are some examples of passionate

‘teaching and learning' at St Monica's this week!

Memorable Moments!

The 2017 balloons were a hit with the Foundation families as they used these props as an opportunity to ‘capture’

the first day of school! But, as they say ...waste not, want not, the next day I caught Year 4G using the balloons

in a mathematics activity! They rearranged 2017 to 7210 ...the largest number you can make with those four

digits! Next, students added in their own fifth digit ...what happens now????

First Day for Teachers too!

I’m sure everyone's social media accounts were dominated by photos

of students ‘first day’ pictures! It was great to capture the first day

for our three new members of staff at St. Monica’s. A special

welcome to Mr Kelly, Mr Bendall and Miss Lobo!

Budding Designers!

The students in Year 5 & 6 were excited to start in the new building ...even receiving a special message

from Mr Moore….but you may have noticed the furniture in 5B was not arranged! Yes, this was a

deliberate choice from Miss Biondi! The students used their mathematical and problem solving skills to

decide as a class the best way to set up their classroom! What a great activity!

Let Your Light Shine No-one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket,

but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In

the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they

may see your good works and give glory to God in heaven.

Mt. 5:15-16

Julia Mancini (4G)

and Olivia Batey

(4G) both met

dolphins over the

school holidays!

HOUSE COMPETITION

As passionate as Harry Potter is about Gryffindor ...is how passionate the students of St Monica's

will be about Chisholm (Blue), Edmund (Green), Geoghegan (Red) and MacKillop (Gold) by the

end of 2017! Why? ...you might ask .....as this year we are introducing a series of new House

events. These will range from quizzies to treasure hunts and so much more! There will be

opportunities for students to share their ideas for new events with their House Captains.

The first event is a House Colouring Competition. Attached to this newsletter are four colouring

sheets - (copies can also be collected from the office). Print out your corresponding House! Try

and use as much of your house colour as possible! Why not add some more detail ...such as a road,

tree, rainbow .....be creative and original! Participation is optional ...but every entry will win points

for your House!

Submit your entries to Mrs Olivia Hodgetts (in the Middle School) by Friday 17 February!

Some work will be displayed in the school hall on the new House Noticeboards.

HINT: the next activity will be about the origin of our House names ...for example, Gold is named

after Mary MacKillop ....maybe you could start researching a little about your house founder!!!!

What is it? Art and Craft

Who is it for? Year 6’s only

When? Tuesday Lunch

Where? To be announced.

What is it? Chess Club

Who is it for? Foundation to Year 2

When? Thursday at Lunchtimes

Where? Junior undercover area

What is it? Games and Lego Club

Who is it for? Year 2 to 5

When? Thursday Lunch

Where? Middle School.

Clubs Running this

Term….

Presentation of Year Six Badges

Year six badges will be presented at the end of Assembly next week

Four parenting

priorities for 2017

By Michael Grose

Like the earth’s crust the parenting landscape is constantly

shifting always bringing new challenges for parents. Not

only are children and young people constantly growing and

developing but societal trends evolve and change at such rapid rates that it hard to keep up. It’s also hard

to differentiate between the significant and the frivolous when it comes to trends and changes.

The following four priorities are both current and significant, deserving be top of mind for parents as the

2017 school year begins.

Time to tackle technology

Want to travel along Parenting Easy Street? That’s easy. Make tackling this parenting game-changer your

priority. It’s no point being all doom and gloom about technology because tablets, mobile phones and

smartphones are here to stay. They connect us, educate us and entertain us like nothing has before.

But the jury is still out on the impact of digital devices on children and young people. Currently there are

studies being conducted on the effects of technology on children’s brains, as well as studies on gaming

addiction, social media addiction, attention-related issues, obesity, decision-making, hand-eye coordina-

tion and sleep to name a few.

The technology genie maybe out of the bottle, but we need to bring some sanity into the area. Children

and teenagers, (and yes technology, primary school and secondary school kids can be mentioned in the

same sentence as first-time smartphone users become younger by the day) who use communication tech-

nology need constant parent vigilance and diligence, a flexible approach and the ability to say a loud and

clear “NO you can’t have/use that now.”

It takes a lot of parental backbone to swim against the current all-encompassing technology tide. You

can’t hold it back, but you can slow it down. You can suggest it sits on the metaphorical shelf for a while

or at least while you eat dinner together. You can insist that social media isn’t the only way to stay in

touch with friends and show them that Dr. Google may be clever but he/she only knows so much and that

accurate and current information can be found offline. When it comes to kids and technology, don’t be an

onlooker. Make this a year for getting in the game with kids, tech boots on and all.

Promote physical and mental health

Finally, good mental health habits are top of mind in Australian schools. A focus on student wellbeing is

now a well-established pathway to academic success for children and young people.

But kids’ levels of physical activity need a boost. Recent research tells us that children’s physical activity

peaks at around four years of age in Australia and gradually decreases every year from there. It makes a

mockery of the image of Australian childhood spent in the great outdoors.

Remember the old ‘healthy body, healthy mind’ maxim that past generations so fondly spruiked? Well,

it's true. Physical and mental health are inextricably linked.

So this year while we encourage our kids to practise mindfulness; get a good night’s sleep and ensure

they relax and unwind, let’s also make sure kids get plenty of physical activity, preferably outdoors.

Put the spoon back in the drawer

I’ve hidden the controversial part in the middle of the article. Ready for it? I think that parents currently

do too much for kids. We spoonfeed them. We make life to easy and don’t demand enough from them.

Not all parents, but enough that we should be worried that our kids may grow up to become risk-averse,

fearful adults who have difficulty making decisions lest they make a mistake. That is, if they ever do

grow up? As reported in Fairfax Media recently, “In 1970’s only one in five under-30’s in Australia lived

with their parents but now it’s one in two.” This high dependency of children and teenagers on adults is

the exact opposite of what adults have done in the past, which is develop their children’s independence

and achieve the most important parenting outcome of all – their own redundancy.

In 2017 remove the spoon, put it back in the drawer and make independence building a high priority in

your family.

Put integrity top of the pedestal of character traits

Every parent wants their child to have the strength and fortitude to do the right thing and not follow the

crowd. This is easier for young children because the pull of the group and the allure of the media doesn’t

have such a strong hold as it so often does in adolescence. Strong-willed children and those who like to

have their own way can also find doing the right thing less of struggle. But the development of integrity

and related traits such as respect, honesty and fairness is an important part of a child’s moral compass

that will help him/her make smart decisions when you’re not around. Generally, integrity is developed in

childhood and put to the test in adolescence.

In 2017 put some focus on developing a sense of integrity in your kids – the rock star of character traits.

Special note: I’m thr illed to announce that my latest book Spoonfed Generation:

How to raise independent children is out. It’s available at parentingideas.com.au

Key Dates

February 2017 Friday 10th Welcome BBQ - Senior Yard 5.00pm

Tuesday 14th Parent Chats - Senior School 3.50pm

Wednesday 15th Parent Chats - Senior School 3.50pm

Thursday 16th Confirmation Information Night 6.30pm in the Church

Friday 17th 3.00pm Assembly Years 3 - 6 hosted by 4D - Year 6 Badges will be presented

Sunday 19th Year 6 Family Mass 5.30pm - confirmation enrolment

Thursday 23rd 5B Class Mass at 9.15am

Friday 24th Foundation and New Families Welcome Lunch

Sunday 26th Moonee Valley Festival - St Monica’s has a stall

Monday 27th Year 6 Camp Phillip Island

Tuesday 28th Year 6 Camp Phillip Island

March 2017 Wednesday1st Ash Wednesday - 9.15am Mass

Year 6 Camp Phillip Island

Tuckshop

Reminder - all lunches need to be ordered via QkR.

Week Beginning 13th February

Tuesday 14th Gianna Willoughby, Rocchi Conidi, Tania Lewis, Barbara Potocki

Wednesday 15th Lisa Saunders, Kylie Stevens, Melissa Khoury

Thursday 16th Silv Pane, Skye Palmer, Michelle McMenamin, Andrea Picket

Friday 17th Michelle Christian, Annmaree Carmichael, Julie Durling-Landa, Abbey Vandeloo

Week Beginning 20th February Tuesday 21st Mary Marcaccio, Larissa Cole, Carmen Richardson

Wednesday 22nd Mia McMenamin, Jodie Kukuljan, Leanne Redl

Thursday 23rd Ange Horton, Rebecca Jones, Peta Barrett

Friday 24th Jane Henderson, Sonia Vendramini, Jane Padden

Week Beginning 27th February Tuesday 28th Cherie Piaia, Tracey Van Der Linde, Tracey Perkins

Wednesday 1st Tamara Lourdes, Penny Seuren, Phoebe De Maria

Thursday 2nd Kate Farmelo, Sharron Paravizzini, Sanja Scher

Friday 3rd Kim Murphy, Sandra Boyle, Megan Gray

If you are unable to work on your rostered day would you please arrange a swap. Alternatively please

contact the office.

2017 Welcome Back to

School BBQ!

The Parents’ Association will be

firing up the BBQ next Friday and we’d love to see

you!!

When: Friday 10th February 5pm-7pm

Where: Senior yard

What to bring: picnic rug, drinks & snacks, holiday stories, gold coins (sausages & soft

drinks will be on sale for $1)

Come along to meet some new families, catch up with old friends and check out

the new building!!

St Monica’s playgroup 2017

Saint Monica’s playgroup is held on Wednesdays from

9.00am – 10.30am. It’s a chance for the younger siblings

of St Monica’s students to play with other kids who will be

attending the school in future years. It’s also a great

opportunity for parents to meet new people.

A gold coin donation helps buy craft and tea supplies, and we run a weekly roster for craft

activities and morning tea.

The playgroup will run throughout the year during school terms, with the first morning

planned for Wednesday 15th February.

Please come and join us in the school hall for a friendly, slightly chaotic and fun morning.

If you have any questions about the playgroup please call Kate Leonard (0438 084 094) or

Kirsty Taylor (0405 602 860)

Everyone is welcome!

NOTICES

Children’s Liturgy will be held at the following Masses during term 1:

12 Feb - 10.30am

19 Feb - 10.30am

5 March - 5.30pm

12 March - 10.30am

19 March - 10.30am

Gospel related craft and activities for children pre-school to Grade 6.

We especially welcome new foundation families and any children receiving the sacraments of

communion or confirmation this year to come along as a way of supporting the wonderful teaching the

children receive during the week. (Pre-school children should be accompanied by an adult).

Lots of St Monica’s families. Children

must be 7 years old as at April 30 this year

to play. If you have any questions prior to

registration day please contact Paul

Barlow (0410 338716), Tracey Larobina

(0470 670247) or Kelly Clark (0417

144263). This could be the last

opportunity to register for the year.

When: Sunday 26th February

Time: 10am-5pm

Where: Queens Park, Moonee Ponds

The St Monica’s Parents’ Association will be running a sausage a sizzle at the Moonee

Valley Festival and we need lots of volunteers to help cook and serve throughout the day.

Volunteering just an hour of your time is a great way to become involved in the school

community, meet new parents and catch up with your friends.

We will roster people on in 1-hour shifts starting from 10am until 7pm. Please let us know

if you can help out by filling in the form that you received in your child’s communication

folder by Friday 10th February.

We can’t do this without your support and we thank you in advance for your assistance!

Any queries please contact:

Terri Ryan 0400 488 377 (1S) or Cath O’Keefe 0423 199 101 (1C)

Photo from 2016

If you have a Centrelink Health Care Card/ Pension Card you may be eligible for CSEF. Application

forms are available from the school office.

Application close on Friday 30th June 2017.

OSHClub News Before School / After School Care Program

Program Update

Dear parents and children,

Welcome!

My name is Carina and I will be your new Co-ordinator for 2017! I look forward to joining the OSHClub

team.

We have started off the year with lots of enjoyable activities. Finger-knitting was fabulous fun and

the children were extremely excited to put in their first Coles order, especially ordering hot

Cross buns! Please feel free to drop by to check our brand new menu.

Please pack a hat into your bag for outside play at OSHClub this term. Remember ‘No Hat, No Play,

No Fun Today!’

Let’s have an exciting year,

Carina

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YOU CAN GET YOUR KIDS TENNIS LESSONS DONE WHILST THEY ARE AT AFTERCARE! ST. Monica’s Tennis Club

Contact – Steve Riley – Club Professional

0403 433 750 or steve@rileytennis.com.au

BOOK IN FOR A FREE HOTSHOTS TENNIS LESSON Just inform your OSHClub Co-ordinator about your

tennis lesson (day & time)

OSHCLUB DROPS OFF AND PICKS UP KIDS FOR THEIR TENNIS LESSONS!!!

Next Week’s Activities…

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Before Care

Activities

-AFL Football

-Packing Away The

Coles Delivery

-Everybody’s IT

-Children Ordering

with Coles

-Silent Ball

-Exploring

Australian

Culture

-Tennis

-What Are You

Doing?

-Soccer Game

-Portfolio

Decoration

After Care

Activities

-ABC Basketball

-Children’s Portfolios

-Wiggle Worm

-Colouring Barbie

-Downball

Competition

-Story Book

Association

-Hand Soccer

-Angry Birds

Colouring

Competition

- Students Vs

Teachers

Cricket

-Owl Birthday

Chart

-Everybody’s IT

-Annotated

Drawing of a

Book Character

-Wrist Ball

-Footy Drills/Skills

-Letter Writing

-‘Liar’ Card Game

-Yeti The

Explorer

-Who Am I?

Parent Information

OSHC program phone: 0412 616 491

Coordinator: Carina

Assistants: Leonie, Jess, Shannon, Maddie

OSHClub Head Office: 03 85649000

All families must be enrolled to attend the program, remember this is Free!! Please create an account online at

www.oshclub.com.au all bookings and cancellations can also be managed via your online account. For on the day

bookings please contact the Coordinator direct at the program.