This season of Advent is a time in which we prepare for the Lord's coming. 'We prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight' Luke 3:4. As we move toward the end of the second week of Advent, we pray for the courage to make peace, peace in our hearts, peace in our homes and peace in our communities. 

What a busy and fun week we have had at St Michael's. Tuesday we had a celebration day which started with our Giving Mass and finishing with our Christmas Carol Spectacular. Thank you to everyone for your generous support of our St Vinnie's Giving Tree. All these items have now been donated to St Vincent de Paul.

Thank you to our Community Council members and all the helpers who ensured Tuesday night was a great community event. From baking, to cooking BBQs to helping set up and clean up. Very much appreciated! Our Christmas Treat store raised $459 which will be donated to Companion House. Companion House is a community based organisation in Canberra who work with adults and children who have sought safety in Australia from persecution, torture and war related trauma. Our St Vincent de Paul raffle organised by Mrs Whalan and our Mini Vinnie students raised $341. Congratulations to Eamon 3/4W who won the raffle. Money raised from the raffle will be donated to St Vincent de Paul. Thank you to everyone for your generous donations. 

Year 6 Final Assembly

Tomorrow we continue our end of year celebrations by beginning the farewell of our Year 6 students. At 2pm, Year 6 will present their final Primary School item. We will also have 3 special awards to present, along with some Harmony Awards and Sustainability Awards. We hope to see you all there!

Whiteband Celebration

On Monday we will host our last White Band Celebration (Movie & Treat at 2pm) for those students who have achieved their white band in second semester. At the start of next year we will no longer be rewarding students using the Gotcha/Band system. We will instead move to presenting a 'Rainbow Award' to two students in each class each term. These will be presented at a special award's assembly. Then, in Term 4, students who have achieved a Rainbow Award will all have a combined special lunch and celebration day. Harmony Awards will continue and be presented on Friday at morning gathering in the courtyard. 

Fitness - 2019

Next year, we will also be starting a fitness program each Monday and Friday where student leaders will lead students through a 5-10 minute fitness activity.

Christian Meditation - 2019

We will be continuing with Christian Meditation in 2019, however, we will be moving this to mornings on Tuesday and Thursday straight after morning gathering. 

Specialist Classes - 2019

As mentioned, in 2019 we will continue with Library, Language and Sustainability lessons along with introducing a specific Arts lesson each week. Erin Hardwicke will take library lessons which will focus on exposing students to high quality literature and borrowing time. Language lessons will focus on the Indonesian language and culture led by Jacqui Ramesh. Damien Webb will continue with Sustainability lessons centred around Miss Jordan's Garden. Art lessons will compliment the art that teachers are already doing in their classes. Jane McKeough will lead students through Art lessons focusing on the elements of Art and developing specific Art skills and understanding. I will also be taking every class for half an hour each Wednesday. This will be a Wellbeing lesson centering on unpacking our school Values, looking at how we can build, maintain and restore positive relationships and unpacking the Berry Street Education Model with students. I am looking forward to connecting with every class on a more regular basis in 2019 and getting back in the classroom. This of course means that Wednesday I will be unavailable for any meetings, however, I am sure everyone would appreciate the importance of me being with students in the classroom. Exciting times ahead!

Swimming Carnival 2019

As mentioned previously, after feedback, evaluation and careful consideration, our Swimming Carnival will be held at Queanbeyan Pool next year on Tuesday 12 March. We will be taking all students in Years 3-6 and any competitive swimmers in Year 2 only. We will be holding swimming events as previous years and accessing the splash park for fun. There will be no novelty events.

Other Year 2 students, all Year 1 and Kindergarten students will remain at school for a water fun day and special lunch. This will assist to ensure all students are safe near water, ensure all students are more actively involved in the day and assist with staff supervision.

Year 6 Graduation Night

A big thank you to our Year 5 parents who will help on Tuesday night to set up and pack up the Year 6 Grad Celebration Dinner. Thank you to Lisa and Maria for their work coordinating and organising this special event. I look forward to celebrating with our Year 6 families as they mark this special milestone in their child's life.

I have been very impressed with our Year 6 leaders over the last week. Generally, at this time of year, Year 6 students can find it difficult to remain focused on school rules and expectations. They are tired and ready for high school. There is a level of anxiety also which can add to some silly choices being made. We want to ensure every student finishes Year 6 on a positive note. We want students in Year 6 to be placed in the best possible position ready to transition to Year 7. Damien Webb and myself have spoken to all Year 6 students and had a very similar conversation as mentioned. We have stressed, that if they need to remove themselves from a situation, to come up to our office at anytime during the day and we can help, advise and support them. Whatever we can do to help them get to the finish line successfully, we will do. Please let us know if there is anything we could be doing further for your child.

2019 Fees

Please be reminded that all direct debits will need to be increased to cover the fees for 2019.  Please see Lisa in the Front Office to fill in a form to change the debit amount.  If you are experiencing difficulty or need some assistance, please contact myself or Lisa Monro.

Enjoy the week ahead.

Regards,

Pat Ellis

Principal