A warm welcome to the 2021 school year, especially to our new families and Kindergarten children. I feel blessed to be leading at St Michael’s and look forward to a busy and exciting year ahead.

A little bit about me;

• My parents were from Braidwood and I grew up in Canberra.
• My two children also grew up here in Canberra and are now 23 and 25.
• My first teaching job was in Kindergarten with 36 children in Cootamundra (NSW).
• Since then, I have worked in 8 schools in the Diocese. I have acted in the Principal role 3 times, worked with Pat Ellis at St Thomas the Apostle, Kambah and Damien Webb at Sacred Heart, Pearce.
• I am very passionate about family, life-long learning and nature.

The UN has declared 2021 as International Year of Peace and Trust, this fits beautifully with our school faith theme; “Be still and know that I am God”.

In 2021, our mission will be enlivened by the CE ‘Catalyst’ Initiative. Catalyst is a teaching and learning program that supports excellent teacher practice in curriculum, pedagogy and assessment in all Catholic Schools across the archdiocese.  The staff are excited about ‘Catalyst’ and will be focused on building strong partnerships to achieve the best learning outcomes for your children.

May this year bring to you and your families’ peace, trust, stillness and a renewed hope and commitment to St Michael’s Vision, that we may be people of harmony;

“Fostering hearts of compassion, kindness and forgiveness inspired by the life and teaching of Jesus”.

I look forward to catching up at the Meet and Greet and throughout the year and am so grateful to be a part of this wonderful community,  please come up and say hello when you see me out and about.

Reminders

• School commences at 8.50am and finishes at 3pm, supervision starts at 8.20am. The sliding doors will be locked just after 8.50am and any late students will need to come by the Front Office to be signed in.
• Term 1 school fee statements will be coming home at the end of this week, if you have been paying by Direct Debit, please ensure that you see Lisa to increase your payments to cover the fees for 2021.

Many Blessings and keep smiling,

Judy Egan 

Hello Everyone

Welcome back to another school year. I hope that everyone has had a relaxing break, and everyone is feeling recharged and ready for a fun and fantastic year ahead.

It has been wonderful to see just how quickly everyone has settled in and how calm the school has been this week. Much credit must go to our wonderful teachers, who have been very busy getting classrooms ready, curriculum sorted and making sure that there are many wonderful, fun and exciting learning opportunities ahead.

We have been blessed to be been joined by Mrs Judy Egan this year. Her warm presence has helped everyone feel very relaxed and confident for a wonderful year ahead and the vibe across the school is one of wonder, positivity, and excitement.

I’m looking forward to once again working alongside the families, to help create a culture of collaboration and harmony.

Many thanks

Damien   

Religious Education Curriculum

Our School Theme

This year our theme will be unpacked across the four terms.

Be still and know that I am God

Be still and know that I am

Be still and know

Be still

Be

In term 1 we will explore the theme of ‘Be still and live in Harmony’. This is linked to our mission statement and explores the over arching concept of Harmony. We will explore the scripture Romans 12:6 and our symbol will be the rainbow. Each class will be introducing Christian meditation during morning prayer routines.

St Michael’s Primary aims to educate our students about sacraments in a curriculum framework that is sequential and age appropriate, provides sound teaching and learning experiences that meets the needs of individual learners and is in keeping with archdiocesan policy.

The focus for our school is not merely to provide a formal education in faith but to nurture our students in an environment that leads them to develop their personal relationship with God.

This term the students will be learners who inquire and discover. Next week information will be provided about  the big ideas for the term.

Religious Life of St Michael’s School Community

Opening Mass

This Thursday, 4^th February, our school will hold an Opening Mass to reflect on our school community coming together to celebrate a new year.  Due to COVID19 restrictions we are still unable to celebrate this special occasion with our parents but know that you will be in our hearts and prayers especially at this time.

Eucharist

How are you going with working through the Eucharist preparation book? Remember to set aside some time each week to sit with your Eucharist candidate and work through the activities in the preparation book. This is possibly the most special part of the preparation – spending time together reflecting on the importance of your faith in your everyday life.

Parent / Child Formation Evening

Our Parent/Child Formation Evening for Eucharist will be on Thursday 11^th February from 6:00pm. It will be held via Zoom. The link for this is https://cgcatholic.zoom.us/j/98091975011

Please remember all candidates and a parent must be present for this special part of the preparation for Eucharist.

The Eucharist retreat day will be held on Friday 19^th February. Lunch will be provided and students are able to wear a free choice of clothes. There is no cost for the day and additional information will follow.

Bridgette McCann Acting REC

Swimming Carnival

We are excited to be able to kick off this year’s sporting events with our school swimming carnival. The carnival will be held on Wednesday 10^th March, Week 6. This year our carnival will be held at Stromlo Leisure Centre. The change of venue is only for this year’s carnival and is due to the 50m pool at Gungahlin Leisure Centre currently undergoing repairs.

Permission notes and nomination forms have come with all students today. All students in Year 3-6 will attend the carnival, along with competitive swimmers in Year 2 who turn 8 this year. If you are able to assist at the carnival, your assistance will be greatly appreciated and you can indicate your preference for a role on the Nomination Form. A current WWVP is needed if you wish to help out on the day. Please assist us by returning notes on or before 12^th February, Week 2. Unfortunately, it is not possible for us to accept late nominations. 

K- 2 Water Fun Day

On Wednesday 10^th March students in Years K-2 will enjoy a water fun day here at school (on this day our older students will be participating in the swimming carnival). The day will commence at recess with a ‘special recess’ and then students will rotate through water-based activities in their house groups. An information/permission note has come home today.

Belconnen Region Swimming Competition

Please be advised that the Belconnen Region Swimming Carnival will be held on Wednesday 17^th March at Stromlo Leisure Centre. There is a very short turn around between our school carnival and at the Belconnen Region carnival. We will endeavour to inform students as quickly as possible if they have qualified for Belconnen Region Competition.

Our 5/6 school camp will be held at the same time as the regional competition. Please send me an email or see me at school to discuss options should your child be in 5/6 and wish to compete at the regionals.  

Cross Country Carnival
Please be aware that we are holding our cross country carnival in Term 2 this year and not in Term 1. Our carnival will be held on 7^th May (Term 2, Week 3)

School Sport ACT

We have been advised by School Sport ACT that at this stage, due to the ongoing COVID situation, national level competitions will not be taking place in 2021. At this stage, all other levels of competition are planned to go ahead, these being; school level competition, regional and state level competition. In addition to this many of our local sporting organisations are offering gala days which schools can elect to participate in. Should any new decisions be made in relation to School Sport ACT, I will keep you informed through the newsletter.

Please see the School Sport ACT webpage http://www.schoolsportaustralia.edu.au/stateterritory-school-sport-offices/school-sport-act/ or Facebook page for the most up to date information.

SCHOOL SPORT ACT TRIALS – THIS IS INTENDED AS AN FYI ONLY. At this stage no ACT trials will be taking place in 2021.  Please keep an eye on the School Sport ACT website www.schoolsportact.asn.au for upcoming ACT trials. The process for registering can be found below. If you need any assistance registering your child please feel free to ask for assistance.

How to register your child with School Sport ACT

School Sport ACT now collects all registration information online – this is to prevent the movement to and fro of a paper note and have all information readily available to officials prior to the trial. As this process incurs a fee for data storage, system maintenance and admin, a small $5 fee payment via credit card will be required.

1. Go to the School Sport ACT website – www.schoolsportact.asn.au
2. Click Register (top right corner of homepage) for an Account – enter parent details and password
3. A confirmation email will be sent to your chosen email that will contain a link that you must click on to verify the email account.
4. Click Log In (top right hand corner of home page) enter password then click on top tab My Profile
5. You will see a ‘dashboard’ of your information, click green box to Add Student – enter student and medical details and save.
6. Go to the Sports Tab – choose your specific sport, click on Trial Information box then click on the Register to Trial link.
7. Select your child’s name from the dropdown box and then enter the optional fields for Playing History, Preferred Position (if applicable) and Representative Experience. If you are already in the system, ensure your child’s school is up to date in your profile – have they moved onto High School?

Please contact me via email if you have any questions, feedback or are able to offer your assistance at any of our sporting events throughout the year.

Looking forward to another big year of sporting participation,

Erin Hardwicke
erin.hardwicke@cg.catholic.edu.au

Welcome to the library for 2021!

Library Lessons and Borrowing 

Library lessons for each class will be on either Monday or Tuesday each week. During library lessons, students will have the opportunity to select books they would like to borrow and take home. Many students return books weekly but you may keep library books for a period of two weeks. If you wish to return books outside of library lessons, they can be placed in the returns slot on the front of the library desk.

I look forward to working with all the students to develop their love of reading and literature throughout 2021.

Book Club and Book Fairs in 2021

After much consideration we have decide to return to Scholastic for our Book Club and Book Fairs from the start of this school year. The first issue of Book Club will be coming home this week. Please see exciting news below about our Term 1 Book Fair!

Scholastic Book Fair

The Scholastic Book Fair is coming! We are excited to be hosting another Book Fair early in the year. It is a great fundraising opportunity for the library and we look forward to seeing you there. The students will have the opportunity to visit the Book Fair during the day and make a ‘wish list’ of books they are interested in.         

Thank you in advance for your support of this event. 
Dates: Week 6 Tuesday – Friday (9^th March – 12^th March)
Times: 8:30-8:50am and 3-3:45pm.
Location: Library

Parent Library

The parent library is located just inside the library, opposite the library desk. The system is based on a book swap approach. Please feel free to take a book and return when you are finished or bring in a book to swap. We are hoping to include literature that is for enjoyment and also related to parenting and educational information. If you have any books to donate to our parent library they would be gratefully accepted.

Volunteering

If you are interested in volunteering in the library I’d love to hear from you. It is a great way for parents, grandparents and carers to get involved in school life and your time makes a valuable contribution to the running of our library for staff and students. We are always looking for people willing to help out with covering new library books. It is an easy job that can even be done at home. If are able to volunteer with this task please get in touch.

Looking forward to an exciting year in the library,

Erin Hardwicke

Erin.hardwicke@cg.catholic.edu.au

Congratulations to the following students who achieved a Harmony Award in Week 1.  Awards will be presented at Friday morning's assembly (weather permitting).

Well done!!   

Special wishes to those children who celebrated their birthday in the holidays:

Shivi KF, Marissa 3/4L, Stefano 5/6K, Alana 1/2B, Jillian 5/6F, Liam 1/2B, Ana 3/4L, Cameron 5/6F, Grace 1/2B, Maria 1/2H, Josiah 3/4Y, Chiara 3/4L, Jimmy 3/4A

Special wishes to those children who celebrate their birthday this week:

Jordan 5/6F, Eden 1/2B, Maya 3/4Y & Jayden 5/6K

We hope you have a great day!!

Sacramental Program 2021 – First Eucharist for catch-up students Y4 from 2020

The Sacrament of First Eucharist for the students from Year 4 in 2020 will be celebrated in Term 1 of 2021 on the following dates:

• Tuesday 23 February at 6pm in St Michael’s Church
• Wednesday 24 February at 6pm in St Monica’s Church
• Thursday 25 February at 6pm in St Monica’s Church

Please keep the candidates for First Eucharist in your prayers.

Parent/Child Formation Night for First Eucharist – Term 1 (catch-up students from Y4 2020)
The parent/child formation night is compulsory and will be held on Thursday 11 February 2021 via zoom at https://cgcatholic.zoom.us/j/98091975011

Home Booklets
The home booklets should be completed ready for the parent/child formation night on 11 February 2021. The completed booklets are then, to be returned to the school no later than Monday 15 February 2021 with the ‘Parents’ Discernment of Readiness’ (the last page of the booklet) completed and signed ready for Fr Loi to also sign. The booklets will be returned to the candidates on the night of the Sacrament along with their certificates. 

There will be a further celebration for First Eucharist in Term 2, 2021 for students in Year 4 in 2021. More information will be available in the school and church bulletins and also on the parish website at www.cg.org.au/belconnennorth

For further information please contact the Sacramental Program coordinator at sc.belconnennorth@cg.org.au

DANCECORE -  Dance classes will recommence in Term 1 on Friday's at recess in the school hall, forms will be available at the Front Office. 
Contact Cassie 0417 442 750 

CHESS -  Chess classes are held in C Block on Tuesday’s at recess, forms are available at the Front Office.  Contact Sydney Academy of Chess 9745 1170

GUITAR - Guitar lessons with Sam on Thursday's, please contact
Sam on 0408 196 855

PIANO - Piano Lessons with Mary-Liz on Mondays & Tuesdays, please contact Mary-Liz on 0413 425 753

SCHOOL BANKING  -  Banking has been suspended for Term 1.

SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB -  Scholastic Book club is back and runs twice a Term.  If you have any queries, contact Mrs Monro or Mrs Hardwicke.

Girl Guides – a great place to do fun things and make new friends!   

Girl Guides in the ACT are part of an international organisation offering a weekly program of fun and personal development during school terms for girls aged 5 to 18 years.  We provide girls with a supportive and safe environment to explore opportunities including: developing life skills, self esteem and confidence, the ability to think and act for themselves, make lifelong friends, discovering the world they live in and participating in the local community. We also go on hikes and camps; participate in community service activities; and enjoy weekend and holiday adventure days.

The Kaleen-Giralang-Lawson area has three units meeting in Kaleen on Wednesdays: 6:00 – 7.30 pm for girls 5-10 years; and 6.00 – 8.00 pm for girls aged 10+ years.  Other units meeting nearby also offer alternative nights to accommodate girls who can not attend on Wednesday nights.  All girls are very welcome.  Inquiries to: Bev on 0417 485737.