NEWSLETTER

Term 4 - 22 November 2018

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 and Children,

We occasionally sing a song at school that is based around the Old Testament story of The Flood. The first

verse and the chorus go like this:

Chorus: Rise and shine and give God your glory, glory! Rise and shine and give God your glory, glory! Rise and shine and (clap once) give God your glory, glory! (Raise hands to shoulder level and sway back and forth.) Children of the Lord.

The Lord said to Noah, "There's gonna be a floody, floody." Lord said to Noah, "There's gonna be a floody, floody." "Get those children (clap once) out of the muddy, muddy!" Children of the Lord.

Many Biblical Scholars believe that the story of Noah and his ark was written using references to the ancient Mesopotamian Flood stories. Storytelling became and important part of cultural tradition and accounts of the floods were vividly passed on from generation to generation. Nobody alive had actually seen the floods, but the stories made everyone apprehensive and gave credibility to the narrative.

No longer do we need to rely on Grandma or Grandpa or ‘stories’ to tell us about floods in Australia. What used to happen once in a blue moon, is now happening far too frequently for anybody’s liking. From a personal experience, I have experienced three significant floods here at school in the past twelve months. Maybe not of Mesopotamian proportions, but enough to make me want to evacuate to the nearest ark.

I mustn’t have been paying attention to this week’s weather forecast, because on Tuesday after school, I was disappointed to see the rain come, but I thought it would eventually pass (in time for the Year 2 performance of Pirates of the Curry Bean at 7:00pm). The reality of what happened next really defied description.

By about 4:45pm, the inside of the Staffroom resembled Niagara Falls. We were filling up 75 litre rubbish bins with water that gushed through the ceiling. The power was down, the ceiling was becoming unstable and water began to enter the hall (these two buildings are attached). I was therefore very disappointed to issue a message to families that our performance was cancelled. I will not, however, ever place members of our community in a situation where safety is in question. It was simply impossible for us to allow people to return to school. The Drop Off Zone resembled a lake and it took several hours to clear. I am pleased, however, that we have been able to re-schedule the performance. At this time of the year it is challenging to re-schedule events, but we have managed to do so.

Ahoy There! Aaaaaargh!

The rescheduled performance of Pirates of

the Curry Bean will take place on Tuesday

11 December at 7:00pm.

Oh No!

Not again!

Whilst I have become well-known for my grey hair, many of our staff hide their age well by maintaining

their youthful looks—to the point that these announcements might come as quite a shock. Some of our

staff are retiring from Education.

The following staff members will be retiring at the end of this year. I normally don’t reveal which staff

are leaving until a much later date, but retirements are special and we need lots of time to plan appropriate

farewells. Get out the tissues! Here goes:

Happy Retirement

Miss Dobson began her teaching career in 1981 at St. Luke’s School in Lalor.

She taught there for five years before moving to St. Christopher’s School in

Airport West, where she happily taught for another seven years. She then came

to St. Monica’s and has taught here every year since 1992—a grand total of 26

years. It is no secret that some of our current parents remember Miss Dobson

when they were here at school.

We will leave many of the pleasantries to the last Newsletter, but in announcing

Miss Dobson’s retirement, we acknowledge that she has bene a passionate and

dedicated teacher who holds this school in a special place in her heart. As we

approach the end of this year, we are witnessing ‘the end of an era’. It is hard to

fathom that Miss Dobson will not be here next year. She is a part of this school

to the point where we will be in shock for some time at this announcement.

Francesca Colbert joined the staff in 2003 and has been working diligently with

our children since then. Her fifteen years at St. Monica’s have been filled with

dedicated teaching as a School Officer. Francesca is a quiet achiever and she is

always willing to do whatever she can for either a child or a staff member.

Francesca has the ability to bring out the best in her students and has high

expectations for everyone who works with her. She is always respectful of

everyone.

Please join with me in wishing Janet and Francesca a happy retirement. We

celebrate their contributions to St. Monica’s and hope that they enjoy life beyond

school, where bells don’t ring and sleep-ins are more regular. We suspect that

Miss Dobson might continue an association with our school as an Emergency

Teacher and I have a feeling that we can convince Francesca to come back every

now and then if we need her for a special project. Being part of the St. Monica’s

Family means that our staff, like our school families, never really leave us.

On Tuesday we practised a full “Emergency Lockdown” and I am pleased to report that

we received a glowing assessment report from the supervisor who oversaw our pretend-

emergency ‘drill’. Congratulations to Mrs Diana Tominc who was nominated as the

school’s Chief Warden for this practice. She was cool, calm and collected.

Yours sincerely,

Peter Moore Principal

Parish Church Working Bee

In this newsletter, I commend to you an initiative from the Parish Office—a Church Working Bee.

Would you have an hour to support the cleaning of the Church? Any assistance would be grate-

fully received. As a school community, we use the church often, so it would be wonderful if our

school families could consider supporting this little working bee. As a child I used to clean the

church with my mother and I remember seeing both objects and spaces in the church that were

fascinating. Have you ever been in the Choir Loft? The view of the church is amazing.

FROM THE CHAIRPERSON

PARISH EDUCATION BOARD A few words from the PEB of celebration...

We all know Peter, Mr. Moore, as the passionate dedicated leader of

our wonderful school. Our Principal. It is no mean feat to seamlessly

day after day bounce out of bed, full of enthusiasm and vigour to

proudly welcome our children and their families to school before setting

about the numerous tasks required of him as our Principal.

We all come with history……… some more than others.

Before joining us, Peter was based in Sunshine where his contributions

to the advocacy of former refugees was awarded The Victorian

Multicultural Education Award. This work has led Peter to speak at

numerous conferences sharing his experiences of Supporting South

Sudanese Families in their transition to life in Melbourne.

Peter is also the voluntary CEO of a Catholic humanitarian organisation Melbourne Overseas

Missions (MOM). Over the past ten years MOM has supported numerous disadvantaged

communities in developing countries to promote self-reliance, gender equality and community

development. Building schools and supporting teachers and education programs have been

realised in PNG, Pakistan, East Timor, Jerusalem, Sierra Leone and migrant camps of Hong

Kong.

Peter has also been a Board Member of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority

since 2012 and in 2017 was appointed Chairperson of the Early Years to Year 10 Committee.

This has enabled his long-held belief that every Victorian student deserves the best education

opportunities possible.

At St. Monica’s, we have seen the fruits of his drive to engage and inspire students through the

development of an informed understanding of the influence of innovative pedagogy and design in

contemporary learning spaces. Peter’s name is synonymous with several award-winning

educational facilities.

On Monday, 12 November, Peter was bestowed the honour of receiving a Fellowship of the

Australian Council for Educational Leaders. Such a position recognises his outstanding

contribution over a period of time for the improvement of student and organisational outcomes. In

a long line of achievements, silently and modestly received, Peter always refers to the

collaborative partnership and efforts, always referring to his team.

The PEB were honoured to represent the children, their families and the broader Parish community to surprise Peter in celebrating such incredible achievements. Thank you Peter for your effervescence, drive and the gift that you give us by enabling our students, our children and our future.

Ange McNamara

Chairperson On Behalf of the St. Monica’s Parish Education Board

Above: Mr Moore being

presented with a plaque

commemorating his ACEL

Fellowship by Coralee Pratt

(Victorian President ACEL)

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

COMMUNITIES

Whilst the students are in specialist

classes, classroom teachers are busy

collaborating, planning and learning.

The Foundation Team and Year 3

Team look like they are thinking very

deeply!

INCURSION

The Year 6 students are currently

studying Economics and Business.

Today, they participated in a

‘Smoothie Bar’ Incursion! As the

name suggests, the students created

their own ‘Smoothie Bar’

business ...including making the

product! Yummy!

Developing a resilience mindset - by Michael Grose

If you want your child or young person to be resilient enough to cope with the hardships that come his or her way,

and in doing so build strengths for the future, consider fostering your own resilience first. Parents are in the best

position to influence their children’s resilience. Children watch our reactions to adverse events and view first hand

how we look after – or neglect – our own mental health and wellbeing.

Focusing on our own resilience is not as difficult as it may seem. If you adapt a resilience mindset you’ll find that

resilient behaviour follows. Want to get fitter physically? You could take up a new fitness regime or you could

simply adopt a fitness mindset. Adopt the former and there’s a reasonable chance that you’ll start off gung ho and

run out of steam after a month. Adopt the latter and you’ll more likely take small, sustainable steps such as walking

or riding to work, taking stairs instead of escalators and playing active games rather than sitting on the couch on

weekends.

The mindset approach works well with resilience. Take the sustainable approach of looking after your mental

health, becoming conscious of the messages you send yourself and developing coping skills that allow you to

respond rather than react to adverse events. These simple ideas will help:

Watch your self-talk

The little voice inside your head can have a catastrophic impact when you allow it to. It can talk you into the blues,

lower your confidence and build mountainous problems out of molehills. Once you’re aware of its impact, you can

switch it off or change its negative chatter to something more positive and realistic. It takes practice but it’s worth

it. When you have a resilience mindset you’ll start to check that chatter in your head.

Park the bad stuff

Ever had an argument with a family member at breakfast only to find it messed up your whole day? A common

trait with resilient people is that they can compartmentalise their lives so that difficult experiences in one domain

won’t interfere with their effectiveness elsewhere. When you have a resilience mindset you’ll consciously park the

negative stuff while you get on with the rest of the day, only revisiting it on your own terms.

Stay flexible in your thinking

People who lack resilience pepper their language with absolute, imperative statements such as ‘I must always be on

time,’ ‘They never do anything to help,’ or ‘They should always use good manners'. This shows inflexible,

unrealistic thinking that leads to stress and anxiousness. When you have a resilience mindset you’ll use more

moderate language reflecting a flexible approach to life. The above statements become ‘I’ll always try to be on

time but sometimes it’s impossible,’ 'They are sometimes helpful but they can be forgetful,’ and ‘I’d like it if they

were well-mannered but sometimes they aren’t'.

Make sleep a priority

We are only beginning to make solid links between sleep and resilience. Mothers of newborns know how

debilitating sleep deprivation can be. They can’t function effectively and depression is close at hand. Many people

spend much of their lives experiencing some form of sleep deprivation, compensating by taking regular caffeine

hits, self-medicating with alcohol and using other ineffective remedies. When you develop a resilience mindset,

you make sleep a high priority, taking the necessary lifestyle steps to make sleep easy to attain.

Create a pressure valve

In a society that views busyness as a status symbol, it’s tempting to keep working until you drop, neglecting to

enjoy some downtime that releases the pressures of work. When you have a resilience mindset you value down-

time and relaxation and understand the positive impact these have on your mental health and the wellbeing of

people around you.

When you have a resilience mindset you have a greater understanding of what resilience is about and you’re in a

better position to develop a lasting sense of resilience in your kids. Developing resilience in kids is like jumping off

a pier with some friends on a cold winter’s day. In both instances you need to go first.

Student of the Week

Certificates will be presented at assembly on Friday, 30th November at

3.00pm - Whole School Awards Assembly (Location: Church)

Lahlia O’Donnell FE For consistently displaying compassion and empathy towards others. Well done!

Liam Catania FS For working so hard during writing, specifically adding great detail in his narrative retell.

Lenie Yiallourou FT For her amazing sharing of her ‘Special Gifts’ box. Well done, Lenie!

Oliver McMenamin 1C For putting his hand up and sharing his thinking during class discussions.

Alimee Riley 1L For demonstrating grit and determination in Mathematics! Keep up the great effort, Alimee!

Samuel O’Reilly 1S For using efficient strategies to solve problems during Mathematics and for confidently sharing and justify his thinking during share time. Well done!

Megan Phung 2B For her preparedness to persist when working on a challenging task in Mathematics.

William Degg 2C For his preparedness to persevere with a challenge and willingness to help others.

Nicholas Visalli 2D For showing great initiative this term. Well done, Nicholas!

Madeleine Smith 3B For her creative poems that display the poetic devices we have studied.

Poppy Maxey 3M For her creative problem solving strategies during Mathematics.

Liam Richardson 3O For always showing active listening during whole class discussions.

Lucinda Juhasz 4D For the creativity she brings to performances and for her endeavour in everything she does.

Oliver Pane 4G For always showing gentleness and kindness to everybody.

Angus Palmer 4T For his continued support and encouragement of his peers throughout this semester. Angus has been a reference point and guide to us all. Thank you!

Xavier Malcolm 5E For always being persistent and continuously striving to improve his learning.

Max Talone 5P For reading information carefully to include as much information as possible in his answers to comprehension questions.

Lucy Mahoney 6B For actively participating and sharing her problem solving strategies in whole class discussions.

Charlie Goodear 6K For using a variety of persuasive techniques in his advertising pitch.

Myles Quick 6M For actively participating in our Economics and Business incursion and demonstrating great communication skills and teamwork.

Key Dates November Friday 23rd Senior Assembly Year 3 to Year 6 - hosted by 3M and 3O at 2.45pm

Sunday 25th Year 1 Family Mass

Monday 26th Foundation - Year 2 Swimming Program

Tuesday 27th Foundation - Year 2 Swimming Program

Wednesday 28th Foundation - Year 2 Swimming Program

Thursday 29th Class Buddy Mass 9.15am - FT and 6B

Foundation - Year 2 Swimming Program

Friday 30th Foundation - Year 2 Swimming Program

Whole School Awards Assembly

December Monday 3rd AGM Parents Association and Parish Education Board 7.30pm

Tuesday 4th 2019 Foundation Orientation Day - 3

Year 6 Sports Awards - 2.30pm

Thursday 6th Year 1 School Production

Friday 7th School Closure Day

Monday 10th 2019 Foundation Orientation Day - 4

Friday 14th Whole School Awards Assembly

Dinner in the Yard -6.00pm

Monday 17th Year 6 Graduation Mass and Dinner

Tuesday 18th Whole School Mass 9.15am

2018 End of School Year - Children 3.30pm

2019 January Tuesday 29th Staff Commence

Wednesday 30th Half of Foundation commence

Years 1 to 6 ‘Getting to know you’ appointments

Thursday 31st Half of Foundation commence

Years 1 to 6 ‘Getting to know you’ appointments

February Friday 1st All children at school all day

Week Beginning Monday November 19

Friday 23rd Julie Durling-Landa, Annmaree Carmichael, Michelle Christian

Week Beginning Monday November 26

Monday 26th Aneta Spicuglia

Tuesday 27th Simona Di Natale, Jenny Lirosi/Roberto Buseddu

Wednesday 28th Jodie Kukuljan, Leanne Redl

Thursday 29th Alex Bond, Tara Baker

Friday 30th Meredith De Iure, Jane Padden, Karina De Giustii

Week Beginning Monday December 3

Monday 3rd Sandra Boyle

Tuesday 4th Larissa Cole, Fiona Kennedy

Wednesday 5th Domina Carchedi

Thursday 6th Linda Connors

Friday 7th Jodie Mahoney, Michelle Wing, Skye Palmer

Week Beginning Monday December 10

Monday 10th Narelle Monteleone, Julia Cusack

Tuesday 11th Jaklina Visalli

Wednesday 12th Lisa Saunders

Thursday 13th Margaret Caccamo, Sue-Ellen Jongebloed

Friday 14th Serena Smith, Maria Pricone, Terri Thaus, Kerrie McBeath

NOTICES

School Fees Now Due

All school fees and levies for 2018 are now due and are to be paid immediately. Families unable to meet their school fee commitment are to contact Mr Peter Moore or Father Tony. For your convenience our banking details are: EFT SCHOOL BANKING DETAILS ARE AS FOLLOWS: St. Monica's School General Account BSB 083 347 Account No.69868 9654 National Bank. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO INCLUDE YOUR FAMILY NAME.

Children’s Liturgy

Term 4

2 Dec – 5:30pm 9 Dec - 10:30am 16 Dec - 10:30am

NOTICES

ST .MONICA’S PARISH W ORKING BEE

Friday, 7th December - 10 am till 1 pm

Can you spare a few hours? We are giving the inside of the church a spruce so we are ready to receive our families and friends for Christmas.

Some of the jobs we have are:

• Intensive scrubbing of tiled areas • Wiping and polishing of pews and kneeling pads; • Dusting! Lots and lots of dusting; • “Handy Person” jobs like tightening bolts and screws, some minor repairs (please let us know if you’re a “handy person” and have tools).

Please contact Abygaile in the parish office by email if you’re able to help: mooneeponds@cam.org.au or call 9370 5035 (Tuesday/Friday)

NOTICES

NOTICES

OSHClub News

Before School / After School Care Program

Program Update

Dear Parents and Families, On Friday December 7 we will be running a Pupil Free day session. Bookings can now be made online through your accounts, under the "Pupil Free Day" tab. However, this day will only run if we have a minimum of 15 bookings by Friday 30th Nov. Some important news, as the weather is warming up we need to make sure that children have their hats while at OSHCLUB. Children without their hat will not be allowed to participate in outdoor activities. Remember no hat no play (outdoors). we will also be encouraging children to put on sunscreen before they go outside to play. (we use a Coles branded sunscreen).

Take care, Jess ____________________________________________________________________________________________

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!!!

(Children must be booked into After Care session to be dropped off and picked up.)

Next Week’s Activities…

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Before Care Ac-

tivities

-Colouring comp -silent ball

-Make own dog -wink detec-tive

-Origami -Run if

-Block town building -everybody's it

-Monopoly -Fruit salad

After Care Activ-

ities

-Rumballs -science experiment -down ball -Soccer

-Slime -feather craft -Dodgeball -Silent ball

-Fruit icy poles -paper plate chooks -Hula Hoop -Cricket

-cupcakes -make your own book -AFL -Skipping

-Colouring comp -Crystals experiment -Once bounce

Parent Information

OSHC program phone: 0412 616 491 (Operating hours are from 7.15am-9.00am and 3.30pm-6.15pm) Coordinator: Jess Assistants: Mel, Nairy, Maddie & Andrew 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.