St. Columba's Primary School
NEWSLETTER | T1 W5 | 7 MARCH 2019
"Do all you can with the means at your disposal and calmly leave the rest to God."
St. Mary of the Cross MacKillop
Message from the Principal
Dear Parents and Carers
Yesterday we celebrated the start of Lent with Ash Wednesday. The word Lent itself is derived from the Anglo-Saxon words lencten, meaning "Spring," and lenctentid, which literally means not only "Springtide" but also was the word for "March," the month in which the majority of Lent falls. Ash Wednesday is important because it marks the start of the Lenten period leading up to Easter, when Christians believe Jesus died and was resurrected. During this period, Christians show repentance and mourning for their sins, because they believe that Christ died for them. When the priest applies the cross of ashes, he says to the worshiper: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” He also may say “Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
Our students enjoyed their pancakes on Shrove Tuesday - a big thanks to parents who helped with the cooking!
Many thanks to Mr Chatt for organising the swimming trials today, despite dealing with very fickle ‘weather.’
The School Board elected their Executive at the school Board meeting last week. President: Anthony Rechichi, Vice Chair: Neilsen de Souza, Treasurer: Sandy Sahota, Secretary: Talia Huxtable and the P&F rep is Natalie Low.
Dads – dust off your tents and shake out the sleeping bags: campout is coming soon! Save the date: Saturday 6 April.
We continue to accept enrolments for Kindergarten 2021. If you know of any interested families, please encourage them to contact us.
Our visual arts program is being embraced by our students – take a look at Year 4’s “Ballooning Around the World” further in the newsletter.
God bless.
Allen McMahon
Principal
What a Week!
Shrove Tuesday
Enjoying Pancakes!
Thanks Parents for Helping!
Important Dates for Next Week
Sunday 10 March
- First Sunday of Lent
Monday 11 March
- Wellness Week Commences
Wednesday 13 March
- ASCS Cricket Carnival - Selected Year 5 and 6 Students
Thursday 14 March
- Swimming Carnival at Riverton Leisureplex - Year 3 to Year 6
Tennis Lesson Change of Day
Tennis lessons usually held on Thursday lunchtime with Mr Marshall will be held on Friday of this week only due to the swimming carnival.
2019 Term 2 School Dates:
Tuesday 30 April to Friday 5 July
Monday 29 April is a Pupil Free Day
SACRAMENT DATES FOR 2019
Sacramental Enrolment Mass - Saturday 16 March at 6pm
Reconciliation, First Holy Communion and Confirmation candidates for 2019 are required to attend this Mass.
Confirmation: 8 June 2019 at 6:00pm
Eucharist: 23 June 2019 at 9:30am
Reconciliation: 16 November 2019 at 10:00am to 11:30am
Merit Awards - 15 March Assembly
Year 1B - Orlando Naso, Isabella Perkis
Year 1O - Isabel Jith
Year 2C - Spencer Whitfield, Paris Hughes
Year 2F - Ethan Kingston, Clayton Sumich
Year 3B - James Houlding, Lucy Curypko
Year 3P - Shyla Tubic, Hannah Peterson
Year 4D - Christian Perkis, Sienna Care
Year 5B - Kara Verrall
Year 6P - Oliver Perkis, Sienna Banks
St Columba's Code of Conduct
This week we will highlight specific behaviours that meet the second statement of the Code of Conduct, ‘we give priority to students’ safety and well-being in all our behaviour and decision making’.
We will all be meeting the standard of this statement if we ensure that the safety and well-being of students is the primary focus of our actions and decisions and takes precedence over other considerations.
Examples of behaviours by parents that meet this standard include but are not limited to:
- A parent only driving other students with permission.
- A parent adhering to school policies and procedures.
- A parent listening to concerns reported to them about their child.
Examples of behaviours by students that meet this standard include but are not limited to:
- Non-bullying behaviour.
- Listening to safety instructions.
- Using equipment in a safe manner.
- Engaging in safe behaviour.
At staff meetings throughout the course of this year, our teachers will be discussing each statement in the Code of Conduct and will examine displays of behaviour that meet the various statements in this Code.
School Fee Accounts
Annual School Fee statements were all sent home last week.
Thank you to those families who have paid their accounts or sent through their payment options. A reminder that those families wishing to pay their fees in full will need to pay prior to the 29 March 2019 in order to receive the discount.
Payment Options include: fully payment, monthly or fortnightly payments. Payments can be made by EFTPOS/Credit Card in the front office or via BPAY and direct debit. (Direct Debit Request form to be completed and returned to the school).
All families must advise the school of their payment options by 15 March 2019. This is a new procedure at St. Columba’s Primary School. Finance staff will follow up with families that have not advised the school by the due date.
Those families with students in the Pre-Kindy must pay their fees within 7 days of receiving the statement.
Should you have any queries regarding your Annual School Fee statement please contact Narelle Foster (narelle.foster@cewa.edu.au).
Wellness Week
Next week is our first Wellness Week for this year. Students are allowed to wear their sports uniform for the whole week (any colour shirt), and there will be no homework allocated.
Please note, Year 3 to Year 6 students will be required to wear their faction shirts for the Swimming Carnival on Thursday.
Thank you to Mrs Lam who is donating a piece of fruit for each student during the week.
Kindergarten Enrolment 2021
Applications for Kindergarten are now being received to attend in 2021.To attend Kindergarten in 2021 your child needs to have been born between 1 July 2016 and 30 June 2017.
Please submit your completed application form, together with a copy of your child's Birth Certificate, Baptism Certificate and Immunisation records to the school office.
Applications close on Friday 29 March 2019.
Application for Enrolment forms are available from the School Website and the school office.
Project Compassion
Project Compassion is Caritas Australia's annual Lenten fundraising and awareness-raising appeal. Millions of Australians come together in solidarity with the world's poor to help end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity.
The Project Compassion boxes have been sent home this week with the eldest child in each family. We thank you in anticipation for your support for this worthy cause.
Thandolwayo from Zimbabwe
Life in her village in north-western Zimbabwe wasn’t easy for 12 year old Thandolwayo.
Her father left several years ago and her mother lives in a town 90 kilometres away where she works as a casual labourer. Thandolwayo lives with her grandparents and attends the local school which has just 35 students.
Every morning she’d walk seven kilometres and risk being attacked by crocodiles as she collected clean water for her family. She’d then go to school feeling exhausted.
Thandolwayo’s grandparents sell pearl millet bran to fishermen and farmers for animal feed. They also sell chickens - but the income it brings isn’t enough to support the family.
Thandolwayo’s hope to be a nurse seemed almost impossible to realise, until Caritas Hwange helped the village to install two solar-powered pumps to draw the water up from the river, as well as two 10,000 litre storage tanks.
Thanks to Caritas’ support, water is now on tap in the village, benefitting its 500 residents, and Thandolwayo can concentrate on her education.
“Now I can bathe every day, the distance to collect water for the family has been drastically reduced,” Thandolwayo says. “We now drink clean, safe water and diseases are no longer affecting us.”
The plentiful water supply has also triggered new ventures. Water is being used to mould bricks for building houses and to pound maize to sell. Plans are underway to establish a community garden and a fish pond, to generate a better income.
Library Roster
Thank you to the parents who have volunteered to help with book shelving this term.
Next week's roster . . .
Monday 11 March - Lara Tulett
Wednesday 13 March - Ratchanee Kingsbury
Happy reading.
Sandra Malarkey (Teacher Librarian)
Alice Shaw (Library Officer)
Musician of the Week
The Musician of the Week is Annabelle Keane from Year 6. Annabelle has played the piano for 4 years. Her teacher is Jordan Moore. Her favourite piece to play is Mamma Mia and her favourite performance piece is Piano Waltz.
In the future Annabelle would like to play the electric guitar.
Louise McDonald
Music Specialist
Artist of the Week
Ruby Lardicos is the artist of the week. She loves art because she finds it fun. She likes drawing and painting using water colours. She likes the background of her art where she used a water colour to paint the background. She drew three hot air balloons and outlined it in texta. Then she pasted a picture of Big Ben. Ruby is looking forward to more art lessons with Mrs Govorko.
Skyla and Layla
Year 6 Art Ministers
Year 4 Art - Ballooning Around the World
St. Columba's - Becoming a Waste Wise School
St. Columba's is excited to announce that they are working to become an accredited Waste Wise School.
We need your help, families, to encourage and model ways in which we can assist and preserve our world and our children's future.
We currently have a recycling point near the Support Room for;
- Printer and Ink cartridges
- Mobile Phones
Each class has a used battery collection box.
Look out for information, each week, in the newsletter for ways your family can make changes to reduce, reuse, and recycle.
Our latest project is the collection of oral hygiene products to reduce landfill in partnership with Colgate. Keep your eye out for the boxes to collect these items that contribute to a large part of waste on ocean shores. This is part of a school competition to potentially win a Garden Set for our school.
Circle of Security Workshops
Presented by Hilary Campos, School Social Worker
Proposed Dates
Monday's 18 March, 25 March, 1 April and 8 April
Times to be confirmed.
If you would to attend these workshops please register via email to admin@stcolumbassp.wa.edu.au, and indicate your time preference
from the options below.
Option A - 9am to 12 noon or Option B - 6pm to 9pm
Please include the names of those attending and a contact number.
All parents and carers are welcome.
A commitment to attend all 4 sessions in the series is very important to enjoy maximum benefits from the programme.
Please contact Hilary for further information at:
Confirmation of dates and times will be advised to those who register by Monday 11 March.
The programme will run subject to numbers.
The Circle of Security Parent program is based on decades of research about how secure parent-child relationships can be supported and strengthened.
Learning Objectives of the Training
- Understanding your child's emotional world by learning to read the emotional needs.
- Support your child's ability to successfully manage emotions.
- Enhance the development of your child's self esteem.
- Honour your innate wisdom and desire for your child to be secure.
URSTRONG Workshops – Thursday 21 March 2019
Register now for our URSTRONG’s Language of Friendship parent-child workshops being held on Thursday 21 March in the school undercover area.
Two sessions:
Year's 1 and 2 - Language of Friendship (Junior)
5pm to 6:30pm
Please click here to register.
Year's 3 to 6 - Language of Friendship
7pm to 8.30pm
Please click here to register.
Cost:
Tickets are $27.50 per person (both adults and children). Please use the promo code STCOLUMBAS to receive a discount of $10, kindly sponsored by our P&F.
For a parent attending both workshops: only one ticket is required (please let us know if you are attending both in the notes section of the registration form).
PARENTS AND FRIENDS
Dad's Campout
Dads – dust off your tents and shake out the sleeping bags: campout is coming soon!
Save the date: Saturday 6 April
Entertainment Books 2019/20
The P&F are once again selling the Entertainment Book ($70) to raise funds. The P&f receives $14 commission for each book sold. Please click here for the Online Order Page to order your digital book. If you prefer a hard coy of the Entertainment Book, we will advise when they are available from the school office.
COMMUNITY NOTICES
St. Mary's Cathedral Choir
The Cathedral Choir at St. Mary's Cathedral, Perth, has been in existence since before 1900 and was a mixed choir performing many large-scale Masses and other sacred works at Masses, concerts and other special events both in the Cathedral and in the city of Perth. The Choir consists of boy trebles and Lay Clerks (tenors and basses). For more information contact Jacinta Jakovcevic, Director of Music, at cathedral.music@perthcatholic.org.au.
Mercedes College
Open morning 19 March from 8:30am to 1pm. Please regsiter on the website.
IONA Presentation College
Senior School Open Morning on Tuesday 26 March from 9:30am to 11am. Further details please visit the website.
Basketball Development Camp
School holidays, 15 April to 18 April from 9am to 3pm. All skill levels. Boys and girls 5 to 14 years of age. Enquiries/Registration - schoolholidaybasketballcamps@gmail.com . Held at Perth College.
St Columba's Catholic Primary School
Email: admin@stcolumbassp.wa.edu.au
Website: https://www.stcolumbassp.wa.edu.au/
Location: 30 York Street, South Perth WA 6151, Australia
Phone: (08) 6436 9500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Education/St-Columbas-Catholic-Primary-School-South-Perth-173160579973945/