St Anthony’s Parish Primary School

We pray for all involved in the ministry of education. Like Jesus may they be clear, courageous and strong as they pass values of compassion and justice to future generations. May our support for Project Compassion continue to make education more widely available. Amen.

As our St Anthony’s community begin its Lenten journey together, we remember that Lent is a time of preparation for the gift of new life that we receive at Easter. During this time, we are called to reflect upon our need for God and to address those things in our lives that distract us from the wholeness that only God can bring. Perhaps this may also be a time when instead of giving something up, we choose to give or do something for others. Seeing Jesus in the face of others can sometimes be challenging, let this be an opportunity to rise above the frustrations and at times, anger and be more like our God through showing acts of love and kindness towards others, even when they do you wrong.

During Lent, we support Project Compassion. Donation boxes are in each of our classrooms. Please encourage your children to bring in donations to support this cause.

Last week I had the opportunity to join Archbishop Prowse and fellow principals in our Archdiocese for Ash Wednesday in Bowral. One of the sessions featured keynote speaker Clara Geoghegan. Clara is the executive secretary for the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference specialising in charisms and leadership. Together we shared dialogue on our own charisms. Two elements contribute to defining what charism is. The first, the charism is the gift given “for the common good” (1 Cor 12:7), to be useful to everyone. The second, the charism is the gift given “to one”, or “to some” in particular, not to everyone in the same way. The charism is given to a specific person or community. It is a gift that God gives you.

As we begin Lent, I invite you to reflect on the following charisms and identify which ones relate to you;

Administration, Craftsmanship, Discernment of Spirits, Encouragement, Evangelism, Faith, Giving, Healing, Help, Hospitality, Intercessory Prayer, Knowledge, Leadership, Mercy, Missionary, Music, Pastoring, Prophecy, Service, Teaching, Voluntary Poverty, Wisdom and Writing.

STAFFING

May I take this opportunity to thank Mr Cameron Beck who has been an outstanding DDT teacher at St Anthony’s for the past year. Cameron has done a magnificent job in transforming the digital technology space at St Anthony’s. Cameron will be leaving St Anthony’s as of next Friday to join his wife in New Zealand as they prepare for the upcoming arrival of their baby. We look forward to welcoming back Cameron to our St Anthony’s family in the near future and wish Cameron and his wife Dianne all the very best for their journey ahead as a family.

NAPLAN

This week and next, our year 3 and 5 students are participating in NAPLAN testing. My thanks to our teachers for the coordination of facilitating these sessions and providing a comfortable and nurturing environment for our students.

Movie night

This Friday is our St Anthony’s move night. 6.00pm-9.00pm. Thank you to Megan Doherty for her organisation of this wonderful event. Tickets sales will continue until Wednesday 12 March, so don’t forget to purchase a ticket by then.

BYO picnic, blanket/chair, or purchase some food on the night. Chip on a stick, sausage sandwiches, popcorn, lollies and fairy floss will be available to purchase.

Gates will open from 6.00pm.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS AN ALCOHOL-FREE EVENT

You can purchase tickets online at https://compasstix.com/e/5w8ih2vut1

The password for ticket access is: sta2903

St Anthony’s School Community Council

Last night our community council executive met together for their termly meeting.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Allan Taylor who has resigned as our community council chair. Allan has been chair of our Community Council since term 4, 2023 and has been instrumental in supporting the school transition from a School board to our school community council. Together and on behalf of our St Anthony’s community, may I take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank Allan for his time and efforts as Chair.

An Expression of Interest process is currently being undertaken within our current council executive for the appointment of our new chair.

The School Community Council (Council) provides a crucial point of connection between the school community and school leaders. The Council provides a framework for welcoming parents and other members of the school community to participate in school activities, to become actively involved in the life of the school and to support the mission of Catholic education in the school. The Council is advisory in nature, though is able to make decisions in relation to the expenditure of money raised through Council-led fundraising activities. While the Council does not have governance responsibility or decision-making authority in relation to the school more broadly, the Council provides an important forum for consultation, a means for members of the community to share their skills and talents for the common good, and a framework for the Principal to draw on the collective wisdom and insights of the parent cohort. The Council also provides invaluable support to the school through community-led activities.

There is currently a vacancy to join the community council executive if you are interested in submitting an expression of interest as a member.

The Council, in accordance with the authority entrusted to it by the Archbishop, is to assist the school to fulfill the school’s educational and evangelising mission in accordance with this Charter, the approved School Community Council Guidelines for the school and any applicable CECG policies.

The Council has a key role in supporting the community of parents, students and staff at the school. Specifically, the role of the Council is to, according to local priorities:

a) support the Principal and Parish Priest to develop and promote Catholic Identity, the ethos and mission of the school;
b) support the Principal to make strategic decisions relating to the school as part of the consultative process
c) promote the school in the local community;
d) support the Principal and the school to raise funds for the school through community-led fundraising activities, with Council Working Groups operating to co-ordinate the delivery of these activities;
e) provide support to the Principal and the school to foster relationships and connections within the school community by developing and delivering community building activities; and School Community Council Charter
f) provide support to the Principal to foster Parish-school connections

If you are interested in joining the council executive, please submit a brief one-page expression of interest to erin.marmont@cg.catholic.edu.au by COB Friday 28 March.

Year 6 camp

Next Wednesday our Year 6 students will travel to Berry for our Year 6 camp. This is a wonderful opportunity for our school leaders to participate in team-building activities, outdoor challenges and exciting times together. My sincere thanks to Miss Jorgy Eglinton, Miss Sophie Hall, Mr Joe McGrath and Mr Jamie Marmont who will be accompanying our students to their camp. I very much appreciate the energy, additional hours and enthusiasm each of these teachers will provide for our students. My thanks also to their own families for supporting our teachers attending the camp and being away from loved ones.

PLEASE NOTE: the bus departure time for camp on Wednesday has changed from 6.45am to 6.30am. Please be at school by no later than 6.15am

Week 7- Family week

Next week is family week and traditionally a week free from homework. We hope this week provides families with a moment to catch their breath with a little extra time as we head towards the weeks ahead.

Harmony Week

Monday 17 - Sunday 23 March 2025 celebrates Harmony Week. This is a time to celebrate and recognise the diversity of Australians from all backgrounds. It is a time of inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone.

As a school we will be exploring what harmony means, the importance of Harmony Week and the different backgrounds within our school.

On Friday 21 March students are encouraged to wear a splash of orange (ribbon, t-shirt, socks etc.) to celebrate the conclusion of Harmony Week.

Kids Playdate

Members of the community council have organised a St Anthony’s kids play date in the park on Sunday 23 March at Tuggeranong town park. This is a wonderful event for our families to join with children and meet members of our St Anthony’s community. Please see flyer in this week’s newsletter.

Duty of Care

A reminder that supervision of students begins from 8.30am. When students arrive at school they are to be seated at the front of the school until the teacher on duty arrives and opens the gates for students to enter. It would be greatly appreciated if you could remind your child/ren that for the safety and wellbeing of themselves and others, students should not be running around the front of the school and that bikes and scooters should be walked in through the school gates. For our walkers and riders, please remind children that the school crossing is to be used to cross roads.

Behaviour Guidance at St Anthony’s

As outlined in our last newsletter, St Anthony’s teachers have been sharing our behaviour guidance strategy with our students. Whilst we are unable to share our PowerPoint clip with families for privacy reasons, here are some snippets of Information shared in the behaviour guidance sessions:

At St Anthony’s we strive to be the best students we can be.

We promise to:
Be Responsible
Be Respectful
Be a Learner

At STA we are safe in everything we do.	We are very lucky to have the canteen at STA.
We keeps our hands and feet off others.	It is important we always show Mrs Alchin and her helpers our best manners and respect.
An important way we show respect at STA is how we speak each other, including to the teachers and staff.	We line up and wait our turn. We say please and thank you.
It is important that we speak politely to each other and all grown-ups.	We need to remember the rules about the swing, see-saw, spinners, sandpit and tunnels to make sure we are safe and playing fairly
We come to school to learn.	On the Junior Equipment we play safely and look out for others. We always wait our turn.
We must always remember that at STA we do not disrupt the learning of others.	We do not run up the slides and we do not play chasing, tagging or running games.
We move around the school in quiet lines.	When we play on the oval, we show respect for each other, we do not use bad language, we follow game rules and play fairly.
Our school uniform is an important symbol of our school. It unites us as one and shows others that we are part of the STA Family	We go out of our way to keep STA clean and tidy.
We put our rubbish in the bin and at the end of each week work together to clean up our eating area.	The toilets and bubblers are NOT play areas. We use these areas for their intended purpose and then we move on and return to where we are supposed to be.
In New Nature Play we only use things that are already on the ground. We share the space and respect the creations of others.	If you have a problem on the playground you go to a teacher.
Always speak to a grown up if you are worried or upset. Our staff are here to help you.	There are teachers everywhere to help. Look out for the bright coloured vests.

Important dates and what's on this term:

Take care,

Erin

School Counsellor

As part of the pastoral care program for students, St Anthony’s School has access to a Student and Family Counselling service provided by CatholicCare Canberra & Goulburn (CCG). CCG are contracted by St Anthony’s School to provide a counselling service to students and their families on-site. There is no fee to access this service.

The role of the counsellor is to focus on the emotional, social and educational well-being of the students. Counsellors welcome contact with students having difficulty with some part of their life, whether or not it affects their school work. The problem does not have to be a big one. It is better to seek help sooner than later. Some typical concerns that counsellors work with include: anger, anxiety, behavioural problems, depression, eating problems, family breakdown and family conflict, grief and loss, learning and educational challenges, parenting challenges, peer and other social relationships, school avoidance, stress and study skills. As well as individual sessions with students, counsellors do family work, consult with parents and teachers and make referrals to other services and supports.

Student and Family Counsellors subscribe to a set of professional ethics that include a duty of care and respect for the individual rights to privacy and confidentiality. The counsellors’ obligation is to ensure the safety, wellbeing and confidentiality of the student they are working with. All counsellors are mandated to report any disclosure or sign of abuse (including self-harm) or neglect to Child Protection Services. Outside of our mandated requirements, all counselling sessions are confidential, and the details will not be discussed with other parties unless written consent is given by the client.

St Anthony’s Primary School has one school counsellor, Mrs Patience Way.

Referrals and requests can be made by completing the online referral form.

Referral for School Counsellor

4 Apr	STA Cross Country All day

9 Apr	NRL Meninga/Daley Legends Day, Yr 3-6 All day

10 Apr	Students last day of school for Term 1 All day

29 Apr	Students return to school for Term 2 All day