75 Lorrimer Street Oakey 4401 Ph: 0746911067 Fax: 0746911416 Email: [email protected]
Newsletter 3rd August 2017 Week 4 Term 3 “Inspiring learning for a better world.”
Catholic Education Week is celebrated each year to reflect on, embrace and promote the mission of
Catholic Schools to implant Jesus’ message of faith, love and hope into the lives of youth and the wider commu-
nity through education .
Family Breakfast Early on a very cold and frosty Thursday morning our families, friends and col-
leagues celebrated with a very nice and delicious breakfast together. Everyone
loved the food, which included bacon, sausages, French toast, pancakes and
fruit to eat and fruit juice, milo and coffee to drink. This was a memorable oc-
casion with opportunities to meet and greet, to share and enjoy precious mo-
ments of our lives together. We gratefully thank all parents, students and staff
who came along and supported this wonderful event.
Family Mass
Our school community later gathered to celebrate Mass and the Eucharist at
St. Monica’s Church with Fr. Thomas and Fr. Carol. It was lovely to see many
students assisting, reading Bible Scriptures related to journeys and singing
about Jesus during the service.
Can you follow Jesus in his footsteps?
Sporting Prowess On the same day some of our students were competing in the Catholic Schools Netball and Touch Football
competitions. Thank you for representing St. Monica’s so well and congratulations to the boys who won all of
their touch football games!
Bishop’s In Service Day - While students enjoyed a lovely holiday on Friday, St. Monica’s staff
along with colleagues from other schools in our diocese attended captivating and very meaningful presenta-
tions related to our fundamental mission. Staff spent the day at St. Joseph’s College in the company of our
leaders and our Bishop, Robert McGuckin celebrated a beautiful and invigorating Mass for all those gath-
ered.
Dear Parents/Caregivers
This week Mr Poulton has been enjoying the Charleville environs along with his counterparts from across our Diocesan Schools
at the Principals’ Forum. He will no doubt update us on matters of importance on his return, but in the meantime, I get the
chance to put the spotlight on the wonders of St Monica’s School Life of the past week. I know that some of you may find the
intricacies of bodily reactions to viruses absolutely amazing, but I shall bypass that particular wonder, having shared enough
such experiences with students and staff alike recently, and concentrate on other marvels.
On Tuesday our classes enjoyed the World of Maths presentation where they had the chance to interact mathematically over
a variety of games and activities. Thank you Mrs Conneely for organising this great opportunity – Maths really can be fun. (I’ll
say that louder so you know I mean it). Maths really can be fun! Science can also be fascinating fun, and judging by the posi-
tive reactions given to the upcoming St Monica’s Science competition, we have quite a few budding scientists among our
ranks. If you think your child might be interested (or should be interested!) in creating an object that can move (Prep, Yr 1:
wind energy; Yr 2,3: gravity or rubber band power; Yr 4,5: magnetic or water energy; Yr 6: solar or battery power), check that
they have collected a flyer from the office and start working. This is a home based activity with parental involvement encour-
aged, as long as the finished product is the child’s work, and they can explain their creation and how it works. Not a moment
to lose!
Yesterday was a very exciting day for our Prep and Year One students who caught a bus into Cobb & Co in Toowoomba to
learn about Indigenous Australians through storytelling, games, artefacts and activities. A very weary but happy crew of stu-
dents, staff and parents trudged into school late yesterday afternoon after a very full program – learning can be so draining!
Tomorrow our Indigenous students will be venturing across to the Oakey State School to explore more of their Indigenous
heritage as a way of celebrating National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day. We thank Malynda and the
Goondir medical team for this opportunity.
Today our students enjoyed cricket coaching with a visiting cricket coach, Sam Reeves. Although a summer sport, this wonder-
ful winter weather held so that conditions were just right for wielding the willow. It was also very fitting to share such a pas-
time beloved by Australians with our visiting counterparts from Ena City in Japan. Our students always look forward to sharing
time and culture with these young Japanese learners on their annual sojourn here, and are great at extending a welcoming
hand of friendship.
We have some very excited Year 4 students at the moment as they prepare for their overnight camp to Koojarewon and the
Highfields Pioneer Village. Thank you Mrs Anderson and Mrs Bruggemann for your planning and organisation of this. I know it
will be a fantastic growing experience for our students (and I hear for a few parents as well!)
Even lunchtimes are becoming greater opportunities for learning and friendship here at St Monica’s with the beginning of our
‘Alternative Activities’ led by the fabulous Mrs Young and her band of merry helpers. As from next week these activities will
be held Wednesday and Friday lunchtimes. Students must sign up for each day and spaces have been filling quickly. A range of
interesting craft activities have been planned and the children are just loving the chance to let their creative juices flow. A
huge ‘Thank you,’ to Mrs Young and her helpers for your assistance in offering these magical experiences for our children.
Make the most of this fabulous weather while it lasts, and breathe the fresh air outdoors. Yours truly, Teresa Woolacott APRE
APRE
God of light, you transfigured your Son in a blaze of glory which illuminates the earth. Hear our prayers and lead us from your holy mountain to build your kingdom of light and peace. Amen
Family Mass: Our next Family Mass will be held Sunday August 13 at 8am. Our wonderful Year 6 students are or-ganising this celebration and would appreciate your attendance. All are invited to stay for morning tea in the Parish Hall. John Briffa from the Diocesan Liturgical Commission will then be leading a work-shop on active participation in liturgical celebrations and how each one of us can play a special role in parish liturgies and masses. If your child/ren are able to attend the Mass, please fill out the form below so we can plan for their active participation. Prospective Altar Servers: Many of our students who made their First Communion and Confirmation have expressed an interest in learning to altar serve. Over the rest of this term I will endeavour to provide those interested with some training in this very special ministry, and to roster them onto upcoming Masses. Copies of the draft roster will be sent home today. I know the children would feel very blessed if their parents could support them by attending Mass when they are rostered on. Opti-Minds Update:
Current illnesses have necessitated the withdrawal of a couple of students from the Opti-Minds Chal-
lenge process and, we have had to rearrange our teams. We will now be going with two teams instead of three. A note will be sent home in the next day or so with further details. Until next week may you be refreshed by the Spirit,
Teresa Woolacott APRE
My child/ren ___________________________ will be attending the Family Mass Sunday August 13 at 8am.
Signed: __________________________________ Date: ________________
Prep:
Dear Families:
This week the students have wondered and learnt about the Dreamtime, in preparation for our Cobb and Co visit yesterday. They learnt about Indigenous Culture, the Indigenous Creation Story, and the rich history and traditions of oral story telling. Yesterday’s visit was a wonderful experience to learn about and respect diversity. For many the highlight was the Indigenous dancing and singing and the boomerang throwing. Kind Regards Mrs Robyn Crisp
Year 1:
Wow! What a fabulous time everyone had at the Cobb and Co Museum on Wednesday, where we experienced many facets of Indigenous Culture. Thanks to everyone who came to help on the day.
During Mathematics students have been skip counting and linking the skill to counting coins to set values. Tuesday saw the students engage in many problem solving opportunities when 'The World of Mathematics' visited.
This week we have continued our focus on verbs (action words) in stories. We have worked on endings 'ed' and 'ing' when spelling. Students have identified the structured and written simple sentences.
Mrs Chris Conneely
Year 2/3:
Hello from the Year 2/3 room!
We have such great SuperLEARNers in year 2/3. This week we have been completing a shared writing task. The top-
ic was ‘Can children your age make their neighbourhood beautiful?’. We had such great discussions around this
topic and have started to construct our first persuasive text. It is great to see students putting their learning into
context.
Mrs Lawrie has been busy creating a Maths Working Wall where students are able to display their work and refer
to for help. Feel free to pop in and take a look.
Have a great week
Mrs Gina Lawrie/ Mrs Charden Ruge
Year 3/4CA:
This week we are exploring packages: -what they are made of, the purpose of them and why they’ve been made of the materials they’ve been made of. The students have come up with some interesting ideas. We have also been exploring the measurements of mass and length and have been experimenting with hands on materials. Each week I provide a brainteaser for the students to work out with their parents, as a discussion activity. While it is easy to Google the answer, it is more fun if you try to work out the answer without Tech support. It doesn’t matter if the answer is wrong, and it brings joy into the classroom to hear the different answers and how you came up with them. 3/4 CA will be presenting on assembly this Friday 4th August, all welcome. Have a great week and God Bless. Mrs Cheryl Anderson
Year 3/4KB
This week in HaSS, we discussed democracy and the students took part in a ‘pretend’ vote to experience the process first
hand. In Maths, we learnt about capacity and measured quantities of liquid using various utensils. Our visit to the World of
Maths workshop enabled the students to further enhance their Mathematics skills and knowledge, by participating in a num-
ber of hands on activities. It is wonderful to see the number of students reading each night and completing their reading fold-
ers. Well done!
The Year 4 students are very excited about their camp which will take place next Thursday and Friday at Koojarewon. Please
make sure the students have all of the requirements as listed on the provided information. The Year 3 students from both
3/4KB and 3/4CA will come together to complete their learning tasks during this time.
Mrs Kaylene Bruggemann
Year 5:
In Mathematics on Tuesday we had an exciting and mind challenging learning experience together with the Year
Six class. A diverse range of fun, practical activities were organised to test our knowledge and skills by World of
Maths. We also completed tests on money, decimals, fractions, percentages and divisions. It is essential for every-
one to be competent with multiplication facts before we can do division problems.
Students are starting to write up some of their assignment tasks. In Religion a work-booklet will be completed ad-
dressing questions related to faith and Psalms to begin with. The work is expected to be completed in stages, with
the first part due by the end of week 5. This first part includes content we have covered so far.
In English, the first assessment task will be the analysis and comprehension of a news article. Students’ responses
will address text structures, the use and types of images, level of formality and language features that set the tone
and influence readers’ opinions.
While it is envisaged that the assignment preparation will be completed in class, students must be focused and are
to work efficiently with good organisational and time management practices at all times to be successful.
Any assignment tasks that require additional work outside of school will be communicated in the Newsletter.
It is important that students keep up with their daily readings, spelling practice and Mathematics homework com-
pletion. Practice makes perfect!
God bless you,
Dr. Denes Hamerli.
Year 6
Hello from Year 6.
Last Thursday’s Catholic Touch and Netball Carnivals were a great opportunity for our Year 6 students to display their sporting
skills in a non- competitive arena. Both teams put up spirited performances in all their matches with the girls recording a great
win over rivals Mater Dei and the boys being undefeated on the day. Once again all children behaved commendably through-
out the day and wore their school uniform with pride.
I am extremely happy to tell you that a parent from another school sought me out after a match to say how impressed she
was with the boys touch team and the manner in which they congratulated their opponents, and in particular the positive
comments they made to them. Hearing a report such as that made the day most memorable.
Regards,
Mr Michael West
Weekend Masses
St Monica’s Parish
1st, 4th & 5th Sunday – Saturday Vigil 6.00pm
2nd Sunday – 8.00am
3rd Sunday – 8.00am Celebra-tion of the Word & Commun-
ion
Our Lady of the Annunciation, Peranga
2nd Sunday – 10.00am
4th Sunday – 10.00am Celebra-tion of the Word & Commun-
ion
Oakey: Saturday 6pm
Peranga: Sunday 10am
AUGUST 2017
Tues 8th Inner Downs Athletics
Tues 8th P&F Meeting
Thurs 10/11 Year 4 Camp
Thurs 10th St Monica’s Soup and Sandwich Lunch
Mon 15th ICAS—Maths competition
Thurs 17 School Board Meeting
Sat 26th Trivia Night
Sun 27th Opti-Minds—Gatton
SEPTEMBER 2017
Mon 4th Parent Teacher Interviews begin
Thurs 7th Musical Afternoon Tea
Sun 10th St Monica’s Day—Family Mass
Fri 15th Prep & Year 1 Excursion-Carnival of Flowers
Tuckshop
Helpers
for Monday
7th August 2017
Claire Fea
Linda Leerentveld
Thank you for your
Assistance.
Super LEARNers of the Week
Week 4 Term 3 The students listed below will be presented their awards at
Assembly 2:20pm Friday afternoon in the Parish Hall
Prep: Jacqui
Year 1: Tyler
Year 2/3: Bryant
Year 3/4CA: James
Year 3/4KB: Mia-Maree
Year 5: Claire
Year 6: Jade
Oakey
Community
Playgroup
St Monica’s Primary School
75 Lorrimer St Oakey
Every Thursday 9-11am
(Except School Holidays)
President: Tricia Brownsey 0408 675 945
Colour Run and Fete Fundraiser
C&K Oakey Community Kindergarten’s Colour Run and Fete will be held on Sunday 13th August 2017
from 10am – 12 noon in the Arthur Shooter Memorial Scout Park (Stanley Street Oakey).
This is a community event and everyone is welcome to attend. Registration for the Colour Run is $10
for an individual or $25 for a family or group of 5. Registrations will be available on the day from
9.15am.
The fete will include a sausage sizzle, cake stall, Book Fair, performance by Nguluwa dhiyaan Aborigi-
nal dancers, Cleo the Clown, children’s activities and lots, lots more!!
Why not get a group together to come along, have a BLAST WITH COLOUR and stay for the fete, all
while supporting your local Kindergarten!
INNER DOWNS
PRIMARY SCHOOLS BOYS CRICKET TRIALS
Please notify the office if your child is interested by Friday August 11, as there is paperwork to be filled out for the nominations.
Information for the Inner Downs trials is as follows:
DATE Monday, 21st August, 2017
TIME 2:00pm – 5:00pm
VENUE Bridgeman Oval, Briggs Street, Pittsworth
NOMINATION FEE $5 per student (must be paid to student’s school before trial)
NOMINATIONS Schools can nominate children who meet the criteria below.
MEDICAL FORM Children must bring a medical form to the Trials. Please note the following:
The Department of Education Training and The Arts does not have Personal Accident Insurance for students.
WOOLWORTHS EARN AND LEARN
Please drop your stickers from Woolworths into the box provided in the office!
TRIVIA NIGHT
Table bookings now being taken for our annual Trivia Night, come along and join us for a night of fun and
games!
Please return your raffle tickets and money to the office, more tickets available if required.
Helpers for decorating the hall are required Mon 21st—Fri 25th 10.30am—2.30pm each day, if you can spare
a little time to help, please let the office know.
St Monica's Science Competition
As part of the 2017 National Science Week we would like to invite students to participate in the St Mon-ica's Science Competition. Their challenge is to create an object with motion that uses renewable ener-gy. Objects are to be made of recycled materials. Students may research ideas for Their object from other people, internet and books etc. Objects are to created using the following categories:
Prep and Year 1: wind powered
Year 2 and 3: gravity or rubber band powered
Year 4 and 5: magnetic or water powered
Year 6: solar or battery powered
Prizes to be won for each category! Projects are to be completed at home and handed in for judging by Thursday the 17th of August, week 6 (Science Week). Parents are invited to help their child with the project however students must be able to explain the scientific process involved. See brochure for details.
St. Monica’s School — Winter Uniform
With winter well on its way, we are reviewing our winter uniform requirements. The current winter uniform as stated on the school website is set out in full below.
If you feel that your child requires additional clothes for those very cold days, the school would like you to add the following layers:
Boys & Girls - Navy blue long sleeved skivvy to be worn under their school dress, dress shirt or sports shirt
Girls - Navy blue tights – no leggings please.
As stated on the St Monica’s School website, the current Winter Uniform includes the following:
Prep Students:
St Monica’s sports shirt
Girls Navy blue skorts
Boys Navy blue shorts Stubbies brand – BCS06 or BCS37N
White socks (no ankle socks)
White sports shoes.
Prep students: Winter: please layer with the following:
Navy blue long sleeved skivvy (boys & girls)
Navy blue (only) tights (girls) – no socks if wearing tights
Bottle green fleecy track pants (boys & girls)
St. Monica’s School Bottle Green Fleecy Pullover with embroidered crest
St. Monica’s School Bottle Green Jacket with embroidered crest
Years 1 to 6:
Girls: Formal –
St Monica’s tartan dress uniform
St Monica’s School Bottle Green Fleecy Pullover with embroidered crest
St Monica’s School Bottle Green embroidered school jacket
Navy blue (only) tights, optional – no leggings
All black shoes (may be leather or sports).
Girls: Sports Uniform -
St Monica’s sports shirt
Navy blue skorts
Bottle green fleecy track pants
St Monica’s School Bottle Green Fleecy Pullover with embroidered crest
St. Monica’s School Bottle Green Jacket with embroidered crest
Navy blue (only) tights, optional – no leggings
White socks (no ankle socks)
White sports shoes.
Boys: Formal –
St Monica’s button up short sleeve shirt with tartan collar
Long navy blue short (Stubbies brand – BCS06 or BCS37N)
Long navy blue pants (Ruggers brand), optional
St Monica’s School Bottle Green Fleecy Pullover with embroidered crest
St. Monica’s School Bottle Green Jacket with embroidered crest
Navy socks (no ankle socks)
All black shoes (may be leather or sports).
Boys: Sports –
St Monica’s sports shirt
Long navy blue short (Stubbies brand – BCS06 or BCS37N)
Bottle Green fleecy track pants
St Monica’s School Bottle Green Fleecy Pullover with embroidered crest
St. Monica’s School Bottle Green Jacket with embroidered crest
White socks (no ankle socks),
White sports shoes. The St. Monica’s School uniform is currently available at
M&M’s Fashions and Oakey Craft and Saddlery.
Hats: St Monica’s bottle green slouch style hat available at the School Office.
(all students)