St Thomas' News

St Thomas’ Primary School is part of a faith community centred on the life of Jesus, as expressed in our Motto, ‘Together in Christ’

Our Vision is to 'Educate the Whole Child' and create opportunities for our children to become loving individuals with the skills to willingly contribute to make the world a better place.

2020 TERM FOUR

Friday 27 November: School Disco 6.30-8pm Years 3-6;

PP- Year 2 -5-6pm

Monday 30 November -Friday 4 December - Swimming Lessons continue PP-Year 6

Monday 7 December: Reports issued

Monday 7 December: Transition PP-Year 6 from 11-12.30pm

Tuesday 8 December: Christmas Concert 6pm on top oval

Wednesday 9 December: Thanksgiving/Graduation Liturgy 9am

Graduation Dinner 6pm

Thursday 10 December: Year 6 Excursion /K-Year 5 Fun Day

Friday 11 December: End of school year for students

2021 TERM ONE

Monday 1 February: Students (PP-6) commence

Monday 1 February: Pre-Kindy students commence

Tuesday 2 February: Kindergarten students commence

Friday 12 February: P & F Sundowner (Parents)

Friday 5 March: St Thomas' Swimming Carnival

As we near the end of the school year, we prepare to begin the Church season of Advent, with this Sunday being the first Sunday of Advent.

God of light and hope look upon us in love,

and fill us with the Spirit of Jesus

That we may love you and serve you in your kingdom.

Protect us during this week and keep us watchful in prayer

as we await the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ,

who is light of the world,

and who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.

The Advent Wreath

The Advent Wreath is a Symbol which reminds us of the everlasting love of God and the time of waiting for the coming of Christ into our lives.

The wreath is round reminding us of the never-ending love of God.

The wreath is made from evergreens reminding us of the life that comes from God.

There are four candles, three purple and one pink, representing the four Sundays in Advent.

The colour purple is the liturgical colour for Advent, which symbolizes a time of waiting and the colour pink represents the joy we share in the life of Jesus.

During the season of Advent one candle on the wreath is lit each Sunday as a part of the Advent services.

On the first Sunday of Advent, the 1st December, the first purple candle is lit. This candle is called the Prophet’s candle to remind us of the prophets, those special people who spoke God’s word to the people and promised that a saviour would come. This candle represents hope or expectation in anticipation of the coming of Jesus.

It is hard to believe we have two weeks left until the end of the 2020 school year, and what a year it has been! Our students have been amazing in the way they have coped with the challenges and changes of a year like no other, and we are incredibly proud of the way they have adapted and thrived. They have shown their resilience and their independence and we would like to celebrate the wonderful community that supports us all. Please take note of all the end of year activities and join with us as we celebrate and conclude an incredible year.

AGM

The St Thomas' School Annual General Meeting was well attended last evening. Presentations from the Board Chair Mr John Prichard, P & F President Mrs Sarah Chatfield and the Principal, provided a snapshot of the amazing achievements of our students, staff and community throughout the 2020 school year.

Board/Advisory Council

At the AGM we farewelled our outgoing Board Chair Mr John Prichard. John has served on both the Board and P & F as President and has led our Fathering Project over many years. He has generously given his time and has worked tirelessly to support staff, parents and students. Our sincerest gratitude John, for your commitment over many years, to building our wonderful community. We wish you and your family all the best as you move onto a new school community.

Thank you also to Mr. Steve Dunn and Mrs. Rosemary Roach, our retiring Board members who have given generously of their expertise and time.

A key outcome of last nights AGM is the appointment of the St Thomas Board members for 2021. Due to an administrative error, a nomination to the board was not received by the Executive before the AGM. Following a special resolution of the St Thomas’ Board today, I pleased to announce the following new Board members for 2021:

Chris Adams

Liz Dawson

Frank Di Latte

Brian Douglas

Congratulations to our new members.

P & F

A big thank you to the 2020 P & F Executive, Sarah Chatfield, Mel Trend, Tom Curnow and Paul Leighton and to the enthusiastic team of parents who attend our meetings and assist with community building.

We acknowledge and thank the dedicated and hard-working President Sarah Chatfield, for her service to our community. Thank you, Sarah, for your passion and dedication to making our school great, and thank you for all the wonderful things you do to bring our school community together. You have been an amazing President and we thank you most sincerely.

Thank you also to our retiring Secretary Mr Paul Leighton for his amazing contribution in his role.

We welcome the new P & F Executive for 2021:

President: Mrs Bianca della Vedova

Vice President: Mrs Melissa Trend

Secretary: Mrs Melissa di Latte

Treasurer: Mr Tom Curnow

Staff

We farewell and thank Mrs Lisa Meyers, Mrs Karen Jones and Mrs Cathy Cotton. We wish them well in their future careers.

Staffing for the 2021 school year:

Principal: Mrs Natalia Thomson

Assistant Principals: Mrs Nicky Sullivan & Mr Heath Nankivell

Administration/Finance

Mrs Julie Wray

Mrs Leanne Hancock

Mrs Penny Billingham

Teachers

Pre-Kindy: Mrs Kate Byrne

Kindergarten: Mrs Brianna Kirkbride

Pre-Primary: Miss Georgia Lee

Year 1: Miss Nicola Ward

Year 2: Mrs Sam Valentine & Mrs Kelly Migliore

Year 3: Mrs Nicky Sullivan & Mrs Lisa Keatch

Year 4: Mr Heath Nankivell & Mrs Lisa Keatch

Year 5: Mr Liam Godsall

Year 6: Mrs Lila Gibbs

Science: Mrs Lisa Keatch

Art: Mrs Kate Byrne

Physical Education: Mrs Sharon Seaman

Support / Health: Mrs Ann Barry

Library: Mr Ron Wray

Music: TBA

Education Assistants

Pre-Kindy: Mrs Nicole Nolan

Kindergarten: Mrs Jeanette Koong & Mrs Nicole Nolan

Pre-Primary: Mrs Virginia Gamble

Year 1: Miss Michelle Campbell

Year 2: Miss Rebecca McCarthy

Years 3- 6: Mrs Sue Vincent

I am confident that the teacher your child is placed with in 2021 is dedicated to providing an environment in which your child will thrive.

Disco

Our students are excited about the P & F Disco this afternoon in the hall. Entry is a gold coin donation with a sausage sizzle and drink provided. Please enter the grounds through the Early Years area on Melville Street.

Christmas Concert

Students are busy rehearsing their songs for our annual Christmas Concert. This is scheduled for Tuesday 8 December at 6pm. The theme for this years concert is 'The Nativity'. Families are invited however due to COVID restrictions, we are unable to accomodate an invitation to friends or the Parish.

End of Year Thanksgiving & Graduation Liturgy

This is being held in the undercover area at St Thomas’ on Wednesday 9 December at 9am. The Liturgy will be followed by our end of year presentations and the announcement of the Year 6 Leaders for 2021. Students from Pre-Primary to Year 6 will attend. Parents are welcome.

End of Year School Reports

Reports will be made available for parents to view and download by Monday 7 December. Please check your login details now for SEQTA Engage and contact your class teacher if you require assistance.

Student Leaders for 2021

Student Leadership speeches for Year 5 students seeking support from their peers in achieving leadership positions have been held. It is important to note that all Year 6 students are considered ‘leaders’, being the senior students in the school, and as such, they are expected to be good role models for the younger students in the school. Leaders for 2021 will be announced to the community at the conclusion of the End of Year Thanksgiving Liturgy.

Congratulations Kian!

We received exciting news earlier this week. Kian in Year 4 was awarded a medal in English for the highest achievement nationally in the Interschools Competitions of Australiasia for the 2020 school year. An outstanding achievement!

End of Year Fun Day

This will be held on Thursday 10 December for all students from Kindergarten to Year 5. Year 6 students will be enjoying their end of year excursion to Adventure World on this day.

Have a lovely weekend

God bless

Natalia Thomson

Principal

To begin our Christmas Unit the children decorated boxes to make them look like Christmas presents. The children ordered the boxes from largest to smallest and then built a Christmas Tree to decorate our classroom.

This term in Economics and Business the Year 5 class have been busy creating their own business with an aim to make and sell a product in order to generate revenue. On Thursday the 3rd of December the Year 5 students will be holding their Market Day at lunch time. Items for sale include baked goods, healthy jelly cups, home-made drinks, Christmas decorations, Pearler beads and sweet treats. Please allow your children to bring in a couple of gold coins for the market day and to support Year 5 Business. All money profited by the day will be donated to charity.

Showcasing the talented E-Challengers’ creative biographical journey.

It was lovely to see so many parents attend the Volunteer's Morning Tea. Thank you to all our parents and helpers in 2020.

So far, St Thomas' have saved 308 plastic, glass, and aluminum containers from going to landfill!

Students of the Green Team have been very busy each week counting, cleaning, and checking the containers so that they are ready to be recycled into things like tissues, new bottles, and airplane wings!

Thank you for the ongoing support and effort of all students and families for this cause.

Dear Parents and Friends,

Our “Back to School” past and present parent party was held at Claremont Yacht club on Saturday. It was a great night of catching up and hearing how all our kids have grown up. Everyone, old and new, joined in the fun by wearing a piece ( or all) of their old school uniform. It was a great conversation starter and the evening was full of laughter and fond memories. There was even a quick rendition of the school anthem to really take the oldies back.

If you know past pupils or parents whose children attended StThomas primary, we would love to get in contact, so we can build our alumni for future events.
It really does take a town to raise a child and the wider our community gets, the more our children will benefit.

Looking forward to the next event,
Sarah Chatfield
P&F President

Term 1

Monday 1 February to Thursday 1 April

Term 2

Tuesday 20 April to Friday 2 July

Term 3

Tuesday 20 July to Thursday 23 September

Term 4

Tuesday 12 October to Friday 10 December

Pupil Free Days

Monday 19 April

Friday 4 June

Monday 19 July

Friday 24 September

Monday 11 October

Students are enjoying their swimming lessons. Some of these lessons are at Claremont Pool, others at Cottesloe Beach.

UWA Judo are offering a Thursday afternoon session here at St Thomas Primary school starting next week. To register your child please see the attached flyer for all of the information.

Keyed Up Music will be teaching keyboard and drum lessons next year during school. Lessons start from $23.65 for a shared lesson. If you are interested in your child learning an instrument, ring Therese on 1300 366 243 or enroll at www.keyedupmusic.com.au/enrolment-form

Email: admin@stthomas.wa.edu.au
Website: stthomas.wa.edu.au
Location: 8 Warden Street Claremont WA 6010
Phone: (08 9286 9500
Facebook: www.facebook.com/stthomasprimaryschoolclaremont
Twitter: @StThomasCPS