St Thomas' News
04 June 2021
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 empower learners as global citizens, to be curious, collaborative, creative and critical thinkers, inspired by Christ.
Important Dates
TERM TWO
04 June - Pupil Free Day
07 June - WA Day Public Holiday
08 June - P&F Meeting 7 pm
09 June - Interschool Chess
11 June - Assembly Y5 9am
18 June - Winter Lightning Carnival Yrs 5 & 6
18 June - St Thomas' Quiz Night
23 June - Academic Allstars Y5
25 June - Sacrament of Eucharist Y4 @ 5:30 pm
29 June - Advisory Council Meeting 7 pm
01 July - St Thomas' Feast Day Mass 9am
02 July - Final day of Term Two
03 - 18 July - School Holidays
TERM THREE
19 July - Staff PD - Pupil Free Day
20 July - Students Commence Term Three
Prayer
God of all creation,
As we journey together in this Great Southern Land,
we pray for healing, forgiveness and unity,
creating a path of good will, with justice and compassion.
Jesus, through the power of your love, you have given us the courage,
wisdom and strength to share our gifts and talents in humility.
In peace and understanding, we reconcile with each other.
Creator Spirit, we come together in prayer and thanksgiving
for the many blessings we have received.
Allow your Spirit to wash over us and give us strength to walk together as one.
Amen
FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Dear Parents and Friends
Congratulations to our Interschool Cross Country Team who performed with excellence at the recent interschool carnival placing third overall in the competition. Many of our students placed in their event and continued to show positive sportsmanship throughout the day. A big thank you to Mrs Seaman for preparing our students and to you our parents, for your continued support.
Catholic Education 200 Years
On Monday 24 May 2021, Catholic schools across Australia celebrated 200 years of Catholic Education at a Mass at St Mary's Cathedral in Perth. This national celebration on the Feast of Our Lady Help of Christians, was held across our nation in Cathedrals at the same time in every state. Our Prime Minister Mr Scott Morrison via video link presented an address stating the importance of Catholic schooling in Australia. The theme ‘Faith in our Future’ was alive as we prayed together and joined as a united Catholic system. Here at St Thomas' we celebrated Mass as a whole school the following day to commemorate this occasion.
Life link Launch
On Wednesday 2 June, Archbishop Timothy Costelloe invited representatives from every primary school to join him at Newman College for the launch of LifeLink 2021. The LifeLink Day Schools Initiative was established to assist people in real need within the community. Mrs Sullivan and our student leaders attended this special event. St Thomas’ will contribute to the LifeLink initiative by providing funds from the ‘Crazy Sock Day’ towards this worthy cause.
Generous donation from Taylor Road IGA
Thanks to a generous donation of $1150 from Taylor Road IGA towards our community garden, we have been able to purchase new garden beds and tools to further develop the area near the basketball courts. Our students with the help of two of our Dads, have already built two new planter boxes. Mr James Kelly, Manager and Owner of Taylor Road IGA presented a cheque to St Thomas' on behalf of himself and his wife Rita. All students will use our new garden to plant, grow and learn across all subjects, as we educate our students of the importance of sustainability.
Aspiring Robotics Program
At St Thomas’, we have an extensive Robotics Program throughout Years 1-6. As a future-focused school, it is important for us to be able to provide our students the opportunities to develop the programming and coding skills that will set them up for their future. The Western Australian Curriculum has a strong focus on Digital Technologies, and our emphasis on Robotics throughout the school is one of the main ways we address this curriculum area.
Throughout the school we have the following Robotics resources that are utilised each year as part of the digital technologies curriculum:
Year 1 – BeeBots
Year 2 – Lego WeDo 2.0
Year 3 – OzoBots
Year 4 – Spheros
Year 5 – Microbits
Year 6 – Lego EV3 Mindstorms
Your contribution in raising funds to grow our robotics program at our P & F Quiz Night on the 18 June, will assist in purchasing new and more sophisticated robots to expand the program and to replenish our current supplies.
May God bless you and your family.
Natalia Thomson
Principal.
Here are 9 benefits to learning programming with coding robots for kids:
1. Creativity
Coding empowers young children to consume digital technology but also be the producers of it. Instead of just playing a game, they can create one themselves.
2. Computational Thinking
By learning to code, early learners will also learn computational thinking which enables them to develop cognitive skills and learn logical and sequential thought processes. In this way, they will be able to test their code, spot any errors and quickly solve them quickly and easily. This can also be applied to other situations and will help students in all areas of life.
3. Collaboration
Coding also encourages collaboration as kids work alongside their peers, regardless of every race, gender and background, as they are joined by a common interest in technology and their project work. Students collaborate with fellow students and share what they learn with their teachers and parents.
4. Communication
Communication is an important skill that is required throughout school, work and life. When young kids learn to code, they learn to communicate with technology. This teaches them how to break down complex ideas, arrange and share them.
5. Persistence
Learning to code is a challenge for younger students as tackling complex problems can be frustrating. Through coding, early learners are able to, through persistence, complete the task at hand.
6. Understanding
Students are able to better understand the world around them with programming knowledge. It can change the way they interact with the technologies used daily and can introduce them to new possibilities.
7. Career
Coding provides career advantages as these early learners have an understanding and enjoyment for STEAM that can take them into many desirable career paths.
8. Logic
Since logical thinking is required for the coding of robots, students are able to formulate step by step sequences to create a desirable outcome. In this way, young children are also able to avoid problems by anticipating them, testing, and fixing their code.
9. Algorithmic Thinking
Along with these skills, kids also learn algorithmic thinking which is the ability to define clear steps to solve a problem. It enables kids to solve problems by breaking them down into a step by step procedure.
Pre-Kindergarten/Kindergarten 2022
Enrolments are now being taken for siblings and new students wishing to commence Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten at St Thomas’ in 2022. Kindergarten places are limited so it is important that parents within the St Thomas’ School community submit their applications as soon as possible. Application forms can be obtained from the office.
Early Years Philosophy
A student’s educational journey begins with the most formative experiences in their first few years of life. At St Thomas’ Primary School our philosophy is focussed on each individual child’s development, where intentional play-based learning experiences are presented and fostered. A child’s brain develops based on play-based, social, emotional and sensory experiences. The Early Years Learning Framework guides the teachers’ construction of these experiences, as well as the WA Kindergarten Curriculum and the WA P-10 Curriculum.
The Early Years teachers have created six statements have been created to articulate our St Thomas’ Primary School Early Years Philosophy and aspirations for every student’s learning journey through the early years. These statements are:
Child
We embrace the uniqueness of each child and foster a sense of identity and belonging.
Spiritual
We nurture children to wonder, discover, and explore their world, fostering an awareness of God and being inspired to live like Christ.
Social & Emotional
We encourage children to experience, regulate and express a range of emotions and develop meaningful relationships with others.
Cognitive
We believe in providing children with a strong foundation for learning through purposeful play experiences and child-led inquiry.
Physical
We provide creative and challenging experiences which enable each children to grow both physically and mentally in a stimulating environment.
Community
We foster positive partnerships with parents, carers and the wider community to support each child's unique development.
The Early Years teachers are currently reflecting and reviewing aspects of our school, individually through self-reflection and as a group. Our Quality Improvement Plan has identified areas that we are working on over the course of the year, to further improve and enhance each child’s learning journey. This plan is in line with the National Quality Standards.
I welcome your thoughts, comments and feedback regarding our Early Years Philosophy, as well as your feedback on areas for improvement or celebration.
Mr Heath Nankivell
Assistant Principal
Classroom Cash - Competition
Thank you to the those who have brought in tokens from the West Australian and placed in the box outside the Library. We want to share in the prize pool of $25 000 !
Classroom Cash entry coupons from The West Australian on:
o · Saturday, May 29, 2021
o · Saturday, June 5, 2021
o · Saturday, June 12, 2021
o · Saturday, June 19, 2021
CRAZY SOCK DAY
Our Crazy Sock day and Fundraiser is on the 24th June. The Mini Vinnies will be selling socks in Weeks 7 & 8. Funds raised will support Lifelink and our Winter appeal. Thank you in anticipation of your generosity. Please see flyer in Newsletter for more information.
EDUDANCE CONCERT
The Edudance Concert will be held on Wednesday 30th June at 6pm at Loretto Performing Arts Centre in Nedlands. Children will need to be there at 5pm. The P & F will be providing refreshments between 5-6pm. The Costume List will be published in the next newsletter. We look forward to this highlight on our school social calendar!!
Wishing you a blessed week
Mrs Sullivan
Assistant Principal
Congratulations to our Merit Award Winners
Value of the Week - Compassion
Every week at Monday morning gathering, students are reminded of our school values and how we can make them visible throughout the school and in our daily lives. This week, students are being rewarded for showing compassion. Congratulations to all our students who continuously live out our school values:
EXCELLENCE
INCLUSIVITY
TRUTH
COMPASSION
COMMUNITY
Advisory Council Meeting, 01 June 2021.
The St Thomas' School Advisory Council met for the fifth time in 2021 on Tuesday, 1 June, its second face-to-face meeting of the year; although one advisory council member kept their presence virtual.
Key initiatives discussed on the agenda were ways to increase the social media reach, the parish scholarships and following up on the next steps regarding the Advisory Council Strategic Planning meeting; as well as the P&F's next funding raising event for the School's Robotic Program – the 80s Quiz Night. Some advisory council members seemed to suggest they would struggle to fit into their 1980's attire for the night.
Among the various items actioned by the council was securing assistance from two local real estate agents in the area to help families moving to Perth who wanted to attend St Thomas, to find appropriate accommodation. The lack of housing, both renting or purchasing, within the area has meant some families relocating from overseas have been unable to send their children to St Thomas'.
Special thanks were given to Bianca Della Vedova, Celeste Hartfield and the P&F, to acknowledge the wonderful (and delicious) Mother's Day Devonshire Morning Tea they organised.
P&F News
P&F Out '80s Quiz Night - Tickets selling fast!
Grab your friends and family for a hilarious night of trivia, fun, '80s tunes and prizes at our St Thomas P&F '80s Quiz Night! Tickets are selling fast! ALL proceeds raised will go towards boosting our St Thomas Robotics Program for our Pre-Primary to Year 6 students.
Tickets ON SALE NOW at https://www.stickytickets.com.au/WFMHZ
Remember to wear your best '80s gear! Prizes for best dressed!
What to bring?
- BYO food and snacks only.
- Bring gold coins and notes to buy into some fun games on the night!
Please note:
- Tables of 8 (Tables of 10 sold out!)
- Drinks available at the Bar at Member's Prices (please no BYO drinks)
- Individual tickets are also available for purchase (please specify when completing your purchase if there are people you would like to sit on a table with).
- Friends outside of School welcome
- This is an adults only event
Quiz Night Prizes
We are keenly looking for donations from our St Thomas families, community businesses or organisations for Quiz Night prizes and Silent Auction items. Please email stthomas.rsvp2021@gmail.com or let Julie Wray know if you are able to help.
We hope to see you there for a super fun night all for our St Thomas kids!
Next P & F Meeting
We look forward to seeing you at our next meeting to be held on Tuesday, 8 June at 7pm in the School Library.
Warm regards
Bianca Della Vedova
P&F President
Curriculum Corner
Eight confidence-building strategies every parent and teacher should know
Installing confidence takes more than heaping praise on kids. Here are eight practical confidence-building strategies for parents and teachers of children and young people. Children with healthy self-esteem and self-confidence learn more, achieve more and are generally happier than those with low confidence levels. Building children’s and young people’s confidence is complex. It’s more than being a praise robot and heaping positive comments on a child at the first sign of them doing something well. Confidence building requires a number of approaches that impact on how they think, how they feel and what they can do.
Here are eight practical strategies that you can use to build real self confidence in kids of all ages:
1. Model confident thinking kids soak up the language, thinking and behaviour of those closest to them in their environment.
Parents and teachers, play a part in modelling confident thinking and behaviour particularly when it comes to tackling new activities. In particular, let kids hear positive self-talk when you tackle something new. They should hear something like, “I’ll have a go at this. If I don’t do so well then I can try again tomorrow.” This is far more effective than “I’m no good at this. I’ll probably stuff it up.”
2. Focus on effort & improvement
Current thinking shows that people who believe that they can increase their intelligence through effort and challenge actually get smarter and do better in school, work, and life over time. One way to develop a growth mindset is to focus your language on effort and improvement rather than on the results of what they do. By linking success with effort, you are teaching them success comes from something other than purely their ability, talents or smarts.
3. Praise strategy
While effort is key for achievement, it’s not the only thing. Kids need to try new strategies and seek input from others when they’re stuck. They need this repertoire of approaches – not just sheer effort – to learn and improve. It helps too to focus language on better and smarter ways on improving. Comments such as “That was a smart idea to tackle the hardest task while you were fresh!”(strategy) and “You recognised the first few steps were the most important but then alert that you were right” are descriptive statements that have significant instructional value for kids.
4. Develop self-help skills from an early age
A child’s self-esteem comes as a result of his or her successes and accomplishments. The most important competencies to build confidence are basic self-help skills. These form the building blocks upon which other competencies such as organisational skills and many social skills are formed.
5. Give them real responsibility
From a young age start giving children responsibility for some aspects of their lives. By giving kids responsibility for many aspects of their lives we are sending a powerful message that we think they are capable. Also they are learning the skills necessary to care for themselves.
6. Practise unconditional acceptance
Your ability to accept children and young people’s best efforts in any area of endeavour, irrespective of the results, will go a long way toward determining their self-esteem and confidence. If a child makes their bed to the very best of their ability, resist fixing it, even though it may fall short of your adult standards. Instead remind them next time of how to do it well.
7. Expand their horizons
Some kids are confident and capable at home but are fearful and nervous when it comes to new social situations and unfamiliar environments. Children today, have less opportunity than those in the past to negotiate and explore unpredictable situations. Wherever possible, look for opportunities to expand children’s horizons to include unfamiliar places and unfamiliar locations including catching public transport.
8. Recognise improvement
Focus your comments on children’s effort and improvement rather than on winning the game or getting top marks. Help kids set realistic goals in line with their capabilities and interests. Learning five new spelling words a week maybe more realistic than 20 words. Most importantly, great parents and teachers have a knack of communicating confidence in kids. They find ways to let kids know that they believe in them – that they know their kids will perform and succeed, that they have faith that they can deal with life’s challenges and know that they can become more independent.
Lets meet the staff at St Thomas'!
Name: Corinna Herbert
Position: Performing Arts Specialist
Interests: Music, Travel, Musical Theatre/Opera
Football Team: None
Favourite Food: Avocado
Currently Reading: Chinese Cinderella (I like to read what my daughter is reading)
Favourite Holiday Destination: Italy
3 people you’d invite to dinner: Gino D’Acampo (so he can cook), Elizabeth Moss, Michelle Obama
What would you do with your last $50? Spend it on my children!
Favourite Movie: I have so many! My favourite childhood movie was Goonies.
Favourite Quote: To make a difference in someone’s life you don’t have to be brilliant, rich, beautiful or perfect. You just have to care.- Mandy Hale
Someone you admire: David Attenborough
What do you love about our school: St Thomas has a warm friendly community atmosphere that has made me feel at home since day one.
SPORTS NEWS
INTER SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY RESULTS 2021
On Monday 31 May, 38 students represented the school in the Interschool Cross Country Carnival at Dianella Reserve. Students ran as a team in their respective year group.
This year St Thomas’ came 3rd overall, 6th most improved school in 2021 based on our results of coming first in 2020.
Well done at all participants as you performed so well as a team on the day and in the lead up training the week before. Thanks to Racquell Farrell for your assistance as a course marshal on the day and to the parents who assisted at training on Friday mornings.
Congratulations to these students who were placed in the top four in their respective year group:
William D (Year 3) – 4th
Mimi G (Year 3) – 4th
Lily G (Year 4) – 3rd
Jack H (Year 5) – 3rd
Jude K – (Year 5) 4th
Bastian D (Year 6) – 1st
Placings in Years Groups:
Year 3 Girls – 1st
Year 3 Boys – 3rd
Year 4 Girls – equal 1st
Year 4 Boys – 6th
Year 5 Girls – 3rd
Year 5 Boys – 2nd
Year 6 Girls – 6th
Year 6 Boys – 2nd
Congratulations to everyone an awesome team effort, super proud of you all.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Winter Lightning Carnival Year 5 and 6 – Friday 18 June at Wembley sports park from 10am – 2pm.
Netball – Matthews (State Netball Centre)
Soccer and AFL – Pat Goodridge and Wembley Sports Park.
As we require parents to assist with coaching and/or assisting on the day for Netball, Soccer and AFL. If you are able to assist or have expertise in those sports, can you please indicate on the permission forms that will be sent out next week or alternately email Sharon.seaman@cewa.edu.au
Thank you to those parents who have already volunteered for the day.
Mrs Sharon Seaman
Physical Education Teacher
2021 Term Dates for Students
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
St Thomas' Primary School
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