Mother's Day and Cross Country

It was a wonderful morning last Friday for our Mother's Day and Cross Country Carnival with the community coming together to celebrate our Mothers. I am told the coffee van from TeamKids had a consistent line of patrons and that the volunteers from Year 1 put on a great selection of treats. In addition to this, we raffled 18 hampers off thanks to the kind donations that were sent in.

We would like to thank Shelle, our Events Working Party Coordinator, for supporting our Year 1 class with this event and the Kindergarten to Year 2 team for running the Cross Country. Thank you also to all the volunteers who committed their time in various ways to the success of these events. 

Staffing News

Gwen Tarleton will be taking Semester Two and 2026 as leave from St Thomas More's as she moves to America with her husband on a posting. We wish Gwen all the best during this time and look forward to welcoming her back to our community in 2027. We are currently advertising a position to recruit a teacher to fill the roles Gwen has within the school.

Floriade Community

After the success of our engagement in the Floriade Community in 2022 we have once again been selected as a group to host our own Floriade! On Friday 6 June from 1pm we will be planting 2000 bulbs and annuals among the roses out the front of the school in preparation of a grand display in spring. Volunteers are most welcome to join us on this day. 

Enrolment Period

We are currently halfway through the enrolment period having had two successful open mornings and an open evening scheduled for Tuesday of next week. We know that word of mouth is the best form of advertising so please spread the word to colleagues, friends, neighbours and family who may be looking for a school for their Kindergarten student or older children. 

World Support Staff Day

World Support Staff Day is this Friday, however we will be celebrating with our support staff on Monday next week. Our support staff include our Classroom Support Assistants, DSM, Student Welfare Officer, Grounds Maintenance Manager and of course the wonderful Mrs Kelley in the Front Office. Our Community Council have kindly organised the celebration, however, you might like to also prepare your own gesture of gratitude from your family or child/ren.

 

Luke Donnelly

Principal 

Staff Spirituality Day

At the end of last Term our school staff, Fr Anthony and members of the St Thomas More's Parish Council attended a Spirituality Day centred around the Church's theme of Pilgrims of Hope. We journeyed together from the school to the previous convent of the Sisters of Mercy in Goulburn where we made a pilgrimage to Saints Peter and Paul's Old Cathedral to celebrate Mass. The day focused on the scripture of the Sinful Woman from the gospel of Luke which then formed the basis of our Term 2 orientation program for the students. Sr Lorraine Cupitt, a Sister of Mercy who attended the convent in Goulburn, joined our staff yesterday to follow up on their spiritual pilgrimage and share her wisdom, courage and peace to inspire and nurture the staff. 

To Be Centred Program

During the first week of Term 2 the whole school completed our To Be Centred orientation program that provides reminders on the ways we can be Centred in Faith and Centred in Learning at St Thomas More's. As part of the program students unpacked the scripture of the Sinful Woman from the Gospel of Luke to discover the ways the woman demonstrated courage in order to seek Jesus and show him love. They reflected on how they can have courage to build their connection with God and demonstrated this by creating their own symbols of the woman's perfume jar to display under of tree of courage in the library. 

Sacramental Registration Form 

The registration form for the Sacrament of Confirmation will be sent out  to families of Year 6 students this week. Just a reminder that St Thomas More's will not be holding the Sacrament of First Reconciliation or First Holy Communion this year- these sacraments will be offered for Year 3 and Year 4 students next year. If you have any questions, please contact our REC Mrs Skye McPadden (skye.mcpadden@cg.catholic.edu.au) or Sacramental Coordinator Mr Christopher Evans (christopher.evans@cg.catholic.edu.au). 

Peer Support Council

This week our Peer Support Captains held the first Peer Support Council meeting to discuss suggestions for ways we can nurture the hearts of the students here at St Thomas More's. Two representatives from each class attended the meeting and shared their ideas which included thoughts on calming spaces, understanding school playground boundaries, eating time and playtime support. The Peer Support Council will feedback information from the meeting to their class next week and a suggestion box for students to add their thoughts to will be introduced. 

Child Safe Guarding

It is important for parents to always review safety information with their child. The Kenny Koala website (https://www.constablekenny.org.au/parents-carers) provides practical information and resources for parents to discuss concerns around road safety, cyber-safety, protective behaviours and decision making.  The school will be engaging Kenny Koala during our Protective Behaviour Units in Term 3. 

Skye McPadden  

Religious Education Coordinator