Junior School Bulletin - Term 1, Week 2

Dear Parents and Carers

After another week of highlights for many students, I am very proud of how swiftly everyone has got back into the groove of our schooling week. Students are bouncing in with excellent punctuality and full of smiles and greetings and I do recognise the efforts at home to make this happen after the holidays.

You may have had your child retell the story of Mr Pressley getting a haircut on stage at Friday’s assembly in order to showcase the need for appropriate haircuts. Very brave indeed. The children were in full voice with me in attempting to persuade, among the laughter, Mr Pressley to clip his locks very short, but alas a standard short back and sides was the result. Mr Pressley demonstrated how to shine shoes as well and has encouraged our students to take on this responsibility themselves. Speaking from experience though, it may be best to ensure old clothing is worn before handing out the shoe polish!

A regular daily chore that is important is the making of school lunches. This is an activity the children can be involved in particularly if they are helping to choose the contents while doing the weekly shopping. Breakfast and school lunches have a considerable impact on the ability of children to concentrate during their lessons as well as providing nutrients for growth. Prominent child psychologist, Dr Michael Carr Gregg, notes that research studies relating to diet and nutrition of young people have determined that there is a direct effect on brain development and learning. This means that what children eat directly impacts their academic outcomes.

Thank you for ensuring the students have had a healthy breakfast before coming to school so they are ready to start the day in the best possible way. Children do often prefer the sugary joy of Fruit Loops and Coco Pops but their consumption before school is not a great gift for the teachers. A balanced breakfast, morning tea and lunch gives students the best opportunity to engage correctly in the classroom and to learn to the best of their ability. Thank you for your support with this.

Mark Douglas
Head of Primary School

REMINDER: Y2-5 MEET THE TEACHER EVENING - Thursday 8 February
This Thursday is our Y2-5 Meet the Teacher Evening. This will be a fantastic opportunity for you to meet with our dedicated teachers, learn about classroom routines, timetables, and the shared expectations we uphold at St. Mark's. Additionally, our specialist teachers will be on hand to discuss their exciting plans for the year. Please see the schedule below for meeting times (there is no need to book, just come along to your child's classroom next Thursday):

Y2-5 CLUBS - TERM ONE

Please click on the following link to open the schedule for the Junior School Clubs this term: 2024 Junior School Clubs - Term one. Please note that the schedule contains sign-up links for these clubs, and spaces go very quickly.

REMINDER: YEAR 5 BIKE EDUCATION
The Year 5 Bike Education Program will commence in Week 3 this term. Year 5 students will be required to bring their bikes and bike helmets to school on the days their class has PE lessons from the beginning of Week 3 for approximately six weeks. Class timetables are now available for students, indicating when their class has PE. The Bike Education sessions in Week 3 will involve bike and helmet inspections to ensure they are in safe working order before bike riding commences, and further information can be found in the Y5 Bike Education letter here.

YEAR 2 CAVE (Christian and Values Education)
Welcome to a new year! I have the honour of teaching your precious children this year in CAVE (Christian and Values Education). I am looking forward to getting to know them more over the course of the year. As we explore the Bible, I hope your children will ask many questions, and our class discussions will hopefully prompt further thinking. I encourage you to engage in conversations about what they have learnt. Please feel free to email me, Neroli Galvin, with any questions you have regarding CAVE or any curly questions that your child asks throughout the year. My email address is ngalvin@stmarks.wa.edu.au.

Repeated items from last week's bulletin:

MUSIC DEPARTMENT INFORMATION
Please click on the following links to open information from the Music Department:

• Primary Music Ensembles 2024
• Instrumental Music Handbook 2024

If you have any music enquiries, please email artsadmin@stmarks.wa.edu.au

ST MARK'S NETBALL CLUB - Registrations are now open
St Marks Netball have opened registration for this year's winter season competition. To register please use the links below. *Please note each child must be registered in the correct competition based on their year group. *

• Y2-4 NetSetGo: https://www.playhq.com/netball-australia/register/3e1004
• Y5-7 Junior Competition and NetSetGo: https://www.trybooking.com/COSJL

Registrations close 23 February – don’t wait and register today! For further information regarding this season please head to our website: Season Details 2023 | SMNC (sm-nc.org)

SMNC Committee Members Required
St Marks Netball Club (SMNC) is looking for new Committee Members to join us in the 2024 season. Established in 1995, SMNC has encouraged boys and girls aged 6-12 to have fun with their friends, keep active and learn the basic skills of netball in a safe and social environment. As a committee member you will play an active role in helping to shape the future of SMNC and foster a love of one of Australia's most popular sports. Hours can be counted towards your St Marks parent commitment hours. Positions available

• President
• Secretary
• Communications coordinator
• Wind Up Coordinator
• Training & Development Coordinator
• General committee member (x2)

To express your interest in any of the above roles, please complete the nomination form here. If you have any questions, please email president@sm-nc.org and one of our Committee Members will be in touch.

PAYMENT NOMINATIONS must be submitted by Tuesday 6 February 2024. Download the Payment Form here.

There is no need to submit a payment nomination if you have paid your 2024 fees in full. Thank you.

• Annual Fee Due 13 Feb 2024
• Quarterly Fee Due 13 Feb, 30 April, 30 July, 22 Oct 2024
• Monthly Fee Due 25^th of each month Feb to Nov 2024, or the next business day if the 25^th is not a business day
• Fortnightly Fee Due Friday fortnightly commencing 16 Feb and ending on 8 Nov 2024

Subject and music adjustments will be amended later in February once payment nominations and queries are effectuated.

Please contact Kaye at familyaccounts@stmarks.wa.edu.au if you have any queries.

Thank you for your patience during this busy start to the 2024 school year.

Reminder to all families to update your School App subscriptions on your mobile device for 2024. You may otherwise be missing new extra-curricular, general or appropriate year-level notices.

Please find attached a handy how-to guide. If you have not downloaded the School App - go to the App Store or Google Play and search for St Mark's ACS.

• A friendly reminder that it is 40km/h in School Zones.
  
  
• Please drive with caution as there will be lots of excited children making their way to and from school.
  
  
• Remember, during drop-off and pick-up times, the traffic in and around the School can get very heavy, and some behaviours put our students - your children - at risk. In particular, please be aware of double parking, overtaking and exiting the School, as these can limit driver and pedestrian fields of vision, and can cause accidents.
  
  
• Please do not double park at any location, including (but not limited to): Kiss ‘n Drive points, St Marks Drive, School parking lots, access gates and across our neighbours’ driveways
  
• Please DO NOT park in our neighbourly businesses' carparks, including the Endeavour Centre, Mitre 10, Better Pets, AutoMasters, SuperCheap, and Whitford Family Centre. Should you require additional parking Whitford Shopping Cnetre has kindly allowed us to use the bays next to Muzz Buzz.
  
  
• Please do not overtake stationary cars on the School grounds, especially in Kiss ‘n Drive zones.
  
  
• When exiting the School grounds, please ensure you look both left and right carefully before re-entering St Marks Dr, particularly around our neighbour’s driveways.
  

Kiss ‘n Drive locations
There are a number of Kiss ‘n Drive drop-off points around the School, including Whitfords Avenue entrance (Gate 4), Early Learning Centre (via Gate 3), Eastern Access Road (via Gate 3) and outside the Performing Arts Complex (via Gate 3 or Gate 2). There is an additional Kiss ‘n Drive bay on St Marks Drive (travelling east to west). To ensure the safety of all pedestrians, please ensure you adhere to the following:

• Kiss ‘n Drive bays are strictly ‘no parking’ areas whether or not you are in your vehicle.
• Students must exit from the passenger-side doors as quickly as possible.
• Students must use the designated crosswalks located at each Kiss ‘n Drive within the School grounds.
• Do not overtake vehicles who are ahead of you in the Kiss ‘n Drive queue.
• Please be patient, drive slowly and be aware of other road users.
• At pick-up time, If your child is not at the Kiss ‘n Drive when you arrive, please follow the Traffic Warden’s directions and move forward to rejoin the queue.
• For the Kiss ‘n Drive drop off located in the ELC please adhere to the attached ELC Drive-Thru Guidelines for 2024 located in the ELC Welcome Pack on the School’s website.

Did you know that our Old Scholars' Association Little Lions Playgroup is run on-site every Friday during term time? We'd love to see your little cub there this Friday!

Join us from 8.45 a.m. to 10.30 a.m. for lots of fun and games. Little Lions Playgroup is a community-based group run in conjunction with Playgroup WA and caters for children up to school age. Families attending our Kindy and not in session on Fridays are more than welcome to join as well.

For more information and to book your spot, please email us, osa@stmarks.wa.edu.au or join our Facebook group HERE.

Everyone is welcome - you do not need to be an Old Scholar (former student) of St Mark's to attend.

Medication at School

If your child requires medication to be administered during school hours, the medication needs to be dropped into the Wellness Centre. Parents are required to complete the Wellness Centre documentation in order for staff to administer the medication. All medication must be in its original packaging with a pharmacy label and clearly labelled.

Medication Expiry Dates

Please ensure that you keep a record (and set a reminder) for the expiry date of all medication supplied to the school, including Epipens and Ventolin carried by older students. Please contact the Wellness Centre on 94031331 if you are unsure of the expiry date for medication held at School.

Medical Action Plans

It is recommended that Medical Action Plans are reviewed every 12 months and should be no more than 2 years old. If your child has a new or updated Medical Action Plan, please email the updated plan to nurse@stmarks.wa.edu.au.

Keeping sick children at home

It is more important than ever for our School community to remain vigilant when it comes to the spread of viral infections. Sending a child to school when they have even the mildest of symptoms can have a much bigger effect than many might think. While it might be just a sniffle for one child, it could put another at harm of a more virulent form of the same virus, no matter if it is a tummy bug, the common cold, influenza, or COVID-19.

Please do not send your child to school if they are showing cold or flu symptoms such as coughing, sniffles, runny noses or fevers, or if they are experiencing symptoms of nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea, even if the symptoms are mild.

To ensure emails to the Student Services team are dealt with promptly, please address future emails to each sub-school reception, as follows:

Early Learning Centre – elcreception@stmarks.wa.edu.au
Junior School Reception – jnrschool@stmarks.wa.edu.au
Middle School Reception - midschool@stmarks.wa.edu.au
Senior School Reception – snrschool@stmarks.wa.edu.au
Parent Reception – parentreception@stmarks.wa.edu.au

If your child will be absent, late to class, or if they will need to leave early to attend a medical appointment please notify the School by completing the form on the School App or emailing absentee@stmarks.wa.edu.au. Please include your child’s name (first name and surname) and class/year level in the subject line of the email. Please do not send absentee/appointments/late information to any other email address - it must go to absentee@stmarks.wa.edu.au no matter what year group your child is in. Thank you.

Tickets are selling fast, for our Old Scholars' Milestone Reunion on Saturday 24 February 24.

All Old Scholars who graduated from St Mark’s in 1994, 2004 and 2014 are invited, and we can't wait to see you all and hear what you've been up to since leaving the land of maroon and blue!

Ticket details are available here.

If you have not received an email regarding the reunion, it means we do not have your current email - please update your details here.

The P&F is excited to be hosting Paul Dillon from DARTA for a Parent Session on Monday 26 February 2024.

Paul Dillon Parent Seminar: Teens, parties, alcohol and vapes: What do parents need to know?During adolescence, teens develop a biological need to be around friends, and it is important to provide them with opportunities to socialise with their peers whenever possible. Using the most current data available, this presentation will examine the use of alcohol and other drugs by school-based young people. Simple strategies will be provided to help ensure teens are able to interact with friends on a Saturday night and, at the same time, reduce the risk of underage drinking and the potential dangers associated with such behaviour. In addition, up-to-date information will be provided on vaping, particularly in relation to young people. It aims to empower parents with a positive message and assist them in having open and honest family discussions in this complex area.

When: Monday 26 February 2024

Time: 7:00pm - 9.00pm

Where: St Marks Anglican Community School, St Marks Drive, Hillarys WA 6025

Cost: FREE | Secure your free tickets here.

To check out more about Paul and his work with DARTA head here.

Start 2024 with a fun night out, Saturday 17 February 2024, at the Fathering Project Quiz Night.

Grab a seat ($20 per person) or grab a table (tables of eight ppl for $160), then grab some nibbles (and drinks) and head along for a fun night out!

For people who want to come, but can’t make up a table of eight, no problem at all, groups will be formed on the night.

Awesome prizes are available on the night, both through the quiz itself and the awesome raffle.

So get behind a great fundraising activity; tables are limited - so get in early!

The link to the tickets is here: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1167661

Redhage Basketball is back for Term 1 at St Mark's! Check out the flyer attached for more information.