Dear Parents

We have had a wonderful start to the 2023 school year with all the children very settled. A special welcome to the many new families who have joined our community this year. While I know there were a few with first-day nerves, it was beautiful to see children reconnecting or reaching out to greet new class members.  

Our school theme for 2023 is "Journeying Together". This theme will give our community the opportunity to look for ways we can strengthen the links between school, home, and community as we provide a faith-filled learning community that  endeavours to live out our vision.

As a Catholic learning community,

all at Mother Teresa School are called

to care, to dream, to innovate, to inspire!

Swimming Carnival

It was so wonderful to be able to have our annual swimming carnival again after missing out due to Covid!  Despite the weather being cold, it looks as though everyone had a fun-filled day!

Community Welcome

Next Friday 10 February, between 7.45am - 8.45am, the teachers will open their classrooms for parents to drop in and say a quick hello. More information to follow early next week.

Welcome to  our new staff

This year we elected to employ a PE specialist to provide weekly PE skill sessions across the school. Geoff Howarth is our new PE specialist who will be filling that role.

A word from Geoff:

It was with great excitement and enthusiasm that I accepted the new Physical Education specialist role at Mother Teresa School for the 2023 school year. I’m extremely passionate about Education and Sport and have been blessed to be able to share this passion with students both here in Canberra with previous roles at St Vincent’s Primary and Canberra Grammar and more recently abroad at the American International School in Hong Kong. It was wonderful to meet many of the students this past week. I was particularly impressed with the broad range of sporting and physical pursuits that the students participate in and look forward to sharing many more with them this year. 

Council Executive Members 2023

WHOLE SCHOOL FOCUS

The Whole school focus theme for this year is ‘Walking Together’ and the Bible reference that supports our theme is Luke 24:13-35. The Emmaus Story.

WELCOME TO THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR

We do hope that all members of our school community have returned happy and excited to resume old friendships and be introduced to new ones.

This year as we Journey Together we realise we are not so different from the two disciples walking on the road to Emmaus. Jesus walks with us and among us every day, and yet, too often, we fail to recognize him. Let us learn from this story to find him in the Scriptures and recognize him each time we break bread in church, at home or at school.

Companion God,

You call us to be people of journey.

You call us to enter into the story of your people

that stretches back through all of time.

Remind us that our journey of faith

is walked in and with this community.

We ask this in the name of Jesus, who walks with us. Amen

At Mother Teresa we will share our gifts and talents with each other throughout the year. The values we will be focusing on this term are:     

Compassion, Courage, Unity Calmness, Courteous & Consideration

FOCUS ASSEMBLY

Thank you Mrs van der Sanden and Mrs Watt along with 4 Magenta and 4 Violet for presenting a beautiful Focus Assembly on Compassion. They shared the scripture story of when Jesus refers to himself as ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life.’ Jesus is giving us a better way to live our lives and is showing us that through following him daily in faith, he will lead us to a better, richer, more meaningful life than we could ever find on our own. The students showed us how we can be compassionate to all at Mother Teresa School and shared a fabulous song.

OPENING SCHOOL MASS

We will be celebrating Mass on Tuesday 7^th February with Fr Troy & Fr Eden.  Due to this being a whole school event, we are unfortunately unable to accommodate parents attending on this day.

COMMISSIONING MASS

Saturday 18 February @ 5pm Mass there will be a commissioning for staff from the Gungahlin Catholic Schools.

CONFIRMATION ENROLMENT & COMMISSIONING MASS

Saturday 18 February @ 5pm Mass & Sunday 19 February @ 8am & 9:30am. There will be an enrolment and commissioning for students preparing to make Confirmation.

SHROVE TUESDAY

The day before Ash Wednesday, is often called ‘Pancake Tuesday’. Older people might remember it as ‘Shrove Tuesday’. To prepare for Lent’s fasting some people cook all the meat they have. Another custom on this day is to ‘feast’ on pancakes.  This year the classroom teachers will be providing pancakes for their class. 

ASH WEDNESDAY

Wednesday 22 February @ 10am. Whole School Liturgy of the Word in the Hall. As Year 6 and Kindergarten will not be attending, parents and friends are welcome to come along and support the children for this special occasion.

Peace and Best Wishes.

Anne Leet (Religious Education Co-ordinator)

SCHOOL FEES FOR 2023

On behalf of our school community, I wish to provide you with information regarding our 2023 School Fees and thank you for your continued support of our school.  Despite the disruptions wrought by the covid pandemic, we have appreciated families meeting their financial obligations in 2022 to ensure our school continues to thrive.

We are very mindful of the impacts any fee increase incurs on families and have therefore carefully considered what would be most appropriate for the year ahead. In setting 2023 fees, we have worked hard to strike an effective balance between our essential work of providing an excellent education for our students and keeping any increase manageable for families – especially given the current economic environment.

You also will notice that the fees look a little different this year. The names associated with our school levies will be changing across Catholic Education Canberra and Goulburn (CECG). This is to ensure consistency across all schools in support of the rollout of a new finance system which is expected to be deployed to our System over the coming year.

Our fee for a single student in 2023 will be $1,109.00 per term. Included in this amount are both Tuition and School Levies. This amount represents an increase of 7.8% on last year, in line with rising salaries and costs required to ensure our school continues to deliver quality education. Please see attached the schedule of 2023 fees, including sibling discounts, for further details.

We are committed to our policy in the Archdiocese that no student should be refused enrolment, excluded, or disadvantaged because of their inability to afford the fees. If you are experiencing financial hardship and the 2023 fees are a concern for your family, I would encourage you to arrange a meeting with me to discuss how we can help and the financial assistance available. Any discussion on fees would be strictly confidential.

If you have any questions regarding school fees for 2023, please contact me.

Yours sincerely

Carmel Maguire

To make it easier for payments to be made at Mother Teresa School, we have introduced the use of Qkr! by Mastercard, a secure and easy way to order and pay for school items from your phone at a time and place that suits you.

Please refer to the attached document for instructions on how to download the app to your phone. I have also included several screenshots from my phone so you will know what it looks like once registered.

This will become our preferred option for many school payments in the future. Additional payment options will be added as required eg, sporting events.

While the school levies cover most of the supplies your child required throughout the year there are a few special requests. Children are to provide the following 

Tuesday 7^th February is World Internet Safer Day. We all play a role in educating our children in how to be safe when using devices. Students will be exploring online safety and digital citizenship in classrooms. 

The e-safety Commissioner is calling on Australians to Connect. Reflect. Protect.

To find out more about how to do this please visit https://www.esafety.gov.au/newsroom/whats-on/safer-internet-day-2023

Webinars

The e-safety Commissioner is hosting parent and carer webinars throughout the year. Please see below for a list. You can find dates, times and details to register here https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/webinars

BYOD Chromebook specifications - Years 4, 5 and 6

The transition of BYOD (Bring your Own Device) to Chromebooks will begin in 2023. If purchasing a new device, we ask that it is a Chromebook. We do not expect parents to be purchasing a new device if they have an iPad. 

A Chromebook is a kind of laptop running Chrome OS, an operating system made by Google. Chromebooks are made by a range of known technology brands like Lenovo and ASUS. There often is not a lot of difference between brands. You may like to shop around and see if there are student or education deals around.

When purchasing, please be aware of the following specifications:

• 4GB Memory (RAM) minimum
• 32GB Storage for use in primary school is fine, many will have 64GB anyway
• 11-13 Inch screen minimum - personal preference.  Please ensure it fits into school bag
• At least 8 hour battery life
• Must have the ability to connect to headphones, whether it be via a port or bluetooth - whatever your student has access to
• Must have a camera
• A touchscreen can be useful for some students (but it's optional)
• Stay away from the Chromebook tablets. These are not recommended.
• In terms of price, don't spend too much on the Chromebook. A budget of up to $500 is reasonable. One of the deciding factors in moving from iPads to Chromebooks was the comparable/cheaper price.
• A protective case or cover for the Chromebook is required
• Headphones or earphones are required
• Warranty should be a consideration when purchasing a device
• We recommend that you consider adding the device to your insurance policy

Chromebooks do not require active firewalls, or anti-virus and anti-malware software. When the Chromebook is connected to the school network via specialised BYOD WiFi, it will utilise the online security settings set up by Catholic Education.

Supporting Children to adjust to a new school year

Starting a new school year can be a time of excitement and nerves. Big feelings can often emerge as children process and adjust to their new environment and kids can often become more emotional and more tired during this time of transition.

Families and schools can work together to support children in making a smooth transition into the new school year.  Parents and caregivers play a big role in helping kids to feel supported to try their best, to navigate challenges and to solve problems when they crop up.

If emotions start to run high during this time, below are some tips to support kids to adjust and embrace this new beginning.

• Make time each day to hear about your child’s day. Ask open ended questions and show an interest in their experiences and discoveries during their day.  Demonstrate excitement and interest in the new experiences they are having. 
• Praise your child for trying and celebrate success.
• Support your child to form positive relationships with peers and with their teacher.
• Make time for some quiet down time each day. Processing new experiences can be tiring.  Where possible, slow down other commitments to allow for some recuperation and some free play.
• Create an environment in which it’s okay to talk about not just the highs in a day but also the challenges. Support your child to believe in their ability to overcome hurdles and let them know it’s okay to ask for help if they need it.
• Talk about your own learning with your child. Share with them what you are currently learning about and discuss your own thinking about how you plan to face challenges and solve problems.
• If your child is feeling overwhelmed or nervous about the new year, help them to reflect on times they have faced change in the past.
  • Reflect with your child about what helped before and use this as evidence that they can do it again.
  • Discuss times you yourself may have felt uncertain or unsure in a new environment and reflect with your child the things that helped you.

Each time that we face new challenges and beginnings, we grow in our resilience and our self-belief.  As children navigate these new experiences, demonstrating our belief in their ability to succeed will further support them to feel able to step into new environments. 

For more information about supporting children to engage in school, the below article provides some further helpful tips or please contact your school counsellors Bron and Ryoko if you feel your child could benefit from any further support. 

What you can do at home Parental engagement in primary school (act.gov.au)

School Student Support Referrals and Counselling

To direct our families to access the best support available through Mother Teresa School, we are setting up the following process to assist with referrals and the most appropriate use of our resources.

1. Enquiry (teacher or parent) – Request a referral form from the office
2. The principal will talk with you and guide you to the appropriate support

Support types:

• • • • Diverse Learning Teacher and team,
      • Student welfare officer (individual or small group guidance and/or mentoring support),
      • Defence School Mentor,
      • School counselling (individual or small group)
      • External agencies

If school counselling is recommended the School Counsellor will contact the parents and go through the online CatholicCare referral process if school counselling is suitable. Once the online referral has been submitted and consent is signed, the School Counsellor can begin working with the student.