St Thomas Aquinas School, Norlane Newsletter

St Thomas Aquinas School, Norlane Newsletter Number 3, 2016 Wednesday, February 17th Sun 21/02 22/02 Wed 24/02 Wed 24/02 29/02 Wed 02/03 07/03 07/03 Wed 09/03 14/03 Coming Events Commitment and Beginning of the Year Mass - 10 am Parish Picnic - after Mass ALL WELCOME Assembly 2:40pm 5/6 KM Playlinks Playgroup No school for Prep - Literacy Testing Morning Tea - all welcome Parents and Friends Meeting No school for Prep Assembly 2:40pm 1/2 AG Parent Information Evening - Sacramentality in Everyday Life - Fr Elio Capra No school for Prep Labour Day Holiday Hello everyone, At St Thomas Aquinas, we believe that children learn best when we have a partnership between home and school. Being able to work together helps our children achieve more and become better learners. One way you can help is to encourage your children to read at home. Getting into the habit of reading each night is a great foundation for our children. It can be an old favourite, something new or something borrowed. The Corio Library has a great selection of books and the staff are always ready to help you choosing books. It s a great practice to get into writing down the books the children have read. This can be in a diary, in a table or online. Share your favourite stories and let your children see you read. You may have heard that we had a break-in over the weekend. We had some computers and ipads taken. We have contacted the police and they are investigating. Hopefully, we will have the items replaced soon. There are many things happening in our school at the moment. Canteen started this week and will be on days and Fridays. I have attached a copy of the menu and there s a copy on our website. The preparation for concreting the path has begun. This will make travelling from the gate to the school more comfortable, with less muddy shoes in our school. Assembly - day 22nd February at 2:40pm - 5/6 KM will lead the assembly Hub Days Tuesday - Senior Learning Community - Sports Uniform Thursday - Junior Learning Community - Sports Uniform Thanks Rod Sims Principal We are now on Facebook. You are encouraged to like, share and comment on our posts. Search for St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School, Norlane and join us online. Our school website is: www.stanorlane.catholic.edu.au

Number 3, 2016 Wednesday February 17th Fr Ray s Reflection Dear Parents. Carers and Students As partners with God in creation, we are invited by God to be good stewards of all created things. Our attitude is not to be one with a sense of arrogant ownership as much as a genuine loving sense of caring for things. This is abundantly clear particularly when we are using things which belong to others. This hit home for us, as a School Community, this week when we faced the result of burglary and vandalism at our School. We need to be aware that opposing forces to good are present in our society. But that should never deter us or even lead us to watering down our sense of pride in maintaining all we have achieved. Yes, we need to be more vigilant. Yes, we need to make sure we look after school property at all times. After all, this is living responsibly. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all staff, parents, carers and students for your response to the way things were on day. Whilst there are some limitations at the moment, because of articles that have been damaged or stolen, we are already in process of replacing them. In a special way, I thank Mr Sims and Mr Manganelli who responded so selflessly and generously with the time they spent in cleaning up very late on Sunday night to ensure School was as ready as it could be on day morning. Beyond that, what can we do? Not much, I believe. However, over and above all this, we still need to lift up our hearts to God who cares for us. There is so much we have achieved. We cannot let negatives override all the positives we enjoy. Advance Notice: Parent Information Session Student Leaders: Our student leaders for 2016 are: School Captains: Harper Williams-Treloar Jackson Lander-Mitchell Social Justice Leaders: Cooper Webber Ebony King Vanessa Kelly Environment Leaders: Brooklyn Ogle-Vaea Angelique Baker Sports Captains: Jarrod Carroll Karleigh-Anne Leiper Congratulations to our formal leaders and we are sure you will do your best to be magnificent role models in our school. We encourage all of our senior students to take a leadership role within the school. Developing leadership skills helps our children become better citizens in our school and community. Parent Morning Tea and Parents & Friends Meeting We would like to invite all parents, especially new parents, to a special Welcome Morning Tea, on day February 29th at 9:00am in the Hall. The coffee van will be booked and morning tea supplied. Come along and meet some new parents and make some great connections. This will be followed by our Parents and Friends meeting at 10:00am. day March 7th Fr Elio Capra will lead a special workshop focussed on spirituality in everyday life. Everyone is welcome to attend. Supper will be provided. More information next week.

Number 3, 2016 Woolworths Earn and Learn We received our order from the 2015 Woolworths Earn and Learn program. We purchased sports equipment to be used at lunchtime and some new comet balls for our junior classes and a goalball to be used with blindfolds. A huge thanks to all the families who collected the Earn and Learn stickers for St Thomas Aquinas. Wednesday February 17th School Banking: School student banking is with the Commonwealth Bank. All Foundation students have been given information about this. If you need further information, see the office. Banking will happen on Wednesdays this year. Karen Lydom from the Commonwealth Bank will be at assembly on day February 22nd to answer any questions. Please see attached notice. School Uniforms: Children must wear the correct school uniforms, including proper shoes, to school. Uniforms are available at the office. Hats: Students must wear hats in Term 1 and Term 4 during recess, lunch and outside activities. Hats are available at the office. Thanks to Mrs Frequin for promoting and collecting earn and learn stickers. Secondary School Open Days Open days for Sacred Heart College, Clonard College, St Joseph s College and St Ignatius College are being held in March. Clonard - Friday March 18th St Joseph s - day March 21st St Ignatius - Sunday March 20th Sacred Heart - Tuesday March 22nd More details over the next few newsletters. Bethany Saver Plus Bethany Saver Plus can help you with educational expenses including school uniforms, textbooks and other items. Contact Amanda at Bethany on 52788122 or by email avernon@bethany.org.au. Further details on the attached form. Hubs: Sports Uniform Days Tuesday - Senior Learning Community Physical Education, Art, Music Thursday - Junior Learning Community Physical Education, Art, Music, Social Emotional Learning/Cooperative activities Senior Learning Community children should also wear their sports uniforms on Fridays Assembly is held every second day at 2:40pm HEAD LICE We have had some occurrences of head lice this year across the learning communities. It is extremely important that if your child has nits or head lice that it is treated. The most cost effective way is with regular hair conditioner and a head lice comb. Combs are available at most supermarkets and chemists. Once treated, children are able to return to school. Please check your child s hair frequently and any brothers or sisters not yet at school. Nits and head lice are easy to treat. Further information is attached to the newsletter. Attachments: 1. Head lice information 2. Playlinks Playgroup 3. School Banking 4. Bethany Saver Plus 5. Canteen Menu

Treating and controlling headlice While children are at school many families will have contact with head lice. The information contained here will help you treat and control head lice. Catching head lice Head lice have been around for many thousands of years. Anyone can get head lice. Head lice are small, wingless, blood sucking insects. Their colour varies from whitish-brown to reddish-brown. Head lice only survive on humans. If isolated from the head they die very quickly (usually within 24 hours). People get head lice from direct hair to hair contact with another person who has head lice. This can happen when people play, cuddle or work closely together. Head lice do not have wings or jumping legs so they cannot fly or jump from head to head. They can only crawl. Finding head lice Many lice do not cause an itch, so you have to look carefully to find them. Head lice are found on the hair itself and move to the scalp to feed. They have six legs which end in a claw and they rarely fall from the head. Louse eggs (also called nits) are laid within 1.5 cm of the scalp and are firmly attached to the hair. They resemble dandruff, but can t be brushed off. Lice can crawl and hide. The easiest and most effective way to find them is to follow these steps: Step 1 Comb any type of hair conditioner on to dry, brushed (detangled) hair. This stuns the lice and makes it difficult for them to grip the hair or crawl around. Step 2 Now comb sections of the hair with a fine tooth, head lice comb. Step 3 Wipe the conditioner from the comb onto a paper towel or tissue. Step 4 Look on the tissue and on the comb for lice and eggs. If lice or eggs are found, the hair should be treated. If the person has been treated recently and you only find empty hatched eggs, you may not have to treat, as the empty eggs could be from a previous episode. Treating head lice Treating head lice involves removing lice and eggs from the hair. There are two ways you can do this: 1. Buying and using a head lice lotion or shampoo, following the instructions on the product 2. Using the conditioner and comb method (described under finding head lice ) every second day until there have been no live lice found for ten days. If you choose to use a head lice product always read and follow the instructions provided with the product carefully. The following points may also be helpful: hair and scalp. two applications, seven days apart. The first treatment kills all lice; the second treatment kills the lice that may have hatched from eggs not killed by the first treatment. applied. A towel is a good way to do this. least amount of water possible. comb to cover the hair from root to tip. Repeat this several times until all the hair is covered. There is no need to treat the whole family - unless they also have head lice. Concentrate on the head - there is no need to clean the house or the classroom. Only the pillowcase requires washing - either wash it in hot water (at least 60ºC) or dry it using a clothes dryer on the hot or warm setting. Step 5 Repeat the combing for every part of the head at least four or five times.

Testing resistance Head lice products belong in one of the following categories depending on the active compound they contain: Insecticide resistance is common, so you should test if lice are dead. If they are, treat again in seven days using the same product. If the lice are not dead, the treatment has not worked and the lice may be resistant to the product and all products containing the same active compound. Wash off the product and treat as soon as possible using a product containing a different active compound. If the insecticide has worked, the lice will be dead within 20 minutes. Any head lice product could cause a reaction and should be used with care by women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, children less than 12 months old and people with allergies, asthma or open wounds on the scalp. If you are unsure, please check with your pharmacist or doctor. Head lice combs Combs with long, rounded stainless steel teeth positioned very close together have been shown to be the most effective, however, any head lice comb can be used. Head lice eggs Head lice eggs are small (the size of a pinhead) and oval. A live egg will pop when squashed between fingernails. Dead eggs have crumpled sides and hatched eggs look like tiny boiled eggs with their tops cut off. Regulations According to the Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 2009, children with head lice can be readmitted to school or children s service centres after treatment has commenced. The department recommends a child with head lice can be treated one evening and return to school or children s service centres the next day, even if there are still some eggs present. There is no need to miss school or child care because of head lice. Preventing head lice Check your child s head regularly with comb and conditioner. There is no research to prove that chemical or herbal therapies can prevent head lice. Further information The following website offers further information: www.health.vic.gov.au/headlice egg (nit) hair shaft The life cycle of head lice Pediculus humanus captis Second moult five days after hatching First moult two days after hatching Louse emerges after six to seven days 1 2 3 Egg is laid on hair shaft. Egg is called a nit 4 5 Third moult 10 days after hatching 6 to 7 days 0 days 11 to 12 days 8 to 9 days 16 to 17 days F M 6 Emerging from their third moult as adult lice, the female and slightly smaller male begin to reproduce 17 to 19 days 7 19 to 32 days 32 to 35 days Female lays first egg one or two days after mating 8 Female can lay approximately three to eight eggs per day for the next 16 days 9 Having lived 32 to 35 days the louse dies The information in this pamphlet is based on the research conducted and written by Associate Professor Rick Speare and the team of researchers at, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, James Cook University. Treating and controlling head lice Cover concept by students from St Patrick s Primary School, West Geelong. Life cycle diagram courtesy of Nitpickers Qld. Copyright Department of Health 2010. Authorised by the State Government of Victoria, 50 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne. November 2010. PH468. (1010013)

Pat$the$Dog$is$coming$to$St$Thomas$Aquinas$Primary$School$ KarenLydom,ourlocalYouthBankingSpecialist fromthecommonwealthbankiscomingtotalk tousaboutthecommonwealthbankschool Bankingprogram. TheSchoolBankingprogramincludesanexciting andexclusiverewardsprogramthatencourages studentstogetintothehabitofsavingregularly. EverytimeyourchildmakesadepositatschooltheyreceiveasilverDollarmitestoken.Once studentshaveindividuallycollected10tokenstheycanredeemthemforanexclusiveschool Bankingrewarditeminrecognitionoftheirregularsavingshabits. Karen&PattheDogwillbeexcitedtoseeyouallonday$22 nd $FebruaryattheSchoolAssembly. Karen$will$be$available$after$the$assembly$to$answer$any$ questions$&$set$your$child$up$to$participate$in$this$free$ program. IfyouareinterestedinopeningaCommonwealthBankYouthsaveraccountforyourchildplease bringalongyourcurrentdriver slicenceoranotherformofphotographicidentification. Alternatively,youcanopenanaccountatyourlocalbranch.Allyouneedtobringisyourcurrent identificationaswellasyourchild sbirthcertificate.ifyouareanexistingcommonwealthbank customerandhavenetbank,youcanopenanaccountonline.

St Thomas Aquinas School, Norlane Canteen Menu - Term 1 2016 day & Friday only Salad Bowls Salad Sandwiches Salad Rolls Salad Wraps Hot Food Ham or Chicken Salad Bowl $3.00 Ham or Chicken Salad Wrap $2.00 Ham or Chicken Salad Roll $2.00 Ham or Chicken Salad Sandwich $1.50 Dim Sims 3 for $2.00 Dim Sims 80c each Fresh Corn Cob $1.50 Taco Bowl $3.50 Margarita $2.50 Pizza Hawaiian $2.50 BBQ Chicken $2.50 Vegetarian $2.50 Ham and Cheese $2.00 Toasted Sandwiches Chicken and Cheese $2.00 Tomato and Cheese $2.00 Cheese $2.00 Baked Beans $2.00 Chocolate Milk $1.00 Drinks Strawberry Milk $1.00 Juice $1.00 Sorbet - Watermelon or Mango $1.00 Snacks Muffin - Banana $0.50 Pop Corn $0.50 Fruit Sticks $0.50 Lunch orders MUST be placed into homeroom tubs at the start of the day. Please use a brown paper bag with your child s name and class clearly marked. Correct change is appreciated.

Can Saver Plus assist you with school costs? Join Saver Plus and match your savings, dollar for dollar, up to $500 for educational costs including: school uniforms and text books computers, laptops and tablets excursions and camps sports equipment, uniforms and lessons music tuition and instrument hire. You may be eligible if you have a Health Care or Pensioner Concession Card, are at least 18 years old, have some regular income from work (you or your partner), such as full-time, part-ime, casual or seasonal work, and have a child at school or study yourself. Contact Amanda Vernon your local Saver Plus Worker: (03) 5278 8122 or avernon@bethany.org.au Saver Plus was developed by ANZ and the Brotherhood of St Laurence and is delivered across Greater Geelong by Bethany. The program is funded by ANZ and the Australian Government.