Dear Parents,

Together with a culture of work, there must be a culture of leisure as gratification. To put it another way: people who work must take the time to relax, to be with their families, to enjoy themselves, read, listen to music, play a sport.

Pope Francis

What a beautiful quote from Pope Francis as we all move into the busiest time of the year.

Advent began on Sunday and marks the start of a season of preparation that looks forward to the celebration of Christmas and the second coming of Christ. It is a time of reflection in preparing our hearts for the coming of Christ—we remember how our Savior humbled Himself to be born as a baby and live among those He would save. We remember the perfect life He lived doing the will of His Father, His sacrificial death on the cross, and how He was raised from the dead three days later, having paid the penalty in order to save all who would believe. Christians remember Jesus' promise to return again one day and restore everything fully. This season invokes feelings of expectation and hope! This week the Advent wreath will be placed in each of the classrooms and together we will pray for Hope, Faith, Joy, Peace and Light as we prepare for this special celebration.

Congratulations to the students in Year 4 who received the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist last week. Fr Jacob welcomed families to celebrate together at St Paul’s in a very moving ceremony.

Building update

This Tuesday afternoon, the newly renovated Prep and Year 1 classrooms will be handed back to the school  as Stage 1 of the refurbishment is completed. Stage 2 will see the Year 2 and Year 3 classrooms vacated as work continues. The Year 3 students will be relocated to the Hall, Yr 2B to the ICT lab and 2H to the Library.

New desks and furniture that will promote flexible learning spaces as well as opportunities for outdoor learning, are all part of the much anticipated reveal! I look forward to welcoming all parents back into classrooms at the beginning of next year. 

Carols

The students are busy practicing their carols and the excitement of preparing for Christmas is mounting. This morning the P-2 students danced through the gates wearing Santa hats and reindeer ears ready to record Jingle Bells in Japanese.

This year the Carols will be recorded and sent as a Christmas gift to all our families. As we continue with safe Covid practices at school, I believe that gathering as a whole school community is not prudent with only 13 days of school remaining before we break for the summer holidays. Today you will receive an email from your child’s teacher with instructions on what day the recording will take place next week and what the students need to wear.

With the easing of restrictions, parents are now welcome to come onto the school grounds for drop off and pick up. We ask that parents do not come into classrooms. If you need to call into the Office, you will need to show proof of vaccination and check in.

Thank you for your support in keeping our school safe. Students will all be dismissed at 3.30pm foer the remainder of the Term.

Christmas Prayers and Wishes from the Prep Students

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A Trip to the Zoo

The Year 4 students enjoyed a day out at the Melbourne Zoo last week.

School Fees

Please see the Fees Letter for 2022 in this newsletter.

Next year the Yr 4 students will have a one night Bike Ed camp to Maldon. All Camps are scheduled for Term 1. 

Grade 4 - Vic Blue Light Youth Camp on 10th - 11th March

Grade 6 - Phillip Island Adventure Resort on  21st - 23rd March

Grade 5 - The Portsea Camp on 4th - 6th April

Another busy week ahead as class lists are being finalised, reports are being checked and staffing is being finalised for 2022.

Have a great week.

Catherine

Dear Parents,                                                                                                                                                                                        November 2021

2022 School Fees and Levies

At the end of each year we consider the school’s needs for the following year and set annual fees and levies accordingly. We recognize the economic impact of the Covid pandemic on families in 2021 and the need to operate within tight financial constraints.

In consultation with the School Accountant, the School Advisory Board and the Leadership Team, fees have been approved for 2022. To support all families, it has been decided to keep the Student Levies for 2022 the same as 2021.  Emailed to parents and on our website (under Fees) is a Commitment Statement and a Payment Plan.  We ask that all families return the Commitment statement by December 10.  We encourage families to take up the option of using a payment plan that spreads the costs over the year.  Each year a new payment plan needs to be completed.

School Fees are made up of the following components.

Capital Levy (Per Family)

The Capital Levy ensures that the school is able to meet capital loan commitments.  Due to the refurbishment of the Junior School an additional loan was taken out to subsidise the government grant.  To meet this commitment the Capital Levy has been increased.

Tuition Levy (per child)

The Tuition Levy covers the costs of the following:

• stationery,
• excursions and incursions,
• Resources, programs and materials for RE, Art, Music, Maths, Literacy, PE
• Sport expenses including buses

Technology Levy (per child)

A Technology Levy meets the increasing demands of digital technologies. Digital Technologies is a component of the Victorian Curriculum where students design, create, manage and evaluate sustainable and innovative digital solutions for the future.

Family Fee (per Family) 

The Family Fee assists to meet the costs of the following:

Swimming Levy (per child)

All students participate in an intensive swimming program in line with the Victorian Curriculum requirements.

2022 Camp Fees

School Camps are an integral part of your child’s education, enabling personal growth while undertaking unique challenges in a safe environment. In 2022 we are pleased to provide our Year 4 students an overnight camp at Maldon. The camps vary in focus and duration. 

Total charges are billed in Term 1 and are payable over 3 terms or as per your payment plan.

Please note for families in years 4-6 we ask that the payment for camps be made prior to the camps

except  for those families using a payment plan.

Payment Options

There are payment plans available should you wish to spread the payment over 10 (monthly) or 20 (fortnightly) instalments.  Payments can be deducted from either a credit card or bank account.  Each year a new plan must be completed.  Health Care Card holders may be eligible for a concession under the State Government’s Camps, Sport and Excursions Fund.  An application form is available from the Office at the beginning of the new year.

Financial Hardship

As always, parents experiencing difficulties in meeting their commitments to the school are urged to contact us as soon as possible so that we can discuss the situation with you.

Thank you for your co-operation in the timely payment of fees this year. Please do not hesitate to contact me or if you have any queries in relation to the 2022 fees.

Yours sincerely,

Catherine Tammesild

Principal

If you have any used Christmas cards and you'd like to recycle them, please send cards to the school office to be used in Japanese activities. You can just send along the front of the card. Thank you :)

We celebrate our Church and its history at St Paul's

On this coming 8th December it will be 60 years since St Paul's faith community moved from the old school church hall (1928 - 1961) into this current beautiful, Memorial Church of St Paul's. 

On Sunday 12th December we will celebrate this Diamond Jubilee of our Church with a special Mass and Morning Tea.

Parishioners, families and friends past and present are invited to join us at 9:30am Mass on the 12th December to remember and give thanks for all the blessings of the past 60 years at St Paul's.

After Mass we will continue our celebrations with a special morning tea and an opportunity to chat and share stories together.

Please keep this date free and celebrate with us. We look forward to seeing you!