ELC Bulletin - Term 1, Week 1

PLEASE NOTE THAT SEVERAL ITEMS ARE INCLUDED IN THIS SECTION.
To view them all, select ‘EXPAND ALL’ above or select ‘MORE’ below.

ACCESSING LINKS WHICH MAY BE PROVIDED IN THESE BULLETINS
If you are not able to access links via your phone, please contact our IT Department at it@stmarks.wa.edu.au as it is important that all our families are able to access various links when they are provided. Our IT Department will be able to talk you through the steps to make this possible. Alternatively, the School App can be downloaded to another device (tablet or pc).


NOTICE FROM DEPUTY HEAD OF PRIMARY – EARLY LEARNING

Dear ELC Families,

Congratulations on a wonderful start to the 2025 school year! The ELC has been buzzing with excitement as children eagerly explore their new learning spaces and build connections with their teachers and classmates. It has been a joy for our staff to welcome both new and familiar faces, and we look forward to getting to know you and your child even more as the year unfolds.

We always appreciate a friendly smile and a quick chat when time allows. To stay connected with your child’s classroom experiences, please make sure to check the Seesaw Family App regularly. If you need any assistance accessing or using the app, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

With so many wonderful educators across the week, we understand it can take time to learn all the names and faces. Below, you'll find a list of the staff working with each class group each day. More detailed timetables, routines, and program information will be shared next Tuesday at our Meet the Teacher Evening. I strongly encourage you to attend this session, as it will provide valuable insights into your child's learning journey this year.

We look forward to a fantastic year ahead!

Warm regards,
Linda Sweet
Deputy Head of Primary – Early Learning

Kindergarten Starfish (M, Tu Alt W)

• Kylie Tunbridge (Teacher)
• Richelle Payne

• Kristie Hynes

• Tammy Wilkinson

Kindergarten Turtles (Alt W, Th, F)

• Hannah Stone (Teacher)

• Bonnie Ioannou

• Natalie Smith

Pre-Primary Newell

• Madeleine Newell (Teacher) Tu, W, Th, F

• Carly Blakiston (Teacher) M

• Sharon Milne

• Kate Wells (both PP classes)

• Danielle Greenhouse (M, Tu Alt W)

• Hannah Logan (Alt W, Th, F)

Pre-Primary Logan

• Kate Logan (Teacher) Tu, W, Th, F

• Hannah Stone (Teacher) M

• Belinda O’ Donaghue

• Kate Wells (both PP classes)

Year 1 Harriden

• Natalie Harriden (Teacher) M, Tu, W, Th

• Ashleigh Traill (Teacher) F

• Louise Grayson

• Morgen Beament

Year 1 Wells

• Sara Wells (Teacher) M, Tu, W, Th

• Carly Blakiston (Teacher) F

• Margot Shirley

• Sandy Etto

Specialist Teachers

• Learning Diversity & Inclusion – Cassandra Brown

• Music – Andrew Martin

• CAVE – Stephanie Ellingson

• French – Nadine Woodley (Semester 1)

• Mandarin – Jenny Li (Semester 2)

• ELC Teacher - Melissa Hetherington

• Library – Jane Franz

• Y1 PE – Linda Sweet

ALLERGY AWARENESS

As we have several children at St Mark's with severe allergies (anaphylactic) to nuts, parents are asked not to send any nut products to school for snacks or lunches as this could be life threatening to some children. This is especially the case for our young children in the Early Learning Centre. Thank you.

K-Y1 STUDENT MEDICATIONS

If your child has an allergy, asthma or other ailment for which medications are required to be kept at school, please ensure medication plans and medications are handed in to ELC Reception as soon as possible. Thank you. For the safety of other children, medications should not be left in school bags.

K-Y1 STUDENT COLLECTIONS

• Thank you to all those families who have completed the online child collection forms – very much appreciated. Please note that the online forms are now closed and any further additions or changes to collection arrangements should be notified via email to elcreception@stmarks.wa.edu.au before 2.15pm of the relevant day. Please advise in your communication whether the change is just for that day or will be a change to long term arrangements. Thank you.

• Parents are reminded that we need to be notified of when your child will be collected via drive through so that they can be waiting at the correct location for you. We also need to have parent permission when someone other than a parent, including childcare establishments, will be collecting your child.
  
• If possible, please try and establish a regular routine for collections so that changes are kept to a minimum. This would be very much appreciated. Thank you.

ELC OUTDOOR ENVIRONMENT ROSTER HAS BEEN UPDATED FOR TERM 1, 2025
The link to the roster is available in a separate section in this Bulletin 'PARENT COMMITMENT HOUR OPPORTUNITIES IN THE ELC' or via the link provided below. Please add your name to the roster if you are able to help – your assistance would be very much appreciated. Thank you. Remember to record your parent commitment hours as appropriate.

ELC Outdoor Enviro Volunteer Roster

COMMUNICATIONS TO ELC RECEPTION
Please use ELC email address elcreception@stmarks.wa.edu.au or phone 9403 1398. Thank you.

TERM 1 EVENTS

• ELC CHAPEL – Wednesdays 1.15pm to 1.45pm in the Chapel
  K-Y1 students will attend Chapel Services in the Chapel on most Wednesdays

• K-1 MEET THE TEACHER EVENING – Tuesday 11 February 6 – 7.30pm in the Performing Art Centre (PAC)
  K-1 parents are encouraged to attend

• PP-Y4 IN TERM SWIMMING LESSONS – 31 March to 11 April
  More information will go out via Consent2Go (C2G) closer to the event date.
  Parents will need to respond to the C2G invite – please do so as soon as it is received.
  Paper copies of Government consent forms will go home for parents to complete and return closer to the event date.

• KINDY HEALTH CHECKS WITH COMMUNITY NURSE – usually during Term 1
  Paper copies of Government forms will go home soon for parents to complete and return as soon as possible.

• KINDY OT AND SPEECH ASSESSMENTS – 31 March to 11 April
  More information will be provided closer to the event dates including links to forms which will need to be completed and returned directly to the OT and Speech Therapists.

NEW LINKS CREATED 18.9.24. FOR UPCYCLING AND WATERING ROSTERS:
Please follow the links provided below to add your name to one of the rosters if you are able to assist. Thank you.

These are shared documents which all ELC parents are able to view.

• ELC UPCYCLING ROSTER (No opportunities at the moment):
  ELC Shared Upcycling Roster
  
  

• ELC WATERING AND OTHER OUTDOOR TASKS (ongoing roster):
  ELC Outdoor Enviro Volunteer Roster
  
  
• OTHER ELC PARENT HOUR OPPORTUNITIES (item added 4.3.25)
  Parents will be advised via the Weekly Bulletins or Class SEESAW pages when opportunities do become available. Parents will be able to access the shared roster via the link provided below to add their names for the advertised task(s).
  ELC Various Tasks Roster

Please find attached a letter from the Principal welcoming families to Term 1.

Letter from the Principal.

Term 1: Monday 3 February to Friday 11 April

Term 2: Tuesday 29 April to Friday 27 June

Term 3: Tuesday 22 July to Friday 26 September

Term 4: Monday 13 October to Tuesday 9 December

This information can be found on the St Mark's webite here.

Tickets are selling fast, for our Old Scholars' Milestone Reunion on Saturday 22 February 25.

All Old Scholars who graduated from St Mark’s in 1995, 2005 and 2015 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.

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.