Newsletter - 30th July 2025
Acknowledgement of Country
We respectfully acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Wadawurrung people. It is a privilege to be standing on Wadawurrung country.
We pay our respect to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge the contributions of Indigenous Peoples from the past, present and future who contribute to this country in which we live.
May Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians continue to work together to educate, unite and live in peace on this land we call home, Australia.
Upcoming Events
4th August: Student free day; no school. Staff attending Professional Development
7th August: Lunch orders in
8th August: 2:30pm School Assembly
11th August: Lunch orders delivered
14th August: Damascus College students visiting
18th August: Book Week commences
19th August: Book Week Parade
21st August: Lunch orders in
22nd August: SEED Day - Damascus for Year 5 students
23rd August: First Eucharist, 6:30pm, St Peter's Church
25th August: Lunch orders delivered
1st September: SEED Day - Loreto College & St Patrick's College for Year 5 students
4th September: Lunch orders in
5th September: Father's Day Breakfast, 8:30am
8th September: Lunch orders delivered
19th September: End of Term 3
Prayer
Heavenly Father,
As we begin this new term, we thank You for the opportunity to learn, grow, and pursue our dreams. We ask for Your guidance and wisdom to be with us every step of the way.
Grant us the strength to overcome challenges and the perseverance to keep moving forward. Help us to stay focused, motivated, and dedicated to our work. May we treat each other with kindness and respect, fostering an environment of support and encouragement.
Bless our families, teachers, administrators, and all those who work tirelessly to create a nurturing and inspiring educational experience. May they have the patience and insight to lead us effectively.
Lord, we pray for a term filled with discoveries, achievements, and joy. Keep us safe and healthy,
Amen.
Messages from the Principal
Dear Families and Friends,
Welcome to Term Three. I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable break over the holidays. It is lovely seeing our students back at school, ready for an exciting term of learning and growth.
This term will be a shorter term, only 9 weeks. Events this term include Staff Retreat, Book Week, Secondary School Experience Days for our Year 5 students at Damascus, Loreto and St Patrick’s College and Father's Day. This is on top of all the many enriching opportunities that will be provided in our classrooms and playgrounds.
Keep an eye on the 'Important Dates' section for more information on all these exciting events.
We are looking forward to a great term ahead, working together to support every child.
NAPLAN YEARS 3 AND 5 REPORTS READY FOR COLLECTION
NAPLAN reports are now available for collection. If your child is in Years 3 or 5, you can collect their report from Sue or Jenny either before or after school.
KEEPING WARM
It is great to see some of our students wearing a coat, beanie, scarf and gloves outside at playtime. It certainly has been cold and we do try to get the students outside for some fresh air even on these cold days. Last term the Parents and Friends purchased a school beanie for each of the students and they look fantastic.
BOOK WEEK IS COMING!
This term, we'll be celebrating our Book Week Parade in on Tuesday, 19th August. Get ready to ignite your imaginations! The day will be here before we know it, so let's start brainstorming costumes now! I can't wait to see all the wonderful creations the children come up with.
For those of you who are new to our school or are unsure, children will wear their Book Week costume to school and remain in it all day (providing it is safe to play in outside).
The theme for this year's Book Week is Book an Adventure. Children can choose to dress according to the theme or dress up as any book character of their choice. If you are stuck for ideas, I have added some links below for inspiration. Parents are invited to stay for a parade at 9am.
NAIDOC WEEK
We are grateful for the opportunity to celebrate NAIDOC Week at school for the first 3 weeks of this term. We held a flag raising ceremony in Week 1 which everyone joined in. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives are also embedded into the lessons throughout the year. Help us to carry forward what we have learned — respect, understanding, and appreciation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and may we continue to walk together, growing in friendship and justice every day.
STAFFING
This term we have staff attending Professional Development days and also some staff taking Long Service Leave. We are very lucky to have our regular relief staff, Sarah, Inez and Majella to step in on these occasions.
Sue - Long Service Leave, 18th August - 19th September (Sarah replacing)
Kelly - Long Service Leave, 25th - 29th August
Clare - National Catholic Education Conference, 19th - 22nd August
Clare - Long Service Leave, 15th - 19th September
TREE PLANTING
Our students (and staff) recently took action for the environment by planting trees and shrubs as part of National Schools Tree Planting Day—Australia’s largest annual nature-care event for schools. This hands-on activity gave students the chance to learn about the importance of caring for our local ecosystem while making a positive impact in our community. We were eagerly assisted by Inga Hamilton (Resource Smart Schools Facilitator, Sustainability Victoria) and Deb and Robyn from Alfredton Rotary. We are grateful to Alfredton Rotary who donated the plants as part of a Planet Ark grant. Their guidance and support helped make the day a success, empowering students to connect with nature, contribute to sustainability, and help grow a greener future for everyone. We look forward to welcoming Inga back next week to continue planting with the students again.
FIRST EUCHARIST
Please keep William, Patrick and Adelaide in your prayers as they prepare to participate in the First Eucharist celebration on Saturday, 23rd August at St Peter's Church, Clarkes Hill.
LUNCH ORDERS
There are new owners now at the Bungaree Store and we are hopeful they will continue with our lunch orders. Unfortunately, donuts will no longer be offered to purchase.
ADMINISTRATION OF MEDICATION
Non-prescribed medication
In line with updated advice from our governing body, DOBCEL, schools are no longer permitted to administer non-prescribed medication during school hours.
If your child requires medication throughout the day, we will contact you to come to school to administer the medication personally or if the need is warranted to collect your child.
Please note: School and CEB staff are not allowed to store or administer any non-prescribed medications, including common analgesics such as paracetamol or aspirin. These medications can mask the symptoms of more serious illness or injury and therefore, must not be used without appropriate medical oversight.
We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in keeping all children safe and well.
Prescribed medication
From time to time children may be required to take a prescribed medication during the school day. Our administration staff are happy to assist in this area, however, we need to be extremely careful with medicines, as I’m sure parents can appreciate. Parents must complete a written form which is available from the school office detailing dosage, timing etc and the medication must be in the original package with the Chemist label and dosage on it. I would recommend dropping into school with the form. A face to face chat about giving your child a prescribed medication is preferable.
God Bless,
Clare
Gumnut Room News
It was so lovely to welcome back all the students to the Gumnut room for Term 3. Everyone returned to school happy to see their friends and ready to learn. It may have been a chilly start to the Term, but the bright smiles warmed the room.
"Our Dreaming" by Kirli Saunders is the book that we read in class during week 1. It is a beautiful story of a mother echidna and her puggle, following on the path that others have left for them to follow, as they add their own footsteps and stories to the path.
As a class we investigated the strengths and talents of some of the animals that appeared in the book. Each student then gathered this information and pictures of an animal to create an information report in the form of a poster.
During maths sessions we have been learning about horizontal and vertical picture graphs. We learnt that you have to have a good question to gather data to then create the graph. We also investigated shapes and patterns, identifying and creating.
News from the Banksia Room
Welcome back to Term 3.
Before looking at the term ahead, we took some time last week to reflect on our wonderful camp at the end of Term 2. Everyone agreed it was a great camp with lots of fun experiences, from catching trams, visiting attractions like the Museum and Queen Vic Market, to eating pizza and delicious hot jam donuts. But the highlight for everyone, including Clare and myself, was seeing us all put our fears aside and experience The Edge at Eureka Tower. Both Clare and I were so proud of everyone!
Last Friday we enjoyed a delicious Maths lesson when we used M and Ms to estimate, gather data, represent data on a graph, and make observations. Of course, the best part of the lesson was eating the M and Ms at the end!
Jenny
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