Filter Content
Welcome to Week 8 and how quickly the term has flown by, this is our last newsletter for Term 1! I wish you and your families a very safe and reflective Easter break!
NAPLAN
We are very proud of the efforts of the students involved with NAPLAN. The teachers did a fantastic job ensuring everyone was calm and routines were kept. Students who were absent during their scheduled NAPLAN session will have an opportunity to make it up throughout this week. Thank you to Victoria Donlan for all of your organisation for NAPLAN.
Fundraising for our Shade sails to the senior playground!
Our chocolate easter fundraiser is doing well! We only have a couple of days before it ends! Please get your boxes sold so you can go into the draw to win that 10kg block of chocolate and help raise the funds we need for our shade sails.
Harmony Day
Harmony Day is tomorrow, Thursday 21 March.
We are asking children to wear traditional dress or their school uniform with a splash of orange. Examples of this could be an orange t-shirt, socks, hair tie, wristband or a ribbon. It’s not free dress. Please also keep in mind any specialist lessons that happen that day as they will still need to participate fully in these lessons. There will be Harmony Day activities and discussions in classrooms and within levels.
School Photos
School photos are this Friday 22 March. Children are to wear their full summer uniform. If your child has PE on the day they wear their full summer uniform and bring their runners.
Student access and child safety
We request all students accessing the administration Office and who may be coming in late do so via the SFX driveway. Students are to walk down the St Francis Xavier side of driveway on the footpath and cross at the Chapel crossing behind the bollards.
We remind parents the driveways are limited to 5 kilometres an hour for the safety of our students. Staff are on hand to assist until just after the bell. All students who are late should be walked into the office by an adult and be signed in for legal reasons. The orange arrows are areas where they need to wait for a staff member as there can be car traffic.
We also ask that parents and students use the designated crossings when crossing Ridgemont Drive and Meadowlands Way.
Project Compassion
Thank you for all of the generous donations made to Project Compassion this Lenten period. We will be counting and donating the money over the next few days and can announce the year level that raised the most money next Term. Money raised from our second hand uniform sale will also go to this great cause.
Whole School Positive Behaviour Approach
A SIMON email went out regarding our Whole School Approach to Positive Behaviour Support on Friday of last week. As a reminder:
- At St Catherine’s we are safe.
- At St Catherine’s we show respect.
- At St Catherine’s we are resilient.
Parent Access
We understand that, during COVID, access to the school was restricted. We are trying to provide more opportunities for families to have access to the school. Our Cross Country Day was a great way for families to come in and experience the fun. We do, however, have to have some boundaries for parent access and this is due to our commitment to child safety. We cannot have unrestricted access to the school for parents during these events. Times have changed about this and we as a school have to adapt.
I spoke with some families and received some feedback about access and feeling welcomed. Please be assured that you can walk students into school in the morning and come onsite in the afternoon around the rebound wall. We will work on extending the areas you can be when we have community days or opportunities to do so. We aren’t putting up the tape to be difficult; rather, we want to protect all students on site. Also, if you ever have any concerns or want to chat with staff or leadership, please contact Danielle and Jacinta in the office and they will make time that suits everyone.
Student Attendance
Our classes start at 8.50am, students are expected to be at school and ready to start instruction at 8.50am.
Any students coming after the bell are impacted as they can miss vital instruction and the beginning of Specialist subjects. Students on scheduled out-of-classroom intervention programs may also miss their session, as many of these start as soon as the bell goes in the morning.
Any student arriving late must be signed in by a parent or carer via the office. This is a legal requirement and we have noticed many more students arriving after 8.50 am. As a part of our continual review of our processes and procedures, we will be following up with parents and carers. Classroom doors open at 8.30 am.
Regular late arrivals will trigger our attendance/absence processes which means parents and carers will be contacted by classroom teachers at first but may be escalated to other governing bodies.
Hats and Uniform
Students are still required to wear hats until the end of the Term. We strongly encourage families to wash and care for the hats until later in the year when they are required again. They can get quite dirty and smelly with all the play and fun.
School closure day
A reminder that there will be a school closure day on Monday 15 April, for staff to attend a Learning Adjustment Day at Trinity Primary School.
Out of School Hours Care Program
Contact Camp Australia if you’re interested in your child participating in the Holiday program offered.
2025 Enrolments
We are currently taking 2025 Enrolments. If you are an existing family please get your forms in asap to guarantee you a spot. If you know of anyone considering St Catherine’s for their child please ask them to contact the Office for a tour.
School fees
Fee statements were emailed to families on Monday 19 February. If any families have an eligible Health Care Card please contact the Office if you have not already. If any families require a discussion regarding fees please contact Margaret Lonergan at the School Office.
The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund provides payments for eligible students to attend school camps, excursions, and sports and outdoor education programs.
Please follow the link to get more information and download the application form.
Out of School Hours Care Program
CAMP AUSTRALIA
Please follow the link to find out about our before and after school care program! Bookings are now Open!
Regards
Rian Prestwich
Acting Principal
After recess and lunch our year three’s, four’s, five’s and six’s ran a course which began on the St Catherine’s oval and continued over to St Francis around their oval then finishing back on our oval. The year 5 and 6’s completed two laps of the circuit. A big congratulations to all the students who participated in warm conditions. They should all be proud of themselves!
A big thank you to all the staff who helped out on the day and the parents who came out and supported the students which contributed to a memorable day for all.
Mr Kenez
On Tuesday 12 March, 18 students from year 4-6 represented St Catherines at the Casey South Division Swimming at the Noble Park Aquatic Centre. All of our students raced brilliantly against very tough competition!
There were many outstanding individual and relay results.
The students who finished 1st in their relays and 1st in their individual events have qualified for the Southern Metro Region Carnival on Wednesday 27 March at YAWA Rosebud.
A huge congratulations to Alyssa B who finished 1st in the butterfly and medley relay along with Charlie G, Emila J and Alexandra E! Fantastic effort girls!
Below is a list of students who finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd in their races on the day
Freestyle
Girls 11 |
Emilia J 2nd |
Boys 12/13 |
Alexander P 2nd |
Backstroke
Boys 11 |
Kepler P 2nd |
Girls 11 |
Emilia J 3rd |
Breastroke
Boys 11 |
Ryder T 2nd |
Girls 11 |
Alexandra E 2nd |
Boys 12/13 |
Tyler K 2nd |
Butterfly
Boys 9/10 |
Xander M 2nd |
Boys 12/13 |
Alex P 3rd |
Girls 12/13 |
Alyssa B 1st |
Freestyle relay
Girls 9/10 |
Lexi G, Ella R, Sophie B, Ruby R 2nd |
Girls 11 |
Emilia J, Alexandra E, Sierra T, Caitlin J 2nd |
Boys 12/13 |
Tyler K, Alex P, Flynn S, Blake S 2nd |
Medley relay
Girls 12/13 |
Emilia J, Alyssa B, Charlie G, Alex E 1st |
Boys 12/13 |
Tyler K, Alex P, Flynn S, Blake S 2nd |
State athletics
A big congratulations to Tyler K, Hudson and Archer B who competed at the State athletics championships recently. Great effort guys!
Can you help?
A Family Requires school drop off to Clyde North 3 days starting from 15 April. Please contact the school if you can assist on 9702 1466, or alternatively email info@stcberwick.catholic.edu.au