Dear Parents,

We are over halfway through the final term of 2024. 

As broadcast in the news of recent times, the tragedy in Auburn where a young boy was killed by a car which had crashed through the fence. Although an unimaginable occurrence , we need to continue to mitigate risks in our surroundings. We have had many complaints of parents and carers of our students, parking illegally , completing illegal U turns and being disrespectful to our neighbors.  The council and police have been informed and will be making their presence felt.  Obviously St Catherine’s staff jurisdiction is within the school grounds, but I do need to bring this to the community's attention, especially as we are receiving a number of calls weekly regarding such issues as well as parking across driveways. We need to be respectful and safe and model and encourage safe behaviours. 

Staffing

It is that time of year when staffing changes start to happen. 

I have been advised that Kirsten Cox will be taking up a position at another DOSCEL school, Trinity Primary school in Narre Warren South.

Justin Kenez is also leaving St Catherine’s to take up a Secondary PE teaching position at Hillcrest Christian College. 

Karla Schenk will be taking 12 months leave for 2025. 

We thank them all for their efforts and wish them well for their endeavors in 2025 and beyond. 

The staffing arrangements are in place for 2025 but are very much in draft stages as we continue to move and accommodate the moving pieces. When things are much more settled we will be able to indicate who will be teaching in each year level BUT your child will find out their 2025 teacher on Monday 16 December. 

Breaktime changes 2025

After much consultation with staff and the consultative committee it has been decided that next year we are changing the break times. 

The school start and finish times are not changing but we have looked closely at the learning blocks. The middle learning block is relatively short at the moment with the afternoon block being longer. 

In terms of learning and engagement, we think that a longer block in the middle of the day would promote a lift in student engagement. The afternoon learning Block would be reduced and this is the part of the day in which students display less productivity.  All instruction time remains 

Times will be as follows. 

(All bold details remain the same as 2024) 

(Red details are the changed times 2025)

8.30am -classroom doors and school gates open 

8.50am -Instruction and specialist classes start and pedestrian Gates and driveway gates close.

10.50am -11.20am Recess Break - Eating time is undertaken on either side of the break depending on the specialist timetable 

11.20am - Middle learning block starts 

1.00pm Eating time for all students. 

1.40pm -Afternoon Learning Block starts.

3.10pm school concludes 

3.30pm all gates close and remaining students are brought to the office for collection.

Christmas Celebrations

As we head into the end of term and Christmas celebrations begin, we ask that all Christmas cards and Christmas decorations/costumes be worn in the last 2 weeks (1 week and 2 days of term ). This is the week beginning the 9 December. We also ask that with Christmas decorations - hats and earring's etc align with our uniform policy which was sent out last week. This policy is as much about the safety of our students as the pride students take in wearing their uniform. 

We will be holding our Christmas picnic and carols on our oval on Wednesday 4 December, 2024. We encourage all families to bring a picnic dinner and enjoy the carols on the oval. All items will be performed by our students.  We have reserved Thursday 5 December as a backup should the weather not favour us. This is a fun night and the students love performing for the families. 

We are currently selling Christmas hats through CDF Pay as a fundraiser, these hats are a fun way for the children to create their own hat and parade them on the night as well as on the night we will be selling lolly packs to fundraise for the shade sails for our Jungle playground. 

Classes 2025

Separation requests for students have now closed as we work towards entering all information into the platform which will assist with grade structures for 2025.

Students will be asked to fill out a form listing 5 students who they work well with. 

All students are guaranteed to start the year with ONE of these students. We can NOT accommodate requests as students leave part way through the year. 

We have had a number of requests from parents requesting that their child be paired with another student as they assist them with their learning. It is not fair to ask another child to be responsible for your child/ren’s learning and we will never put that pressure on other children.

Online issues

We are continuing to have parents contacting us regarding online issues between students. We ask that parents continue to consistently monitor the use of devices and the platforms their children are on. 

Our students have been participating in Inform and Empower sessions at school which educates them around the safe and appropriate use of ICT devices as well as the positive and negative aspects of popular games and youtubers.  

Many of our students have accounts which have age limits restrictions, many of which are 13 years and over.  And although we will continue to educate and engage services with expertise in these areas, ultimately parents are responsible for their child’s access and use of devices outside of school on personal devices. 

Any student using school devices inappropriately will lose their rights to use these for a period of time as per the ICT agreement signed at the beginning of the year. 

Raising concerns

I would like to remind our families of our processes in regards to raising concerns for your children. 

The first port of call is always the classroom teacher. 

We ask if it is a detailed or lengthy question, or something of a sensitive nature or something needing a longer conversation, to please make an appointment  via the office so we can ensure the teacher is available to devote the appropriate attention to your concerns. The classroom teacher may escalate this to the appropriate member of leadership or if a request by parents after first speaking with the classroom teacher.  We ask that all phone calls and interactions be done respectfully so that these issues can be addressed in a timely and appropriate manner.

Inform and Empower

Don't forget the webinar tomorrow night at 7.30pm, please see the details below.

Regards 

Anna 

REMINDERS

Crossings  and Parking

We ask that all students and parents are using the crossings that are clearly marked and manned as these are safe ways to cross the road. The council have also notified us that this is a concern  and have asked that parents and students use the designated crossings when crossing Ridgemont Drive and Meadowlands Way. 
We are aware that parking can be problematic but also ask that parents do not park in the Great Beginnings Child Care Centre carpark or block the entrances as there are cars coming and going from here at all times. 

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. Times have changed about this and we as a school have to adapt. The fact that our driveway goes through the middle of the school grounds also creates many risks in the afternoon to all of the members of our community. 

Please be assured that parents and carers can  and come onsite walk students into school in the morning before 8.50am. In the afternoon please meet your children at the rebound wall if walking or parking in the vicinity of the school and coming to meet your children . This limits foot traffic through the school in the afternoon to assist with keeping our community safe as well as alleviating traffic on our driveway and streamlining the student collection processes. 

If  you ever have any concerns or want to chat with staff or leadership, please contact the office to make time to meet that suits everyone. This ensures the correct person is available at a mutually convenient time. 

Student Attendance and Late arrivals 

Any student arriving after 8.50am 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. Students are encouraged to enter the classroom and get ready for the day’s learning then participate in quiet activities until the commencement of instruction.

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. 

You may notice that emails are starting to be sent to those families of students  who regularly arrive late. 

Hats and Uniform 

We are noticing a large number of students who are not wearing the correct uniform and we will be addressing this with the students and after repeated warnings , parents will be contacted.

Jewellery , makeup and fake nails are NOT part of our uniform and students will be requested to remove these. A necklace with a crucifix on it is allowed to be worn But me tucked into the uniform for safety reasons. Small sleepers and studs are the only earrings permitted and smartwatches can only be worn if they are set to school mode. Many of these rules are for safety reasons so that injuries do not happen during playtime and P.E.lessons. All other jewellery is to be kept safely at home as the school will not be responsible for loss or breakages. 

Full school uniform should be worn at all times but if for some reason it cannot, parents are to provide a note or communicate this with staff prior to the start of day. 

Hats are now mandatory for this season and are to be worn (not just carried around). Any student without a hat will be sent to a designated shaded area for play times.

HAVE YOU CHANGED YOUR ADDRESS?

Please advise the school office if you have changed your address as soon as possible. We have had quite a few letters returning to us as it was not the right address.  You can send an email to info@stcberwick.catholic.edu.au or alternatively call 9702 1466.

Out of School Hours Care Program

Contact Camp Australia if you’re interested in your child participating Out of Hours School care or 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. Our Prep numbers are getting quite high  so if you know of anyone considering St Catherine’s for their child please ask them to contact the Office for a tour.

PREP ORIENTATION SESSIONS

PLEASE REFER TO YOUR SIMON CALENDAR FOR UPCOMING DATES FOR THIS TERM!

Our Canteen runs from Wednesday - Friday. To register please follow the following link Quickcliq registration,  then once registered you can login to Quickcliq.  When registering if your child is in Prep you will need to click foundation.  Your UID (student ID) number can be found on the home page of your Simon App. For further information please see the attached flyer.  Ordering cut off times will be the day before at 8pm, to receive your child's order the very Our next day, any orders placed after 8pm will automatically be placed with orders placed the following day, this allows for time to purchase any extra items needed on the day.  Please email amandamich@live.com if you need to cancel orders and this must be done before 9am on the day of your order.  For those children with dietary requirements there will be a folder placed in the school office outlining ingredients of certain items. Please see the attached Menu, which will also be available when ordering through Quickcliq.