Dear Parents,

It’s hard to believe that, at the end of the week, a month of school has already flown by.

School routines have been established, with these early weeks of school seeing classes focus on developing relationships and the students establishing the conditions they want to see in their classrooms to promote a positive and productive learning environment. This week, we’ve seen students setting personal learning goals and diving into their new units of inquiry.

We are enormously excited about the possibilities that this year will now bring as we approach some normality in our teaching and learning. We continue to be thankful for the calm and measured approach of our staff, the tremendous support and encouragement of our parents and the willingness to get back to normal and 'grit' of our amazing students.

BUDDY MASS POSTPONED

Unfortunately our New Families, Foundation & Yr 6 Buddies Mass and Welcome Function has been postponed due to a number of COVID-19 cases in our Year 6 level.

We hope to reschedule soon and will keep let you know once we're able to confirm a new date.

Covid Update

We have a new mask update. The Victorian Government announced a few days ago that from 11.59 pm on Friday 25 February 2022 masks will no longer be needed in most indoor settings, with masks only required in school settings for students in Year 3 and above at primary school.

We have sent home another 5 pack of Rapid Antigen Tests with each student today. We will continue to provide these each fortnight for the remainder of term.

Parents must continue to report a positive result to their school by phone or written notification; this is so our school can support you, record that your child will be absent while in 7-day isolation, and let the rest of the school community know there has been a positive case onsite (confidentially) and that they should monitor for symptoms.

Where a student is a household contact of a positive case (that is, they have spent more than four hours with someone who has COVID-19 inside a house, accommodation, or care facility) they must inform the school and isolate for seven days and not attend school during that period.

If staff or students receive a positive test result at any time, they must report this through the Department of Health system (Rapid antigen tests | Coronavirus Victoria) or via the coronavirus hotline at 1800 675 398.

Thank you for everything you are doing to keep our school community safe.

Parents Association

One of the best parts of my role as Principal is to lead prospective parents around our school, showing them our grounds, introducing the students and teachers and talking to them about the type of school we have. I often speak to them about the spirit of welcome, the inclusiveness, our high expectations and the culture of learning that exists in and around our school.

I speak about our school values:

Faith – We live faith-filled lives and give thanks daily.

Acceptance – We respect and embrace the community.

Compassion – We care and do what is right and just.

Excellence – We strive for and celebrate every success.

Today I am writing to you to invite you to consider ways in which you might continue to add to our story.

Educational research on the involvement of parents in schools shows that children thrive when parents and teachers work together.

Our Parents’ Association (PA) at St. Cecilia’s consists of a group of dedicated parents who work together for the benefit of the school community.

The Parent’s Association provides the formal structure necessary to ensure effective organisation and action. They provide some important services to the school community such as:

- Promoting a sense of community spirit within the school through the organising of parent and community functions and social events

- Managing school fundraising opportunities

- Providing an opportunity for parents to connect, make friends and learn more about what is going on at St. Cecilia’s

- Sharing the responsibility for the management of in school services such as the Canteen

- Supporting new families to the school.

- Organising and managing significant celebrations, such as Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, School Disco and Grandparents Day

- Supporting Grade 6 Graduation

- Looking for ways to improve the family and school partnership by meeting regularly with the school Principal

Please consider becoming a member, particularly if you are relatively new to our school community. We acknowledge that many of us have very busy lives and can’t commit too heavily, but on occasions throughout the year there will be opportunities aimed at various grade levels that require assistance. (For example, our Foundation Parents will be responsible for coordinating and running our Pancake Tuesday morning.) We will advertise and promote when these occasions are happening so that you can prepare and endeavour to contribute in any way you can. We will provide a contact person for all events that can guide your questions or offer assistance.

Parents Association meetings are held in the second week of each school term, usually on a Tuesday or Thursday evening at 7.30pm in the staff room. Some great friendships have been formed through PA and our students love their parents being involved in their school. Meetings are advertised via the school newsletter or on a PA Noticeboard.

The St. Cecilia’s Parents’ Association is a very active part of the school community. We aim to create an engaging and vibrant hub for all students and to foster a strong and supportive community spirit among the parents of the school, thereby enhancing every student’s sense of belonging. A school that has strong parent, teacher and community engagement creates a nurturing environment and successful learning outcomes for all students.

Along the way, the Parents’ Association also raises funds for the school, and over recent years, we have been able to purchase a variety of items including technology items for the classrooms (Chromebooks, iPads, green screen technology, drones, sphero balls), air conditioning units, a piano, school signage, a sandpit, curtains for the hall, new classroom furniture, just to name a few. Currently we are working towards a Stem Centre / Art Studio which will be housed within our current library space. We are also working towards implementing our Landscape Masterplan which we will be unveiling very shortly. This could include an outdoor kitchen which can also serve as an environmental classroom. We have also continued to enhance the Catholic Identity of our school by way of signage, art, scripture and murals. The Parent’s Association has also shown a continued interest in donating money to external charities, from the monies raised from school fundraising events.

In order for all of these projects to come to fruition, the Parents’ Association needs the help of the whole school community. Becoming a class representative, lending a helping hand to organise an event, offering your knowledge and expertise in your field of work, supplying goods or services to the school or donating your time in other ways are some of the things parents can do to help.

Joining the committee or attending meetings are great ways to be involved in the school community and to meet parents across the various year levels.

It is our endeavour to be transparent around the role of the PA, the duration of time to be holding a position, the process for becoming more involved and the way in which we manage the generous funds raised by our parents to serve our students and assist our school.

If you have further questions, please contact me via email principal@scgleniris.catholic.edu.au

“At the end of the day, the most overwhelming key to a child's success

is the positive involvement of parents.”

If you would like to find out more, please contact myself or our 2022 Co-Coordinators.

2022 Co-Coordinator: Andrew Maxwell andrew.john.maxwell@gmail.com

2022 Co-Coordinator: Chris Knott

Christopher.Knott@dwfoxtucker.com.au

If you would like to join the PA, or just find out more, please contact us by completing the form attached below.

Parent's Association 2022 Google Form

Thank you for your continued support of our wonderful school.

Free Cyber Safety Webinar for Parents

Raising Kids in a Digital World 2022

Date: Thursday 3 March

Time: 7.30pm -online (90min)

Here is the link for parents to register for the webinar:

www.bit.ly/3march2022

This short video will provide some more info about the webinar...

Social Media

Our school social media is now up and running! The purpose of these pages is to share with our families and community the great things that are happening at our school.

Thank you to all those who have been able to fill out our General Permission to Publish and Disclose Information on Facebook and Instagram which asks parent permission for their child’s images to be used. Please note, we NEVER name the students in any of these online posts.

I encourage you to take a look, and follow if you would like.

Follow Us on Facebook and Instagram:

@StCeciliasGlenIris

@StCeciliasGlenIris

Open Day

One of the most effective way for prospective parents to see if a school is the right fit is to participate in a tour. We host various Principal’s tours throughout the year (Learning Walks for Parents), as well as an Open Day, which is designed to show prospective families what a regular school day with normal classes and activities is like. Feedback from families is that this approach gives visitors a good “feel” for the culture of the school, an idea of class sizes and facilities from Foundation to Year 6 and an opportunity to meet with the Principal, the Leadership Team and other members of staff who can answer questions.

This year Open Day will take place on

Tuesday 15th March (Week 8).

All day (various time slots)

Bookings via our website.

We invite all prospective parents to our Open Day being held in Week 8 to:

- Investigate the great things our students are doing

- Discover the outstanding opportunities our learning environments offer

- Explore the magnificent setting of grounds, buildings and view our students and staff using their work spaces.

CSEF (Health Card) Reminder

Could all parents who currently hold a Health Care Card please click on the following link for further information.

Remember...

When we speak about our St. Cecilia school values, we speak of:

Faith

We live faith-filled lives and give thanks daily

Acceptance

We respect and embrace the community

Compassion

We care and do what is right and just

Excellence

We strive for and celebrate every success

Gratitude and Mindfulness

What are three things that went well for you today?

Who are you most grateful for and why?

What are you looking forward to most about tomorrow?

Have a great weekend everyone!

It is so good to have you all back!

Warm regards,

Take care of each other,

Marty

St Cecilia's School Fun Run

6 weeks out...