From the Principal's Desk
Principal - Ms Julie Di Noto
A prayer for Peace
Loving God,
You are the source of all peace and love.
We pray for our world today.
Where there is anger, bring kindness.
Where there is sadness, bring hope.
Where there is fighting, bring your peace.
Help us to be people of peace in our school, our homes, and our community.
Teach us to be gentle, forgiving, and caring to one another.
May your love guide our words and our actions so that we may help make the world a better place.
We ask this through Jesus our Lord.
Amen.
Dear St Bernard’s community,
I hope you enjoyed the extra-long weekend and had the opportunity to relax. It was wonderful to see the children return to school today looking refreshed and ready to learn.
Our Prep students are now attending school full time. It has been delightful to see how well they have settled in and how quickly they have become valued members of the St Bernard’s community. Thank you to our Prep families for your support in helping ensure such a smooth and positive transition to school.
Last Thursday evening, we had the pleasure of welcoming our Prep families, children and their favourite teddies to our ‘Teddy Bear’ Welcome Picnic. The children thoroughly enjoyed the face painting and games organised by the teachers and student leaders.
Each student received a special ‘welcome’ showbag. It was heartwarming to see families connecting, getting to know one another and forming relationships that may well become lifelong friendships. Thank you to our BPC for their generous support and donation of face paint. Our community is truly special, and the care and support shown for one another is clearly evident.
Thank you again to the families who took the time to share feedback about our current reporting processes. We truly value your input. After carefully reviewing all responses, we have developed a new plan that will be implemented and closely monitored throughout 2026. Please note that MACS requirements include offering at least one parent/teacher/student interview, providing an opportunity to discuss your child’s progress directly with their teachers. In developing this plan, a range of considerations were taken into account, including optimal opportunities for family engagement in your child’s learning. We are confident that the revised approach provides meaningful and comprehensive opportunities for you to engage in your child’s learning, while offering clear information about their achievements and future goals. Towards the end of the school year, we will gather community feedback about the changes made.
See below table for key changes and dates.
Refer to the Learning and Teaching section of this newsletter for a detailed infographic.
St Bernard’s Reporting Student Progress and Achievement 2026
| Process | When | Who | Details |
| Parent Requested Meeting | Optional throughout the year | P-6 Families | Parents can make an appointment with their child’s teacher to discuss learning at any time |
| Getting to Know You Chats | First day of school | P-6 | P-2: 10 things we want you to know about our child 3-6 Letter to the teacher from the child sharing information about themselves |
| Student Learning in Action | Term 1 Week 9 Fri 27th March 9am -10am 3/4 10am -11am 5/6 | 3-6 Families | Family Engagement in Learning Classroom Visit The teacher models a lesson (Literacy, Maths, Inquiry etc) and student/parents engage in learning together
|
| Student Learning in Action | Term 2 Week 2 Thursday 30th April 9am -10am Prep 10am-11am 1/2 | P-2 Families | Family Engagement in Learning Classroom Visit The teacher models a lesson (Literacy, Maths, Inquiry etc) and student/parents engage in learning together |
| Progress Report | Term 2 Week 10 | P-6 Families | Victorian Curriculum Progression points, skill progress, RE and personal comments |
| 3-Way Collaborative Learning Conferences (Student, Parent, Teacher) | Term 3 Week 1 Thurs 16 July School Closure Day - 20 minutes allocated for each conference | P-6 Families | Students share and celebrate their learning (5-10 minutes) Teacher feedback to parents and students including achievements and learning goals (10 minutes) Specialist to organise an expo of their subject area |
| Learning Updates | Ongoing | P-6 Families | Learning snapshots shared on Seesaw app |
| Student Learning in Action | Term 3 Week 5 5.30 - 6.30pm Tues 11 August | P-2 Families | Family Engagement in Learning Classroom Visit The teacher models a lesson (Literacy, Maths, Inquiry etc) and student/parents engage in learning together |
| Student Learning in Action | Term 3 Week 7 5.30-6.30pm Wed 26 August | 3-6 Families | Family Engagement in Learning Classroom Visit The teacher models a lesson (Literacy, Maths, Inquiry etc) and student/parents engage in learning together
|
| Progress Report | Term 4 Monday Week 10 | P-6 Families | Victorian Curriculum Progression points, skill progress, RE and personal comments |
| Other | |||
| Parent Support Group Meetings | Once per term | Students on a Personalised Learning Plan (PLP) (to support additional learning needs) | In consultation with the Learning Diversity Leader, parents and teachers discuss and review goals. |
Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) is an evidence-based framework that fosters a safe, supportive, and predictable school culture. By explicitly teaching expected behaviours and using positive reinforcement, it maximises instructional time, improves student engagement and wellbeing, and empowers educators to create optimal environments for academic and social success. Yesterday teachers participated in professional learning regarding our Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) processes. Thank you to the families who responded to the survey regarding school values. Staff reviewed our values, learning matrix of expected behaviours and acknowledgement system. Implementing PBL transforms the educational experience by shifting the focus from reactive discipline to proactive support. At St Bernard’s this will be a focus in 2026 to ensure consistent practices and to develop a shared language of PBL, which links with our emotional literacy program ‘The Resilience Project.’
Our promotional campaign continues and last week our official school tours began. It has been pleasing to see the interest in our school. A reminder that if you have a child who will begin Prep in 2027, please submit an enrolment form as soon as possible, to help us with our planning for 2027. Enrolment meetings for new families will take place in late June to mid July, with meetings for existing families following these. Please see below some photos of our recent photo shoot capturing learning in action across our school.
Last week we farewelled Ms Bec. Our Grade 5/6 students led a thoughtful assembly expressing their gratitude for the dedication and commitment she has shown to the St Bernard’s community. We thank Bec sincerely for her contribution and wish her every blessing in the future.
We are pleased to share that a new Finance Administration Officer has been appointed Ms Efi Cioccio. Efi brings many years of experience in the same role at another Catholic primary school. I am confident you will join me in warmly welcoming Efi to the St Bernard’s community. I encourage you to drop into the office to introduce yourself. Efi will continue to be supported by Nicole. I would like to sincerely thank Nicole for her hard work and support in keeping the office running so smoothly during this transition period.
I am thrilled to announce that we will be having a Sports Day on Wednesday April 1. Children are encouraged to wear their sports uniform with a splash of the colours of the sports house they are in. If you are unsure of your child’s house colour, please speak to your child’s teacher. Parents with a valid working with children check, are welcome to attend the running races. We will also hold an awards presentation at 3pm to announce the winners. The format of the day is as follows.
TIMELINE OF EVENTS - Wednesday Apr 1, 2026
| 9.15am | P - 2 Running Races | Parents welcome to attend |
| 10.00am | Grade 3 - 6 Running Races | Parents welcome to attend |
| 11.00am | Recess | |
| 12.00pm | Station Rotations (Tabloid Sports) | |
| 1.30pm | Lunch | |
| 3.00pm | Announcement of Winners | Parents welcome to attend |
It has been brought to my attention that some St Bernard’s students are crossing the road on Harding St where the crossing supervisor is not present. This is a busy road so please remind your children to only cross at the supervised crossing area. Additionally a reminder that the school gate opens at 8.30am, so please ensure students do not arrive at school until this time as they are not supervised. We have also noticed an increased number of students waiting on Patterson St from 8.15am. Our students' safety is of paramount importance. Thanks for your support with this.
At last week's assembly our SRC leaders were awarded their badges. I am extremely proud of all the students who applied, showing a strong level of commitment and willingness to be a leader at St Bernard’s. It was an extremely difficult decision as student’s applications were of a high quality. As a school we will continue to think about how we can provide more opportunities for leadership across our school and refine our appointment processes, as we have such a high level of interest. Congratulations to the following students appointed:
SRC members
Isaac Marr (1/2T)
Maddie Fitzgerald (1/2L)
Lana Salloum (3/4P)
Christian Moro (3/4L)
Bronwyn Lloyd (5/6R)
Mila Gunn (5/6J)
A reminder that school attendance is compulsory for children and young people aged from 6 to 17 years unless an exemption from attendance has been granted. In Accordance with the Education Training and Reform Act 2006 (Vic.) (the Act) and the Education and Training Reform Regulations 2017 (Vic.), parents are legally required to ensure their child attends school every day and to provide an approved explanation for their child's absence from school unless an exemption from attendance has been granted or an exception to their attendance applies. We know that daily school attendance is important for young people to succeed in education and to ensure social and developmental success. Young people who regularly attend school have better health outcomes, better employment outcomes, and higher incomes across their lives. If you are having any difficulty getting your child to school or would like support in any way, please do not hesitate to contact the school for support.
A reminder that our first NAPLAN test began today. Please see below for our NAPLAN schedule.
Wednesday 11 March - Yr 3 and 5 Writing
Friday 13 March - Yr 3 and 5 Reading
Monday 16 March - Yr 3 and 5 Language Conventions
Tuesday 17 March - Yr 3 and 5 Maths
At assembly last week the Principal’s ‘Let your Light Shine’ Award was awarded to Kseniia from Year 4.
Warm Regards
Julie Di Noto
(Principal)
SAC Report
A beautiful beginning. That was our reflection for the first SAC meeting of 2026. Energy was evident as Julie and Bridget updated the group on so many new initiatives commenced in the school; reporting, literacy focus, art, explicit teaching approaches, adoption of MACs policies. A full agenda and such a positive start to 2026 at St Bernard’s.
Gab Marr
Reminders
