Dear Families,

It has been terrific to catch up with everyone since my return from the Camino de Santiago de Compostella.

"To undertake a pilgrimage is to take a step, a step that is a response to a promise, a step out of ourselves to encounter God, where He has revealed Himself, where His grace has shone with particular splendor. On pilgrimage we trust ourselves to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who leads us on a journey of faith and encounter with God." Pope Francis.

The Short Version:

Flew into Madrid, Spain.
Travelled north by bus, spending a day touring the histioric city of Leon
Walked for 5 days, over 120 kms, with the longest day being 28 kms
Rested for one day
Visited the Cathedral of St James and visited the relics of St James, the apostle. Celebrated mass at St James' Cathedral, where the the "botafumeiro" (incense in the thurible) was swung through the entire length of the church.
Visited the town of Finesterra 'land's end" one of the most western points of Spain on the Atlantic Ocean's Costa de Morte

The Longer Version:

I had an absolutely wonderful experience walking the Camino but the weather played a huge part due to the presence of tropical cyclone Kirk, just off the Atlantic coast. It rained for a great deal of our walking time, meaning walking in wet soggy shoes and socks through mud. There was really nothing we could do to stop from being saturated all over, at some time on every day. At the same time it was very humid, with 96-100 percent humidity on most days. We learnt to take as little as we could in our backpacks. After being indecisive about the use of walking poles, I used them from the second day onwards to take some pressure off my knees as we walked over the cobbled, concrete, asphalt and dirt paths. When I was able to take my phone out and protect it from the rain, I took some photos of the beautiful countryside.

We walked through quaint villages, made of ancient stone. The houses had well kept gardens with huge hydrangeas and other plants and trees. The churches were absolutely beautiful. We were all amazed to see many eucalyptus trees and couldn't believe how much some of the landscape reminded us of Australia! The trees had been planted as they grow fast and can make profit for the landowners. I believe there is a movement to re-establish the Spanish indigenous trees and plants. It was so nice to see cows, cats, dogs and chickens as we walked next to farms. The food was authentic and delicious. Some cafes and restaurants went to a lot of trouble to prepare Galician regional food for us, which we really enjoyed.

My 6 months of Duolingo Spanish lessons assisted me, but the local Spanish people were very friendly and many could speak English. One highlight was meeting people from all over the world and chatting to them about their motivations and their lives.

Entering Santiago de Compostela to the sound of the piper and seeing the Cathedral of St James for the first time was a visual highlight. Celebrating mass in the cathedral and seeing the swinging incense was quite spectacular.

Spiritually, it was valuable to have time to listen to the whisperings in my heart and the whisperings from nature and, of course, from God. This was the Holy Spirit at work. As a group of 23 principals, we were able to journey alongside each other and quite literally assist each other through the ups and downs of sore legs, the weather and the sheer stamina to achieve the 120 km distance.

As we left the amazing and historical holy place l felt that I had experienced the true spirit of God and the mission of St James, that faith without action is pointless. In the words of St James...

Of what benefit is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but he does not have works? That faith cannot save him, can it? If a brother or a sister is lacking clothing and enough food for the day, yet one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but you do not give them what they need for their body, of what benefit is it? So, too, faith by itself, without works, is dead.

My Camino experience gave me confidence to know that, as a principal I have developed new awarenesses and confidence to lead our school community through challenging times. From time to time, we have all have our personal struggles but let's face it, that's what life is about. By literally taking one step at a time, with God's blessings, with the inspiration of St James and my stronger relationships with my principal colleagues to support me when I need it, the possibilities are endless.

Guest Speaker: Ahmed Kelly

We thank Eska Ta for organising for Ahmed Kelly to speak to the whole school at assembly yesterday. Ahmed's story of having been sponsored to move from Iraq to Australia by Moira Kelly and his story of overcoming and harnessing his own abilities to become a silver medalist at the Paris Games, was extraordinary and inspirational. Please ask your child/ren to explain what they learnt from Ahmed. It was also inspirational to hear of Eska's volunteer work in assisting Moira Kelly to care for the sponsored children she cared for as they underwent surgery and rehabilitation to address their disabilities. You can read more about Ahmed by following this link: https://www.paralympic.org.au/athlete/ahmed-kelly/

2025 Classroom Arrangements

In 2025 there will be 2 classes of Prep and 3 multi-age classes in each of Year 1/2, 3/4 and 5/6. We will have 11 classes in total.

As you are aware, teachers change schools and change teaching levels from time to time, so any of our current staff or new staff members may teach your child in 2025.

Planning for the 2025 school year will be commencing soon. Staff undertake a long and detailed process of organising which class each child will be allocated to, based on many factors.

Our professional staff make considered decisions in light of what is the best for each child with our available resources, in the context of the other children, not just in the context of an individual child. Such factors include the academic and social/emotional needs of each child, working relationships and friendships.

We would prefer it if you left these decisions to staff, but if you have any urgent information regarding the placement of your child, please put your reasons in writing, addressed to me strictly before Friday, November 1st. You may receive a phone call to discuss the issues.

Information received after this date cannot be considered as it will impact on decisions that will have already been made. Information about the placement of your child should be written in the context of your child’s needs, not your preference for a teacher, so please do not use teacher’s names. Requests for 2025 cannot be guaranteed due to the complicated nature of our processes.

The process of class placements includes an opportunity for each child to nominate three children they work well with and three different children they play well with. We guarantee that each child will be placed with one of these nominated children.

If your child is not returning to St. Leonard’s in 2025, I would appreciate you letting me know, by letter, before Friday, November 1st.

Change of Procedures at Commencement of 2025

At the commencement of 2025, St Leonard's will be moving to a new model of testing students and this will change the dates for the start of the 2025 school year. Many schools have already moved to this model due to increased costs of emergency teachers, the need to have current data on each student as soon as possible and so that the classroom teachers can then commence a less interrupted program of learning.

Details of the testing timeslots will be sent home before the end of the 2024 school year.

Please add these to your 2025 calendar.

28 January: Staff only return to school

29 & 30 January: Staff at school testing individuals and groups of students at their allocated times.

31 January: Year 1-6 Students commence school (Prep individual testing)

3 February: Preps commence school

5 February: Preps not at school. Individual Testing

Briefly

MACSSIS Survey 2024: Thank you to the 68 parents who completed the MACSSIS survey last term. We will use this data to inform our directions as a school and aim for continuous improvement. The winners of the raffle prizes were John, Pia & Anthonio, Yolen, Leo & Charlotte and Shailen.
Swimming: Our 8 day swimming program begins on November 11th and runs until November 22nd. There will be no swimming on Wednesday 13th and Friday 15th November. This means that the first week of swimming will be for 3 days only and the second week will be for 5 days. The permission form for the swimming program has been sent out via Operoo. Please respond and accept the form as soon as possible so we can confirm numbers with the pool.
On Tuesday 15th October the boys volleyball team went off to represent our school having progressed to the District competition. The Boys competed valiantly, and lost narrowly in the Grand Final by 1 point. They demonstrated excellent team spirit and wonderful skill. Once again, our students represented themselves and their school beautifully.

Congratulations to our Year 5 / 6 Hooptime competitors for playing with passion, enthusiasm and good sportsmanship. We are proud of you. Both our Girls Allstars and Boys Allstar teams made it through to the grand finals but unfortunately missed out on winning.

Bev from The Rotary Club of Glen Waverley presented awards and book vouchers to our two outstanding authors from Year 3/4. Michaela won first place for her story, "Deaf" a story inspired by the life of Dorothy Shaw. Leah won the second place award with her story, "Jillie and the Giant Adventure." We congratulate both students and thank the Rotary Club for promoting literacy in Australia and overseas.

Enjoy our beautiful spring weather.

Robert Horwood

Principal

OSHC