From Our Principal
St Mel's is a proud Catholic Education Community, striving, learning
and achieving together through Christ our light.
Newsletter ~ Term 4, Week 8, 2025
Principal's Message:
Dear Parents, Carers, Families and Friends of St Mel’s Primary School,
As we approach the last weeks of our school year I am so very pleased to report the engagement of our students in their learning continues to be extremely high and focussed on continued growth. Our professional learning into the Science of Learning and evidenced-based learning and teaching approaches clearly supports the importance of maximising every learning opportunity to increase student knowledge, understanding and application of acquired skills. I have spent a great deal of time over the past week reading through each student's Student Progress Report and reflecting on my knowledge and experience of our learners from spending time in their Learning Groups and/or interacting with them in the yard. We need to continue to celebrate their achievements and growth across the year within our ever-evolving low-variance and knowledge-rich curriculum MAGNIFY!
Sacramental Program ~ Our Time Together:
Last night our students gathered with students from St Anne's College and local non-Catholic schools to celebrate their First Reconciliation. Fr Adi, who now resides at St Mel's Parish House celebrated our special prayer time together to culminate the weeks of family and large group 'Our Times Together' held across previous months to prepare the children's understanding of this special Sacrament. Congratulations to all of our parish First Reconciliation Candidates.
Important End of Year Dates:
As we enter our last few weeks of the term, please be aware of the following dates:
+ Wednesday 3rd. December - Year 3/4 Zoo Excursion
- Final Foundation Transition Visit @ 12:15pm - 1:15pm
- Foundation Information Evening @ 7:00pm (Hall)
(Parents / Carers only)
+ Monday 8th. December - Year 6 Retreat Day @ Funfields
- Year 5 Leadership Day @ School
+ Tuesday 9th. December - Statewide Transition Day
+ Wednesday 10th December - Christmas Singalong Assembly, featuring our choir (Hall)
(All welcome! Enter via Hamilton Street Hall entrance.)
+ Thursday 11th. December Year 6 Graduation Mass @ 6pm (Christ the King church)
+ Friday 12th. December - Whole School Mass @ 9:30am (Christ the King church)
+ Monday 15th. December - Aquamoves Whole School Fun Day
+ Tuesday 16th. December - Final Assembly for 2025 @ 9:10am (Hall)
- Students Dismissed for Holidays @ 3:20pm
Magnify Sandhurst'
Every Student - Every Teacher - Every School - Every Day!
In the new school year we will continue to embed the currently introduced elements of the MAGNIFY low-variance and knowledge-rich curriculum, whilst introducing the new Science low-variance and knowledge-rich curriculum developed by OCHRE (an exisiting partner of CESL).
Ongoing professional learning for staff will be offered through our partnership with Step Lab, Teach Well and supported by our Instructional Coaches, Danae Napier and Lauren Calder.
We are very much looking forward to expanding our MAGNIFY curriculum whilst ensuring implementation fidelity and alignment across the school.
Leaving at the End of Year? OR... Know of Families Yet to Enrol?
Thank you to the families who have indicated they will be leaving the St Mel's Community at year's end. This information is very helpful as we continue planning for the upcoming school year.
We wish all school students and families leaving our school at the end of this year, especially our Year 6 Graduates, all the very best as they make preparations to settle into new schools and or new locations in the new year.
Foundation Transition for 2026: [Ongoing]
We look forward to welcoming our new 2026 Foundation students enrolled for next year as they experience primary school as part of their final transition visit, as follows:
Transition Session 4: Wednesday 3rd December 12.15pm - 1.15pm
Foundation (Prep) Parent Welcome Night: (Parents and Carers only to attend.)
Wednesday, 3rd of December 2025 at 7 pm in the School Hall (Enter via Hamilton Street hall entrance)
- Learn about our school
- What your child will need to bring to school
- What your child’s day will look like
- What learning will look like
- How to help your child transition to school.
- Have a conversation with our Principal, Deputy Principal, educators and key people who will work with your child.
Statewide Prep Orientation Day 2025:
Our NEW Foundation students will come to school for their final school experience visit on:
Tuesday 9th December ~ 12pm - 1.45pm
Staffing Update:
- Our advertised staffing roles for 2026 close this afternoon. I look forward to engaging in the next phase of the recruitment process.
- Lilli Keck, Learning Support Officer, who has been with us, three days per week, since 2023 will move to St Brendan's PS at the end of this year. Whilst we are sad to see Lilli Keck move on, given she is studying teaching, whilst working as a Learning Support Officer, the move will provide invaluable school experience within a different school context. We wish Lilli all the very best for her ongoing studies and future in education.
- Jazz Mackin, who has been completing her Work Experience and Work Placement with us across 2025 will join us as a Learning Support Officer Trainee next year. We are delighted to welcome Jazz back to St Mel's PS as she completes her Certificate Course in Learning Support, coupled with more practical in-school experience across the year ahead. Jazz was a wonderful addition to our Staff Team during her placements this year and we are very much looking forward to supporting her ongoing training and experience. Jazz will join our Learner Diversity Team as an additional Learning Support Officer Monday to Friday.
Learning Community Structures:
I look forward to releasing our staffing structures for 2026, once confirmed.
Given our student and expected staff numbers for next year we will be continuing with the following year level combinations for next year:
- Early Years Learning Community - Foundation (Two Learning Groups)
Lower Years Learning Community - Year One (One Learning Group)
- Year Two (One Learning Group)
Middle Years Learning Community - Year Three (One Learning Group)
- Year Four (One Learning Group)
Senior Learning Community - Year Five (One Learning Group)
- Year Six (One Learning Group)
Further updates to follow...
SIMON Everywhere PAM (Update):
Please note: SIMON Everywhere and PAM remain temporarily unavailable via mobile devices. As per the recent email to families, the web-based version is operational.
We are sending emails via SIMON and will continue to share updates and reminders through this platform while system issues are being resolved.
Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Year 1 Activities Afternoon & Year 2 Sleep Over:
Our children and staff thoroughly enjoyed the revised Year 1 Activities Afternoon and Year 2 Sleepover experience last week. Many thank to our parents and carers who were able to support the activity on the Friday by keeping students home. This certainly supported our revised alternative program post - sleep over, given the Year Two and One teachers accessing their Time In Lieu.
School Arrival Time:
A reminder the entrance gates open from 8:30am each morning.
End of Day pick up should be completed as early as possible after 3:20pm (and by 3:40pm).
Parents / carers seeking to access to the St Mel's Uniting Outside School Hours Care in support of early drop off or late pick pick up, please refer to the information contained in the newsletter.
School Hats: [Reminder]
As we move further into Term 4 and the warmer weather approaches, students are now encouraged to transition to their summer uniform as the weather permits. As a SunSmart School, it’s essential that all students wear their school hat when outside for play, sport, or learning activities.
While our days are warming up, mornings can still be quite cool, so please make sure all jumpers and jackets are clearly named. This helps us return any lost items quickly and keeps our lost property pile to a minimum.
Thank you for your support, we look forward to learning & playing in this spring sunshine together.
St Mel's Uniting Outside School Hours Care - Vacation, Student Free Days and Before School Care: [Repeat]
Our new relationship with Uniting Vic Tas to operate the St Mel's Uniting Outside School Hours Care provision here at school continues to go from strength to strength with the introduction of NEW services within this provision.
Last holidays, St Mel's Uniting Outside School Hours Care offered a Vacation Program for nine days of the school holiday break. This new initiative has been well attended and will continue for the Christmas / New Year school holiday period.
Outside School Hours Care will also be offered on Student Free Days where our Staff Team are engaged in Professional Learning or Administrative Days, where it is appropriate to have students on site under the care of St Mel's Uniting OSHC staff.
Following a trial of Before School Care, for the first two weeks of this term, St Mel's Uniting Outside School Hours Care will continue to provide this service to our parents and carers.
With increasing numbers of parents and carers seeking a Before School Care option and increasing numbers of students arriving prior to 8:30am across the week, it has been decided to extend the current provision of Outside School Hours Care to meet this growing need in support of our working parents.
Offering yard duty supervision for an additional 50 minutes across mornings of the school week, within our staff yard duty roster, has been challenging for our school to sustain. The Before School Care provision will enable us to reduce the yard duty requirement by reverting to the 8:30 am school opening time each day.
Where parents and carers require students at school prior to 8:30am, they will need to be registered with St Mel's Uniting Outside School Hours Care for a fee.
More information is available in the attached flyer.
Parents and carers seeking more information or wishing to register children for Vacation Care are directed to contact Uniting Vic Tas directly by:
Phone: 1800 183 103
Email: earlylearning@unitingvictas.org.au
School families who do not currently use the service during the school term, who wish to make use of this service, are invited to contact Uniting Vic Tas:
School Dates:
Please check the Upcoming Dates & Events section of the newsletter regularly.
Best wishes for the weekend ahead and thank you for your ongoing support of your child/ren and the school community.
Stephen 'Steve' Hicks
Principal
Did you know? ~
