REMINDER: TOMORROW, Friday 28th June, Term 2 finishes, 3.30pm

Please note that weekly Parish mass times will now be located each week on our School Hours / Timetable page in our newsletter.

Prayer

Prayer for Our Indigenous Brothers and Sisters

Great Spirit, Creator of all things,

We come to you with open hearts and minds,

Honoring the rich cultures and traditions

Of our indigenous brothers and sisters.

We acknowledge the wisdom of the elders,

The stories that have been passed down through generations,

And the deep connection to the land, waters, and all living beings.

May we learn from their respect for nature and their ways of life.

Grant us the humility to listen and the openness to understand,

To embrace the differences that enrich our shared human experience.

Let us walk together on the path of reconciliation,

Building bridges of trust, respect, and friendship.

Help us to support the rights and dignity

Of indigenous peoples everywhere,

To celebrate their contributions to our world,

And to honor their sacred heritage.

May we work together for a future

Where all cultures are respected,

All voices are heard,

And all people can live in peace and harmony.

With gratitude and love,

We lift up this prayer to you.

Amen.

NAIDOC Week is celebrated Sunday 7th-14th July, 2024.

We acknowledge and celebrate First Nations Peoples of Australia and their unique heritage and culture during this time. This event gives us the opportunity to learn about our Indigenous brothers and sisters and understand their rich and lasting traditions.

At St Michael's School, we will acknowledge NAIDOC week upon our return from the term 2 break.

All are invited and welcome to attend the following liturgical celebrations in Melbourne in the coming weeks:

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Sunday Mass - 7 July 2024, 11am, St Patrick’s Cathedral, 1 Cathedral Place, East Melbourne
NAIDOC Week Mass - Sunday 14 July, 11am, St Francis’ Church, 326 Lonsdale St, Melbourne

Term Two in Review

What a fabulous and energetic term it has been! We have had an action packed term with learning at the centre of all we do. The staff have gone full swing into their Daily Reviews in both Literacy and Numeracy, using this high impact strategy to support students' memories with prior learning. This gives students a sound basis to continue their learning as the 'refresher' aids in embedding the knowledge and skills.

The following are just some of the events we have had on this term, which has enhanced learning and contributed to student engagement as well! Sacrament of Eucharist, National Reconciliation Week, Cross Country, Interschool sports, Year Five/Six camp, Gymnastics for Years Prep-Two, Walk to School morning, Years Prep-Four MCG excursions, Whole School Dance Incursion, Open Days, Year Three-Six Hoop Time, Chess Club, Digimaker Club, Library Club, Running Club, Soccer Clinics, Leadership initiatives, introduced Wellbeing Wagon and fortnightly assemblies!

No wonder we're all so tired!!

A huge congratulations to our staff and students for making it an action-packed term focusing on the learning as well as engagement of our students. A well earned rest is in order!

Term Dates

This page has been updated for your reference. Please check dates against your personal calendars. There are still a few dates that are yet to be confirmed and we will release these as soon as possible. Thank you

Thank you and farewell Fr Laurence

As mentioned in last week's newsletter, Fr Laurence's term of Parish Priest at St Michael's will conclude on 17th July, 2024. Father has served here at St Michael's for the last nine years and we are greatly appreciative of his amazing work and support here.

Fr Darien Stricklen has been appointed as our new Parish Priest. He is currently the Parish Priest of Holy Trinity Parish in Queenscliff and will arrive here on 23 September, after his sabbatical leave.

Parents are welcome to attend the following farewell events for Fr Laurence:

Saturday 13th July, 6pm and Sunday 14th July, 10.30am, Farewell Masses & refreshments at St Michael's Church. Following each mass, there will be refreshments in the Gathering Space at the front of the Church. All welcome - if you are able to bring a plate to share, please do so. Over the next two weeks, cards will be made available to sign in the Gathering Area after all masses.
Tuesday 16th July, 10am, Fr Laurence's Final Mass with the school community & farewell from students. All families welcome.

St Michael's School Advisory Council

Expression of interest for S.A.C. 2025

The St Michael's School Advisory Council (S.A.C.) is now seeking expressions of interest from several parents and caregivers interested in joining the council from 2025 for a term of two years. Current members of the council will remain until the completion of their term. If you are interested in knowing a little more about the purpose of the S.A.C. the details in this notice / form will be of assistance. You are also advised to speak with myself and / or one of the council members: Sousan Esposto, Lauren Prior, Paul Tesoriero, Andrew Dodds, Paula McKiernan, Amanda Tran or Father Laurence.

S.A.C. Uniform review progress

One of the main focuses of the S.A.C. this term has been a review of the current St Michael's school uniform. We extend our thanks to the high number of parents who completed the survey, providing valuable data and insights for consideration. After reviewing the results as a group, we wanted to share the outcomes with you.

Whilst the findings did not indicate a strong preference for major uniform changes, they did highlight opportunities for minor refinements to enhance the uniform offering. The S.A.C. has been and will continue to work on implementing these enhancements gradually over the coming months.

One immediate change is that students will now have the option to wear P.E. uniform for three days during the week, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays instead of just on their one designated P.E. day. This adjustment reflects the strong support for a more flexible uniform policy, allowing for increased opportunities to wear the P.E. uniform. This change will commence from the commencement of Term 3.

Another consideration has been for the S.A.C. to review the number of items offered through the uniform shop and review the take up of some of these items. In some cases, some of the non-essential items have shown little interest from families, rendering these unnecessary to offer.

Thank you once again for your participation and thoughtful responses. Your feedback is crucial in guiding decisions that benefit our school community. We will provide more feedback and final decisions based on the data in due course.

Annual Report to the School Community, 2023

For your reference, the St Michael's Annual Report to the School Community, 2023 has been approved and will shortly be available on our school website. You will find it under "Current Parents" and "Newsletters, Forms etc"

Parent Help

We are still in need of parents to support a variety of events that are coming up during Term 3. If we wish for these activities to go ahead and be a part of our wonderful community, we need people to support them to happen. Please see the details on our Previous News and Information page and make contact with Annie Herbison as soon as possible. Your community needs you!!

Grandparents & Special Friends' Day

Friday 26th July

The timetable for Grandparents & Special Friends' (G&SF) Day is as follows:


1.00pm	Arrival of Grandparents & Special Friends to the Hub for afternoon Tea
1.30pm	G&SPF move to the quadrangle to meet their grandchildren for an activity
2.40pm	G&SF move across to St Michael's Church with classes for a special liturgy
2.50pm	Liturgy to commence in St Michael's Church
3.30pm	Students dismissed from classrooms

We are also asking families to send a photo to Ray Hickey as part of our liturgy. See our Religious Education section for details.

Farewell to Charlotte Allen

We had a lovely farewell assembly for Mrs Allen on Monday morning and thank you to the parents who were able to join us. The Student Wellbeing leaders shared the following farewell sentiments.

"Farewell Mrs Allan. Thank you for everything you have done for the staff and students at St Michael’s, we all really appreciate your contributions and positive impact on our learning. Thank you for making our science lessons really fun and enjoyable. We wish you all the best for your new teaching role."

"We will miss you Mrs Allan

We will miss the way that you make science fun

We will miss the way that you encouraged us to do new and interesting experiments

We will miss your jokes

We will miss the way that you can handle anything that anyone throws at you

We will miss the way you teach

We will miss your passion for science

We will miss your creativity

We will miss your spark when you teach

We will miss you!

Thank you for teaching us and making science fun for everyone"

As Charlotte departs there are two positions that need filling on our staff. From the commencement of Term 3, Mrs Emma Quinless will take up the Student Wellbeing Leadership role at St Michael's School. Emma has worked extensively in the Learning Diversity role, working alongside and supporting the Student Wellbeing Leader and initiatives in the past. We wish her well as she leads us all in this area. The Science teaching position is still being finalised and families will be informed about this position as soon as the process has been completed.

Prep Dinner

Recently our Prep Level parents arranged a dinner for their year level at Puttanesca Ostria in Kew. A great way for the group to get to know each other better and strengthen relationships for themselves as well as their children.

TheirCare Out of Hours Care

Recently we held a very positive information session with Steve Baldock (National Partnership Manager) who unpacked more about the program and THeirCares operations for families. Many questions were asked and answered and there was a great response from those who attended. TheirCare will be setting up the Supper Room over these coming holidays in readiness to commence their work here at St Michael's on Monday 15th July. If you haven't booked in yet, please take time to review the details in the following flier.

Congratulations Jacob Oei

A big congratulations to Jacob Oei in Year Four at St Michael's School on receiving a Super Speak Achievement Award. This award is presented to students who have completed 2.5 years of Public Speaking and Communication Skills training at Super Speak (equivalent to 100 hours) and presented 15 formal solo speeches. An amazing achievement and one which will hold him in good stead, no doubt, for future events. Great to hear Jacob!

Literacy News

Mrs Elise Rimington