Dear Parents and Families,

There's a LOT to come in the next two weeks, leading up to the end of term and Easter Holiday break!

Tomorrow we celebrate Harmony Day, which falls during Catholic Education Week. As Catholics, we are drawn to promote peace and unity with others. People around the world are committed to building harmony, but it can seem far away when we are shown the images from the war afar. How can we help children to know that they can have an impact on creating harmony? We have all heard of the ripple effect. One action has the potential to ripple to others and have an impact which we can't predict. It is the small, regular kindnesses which can uplift others and promote community cohesion. It's those moments which make us feel something stronger is working through others. We can all do it - we have the power! Let's show in our orange dress tomorrow how we support each other and are united.

This week is Catholic Education Week, which is a celebration of Catholic identity, community contribution and the strength of our sector. This year’s theme, ‘Christ beside me: Walking in the footsteps of Saint Patrick’, honours the patron saint of our local Church in Melbourne. Six of our Year Six Leaders will attend the Mass of St Patrick for Schools and the Concert in the Park, with Jamie Atherton and Gayle Carrazza. The ceremony begins with Celtic pipers and a procession of school banners, before students join Archbishop Peter for a celebration of the Eucharist.

The Creative Arts Exhibition showcases students’ work formed through an education grounded in faith, hope and love. It is a free event, open to the public and families are encouraged to attend.

ATHLETICS CARNIVAL

Next Tuesday, 24 March, is our Athletics Carnival at Willinda Park. Parents are most welcome to come along to cheer and we also appreciate those who have volunteered to assist wirth the set up, running of activities and pack up at the end of the day.

Following this event, the students from Years 3-6 who achieve excellent scores/times will go on to the District Athletics Carnival, on Tuesday 31 March.

Have a wonderful weekend and we look forward to seeing many of you at the Athletics Carnival on Tuesday next week!

Best wishes,

IMPORTANT UPDATES

YEAR ONE MASS AND CLASS MASSES

On Saturday night, we look forward to all the Year One Families cominbg together for Mass.

Please also see at the bottom of this page, the list of dates for Class Masses. Your child's teacher/s will be in touch prior to the Mass, but please also note this date. There can, at times, be changes to these dates, if Fr Michael has a funeral to preside over.

BALL GAMES AND SAFETY ON TOP YARD

We are working on safety, particularly in the Top Yard space where ball games sometimes begin, and where there are lots of younger siblings moving around who are not used to so many students. We do NOT want ball games happening in this space before or after school please.

CONGRATULATIONS!

This week, we heard the fabulous news that Brigitte Di Gregorio (one of our 2025 Prep Teachers) and her husband have welcomed their new baby into the world! Sofia is her name and she has dark hair, just like Brigitte. We send them all our love and best wishes, and can't wait for Brigitte to come in for a visit.

We also congratulate Jasmine Bui (one of our Year Two teachers) and her husband on the announcement of their baby news. Jasmine will be leaving later in Term Two to have her first baby too.

NEW TEACHER FOR 1DC

Bianca Di Giovanni, one of our Year One teachers, is also leaving at the end of this term to have her second child. We wish Bianca and Jacob all the very best as they wait for this special time.

A new teacher has been appointed for 1DC and will be shared in the next Newsletter.

ENROLMENT FOR 2027

Weekly Tours are occurring and our Year Six students are doing a magnificent job taking visiting parents on a tour of the school. The next important date is the Information Session on Monday 23 March from 7-8.30pm in the GECCO.

LEARNING CONVERSATIONS

On Monday 30 March from 1.30-6pm, we will hold Learning Conversations for all Levels P-6. These have a twofold purpose - the teacher/s will inform you of your child's latest assessment results and areas to focus upon (goals) and your child will talk to you about specific work they have completed and their goals for Term Two. These meetings will be of ten minutes duration. Students will be dismissed at 1pm. OSHC service will be available on this day.

Teachers are always available to meet with you prior to and following this interview, if you wish to discuss your child at ANY TIME. Should you need to make the teacher aware of any issue/s for your child, during the year or particularly if anything has changed over the holiday period, please make an appointment with them to do so next week. We will send home written reports at the end of Terms Two and Four.

ASSEMBLIES

Our final Assembly for this term will be held on 30 March. Please join us on Top Yard at 8.50am. All students are to wear their hats for Assembly.

This is weather dependent, so please watch for any changes advised through Compass.

PFA FUNDRAISING

The focus of the PFA fundraising this year is the replacement of the Senior Adventure Playground. As you can imagine, this is a costly enterprise, so we are gearing all our fundraisers to this. The students will have input into the components to be included, so we want to be able to get as much for them as we can.

We are aiming for a $100,000 AMAZING play space!

Please help us to get there across the year by sharing our fundraising activities at work, with friends and with your extended family. Some of them may also make lovely gifts!

The Entertainment Book (app) is one of the easiest and most beneficial fundraisers a school can do, especially in March when we receive DOUBLE FUNDS FROM THE SALE OF EACH APP! Once you have the app, the savings will more than pay for the outlay, with meals, deals and entertainment options to suit all ages. As well as purchasing your own app, please send the details to family and take it to work to encourage others to support us now - No time to waste, March is the month for double benefits!

PFA EASTER RAFFLE

The Easter Raffle collection is on! If you are able to send in a donation of Easter eggs, art projects, etc, we would appreciate it. The donations are then made into a hamper for each class and one lucky student will take it home for Easter! Further information will be shared via Compass.

SUSHI DAY - 25 MARCH

The last Sushi Day for this term is Wednesday 25 March, the day after the Athletics Carnival.

CONFIRMATION - SPIRIT DAY

The next step in the preparation for Confirmation is the selection of a saint by the candidate and the Spirit Day on Thursday 30 April. Bishop Thinh will visit the students on that day prior to the Confirmation Masses on Saturday 16 May.

SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL

The first meeting of the SAC took place last Thursday, with one new member - Laura Polidori. We are still looking for two parent reps as Sebastian Zita, who has been on the SAC for 3 years, has recently stepped back. We thank Sebastian for his time and support of the school through this role.

So what does the SAC do?

The SAC is the body which advises on matters concerning the school. It can assist with school promotion, provide information to the school community and skills and perspectives on matters of interest to our parents. You may have a particular skill set which will help on the SAC, or be interested in learning more about our programs and initiatives. Everyone is welcome to apply for a two year term, which will be decided by Fr Michael and myself if we have more applicants than positions. The SAC meets twice a term for approximately 1.5 hours. Please read the Expression of Interest information.

MACSEYE April School Holiday Program Autumn Adventurers 7–17 April

MACSEYE’s Autumn Adventurers Holiday Program is now open for bookings, and we can’t wait to welcome children for a season packed with creativity, adventure and fun!

Children can look forward to plenty of great activities, including exciting science and craft inspired excursions, and the latest movie from Disney and Pixar, Hoppers. We also have circus skills workshops, bike and scooter adventure days, nature scavenger hunts, autumn craft creations and critter-inspired art.

With a wonderful balance of active play, creative expression and opportunities to connect with friends, there’s something to spark every child’s curiosity and imagination.

View the program brochure for more details and how to book, or visit www.macseye.vic.edu.au/oshc/holiday-program/

MACSEYE look forward to sharing an unforgettable autumn adventure with your child! BOOK EARLY!

MACS FAMILY SURVEY - Have your say on school choice

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) is inviting families to take part in a short online survey about school choice and your experience as a MACS family.

The survey is being conducted in partnership with education research specialists Edified and focuses on the perspectives of current MACS families. It explores:

what influenced your choice of school
what matters most to your family now
what supports satisfaction, belonging and confidence in your school

Your feedback will help MACS better understand what families value most and will inform future planning and decision-making for Catholic education.

The survey takes approximately 10–15 minutes to complete and can be taken anonymously. All responses will be confidential and will only be used for the purposes of this research.

As a thank you for your time, families who complete the survey may choose to enter a prize draw to win one of five $100 eGift Cards, redeemable across more than 100 in-store and online brands. Entry to the prize draw is optional and managed separately from survey responses. Full prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.edified.com.au/post/macs-parent-survey-prize-draw

Your voice matters. By sharing your experience, you are helping shape the future of Catholic education for current and future families.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/MACSFAMILY

If you have any questions about the survey, please contact Community Engagement and Growth at ceg@macs.vic.edu.au.

Thank you for your time and contribution.

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools

CLASS MASSES

Term 2	Class
Monday 4 May (Mother's Day)	5VS
Tuesday 19 May	3BC
Monday 25 May	3CR
Tuday 2 June	5BM
Monday 15 June	2JB
Tuesday 23 June	1DC

Term 3	Class
Thursday 23 July	4HM
Monday 3rd August	1GW
Friday 7th August - Mary MacKillop Mass	6RV
Monday 10th August	4GH
Friday 14 August - Feast of the Assumption	6BM
Thursday 20 August	3CJ
Thursday 27 August	4CJ
Tuesday 1 September	2MT

Term 4	Class
Tuesday 27 October	PJL
Thursday 5 November	2AD
Tuesday 10 November	PMA
Wednesday 11 November - St Martin of Tours Feast Day	6EM
Tuesday 17 November	PGO

Secondary Schools and Kinders