Holy Rosary School

Principal's News

As part of our Prep Induction Program, we are delighted to begin our Meet and Greet Sessions this week. These sessions provide a wonderful opportunity for members of our Leadership Team to meet each of our new Prep students and their parents in a relaxed, friendly way. During these sessions, we’ll chat with our future students about their favourite activities at home and at kindergarten, and what they are most looking forward to as they begin school. We can’t wait to meet our new students and their parents, and begin this exciting journey together! If you know of families who are seeking enrolment, please ask them to contact our office as soon as possible, as our Prep places are filling quickly.

Family Leave for Vicky and Megan

We wish Vicky and Megan every happiness as they leave HR for Family Leave. We wish them all the joy and love that this special time brings. We can't wait to hear about your beautiful new arrivals—wishing you all the very best on this exciting journey. We look forward to sharing their news with you.

Mother’s Day Stall

Thanks to Sabrina and Amanda who organised, promoted, and ran the Mother's Day stall this year— your time, creativity and generosity made it all possible. Thank you also to those who accepted the offer to sell goodies, and those who baked with care.

 

A special thank you again to Kensington Sensory Garden for their donation of lovely plants and to past parent and Kensington resident, Jane Edwards, who generously donated a range of earrings from her brand ‘PolyEd’- they were a real highlight.

 

Together, these contributions not only created a fantastic fundraiser but also a joyful community event. 

Raising Kids in a Digital World

Twenty five people attended the 'Raising Kids in a Digital World' webinar last Thursday night. Here's a link for the resources they mentioned in the webinar. 

www.informandempower.com.au/schools-webinars/community-webinar

  • Toolkit (slides, links & resources from the session) 
  • Printable family poster
  • Webinar Replay - this will be available to view for 30 days

Walk Safely to School Day:   Friday 16 May

Primary school aged children across Australia participated in the National Walk Safely to School Day last Friday.

 

National Walk Safely to School Day is a community initiative that aims to raise awareness of the health, road safety, transport and environmental benefits that regular walking (especially to and from school) can provide for the long term well-being of our children.

 

This annual event encourages parents and teachers to teach road safety skills and support the importance of regular walking, not just on this day, but every day.

 

We offered a piece of fruit to all children and their family members as they entered the gates, courtesy of a generous donation from Coles Showgrounds.  

Term Overviews – Important Information for Parents

Our term overviews were developed using the Victorian Curriculum as the guiding framework. They outline the foci of key learning areas for each year level. These overviews reflect the general curriculum for the year level and do not include individual adjustments for students who may require extension or additional support. If you have any questions or comments regarding the term overviews, we encourage you to contact your child’s class teacher directly. Discussing concerns or interpretations in group chats can often lead to confusion and is unhelpful in addressing individual queries.  We appreciate your support in keeping communication clear and constructive.

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL)

We have been reviewing the way we support students in learning and demonstrating positive behaviours at school. While we have been embedding the teaching of expected behaviours across lessons throughout the week, we believe that a more explicit approach is more helpful for students and staff.

 

To support this, we have reintroduced a behaviour lesson each Monday morning. This targeted approach allows us to clearly and consistently communicate our school-wide expectations and set a positive tone for the week ahead.

 

These lessons are informed by data and observations from students and staff, ensuring they are relevant and responsive to our school context. We believe these steps help to create a safe, respectful, and positive learning environment for all.

This week’s lesson focuses on toilet hygiene and behaviour when visiting the toilet.  It can be found on the PBL page.

Science Week

As part of our celebration of Science Week, we are excited to introduce our new look  Science Fair! While we were unable to organise and staff our projects in time for the STAV event this year, we’re taking this as a wonderful opportunity to create something new within our school. Our aim is to involve more students in hands-on science projects that are closely linked to our science curriculum, allowing them to explore, investigate, and showcase their learning in creative and meaningful ways. We’re looking forward to seeing the amazing work our young scientists will produce! Stay tuned for more information.

Parent workshop 

For the past three years, we’ve offered a two-hour parent workshop focused on exploring and participating in English activities. These sessions have always been fun, engaging, and packed with the latest practical strategies.

 

This year, we’re excited to expand the workshop to include a series of Maths activities as well!

 

We’ll be offering the workshops on Monday 2 June and Friday 6 June at 9am in the staffroom. We expect them to end at 11am.  Participants only need to sign up and attend one session.  These sessions have been very popular in the past, and we look forward to welcoming even more families this year.  Any questions should be directed to Maria or Sarah.

 

We ask you to RSVP using this link.

National Excellence in Teaching Awards

Nominations are now open until 27 June for the 2025 National Excellence in Teaching Awards (NEiTA). Nominate one of our exceptional teachers for an  award. For more information, visit NEiTA Guidelines and the NEiTA Nomination form.

Reference Policy

Some secondary schools require references from a student’s primary school, particularly for scholarships. References are not required for St Aloysius, The Academy of Mary Immaculate or Simonds College. 

 

I have included the Student Reference Policy below:

 

Holy Rosary School will write one reference for any student who is applying for enrolment or a scholarship in a secondary school.

 

1. Please forward your request to the principal (cshaw@hrkensington.catholic.edu.au) with a bullet list of extra curricular activities your child has participated in/currently participates in and any significant achievements. This may include Science Fair, piano lessons, Speech and Drama, Tournament of Minds, swimming and athletics, sacraments, parish involvement, weekend sports.

 

2. Provide the name of the person to whom the letter will be addressed, their role, and email address.

 

3. I will ask your child’s current and previous teachers for any further information including academic and social/emotional strengths. This information will be included in the reference which will then be emailed to the school.

 

Wishing you a peaceful week ahead,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christine