From the Principal

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

Prayer

Feast of Pentecost

This Sunday we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost, commemorating the gift of the Holy Spirit being bestowed upon the Apostles as a gift to support them in their work of sharing the word of Jesus. This special gift gave the Apostles strength, support, confidence in their endeavours, a gift we are given at Confirmation to do the same thing.

St Michael's Women's Wellness Brunch

DON'T MISS OUT!!!

The annual St Michael’s Women’s brunch is just around the corner, taking place on Sunday 26th May.  It is a fantastic event which has been an institution in St Michael's Parish for a very long time. This year focuses on wellness, and we join together to celebrate all the special women in our lives over a delicious brunch and champagne. Come along, invite your sisters, mothers, aunties and special friends. I look forward to seeing you there.  Book tickets via this link before sales close this weekend. 

Sacrament of First Eucharist 

We remember and pray for our children who are receiving the Sacrament of Eucharist for the first time on 1 & 2 June. Their families are working alongside the children to help them understand the importance of this Sacrament in the church and in our lives, as are their teachers. Next week we will hold a Reflection Day onsite, where the students work together to grow more deeply in their understanding of the Sacrament. Our school and Parish children will join together for this day and it will be held onsite. Students may wear casual clothes on this day.

Prep 2025 Enrolments

Have you got a child starting Prep next year?

     Have you completed their enrolment form?

          Have you submitted the form to St Michael's                         School office?

We are currently arranging meetings for all families who have a child commencing Prep in 2025 so if you have not yet notified us of a sibling starting in 2025, please submit your application form as soon as possible.

Open Morning SATURDAY, 11th May

We had a successful morning last Saturday with quite a few families visiting us for School Tours. Tonight we hold our annual information session, which gives prospective families a little more information and a chance to ask more questions. If you know of anyone who is looking to enrol their child for 2025, please encourage them to come along. 

 ENROLMENT INFORMATION EVENING, FROM 7-8PM in the school hub.

$400 School Saving Bonus - 

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) media release - here.

Last week the Allan Labor Government announced a $400 School Saving Bonus for all school students in government schools regardless of income, but only for Health Care Card holders in Catholic schools.

This is deeply unfair.  We believe the payment should be means tested for all students or apply to all students. It should not be based on which school you attend. 

This policy punishes families for choosing to send their children to a Catholic school.

St Michael’s School and the peak body, the Victorian Catholic Education Authority, are working hard to oppose this policy and we need your help.   We need to show the Victorian Government that punishing families who choose a Catholic school is unacceptable.  Please consider contacting your local Member of Parliament to express your concern. The payment should apply to all students, or it should be means tested for all students, as has been the case with programs like the Camps, Sports, and Excursions Fund.

The MACS media release on this can be viewed here.

District Cross Country 

We thank and congratulate the many students who attended and competed in the District Cross Country on Tuesday this week. Despite some early nerves, the students were displaying their Growth Mindset learning and gearing themselves up for their races. They showed amazing perseverance, and all finished their race. We're so proud.

I am particularly proud of our students, most of whom congratulated and shared the joy of those who came in before them. It's wonderful to see this kind of support and cheer for their competitors and fellow students.

Congratulations to Annabelle S and Alex B who both competed in the 11 year old events. Annabelle finished in 8th position and Alex came in 3rd. They both have qualified for the Division Cross Country, to be held in a few weeks time. 

Kinder Kids Session 1

Tomorrow we hold our first Kinder Kids session for this year. ALL 3 and 4 year old children are welcome to attend and our Year 5s are ready and waiting to begin working with them! Our Year 4s have also been busily preparing to welcome our children with the special treat they made yesterday afternoon; an apricot delight!! Great job everyone! Looking forward to seeing all our Kinder Kids tomorrow.

Daily Prayer in the Classroom

Just a reminder to all our families that we hold morning prayer in the classroom everyday and we welcome you to join your child's class at this time. If you're also available to assist with classroom learning, please see Elise Rimington for our short Parent Helper Course, and if you hold a current Working With Children Check, we would also love your support. See your child's teacher for when this would be most convenient.

Bracelets for the RSPCA

Thank you and well done to Peta, Jenna and Saisha this week who took it upon themselves to make bracelets to sell to raise much needed funds for the RSPCA. Their drive and passion had them bringing in many others to help make the bracelets and sell them on the day. Remaining bracelets will be sold tomorrow morning before school should any other children wish to buy these. Great job girls!

National Walk Safely to School Day ~ Friday 10th May

Well done to all who walked to school last Friday on National Walk Safely to School Day. Despite the initial drizzle that morning, many students and many with their families walked from at least a few blocks away from school and enjoyed a fruit breakfast upon their arrival. Of course we know that many of our students / families walk to school everyday so we wish to encourage more to do so. One thing we know about children is when they exercise, they are better able to learn as they have their hearts pumping with oxygen circulating well through their system, which helps to make them more alert. Much the same as adults, really! So any exercise before school can only be helpful for their learning! 

National Simultaneous Storytime 2024

This annual event will be happening next Wednesday, 22nd May at 12.00noon and St Michael's School will be taking part. Every year an picture book, written and illustrated by an Australian author and illustrator, is read simultaneously in libraries, schools, pre-schools, childcare centres, family homes, bookshops and many other places around the country. Now in its 24th successful year, it is a colourful, vibrant, fun event that aims to promote the value of reading and literacy, using an Australian children's book that explores age-appropriate themes, and addresses key learning areas of the National Curriculum for Foundation to Year 6. We look forward to sharing Bowerbird Blues, by Aura Parker, with our children next week.

St Michael's School Year Six, 1983 Reunion

In 1983, the top five songs were:

The 1983 Grade 6 class at St Michael's Primary School were superstars too and it's time for a 40 year reunion!!  

So if you, or somebody you know, was a Grade 6 graduate of St Michaels, Ashburton in 1983, we would like to hear from you to organise a reunion to reflect, celebrate and make fun of each other!  Contact Gian Sberna (gian.sberna71@gmail.com) or John Bresolin (johnbresolin78@gmail.com) to let us know if you'd like to join us to relive the days of awesome music, questionable hairstyles and past glories.

Extra Curricular programs at St Michael's School

Our term Two timetable for extracurricular activities has now been updated to include Monday and Friday Soccer clinics.