PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Dear Parents/Carers,

A reminder that Monday 5th November is a school closure day for staff to plan for the 2023 school year.

Firstly, a reflection on the 2022 St Agnes’ Art Show. I would like to extend our gratitude to all families who were able to make it along to school last Thursday evening, for what was a very special night. We had around 85% of our school families in attendance and this created a wonderful celebratory atmosphere. The artwork on display was a credit to the children and also to our Visual Arts teacher Jennifer Brown. The musical talents of the children showcased throughout and a choir performance to wrap the evening, were the other major highlights. For children, especially our younger students, to perform in front of a big audience on their chosen instrument is a big deal and they are to be commended for their efforts. It’s events like this that the children will remember for years to come and we look forward to the Art Show again in 2024. I would like to thank P&F President Georgia Sotiroski for her assistance and organisation, Srebrenka Casaceli and her team of musical instructors, Jennifer Brown for the amazing Art and our staff for working together to create such an event in what is a busy time of year for them. There were many ‘moving parts’ to this event and I am very grateful to our staff for their input throughout the preparation, especially in the midst of report writing time.

We would like to congratulate the four award winners from our Art Show. There were three ‘Community Art Awards’ given from the nominations on the night and one ‘Artist Award’, selected by Mrs Brown and our staff. 

Artist Award - Molo Tucker - Molo has demonstrated a clear understanding of art elements including colour, shape, texture and value. She interprets and responds to artwork thoughtfully.

Community Art Award - Ava Przybyszewski - Ava’s creativity, use of colour and design choices, particularly in her Heather Galler-inspired landscape was amazing!

Community Art Award - Michaela Killey - Michaela’s excellent use of colour, shape and symmetry, particularly in her Picasso inspired self portrait, were appreciated by the St Agnes’ community!

Community Art Award - Poppy Majstorovic - Poppy’s beautiful use of colours and amazing artworks particularly her happy-looking Pete Cromer bird were appreciated by the St Agnes’ community!

St Agnes’ Christmas Carols - Wednesday 7th December - 6.30pm

Next Wednesday 7th December is our annual Christmas Carols event. There has been plenty of musical action in the classrooms this past week as the children and staff prepare. This is another whole school event, so it is expected the children are in attendance. The event will be held in the central courtyard of the school and it will be a picnic style event, so please pack a picnic rug or deck chair to sit on. In the event of inclement weather, we will move to the church. We ask that the children arrive from 6.15pm, for a 6.30pm start and head straight to their classroom to meet their teachers and prepare. To start the show, the students from Prep, Year 1 and Year 2 will perform a dramatisation of the nativity story, called 

'Straw and Order’. This will be followed by the Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 students performing traditional and modern Christmas Carols. Our staff have sent home some details for what we would like the Prep-Year 2 students to be wearing for 'Straw and Order'. The Year 3-6 students can come dressed in ‘Christmas colours’ and a santa hat or tinsel! 

Semester Two Reports

Semester Two reports will be sent home with the children on Friday 9th December as a hard copy. The reports will also be made available electronically via the nForma Parent Portal, which will be emailed to parents that same day. The reports are a summary for the child’s learning achievements and areas for improvement from the second half of this year. The report contains two main sections; achievement indicators and teacher comments. The achievement indicators show where your child is working in relation to the Victorian Curriculum. Your children’s achievements are measured against the Victorian Curriculum standards and are not a ranking or comparison with other children. The achievement indicators should be viewed in conjunction with the comments on the final page of the report to provide context. I am currently in the middle of reading all student’s reports and I am very proud of the achievements of our students this year. I would like to thank the teachers for the time and effort placed into preparing these reports for every child in their class.

End of Year and Graduation Liturgy - Wednesday 14th December - 6pm

The final event of the school year is the End of Year and Graduation Liturgy. At this liturgy we will celebrate the 2022 school year as a whole school community. Again, we ask that all children are present for this event and dressed in full summer school uniform. It will also be the time to farewell our Year 6 cohort, as they graduate from primary school. All year levels will be involved in the liturgy in some capacity. Following the liturgy, Year Six students and their parents will move over to the hall for dinner, speeches and further celebrations.

Renovation Project

Our renovation continues to progress and it is very exciting to see our new/updated learning spaces start to take shape. In the photos below, you can see the improved natural light and breakout spaces starting to be created.

Christmas Appeal

This semester, students further explored the Catholic Social Teaching principles of ‘Solidarity’ and ‘Preferential Option for the Poor’. Students have also been learning about Advent and explored the meaning of this liturgical season. Advent is about reflecting on how we can prepare our hearts and homes for Christ’s birth. It is a time for faith communities and families to remember, through prayer, reflections and good deeds, what the true meaning of Jesus’ birth is. As part of our learning, we would like to take action and be involved in the Christmas Appeal. Most children have a wish list each Christmas, but many families are unable to afford to put any gifts under the tree. By allowing these parents to choose their own gift for their child, we can uphold their dignity and bring joy to Christmas morning. For this reason, we would like to raise money or collect gift cards from Woolworths and/or Coles. All donations will be passed directly to our local Mini Vinnies charter. Next week, students will create Christmas cards for those families under the care of our local Mini Vinnies charter. These cards will be distributed to the families, along with our donations. The Mini Vinnies will be collecting the donations every morning next week.

If you are in a position to donate, we welcome your contributions of any size. We would like to thank you, in advance, for your generosity.

The Social Justice Captains and Mini Vinnies

Callan Duddy - National Athletics Championships

Again we offer a massive congratulations to Callan Duddy who once again represented his state at the National Athletics Championships in Brisbane a little over a week ago. Callan competed in four events - He finished 2nd in the nation for the Combined Event (like a pentathlon - 100m, long jump, shot put, 800m), 14th in 100m Sprint, 13th in 1500m run and 4th in 4x100m relay. It’s been a big year for Callan in representing his school, state and family. We are very proud of your efforts Callan, well done.

2023 Staffing

I understand that some parents are eager to know our staffing structures for 2023. We still have a few minor ‘pieces of the puzzle’ to put together, but we expect to have them finalised next week and will communicate this as soon as it is all in place.

School Advisory Council AGM

Last night, our School Advisory Council (SAC) met for the final time in 2022, with the Annual General Meeting. Throughout the year, this advisory group has met to provide a parent voice and support the schoo’ls improvement. We are very grateful to all members of the SAC for their contribution this year. I would like to thank outgoing SAC members Sally Forbes and Rob Stewart for their contribution to this group over the last three years. In 2023, Josh Ryan, Felicity Langley and Fiona Newington will join the School Advisory Council and we look forward to welcoming them. Please find attached, the Annual School Advisory Council Chair Report from our Chair, Anton Duddy.

2023 Orientation Morning

Students will spend the morning with the 2022 Class Teacher on Friday 9th December, from 9-11am.

Year Six Excursion to Luna Park - Friday 9th December

Our Year Six students are pumped to go to Luna Park for their end-of-year celebration with their peers and teachers. This will include a special lunch and is a great tradition of our school. More information sent via Operoo.

Year Six Final Assembly

On Wednesday 7th December, we will celebrate the Year Six children at their final assembly in the Church. There will be a time for students to share a memory or two and for some ‘questions without notice’.

Conclusion to 2022 School Year

The 2022 school year will conclude on Wednesday 14th December at 3:25pm for the Year 6 children and on Thursday 15th December at 1:30pm for the Prep-Year 5 children.

Commencement of 2023 School Year

The school year for students in Years 1 to 6 commences on Monday 30th January at 8:45am and for Prep on Tuesday 31st January at 8:45am.

Important Dates for 2023

Term Dates for 2023

Term One: Monday 30th January - Thursday 6th April

Term Two: Monday 24th April - Friday 23rd June

Term Three: Monday 10th July - Friday 15th September

Term Four: Monday 2nd October - Tuesday 19th December

Term One 2023

Parent Information Night: Tuesday 7th February

Parent Teacher Exchange Sessions: Tuesday 14th February

School Closure Days: Thursday 9th and Friday 10th March

St Agnes’ Production: Expected to be late Term Three, date to be confirmed

Graduation for Year 6 2021- Monday 18th December

Camp Dates -2023

Year 3 Zoo Snooze - To be confirmed

Year 4 Summit Camp - Wednesday 1st - Friday 3rd November

Year 5/6 Canberra Camp - Monday 20th - Friday 24th February

Assembly

For the duration of the renovation project, Wednesday afternoon assemblies will be held in the church from 2.40pm. Parents are welcome to attend. We will continue to have class presentations, awards, birthdays and special announcements each week.

Wednesday 30th Nov - Year 3-4 Camp Report

Wednesday 7th Dec - Year 6 Final Assembly

Wednesday 14th Dec - No assembly

Enjoy the rest of the week.

Kind regards,

Lachie.