PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Welcome back to all parents and families to St Agnes’ School for the 2023 school year. I hope everyone is feeling relaxed, refreshed and ready for another year of learning, growth and community. It has been an incredibly smooth start to the school year, with the Prep students yesterday joining the Year 1-6 students at school. I would like to extend a warm welcome to our new families who have joined the school, both in Prep and across other year levels.

The newsletter is the main communication tool used by the school to share information and celebrate student learning, improvement initiatives and community events. It is an online newsletter and distributed fortnightly on a Wednesday afternoon, via email. The newsletter also outlines the specific procedures and expectations in our school. Schools are very busy places and we are a tight-knit community, so if you ever have any questions, please ask a fellow parent or feel free to contact the school office. This newsletter is a long one, so get yourself a cup of tea, have your family calendar handy and make note of anything significant. There is a short description of all Term 1 events at the end of this newsletter.

Firstly though, I would like to thank our staff who have worked over the break and throughout the last week to prepare our school for the new year. There is much to organise from an administrative point of view to ensure the school is ready for commencement. This year, we have welcomed three new staff and two returning staff:

• Nicci Murdoch (Year 3)
• Tracey Law (Year 4)
• Georgia Pafumi (LSO)
• Josie Miller (Returning - Year 5/6)
• Julie Grace (Returning - Visual Arts)

For our teachers and staff, the most important thing at this time of year is establishing relationships and routine with the students. Schools and classrooms are ‘communities’ in themselves and, to ensure a high level of productivity, it is vital that strong, positive and respectful relationships are fostered between students and with staff. At St Agnes’, we believe that if we set and communicate high expectations of learning and behaviour, students will rise to meet these expectations. This year, we are re-implementing a Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) program called Respectful Relationships to assist our students establishing meaningful connections with their teachers and fellow students. The first area of focus is on Emotional Literacy. Research shows that students who participate in rigorously designed and well-taught SEL programs demonstrate more positive social behaviour, are less likely to engage in risky and disruptive behaviour, and show improved academic outcomes. A part of this is building a large vocabulary for emotions to increase emotional literacy, strengthening self-awareness and empathy for others.

I have had many parents ask me about the progress of our refurbishment project, its progress and expected completion. Our builders have been very busy since early January and are making significant progress. We are expecting completion in Term 2, but if I learnt one thing when renovating my house, there are many uncertainties in construction. I will update families when we get closer to the finish line. Below are some photos to give you some insight into the current state of play. I am most excited about the size of the spaces, the height of the ceilings and the flexibility it will offer our staff and students.

School Production

This year we will be holding a school production (musical), to be performed over two nights, midweek, late in Term 3. We are currently confirming the dates and the show to be performed. Our senior students will fill the roles in the main cast, with all other year levels appearing on stage for specific songs. This is a whole school event and all students are expected to participate. Please avoid booking holidays at this time.

Parking, entry and exit on school grounds

At St Agnes’, we are lucky in that our school gates are located on quiet suburban streets. However, at drop off and pick up times, these streets get busier. I urge all parents to please be patient and careful at these times please. It is important that all members of our community adhere to the road rules and parking restrictions. With a building project in full swing, parking is limited and, from time to time, council officers will enforce these restrictions.

Entry to our school:

• There are two entry and exit points at our school for drop off and pick up: the gates on Peterson Street and Locinda Street. 
• These gates are supervised from 8.30am to 8.45am and from 3.25pm to 3.40pm. After 8.45am, the only access to the school is via the main reception on Peterson Street. All other gates will be locked.
• I would like to remind families that children are not to play ball games or on the adventure playgrounds after school. This is a safety requirement and also as staff need to make sure all children are accounted for before completing their after school duties.
• Parents/grandparents are asked not to drive through or park in the staff car park at drop off and pick up. This is dangerous with students/families walking through here.
• If riding a bike or scooter to school, the children are to dismount at the gate to ensure the safety of others. 

Uniform

As most parents would know, we have high standards for our school uniform and these standards are maintained by staff and leadership at the school. After a transition year in 2022, the v-neck jumper now becomes a compulsory part of the school uniform. The navy bomber jacket is to be worn with the sports uniform only, on PE and class sport days. If your child does not have a v-neck jumper, please visit Noone Imagewear on Hampton Street. Year 6 students are not required to have the v-neck as their Year 6 rugby jumpers will arrive soon and can be worn in place of this. 

Girls’ hair - Girls must have their hair tied back if it is longer than shoulder length. The tiebacks should be predominantly the school colours please.

Boys’ hair - Boys need to make sure their hair is above their shirt collar.

School hats - Children are expected to wear the school hat (and no other hat) during Terms 1 and 4.

Student mobile phones and watches

I would strongly encourage families to send students to school without their mobile phones. If they need to be brought, the phones must be turned off before they enter the gate and dropped off at the front office. Phones are not to be turned on again until they exit the gate at the end of the day. Parents who need to contact their child can do so by contacting the school office. If a phone or watch is found to be on or used at school by a student, that device will be confiscated. Those children who have watches that receive messages or phone calls need to either turn off the notifications or leave the watch at home. These devices can become a distraction in the classroom and we are seeking to minimise these distractions.

Dogs on school grounds

For the safety of all students, staff and families, dogs are not permitted on school grounds at any time. If walking your dog to or from school, we ask that you leave it tied up outside of the school.

Parent Information Night, Class Newsletters and Parent/Teacher Exchanges

Over the next two weeks, we have a number of opportunities to establish clarity and open lines of communication between teachers and parents:

• On Tuesday, 7th February from 7.00pm to 8.00pm, we have our Parent Information Night. We ask that at least one parent attends this important information sharing session around learning and routines for your child’s year level. This session is held in the classrooms and the Term 1 Class Newsletter will be distributed at this event.
• On Tuesday 14th February, we have our Parent/Teacher Exchanges. These meetings are an opportunity for you, as parents, to tell us about your child’s strengths, passions, social competencies and areas to be worked on. The website to access the booking is https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/code/f86x4 The code for the event is: f86x4. The children will finish school at 1:00pm on this day to allow the staff to commence the interviews at 1:30pm. We prefer face-to-face meetings, but teachers can be contacted to organise a Google Meet should it be necessary. To Book your time please click below

Year 6 leadership roles

Our Year 6s are busily writing letters of application and speeches for their 2023 leadership roles. Their speeches will be presented to Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 students and staff on Wednesday, 8th February from 9am in the Grade 5/6 classrooms . This is a special occasion for our students, so parents are welcome to come along and watch. The positions will be announced at Assembly on Wednesday, 15th February. There will also be elections for SRC and Mini Vinnies leaders for each class in the next few weeks.

Swimming trails and training

On Tuesday morning this week, the first of three swimming training sessions took place for our school swimming team, who will compete in the SSV District Swimming on Friday, 17th March. All students from Years 3 to 6 are invited and encouraged to attend the swimming training and be part of our team. An Operoo form was sent at the end of last year. The next training session is at 7.15am on Tuesday, 7th February. If you have any questions, please contact Simon Kost (skost@sahighett.catholic.edu.au).

Parent Helper Course

This year, we again welcome the support of parents to assist in our Prep and Year 1 classrooms during the morning literacy block. You will enjoy participating in your children’s education – we are in partnership with you and your support is invaluable. All parents are welcome to help. We require that all helpers assisting in the classrooms are fully trained and have current a Working with Children Check, which must be uploaded to your child's Operoo profile prior to the commencement of the training sessions. We need helpers from 9am to 11am each day. There will be a compulsory training session (approximately 1 hour) for all new Prep parent helpers and any new helpers in Year 1. The training session will be run by Amanda Baker (Junior School Leader) in the Art room(hall) on Friday, 24th February at 9.00am. Please contact Amanda (bakeram@sahighett.catholic.edu.au) to confirm your interest.

P&F Whole School Welcome Picnic - evening of Friday, 24th February

The P&F are currently finalising a new-look Welcome Picnic this year. More information will be communicated in the coming week, but please mark this important date in your calendar!

Open Days and School Tours

We are very grateful to all of our parents for advocating for our school in the local community. We have had a number of enquiries over the holidays for Prep in 2024, which is a really positive sign for our school. This year, we will be holding four Open Days, where prospective families can come and tour our school to see and hear from the students and staff. The dates for school tours are below:

• Wednesday, 1st March
• Wednesday, 29th March
• Wednesday, 3rd May
• Wednesday, 31st May

2024 sibling enrolments

We are asking those current families to complete the enrolment process for any siblings who will join our school in Prep in 2024. We are expecting a large sibling cohort, so we need all families to enrol as soon as possible so we know how many places we have to offer new families. Forms can be downloaded from our website or you can pick one up from the office.

Before and after school care - Monday and Tuesday

Extend are currently offering before school care on Monday and Tuesday mornings and after school care every day. Please complete your enrolment and bookings via https://www.extend.com.au/school/st-agnes-primary-school/

Term 1 school fees

2023 school fee invoices will be sent out in the coming week. Please be on the lookout for these invoices and ensure payment is made promptly to avoid late payment fees. Please see Shannon in the office if you would like to set up a payment plan.

Newsletter distribution list

The school newsletter is emailed to all families on a Wednesday via the address provided on Operoo. Please contact Naomi (nfield@sahighett.catholic.edu.au) in the office if you required additional email addresses to be added to the list.

Cybersafety Use Agreement

This week, the Cybersafety Use Agreement was emailed to all families to be read, discussed and signed. It is an opportunity to revisit rules and expectations around device use in your family. The students spend time on devices at school and this agreement must be signed before students can use school devices. This continues to be an area of concern as there has been an increase in peer conflict between children that originates in online forums, as children are becoming active online at a younger age.

Extra curricular classes

This year, we will continue with extra curricular offerings in the school, with the addition of a Wellbeing specialist class. On Wednesday, our Student Wellbeing Leader, Anthea Georgiou will head into classrooms to work on social skills and mindfulness. Other specialist programs remain the same and will occur on the following days:

• Italian with Signora Talarico- Tuesday
• Physical Education with Mr Kost - Tuesday
• Wellbeing with Mrs Georgiou - Wednesday
• Visual Arts with Mrs Grace - Thursday
• Performing Arts with Mrs Gugliuciello - Thursday

Classroom teachers will communicate class sport days at the Parent Information Night next week.

Sacraments

Please see below, the dates for our Sacraments in 2023:

Sacrament of Reconciliation (Year 3)

Family Faith Night - Wednesday, 1st March, 7.00pm

Reflection Day - Thursday, 23rd March

Sacrament of Reconciliation Paraliturgy - Wednesday, 29th March, 6.30pm

Sacrament of First Eucharist (Year 4)

Family Faith Night - Wednesday, 19th July, 7.00pm

Reflection Day - Thursday, 17th August

First Eucharist Mass 1 - Saturday, 19th August, 6.00pm

First Eucharist Mass 2 - Saturday, 26th August, 6.00pm

Sacrament of Confirmation (Year 6)

Family Faith Night - Wednesday, 16th August, 6:00pm

Reflection Day - To be confirmed

Sacrament of Confirmation Mass - Saturday, 9th September, 6:00pm

Tuckshop

Tuckshop will commence on Friday, 10th February and orders can be placed online at https://www.salutecatering.com.au/tuckshop using the code: lunch2023 

St Agnes’ Dads’ Night - Pot and Parma - Thursday 23rd March

We are aiming to establish a St Agnes’ group to strengthen connection amongst St Agnes’ fathers and father figures. We are aiming to have a ‘Pot and Parma’ night on Thursday, 23rd March. We need some fathers and carers to help organise this. If you are interested in being part of leading this initiative, please contact Lachie Foott (lfoott@sahighett.catholic.edu.au). 

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.

Wed 1st Feb - No class item

Wed 8th Feb - No class item

Wed 15th Feb - Year 2

Wed 22nd Feb - No Assembly

Wed 1st March - Year 5/6

Wed 8th March - Year 3

Wed 15th March - Year 4

Wed 22nd March - Year Six Leaders

Wed 29th March - Year 1

Wed 5th April - Prep

Looking forward to a great year!

Kind regards,

Lachie