Acting Principal's Message 

Dear Families,

Today we are celebrating Book Week - A Touch of Magic! It has been wonderful to see so many children and adults dressed to impress!

Tomorrow we have the Spelling Bee for the Years 3-6 students that have signed up- it is a fun event to allow students to test their spelling skills!

We have swimming next week for the Preps, Year 1s and Year 2 students, Monday-Thursday. It will be at Aquastar in Moorabbin over the day. Please remember to have your child practice changing in and out of swimwear so they are able to quickly change after swimming. They will also need all of their clothing labelled as often items get misplaced in wrong bags or left at the pool! Parents are welcome to attend the pool at the time of your childs swimming- teachers have shared that timetable. 

Book Week 2024

What a wonderful day of celebration today for Book Week. 

Thank you to Emma Strom, Holly Capomolla and Sonia Turco for all their work in organising this event and the special visit from Ben Wood, creator of "Real Pigeon". 

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys (MACSSIS)

Monday 2 September to Friday 20 September 2024.

Gaining your critical Feedback about St Andrew’s School 

Throughout each year, we pause to listen to our students, families and staff to gauge how our learning community is travelling. This feedback is invaluable to our progress as an effective school community and is backed by evidence-based research and best practices.

A significant and formal way in which we engage and gather data is through MACSSIS, the Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys.

MACSSIS is a set of surveys that have been built specifically for Catholic schools in Melbourne by the Learning Services team at MACS, in partnership with researchers at Learning First and in wide consultation with principals in our schools.

In 2024, students, families and staff are invited to participate in MACSSIS via our secure and purpose-built online platform. The online platform is where our school leaders will access the summary reports that visualise the results of the student, family and staff surveys.    All individual survey results are anonymous. 

The MACSSIS survey platform is operated by an independent supplier, ORIMA Research Pty Ltd. The platform meets with the high security and privacy standards for handling student and school data. 

Family Surveys - Family surveys will be made available to all St Andrew’s families.  Families can complete the MACSSIS survey anytime over the three-week window, (Monday 2 September to Friday 20 September 2024).    Families will be sent an email with the online survey link to access the survey along with a unique password allocated to each family.   

Staff Surveys- All staff will complete the MACSSIS survey with the same time frame as our parents. 

Student Surveys - We will advise families and students of the delivery and implementation of student surveys.

Our community’s opinions are critical to understanding how our school is performing – MACSSIS is a key data source for guiding the ongoing work to improve our school.

Participation is 100 percent voluntary. The surveys are not a test; they are an inclusive way to support the work we are already doing to improve our school. Everyone has the right to refuse to participate, or withdraw from the survey at any point before, during or after completion of the survey. Please notify the school if your child does not wish to participate.

If you would like more information, please feel welcome to contact me at nblack@saclaytonsth.catholic.edu.au

Program Support Group meetings - PSG’s - Term 3 week 7 to week 9 

Thank you you parents who have made their child's PSG appointment.  

Classes for 2025

As we plan ahead for 2025 classes, we ask any families who know that they will not be returning to St. Andrew's in 2025 to inform the school as soon as possible by clicking on the button below and filling in the form.

Parent/Child/Teacher Interviews on Monday 16th September - All grades except Prep R and 3/4T

Bookings will be open soon for the Semester 2 Parent/Child/Teacher Interviews. Interviews will be 10 minutes and held in the School Hall on Monday 16th September between 2.30pm and 7.00pm.

The booking code will be sent out to families closer to the date.

We encourage all children to be active participants in the 10 minute interviews.    This provides an opportunity for children to share their learning journey and successes with their family and to also be active responsible participants in their own learning.  

Semester 1 Parent/Child/Interviews

Prep R and Year 3/4T - Interviews will be held upon their return from leave, at the start of Term 4. 

Student Dress Code

Please be reminded that students are not permitted to wear decorative jewellery. Stud earrings, sleepers worn in the ears and watches are the only acceptable jewellery. Hair longer than shoulder length, for both boys and girls, needs to be tied back. 

Driving around the school 

We have had reports and witnessed some people choosing to drive unsafely around the school at pick up and drop off times. Please remember there are lots of young people arriving and leaving school in the morning and afternoon and road rules must be followed. 

• When using the drop and go zone on Bunney Rd, pull to the front of the area to drop off your children, you cannot park. There are no u-turns allowed both on Bunney Rd and Springs Rd.
• Please do not drive into the staff carpark or school grounds in the mornings or afternoons, these areas are not for parents and families to park. 
• We have also had feedback from neigbouring houses that parents are sometimes parking on the grass, they have asked that we do not park on the grass as it is damaging their lawn.

We ask all drivers to please keep our children safe when driving around the school.

2025 Prep Enrolments

HAVE YOU ENROLLED YOUR CHILD FOR PREP 2025? 

If you have a child ready for Prep 2025, we encourage you to please put in an enrolment form as soon as possible. This will help us with organisation purposes. To access an enrolment form:

• Visit the enrolment section of our school website and download an enrolment form 

• Drop into the school office to collect an enrolment pack
• Email office@saclaytonsth.catholic.edu.au 

2024 School Calendar 

The 2024 School Calendar is available on the School Website. It can be found mid-way down on the front page under the heading ‘WHAT’S ON’.   We will endeavour, where possible, to remain true to the dates on the 2024 calendar. We recommend that parents regularly visit the school website to see updates on all school events.

Mrs Nicole Black

(Acting Principal)