PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Dear Parents and Carers,

This time of year is always a very ‘dynamic’ time in schools. Teachers are in the middle of assessment/reporting processes in order to celebrate the achievements of our students. The children have completed an array of assessments, both online and written, to showcase their capacity in the various areas of the curriculum. Once assessments are completed, our staff work hard at analysing the data collected to identify each child’s achievement against the Victorian Curriculum. It is important for all parents and carers to note that the upcoming Semester Two report provides an insight into how your child is progressing against the curriculum standards, not in comparison with other students in their class. Student achievement is reported on a five point scale ranging from Well Below Standard, to Below Standard, At Standard, Above Standard and Well Above Standard. This will be presented in tabular form and the achievement indicators should be read in conjunction with the comments and work habits. There will be areas to acknowledge achievement and there will also be areas highlighted for improvement. The report is written to parents, not students, but we do recommend reading it with your child to help them understand it. We expect our staff to provide comments that are personalised and reflect the achievements and areas for improvement for each individual. This week, our classroom teachers are all afforded a ‘Report Writing Day’, where our specialist teachers and members of the leadership team step into the classrooms for a day to ensure there is adequate time to complete this important work. I would like to thank our specialist teachers and leadership team for contributing in this manner to the process. It can be a very stressful time of year for teachers, but as always, our staff continue to handle everything they do with a high level of professionalism. Hard copies of your child's report will be sent home on Friday, 8th December, with the eldest child in your family. Electronic copies will also be available through nForma Parent Portal which we suggestyou download and save for the future. Should you have any questions about the report, please contact your child’s teacher in the week following.

Alongside assessment and reporting, we are busily preparing for end-of-year events such as Grandparent's Day, Swimming Carnival and Christmas Carols. There is much to look forward to over the next four weeks; it is hard to believe there are only 21 school days left in the year. You will notice the children will start to tire as the weather heats up and the school gets busier over the final weeks. Please be mindful of this by maintaining routine in your households to ensure your children are getting enough sleep (9-11 hours each night). At school, our staff will continue to sustain learning patterns late into the school year to ensure students are engaged and still making progress.

Grandparent's Day - Thursday 23rd November

After a very successful first event in 2023, Grandparent's and Special Friend's Day returns in 2024. All grandparents and special friends are invited to attend a whole school liturgy in the church on this day at 9am. The children are busily preparing songs and activities to share. We will also hear from one of the special grandparents from our school community. Following the liturgy, grandparents and special friends are invited to come over to the classrooms to spend some time with the children, sharing in their learning while enjoying a cuppa and biscuit. All children are encouraged to invite grandparents where possible and, if not, a special friend (parent or other family member/friend) is invited to attend in their place. One of the incredible things about our community is that we know all children will include their friends during this morning. It is something we have spoken about with the children as a whole school and it would be great if you could also encourage this at home!

Book Fair

From Monday 20th to Thursday 23rd November, the Book Fair will be operating in our school. It will be located in the spare (Year 5) classroom downstairs, near the administration building. This is a wonderful opportunity to refresh home libraries with new and exciting literature for your children to enjoy. The children will visit the Book Fair during Library time to compile ‘Wish Lists’ and you will be able to pop in before or after school to make purchases. Thank you to Lynn Miller and our Library Captains for bringing this to life once again at St Agnes’.

Year 3 Camp

Mid afternoon yesterday, our Year 3 campers and their teachers arrived home from Zoo Snooze. This camp is an overnight stay at Melbourne Zoo, in a purpose-built camp facility, tucked away in the Eastern corner of the zoo. The children eat their meals in the old elephant enclosure, go on a night tour of the zoo and then spend the following morning learning about the different species of animals. We were very pleased to hear about the outstanding attitude and behaviour of our students while away on camp! Thank you very much to Mrs Nicci Murdoch and Mrs Lisa Hampson for giving up their time to go to camp with the children. This completes our camp offering for the year and we look forward to Year 5/6 Arribri Camp in Week 1 of 2024.

Parents and Friends Committee AGM

Last night, the Parents and Friends Committee held its Annual General Meeting. The AGM is always an important time for ‘toasting’ the hard work of this very committed parent body. Events such as Mother’s and Father’s Day Breakfasts, the student disco, Great Gatsby Casino Night and the walkathon are examples of the wonderful contribution made by these parent volunteers. On behalf of the school community, I would like to thank our Executive Team of 2024: President Georgia Sotiroski, Secretary Lauren Karpathakis, Treasurer Bree Walsh and Class Representative Coordinator Sally Forbes. I would also like to thank our Class Reps for their efforts throughout the year in communication and liaising with the wider parent cohorts of each year level. We also need to celebrate Ewa Mazur and Sinead Hawkins for providing ease of access to our second hand uniform shop. By the end of the year, our P&F will have raised $15,000 in support of the schools. This money will be ‘saved’ for the redevelopment of our asphalt area. Our Executive Team will continue in their roles for 2024 and we look forward to another great year, especially supporting the Fete Committee to bring our Fete to life in March.

We are still searching for Class Reps for 2024 and are aiming to have two reps in each year level. We are particularly struggling for our 2024 Year 1 and Year 5 cohorts. If you are able to assist in this area, please contact Sally Forbes (OwenSally@hotmail.com). Finally, thank you to all families for your support of the P&F initiatives throughout the year. It really does make our community a special one to be part of. Our core P&F team, including the Exec, Class Reps and Uniform Shop helpers all gathered together after the AGM last night to celebrate a terrific 2023.

School Advisory Council AGM

On Tuesday , 21st November from 7.00-7.45pm, our School Advisory Council will be holding its Annual General Meeting. The meeting will be held at school and there will be a report from the Chair Anton Duddy, a report from me as Principal, some thank yous and election of new members and office bearers. All parents are invited to attend this meeting. We are calling for nominations from parents who would like to be considered for nomination. The SAC meets 6-8 times a year and provides advice to the Principal around education and community. The role of the School Advisory Council (SAC) is to advise the Principal. The SAC aims to work in the best interests of the St Agnes’ community and to assist and foster the growth and development of Catholic Education in Highett. Members are also responsible for communicating new developments and progress reports to the school community. Membership on the Council (except Ex Officio) is for an initial period of two (2) years, with renomination for a further term of 2 (two) years allowed. Please feel free to speak to me or if you would like to discuss what the role involves.

All-Star Regional Finals - Year 3/4

Today, our Year 3/4 Boys Basketball team attended the Regional Finals at Waverley Basketball Stadium and had a great day. They won their last game by 1 point and competed with a terrific spirit throughout all their games for the day. We would like to thank Mr Kost for his organisation of the day, Michael Zakhem for helping to coach the boys, and to all parents for transporting the children.

St Joseph’s Black Rock Transition Day - Friday 24th November

As many of you know, St Joseph’s Primary School Black Rock is unfortunately closing at the end of 2023. On Friday 24th November, the students attending St Agnes’ from 2024 will be spending the day with their cohorts for next year. The aim of this day is for the children to begin developing social connections with their peers prior to commencement in 2024. St Agnes’ P&F will host a morning tea on this day (9.00am-9.30am) in our hall for the parents of these children and I encourage anyone who is available to come along to this small welcoming event. These students will also return for our 2024 Orientation Day on Friday 8th December, the day everyone spends time with their new teacher. Thank you in advance for welcoming these children and families to our school community.

School Closure Day - Monday 27th November

A reminder that the school will be closed on Monday 27th November for staff to commence planning for 2024. Extend will operate care for this day, provided a minimum number of 10 attendees are confirmed a week prior.

Year 5/6 Open Water Safety - Mordialloc SLC

Our senior students are off for two days of water safety training at Mordialloc Surf Lifesaving Club on Thursday 30th November and Friday 1st December. More information has been communicated via Operoo and I encourage all parents to read the special requirements in terms of materials for these days. Thank you to Aggie Gorski for your organisation of this terrific learning experience.

Maintenance at St Agnes’

We are currently on the lookout for a subcontractor to take charge of the regular upkeep of school buildings, grounds and maintenance at St Agnes’. This role would include general garden maintenance and also fixing minor issues with the buildings and facilities. If anyone knows of a local person who is ‘handy’ and could be a good fit, please connect them with the school. Such a person would need to maintain a Working With Children Check, provide references and have their own insurance.

School Fees

Term Four School Fees Statements were sent out earlier in the term and were due Friday 20th October. Fees are payable via EFT, cash or credit card. If you have outstanding fees, please contact Shannon immediately to organise payment (accounts@sahighett.catholic.edu.au).

Assembly

Assembly is held in the hall on a Wednesday afternoon. Parents are always welcome to attend. We continue to have class presentations, awards, birthdays and special announcements each week.

Wednesday 22nd Nov - Music Showcase

Wednesday 29th Nov - Advent Week 1 (Year 3)

Wednesday 6th Dec - Advent Week 2 (Year 4)

Wednesday 13th Dec - Advent Week 1 (Year 5) & Year 6 Final Assembly

Enjoy the rest of your week.

Kind regards,

Lachie.