From the Acting Principal

Dear families,

We are all looking forward to seeing you all at our St Mark's Art Show and BBQ tonight! I thank our Visual Art teacher Miss Buhagiar, our Performing Arts teacher Miss Vandenberg, the Art Show Committee and school staff for the many many hours of work in preparing the creative displays of student art and musical performances that will be on show tonight. I also wish to acknowledge Bijendra (Luniva LA8) for his support with the music and sound equipment.

Art Show opens at 4:00pm in the St Mark's Hall

Silent Auctions, door prizes, musical perfomances and plenty of creativity on show!

Parents will be expected to collect and supervise their children from the end of the school day onwards at 3:30pm, during the family picnic and Art Show. 

All students in attendance must have a supervising adult with them.

A big thankyou also to our KidsMatter team and parent volunteers for providing the BBQ and cold drinks for sale tonight!

We can't have these school events without the efforts of everyone - so thankyou!

Please enjoy the BBQ, a cold drink and wander through to view the amazing works and musical talent on display. 

The Art Show is open from 4:00-7:00pm but there is no expectation to stay the whole time.

Students will collect their art peices after assembly tomorrow.

Changes to MySchool Connect (MSC) payment options

As card payment surcharges have been abolished on Visa, Mastercard, and other consumer card payments, MySchoolConnect have updated the way that fees are applied on their platform. This new pricing structure has been in effect since 1 October 2026. 

What does this mean for our families using the platform for online Canteen orders?

• All funds added to the MSC parent wallet will incur a $1.50 service fee per transaction.
• Credit card or bank transfer is still an option to top up your MSC balance/parent wallet.
• Parents cannot use credit card at checkout.
• There is an increase to the order fee from 0.33c to 0.48c per student per day.

Term 4 Summer Uniform -  All students are to wear Summer Uniform from the start of last week, Monday October 12th. Please see below the Summer Uniform items. Don't forget the approved St Mark's blue school hat with logo! It has been great to see so many students demonstrating sun safe practices by wearing their hats already!

Uniform items and pricelist

Click here for click and collect, delivery or instore

Planning for 2027 - over the next few weeks, we will begin to develop our class groupings for 2026. Please contact me (Claire) in writing at principal@smfawkner.catholic.edu.au with any information for your child's class placement for 2027 that you would like us to be aware of. This information is confidential and is a consideration when we follow our processes to create balanced class groupings to meet the social, academic and behavioural needs of all learners at St Mark's.

We also need to know if any students (other than Gr 6’s) will be leaving St Mark’s at the end of 2026. If your child will not be returning to St Mark’s in 2027 can you please inform me also in writing at principal@smfawkner.catholic.edu.au as soon as possible.

Family holidays and students' extended absences

The Attendance Policy and guidelines for MACS Schools outlines that family holidays and extended absences during school term dates require Principals approval. Parents and Carers are encouraged to plan holidays for students during school holiday periods and pupil free days. However, if your child/ren will be away from school for an extended period of time, please email their teacher, together with Ms Claire White - Acting Principal (principal@smfawkner.catholic.edu.au) in advance, for these days away from school to be considered an approved absence. 

Assemblies - Assemblies in Term 4 are at 9:00am where we acknowledge the Learners of the Week and student Birthdays. All details are included on the Dates to Remember page, including our Advent Liturgies in December. Families are invited and encouraged to attend our weekly assembly to support the children, and engage in the wonderful learning that happens here. This weeks assembly will be hosted by the Preps and we will also draw the Art Show door prize.

Dates to Remember - all the the Term Dates and School Closure days have been published on the Dates to Remember page since the start of the year. Add these to your diary! The events and special days for Term 4 have been added. These are added to and updated each fortnight. 

Staff leave updates and arrangements -Mrs Daniela Lazzaro is currently on Long Service Leave until Week 7. Mrs Barbanera will teach LA7 on a Monday and one of our regular Relief teachers will cover the Fridays. Our PE Specialist Program will be covered by some of our exisiting Part Time staff members.  Ms Dorothy Mash is also on leave this week to celebrate a special birthday and will return in Week 4.

School fees - final statements were sent home to families last week. Thankyou to the families who have been able to finalise their outstanding fees. All fees are to be paid in full by the 31st of October. If you are unable to meet your fee obligations or wish to arrange a payment plan, please contact me via email or the Office to discuss possible arrangements as soon as possible please. Email: principal@smfawkner.catholic.edu.au

Before School Supervision – A Gentle Reminder

The safety and wellbeing of all our students is always our highest priority at St Mark's. We kindly remind families that staff supervision begins at 8:30am each morning. We have noticed that some students are being dropped off alone at the Lee St and Argyle St school gates before this time and left to wait independently.

While we understand that mornings can be busy for families, we ask that students are not left unattended at the school gate prior to 8:30am, as staff are not yet on duty to ensure their safety and wellbeing.

If you arrive before 8:30am, we ask that you please remain with your child until supervision commences. Families requiring an earlier drop-off are encouraged to make use of our Before School Care service.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation in helping us maintain a safe and caring environment for all the children.

REMINDER!

There is a School closure day coming up!

Monday 2nd November 

OSHC available

Ms Claire White - Acting Principal and Learning & Teaching/Literacy Leader

claire.white@smfawkner.catholic.edu.au

‘The St Mark’s Catholic Primary School, Fawkner Community promotes the safety, wellbeing and inclusion of all children.’

St Mark’s Catholic Primary School respectfully acknowledges the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation, who are the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we live, learn, work and play. We pay our respect to their Elders past, present and emerging.